CHAPTER 15
Skye’s bathwatersat cooling in the tub. Presumably, a maid would be back to empty it. She didn’t envy the poor woman the job of emptying the tub, bucket by bucket.
Wet footsteps tracked her progress from her neat little washroom back into the main living area of her room. The drying sheets were warm, fluffy, and large enough to wrap easily around her.
The bath had done her a world of good. She felt luxurious, her skin warm, soft, and, more importantly,clean. She sniffed her skin, breathing in lavender and rose petals, both of which had been scattered in the water. Her hair hung damply down her back, scrubbed free of the grime and sweat it had accumulated.
If this is a guest room,she thought, shrugging off the drying sheet and wrapping a robe around herself,then what do the Laird and Lady’s chambers look like?
She paused, hoping for a tendril of memory to appear and enlighten her, but nothing came.
Oh, well. Worth a try.
The room was sumptuous. A velvet-covered bed sat in one corner, wide and warm and inviting. There was a real chance of her getting lost in those blankets during the night.
Furniture was scattered tastefully here and there, providing an obvious sitting area and even a dining area with a well-polished table. A large fire crackled in the hearth, inviting her to come and sit beside it and soak in the heat. Her skin prickled.
She was just wondering if she should try some of the wine left out in a jug on the table—alongside a platter of fruit, cheese, and bread—when a knock sounded at the door, making her jump.
Pausing to grip the drooping neckline of her robe, she stepped tentatively toward the door. “Who is it?”
“It’s me, Lady Bryden. The healer. Ye were meant to come to me.”
Skye winced. “Ah, of course. Me maither told me to visit ye, but I got distracted.”
She unlocked the door and swung it open.
A young woman of about twenty-five or so stood there. She had pale skin and pale hair, with a high forehead and sandy eyebrows. A spray of freckles broke out over her nose, and patches of pink showed where her delicate skin had been sunburned. The only real splash of color came from her eyes, large and bright blue. She wore a rough, much-darned olive-colored dress, the sort of gown healers wore.
All in all, she gave off the same competent, no-nonsense energy that most healers did, a tired look in her eyes hinting that she’d seen everything, done everything at least twice, and she was sick of it all.
A battered leather belt sat low on her hips, heavy with pouches and hooks. Skye spotted a particularly shaped hook.
Abruptly, a memory swept over her. She remembered this woman telling her what the hook was for.
Matching hooks were sewn into the underside of the hem, so when a healer was trudging through mud, water, or thick undergrowth, she could lift up her long skirts and clip the two hooks together, fastening them securely to keep her skirts flapping around her knees, her legs free to move.
Her gaze flew back up to the healer’s face.
The healer was staring at her intently, her pale eyebrows drawn together. A hopeful look sparked in her eyes.
“We kent each other before we left,” she said abruptly. “We were friends, or so I liked to think. I ken yer memories havenae returned, but?—”
“Leah,” Skye whispered. “Ye are Leah.”
Leah’s cornflower-blue eyes widened, and then delight swept over her face. “Ye remember me? Ye remember me!”
“I… I think I do,” Skye laughed. “But me memory is spotty, it’s—” She broke off as Leah lunged forward and wrapped her arms tight around Skye.
“I’m so glad,” Leah breathed. “I’ve been so worried about ye. We all have. But ye are here now, ye aresafe, and that’s all that matters.” She pulled back, holding Skye at arm’s length, and gave her a brisk once-over. “How do ye feel? Woozy? Confused? Overwhelmed?”
“All of those things.” Skye chuckled, shaking her head. “Ye are squeezing me to death.”
Leah winced, dropping her arms. “Sorry, lass. I’ve been waiting for ye in the healer’s chambers.”
“I’m nae sure I could have found them even if I had remembered to visit ye,” Skye admitted. “Me head has been all over the place. I daenae understand any of this. Here, would ye like to come in?”
Leah nodded, and Skye stepped back, gesturing for her to enter.
