Mitsy laughed, releasing her grip on me for the first time. “Yes. Sorry. The Conalls…we’re all family, and Bri and I have been best friends a long time. I’m just happy for all of us to be in the same place. Plus…I’m glad to have some extra hands to help with this sudden gathering.”
“Understandably so. I’ll be happy to help in any way that you need me to.”
“Thank you. And now…” she pointed in Eoghanan’s direction, “I’ll release you for a while.”
She flittered away quickly, and I made my way over to Eoghanan who, much to my surprise, gathered me up in his arms and kissed me rather thoroughly.
“Well, good morning to you, too.” I laced my fingers with his as he led me away from the crowd, back inside the castle.
“Aye, ’tis a wonderful morning. Though, I’m afraid I’ve some unfortunate news.”
Dread settled immediately in my gut. “What?”
He twirled a strand of my hair. “Doona look so worried, lass. ’Tis nothing all that bad. I’ll be away tomorrow—down to the village to fetch supplies for the gathering. I expect the lassies will need yer help here.”
“Oh, I don’t mind helping. I already told Mitsy I’d do whatever they need me to.”
“Aye, ye say that now, but ye doona yet know all the women who will be leading the charge around here tomorrow. No only me mother, but also Rhona, our head maid and a lifelong resident of this castle. And if I know the Conalls, their Mary will be anxious to take charge of something. And they’ll need her help, I’m no saying that, ’tis only that if Mary helps, then Adelle will jump in just to aggravate her.”
“Sounds like you’ve been around them a lot.”
He shook his head. “No all that much truthfully, but it doesna take verra long to see how a group of headstrong women behave when ye put them all to task on the same thing. ’Tis a powerful but frightening force.”
Chapter 30
McMillan Territory Village
“I am pleased to see ye doing so well, cousin. The blade wound was such that only one with Morna’s powers could heal it.”
Eoghanan rode next to Eoin Conall, his cousin on his mother’s side, and shuddered thinking back on that night. Death had meant little to him then, but now he had much more to lose. The knowledge that death had been so close to him only a few months prior still made him uneasy. He couldn’t imagine never having had the chance to know Grace or her bonny son.
“Aye, I am verra glad as well. I owe the witch a great debt.”
“I doubt Morna sees it that way.”
Eoghanan nodded. “I know that she doesna, but it makes me feel no less indebted.”
“Whoa, buddy! Whoa….Whoa…are you trying to make me fall off you? ’Cause you’re doing a good job.”
Cooper’s voice from a short distance in front of him caught Eoghanan’s attention. Giving his own horse a nudge, Eoghanan rode to catch up with him. When Cooper had insisted on having his own horse, they’d given him the oldest, gentlest beast in their stables. The horse was doing nothing to dismount Cooper, barely moving at a slow trot.
Still, Cooper had both arms wrapped around his horse’s neck, his little chest pressed flat against the horse’s mane.
“Have ye no ever ridden a horse before, Cooper?”
The child lifted his head just slightly, still maintaining his tight grip on the creature’s neck.
“Of course, I haven’t. I’m a city boy. Born and raised in NYC. The only horses I’ve ever seen were pulling those buggy things for tourists.”
Eoghanan didn’t know half of what the lad meant, but he believed that he’d not seen many horses. “Would ye like to ride with me, lad?”
“No. I gotta learn if I’m gonna live here, don’t I?”
It pleased Eoghanan to no end that Cooper knew his parents planned to stay here. It made it seem more certain, more real. “Aye, ye will need to learn, but it doesna have to be today if ye doona wish it. I can teach ye back at the castle, when there are no so many others around.”
Cooper shook his head, determined to keep going. “No, I don’t care if they watch. It’ll just take me a little time to get used to it.”
“I admire yer stubbornness, Cooper. Look,” he pointed to the edge of the village in front of them. “We are almost there. I’ll ride beside ye to the village edge, where we will dismount and tie up our horses.”
“Okay,” Cooper lifted his chest, testing out his balance now that someone was there to aid in the case of a fall. “If you insist.”
*
The young witch Jinty watched with disbelieving eyes at the group of men approaching the village. She remained shaded amongst the trees. The men wouldn’t know who she was or what role she’d played in the destruction of their family. Still, better not to be seen.