“Just what do ye think ye are doing, Eoghanan? I wouldna leave ye to watch over a toad. I trusted ye once and it ended with me wife dead. I doona trust ye with women that belong to me.”
“What?” I didn’t care if he gagged me, he was out of his mind. “You are a sick bastard. I’ve known you all of ten minutes. I do not belong to you.”
Both men ignored me, and I drew my gaze to the pained expression on Eoghanan’s face as he fidgeted uncomfortably.
“I am tired of this between us, brother. How can ye carry such hatred with ye for so long? ’Tis time for ye to put this behind us. Ye canna delay Mother’s journey, and ye canna take this lass along with ye. If ye wish to be the one to take her to Conall Castle, then ye should be the one to do so. In the meantime, someone must look after her.”
Baodan released his grip on my shoulder and stepped in front of me protectively. “And ye think that should be ye? Like hell.”
I scooted over on the bench to watch the men intently, now intrigued. Fantastic actors, both of them. These guys took role-playing to a whole different level.
Eoghanan stepped forward, his voice low and just as angry as Baodan’s. “Surely, ye doona mean to leave Niall to watch over her? He’ll have her undressed and in his bed before sundown.”
Baodan shook his head, glancing down at me. I assumed he meant to reassure me that he wouldn’t let that happen. “I doona like it but ye are right. I canna leave her with Niall.”
“Then give me a chance, brother. ’Tis no the same as it was with her and ye know it.”
I very much wondered who “her” was, but neither man gave me a chance to ask.
Baodan all but growled at who apparently was his brother, although I seriously doubted they were related by blood. They didn’t resemble each other in the slightest. “If anything happens to the lass, ye will no enjoy what happens to ye.”
“Excuse me?” I hardly recognized my own voice, so screechy with rage. I stood and stepped out of his reach before he could grab my shoulder again and went to stand apart from them so that we made an odd sort of triangle. “Let me explain something. Nothing is going to happen because I am not staying here. I’m going to see Bri, and I don’t need anything from you.” I squirmed, suddenly needing to use the restroom. Damn bladder. Why did I always need to pee at the most inconvenient moments? “Except perhaps have you direct me to a toilet.”
“A ‘toilet’?” Both men said the word in unison.
I threw my hands up in exasperation. “Stop! Seriously, just cut it out. Press pause for just a moment. Once I’m where I need to be, you are free to resume this delusional little game of yours.”
Eoghanan spoke only to Baodan. “Is the lass daft? What is she talking about?”
Baodan shook his head. “I doona think she’s daft. She hit her head though, perhaps she just needs some rest.”
“Aye, I believe she does. She looks a bit wild, does she no?”
Eoghanan glanced in my direction but tore his gaze away after he saw the glare I was giving him.
“Hello? Did either one of you hear what I just said? Of course I’m not daft, you bunch of morons! Quit ignoring me.”
Again, neither heard nor listened to me. As I stared, their conversation quickly escalated into a full-out argument, and I stood back looking around at the castle grounds. I don’t know why I didn’t realize it after I got out of the water or even after I asked him to go and get a car, but as I noticed the utter lack of modern transportation, a sudden chill rushed down my spine.
When Morna pulled up in front of the pond, there had indeed been other vehicles at the castle, not around the pond where she parked, but up closer to the castle. A tourist attraction, just like Conall Castle and many of the castles in the surrounding area.
I wasn’t sure how much time passed in between tossing the rock and waking in the water but it only felt like seconds, and it was still broad daylight. It couldn’t possibly have been more than a few hours. Could the castle have closed for visitors in that time? If so, was it likely that every employee and security guard left as well?
Every second things just grew weirder, and I couldn’t stand to be here a moment longer. I glanced over at the horses. They seemed gentle enough, and I’d been on horses a few times. Maybe if I silenced myself, I could get away atop one of them. Unlikely, but I couldn’t just stand here staring at crazy one and crazy two.
Slowly, I backed away. Watching them argue, I crossed over to the horse farthest from them. I imagined I could see the chestnut colored mares’ sympathy for me in her eyes. She would cooperate, if only the men would keep arguing long enough for me to get away.
It didn’t work. Just as I jumped to wrap my arms around her so I could pull myself up, I heard Baodan turn as he addressed his brother. He’d known I meant to leave the second I started to back away.