“Dammit man, I doona wish to hurt ye, but if ye doona tell me what ye know of this, ye will leave me no choice.” Eoghanan extended the man a drink of water. He’d not laid a hand on him as of yet, and he hoped he wouldn’t have to. “Have I hurt ye yet? I doona mean ye harm, but I believe ye have been forced to provide a man something that has harmed others, aye?”
“Ye did hurt me. Ye hurt me head.” Slowly the alchemist drank the water, staring back at Eoghanan with dismay.
“Would ye have come with me willingly?”
“No.”
“Help me, sir. I have told ye I willna hurt ye unless I must. What are ye so afraid of?”
For the first time in days, a spark lit the man’s eyes. “How can ye ask that? I have done nothing, but ye have locked me up like a criminal. If ye doona mean me harm, then why have ye brought me here?”
Why did he believe the man? No other held such a knowledge of herbs in the village. Of course, he knew his brother to be smart enough to think of looking elsewhere than his own village for the poison. It wouldn’t do for people to learn the truth about him.
Eoghanan crouched down in front of his prisoner, regret in his heart for the injustice he now believed he’d done. “All right, lad, What are ye called? I’ll tell ye the truth of what has happened, and ye must swear to do the same with me. For if I find later that ye have betrayed me and it was ye that he worked with, I can assure ye that I shall be the last one to see ye alive.”
“Aye, I swear it. I have no reason to lie to ye. Me name is Durell.”
“Fine. I believe that me brother acquired a poison and uses it to slowly poison our mother. ’Tis no the first time he used such a substance on another. She is gone from the castle now, so I have hope that she will heal, but she is still in danger until I can prove his guilt.”
The man looked horrified at the thought. He didn’t provide the poison. “Surely, the laird couldna do such a thing. Why?”
Eoghanan shook his head, astonished at the man’s conclusion. “No, ’twas no Baodan. ’Twas Niall. Now, I believe ye when ye say ye dinna aid him in this. Are there others who could have done so? Here is the poison that I spoke of before.” He handed it to the man and watched as he stared at it.
Eoghanan held his breath while he waited.
Finally, Durell spoke. “Aye, I know who made this poison. There is a woman who lives no far from the village. She is no much of a healer. Only those who wish to bring foul things upon another seek her mixtures.”
Eoghanan clasped the man on the shoulder, hopeful for the first time in many days. “Is there an antidote for this?” He knew this vial would not be the only one in Niall’s possession. For him to have poisoned their mother for so long, he must have much more locked away.
“Aye, I can make ye one, but I shall need to be at me home with me herbs and mixtures.”
Just as well, he needed to get to the village to find his brother anyway. If he found Niall and he did have Mitsy, or if he learned he’d harmed her, Eoghanan would not wait to gather proof. He would gladly kill his brother on the spot. “Verra well, we shall leave at once.” He smiled at the look of relief on the old man’s face. “I told ye I wouldna hurt ye and me apologies for yer head.”
Chapter 16
The Road To Conall Castle
The man released his grip on me immediately and jumped away like someone struck by lightning. “I’m verra sorry, sir,” he told Baodan. “I was only trying to help her with the fire. I shall take me leave at once.”
I stood up and held up a hand to stop him. “No, wait. Thank you. I needed your help. Stay and have a meal with us before you leave. You stay and get the fire started and my husband,” I couldn’t help but say the word sarcastically, “and I will go in search of some food.”
“Only if yer husband finds this acceptable.” He looked down at his feet, clearly intimidated by Baodan.
I walked over to Baodan and grabbed him firmly by the hand so that I could drag him off to where he had left his horse.
“He insists upon it. We will be back in a little while with something to eat.”
I squeezed Baodan’s hand as tightly as I could, but I knew it didn’t cause him the pain that I’d hoped. Once we were out of earshot, I turned on him. “Are you crazy? What the hell is the matter with you?”
“Me?” He genuinely looked shocked. “Ye’re the one who allowed that vagabond to lay hands on ye, lass. He could have dirked ye right in the side, and ye would have been helpless to stop him.”
“He was just helping me. I tried to start a fire to help you out, and I didn’t have the slightest idea what I was doing, but all of that is beside the point. Why did you tell him I was your wife?”
“It isna suitable for ye to be traveling alone with a man who isna yer husband.”