Page 10 of Awakened By Time
“Aye. I’d like to increase me holdings by adding another two ploughgates of the land that currently abuts me property along with more oxen to work the fields.” Nevil did his best to keep the glee from his eyes as he watched Paddraig choking on this news.
“I’m nae sure I can agree to this,” Paddraig responded.
“Well, then, I’m nae sure I can agree to marry yer daughter.” He rose from the chair, making a show of leaving.
“Wait. I’d like to ride out to see exactly what land yer speaking of,” MacRae blurted out, stopping him before he left.
Nevil returned to his seat. “Understandable. We’ll go when me men have returned with yer daughter. We’ll all ride towards Munro castle and once ye’ve agreed to me terms, I’ll take Brenna home with me and make her me wife. I’ve written out the new terms here.” He handed Paddraig the new contract. “Ye’ll need to sign it. Ye see, I’ve always felt that land was rightfully mine. It once belonged to me grandfather.”
“Did it now?” Paddraig asked.
“Aye. Then yer grandfather placed a wager on it and through some underhanded methods, he won. Me grandfather, being an honorable man, gave the land to him. I think ’tis only right that it end up back in me hands. You understand, I’m sure.”
Paddraig looked down at the contract. His face a study of confusion, frustration and anger. It did Nevil’s heart good to see it. Whether he married this lass or not, he was going to get his land back. Brenna MacRae would only sweeten the deal.
* * *
“The nerveof that man changing our agreement at the last minute as he’s done.” Paddraig MacRae’s fist pounded on his desk as he sat in his office. “I’ll nae give him that land. Do ye hear me, Greer?” Anger consumed him as he waved the contract in the air.
“The whole castle can hear ye, Paddraig. Ye’d best keep yer voice down to a low roar if ye dinnae wish Laird Munro to be privy to our discussions.”
“And that story he obviously made up about our grandfathers. Can ye believe it?”
“I wasnae alive at the time and neither were ye, so I couldnae say,” she answered with a note of sarcasm in her voice.
“I’ve never heard the tale before this day. If it had happened as he said it did… If me grandda had bested his grandda, then that would be something the family would’ve bragged on. ’Tis why I dinnae believe him,” he harrumphed.
“If ye wish to marry yer daughter to him, and ye ken how important that is to me, then ye’ll agree to it.” Greer narrowed her eyes, nostrils flared, ready for a fight.
Paddraig did his best to appease her. “Greer, me love, I ken ye wish to see Brenna gone from the castle, but do ye nae think there may be someone else who would have her?”
“Nae. It must be Munro. He is here now and he’ll gladly take her off yer hands today, if we can find her. I cannae wait any longer for ye to find her a husband.” Nose in the air, as if she’d just smelled something distasteful, she flipped her hair over her shoulder and glared at him.
Greer surprised Paddraig when, a few weeks back she told him she had offered Brenna to Munro without his knowledge. He’d been angered that she’d overstepped her bounds, but then he’d softened when he understood that if he ever wished to bed her again, it would be necessary to marry Brenna off as soon as possible.
* * *
Brenna spenther first night alone, settling in just off the wooded path that led towards Breaghacraig. She kept her dirk close as she wrapped herself in her plaid and leaned her back up against a tree. She was dog tired, but she had somehow managed to gather brush for a fire and to make herself a meal from the items she had stolen from the kitchen at Castle Treun.
She felt good about herself for the first time since her Da had married Greer. The slow and steady toll the two sisters had taken on her had slipped from her shoulders and now that she was away from them, Brenna only had happiness and her independence to look forward to. She’d no longer have to answer to Paddraig and her brothers. There’d be no more humiliation at the hands of Greer and Gillian. She was sad to leave her Aunt Saundra behind along with the only home she’d ever known, but this was what she had to do to be free. She was sure this was her destiny and she planned to make the most of it.
The sounds of the night were everywhere from the hooting of owls overhead to the howl of a wolf off in the distance. Any misgivings she had about her journey were best left behind. She doubted she’d sleep well, but she’d drift in and out until the morning light sent her back along on her way. Brenna breathed in the fresh pine scent, a fragrance she’d always loved. One of her first memories was a journey with her Da. One where they camped among huge pine trees alongside a rill. Her Da built a fire and she sat in his lap, enveloped by his strong arms. She had no fear, knowing he’d keep her safe from any and all dangers. Paddraig held her close as he told her tale after tale of his own childhood. She had been enthralled with it and with her Da. It saddened her that her bond with him, one she always thought unbreakable, had been destroyed by that conniving Greer Matheson. These sweet memories were only that… memories. It was best to let them go, along with the life she’d once known. This was to be a new chapter in her life and she welcomed it.