Page 34 of Bride takes a Scot

“The soldiers have almost finished the third level of the fortification. They will be working on the roof soon. Once that is done, they can begin to finish the inside.”

“I am gladdened to hear that, Anse. Now that I am married, I would like to move in at the soonest. What else?”

“Slone told me that Claude showed up every day for training, but he complained the whole day. I do not think that lad is cut out to be a soldier. Your stepbrother was causing problems too, and Slone said he undermined his authority.”

Declan folded his arms over his chest and his eye twitched. Aggravated to no end by his family’s behavior, he’d had enough. “Let us go to the field and we shall see what’s what.” But he knewhis brother’s adversity with training. Perhaps he should have it out with Claude and take him on the field himself, but with his wound, he shouldn’t participate in any strenuous activity. Claude needed to learn how to protect himself before he could protect others.

And his stepbrother definitely needed a talking to. Silas was not skilled enough to interject his view on the training methods his soldiers beheld. It was also time to put Silas in his place. If he wasn’t injured, Declan might have challenged him and ground him into the ground, just to show Silas he wasn’t as skilled as he thought he was. A wee bit of humility went a long way to bringing about a rambunctious soldier.

Before he left the cottage, he looked but didn’t see Isabella. When he finished his duties, he decided, he’d go in search of her. There was something she’d withheld from him the night before, he was sure of it, and he wanted to know what had bothered her. Now, the main living area in the cottage was vacant and it didn’t seem as if anyone was inside the dwelling. He left and stepped outside.

The day shone brightly with nary a cloud. It would be a fine summer day, one warmer than most, he suspected. With that thought, he removed the tartan he’d set over his upper body and dropped it on the step outside the cottage. Then he rolled up his tunic sleeves and drew a deep breath. His walk to the training area didn’t bother him and his leg only pinched. Isabella had done a fair job at mending him.

At the fields, he sat by a tree and watched as various groups practiced arms, bodily combat, archery, and sword play. He spotted his brother Claude on the field where Slone was instructing the younger soldiers. Claude stood and watched. From his posture and the way he stood by the side, he was disinterested in the activity.

There was shouting and Declan spotted his stepbrother berating two soldiers who used bodily combat. Declan drew his brows together at the sight before him. There was chaos, insubordination, and too much belittling going on for his liking.

Declan got to his feet and gently pressed his hand on his leg. It didn’t pain him. It just ached a wee bit but was enough to draw his regard. He whistled and called a halt to the exercise. At once the soldiers ceased their practice and strolled toward him.

“That will be all for this day.” His soldiers nodded as they passed by him, respectfully greeting him. When Claude got close enough, he called to him, and his brother approached, his expression sullen.

“Aye, Declan? As ye can see, I am here as ye bade.”

He motioned to his brother to follow him. Declan didn’t want anyone to overhear their conversation. It was best he said what he wanted to impart privately. “Aye, ye are, but ye are also not. Ye are there on the field bodily, but not emotionally.”

“I do not know what more ye want from me.”

“Why do ye not want to be a soldier? It is what we have been bred to do. Our da would be disappointed to know ye dislike it. Give me a reason, brother, and I will consider letting ye take up a different form of service.”

Claude stopped in his tracks. “Do ye speak the truth?”

“Aye, ’tis my truth because I mean what I say and always do. Tell me what ye wish to do. What inspires ye?” Declan hadn’t ever conversed as intimately with his brother before, and it occurred to him that they didn’t know one another well. It was time to lessen the distance betwixt them and gain a better understanding of why his brother balked at soldiering.

“I do not wish to fight with ye or anyone else. My faith forbids me to hurt another. It is a sin against God and all that He stands for.”

“Your faith? Ye wish to devote yourself to God?” Declan was shocked to hear his brother profess to such a calling. None in his clan had ever chosen to do so before now.

“Aye, but we have no one hereabouts that I can talk to about it. Are ye angry with me?” Claude scraped his foot in the dirt and kept his eyes averted.

Declan set his hand on his brother’s shoulder. “Nay, of course, not. If that is what ye wish to do, then of course I will support you. A friar is coming to stay with us, a Friar Faelan. You can speak with him if ye wish and ask your questions.”

Claude raised his face to Declan’s, and there was surprise—and unexpectedly—hope in his eyes. “Really? You will not be offended if I ask to follow him and learn from him?”

The sight of his brother’s emotions so clearly written on his face made Declan feel a bit ashamed that he hadn’t thought to question him sooner. “If that is what ye wish, Claude, I will not oppose ye. In the future, though, ye need to be honest with me. I am your laird and brother. We should not hold back what is in our hearts.”

Claude nodded. “And what if I still wish to find Grandda’s treasure?”

Declan chuckled. “Are ye still after that?” He shrugged. “If ye want to do so, it will not matter to me. Do ye think there really is a treasure though? Grandda liked to tell tales. I vow he made up some of them.”

“Aye, and I mean to find it,” Claude said enthusiastically. His voice rose with excitement and his eyes shone with the possibility of it. He was still a lad in many ways, Declan realized.

“Go then. Ye do not have to train with the men going forward. Seek Frair Faelan when he comes, and your duty will be to him. I will speak to him about taking ye under his wing.”

“Aye, brother, I shall, and my thanks for…understanding.” Claude smiled widely and walked off with a spring in his step.

One down and one to go, Declan thought, as his eyes scanned the men in search of his stepbrother. His conversation with Silas wouldn’t be as easy, he was certain of it. He couldn’t find his stepbrother amongst the men and decided to wait to search for him.

Before he returned to his own cottage, he stopped at his steward’s dwelling and knocked on the door.