Page 69 of Ensnaring the Dove
Raking both hands through his hair, he muttered a salty curse. “You’ll never guess whatelsehappened inside the compound,” he said then, meeting the carpenter’s eye once more. “Colombia and I were on our way to see her father when we found a mob of angry legionaries trying to force entry into the principia building. They seemed to think Juventus was hoarding their money in the strongroom. They looked ready to lynch him.”
Keir’s gaze widened. “How did—”
“Wait, there’s more,” Aedan went on. “Before I could stop her, Colombia strode into the midst of it all and faced them down. She convinced the soldiers to walk away without drawing blood.” He gave a bemused shake of his head then. “I’ve never seen the like of it.”
It was the carpenter’s turn to utter an oath. He then raised a greying eyebrow. “But things still ended badly for you both?”
Aedan nodded, his stomach clenching as the commander’s parting words rang in his head.
If you truly love my daughter, you’ll want what’s best for her. Keep away from her.
The pig-headed bastard. Colombia had just prevented a mutiny, possibly even saved his life, and all he cared about was her choice of husband.
Moments passed, and slowly the fight ebbed out of Aedan. Crushing fatigue followed, pressing down onto his shoulders. “This is my fault,” he ground out, shifting his gaze to the glowing embers in the hearth before him. “You’re right. I should have thought things through before I went before Colombia’s father. Our timing was terrible.”
“It was,” Keir replied. The carpenter then heaved himself up off his stool and walked stiffly over to where a clay amphora sat against the wall. “I think we could both do with a cup of wine, lad.”
Aedan nodded numbly. He needed a bucket of it.
He fell into mutinous silence then, brooding as Keir poured them generous cups. His companion returned to the fireside and handed Aedan his wine.
Raising the cup to his lips, Aedan took a large gulp. The wine was rough, made of sour plums, yet he welcomed its heat pooling in his stomach, tempering the fury that still boiled there.
“I hate them,” he muttered then, his fingers clenching around the cup. “For years now, the Caesars have been my curse. Every time I find anything worth living for, they destroy it.” Keir didn’t reply, and eventually Aedan looked up, spearing him with his gaze across the fire. “Why don’t you despise them too?”
The older man heaved a deep sigh before smiling. “I’ve lived among the Romans for years now. I learned my trade at Eboracum, but when I heard about the prosperous forts upon the Wall, I moved my family here.” His smile turned sad then. “Maybe if I hadn’t, my wife and son would still be alive … but I don’t blame the Caesars. They weren’t responsible for the sickness that raged through Onnum that winter.”
Keir broke off then, lifting his cup to his lips and taking a deep draft. “I had a hard upbringing, lad,” he said finally. “I lost both parents and all my siblings early to illness and war. When I turned up at Eboracum, I had nothing but the ragged clothes I stood up in, yet I was allowed to make a life for myself there. I’ve always found safety and peace amongst these people.” His gaze flicked up, meeting Aedan’s once more. “And you can too if you let go of your pride … your resentment.”
Aedan snorted.
“Hate is a canker, lad,” Keir said softly. “And it’ll rot your life. Whether you like it or not, the Romans are here to stay. You can either work with them or against them … the choice is yours.”
XXIX. IT CAN’T END LIKE THIS
COLOMBIA LAY AWAKE in her cubiculum, staring up at the darkness.
It can’t end like this.
And it wouldn’t.
She’d fight her father with every bit of guile she possessed before she’d let him take Aedan from her.
Her breathing caught then, and her throat started to ache. This was her doing. She’d let her impulses rule, had pushed Aedan into an impossible situation. Her father’s blood had been up after the attempted mutiny, his pride bruised. He was standing before his officers too.
It was the worst possible moment for her to tell him she was in love with a Brigante warrior and planned to marry him.
Yet she had.
The back of Colombia’s eyelids stung, and she blinked rapidly.
This evening had been a wild one. Her visit to the workshop had set off a chain of events that quickly spiraled out of control.
She needed to put things right, needed to speak to her father once he’d calmed down. She told Aedan he wasn’t an unreasonable man, and she believed that. If she could approach him with the same gentle hand she’d used with the mutinous soldiers, he’d listen to her.
He’d relent.
He wouldn’t send her back to Asculum.