Page 17 of Highlander’s Captive Bride (Troubles of Highland Lasses #4)

17

D aisy went and sat in Poppy’s chair. Bellamy sat in his usual spot on the bed, against the pillows, with Elodie cradled in his arm.

“The food’s for ye, wee lass, by the way,” Bellamy said. “What with acting so sick, I guessed ye’d be famished for something proper to eat.”

“I am, Da. I had to pretend to be sick at lunchtime and told Poppy I couldnae eat anything but some dry oatcakes. Ugh!” Elodie made a comical face that made both Daisy and Bellamy laugh. “And I’m so bored, too. But now that ye’re here, we can play some games.”

“Good lass, of course, we will. But first, Daisy and I have some things for ye.”

Elodie clapped her hands, her eyes shining. “D’ye? Presents?”

“Aye, presents,” Bellamy confirmed with a chuckle, rifling through his coat pocket and pulling out a tiny package. “This is from me,” he said, handing it to her.

Daisy watched them both as the child opened the package with obvious excitement. Bellamy’s expression was dark and intense, yet his lips were curled into a smile of expectation. Daisy realized he was as excited to see Elodie’s face when she saw her present as the child was to have it.

“Och, Da, it’s wonderful!” Elodie exclaimed, holding up the horse pendant and admiring it, her face alight with joy.

“Well, I promised ye a pony, did I nae?” he joked, his features softening as his smile broadened into a delighted grin.

Daisy’s heart almost melted at the sight of them looking so happy together. Then came the stab of pain at the thought of leaving them, never to see them again.

“Let me help ye put it on.” Bellamy took the locket in his large fingers, and with the amazing dexterous delicacy that always impressed Daisy, he fixed it carefully around Elodie’s neck. He moved her hair out of the way, and the tiny silver horse lay shining against her nightie.

“Och, Da, ’tis the best present I’ve ever had. Thank ye, thank ye so much!” The little girl threw her arms around his neck, and the pair embraced tenderly.

Daisy felt almost choked with emotion and had to surreptitiously wipe away a tear. She waited a few minutes before offering her gift to Elodie as well.

When the child’s eyes fell on the little wooden ark and all its carved figures, her mouth fell open. Her little face beamed with wonder and delight.

“I love it!” she cried. “I absolutely love it!”

She took Daisy by surprise when she suddenly threw herself from beneath the bedcovers and hugged her tightly, planting a big kiss on both her cheeks.

“Ye’re the best healer ever, Daisy,” Elodie whispered in her ear. When she finally let go, Daisy had to cover her tears with laughter as Elodie had the miniature Noah and his wife and all the animals disembark so she could examine each one minutely.

Through teary eyes, Daisy could just about see that Bellamy was smiling at her, and it suddenly all became a little too much.

“I must go to me room for a moment. I’ll be back shortly,” she managed to say before hurrying out.

Once in the privacy of her room, the tears came in earnest, though she had tried to hold them back so Bellamy and Elodie would not know she had been crying. Tears streaming down her face, she went and wetted a flannel at the washstand, holding it over her face while she cried.

After a quarter of an hour, she had composed herself enough to go back in.

The pair were huddled on the bed, laughing. The ark was between them, and Bellamy was marching a tiny pair of elephants up the miniature gangplank, making the beasts talk in comically silly, deep voices. Despite her fragile emotional state, Daisy could not help laughing.

Just then, the food Bellamy had ordered arrived. Grateful for the distraction, Daisy took the tray from the servant at the door and brought it over to the bed. The ark was cleared away, and Elodie tucked into a bowl of chicken stew, with thick pease pudding on the side, with enthusiasm. It was a joy to see her eating, and judging from the expression on Bellamy’s face, Daisy was not the only one to think so.

They chatted a little while Elodie ate her dinner, telling her all about what they had seen at the marketplace, and Bellamy promised to take her there as soon as possible. Elodie admired Daisy’s new scarf and the silver charm bracelet that Bellamy had gifted her.

“And I shall give ye a thank ye present, too, Daisy, as soon as I am allowed outside again. I promise,” Elodie told Daisy with a sweet smile.

“Ye dinnae have to do that, sweetheart,” Daisy replied, deeply touched.

“But I want to,” the child insisted. “Without ye, I would never have gotten better.”

Poppy returned a little while later, and Daisy took the opportunity to leave then, not wishing to leave at the same time as Bellamy and risk being alone with him again. Bidding them all a cheery good night, she went quickly to her room.

For the first time, she locked the door herself. She knew if she did not and Bellamy so much as called in on her to say goodnight, she would not be able to resist the lure of his company.

That night, Daisy did a lot of soul-searching. In the end, the best she could do was to tell herself that it was no use denying the way she felt about Bellamy, nor the fact that she cared for Elodie. But her duty to her family had to come first.

In the meantime, however, since she would be spending a lot of time with them, she resolved to try to enjoy what little time she had left with the two people she had come to love so well, as a kind of goodbye.

She spent a large part of the next day with Elodie and Poppy, helping the little girl keep up the pretense that she was growing worse in her sickness. They both admitted to each other that they felt very guilty for misleading Poppy, who was terribly worried, but they knew it was necessary and would only be for a short while.

Bellamy came in at lunchtime and sent Poppy off again to the dining hall. Once alone, he presented Elodie with a packet of cheese and buttered bread and an apple to feast on. While Elodie devoured them, the trio discussed how the plan to draw out the “nasty person,” as Elodie called the poisoner, was working.

“Naething to report as of yet,” Bellamy told them, sounding disappointed.

“Do ye think they realize ye’re onto them?” Daisy asked.

He shrugged. “I dinnae ken. Maybe they’re lying low for a few days, seeing what develops, now that we’ve put it about that Elodie’s getting worse.”

“Aye, they might think that the last dose of poison was large enough to have—” Daisy broke off, not wanting Elodie to hear. But the child was acutely intelligent, and it was hard to hide anything from her.

“They thought it would kill me. Is that what ye meant to say, Daisy?” Elodie asked matter-of-factly.

“Not exactly,” Daisy hedged, feeling awkward.

“They thought they were clever,” Elodie went on. “But they’re stupid. They dinnae realize who they’re dealing with. We’re too smart for them, eh?” She grinned at them both, seemingly quite pleased at the thought of the villain being caught and punished. “Now, let’s have a game of Noah’s Ark again, shall we? Da, ye can be Noah, and Daisy can be Mrs. Noah, and I’ll be all the animals.”

At that, Bellamy grinned across at Daisy and said, “Well, wife, what are we to give these elephants for their dinner tonight?”

Daisy laughed, but it was only to cover the heat that flared inside her at the thought of them being man and wife, even if they were only an inch tall and made of wood.

The following morning, Daisy realized she needed to stock up on some ingredients for Elodie’s medicines, it being important to maintain the fiction of the child’s illness. She happened to bump into Nadia in the dining hall at breakfast and mentioned to her that she planned to venture into the village later that day.

“I’d love to come with ye,” Nadia said at once. “I have to buy some new thread and some braid to finish off the Beltane decorations and suchlike. Could ye stand some company?”

She appeared quite enthusiastic, and as Daisy was happy to have some company, they decided to meet later outside the keep and go shopping together.

Daisy spent the morning with Elodie, who was still doing a grand job of fooling Poppy. She played a few card games with her before kissing her goodbye and going to her room. Feeling peckish, she nibbled a few oatcakes with some of the honey that Bellamy had bought her at the monks’ stall in the village before getting ready to meet Nadia.

She had given the honeycomb Bellamy had bought her to Elodie when Poppy had been out of the chamber, both as a treat and because the poor child had to pretend to feel sick whenever she ate anything when Poppy was present.

Daisy had to wait a few minutes outside the keep for Nadia to appear. They greeted each other cheerfully and set off, this time taking the route through the main gates and across the causeway. As usual, it was very busy with all sorts of people and traffic. They soon reached the other side, and instead of taking the quieter path she and Bellamy had taken a few days before, they went straight ahead, then turned right onto the main road, which Daisy now knew led to the village.

“I suppose ye’ve been very busy with the Beltane committee, getting everything ready for the celebrations,” Daisy commented as they walked.

“Aye, but we’re nearly there. There are just a few things to finish off now. As I told ye, we’ve used so much thread, we’ve entirely run out, and we need more to finish off some of the decorations—the banners and pennants, and such like. It’s been hard work, but I always enjoy doing it,” Nadia told her. “Raymond is planning to roast two whole boars for the occasion,” she went on. “And the Laird has had a hundred gallons of ale put aside, as well as barrels full of whisky.”

Daisy laughed, recalling Beltane celebrations of the past at home in Castle McGunn. “A hundred gallons! That’s a lot. I doubt there’ll be much work done the day after,” she said, putting on a cheerful face to hide her sadness at knowing that just as the festivities were in full swing, she would sneak out of Castle Murdoch and leave it all far behind.

“None at all!” Nadia replied laughingly. “Anyway, we’re to start putting the decorations up from tomorrow, with some of the guards to help us. I’m nae climbing any ladders or trees, that’s for certain.”

They had reached the main street by now, and Daisy saw there was no cluster of market stalls around the stone cross. Just a few stalls were there—one selling greengrocery, another meat—and she spotted the stall run by the monks from St. Tristan’s monastery, where Bellamy had bought her the honey. It meant that she could actually see the lay of the land, and various shops and stores she had not been able to see before now stood out.

There was the Murdoch Arms and the very table where she had sat with Bellamy over luncheon. That was a memory she knew she would always treasure. Yet, at the same time, it made her heart ache a little to think it would never happen again.

She was secretly a little surprised that Nadia had not yet asked her about what was happening with Elodie. It was when they were in the haberdasher’s shop, with Nadia picking out the thread and braid she needed, that the girl finally brought the subject up.

“I’m almost frightened to ask ye, Daisy, because of what I’ve been hearing, but will ye tell me how Elodie is?” Nadia asked suddenly, her large blue eyes fixed on Daisy’s face searchingly.

“Hmm, ’tis nae good news at all, Nadia. The lass isnae making any improvement. In fact, I hate to tell ye this, as I ken ye care so much about her, but in truth, she’s worse than ever. She’s going downhill fast.”

“Is that so?” Nadia murmured in a low voice, appearing stricken. “And d’ye still nae ken what is making her so sick?”

Daisy shook her head, feeling a prickle of guilt at lying again when she knew it must be distressing for Nadia. “Nay, I’m sorry to say I’m nae closer to finding the truth than I was when I started.”

“Ach, that’s bad news, indeed. I was wondering why she isnae allowed to have any visitors now, except ye and the Laird. And dear Poppy, of course. Is that the reason?”

“Aye,” Daisy confirmed. “She’s just too sick to have any visitors at all.”

She suddenly felt very aware that Nadia had paused sorting through the reels of thread and that her attention was now entirely fixed on her face. In addition, she thought she heard something in Nadia’s voice that suggested the girl was not entirely convinced by what she was telling her.

“Not even me, her closest friend? Ye’ve always said I cheer her up and make her laugh. Would that nae make her feel better?” Nadia pressed.

Daisy supposed her curiosity was to be expected, since the two girls were friends, and Nadia had always been a regular visitor to Elodie’s chambers throughout her period of sickness. It must be perplexing for her to find herself suddenly barred, along with everyone else.

Once again, Daisy felt guilt niggling at her.

“I ken it’s a crying shame, but she’s in no state to play games with anyone, I’m afraid. That’s why the Laird has given orders she shouldnae be disturbed any more than is necessary,” Daisy explained, thinking quickly. “She’s very poorly, indeed.”

She squirmed a little under Nadia’s intense gaze, which felt like it was boring into her, almost as if the girl was trying to read her thoughts. It was somewhat disquieting.

Finally, Nadia nodded and began looking through the reels of thread again. “I cannae tell ye how sorry I am to hear it, Daisy. For coming from ye, I ken it must be the truth,” she said with an air of finality.

Yet, once again, though there was nothing Daisy could put her finger on, she had the distinct feeling that she had failed to convince Nadia.

While Nadia paid for her purchases, Daisy waited by the door, inwardly cursing herself for her poor acting skills. She was grateful when Nadia did not bring up the subject of Elodie again after they left the haberdashery.

The next stop was the apothecary, for which Daisy had quite a list of ingredients she required, both for Elodie’s medicines and to replenish the healing room stock. While an assistant busied herself with filling her order, Nadia selected some hair and skin preparations and purchased them.

“I’ll wait for ye outside,” Nadia said.

“I shouldnae be too much longer, I hope,” Daisy told her apologetically.

“That’s all right, I’m in nae hurry.” Nadia smiled at her and then left the shop.