Page 30 of The Secret of Drulea Cottage

“Stop it, all o’ you! This is wrong!” Briony exclaimed as she turned her eyes back to them.

She felt the boy slipping away behind her, but she didn’t dare look. She had to make sure the others kept their attention on her long enough for him to escape—

*

Briony winced as she pushed the memory back before the worst of it could resurface. She had tried so hard to forget it, but now this man was undoing her efforts.

His painfully familiar black eyes watched her carefully.

Briony let out a shallow breath as she tried to collect herself. “Ah, I remember you now. You were the wee lad that day on the beach. I never knew what happened to you. Where did you go?”

Niall’s face brightened. “I’d only run a short distance before I saw my mum and da’. When I told them how you’d saved me, they rushed to make sure you were all right, but they said everyone was gone by the time they arrived. I’ve always regretted what happened that day. I should na have run off like that and left you. Did anything happen to you afterward?”

Something buzzed in her mind at those words, something off about them, but then the memory started to reappear—

Briony looked away from him. She had closed that door in her mind a long time ago; she refused to open it again now. “Don’ let it trouble you. ’Tis all in the past.”

The man’s eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Still, I should have stood up fer myself, na let a female get in harm’s way because I was frightened. Perhaps I can make it up to you. To start with, would you like to have dinner with me this evening? I’m staying at Everton Inn, and I hear they have delicious food.”

Briony mulled it over for a moment.Spending time with Niall might dredge up more o’ what I can’ bear to remember… But he looks so eager fer me to say aye…

And he is very handsome with his mysterious eyes.Briony blushed at the thought and grinned, having reached a decision.

“Aye, I’d be delighted to have dinner with you tonight. Mistress Stubbins, the one who runs the inn fer her da’, is a good friend o’ mine, so I spend much o’ my time there anyway. The food truly is delicious.”

“If you have the time, would you mind showing me around Everton some beforehand? Otherwise, I may na be able to find my way back to the inn, and dinner may be long gone.”

“I suppose I could do that,” she replied, the smile not leaving her face.

He smiled in return, and soon Briony found herself inexplicably captivated by the strange newcomer. They chatted as they walked through the streets, mostly about the buildings and daily life in the village. Briony introduced him to Mistress McGuff and her bairns, Matthew Levins, and the Calhouns when they passed each other. The townsfolk were all very amicable toward the newcomer, except for Fergus, who stuck out his tongue when Niall went to shake his hand.

“What is that building?” Mr. Moreland asked after they had ended their conversation with the Calhouns.

“’Tis the tavern. Mr. Tam McLaren runs it. I can take you inside if you’d like?”

She wondered if Mr. Moreland was the sort of man who spent much time drinking.He does na look like a drunkard, but I suppose’tis impossible to know just from his appearance.

“Aye, perhaps there will be more people you’d like to introduce me to.”

Stepping inside, Briony was surprised to see so many Portuguese sailors having beers. Captain Costa was among them, taking a long swig out of a half-full mug.

Briony grimaced. She’d been fortunate enough not to see the man in quite a while.I wonder which captain I’ll speak to this time: the curt one I met on the night he arrived or the polite one who didn’t seem completely genuine. I guess I better just speak to him. How he responds is na up to me.

“Captain Costa, sir!”

The man set down his drink and looked over at the two of them. At first, his features seemed to harden, but then he grinned quite civilly. “Senhorita Fairborn, what a pleasant surprise. I don’t believe I’ve met your companion before.”

Briony walked the rest of the way over, Mr. Moreland close behind. “That’s because he just came into town from…”

She frowned, realizing Niall had never told her where he was from. She looked to him for the answer.

Niall hesitated before clearing his throat. “The Mainland.”

“Ah. If you did na know, Captain, the Mainland is Orkney’s largest island. This is Mr. Moreland, an old friend o’ mine.”

Mr. Moreland’s eyes snapped to hers when she called him a “friend,” and she instantly regretted it. The word had fallen from her lips effortlessly, but now she realized it was too informal.After all, we only met once as bairns, and that was only fer a very brief time.

“Good to meet you, Senhor Moreland. If Senhorita Fairborn thinks highly of you, you must be a good fellow. She has the utmost respect in my eyes since she saved the life of my employer. I’m Captain Andreas Costa.”