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Simone

Simone climbed out of the ship, then helped Aunt Brenna and her mother, Artan settling Gwyneth on a horse and making sure her leg contraption was set on her mount to go with her.

Simone then said to her husband, “We’ll be back in about an hour.

Take a swim if you like, Artan.” There were a few horses standing nearby, munching on the grass. “We’ll be a little while, I’m sure.”

“We will,” he replied, pulling off his tunic while the other men did the same. “Take your time, Simone.”

Magni rode with Simone while his parents rode together on another horse. “Lead the way,” his father said.

Brenna pulled abreast of Simone. “This has to be the loveliest place I’ve ever seen, and you know how fond I am of Ramsay land, especially in the summer.”

“You have a lovely loch, but we have the sea all the time. And the Iona chapel is peaceful and lovely.”

“I see it,” Aunt Brenna said. “I’m most anxious to see our girls again. How are they doing?”

“All are doing wonderfully.”

They approached the row of small huts and Simone called out, “Beatris! I have a surprise!”

All of a sudden, the area was filled with bairns.

The unwanted ones of the world, Simone thought of them.

Most were lassies, but there were some laddies.

Anytime someone in the church found themselves caretakers of bairns who’d lost their parents from sickness or other, the bairns were often sent to Ionaland, they called it.

Of course, her father had suggested calling it Loganland, but they all agreed on Ionaland.

Brenna helped Gwyneth down and assisted with attaching her contraption. Geva and Emma came out, calling to them. Geva said, “Mama, it is so good to see you again.”

The four lasses—Simone and Beatris, Geva and Emma—had been adopted long ago.

A group of evil men had built a chain nearly three decades ago to sell bairns they’d stolen.

But the Grants and Ramsays had fallen upon their scheme and rescued as many as they could.

Some were returned to their families, but others had no family to return to.

Simone and Beatris had been sold to a nobleman’s family as servants, but they were beaten for any slight.

After Maggie and Will had saved both of them, Logan and Gwyneth adopted the two into their family.

Geva and Emma had been rescued and adopted into Quade and Brenna’s family from a similar jaunt.

Brenna hugged both daughters, then her two nieces. “You all look wonderful. And how many bairns have you now?”

“Three and ten at last count. Three of Geva’s and ten adopted.”

Simone had married Artan, but they had no bairns. Geva had married, but Beatris and Emma hadn’t found their persons yet.

Simone took Magni’s mother’s hand and brought her forward.

“These two lovely people, Ella and Walter, had their hut burned with all their belongings by some cruel creatures, so they are looking for a safe, quiet place to live. The clans are too busy for them, and when they heard of the work you do here, they wondered if they could live here and help you. They have a son Magni who would love to help you too.”

Walter said, “I’m verra good with gardens.

I was able to feed most of our villagers with food from our land.

I made a special mix using sheep … I made our garden flourish with a special recipe that I put on the plants to make them produce more.

Beans and peas, oats, carrots. I even transplanted some berry bushes so we had more. And I’m handy at fixing things.”

Beatris said, “Geva’s husband is out hunting with a few others from the isle, so I would love to have you meet him. They’ll be back soon.”

Magni said, “I like it here. It’s magical.” He twirled in a circle, taking in the beauty and the wide expanse of the isle and the land the group lived on. “I can run everywhere, and no one would see me.”

Ella’s gaze scanned the large area, stopping on one lad, her finger pointing toward him. “Walter? Look at that wee laddie coming towards us. Is he not adorable?”

Magni took one look and raced over to the toddling lad. He said, “Greetings. I’m Magni. What’s your name?”

As soon as the boy’s gaze fell on Magni, he called out, “Manee, manee.”

Beatris asked, “Do you know him? We call him Tenney. That was all we were told. They tried to sell him, but the ship overturned. The boy washed ashore here attached to the oddest-shaped floating object we’ve ever seen.”

“Mama, can we adopt him?” Magni carried the lad over to his parents, grinning and kissing the boy’s cheeks. As soon as he gave Tenney to his mother, Magni ran over to Lia and hugged her. “You saved him and sent him to me, did you not, sister?”

“I might have had something to do with it.”

Geva said, “And the oddest thing was that the object he floated on disappeared when we turned our backs. It must have washed out into the sea.”

Magni whispered, “It is magical here.”

Beatris smiled and said, “We think it is, but tell me why you think it’s magical, Magni.”

“Look at my sister.”

Lia stood a distance away near the abbey, her hands overhead pointing to the sky as she basked in a ray of sunshine, her green light brighter than they’d ever seen it.

Simone said, “Lia is a faery who adopted Magni as her brother.”

“Wonderful. I would love to meet the faery when she arrives,” Beatris said. “But who is the young lassie?”

Simone chuckled. “That’s Lia. She talks like an adult, but she is six summers. She found Magni and stayed with him until his parents were rescued. And she obviously protected Tenney too. She was quite a help when it came to protecting all of our bairns from the kidnappers.”

Magni proudly announced, “She’ll never leave me. She said she could live here for a while. She’s my protector.”

His mother asked, “Magni, are you sure you like it here better than at Clan MacQuarie or Clan Grantham? They’ve all grown quite fond of you.”

Magni smiled. “I know. I’m cute. But I can visit them anytime. I have a new brother, and he lives here.”

And off he went, running toward Lia, his new brother in hand.