I nodded. “I need to convince the Mormaer.”
Sid looked back at him. “I can see how you could love a face like that,” she said then sighed. Her casting weakened. “I must go.”
“Begone then, spirit. Bother me no more,” I said in jest.
We giggled.
Sid lifted a hand in farewell and then disappeared.
I was left staring into the flames, strange visions trying to take shape in my mind.
“Not tonight,” I whispered to the darkness, to the Goddess, to the raven…to whoever wanted me to see what was to come. “Not tonight,” I said, closing my eyes, my hands resting on my swollen belly.
Soon, someone whispered in reply, but I was too tired to understand if the voice had come from the other world or within me.
Chapter 19
“How will this do, Lady Gruoch?” Rhona, one of the household maids, asked me the next day as we stood in my new chamber. The household had been working hard all morning getting a room ready for me. They’d been at it even before I woke that morning, Gillacoemgain seeing to it that I had somewhere safe to rest during the day if I wanted.
The chamber was smaller than the one I shared with Gillacoemgain, but the bed was made with fresh straw and clean linens. The room had a good view of the comings and goings in the ward just outside, and a fireplace kept the space warm. Ute would have a small chamber just outside.
“It’s perfect, Rhona, thank you.”
“I’ll move all your dresses down from your chamber,” Ute told me, curtseying before she departed.
Thora tromped all around the bed.
“Well, is it comfortable?” I asked her.
She lay down at the foot of the bed and looked at me, tilting her head to the side.
I chuckled then went to the window, pushing open the casement. The temperature had dipped low and it had frosted overnight. The morning sun was burning away the last of the silver coating the grass. The air smelled of snow.
As I looked below, a messenger rode into Cawdor. It was not an unusual sight, but the rider’s dress and horse caught my immediate attention. The horse, I noticed, had been worked into a lather. The rider, who wore a rich blue velvet doublet, look harried. One of the pages ran into the castle, presumably to get Gillacoemgain.
A few minutes later, Gillacoemgain crossed the ward and met the rider who handed him a paper. Standish came from the stables and took the rider’s horse. I saw Gillacoemgain nod and wave the rider inside.
My husband stood then, alone on the frozen grass, reading the dispatch. When he finished reading, he looked into the sky overhead. I followed his gaze. Above, one of his falcons swirled in circles over Cawdor. It whistled to him.
Gillacoemgain crushed the paper in his hand then looked around the yard.
“Fergus!” he called, waving to the man.
At once, Fergus joined Gillacoemgain and they headed back into the castle.
As they passed under the window, a handful of words were caught in the wind and lifted to my window: Malcolm. War. Macbeth.
Chapter 20
“Macbeth has escaped Malcolm’s hold,” Gillacoemgain was explaining when I entered his conference room later that day. So as not to interrupt the conversation, I settled into a seat along the wall in the back of the room. The clan leaders had already been assembled and riders had been departing Cawdor with messages since morning.
“How?” someone asked.
Gillacoemgain shook his head. “Malcolm is in England battling Cnut. I don’t know how.”
“Will he make for Inverness?” another of the lords asked.
“No. He is with Thorfinn of Orkney.”
The room fell silent. The news was ominous. Thorfinn was Gillacoemgain’s strongest opponent in the north. Gillacoemgain had barely subdued him these past months. If Macbeth was in league with Thorfinn, we would soon be at war.
“Let them come. Our men are ready,” one of the clan leaders called.
“Have you heard from Mar?” another man asked.
“No,” Gillacoemgain replied. “I’m waiting for word. Now we shall see who is loyal to Moray.”
I listened as the men batted around names, who would remain loyal and who would turn. One thing was certain, Gillacoemgain did not know who his friends were. In that moment, I pitied him. All of Moray thought him a butcher. He had killed his brother, and many loathed him for it. If only they knew the reason why.
“What about Banquo of Lochaber?” someone asked, capturing my attention. “He’s sworn his allegiance to you. He and Echmarcach of the isles will—”
“No,” Gillacoemgain interrupted. “Lochaber’s peace is false. He is allied with Thorfinn. They’ve been waiting for Macbeth’s return.”
My heart thundered in my chest. Gillacoemgain already knew. A million ‘what ifs’ rolled around in my mind. I shook my head. If they all only knew why Gillacoemgain had killed Findelach, things would be different. But Gillacoemgain would never tell, would never disparage his sister’s memory with such filth.
“Will Malcolm send reinforcements?” someone asked.
“He is at war in England. If he can, he will,” Gillacoemgain answered, which was near the truth. If he wanted to, he would. But if Malcolm needed men in England, Moray was on her own.
I cast my gaze around the room. When I did so, however, my head felt dizzy. The air around me seemed to buzz, and I thought I heard Andraste whisper. Damned.
All at once, the room seemed to erupt into flame. The walls flooded with fire. Black smoke filled the room, ash falling like snow from above. I heard men screaming and felt the hot licks of fire on my skin. In the middle of the inferno, I saw Gillacoemgain, his face full of anguish. He called my name. Then, the flames ravaged him. Before my eyes, he burned until he was nothing more than ash.
I screamed.
“My Lady,” someone said, shaking my shoulder. “Lady Gruoch?”
“Move back,” I heard Gillacoemgain call.
I squeezed my eyes shut. I didn’t want to see the fire, the ash. The flames felt so real. I felt their heat on my skin. I smelled the smoke. Gasping for air, I felt the press of people around me step aside as Gillacoemgain drew close.
“Gruoch?” Gillacoemgain whispered, taking my hand.
I realized then I was lying on the floor.
Afraid that I would see a burned man, I didn’t open my eyes. I shook my head.
“Corbie? What happened? Are you all right?” Gillacoemgain asked.
“She must have heard the conversation, took a fright,” Fergus said softly.
“No,” Gillacoemgain answered. “Boite’s daughter doesn’t fear war. Corbie?”
Finally, I opened my eyes to find Gillacoemgain looking down at me. His forehead was wrinkled with worry.
I exhaled deeply. The vision had passed. “I’m okay,” I replied, offering my other hand so Gillacoemgain could help me up.
“Someone get her maid,” Fergus called.
“What happened?” Gillacoemgain asked.
I shook my head. I didn’t want to say.
“My Lady?” I heard Ute call. She arrived a moment later with Thora hot on her heels.
“Take Lady Gruoch to her chamber to rest,” Gillacoemgain told her then turned to me. “Should I come now? Do you need me?”
“No. It was nothing. Just…it was nothing. You have important work to do here.”
Gillacoemgain nodded then saw me to the door.
“Come now, My Lady. Oh, my sister used to have fits something terrible when she was pregnant. All manner of things would set her off. Let’s have a rest,” Ute told me.