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Authors: Cathy MacRae
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thing, quiet and unassuming. Her short marriage was to a braggart of a fool and unlikely to have done anything to encourage boldness. I wish I could tell ye more about her, but if she resembles the maid she was then, she is scarcely more than a pale, thin woman today.”
The king eyed him. “She is plain?”
“Honestly, Sire, she was a skinny, knob-kneed girl of six with nearly colorless hair when I last saw her. I doubt her looks have much improved.”
King Robert hid a smile. He had watched his own daughters change from skinny, plain little girls into young women of stunning beauty. The young laird was in for quite a surprise if what the king’s advisor told him was true.
“Ye may leave it in my hands. But I ask ye to linger in the hall a bit. Ye will join me for dinner after I have spoken with a few others.”
Laird MacLaurey bowed deeply. “As ye wish, Sire.” He backed a couple of steps then turned and strode to the back of the room where his companions waited.
Conn motioned Bray and Gillis close, ushering them away from a group of gossiping courtiers. “The king is willing to do what he can about Lord Wyndham’s daughter. Though I hoped to be on the way to Morven now, he has invited us to stay and dine with him tonight. We are to await him here.”
Gillis gaped. “Eat with the king?”
“I am to assume even the King of Scotland eats oatcakes?” Bray needled Gillis with a lazy drawl and a toothy smile that did not reach his narrowed eyes.
Conn shot them both a crushing look. “See if ye can stay out of trouble for a while at least. I need to remain on good terms with the king if he is to pardon Brianna. The mares are a gift, not a bribe to get the two of ye out of the dungeon.”
The doors to the Great Hall opened and a young woman with shining silver hair flowing in loose curls past her shoulders strode through the doorway, radiant and confident in her royal finery. A herald’s voice rang out.
“Lady Brianna of Wyndham!”
Conn watched in stunned disbelief as the faerie princess who had haunted his dreams for the past two nights lifted her chin and approached the king.
Chapter 9
Brianna stopped at the appointed spot before the king and dropped into a deep curtsy. King Robert eyed her thoughtfully, stroking his chin, looking very much like a stern father debating how best to chastise an errant daughter. Brianna chafed beneath his silent admonition, the words she would have spoken to her father in a similar situation best left unsaid.
Remembering her need for clemency, she waited, bowing her head in deference. The moment drew longer, and she became uneasy. Had the sheriff already approached him? Would he believe the sheriff’s testimony?
“Come closer, Lady Brianna.” The king beckoned with a wave of his hand.
She lifted her skirts and stepped forward until she stood directly before her king. Once again he regarded her in silence, though a faint smile touched his lips.
“I knew yer great-uncle well. Lord John of Islay is a frequent visitor here.”
“He was married to my mother’s aunt many years ago.”
King Robert nodded. “Ye realize he divorced her in order to marry my Margaret?”
“Aye. Ma was fourteen and already in love with my father. She was less concerned with the affairs of those around her, though she always spoke kindly of Lord John. Her own parents never wed, and she was grateful Lady Amy took her in after her father died.”
“I understand yer mother passed away some years ago.”
A twinge of pain caught in Brianna’s chest and she blinked back sudden tears. “Aye.”
The king gave her a kind smile and an approving nod. “It seems she did well by her daughter. Ye are forthright and well-spoken. Most people are tongue-tied to address their king.”
A smile curved Brianna’s lips. “She did her best, Sire. She taught me what she could in the years before her death, though I was quite young. I was an indifferent pupil, I fear.”
“I dinnae know yer
The king eyed him. “She is plain?”
“Honestly, Sire, she was a skinny, knob-kneed girl of six with nearly colorless hair when I last saw her. I doubt her looks have much improved.”
King Robert hid a smile. He had watched his own daughters change from skinny, plain little girls into young women of stunning beauty. The young laird was in for quite a surprise if what the king’s advisor told him was true.
“Ye may leave it in my hands. But I ask ye to linger in the hall a bit. Ye will join me for dinner after I have spoken with a few others.”
Laird MacLaurey bowed deeply. “As ye wish, Sire.” He backed a couple of steps then turned and strode to the back of the room where his companions waited.
Conn motioned Bray and Gillis close, ushering them away from a group of gossiping courtiers. “The king is willing to do what he can about Lord Wyndham’s daughter. Though I hoped to be on the way to Morven now, he has invited us to stay and dine with him tonight. We are to await him here.”
Gillis gaped. “Eat with the king?”
“I am to assume even the King of Scotland eats oatcakes?” Bray needled Gillis with a lazy drawl and a toothy smile that did not reach his narrowed eyes.
Conn shot them both a crushing look. “See if ye can stay out of trouble for a while at least. I need to remain on good terms with the king if he is to pardon Brianna. The mares are a gift, not a bribe to get the two of ye out of the dungeon.”
The doors to the Great Hall opened and a young woman with shining silver hair flowing in loose curls past her shoulders strode through the doorway, radiant and confident in her royal finery. A herald’s voice rang out.
“Lady Brianna of Wyndham!”
Conn watched in stunned disbelief as the faerie princess who had haunted his dreams for the past two nights lifted her chin and approached the king.
Chapter 9
Brianna stopped at the appointed spot before the king and dropped into a deep curtsy. King Robert eyed her thoughtfully, stroking his chin, looking very much like a stern father debating how best to chastise an errant daughter. Brianna chafed beneath his silent admonition, the words she would have spoken to her father in a similar situation best left unsaid.
Remembering her need for clemency, she waited, bowing her head in deference. The moment drew longer, and she became uneasy. Had the sheriff already approached him? Would he believe the sheriff’s testimony?
“Come closer, Lady Brianna.” The king beckoned with a wave of his hand.
She lifted her skirts and stepped forward until she stood directly before her king. Once again he regarded her in silence, though a faint smile touched his lips.
“I knew yer great-uncle well. Lord John of Islay is a frequent visitor here.”
“He was married to my mother’s aunt many years ago.”
King Robert nodded. “Ye realize he divorced her in order to marry my Margaret?”
“Aye. Ma was fourteen and already in love with my father. She was less concerned with the affairs of those around her, though she always spoke kindly of Lord John. Her own parents never wed, and she was grateful Lady Amy took her in after her father died.”
“I understand yer mother passed away some years ago.”
A twinge of pain caught in Brianna’s chest and she blinked back sudden tears. “Aye.”
The king gave her a kind smile and an approving nod. “It seems she did well by her daughter. Ye are forthright and well-spoken. Most people are tongue-tied to address their king.”
A smile curved Brianna’s lips. “She did her best, Sire. She taught me what she could in the years before her death, though I was quite young. I was an indifferent pupil, I fear.”
“I dinnae know yer
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