Page 34 of The Highlander's Dangerous Bride

“Did she nae bring any clothes with her? I noticed she has nay baggage,” Sofia said with puzzlement.

“Nay, she was in a shipwreck, and she lost everythin’. I had tae ask the landlady of the inn tae find her something tae wear. She didnae even have shoes on her feet when I found her. She was in her shift and petticoat, that was all.”

“A shipwreck! The poor lassie, how terrible,” Sofia exclaimed softly, her flawless white brow creasing. “So, she has naethin’ but what’s on her back?”

“Nay.” Arne shook his head.

“Well, I’ll lend her some of me own things until she can get some fer hersel’. I’ll get Laurel tae help me sort them out and take them up fer Raven later on.”

“Thank ye, Sofia, that’s kind of ye.”

“’Tis the least I can dae fer her after what’s she suffered,” she went on, making Arne wonder again how she could be so accepting of Raven, knowing what she had done. Sofia’s face suddenly brightened. “Ye ken, Arne, I cannae help thinkin’ ’twas a sort of miracle that of all the folk on the island, it was ye who found her,” she said in tones of awe.

He shrugged. “Fate playin’ a cruel joke on me, more like. There was a bad storm, and her boat ran aground and got smashed up on the rocks. I was helpin’ tae save as many of the passengers as possible, and I just happened tae pick her. I didnae ken it was her at first, but when I did, it was a shock, I can tell ye.”

“It must have been, fer both of ye.”

“Aye, she was unconscious fer hours and I had nay idea if she would live. But I had a good healer come and see tae her, and she gradually recovered. I suppose Haldor told ye about the MacDonald men comin’ tae find her earlier.”

“Aye, she told me. And that she’s married, but she’s run away from her husband.”

“Aye, the Laird MacDonald. She’s told me so many lies, Sofia, I just dinnae ken what tae believe.”

“Well, that’s understandable. But even when she didn’t tell ye the whole truth, she was nae lyin’ about someone bein’ after her, was she? It seems her husband, has gone so far as tae hire men tae hunt her down. The danger is real, have ye thought about that?”

“Aye, I’ve thought about it, but I cannae believe it. I cannae bring mesel’ tae trust anythin’ she says. Except one thing: that she had tae come back for Thorsten. She says she’s waited three years fer the chance tae come back here and see him. It’s practically all she’s talked about.”

“What made ye agree?” she asked.

“Just seein’ how serious she was about it.” He jerked his chin at the door to Thorsten’s room. “And just now, when she met him fer the first time since she abandoned him, ye could see it in her, the emotion. There’s nae doubt she cares fer him. I’m scared about her intentions, but I couldnae keep her away from him any longer.”

“She’s his maither. Of course, ye cannae keep her from him.”

“Ye say that as though ’tis all simple, but ’tis complicated. I told him his maither was dead, Sofia. How dae I explain that she’s suddenly alive and that she’s come back for him? What if he bonds with her and then she takes off again? How am I gonnae explain that tae him? What if she wants tae take him away? Ach, I dinnae ken what tae dae, what is best. All this is tearin’ me apart.”

Sofia put a gentle hand on his arm. “Arne, calm yersel’. Naethin’ in this world can come between a lovin’ maither and her child. Ye did the right thing. How did they get on when they met?”

“He took tae her right away. They played together fer a long time. He even wanted her tae kiss him goodnight. He’s never done that with anyone. It was like he sensed somethin’ special about her,” he told her grudgingly.

“Well, there ye are. That shows ye were right tae bring her here and let her see her bairn. Give her a chance tae prove how much she cares fer the lad.”

“She chose tae leave him, Sofia. Why should I give her a chance? ’Tis heartbreakin’ tae find out that he was born out of wedlock, fer I’m nae wed tae her.”

“Aye, I ken that must hurt. But the Laird MacDonald, did she tell ye why she’s runnin’ from him?”

“Aye.” He explained what Raven had shared about her husband, the forced, unhappy marriage, and why she had left him after a year.

Sofia looked grave. “The poor lassie. Life is often cruel fer us women, Arne. Nae all men are like ye and Haldor and Ivar. Some men look on their women as chattels, and they can easily control us with threats or force if they wish tae. They can lock us up or even murder us if it suits their purposes.”

“What d’ye mean by that?” he asked, wondering how she could be so sympathetic towards Raven when he could not.

“Think on it—a husband she flees from who’s still huntin’ her down after so many years. What sort of man d’ye think that is?”

A bastard, that’s what.

“I mean that I think ye should try nae tae simply dismiss what Raven tells ye when she says she’s been trying tae protect Thorsten and ye from danger. She could very well be tellin’ as much of the truth as she dares tae. I ken she hurt ye when she left, Arne, but I would say tae try nae tae make too many assumptions about Raven’s motives. If what she says is true, then she did what any lovin’ maither would dae: when she left Arne here with ye, she was sacrificin’ herself tae protect her bairn and the man she loved. At least, that was what she believed.”

Her words troubled Arne, for he had never thought of Raven as having sacrificed herself, only as a villain for abandoning him and Thorsten. And he certainly was not convinced that she had ever truly loved him. If she had, then how could she have left him like that, knowing it would destroy him?

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