Page 36 of The Plight of a Scottish Lass
Thane took a bite of his bread and said, “Fine bread you make. Please tell me more.”
“Many thanks to you. They say he beats her nearly every day. I heard he wants her dead, so he can marry another to give him a son. Said he’s trying to get every unmarried lass around carrying and whichever one gets a big belly the fastest will be his new wife.”
“His wife never gave him a bairn?”
The man snorted. “Aye, a pretty lass, but she stays with his mother. She keeps her locked up because she hates bairns. In fact, I heard an awful fact, and I fear to even repeat it. But if it’s true, others need to know what takes place on the island.”
Thane leaned forward but said nothing, while Brian and Artan continued to scan the area for trouble.
“They say the bitch sells bairns. Takes them to other islands and sells them. Puts them on ships for coin. They must be older than two winters. That’s how the fools make their coin. There are several cottages on his land where the ones who work for him stay. Guards, cooks, carpenters, those kind. I wish to leave and never return, but he comes after me on Mull.”
Thane stood back, the hairs on his neck bristling with a sudden understanding of more than he wished. “Where is Garvie’s holding?”
The man pointed to the west. “Follow that path. Though you’ll not get past his guards. The only way to any other part onthe isle is to land on the coast to the west.”
“So where are the other holdings on the isle? Any castles? Brochs?”
“Nay. Just Garvie. He’s taken them all over as his own. Anyone who built or lived in a hut has been sent away. We are the only ones allowed because he needs our wares. And if we don’t come, he comes after us.”
There was only one thing more that Thane needed to know before he made his decision about what to do with Garvie.
“How many men?”
The man shrugged his shoulders. “I’d guess three score. No more.”
That was all the information he needed. With his own men and the guards of Clan Grantham, he might be able to accomplish his goal. But it would take time. He didn’t have the men to attack yet, and he had no idea if Clan Grantham did either.
Thane paid the man for another loaf of bread and sauntered back to Brian and Artan, filling them in on all he’d learned.
“I say we return,” Brian said. “No reason to head to Garvie land.”
Artan said, “I agree. We are not prepared to fight anyone.”
“I’ve learned enough for this day.” Thane led the way back toward the place where they’d hidden the boat. They glanced around before heading in that direction, making sure they were not being followed, but none had expected to find what they did.
A lad of mayhap ten summers sat inside their boat, his arms crossed in front of him.
The three men stopped to stare at the lad, but he was not frozen, instead speaking his mind quickly, his words coming out in such a rush that Thane almost didn’t hear everything.
“Take me with you. Anywhere away from the island. I know why you are here because I followed you, but I need your help.My sister and I were sent here to be sold. We escaped a sennight ago, but we wish to be away from the isle. If you take us with you, I’ll tell you all you need to know about the Garvie holding.”
Artan responded faster than Thane even thought possible. “Where is your sister?”
The lad pointed to a spot around the corner toward the coastline. The three men stepped around some trees, and there sat a blond-haired lass of around five, her hands folded demurely in her lap.
Thane held his hand out to her, and she got up and took it. “I shall go with Magni, wherever that may be, if you please.”
“Is Magni your brother?” Thane led her back around to the boat where the lad was, now standing next to it. He knew what it felt like to be left alone on an island you’d never been to before. He surely would not leave these two behind.
“Aye.”
“What’s your name?” Thane asked, wondering what the hell kind of game Garvie was playing.
“Lia. Will you be our new papa?”
Thane didn’t know exactly how to answer that, but he did his best to be honest, so he knelt in front of her and waved her brother over. “I’ll take you both back to our castle. We will not sell you, but you may choose to stay with us, or I can try to find parents to take you in. We’ll feed you, though Magni may have some chores to do, and we’ll give you a pallet inside, so you’ll be warm, but I promise to keep you away from Garvie. That is all I can offer you. Do you accept, Magni? I ask you to speak for both of you.”
Magni nodded, tears coming to his eyes, but he brushed them away. “Aye, we will come with you. I promise to work verra hard, and I wish to take any beatings for my sister. She is too young.”
