There Your Heart Will Be Also (17 page)

****

Cedric
spun
back around after his conversation with Duncan
,
ready to resume his
game
with Sarra only to find
the lass
had disappeared.
Where had she gotten off to?
He
searched
the immediate area and decided
Sarra
must have gone
inside
the keep.
Maybe
the
need to
ask
permission for the Scots to come inside
had sent her ahead.

Cedric found himself hoping Sarra didn't get in
any
trouble.
He
was growing fond of the young lass, and
didn't want
her
to be punished.
Of course
Sarra was a dalliance, nothing more.
The mistress of Greenbriar was the
true
prize.
She alone held the key to his future.

Cedric
made his way toward the keep
.
Even though he told himself to stop
,
he couldn't help but
look for
Sarra
with each step he took.
He was just entering the doors off the main hall with the Scots in tow when Sarra
came through the swinging door
laden with food
.

He headed
toward
her
to help
but he was waylaid by Scotsmen.

“Cedric, we heard ye had been killed by the MacNeils.”

Cedric watched Sarra out of the corner of his eye
,
trying to gain her attention
.
“
Y
e obviously heard incorrectly.”

Why had he not told Barney to explain the situation to Duncan and his men?
Would they sit in the great hall and tell all of his plans?

Duncan howled
.
“That we did boy.
That we did.
I always did like William.
And Elinor, ye
r
mother
,
was a saint.
What her family did to her because she married William was just plain unsightly.
And then for ye own family to treat ye so poorly after William was gone
.
”
H
e shook his head in disgust
.
“
It just wasn't right.
Ye know this, the Sinclair's have nothin' against ye lad, nothin' at all.”

“Thank ye
.
I will remember
ye said so
.
But Duncan can ye refrain from calling me lad
?
Ye are just a
bit older
than I.”

Duncan chortled
.
“Perhaps I can manage it.”

“
And t
o think
ye
were relegated to marrying an English harlot just to have a little land to ye name
.
I
a
m sorry
for ye
.
”
A
Scot named
Amos
gave
a shake of
his
head
.

Cedric saw Sarra lose her grip on the tray before he heard it crash to the ground.

The Scotsm
a
n in front of Cedric wasn't prepared for the reaction
to his words
.
The man's feet dangled while Cedric held him by the scruff of the neck and shook him.
“Ye will apologize.
This
is a gentlewoman, worthy of honor, and respect.
Y
e
will refrain from speaking in such a manner
in her presence
again.
In fact I don't think I want ye to speak
in her hearing
at all, do ye understand?”

Amos
struggled
to apologize for his comment but it wouldn't go past his closed off throat.

While he
tried to
croak out an apology, Sarra wiggled through the thickening crowd and laid a hand on Cedric's arm
.
“Cedric, he cannot apologize if he cannot breathe.”

Cedric let go of the man and he fell to a crumpled heap on the floor.
The offending Scot
peer
ed up at Sarra with moisture in his eyes.
Sarra bent down and handed him a cup of water.

“Sorry, I didna realize
what I was sayin'
.”

“
Apology accepted
.
Let's get you to the table so you may partake of the refreshments
an
English castle has provided.”

Cedric watched as the man realized he had tried to bite the hand
which
f
ed
him
.
“Again, I am sorry
, lass
.”
Amos
hung his head in shame
and
walked to a seat at the table
.

Cedric
continued to fume
over what Amos had said.
How dare
the
man
insinuate
the mistress of the keep
was a tainted woman?
The mistress
was to be his future wife.
Although he'd yet to meet the woman
himself
,
the woman
the whole of England described as a shrew and a witch, he wouldn't allow others to go around defaming her.
Had
Sarra not been in attendance
, Cedric might have
beat
Amos on the spot
.
Large hands hidden under the table transformed into fists, rubbing one hand over the other, itching to hit something.

The men ate like hogs, throwing their scraps on the floor.
They cursed and
swore
,
not seeming
to understand respect of another's household.

Cedric sat at the head of the table
,
enjoying the feel of the great chair.
He could get used to
t
his position.
But looking around at his fellow Scotsmen some things
became
painfully obvious.
The men paid little attention to the fact
a lady
was in the room
,
which made Cedric even angrier.
No wonder the world considered them barbarians.
This
would
have
to
change.

****

Before the men
were served
, Sir Henry had found Sarra in the kitchen
and
relayed the events from the field.
The explanation about the raiders taking the sheep then Cedric stepping into the group to try to stop them had set Sarra's pulse to pumping
at double its normal rhythm
.
It had taken all her willpower to keep from fussing at the Scot and his dim-witted actions.
Did he want to get himself killed?

Sarra continued to listen attentively as Sir Henry explained the battle and the extra
Scots
men
who
had
arrived to help Cedric rescue the keep.
Sarra hadn't known what to say.
At least knowing these things had eased her concern over inviting the group within the keep
'
s walls.

Now as
Sarra
watched the group in action, she
didn't respond.
T
emper
barely held
in check
,
s
he
couldn't decide who
she was the most irritated
with,
Cedric with his way of defending her or the unnamed Scotsman for judging her
, the mistress,
without even
knowing
her.

T
he
fruit
which
had fallen to the floor
needed to be taken to the kitchen and cleaned. H
owever,
it was
too late.
Duncan and some of the other men had already picked up the fruit, placed it on the tray
,
and
laid
it on the table.
Immediately, the men began partaking of what they
obviously
considered a feast.

Cedric disappeared
from her view
.
Sarra searched the room
,
seeking
hi
s towering form and dark hair,
finally
spotting
him at the head of the massive table.
He had taken up a position of authority, letting the others know he was in charge here and they would do well to respect his position in the household.

Sarra
reviewed her feelings
.
How did she
fel
l
about Cedric's display of power
?
For now, it kept the Scots under control.
But this was not a permanent situation,
and
surely Cedric
must
realize
this
.
Even though her feelings for Cedric were growing, she wasn't quite ready to hand over control of her land and her life to him.

And what had
the
Scot meant when he said, Cedric was marrying an English harlot for land?
Sarra stared at t
he offending man
.
He
rubbed his throat as he reached for the food
C
ook had spread out on the table.
The others seemed to be oblivious to the confrontation
which
had taken place
just moments before
.

Sarra had heard in Scottish families, such fights were quite common.
But witnessing one firsthand had left her feeling a little unsure of her
self
.

As Sarra served ale
,
the men began to jest with one another, telling battle stories and stories of conquest.
Sarra watched as the men threw their scraps around them.
A mess was
quickly
developing
in the eating hall
.
Sighing, she realized she would
be
help
ing
the servants clean after the meal was over.

Duncan, who appeared to be the leader of the group, was almost as tall as Cedric and as broad.
He was a handsome man with green eyes and brown hair
.
He seemed to be a fair fellow.
When the Scots took to storytelling
,
Duncan began the first story
.
“There was a time when I was young I did a mite bit of traveling.
I
've
seen France, and Italy, and of course, Greece.
Aye, the women I saw.
Most of them foreign women were scantly clad and they thought a man in a kilt was the most attractive thing they
'
d ever seen.
So of course I felt the need to accommodate them.
I think I had me about six in one…”

The story was interrupted when Cedric slammed his hand on the table, stood up and shouted, “Enough!”

“
N
ow
,
Cedric
,
there is no reason to get surly.
I was just talking to the family.”

“Nay, ye are not.”

“Aye, ye mean the serving wench.
Well now, after this story she might want to visit me for a spell
,
”
Duncan leaned back in his chair, laughing heartily.

Cedric strode purposefully over to Duncan, grasped him by the front of the tunic and pulled him in real close.
In a
loud
,
booming voice
Cedric spoke, “
E
nough!
She is not a serving wench
.
T
his lass
is a…
It doesn't matter what she is.
Y
e are eating from the fruits of her
mistress
'
table and ye will instruct your men to become respectful and gain some manners this instant
,
or I will personally take
all of
ye
to the lists and teach ye some manners myself
.
”

S
arra bowed her head in embarrassment at Cedric's manners.

When Cedric was finished speaking
,
Duncan
glanced
at
her
and gave a weary nod.
“I didna realize
ye was so important
,
lass.
I do apologize and the whole lot of us will straighten up, right
lads
?”

“Aye,” the crowd said in unison.

Cedric settled back in his chair at the head of the table
,
appearing
satisfied
at the
response from his countrymen.
Finally, a little respect, his body seemed to say.
He leaned back and was in the process of getting comfortable.
Even though h
is eyes
remained
half closed,
she could feel the heat of his gaze as she
served
.

Her
hair spilled over into her face as she leaned over to refill cup after cup of ale.
She brushed it behind her ear to keep it out of the way.
No one said anything other than thanks to her,
apparently
preferring to ignore
a mere
maid's
presence as much as possible.
After a time, the men became more relaxed and they began exchanging stories.

Again Duncan, being the
apparent
leader of the group, began the storytelling
.
“Me sister was just about three when she comes tiptoeing into the room and says, ‘Da, why is the sky blue?'
Well of course me da didna know the answer to such a question, and he told her so.
Then she begins to wail and me ma up and says to da, ‘Now, tell
the
child what she wants to know so we can go back to sleep'.
Well, what was da to do?
He just told her it was blue because that was the color of her eyes.
So the next day, she asks me if I like the green sky and I tell her but the sky taint green and she said, ‘Well of course it is, because
the color of ye
r
eyes is green
!'”

All the men at the table laughed at the ridiculous nature of the story.
Even Sarra found a smile gracing her lips.
She had taken up residence on a stool in the corner, trying to stay awake enough to help serv
e
until the men took their leave
.
I
f they ever took their leave.

Her head bobbed and she jerked awake. But her eyes were heavy. T
he men began to laugh
again,
even more loudly
, jarring Sarra awake
again
.

Enough was enough
.
She was tired.
Sarra didn't speak
.
Instead
grabb
ing
an empty tray from the table
,
she headed
to the kitchen.
Once in the kitchen,
she
deposited
the tray
on a
table
.

“Done are ye, my lady?”

“Oh, Cook forgive me.
I can't stand a moment more.”

“To bed with ye.
We will clean up the mess they make.”

Sarra nodded and
ascended the back stairs to her room.
The
purple
silk gown
landed
in a heap on the floor.
T
he cool sheets
of the bed covered her frame as an influx of tears poured down her cheeks
.

What was she going to do?
She had
no doubt she was
developing romantic feelings for
Cedric.
But what did he want?
Was he here to claim the land by marrying the mistress?
And if so, h
ow
could she
find out
for sure
?
And if he was only after the land, what would she do about it?

No doubt
Sarra
would have to find
Cedric
tomorrow and apologize for her
rude
behavior
and
the
unexpected departure.
She sighed, wiped away tears, and smothered a big yawn.
Getting comfortable,
sleep overcame her while her mind
wonder
ed
what tomorrow would bring.