"What?"
Julie lowered her voice even more. "All I am saying is, maybe her father was not really her father."
"Of course, he was not her father, everyone knows that. Charlet's father was a Cameron."
"Then no wonder she is bonnie. I have only seen a few, but the Cameron lads are very handsome. Do they have green eyes?"
"Who knows?"
"Perhaps we could find husbands among the Camerons?"
Kenna rolled her eyes. "Providing we do not let them see Charlet, you mean."
"I hate her."
"Me too."
Julie suddenly had an idea. "We could kill her."
Kenna looked horrified. "We cannot kill her, Kevin would be furious. Have you ever seen him furious?"
"Nay."
"Well, Duff says when Kevin is furious he can glare a hole right through a lad's heart."
Julie's eyes widened.
"And when Kevin was done with that, he would banish us and send us to...that place."
"What place?"
"England!"
Julie drew a sharp breath, crossed herself once and then four more times just to make sure.
*
In the great hall, colorful tapestries hung on the walls with candleholders between them and on the opposite wall hung an assortment of weapons. The MacGreagor mistress made sure there were fresh flowers to enjoy every day and it was normally a peaceful place filled with laughter and love.
Sitting alone at the head of the table, Laird Kevin MacGreagor was feeling his age. His blond hair was beginning to turn white at the temples and his gray-blue eyes were not as bright as they once were. At almost forty-one, he no longer trained with the men daily. He left that up to the younger, much more able men. He was still fit, but his bones didn't move as well and often ached.
When Charlet entered through the larger door, Kevin's eyes brightened and he stood up. Once an awkward girl with unmanageable red hair and eyes that didn't seem to fit in her head, she had grown into a vivacious young woman right before his eyes.
"You wished to see me?" she asked.
Kevin smiled "Duff broke his nose today, were you there?"
"Aye."
"Did you see what happened?"
"I did."
"Do you wish to tell me?"
"I did not do anything, Kevin, I swear it. Duff is a stupid lad."
"I see. He wishes to marry you."
She mumbled under her breath and tightly folded her arms. "I know, he tells me that every day."
"But you do not prefer him?"
"Prefer him? He gawks at me. If he had not been gawking this morning, he would not have walked into the wall." She was furious and started to leave.