Total pages in book: 40
Estimated words: 36428 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 182(@200wpm)___ 146(@250wpm)___ 121(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 36428 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 182(@200wpm)___ 146(@250wpm)___ 121(@300wpm)
She nodded and purposely sniffed.
“A scent?”
She nodded again.
“I caught a scent in here last night after returning from meeting the clan laird. It reminded me of Beast after getting caught in the rain… wet dog hair.”
Dawn’s eyes widened and she nodded.
He lowered his voice as if concerned about being overheard. “This is a strange place, Dawn.”
A sudden ripple of fear ran through her, and she snuggled closer to him and tapped his lips for him to tell her.
“We are at Clan MacMadadh.”
Her eyes rounded.
“You know it means clan of the wolf?”
She nodded and gestured, waving her hand repeatedly backward.
“Aye, you are right. Clan MacMadadh is an extremely old clan dating back to the early days of this land. I was surprised to hear the name since the clan was thought to have died out long ago, yet here it sits.” He went on to tell her about the wounded wolf cub he had come across and helped and then he told her about meeting Lord Tiernan.
“He says we are welcome and has been generous with his hospitality, yet I cannot help but feel this place harbors a secret. One I care not to know.”
Dawn tapped his chest then hers, then looked to the closed door as she quickly walked her fingers toward it.
“Are you saying we should leave?”
Dawn nodded hastily and it brought a cringe to her face.
“You need more rest, more healing time, and the persistent heavy fog prevents us from leaving,” he said, though felt the same unease as his wife.
Dawn held up one finger.
“One day may not be enough rest for you and there is still the problem of the fog,” he argued gently, clearly seeing she was upset.
Dawn pressed her finger against his nose with such strength that it almost flattened it.
“Are you being adamant about remaining here only one more day?”
She tapped his nose once instead of nodding.
“If the fog lifts in a day, we will take our leave and travel slowly and find my warriors,” he said to appease her and himself.
Dawn smiled and snuggled comfortably in his arms.
Cree kept his arm tight around her. The situation was a conundrum for him. It would not do his wife well if he left here before it was wise for her to travel, yet with his uneasy feeling about this place, he felt a need to take his leave as soon as possible. At least with daylight he could get a better feeling for the clan and perhaps alleviate some of his concerns.
“Olwen, the woman we met upon arrival, says she will send the healer to see you as soon as she returns to the village.”
The unease Dawn felt made her wonder if she would trust the local healer, but she supposed it would be wise to meet the woman and judge for herself. Besides, her husband would insist upon it since it was easy to see he was worried about her, and she did not want to give him more reason to worry.
A knock at the door had Cree getting out of bed.
Dawn understood her husband well. He left her side quickly to be ready to protect her if necessary. She smiled softly, her unease beginning to fade, knowing how capable her husband was of protecting her.
“Enter,” Cree called out.
Olwen entered. “I brought a bucket of water and clean cloths if you would like to freshen yourselves before the morning meal. Lord Tiernan is looking forward to talking with you again and meeting your wife, if she feels up to it. Otherwise, I can have food brought here for Lady Dawn.”
Cree understood it was a summons for him to join Tiernan and he had every intention of doing so, wanting to learn more about his host, as for Dawn.
He turned to her. “Do you feel up to getting out of bed and joining me?”
Dawn nodded her head slowly. There was no way she would remain sequestered in this room all day. She intended to see for certain that the fog persisted and to meet Lord Tiernan to judge the man for herself.
“I will return for you shortly to escort you to the Great Hall,” Olwen said and turned to leave.
“Did they find the young bairn? Tade, I believe they called him,” Cree called out.
Olwen swerved around a bit startled at his question and responded quickly, “Aye, my lord, they did.”
“Was he unharmed?”
“A minor wound, my lord,” Olwen said and hastily left the room.
Cree helped ease his wife out of bed and helped her to freshen her face with a splash of water before he saw to himself. He also examined the wound on her head.
“I believe the swelling has gone down,” he said and was pleased to see her smile.
He watched as she ran a comb that was left for her use through her hair, having offered to help her with it. She refused, naturally, since she could be stubborn at times, doing things for herself since those who did not know her believed that her lack of a voice also left her mind lacking. She continued to prove quite the opposite, having a sharper mind than those who had voices.