Chapter 7

Afew days had passed and Lucy hadn't been caught yet. In fact, there had been no guards charging through the door, no alarms being sounded. Her father had not been raging through the town crying out her name. Part of her wondered if he missed her at all, or was actually relieved that she had disappeared. She had always been something of a disappointment to him. And now she had a new life, a strange life, a life in a hidden part of the world with two men who were entertaining rather than threatening. They bickered like brothers, the impact of sharp words dulled by a mutual respect and affection that was hidden beneath the surface. Ian was a hard man, grim even, but he was not hard enough to turn her away. Even though he grumbled about the strays, Lucy noticed that she and the cat were still lingering in his home, and neither of them were starving.

At least they weren't since Ian and Rory had insisted on taking over cooking after her debacle of a meal. She had barely managed to force it down herself and couldn't understand where she had gone wrong. She had observed food being made before occasionally and she repeated the routine of the cooks, but somehow the end result had been entirely different and almost unpalatable. At least she hadn't poisoned either of them. They seemed to believe the story she had made up as well. Even Ian had been moved to sympathy because of it. While this was an advantage in her current situation, it did plague her with guilt. She was a liar all the way through, hardly the character of a noble woman.

But perhaps it was telling that she had shed that life. In private moments she thought about her father, the important advisor to the Laird, influencing the direction of the clan, influencing every part of life, including her own. Her throat tightened when she thought about the arrangements he had made for her, the future he had envisioned, the shackles he had wanted to place upon her. She shuddered at the thought of her freedom being taken away. Her current surroundings may not have been ideal, but at least she was free to make her own choices, free to live without the scrutiny and disappointed stare of her father, Hamish Glennrock. But she dared not tell Ian and Rory the truth. If they found out she was from nobility, then they would be scared, and perhaps insistent on taking her back to the keep. There might be a hefty reward for her safe return. No, she had to become this other woman, this Lucy of no-name, a woman with shadows for a past, with ghosts for parents, who would eventually disappear as quickly as she had arrived.

Until then, however, she would try to enjoy herself as much as possible. Learning about the distillation process had been more interesting than she had first thought. It was something her father would never have allowed her to learn about, thinking it unsuitable for a woman. Ian didn't treat her like anyone special, nor did he try to protect her from the world's ills. To him, she was just an ordinary lass, and she found this refreshing. It wasn't long before she was taking an active part in helping Rory and Ian, although Ian made it clear that she shouldn't expect to share in any of their profits. She didn't mind that so much, though, she was just glad to be busy. Life in the keep had been tiresome. For some reason, her father believed that women of nobility should not dirty their hands with tasks of real interest. She was told to darn and sew and read, things that held little interest for her. She enjoyed the mechanics of things, seeing how they worked, looking at the process from beginning to end to truly understand the evolution.

It helped that Rory and Ian were good company too. Ian, despite his gruff exterior, was clearly fond of Rory. She wondered about him, why he hadn't married and filled his home with children. Perhaps he did not mind the silence so much, but there was a history to the man that she longed to discover. He was like a mystery waiting to be solved, and just as she liked learning about the processes behind distillation, so too did she want to understand the processes of his life. She didn't dare ask him about it directly, though, as she knew she would be met with a disdainful look and a withering mutter. Instead, she offered ideas about how to improve the process. They weren't always met with a keen appreciation, but Ian did implement some of them.

One day, while Ian was busy in the forge, Rory came to Lucy with a mischievous gleam in his eyes.

"I feel bad for ye being cooped up in here all the time. Even Ginger gets tae stretch her legs. I know a secret path through the forest. Naebody will see us, if ye want tae gae for a walk," he said.

"Will Ian nae mind?"

"When he gets lost in his hammering, he loses all sense of the world. We will nae be gone for long. He'll never know we hae left."

Lucy thought about it for a moment, but did not have to take long to decide. She eagerly nodded and followed Rory out of a rear entrance of the shop, after writing a note for Ian, just in case he came back before they returned. She hated the idea of him thinking she had gone against her word. They skulked down an alley, ran past some buildings, and then quickly entered the forest, without attracting the attention of anyone. The trees were thick on the outskirts of the village and this secret path Rory knew was little more than a trail, hardly well-trodden, so the chances of them encountering anyone else were slim.

Lucy took a moment to enjoy the fresh air. It was cool and sweet, refreshing. She reached out and touched the broad leaves, the soft petals, the rough bark, feeling a part of the world again. The sun filtered through the trees. Wispy clouds drifted overhead, turning into mist in the vague distance. Small birds hopped from branch to branch, while eager squirrels scurried through bushes and raced up trees, hiding away in their nooks and crannies. Fallen branches stretched across the ground, half-buried in the soil. There was an earthy scent in the air, rich and fulfilling. In the gnarled bark, she could see different patterns, as though the trees had ancient faces that were looking to share their wisdom. The soil was soft underfoot, and leaves crunched as she walked. It was a satisfying sound. She looked through the stationed tree guards and thought about the world beyond, a world that was open to her, a world that was filled with possibilities. She needed a plan first, though, and ideally a horse.

"Can I ask ye a question, Rory?" she ventured, breaking the silence that lingered between them. He inclined his head, indicating that she could proceed. "Dae ye know much about Ian's life? Does he hae a family?"

Rory shrugged. "He dinnae like tae talk about the past. I asked him about it once, but he said that we should nae talk about things that dinnae matter. After that, I never asked him again. I suppose there is some story there, but I feared if I pressed tae much, then he would throw me out and I would never get tae learn from him. I suppose it dinnae really make any difference. We all hae tragedy in our lives," he offered her a sympathetic smile when he said this, and a pang of guilt flashed through her heart. The only tragedy she truly had was an overbearing father.

"Even ye?" she asked.

"Oh aye," Rory took a deep breath and then launched into a tale of his past. "My parents died when I was a wee bairn. My sister took care of me. We used tae live in this old place, it was more of a ruin than a house. She was forced tae trick people tae earn some coin. One day, she thought of a scheme tae make us rich. We ended up gaeing tae a great festival where she tried tae win the heart of a rich noble, heir to a clan."

"Did it work?" Lucy asked, arching her eyebrows.

Rory chuckled. "In a way, although as it turned out the man she courted was trying the same thing, intending tae win the favor of a highborn woman. They were both pretending tae be something they were nae, but in the end they worked it all out and now they live on a farm taegether. We hae food on the table, a roof over our heads… it's a far cry from where we used tae be."

"She sounds impressive," Lucy thought, wishing that she had that kind of intrepid spirit. "And ye left all that?"

Rory sighed a little. "There was only sae much I could learn there, and I dinnae want tae be a farmer. I knew that if I wanted tae stand out, I would need tae hone my skills. Besides, I hae been with her all my life. I thought it was time for me tae strike out by myself. I dae miss her though…"

Lucy nodded with understanding, knowing what it was like to want to break free of the familial bonds. "Dae ye plan tae stay with Ian for long?"

Rory glanced away, frowning with uncertainty. "There is a lot I still hae tae learn from him, but I dinnae intend tae get mixed up in this illegal business. I just wish I could focus on the forge, but Ian needs my help. He said that as long as I helped him, then I would be able tae stay for as long as I want and use whatever tools he hae, and I could even take on a lot of jobs for myself. He's nae a bad man, he just dinnae like this law. It would be easier if he gave it all up, though. I dinnae like knowing that we could be exposed and caught at any moment. It feels the same as when I used tae help out with my sister's tricks. I thought all that was over," he wrung his hands together and looked quite morose.

"I will nae expose ye," Lucy said, hoping that he wasn't worried about her loyalty. "But ye know that ye are nae beholden tae him. Ye are his apprentice, nae his family. If it gets tae much for ye, then ye are always free tae leave. Family are the ones that can make ye stay."

Rory nodded and pursed his lips. He plucked a berry from a tree and popped it into his mouth, sighing as he did so.

"I suppose ye are right," he said. Lucy smiled, glad that she could help him. She also found herself more curious about Ian. Was he trying to hide anything of consequence from his past? She had been so hasty to leave the suffocating presence of her father that she was entrusting her wellbeing to a man she didn't know at all, a man with a stormy heart and cold eyes, who seemed to push away everyone, yet who welcomed an apprentice, a thief, and a stray cat into his home. These contradictions about him didn't quite make sense, and she wished to be able to untangle the threads of his life.

* * *

Ian was hammering awayat his forge, thinking over the events of the past few days. He had gotten used to Lucy's presence more quickly than he would have thought. She was quick-witted and eager to share her thoughts about things. She threw herself into every task he gave her, as though she was excited to be here despite being cooped up in his shop. He assumed that escaping the guard's grasp must have given her a sense of elation, and this attitude was like a ray of dazzling light bursting into his life, pushing back the shadows that often encroached upon his mind. She hummed and sang as she worked, breaking the mundane atmosphere that often lingered in the shop and, as of yet, she hadn't attempted to steal anything.

There was no sense in him getting used to her presence, however. When he looked outside the windows, he could see that guards were still prowling the village, looking for her. Eventually, they would give up, though, and then she would be on her way to parts unknown, finding a small corner of the world in which to settle down. There would probably be some doe-eyed fool who was charmed by her easy manner. She wouldn't tell him that she was a thief, of course, but would make up some strange backstory to trick him, and he would fall for it because he wanted to. Ian sighed, shaking his head. He had many troubles in his life, but at least he wasn't that kind of man.

When he was finished with his tasks, he went to the basement and found Rory and Lucy cleaning, although they were laughing about something. They stopped as soon as they noticed Ian's presence.

"Ian, can I hae a word?" Rory asked, pulling him aside. "I hae been thinking about home recently. I hoped that ye might grant me some time tae visit my family. I miss my sister and I dinnae want tae be ungrateful. I know there's still lots tae dae around here, but I thought that now we hae Lucy, she can help ye."

Ian put his hands on his hips, but he couldn't bring himself to deny Rory's request. He might not have been a fool for a pretty face, but whenever the mention of a sister came into conversation, something twitched inside his heart. The plague had stolen so many moments from him and Fiona, and he wasn't about to do the same with Rory.

"Of course, lad. I'll still be here when ye return," he replied. Rory beamed brightly and went to fetch his things. He stared at Lucy. "This means that it'll just be ye and me for a while. I hope ye are prepared tae work hard."

"Oh, I am, and this will give us a chance tae get tae know each other better," Lucy replied with a wide smile. Ian stared at her for a long time, but was unable to work out if she was being genuine or was just teasing him. He harrumphed, turning away from her. The last thing he wanted to do was share his secrets with her. They were his own, little precious stones in his heart, and he would carry them around with him forever.

Since Rory was getting his things ready for his journey home, Ian took the opportunity to make a delivery by himself. He could stay in the inn for a while and have a wee sip of drink as well, just to help him stop thinking about his own secrets, and Lucy. She had blown into his life like a howling wind and he hoped that she would not leave detritus in her wake. He was going to miss Rory more than he would admit as well. After raising walls around his heart and pushing people away, he had gotten quite used to having others around him again. But Rory had a home to return to, and Lucy had freedom waiting for her. They both had other lives waiting for them, while Ian was destined to stay here in the darkness, his hammer echoing into eternity.