Chapter 14

Idalia watched the interaction between Katarina and Bran from the edge of the cot. She focused on Bran's shoulders and the way they relaxed when he picked up her nephew. She watched the smile that graced Bran's face, lighting him up from the inside out when the child gripped his fingers.

Bran closed his eyes and moved gently in a swaying motion as if trying to lull the already sleeping child into even deeper sleep. It seemed as if a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders by simply being there, among his own people, people who cared for him and loved him, no matter what. Her heart broke when he was reduced to tears. She could not hear all that was spoken between him and Katarina, but she had come to understand him in the short time they had spent together and knew he must have thought about his family constantly.

Bran had missed so much while he was away, but Idalia was glad he was here now and they would all soon be a family, a community within itself. But first, they had to stop August Raymond and get Bran's daughter back. For he would never be truly happy until he had her in his arms.

She smiled when he adjusted the bairn in his hands very gently, pulling him up in a careful manner as if scared to hurt him. He might not have been present while his daughter was still a baby, and he might not have been given the reunion he was hoping to have with her, but one thing was very clear to her; Bran was a good father.

She jumped when she felt hands on her. She had not realized how lost she was in her thoughts until she turned and saw Adamina and Leonor smiling at her. She returned their smiles sheepishly. She had forgotten about flouting Adamina's decree to go off on her own, but now that she was gazing at her, it was all that filled her mind. She looked at the woman with shame and guilt, knowing that if it had been anyone but Bran that had been sent to abduct her, she would undoubtedly be August Raymond's captive by now.

Idalia opened her mouth to apologize for her actions, but Adamina shook her head, smiling once again.

"Do not worry. I am simply glad you are all right. I understand you would never have been able to rest easy without getting the answers you sought."

Idalia nodded gratefully and turned to her sister. Although Leonor had eagerly hugged her and had been happy to see her, she was certain her sister was angry with the choice she had made.

"I am also just relieved that you are all right. I know you are strong willed, Idalia. It is one of the things I have always admired about you, but please do not go off on your own again. I was worried about you. We all were," her sister said, a look of pain etched on her face.

Idalia was now even more remorseful for what she had done. She had put them through a lot in her bid to find answers when all they wanted was to keep her safe. She knew the fears and uncertainty that came with not knowing; she had felt that way when Katarina had been taken away from them and they had not known whether she was alive or dead.

"I am sorry to have put you through all of that. I promise I will not do it again," she said, meaning it.

"Why don't we go to your room so you can clean up, and then we can talk about what happened? I am sure she would like to relax after the long journey she has had." Idalia looked back to see Katarina standing behind her. She nodded her head and stretched her hand out to Leonor, allowing her to pull her towards her chambers.

Idalia discarded her dirty clothes, allowing the maid to take the garments with her and have them burned. Each piece was torn in various places and beyond redeeming. She made a mental note to replace the clothes of the stable boy as soon as possible and stepped into the hot bath awaiting her in the middle of the room, filling the space with steam.

With one satisfied groan, she settled deeper into the water as the warmth soothed her skin. She had missed the smell of essential oils and flowers after a long time of running around and wearing smelly clothes.

"So, tell us what happened," Adamina said suddenly. Idalia sighed and sat up as she prepared to relay their adventure.

"I was taken. When I arrived at the location stipulated in the letter, I was met by the seer, and she welcomed me in after verifying I was the one who had been searching for her. And then she offered me tea but I passed out soon after that, and when I woke up, I realized I had been abducted. I was tied up and had my head in a sack. It was dreadful."

Idalia was careful to leave out that it was Bran who had been assigned to kidnap her. When he was ready to talk about it, he would do it in his own time. She knew he was nervous about telling his brother about his daughter and all that he had been forced to do under August Raymond's command. She would not bring him any more shame by telling them what he had done.

"It was August Raymond who was behind my kidnapping. He was trying to take me again and?—"

"I can't believe he still hasn't given up," Katarina said angrily. Idalia turned to watch her and saw the look of fear mixed with rage in her eyes. It was the very same look she had been sporting when Bran confirmed that August Raymond was indeed responsible for her abduction.

"I know," she shivered as she thought of what she might have faced if she had not been able to get away. She looked at the faces of her loved ones standing before her. She had been ready to die if that was the only way to stop him from getting her, but she was glad it had not ended that way.

"He is a terrifying person. Thankfully, Bran was there to save me from his clutches again. I do not know what I would have done or if I would have even found a way back if not for Bran. He fought off the men tasked to make sure I got to August and saved me from getting shot with an arrow. I am very glad to have had him." She smiled to herself at her words. Yes, she really had been glad to have him. It did not matter that he had been the one to try to take her to August Raymond in the first place.

"We found a boy to take a letter to you and inform you of our safety and about August Raymond's location, but he was captured before he got to the water. Bran and I had to escape once again to avoid being caught, and we managed to thanks to how well he knew the area. Bran made sure that we got a?—"

Idalia stopped talking when she noticed that the others had gone silent and were sharing strange looks among themselves as she spoke. Was it something she had said? Had she given him away without realizing it? She thought back, but she could not figure out what it might have been.

"What is it? Why are you all exchanging looks?" she asked, curious to know what was on their minds.

"Well… it is just that you sound like ye're in love with him," Adamina said after a short pause.

"What do you mean?!" Idalia pushed up, causing the water to slosh and pour out from the sides of the tub.

"Aye. Look how animated ye get when ye talk about him. Ye did nae sound that way while talking about anythin' else," she theorized. "Ye do sound like ye are in love with him, darlin'."

Idalia let out shocked laughter as she stared at the woman. She looked at Katarina and Leonor, to find them struggling to rein in their smiles, and her shock grew. Surely, they must be mistaken? She was excited to talk about him because he had saved her, that was all it was.

"I can assure you, we are not like that at all."

"Well…" began Leonor. Idalia turned back to look at her sister, her eyes widening even further when she realized Leonor would not come to her defense. "I really do not think that is it. If you think the both of you are "not like that," then it can only mean that you are, but you have yet to realize that it is, indeed, so."

Idalia swallowed and sunk back into the water until only her face was visible. Her mind flashed to what they had done in the boat on their way here. Was that her body's way of telling her how she felt, by reacting to him in that manner? Or was she just thinking too much about it now because of the thoughts they had planted in her head with their insane logic? Did she want to love him?

She had never desired to have a man in her life, controlling her actions. She had always prided herself on being a free spirit, strong-willed. Would giving him her love mean she would have to surrender her will to him. Why was she even thinking about any of this?

She was not in love with him; they were wrong. If any of them had been in her position, they would speak of him as she did, and that would not mean a thing other than that they were grateful, and that was what she was.

As she thought of Bran, she realized all of the emotions she had towards him were soft and caring ones. Gone was the old annoyance and sense of betrayal she had harbored before finding out the reason for his actions. Now, she thought of him in a manner that showed she cared.

But that did not mean she was in love with him. Besides, even if she was, he had rejected her invitation to take things further. Did that not prove that he considered what they had done a mistake, that – quite possibly – he did not want anything to do with her? If that were the case, it would be foolish of her to love him, which she, of course, did not.

Idalia cursed in her mind. Why did they have to bring this up despite all of the other things they could have talked about. All it did was make her question things she had no business questioning.

"We will stop hounding you over this. Your love life is yours, and whatever you choose to do is your business. So, if you believe you do not love Bran, then that is what it is," Katarina said, smiling beautifully at her.

Idalia returned the smile, but her mind was still in turmoil. Her sister's words had made her think. They might choose to believe she did not love Bran now because she said so, but Idalia herself did not know what to believe. Her mind had been poisoned by their statement and she could not silence the doubts, no matter how hard she tried.

"How are we going to deal with August?" Katarina asked her, drawing her out of her thoughts once again. That was a question she did not have the answer to.

August Raymond was a terrible person, with lots of men at his disposal, most of them too scared to refuse him, knowing what the consequences would be. She doubted they could easily steal in there and kill him so that her worries would end once and for all. They would most likely get caught before they made it to his chambers, and even if they did not, he was probably too strong to fight.

She could not understand why August was so obsessed with her and wanted to claim her at all costs. Was it because she was constantly trying to escape him? Why did he love tormenting her so much knowing she was completely repulsed by him. Or did he fancy himself in love with her? She shivered at the thought, completely disgusted with the idea of August Raymond in love with her.

Idalia shook her head in defeat. She hoped Bran would forget about the shame he had carried about his child for so long and tell his brother about her, otherwise all hope was lost in that regard. She turned to her sisters and sister-in-law, who were waiting for her to respond, and she shrugged in defeat.

"I have no idea."