Chapter 11

Poisoned Thoughts

“Where is she?” the Laird asked when he stormed into the castle courtyard. “Where’s Holly?”

“I-I—” the startled footman stammered.

Ragnall grabbed him by the collar of his shirt. “Where is she? Where is me wife!” he demanded.

“I dinnae ken, Me Laird,” the footman said quickly. “I think she went out for a walk, but I dinnae ken where she was headed.”

“She did go out, but not for a walk,” a maid called from the other side of the courtyard. “She was out pickin’ berries, but she returned already. I believe she is down in the kitchens, Me Laird.”

Ragnall took a deep breath and dropped the man he was holding. He might have apologized if the man had not run off so quickly.

He turned to Eric. “She’s back, and she’s safe. I’ll go down there, but I want ye to ensure this doesnae happen again.”

“She willnae leave the castle alone on me watch,” Eric assured him. “I’ll go and check if any of the men have returned with word of Fraser’s whereabouts.”

Ragnall nodded and then left to go down to the kitchens. He took the steps two at a time, still worried that an attack might be coming. A threat had come, and while Fraser was a man who hid in the shadows, he didn’t make a threat without following through on it.

When he got to the bottom of the stairs, Ragnall almost ran straight into Mirren.

“Me goodness!” she exclaimed. “What are ye doin’ down here, Me Laird? Nae that I’m complainin’ about seein’ ye.”

“Is Holly down here?” the Laird asked.

“Aye, she’s back there.” Mirren pointed her thumb over her shoulder, a twinkle in her eyes.

“What is she doin’ down here anyway?” Ragnall asked, annoyed.

“She’s been helpin’ me,” Mirren said.

There were not many who dared to show their displeasure with the Laird, but Mirren was one of them.

“She’s tryin’ to make it up to ye too, so please be nice to her. She’s strugglin’ to fit in here.”

Ragnall calm down a little in the presence of the woman who knew him better than anyone else. He trusted Mirren as much as he trusted his closest advisors.

“Ye’ve been lookin’ after her, have ye nae?” Ragnall asked.

“As much as I can,” she admitted.

Ragnall also trusted her to protect Holly as much as his strongest men would. Mirren had been known to wield a sword, and there were plenty of knives in the kitchens to pick up should an attack come.

Mirren patted the Laird on the shoulder before she went on her way.

Ragnall walked toward the noise coming from the kitchens. Whatever he was smelling made his mouth water. He found Holly with his back to him.

He cleared his throat. Holly was not frightened by the interruption, but she was surprised when she turned around and saw him. She put on her best smile.

“Ye’re just in time,” she intoned.

She turned around and picked something up, and when she turned back to face him, Ragnall saw it was a pie.

“What is that?” he asked.

“A pie for ye,” Holly replied.

“For me?” the Laird asked. “Why?”

“To apologize,” Holly said. “I think we got off on the wrong foot. I ken this isnae easy for ye, with everythin’ goin’ on, so I wanted to make ye a pie. Mirren might have told me ye have a sweet tooth. It was me maither’s recipe, afore she died.”

Ragnall felt a sadness wash over him. He knew Holly’s mother was no longer around, but he had not cared enough to ask Holly or her father about it. He had only cared about taking a wife as quickly as possible. They had both lost people.

He looked down at the pie again and could not feel sad when it smelled so delicious.

“Ye made this for me?” he asked.

“Aye,” she replied. “It just came out of the oven. I cannae deny that me mouth has been waterin’ for the past few minutes. I hoped ye would be back soon so ye could try it and tell me what ye think of it.”

“With yer mouth waterin’, it wouldnae be fair for me to taste it alone,” the Laird noted. “How about ye get two forks, and we can try it together?”

“I would like that.” Holly skipped around the kitchen until she found a fork.

Ragnall leaned down and brought his nose close to the pie, inhaling deeply. His mouth became like a raging waterfall, it was watering so much. Holly returned with two forks, not a moment too soon. He had been tempted to pick the whole thing up and bite into it before she returned.

Holly passed him a fork, and they smiled at each other. Each dug their fork in and scooped out a piece of pie, blowing on it to cool the steaming hot, juicy filling.

“Ye went out to pick the berries yerself?” Ragnall asked.

“Aye, I did.”

“Ye cannae do that again by yerself,” he insisted. “Ye might nae like it, but there’s still danger out there.”

He couldn’t bring himself to tell her about the most recent threat—he could not worry her like that.

“Then ye better take care of him,” Holly returned.

“I will,” Ragnall replied, happy she was not arguing with him. “What berries did ye pick?”

“Mostly raspberries,” Holly replied. “Some others I didn’t recognize, but I met a woman out there who told me about these small red ones that are sweet in a pie.”

Holly lifted the forkful of pie to her mouth, but the Laird suddenly batted her hand away, sending both the fork and the piece of pie flying across the room.

“What woman?” he demanded.

“What are ye doin’?” Holly gasped. “Ye’ve gone mad”

“Who was the woman, and what berries did she tell ye to pick?” Ragnall shouted.

Holly cowered before him. She looked on the verge of tears. “I-I dinnae ken. I dinnae ken who the woman was or what the berries were. She was kind to me, and she only wanted to help. I dinnae understand what all the fuss is about.”

Ragnall swept his arm across the counter, sending the pie flying against the wall, where it splattered like blood.

“The fuss is a threat from Fraser directed at ye!” Ragnall boomed.

“What? Directed at me? What did it say?” Holly asked, wide-eyed.

“It doesnae matter. He threatened ye, and I will deal with it. I dinnae want ye to leave the castle alone again, do ye hear me?” Ragnall growled.

Holly’s eyes widened some more. Ragnall did not want to be the beast she thought he was, but he had to if he wanted to protect her and his future.

“Until Fraser is dealt with, ye are nae to leave the castle,” he repeated. “Do ye understand?”

“Aye!” Holly shouted back. She glanced at the ruined pie and then back at him. “If ye want to keep me as yer prisoner, then just say so. I’ll go straight to me room, and I willnae leave. That’s better, is it nae? That way, ye willnae have to worry about me at all. Good night!”

It was still the middle of the afternoon, but that didn’t matter. Ragnall didn’t get a chance to respond to his wife’s rant before she ran out of the kitchen.

He knew it would be no use to follow her. He didn’t like how upset he had made his wife, but some good had come out of it. If she was confined to her rooms, Fraser could not get to her, and that was all that mattered for the moment.