Chapter 4
It was a clear winter’s day one week later when Keira left the confines of Storbrook, venturing past the castle walls into the snowy landscape beyond. She had convinced Anna to join her as she went in search of boughs of greenery to decorate the castle for the coming season of Christmastide. They were accompanied by Garrick, Cook’s nephew, who lived at Storbrook, helping around in the yard or stable as needed. At sixteen he was a tall lad, but the lack of weight on his gangly frame reminded Keira of an ungainly colt. His sandy hair was cropped short, while his nose and cheeks were scattered with freckles. He didn’t say much, but he had a quick and easy smile that crinkled his blue eyes at the corners.
Garrick walked apace with the two women, guiding the large, bad-tempered mule that pulled a small sleigh behind it. Keira noticed that Garrick often glanced their way, his eyes falling on Anna as she trudged through the snow which reached almost to their knees, sometimes spilling over the tops of their boots as they hitched up their skirts.
They had entered the forest when a flash of red caught Keira’s eye, and she pushed aside some branches to see crimson berries, their color bright against the virgin snow on the ground. Waxy leaves of green protected the berries with sharp thorns, and edging closer through the deep drifts, Keira leaned forward to grab the branch. A tall tree stood sentinel over the holly, its thick branches laden with snow, and as she pushed past a branch that stood between her and her goal, the snow slipped off the needles and landed on Keira’s head, covering her neck and shoulders as it slid beneath the neckline of her gown. She shrieked, jerking around in sudden shock, causing more snow to dislodge and fall over her, where it settled around her legs. Anna let out a whoop of laughter, stumbling backwards when Keira narrowed her eyes. Garrick turned away, his shoulders shaking with silent laughter, as Keira gathered a handful of snow, and pressing it into a ball, threw it at her sister.
The snow splatted against Anna’s chest as Keira lobbed another snowball, this time hitting the unsuspecting Garrick squarely between the shoulders. Keira laughed and he spun around, staring at her in shock; but when another scoop of snow from Keira splattered over his face, he gathered a handful of the white powder, bent on revenge. Laughter rang through the forest as snow sparkled in the air like fairy dust, covering the three players in a fine sprinkling of white that quickly melted into small droplets of water against their hair and cheeks, until finally Keira held her hands up in surrender.
“Stop,” she gasped, “enough.” Another ball of snow thumped her on the shoulder, and she sank to the ground, laughing, and the other two quickly followed suit. A shadow passed overhead, and Keira glanced up to see the form of a dragon high in the sky. As it circled around them, Keira squinted into the sunlight to try and make out the color, but the creature was silhouetted against the light, and she finally gave up the attempt. Her attention was called back to her companions when Anna’s voice broke the silence.
“Careful, you fool! You’re going to do me an injury!”
Keira looked up to see Garrick glaring at Anna, a pair of shears in his hand.
“You shouldn’t have moved,” he said.
“And you should have been more careful!” she retorted.
“Children, please,” Keira said, holding up her hands, grinning when they both turned to glare at her. Garrick quickly dropped his gaze to the ground with a mumbled apology, but Anna continued to glare at her sister for another moment, finally turning away in a half-hearted huff.
“Garrick, can you cut that pine branch?” Keira said, pointing to the once snow laden bough. “And also some branches of holly.” She directed Garrick to the branches and stems she deemed suitable for her purposes, with Anna soon joining in as she added her own opinion on which specimens were the best, and by the time they were done, the sleigh was a jumble of greenery, with crimson berries breaking the sea of green.
“Perfect!” Keira said, surveying Garrick’s handiwork, before turning to her sister. Anna’s cheeks were red from cold and laughter, and strands of hair that had worked loose from her braids framed her face. Her eyes were sparkling, and it occurred to Keira that she had not seen her young sister so happy in a long time. She linked her arm into Anna’s, and turned in the direction of Storbrook.
“Are you going to help me decorate?” she asked.
“Definitely not!” Anna replied. “I’m going to go find a warm fire and thaw out my toes.”
“Come on,” Keira coaxed, “it will be fun. You will start to feel warmer as soon as we are back inside.”
“In that heap of stone? The only place that is warm is directly before a fire!”
“I’ll send for a nice, warm cup of mulled wine,” Keira promised.
Anna sighed. “Fine,” she said, “but it better be warm. And one cup might not be enough!”
The three were shivering by the time they reached the gates of Storbrook, their clothes stiff with cold.
“Go change into something warmer,” Keira said to Anna, “and I’ll meet you in the solar.”
Anna nodded as Keira turned to Garrick, instructing him to carry the branches to the hall.
“Yes, Mistress.” Garrick nodded and turned away, leading the mule across the courtyard.
Keira pulled her cloak closer around her as she headed for the doors that led to the low hall, quickly crossing the floor and mounting the stairs that led to the top of the castle and the chambers she shared with her husband. She could hear voices as she passed the second landing, and remembering the dragon she had seen flying overhead, she hurried on, anxious to remove her damp clothes and make herself presentable. She had just finished twisting her hair into a neat braid when a knock sounded on the door, with a message from Aaron to join him in the solar.
When Keira pushed open the door to the private sitting room a short while later, she was not surprised to see a second person in the room with Aaron. The newcomer looked to be in his early twenties, although Keira knew he was at least a dozen years older. Thick, brown hair curled loosely around his face, while dark gray eyes regarded her curiously. Aaron rose to his feet and crossed over to her.
“You’re cold,” he said, rubbing her hands between his heated ones.
“Anna and I were collecting greenery in the woods,” she explained. “If you think my hands are cold, you should feel my feet.”
Aaron grinned and leaned towards her, his mouth close to her ear as he whispered huskily. “I look forward to warming not just your feet, my sweet, but we will have to wait until later. Right now we have a visitor.”
At his words the color sprang into Keira’s cheeks, and she threw a quick glance at their guest – then hurriedly looked away, her heart sinking. The amused grin that he wore confirmed her suspicions that he had heard their exchange.
“Keira, this is Max,” Aaron said, and the man rose to his feet. Gaining mastery over her emotions, Keira turned and met his amused gaze steadily.
“Madame Drake,” Max said, executing a neat bow. “I am glad to make your acquaintance. Please accept my humblest apologies for not attending the celebration of your blood binding, but unfortunately I was detained by, um, unforeseeable events.” Keira glanced at Aaron during this speech, to see him looking at Max with a quizzical expression.
“Very nice, Max,” Aaron said. “Do I dare enquire what, or who, took precedence over your Master?”
Max flashed Aaron a grin. “That would be telling, Master,” he said as Aaron snorted in response. Max turned back to Keira.
“Thank you for inviting me to celebrate the feast of Christmastide with you. I look forward to the pleasure of your company. And,” he threw Aaron a sly look, “Aaron’s too, of course.”
“You are most welcome to Storbrook,” Keira said with a smile, turning to seat herself near the fire. “Was that you I saw earlier on?” she asked as Max took the seat opposite the door.
“When you were playing in the snow?” Max said with a laugh. “Yes, that was me. Who were your compa
nions?”
“My sister Anna and Cook’s nephew, Garrick. We were collecting greenery to decorate the castle.”
“Ah! And your sister is also visiting for the feast?”
“No, she lives here at Storbrook.”
“Oh?” Max threw a surprised look at Aaron.
“Yes, she knows what I am,” Aaron said. “It doesn’t matter how she came by this knowledge, but since then she has been cruelly mistreated by a young man who wanted to harm her. She has lived with us since that time. She is young, just seventeen,” he added, his gaze intent on Max’s face, “so I know you won’t show her the slightest attention beyond that which you would show any young relative.”
“Of course not,” said Max, returning Aaron’s look with a cynical smile. The two men gazed at each for a moment, until Aaron finally nodded.
“Good. Keira, my sweet, will you please pour us some wine?”