Defiance (The Priestess Trilogy) (35 page)

10.
 
OF FRIENDSHIP AND LOVERS

Warm sunlight stretched
through the open cottage door
,
warming
Shiovra
’s face as she stirred from her sleep
.
She could hear the crackle and popping of a fire and smell a sweet scent in the air. Taking a deep breath and releasing it, the priestess rolled onto her side and opened her eyes.

She found
Meara
crouched beside the hearth,
stirring a small cauldron that stood suspended over the flames.
Shiovra
sat up slowly and pushed the blankets aside. A quick glance around the cottage told her that they were alone. Her handmaid, Úna was nowhere to be seen.

The Neimidh woman glanced up
. “
Good morning, Lady
Shiovra
,” Meara said with a warm smile.

Shiovra
smiled and nodded.
“That smells delightful
,”
she replied
. “Did you make that yourself?”

Meara
shook
her
head. “Ainmire brought this earlier, while you slept,”
s
he replied. “I was just keeping it warm.”
Grabbing a clay bowl, she filled it with the steaming oatmeal before handing it to the priestess.

Thanking her,
Shiovra
brought it up and
breathed in the aroma deeply, welc
oming the sweet smell. Bringing
the bowl to her lips
, she blew on the oatmeal to cool it before taking a
si
p
. It tasted as sweet as it smelled. “Where is Úna?”
she asked after a while.

“I am unsure,”
Meara
replied. “I h
ave not seen her since I retired for the evening. She had ventured to sit beside Daire after several cups of mead. The poor thing is completely enamored with him.
”

The priestess
smiled, taking another drink. She could only hope her cousin
had not done anything foolish
. Silence filled the cottage as
Meara began to eat as well
. “
Is it late in the morning?”
Shiovra
asked after a while.

Meara shook her head. “Nay. Worry not,” she replied. “The day is still early. Most of the village still sleeps.”

Shiovra
nodded and finished off her
food.

Standing, Meara
gathered up
t
he
i
r bowl
s
and kicked some dirt onto the fire. “
I must return to my duties for now,” she said, walking to the door. Pausing, she turned back to
Shiovra
and smiled mischievously. “If you find Daire, could you please inform him that he is late for his morning rounds along the village borders?”

“Aye, that I will.”
Shiovra
watched as Meara ducked through the door and closed it behind her. Standing, she stretched before stripping
off h
er shift rumpled from sleep and donning fresh clothing. Unweaving her disheveled braid,
Shiovra
ran a comb through her hair before opening the door and
set
ting
out to find her errant handmaid.

Though Meara had stated that most of the villagers still slept, she found the emptiness of Tara to be quite surprising
.
After a quick look around, she found but a few villagers awake, warriors whose duty was to walk the grounds
.
While a few men sat slumped against cottage walls with empty cups in hand,
Shiovra
did not doubt that the Banqueting House would be full of sleeping villagers.

Questioning
some of
the warriors about Úna
, she was
pointed
to the main cottage. After wo
rds of thanks, she walked along the path leading up the gentle slope of the hill. Men posted guard at the cottage door greeted her and stepped aside, allowing her passage.

Reaching out,
Shiovra
pushed
open
the door and slipped in.

A dying fire struggled in the central hearth
while heavy snores
filled the air. Garments were strewn across the floor while empty mead cups littered the low table. A soft, muffled moan came from behind one of the curtained beds, bringing a pause to
Shiovra
’s step.

Listening, she heard another moan. As she neared the curtain she knew concealed her cousin’s bed, she could not push back the feeling that Daire had indeed done something very, very
unwise
.

Another moan sounded, louder and most certainly feminine.

Reaching a hand out,
Shiovra
began to pull the curtain slowly aside. As dim light fell upon the narrow bed, her eyes fell upon a sight that proved Daire’s foolishness. 

Daire stopped mid-thrust and scrambled off of Úna, hastily grabbing a discarded blanket to cover them with.
Yet, it was too late, the priestess had seen more than she h
ad desired. For a moment, they simply looked at each other in silence. Úna flushed a deep shade of crimson under
Shiovra
’s narrowed gaze while Daire’s face fell into an odd mixture of embarrassment and fear.

“
Shiovra
…I…I…”
stammered
Daire. Groaning, he rubbed his face and unleashed a long string of curses.

“
Daire
,”
Shiovra
began, catching his complete attention. “
Ciúin.
Quiet.”

The man obeyed without question.

Shiovra
shifted her eyes between the two, focusing upon each in turn. She
knew the maid held strong feeling
s
for her cou
sin, but from what she had seen
Daire
did
not returned those feelings. That was
,
until she had come upon them just then while
amidst
the
throes
of passion.
She took careful note of the tears threatening to spill from Úna’s eyes and the small quiver of her hands which clutched the blanket tightly to her chest.

“If you had such an interest in
my handmaid
, you could have told me, cousin
,
or did the mead quicken your resolve?”
Her tone was hard as she spoke, demanding truth.
Shiovra
would not allow Daire to brush aside the deflowering of her handmaid easily, cousin or no.
Crossing her arms, she demanded, “Answer me.”

Daire opened his mouth to speak, faltering a bit. “
Aye and nay
,” he admitted, bowing his head.

“The
morning
grows late
,”
Shiovra
told Daire firmly
. “
I
suggest you dress and
prepare to face
Ainmire’s judgment, cousin.” Shifting her gaze to Úna, the maid instantly looked away, her flush deepening. “Úna,
please find Meara and inform her that Daire that he will not be able to make his morning rounds.”

The Neimidh woman nodded swiftly.

Sighing,
Shiovra
rubbed her face. “It is too early in the day for this,” she muttered before turning her attention back to Daire. “After you have dressed and had a moment to set your head right, I would like to speak with you, Daire. Alone.”

* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *

Meara could not say that she was surprised. She had, after all, seen the beginnings an
d had done nothing to stop it. As her eyes fell upon
Úna
, who
sat timidly before
her, she felt a small pang of remorse
.
The younger woman
refused to meet
her gaze, instead focusing her eyes intently upon her hands she kept clasped tightly in her lap as she chewed nervously upon her bottom lip.

After a long silence
,
Meara
released a heavy sigh. “I doubt the Lady
Shiovra
is angered with you,” she said softly. “
If anything, she is angered at Daire for being so foolish.”

Úna
clenched her hands tighter. “I was foolish as well
…
I did not stop him from taking
me to his bed…
” she admitted hesitantly. “When she found us
, we were…we…” Úna’s cheeks flared brightly
.
“I fear I will be relieved of my duties and sent back home to my clan
.
”

Meara
considered the maid for a moment. She knew what was going through the woman’s head. It was written plainly across her face. “
Lady
Shiovra
only has your best interests in mind. You are her charge, her responsibility
,
” she
continued. “It appears to me, that the one she is angry
with
is
Daire
himself.
His actions could bring a damper upon the alliance with your village.
Finding a husband will be difficult with your maidenhood gone. And if a child is to come, that will only complicate things further.
”

Úna
flinched, looking up
.

“What Daire did, taking you to his bed,
should not have happened,” continued Meara. She knew her words were a bit harsh, but they held truth. “Though Daire’s position allows him to take lovers if he should desire, he should have also shown your clan respect by taking you as his wife instead of lover. That is why Lady
Shiovra
is angry.”

“Do you believe so?” she queried softly
, bringing a hand up to wipe away fresh tears
.

Meara
nodded. “Do not fret so much, it will upset your stomach,” she said
comfortingly
. “Lady
Shiovra
only worries about you
.”
Grinning, a small laugh passed her lips
. “It is your
lover who must face her wrath.
I do not pity him in the least.”
Shaking her head, Meara added, “I am afraid
you will have your hands full with
Daire
, Úna. Best of luck to you.”