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“Yes, I am ready to see the inside,” Astrid replied quickly, surprised to find herself actually excited about a tour of the castle.
As they walked inside, she kept thinking how these very walls and halls were the places where Flynn had spent his childhood. He grew up in the protection of this place and turned into the man he was today.
Whenever Astrid looked at him, she couldn’t help but sense the multiple facets of his personality. Where at one end he was masculine and powerful, at another he was a young boy who listened to everything his grandmother said.
The stark differences between how he interacted with those around him made Astrid wonder who he really was. And she wished to find out herself. She had watched him being soft with Billy’s children and listening to them or praising them while she had also seen him unaffectedly assume the position of a laird and pass orders as if it was something he did all day.
She did not know or understand how he even managed to assume such different roles this easily, but she wanted nothing more than to become a simple part of each one of them and to be beside him at every instant.
“Are ye looking for someone?” Laila asked, and Astrid realized how her gaze had been roaming all over the castle in search of Flynn.
“Oh, no,” Astrid stuttered, knowing she needed to be careful around Laila since, Flynn’s grandmother sensed everything, “I was just admiring how beautiful the castle is.”
“Well, let me tell ye, all the floors are similar. Bedchambers on each one of them. Ye already ken where the kitchen is and where the library is. Have ye been to the library?”
“Daphne did tell me about the library being rather well stocked during dinner yesterday, but I still haven’t gotten a chance to see it. I will go some other time and take a look,” Astrid replied honestly, and Laila nodded, looking pleased.
They walked upstairs, and Astrid’s gaze immediately went towards the closed door of the room right beside the library. Laila had not told her what it was, but if Astrid had any experience with castles and how they were built, she was certain it would be Flynn’s study.
“Is that his study?” she asked Laila, pointing towards the closed door.
Laila followed Astrid’s gaze before nodding. “Yes, it is. He is rather particular about the room and allows nay one else to enter. Apparently, he likes to keep it private and solely to himself.”
Astrid shook her head and ignored the urge to go knock on his door and see the room for herself, and instead went upstairs with Laila. She waited patiently as Flynn’s grandmother showed her the roof, which indeed offered the most remarkable view of the lands. Astrid wondered what it must look like at night when darkness spread all over it.
The castle indeed was as beautiful inside as it was outside, and she was surprised to find herself quite at home here. Nothing felt unfamiliar or unapproachable, and with Laila being so warm towards her, she knew everything would work out just fine.
Astrid did not know how much time she was supposed to spend here at the MacKie castle, but she knew that no matter how long a stretch of time it was, she would be fine.
It was true, she missed her father and sister and the comfort of knowing she was in a much safer place than the castle of her enemy, but no one here had made her feel like an outsider. In just a few days, she felt as if she belonged here and had been residing in the castle for a long time.
“I am sure ye won’t get lost here now,” Laila said as they made their way back downstairs towards the front parlor.
“I won’t,” Astrid assured her, even though her mind was elsewhere. “Laila, can I ask ye something?”
“Of course,” Laila replied while entering the parlor.
Last night came running back to Astrid at the sight of Flynn, but she kept thoughts of him at bay.
“Do ye think if our clans were not one another’s enemies, I could have really been betrothed to Flynn?”
“I think ye can really be betrothed to Flynn even now,” Laila replied with a smile as Astrid sat down beside her.
“He would never want that. I am the daughter of the man who waged war on his clan for ten years for a crime that remains unsolved to this day, and my brother remains lost. I dinnae ken whom to blame here and whom to not, but all I ken is that we are enemies and nothin’ can change that,” Astrid said truthfully.
It was true that some part of her did not wish to believe that these were the people who had apparently murdered her brother, even though she had grown up hearing about their crimes, and she could not forget all about it in just a few days.
“Do ye really believe Flynn kidnapped yer brother?” Laila asked, getting serious.
“I dinnae ken what to believe and what nae to believe, Laila. All I ken is that this is what I have been told all me life, and even after knowing ye all personally, I cannae just forget the past ten years. It is true ye all seem like good people, and I dinnae wish to hold ye accountable for somethin’ ye might have not even done, but I dinnae ken how to change my mind entirely.”
“If I had a way to prove it, Astrid, I would. Although, I have no proof or evidence that would tell ye or yer father that the MacKie clan is innocent of such a heinous crime. I am sorry about what happened to yer brother, and I am glad some part of ye believes it might nae have been us, because it really wasnae.”
Astrid did not know what to say, but the emotion in Laila’s eyes once again forced her to consider that perhaps it really was not the MacKie clan, after all. Although if it was not them, who was it? Who could have kidnapped her brother and blamed Flynn’s father for the entire episode? It had been ten years, and up until now, there has been no answer. No sign.
Astrid turned as she heard a soft meowing sound from behind. Bannock entered the parlor, walking straight towards the sofa where Astrid was seated with Laila. Astrid smiled at the sight of her cat, who jumped between her and Laila and snuggled in front of the fireplace. Even Bannock was at home in what was supposed to be the castle of their sworn enemy.
CHAPTER8
