Patience frowned. “Jane? Why would Jane tell ye that?”
“She was fretting that ye were nae pleased with the way she was serving ye.”
Patience made a note to herself to ensure Jane knew she was glad to have her as a lady’s maid. “What are ye doing in here?” she asked as she reached for the wrapper that was on the floor by the tub.
Kinsey set the wine goblet down, bent over, scooped up the wrapper, and held it out to Patience. “I came to apologize.”
“What for?”
As Patience reached for the wrapper, Kinsey grabbed her hand. “I’m ashamed to say I believed Silas when he said ye wereban-druidh, which is why I kept my distance. And ’tis why, I, well, I—” Kinsey bit her lip. “I told Blackswell about it. I’m verra sorry.”
Patience stared open-mouthed at the apology. Kinsey had barely spoken to her in the months since Patience had come here. She had suspected Silas’s claims were why, but she had wondered sometimes if it were more, if there was something inherently unworthy about her that made people simply dislike her.
She tugged her hand free from Kinsey and stood, careful to cover herself as she did. She stepped out of the tub while wrapping herself in the drying cloth. “Ye dunnae need to apologize. Ye apparently believed it. Besides, ye telling Brodee about it is why Father Bisby was sent away, and that is a blessing. The man was horrid.”
“Aye, it seems so. I did nae have any notion of the things he’d done to ye. Of course, I kenned he cleansed yer soul, but I did nae ken what it entailed. Did ye ken ye were to be wed to Blackswell?” The question had an odd undercurrent to it. Perhaps Kinsey felt it was disloyal to Silas’s memory for Patience to be wed so soon to another.
“I only just found out this morning when I received a missive from my father,” Patience said, sidestepping Kinsey and walking to the bed where her gown was laid out. She slipped it over her head, then let the drying cloth fall once the gown was covering her. She turned to Kinsey, who now stood by the window. The woman’s back was to her, her arms hugging her waist. Her long blond hair hung in a heavy braid down her back. The light color was the exact shade Silas’s had been. Patience found herself clenching her teeth on memories of him looming over her, his hair hanging on either side of his face as he took her quickly and without tenderness. Patience squeezed her eyes shut for a moment, trying to battle the memories, and when she opened them, Kinsey was watching her.
Patience could not fathom why Kinsey was not yet wed. She was several years older than Patience and a beautiful woman. She was clearly competent at running castles, too, as she ran this one. All the servants stopped immediately to do her bidding, unlike how they treated Patience. Perhaps since Kinsey did not seem to fear her anymore, she would aid Patience in swaying the castle staff to accept her. She could dearly use a friend in plotting how to drive her husband away from her, as well. Patience would love to know how Kinsey really felt about her brother, but she could not just bluntly ask, so instead she said, “Thank ye for the apology,” for lack of anything better to say.
Kinsey surprised her by walking toward her and grabbing her hand. “I want to do more for ye to atone for nae aiding ye sooner. I suspected that Silas was unkind to ye, and I did nae do anything to help. I was already feeling guilty for not interfering on yer behalf, and I’m ashamed to admit I first sent Jane to ye to spy on ye.”
Patience nodded. She’d suspected as much.
“I’ll tell her nae to do so anymore,” Kinsey offered.
“I’d appreciate that,” Patience replied. “Did ye nae aid me because ye were afraid of me?” It was a leading question, one she hoped would earn her a response about how Kinsey felt about Silas so Patience could judge the woman. Patience held her breath as she waited.
Kinsey bit her lip. “That was some of it, but mostly, I did nae interfere because I was afraid of Silas.”
“I see,” Patience said, her mind turning over all she was discovering. “Is that why ye showed me support earlier when I said I spoke with yer brother’s ghost?”
“Aye,” Kinsey admitted, eyeing Patience. “Did ye truly?”
Patience shook her head.
Kinsey smirked. “I suspected ye did nae.”
“Why?” Patience asked, concerned that if Kinsey had seen through Patience’s charade, then Brodee surely had, too.
“Because Silas was a cruel, evil man,” Kinsey said, her gaze seeming to bore into Patience as if she was waiting to see Patience’s reaction. But she just stood in silence. She’d learned the wisdom of keeping her opinions to herself a long time ago.
Kinsey waved a hand in front of her face as if she’d lost where she had been going with her thought, but then she said, “I could nae fathom that he’d be trying to aid someone other than himself, even as a ghost.”
Patience could hardly believe Kinsey had just said that, and she was even more shocked when Kinsey smiled, then linked her arm with Patience’s. She led her to the bed and pulled her down to sit beside her. “I imagine ye dunnae wish to be wed to a man kenned as the Savage Slayer, do ye?” Kinsey asked.
“Ye imagine correctly, but I’m wed now. So…” She trailed off, not sure how much she should trust Kinsey, if at all.
“So ye want to make Blackswell think ye cracked so he will leave ye be? So he will nae bother with ye or harm ye as my brother did?”
“Aye,” Patience admitted. “Ye think it a terrible plan?”
“Nay.” The woman gave a secretive smile. “I think it’s an excellent plan to make the man think ye have gone mad. If we are verra clever, he will nae take ye to his bed. Then the marriage would nae be valid, and he could cast ye—” Kinsey gave Patience an apologetic look. “I mean, ye could be free of him. Sent home when he realizes he simply kinnae tolerate being wed to ye. Of course—” the woman tapped a finger to her lips “—that could take a bit of time.” Kinsey moved her mouth back and forth. “It will do.”
Patience frowned. She got the feeling Kinsey was not talking to her so much as thinking aloud, but she appreciated the aid. Yet uneasiness did stir within her. While she certainly did not want to be wed, being sent home to her father was not a good alternative. He’d likely kill her if she mucked up the marriage or he would hurt Duff.
Do or die, Patience.
