CHAPTER 1
Lily moved gentlybetween carts and people, taking her time to stop and greet a few familiar faces. The market was alive with the morning rush. The sun shone brightly overhead, and the scent of meats, fabrics, and fruits mingled in the air.
Her grey shawl was pulled tight around her face, partly to protect her from the sun but also to avoid having to greet even more people than she already did. This was supposed to be a quick trip for a few essentials she needed back home. Now she had spent the better part of an hour greeting people who felt it their responsibility to talk to her.
“I ken yer maither would be very happy to see how well ye’re doing in her absence,” a well-meaning older man had commented.
Of course, Lily had only given a nod in response. It has been ten years since her mother passed. She had to be doing something else by now, instead of just looking down at her daughters all thetime. Didn’t they say heaven had a choir? Perhaps her mother had joined the angels in singing.
Lily moved swiftly, her feet barely touching the ground. She needed to hurry and leave the market as soon as possible.
Her first stop was at one of her regular sellers, a herbalist. She studied the bundles of dried roots on his table, her hand clutching her basket hard.
The herbalist, an older man with greying hair on both sides of his head and a slightly crooked nose, looked up at her. “Ye’ll need some of these to treat fever and head problems. Perhaps a little more of that, too.” He gestured toward another bundle of roots on the far side of the table.
“I ken,” Lily replied, crouching slightly to inspect the bundles. “But I need something strong and clean. Something that will last days. That one, maybe.”
The herbalist’s eyes followed her outstretched hands to another bundle of slightly fresher-looking herbs.
“Two shillings,” he grunted almost immediately.
“Two is too much for roots that have sat out all week,” she said with a tilt of her head. “One shilling.”
“One is too low, miss.”
“I’ll give ye one and a half.”
The man narrowed his eyes, then gave a small nod. “Aye, fine.”
She handed over the coins and watched him grab the roots she had selected. As he wrapped them into a small leather pouch, she heard the shuffle of boots behind her.
“Lady MacRay?”
She didn’t turn as she adjusted her shawl. She was LadyNothing, so perhaps they were referring to someone else. Someone beside her.
“Lady MacRay?” the voice came again, closer now. The tone was more certain, and something told her no one else was beside her.
She looked over her shoulder and noted the two tall and domineering men standing behind her.
Guards. Or men-at-arms.
She swallowed, a polite smile playing on her lips. “I am afraid ye’ve got the wrong lass, gentlemen. I am nay lady.”
The herbalist handed her the bundle, and she took it with a small word of thanks. Before the men could say anything else, she stepped away, melting back into the crowd.
The next stall she stopped at was filled with fruits. The smell of ripe pears and tart apples filled her nose as she stepped closer, giving a brief nod to the woman arranging plums in a basket.
“Marjorie,” she greeted warmly.
Marjorie, a younger blonde woman, looked up, a growing smile on her face. “Miss? Ye’re here?”
Lily smiled. “How is Carson? I suppose his fever has gone down?”
Marjorie smiled widely. “Aye, he’s better now, thanks to ye. Would ye like to see him?”
Lily gave a small nod and stepped into the rear of the stall. A small boy sat on a low stool, chewing a strip of dried apple. His eyes lit up when he saw her.
“Look at ye,” she said, kneeling beside him. “Still eating like ye’ve got a hollow leg.”
