into the past.
" I shouldn ' t be at all surprised that you ' d spend the better part of the day admiring yourself. But I ' ve work to do and no time for lollygagging about with you. "
Marjory ' s voice drew him sharply back to the present — the past actually. He grimaced, and lowered the mirror, trying to hide the turmoil. Until he knew who he could trust, he wasn ' t about to share his thoughts. Especially with Marjory.
" I thought it might trigger memories, " he shrugged. " But there ' s nothing. " He handed her the shield, forcing himself to breathe normally, there was no sense in panicking. If he was going to make sense of this nightmare, he had to get out of this bed, and to do that he had to hold his cards close to the vest.
Marjory was staring at him through narrowed eyes, her expression somewhere between pity and contempt. " Grania says they ' ll come back. "
They ' d covered this territory before, but this time Cameron was determined to get more information. " Until then, I have some questions. " He tried to make his tone pleasant. To keep at least a semblance of normalcy. " Please stay. " He patted the bed next to him in what he hoped was an inviting manner. In truth, his head was pounding and what he wanted most was to be alone, but that wouldn ' t get him answers.
Marjory glared at him suspiciously and then, apparently making up her mind, ignored the spot he'd indicated, and sat instead in the chair vacated by Grania. He sighed. The woman had a will of her own.
"What do you wish to speak about?" She sat perfectly straight in the chair, poised on the edge, obviously ready to make a hasty retreat if necessary.
He wondered what Ewen had done to make her so wary of him. " Maybe we should start with why you hate me so much. "
She flinched, obviously not expecting the question. " ' Tis mutual. "
It wasn ' t an answer, but it spoke volumes just the same. " Whatever I felt before I don ' t feel it now. You ' re a stranger to me. And I can ' t move forward with my life until I at least have a rudimentary understanding of who I was before I fell. "
She looked as though she didn ' t believe him, which given the circumstances was perfectly reasonable, but he was oddly disappointed nevertheless.
" So if we hate each other, why the marriage? "
She eyed him distrustfully. " You're a Cameron and I'm a Macpherson. Our families are enemies and, in their infinite wisdom, they decided a marriage between our clans would lessen tensions."
"You, I mean, we , " he amended, " were the sacrificial lambs, I take it?"
"Aye."
"Did it work?" The situation sounded like something out of a macabre fairy tale. " Did your marriage to Ewen ease the tension between your clans?"
" You speak as if you are not he. " Her expression held both fear and puzzlement.
He cursed his choice of words, he ' d have to be more careful. If these people perceived him as insane, his chances for escape were nil. " I ' m sorry, it ' s just that hearing all this is like listening to a story. Someone else ' s life. "
She sighed, her expression softening. " I can imagine the way of it. "
" So did the marriage solve the problems between our clans? " He pulled the focus of the conversation back to the past — his past in some weirdly twisted way.
"Nay. " she shook her head. " The sacrifice, as you call it, was for naught."
"I see." He paused, looking down at his hands , or more relevantly Ewen ' s hands.
She followed his gaze, staring for a moment and then looking away in seeming embarrassment. Without thinking, he reached out and touched her hand. Electricity flew between them almost as if there were actually a current of some sort.
She pulled her hand away, anger sparking in her eyes. " I've no more time for blathering
blethering
, " she snapped, jumping up from the chair. " There's work to be done and it won't take care of itself. Your father , " she spat the word as if
" I shouldn ' t be at all surprised that you ' d spend the better part of the day admiring yourself. But I ' ve work to do and no time for lollygagging about with you. "
Marjory ' s voice drew him sharply back to the present — the past actually. He grimaced, and lowered the mirror, trying to hide the turmoil. Until he knew who he could trust, he wasn ' t about to share his thoughts. Especially with Marjory.
" I thought it might trigger memories, " he shrugged. " But there ' s nothing. " He handed her the shield, forcing himself to breathe normally, there was no sense in panicking. If he was going to make sense of this nightmare, he had to get out of this bed, and to do that he had to hold his cards close to the vest.
Marjory was staring at him through narrowed eyes, her expression somewhere between pity and contempt. " Grania says they ' ll come back. "
They ' d covered this territory before, but this time Cameron was determined to get more information. " Until then, I have some questions. " He tried to make his tone pleasant. To keep at least a semblance of normalcy. " Please stay. " He patted the bed next to him in what he hoped was an inviting manner. In truth, his head was pounding and what he wanted most was to be alone, but that wouldn ' t get him answers.
Marjory glared at him suspiciously and then, apparently making up her mind, ignored the spot he'd indicated, and sat instead in the chair vacated by Grania. He sighed. The woman had a will of her own.
"What do you wish to speak about?" She sat perfectly straight in the chair, poised on the edge, obviously ready to make a hasty retreat if necessary.
He wondered what Ewen had done to make her so wary of him. " Maybe we should start with why you hate me so much. "
She flinched, obviously not expecting the question. " ' Tis mutual. "
It wasn ' t an answer, but it spoke volumes just the same. " Whatever I felt before I don ' t feel it now. You ' re a stranger to me. And I can ' t move forward with my life until I at least have a rudimentary understanding of who I was before I fell. "
She looked as though she didn ' t believe him, which given the circumstances was perfectly reasonable, but he was oddly disappointed nevertheless.
" So if we hate each other, why the marriage? "
She eyed him distrustfully. " You're a Cameron and I'm a Macpherson. Our families are enemies and, in their infinite wisdom, they decided a marriage between our clans would lessen tensions."
"You, I mean, we , " he amended, " were the sacrificial lambs, I take it?"
"Aye."
"Did it work?" The situation sounded like something out of a macabre fairy tale. " Did your marriage to Ewen ease the tension between your clans?"
" You speak as if you are not he. " Her expression held both fear and puzzlement.
He cursed his choice of words, he ' d have to be more careful. If these people perceived him as insane, his chances for escape were nil. " I ' m sorry, it ' s just that hearing all this is like listening to a story. Someone else ' s life. "
She sighed, her expression softening. " I can imagine the way of it. "
" So did the marriage solve the problems between our clans? " He pulled the focus of the conversation back to the past — his past in some weirdly twisted way.
"Nay. " she shook her head. " The sacrifice, as you call it, was for naught."
"I see." He paused, looking down at his hands , or more relevantly Ewen ' s hands.
She followed his gaze, staring for a moment and then looking away in seeming embarrassment. Without thinking, he reached out and touched her hand. Electricity flew between them almost as if there were actually a current of some sort.
She pulled her hand away, anger sparking in her eyes. " I've no more time for blathering
blethering
, " she snapped, jumping up from the chair. " There's work to be done and it won't take care of itself. Your father , " she spat the word as if
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