Page 29 of Trapped with the Vicious Highlander
“May I ask why?” she finally asked, refusing to drop the subject unless she received an explanation.
Irene shrugged. “Sometimes, ‘tis better to leave some things unknown.”
A frown creased Ava’s brow, but she decided not to push any further. One way or another, she was going to find out for herself.
“It is quite lovely to meet you, Irene,” she offered.
Irene nodded.
Ava left, making her way to the courtyard. Just because a few people warned her not to go to the courtyard, didn’t mean she was just going to take their word for it. For now, she needed to familiarize herself with the place. Everything else could come later.
“Alright, Castle MacDunn,” she whispered as she made her way to the crisp evening air outside the musty building. “Let us see exactly what it is that I am dealing with here.”
CHAPTER10
The gentle windblew ever so kindly against her face as she made her way out of the castle and towards the courtyard. The tower at the very top of the castle was still completely covered by low-hanging clouds. This wasn’t the time to wonder just how tall it was. For now, she needed to get to know the people.
Ava had always believed that the best thing about a place was its people. A place may look like it was carved from paradise itself, but if the people there acted like the spawns of Satan, she may not step foot in such a place again.
She could hear the laughter drifting in the air, and it got clearer and louder as she drew closer to the courtyard. She could see the trees and the men sitting underneath them. They were engrossed in what seemed to be an exciting conversation. She noticed the laughter falter when one of the men looked up and saw her.
It died down the closer she got and completely stopped when she stopped right in front of them.
Ava looked up for a second and caught the window in her room. She could also see the window in Margaret’s room. There was another window just above them, and for some reason, she couldn’t decide in which room it was.
“Are ye lost, lassie? This isnae the way to the kitchen,” one of the men said, pulling her back to the present—the brutal but inevitable present.
Ava nodded, deciding to ignore the jab. “A fine evening, is it not, gentlemen?”
None of them answered.
Ava debated stepping back from them and finding her way back to the castle. But the last thing she needed was to be perceived as a coward.
There was a moment of tense silence between them, one in which she desperately fumbled for something to say. Her eyes darted to a sword lying on the floor, just a few inches away from the bald man who sat at the head of the group—he seemed to be the leader.
“That is quite the lovely sword. It looks very… slim and comfortable to handle.”
“And what do ye ken about slim, lassie? Ye look like ye could eat us all just by openin’ yer mouth.”
A wave of thunderous laughter erupted from the other men.
And just like that, she realized why she had been advised to stay away from the courtyard. Everyone had seen her size and had assumed any minor jab about her weight would throw her off. This was not her first time dealing with hateful remarks about her weight, and if she was certain of anything, this would not be her last time either.
“The pantry is still a few steps ahead, miss,” another one of the men quipped, his words followed again by a wave of thunderous laughter.
“You know,” she started, her voice low but rising with every word. “I was once told by my grandmother that being bitter to someone you don’t know is a sign of low self-esteem. She said that it meant one lacked the capacity for critical thinking—or, as a layman would say it, a leak in the brain.”
The bald man’s eyes narrowed, and Ava watched his nostrils flare in fury as he rose from the ground. He took a step towards her, a malicious smile playing on his lips. “Are ye callin’ me stupid, lassie?”
Ava dug her feet into the ground. She hadn’t shown weakness; she wasn’t about to start now. “I don’t know. You are the one holding a sword the size of three forearms. Compensating for something, are we?”
The bald man’s left eye twitched, and his hands balled into fists. Her heart leaped to her throat.
“Ye ken, if ye werenae so close to the Laird, I would have laid ye down and given ye a proper smack in the face.”
Ava said nothing. Instead, she squared her shoulders as she continued to stare deep into his eyes, unblinkingly.
“Get out of me sight!” the bald man growled.
