Page 73 of The Daughters of Avalon
Cameron lifted his shoulder yet again. “If it makes ye feel better, Mal, it wasn’t your father’s idea. It was mine.”
“Nay! That most assuredly doesnotmake me feel better.”
Stretching his neck, Cameron poured the last of thevinfrom the flagon into his own cup. “So then… you’ll keep your vows if Stephen abdicates?”
Considering the question, Malcom tipped his own glass to peer inside, wishing now that he’d not ordered the last of the serving girls out of the hall. His tongue was parched, and they’d yet to come to any sort of agreement.
By now, Elspeth must be long abed, and to his mind, this was no way to welcome his bride to her new home. “I am certain it will never come to pass,” he said finally, annoyed, tired, ready to be abed.
Cameron was clearly not of the same mind. “’Tis blind faith ye gi’ a man who’s already claimed he would do so, and if he manages to convince Theobald to confirm him, he will do it.”
Malcom shook his head. “The Archbishop will not agree to it so long as the Pope disagrees, and I am certain he is through with the matter. We’ve all seen what his meddling begot him—exile.”
Cameron gulped down his drink and smacked down his cup. “I disagree. Whatever disagreement lies between him andStephen, ’tis but this small matter that prevents him from returning to England, and Stephen tempts him. Eventually, he will succumb.”
Caden agreed. “Eventually, Stephen must forgive and allow the man tae return. One way or another, he’s the only one who can crown Eustace, and I promise ye he’ll never allow Duke Henry to come anywhere near his throne.”
He was referring to recent whispers that had been circulating—that Matilda would allow Stephen to keep the crown, so long as he might appoint her son as his successor instead of Eustace. But, in this, Malcom was forced to agree. “I warrant his wife would like that less than him. She would cut out his tongue before she ever allowed him to bargain with Matilda.”
“Ach, cousin, dinna doubt it. She allows that witch leman to warm his cock because she knows Morwen would sooner see her own son crowned. She’s as greedy as her boy. And speaking of that witch,” Cameron continued. “What’s this I hear o’ ye wedding Morwen’s daughter?”
Malcom narrowed his eyes. “How did you learn so quickly?”
Cameron tilted his cup, eyeing Malcom with an arched brow. “A wee birdie may have told me,” he confessed.
Malcom frowned.
“Christ! Notthosebirds. Stephen sent pigeons as far north as Edinburgh in search of that girl. Ye’d think her made of gold by the tone of his inquiries. I warrant if ye dinna join David’s fight, ye’ll be answering toyour kingover this matter afore long.”
Malcom sighed heavily, wearied over talk ofpolitiks.
What he would like to say now was that David had never been his king—never—and he would be damned if he’d be made to feel indebted to a man who’d colluded with Henry in his abduction. David of Scotia was no less guilty over that crime, and it was something Malcom was tired of repeating to his sire. Loyalty was not preordained. Simply because he was born in the north didnot mean he owed his allegiance to David—or to Scotia for that matter. Right now, he owed his allegiance to Stephen because he’d bent his knee to Stephen, and because he’d sworn an oath to that man’s face. “Elspeth is Henry’s daughter too,” Malcom confessed.
His cousin’s eyes widened. “DeadKing Henry?”
“Aye mon.DeadKing Henry.”
Cameron scratched his head, looking from Malcom to Caden, and then back again. “Ach, Mal. When your Da says ye dinna mess aboot, ye dinna mess aboot, cousin. Not only is her connection to Henry a means to settle his barons, her mother is?—”
“I know. She’s a witch—you can say it, Cameron. She’s a bluidy witch.”
“And ye believe it?”
“What?”
“That she’s a witch.”
Malcom nodded. “She’s a witch alright.”
Caden asked, “And what’s it mean for ye if ye dinna join us? Won’t Stephen demand her return?”
“Plow her well and get yourself a babe before then,” Cameron advised, laughing mirthlessly.
Malcom narrowed his eyes. He and Cameron had never had an easy relationship, and there was a good deal Malcom would never forgive the man for. “Never speak that way of my wife. Cousin or nay, I’ll see you drawn and quartered for the offense.”
Cameron whistled low and sat back. “So ye love her?”
Malcom nodded. “I do. And what’s it to ye?”
