Highland Chieftain (Book 5)

Chapter 17

AN - Not that long since the last Chapter was put up, I am getting a little better at this again! :-) enjoy! Az x

Chapter 17

A week passed in a slow painful trudge, her father have gone into the final goodnight. She was utterly alone. Nobody even seemed to remember her, they were full of condolences for her brother, even for Aislinn on the fact that she had to support Cam so soon in such difficult times. Both were praised for their dealings with it. But she was not, in anyway, visible to the members of the clan unless she spoke such vitriol that people had to speak to her even if it was in disgust. Was she not allowed to grieve? Was she not allowed to even be asked how she was? As if she had no emotions at all, as if her father's passing into the new life had no effect on her. Yet as the clan had mourned for three days, she was pushed to the side, when his body was lain to rest in the consecrated ground behind the Keep they had already switched to brighter topics. Having to wait till spring before the full Christian rites could be observed, it meant that life had to go on in the meantime.

His life had been celebrated with an overabundance of meats and ale, the whisky flowing freely throughout all who came for the celebration. Most would admit that there was not many within the clan who would miss him on a personal level, she had even heard the outright statements that Camdyn was already acting a better laird than Toren had been for years. Though she had to agree that there was something about Cam that screamed leader, he was and always would be a good man. Yet even as bad as her father was for everyone else, he at least remembered her occasionally for who she was and not the persona everyone else saw.

As the clan moved on, Larena found herself trapped in a world of pain. Those around her lying about the information they knew, keeping her in the dark. Her father gone and nobody caring at all for what she did, where she went, or even if she was stable enough to be left alone, for some nights, even she could admit how scared she was by her own dark thoughts. The clan on the other hand took up the idea of a hand fasting with gusto. The plans for Camdyn's and Aislinn's ceremony were brought forward. Nobody else seemed to want to dwell on the death and what a better way to celebrate life that with a ceremony that joined two together. Not that anyone asked her opinion, but she was the only one who was left in the dark as everyone found the light in the joy of a love which only showed Larena just how far she was from ever gaining what they had. Instead, she knew she would never gain even the semblance of that love again.

Corey, however, was still in a limbo state. Whatever had been done to him by Iona had confused the entire clan. None could remember seeing him since the three days after the poisoning. The entire clan now knew, due to Hamish, that Corey was on the trial of Aislinn's poisoner, but the name had not yet come forth. They must know, Corey must have told them before she arrived, they were just biding their time, letting Iona give herself enough rope to hang herself with. His mother, even as the clan healer, had no idea what had been done to him and was using a trial and error technique to try and heal him. He had been in and out of consciousness for the last week and his words when they came where incoherent at best. The large gash on the back of his head was just beginning to heal, but according to his mother he was showing signs of infection there. His wrists had been rubbed raw, but she knew that from when she had released him. Larena had found herself watching for the moments he was left alone, the clan busy with the hand fasting preparations, his mother was alone in really caring for him.

With so many bairn's she needed to be away from her son as much as she could be with him. So Larena found herself slipping in to sit beside him. Holding his hand and praying to a God who had abandoned her long ago to help him survive. She had seen too much darkness, she would not see this boy die as well. Aye he was older than her but, he also did not have the dark edge within her which aged her well beyond his years. Camdyn's search for the poisoner and attacker became more public, but they never made a move towards Iona, were they trying to give her a false sense of security? That was all Larena could think of, and so that is what she told Corey, telling him all she could think of to keep him tethered to this world.