A Lost Touch of Paradise by Amy Tolnitch

Author:Amy Tolnitch [Tolnitch, Amy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-60542-994-6
Publisher: Medallion Media Group
Published: 2006-10-15T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter

XII

Following her unsettling encounter with Ranald, Iosobal went to the stables. A long ride was what she needed, she decided. Finian greeted her with a happy nicker. “I have been neglecting you of late, boy,” she murmured to him, stroking his soft nose.

“My lady?” Art said, backing out of Argante’s stall with a pitchfork of dung. “Can I aid you?”

“’Tis not necessary.” Iosobal glanced over at him and inwardly sighed. Even after five years in her service, Art still could not manage to look her in the eye. Did she truly appear that intimidating, she wondered. That frightening?

As she saddled Finian, she thought if anyone on Parraba was intimidating, it was The MacKeir. He had been even-tempered on Parraba, other than brief flashes of frustration over Ailie’s health, but Iosobal sensed the ruthlessness beneath the surface. Her first sight of him was never far from her thoughts. He’d been such a force of passion and rage that she’d relented and allowed his boat to land.

She waved to Art and rode out of the palace gates, still pondering the situation with the villagers. Had her mother ever experienced such behavior from them? Not that she could recall. They had always dwelled apart from the village, but it was a comfortable coexistence for as long as she could remember.

Finian stomped his foot and Iosobal sent him into a smooth canter over the sand. The salty breeze blew her hair back behind her, the sun warm as it always was.

The fragment of a memory slowly stirred in her mind. The only time her mother had ever displayed anger toward Iosobal. It had been soon after the “burning incident” as she thought of it. Her one and only visit to the mainland. Her last visit, she thought with a sting of resentment.

She’d been resentful then too. And angry. So much so that she’d made a mistake. Memories of that day crowded into her brain. She’d gone into the village in search of an old woman who was rumored to have the gift of knowing things.

The woman, Grainne had been her name, was kind and welcoming. Iosobal had soaked up Grainne’s warmth and acceptance after what had happened to her on the mainland. Grainne had told her wondrous things, telling of an exciting destiny waiting for Iosobal. She could no longer recall the details, but remembered the feeling of being special, of facing a wonderful future.

She’d been so thankful that she’d asked Grainne what she could do for her. The older woman’s house had been a plain, thatched structure with little in the way of comforts. With a wave of Iosobal’s hand, all of that had changed. By the time she said farewell, Grainne had a large two room cottage filled with thick, wool blankets, embroidered tapestries, and a bed finer than the one Iosobal herself slept in.

Unfortunately, the sudden transformation of Grainne’s cottage had not gone unnoticed. And while the villagers had no doubt suspected that the Lady of Parraba possessed powers not known to the rest of them, Grainne’s change from a bare holding to one of comfort provided the proof.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.