Glynis shook her head. She looked confused and wary. Johanna sweetened her smile. 'We have only Laird MacInnes's word that Clare didn't act honorably, and we aren't about to believe anything that man tells us, are we now? Clare's a welcomed guest in my house. I expect her to be treated with dignity and respect. Do excuse me now. Dumfries and I are going to Rush Creek. Good day, Glynis.'
Johanna tightened her hold on her rope and walked away. She started counting. She could hear the women whispering among themselves behind her. She doubted Glynis would be able to contain her curiosity for more than a minute or two.
She was wrong. The Maclaurin woman called out to her before Johanna had even reached the number ten.
'What nickname have you heard, m'lady?'
Johanna slowly turned around. 'Why, Glynis, I thought you knew. They call you Pure.'
Glynis let out a little gasp and she visibly blanched. Johanna should have felt guilty over her lie. She didn't, though. The Maclaurin woman thought she was so terribly clever with her backhanded insults. She didn't know Johanna understood the names were actually the opposite of what they really meant.
'Dumfries,' she whispered, 'we're going to let her simmer until tomorrow. By then Glynis will have realized how cruel her game is. Then I'll tell her I made up the name.'
Guilt wouldn't allow Johanna to wait that long. By the time she'd bathed the dog, she was feeling miserable. She was certain that if she was struck by lightning at that very moment, she'd go straight to hell.
She decided to go to Glynis's cottage and confess her sin. She was drenched from head to shoes, thanks to Dumfries's misbehaving in the creek, and she was given several stares on her way back to the well.
'M'lady, what happened to you?'
Leila asked her the question. She backed away from the dog and kept her gaze on the hound while she waited for her mistress to answer her.
'I gave Dumfries a bath. He pushed me in the creek,' Johanna explained. 'Twice as a matter of fact. Where does Glynis live? I wish to have a word with her.'
Leila pointed out the cottage. Johanna dragged the dog along by her side, muttering over his stubbornness. She reached the cottage, hesitated for only a minute while she pushed her hair out of her face, and then pounded on the door.
Glynis pulled the door open. Her eyes widened when she saw her mistress. Johanna noticed Glynis's eyes looked teary. Lord, had her cruel remark made her cry? Johanna's guilt intensified. She was a little surprised, too, for Glynis was such a big, strapping woman, almost manly in her build, she didn't think she was the sort to ever weep.
She spotted Glynis's husband sitting at the table then. She didn't want him to overhear what she was going to say.
'Could you spare me a moment of your time, Glynis? I would like to speak to you in private.'
'Yes, of course,' Glynis answered. She glanced over her shoulder, then turned back to her mistress. She had a worried expression now. Johanna guessed she didn't want her husband listening in either.
Introductions were made. Glynis's husband was a head shorter than his wife. He had red hair, freckles on his face and arms, and handsome white teeth. His smile seemed sincere.
Johanna was invited inside. She declined as graciously as possible, using her sorry condition as her excuse.
She asked Glynis to please step outside instead. When the Maclaurin woman had closed the door behind her, Johanna motioned her close.
Glynis started to walk forward, then stopped. Dumfries's low growl obviously intimidated her.
Johanna ordered the dog to quit his bluster before she gave her apology.
'I came here to tell you I made up the nickname. No one calls you Pure,' she announced. 'I did it out of spite, Glynis, and I'm sorry for my sin. I caused you needless worry, but in my defense I will tell you I was thinking to teach you a lesson. It stings to have the tables turned on you, doesn't it?'
Glynis didn't answer her question, but her face turned pale. Johanna nodded. 'I know you're the one who came up with the name for me. I also know that when you call me Courageous, you're really meaning I'm a coward.'
'That was before, m'lady,' Glynis stammered out.
'Before what?'
'Before we knew you well and realized you weren't a coward at all.'
Johanna wasn't going to be swayed by that bit of praise. She was certain Glynis was only trying to ease her way out of an awkward situation.
'I do not care for your foolish games,' she announced with a nod. 'Father MacKechnie boasted that the Highlanders never hide their feelings. They don't use subterfuge.'
She had to take the time to explain what that word meant before continuing. 'I find I admire that trait, Glynis. If you think I'm a coward, then have the courage to say it to my face. Don't make up silly games. They're hurtful… and very like something the English would do.'
If Glynis nodded any more vehemently, Johanna thought her neck would snap.
'Did you tell our laird?' she asked.
Johanna shook her head. 'This matter doesn't concern him.'
'I will stop giving nicknames, m'lady,' Glynis said then. 'And I apologize if you were hurt by my cruelty.'
'Were you hurt by mine?'
Glynis didn't answer for a long minute. Then she nodded. 'I was,' she whispered.
'Then we are even. Auggie isn't daft,' she added. 'He really is clever. If you spent any time at all with him, you'd realize that.'
'Yes, m'lady.'
'There,' Johanna announced. 'We've settled this problem. Good day to you, Glynis.'
She made a curtsy and turned to leave. Glynis followed her to the edge of the path. 'We only called you Courageous until you put Dumfries back together with your threads, m'lady. Then we changed your name.'
Johanna was determined not to ask, but curiosity won out. 'And what did you change my name to?'
She braced herself for the insult she knew was coming.
'Timid.'
'Timid?'
'Aye, m'lady. We call you Timid.'
Johanna was suddenly in a fit mood again. She smiled all the way home.
They called her Timid. It was a fair start.
Chapter 13
Johanna didn't see her husband until dinner. The men were already seated at the two tables when she walked down the steps into the great hall. No one stood up. Gabriel wasn't there yet. Both Father MacKechnie and Keith were also absent. The servants were busy putting oblong platters of meat on the table. The aroma of the mutton filled the air. A wave of nausea caught Johanna by surprise. She thought the soldiers' behavior was the reason she was suddenly feeling ill. They were grabbing handfuls of food before the trenchers were even placed in front of them. They weren't waiting for their laird to join them or for the priest to give the blessing before dinner.
Enough was enough. Mama would have heart failure if she witnessed such shameful behavior at her dinner table. Johanna wasn't about to be shamed in front of her dear mother. She'd die first. Or kill a couple of the Maclaurins, she thought to herself. They were the worse offenders, though the MacBain soldiers were certainly trying to keep up.
Megan noticed her mistress standing by the entrance. She called out to her, realized Johanna couldn't hear
