What disturbed him more, after giving it thought, was how adamant Owen had been about marrying Wintra, and then threatening her when she had refused. Something did not seem right, and it concerned him.
“Mind if I join you?”
Cree looked up to see Torr standing there, and he gave a nod to the bench opposite him. “My sister fares well?”
Torr nodded, “And mine?”
Cree had to respect him. With two words and no threat, Torr had made it clear that it was neither of the other’s concern as long as the women were treated well.
“She is well,” Cree told him.
“She fainted yesterday.”
Cree would have told him it was none of his concern, but he would not want Torr to do that when it came to Wintra, so he could understand his worry. “Elsa assures me that she is fine.”
“Good. I have just found her. I would not want anything to happen to her before I got a chance to know her better,” Torr said and filled a tankard with hot cider.
“I understand how you feel. It has been too long since I have seen my sister.”
“Then you would not mind if Wintra and I stayed here until your babe is born? I think it would help the situation not to take her away from family so soon while giving me a chance to get to know my own sister.”
Cree was more than pleased by Torr’s offer, though he found it had never bode well for a mighty warrior to express any degree of gratitude. And habits were hard to break, so while he was more than delighted, he simply said, “You are welcome to stay.”
“Thank you,” Torr said respectfully, though he had had no doubt that the mighty Cree would refuse him. He had thought about it this morning when he woke with Wintra sleeping comfortably in his arms. It was better they got to know each other here, and then she would have time to reunite with her brother and come to know Dawn. Then when the time came for them to leave, she would be more willing to do so, or at least he hoped she would.
There was one other thing that disturbed Torr and he felt it was important to discuss with Cree, though Cree got to it first.
“Something about Owen disturbs me,” Cree said.
Torr was quick to agree. “I feel the same.”
“Tell me,” Cree urged.
“Owen has an agenda, though I do not know what it is. I believe he had men abduct Wintra, and then he rescued her using a different group of warriors, and now he has another troop of warriors with him. What troubles me the most, is that Wintra found two men dead in the woods. One was from the group that abducted her and the other was from the troop who saved her, and they both had died from stab wounds.”
“How did my sister come across them?”
“By sheer accident,” Torr said.
“You were not with her?” Cree asked accusingly.
“I was never far from Wintra, but she does require a bit of privacy at times. And I did return here with my wife safe and unharmed with the exception of the bump to her head.”
“How did that happen?” Cree demanded, not caring in the least that Torr reminded him yet again that Wintra was his wife. He wanted to make certain his sister was safe and always would be, and Torr, so far, had done that.
Torr explained how Wintra had attempted to escape from him and landed them both in a stream and though he didn’t go into complete detail about the incident, he felt it was enough to satisfy Cree’s obvious concern.
“That sounds like my sister,” Cree admitted with a nod. “And it is good to know that you saw and continue to see to her care. Now tell me more about what happened.”
It was when Torr explained how Owen had found them at the cottage and what had happened when he was alone with Wintra that had Cree exploding.
“Bring that bastard Owen to me right now,” he bellowed, jumping up off the bench and having the few warriors who had entered the Great Hall for breakfast scurrying to obey. He turned an angry glare on Torr, though it was not meant for him. “Do you know anything about this man?”
“He is a sly and deceitful man from what I have heard. He took advantage of a lovely and innocent daughter of a chieftain my father is acquainted with, and ruined her, though made it appear otherwise. He is not one to be trusted.”
“How had my sister come to know him?”
“He visited the abbey and had asked permission to speak with her concerning one of the gardens she tended. He cunningly insinuated his way into her life and somehow convinced her that he cared for her.”