Chapter 11: I am not touching you

My mother Rosa, Rosaine, was a tall woman with prematurely grey hair and sharp blue eyes that seemed to see everything. She had the kind of practical intelligence that came from managing a household and raising children in a place where carelessness could mean the difference between comfort and hardship.

My father Garrick was built like a mountain himself—broad-shouldered and solid, with hands that could gentle a frightened colt or swing an axe with equal skill.

“Where were you all night?” My mother asked without preamble, her eyes fixed on my face in that way that made me feel like she could read my thoughts.

I’d prepared for this question during my walk home. “I was at Valara’s lodge. She and Rena were there, and we were drinking and talking. I fell asleep there rather than try to make my way home in the dark.”

It wasn’t entirely a lie, though it left out several significant details.

My parents exchanged glances, and I could practically see them having one of those wordless conversations that married couples seemed to master over the years.

“The chieftess doesn’t usually entertain young men overnight,” Garrick observed carefully.

“We were discussing… village matters,” I replied, hoping I sounded more convincing than I felt.

The silence stretched between us for several long moments before Rosa finally nodded slowly. “Very well. But in future, you’ll send word if you plan to be out all night. We worry.”

Garrick cleared his throat. He had no words for me; my mother’s word was final, after all. If she didn’t drag the matter, then it was over.

“I need help bringing the cattle down from the high pasture today. The weather’s turning, and I want them closer to the village before the next storm hits.”

I nodded agreement.

Working with the cattle would be good, honest labour, and it would give me time to think about my next moves regarding both Valara and the increasingly complex web of relationships I seemed to be weaving through the village.

But as I turned to gather my gear, my mother’s hand caught my arm. “Garrick, go ahead and start bringing in the cows. I need a word with our son.”

My father’s expression suggested he knew exactly what kind of word she intended to have, but he simply nodded and headed for the back door.

The moment he was gone, Mother dragged me toward my parents’ bedroom, her grip strong.

Once inside, she closed the door and turned to face me with the kind of look that had made me confess to broken crockery and stolen apples when I was a boy.

“Did you sleep with Valara?” she asked bluntly.

Mothers, I reflected, were dangerous creatures indeed.

They possessed an almost supernatural ability to cut through pretence and get straight to the heart of matters that other people would dance around for hours. There was no point in trying to lie to her—she’d raised me, and she knew every tell I possessed.

I nodded.

But I was curious how she found out, so I asked, “How did you…??”

She smiled at me, not the usual loving one, but menacing enough.

“I can practically smell another woman on you. You just said that you are with Valara all night. I know you lied about Rene being there. I saw her staying at the tavern with the girls; she didn’t go home.”

Busted.

She studied my face for a long moment, her expression unreadable.

Finally, she sighed. “We’ll talk about this tonight, after your father’s gone to bed.”

The way she said it suggested there was far more to this situation than I’d realised. But before I could ask what she meant, she was already ushering me back toward the main room.

“Go help your father,” she said.

I wanted to kiss her, so he moved in. But she put her hand on my chest and said, “No, sonny boy, I won’t touch you until you bathe.”

Women, I shake my head.

She had a sharp look on her face which made me chuckle, but I didn’t.

I knew better.

She didn’t seem angry, or maybe she was; I couldn’t tell exactly.

One thing I understood today was that I shouldn’t lie to my mother.

I just walked out of the room and went to meet my father.

As I am getting to know more about my mother, I have to say, my father, he was a very clever man. He know exactly how to tread around her and when to keep his mouth shut.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep