Devil of the Highlands Page 0,75

horse he was tending. "Why would anyone kill his first wife? Or his father? Or his uncle? Cullen's trying to find out."

Evelinde peered at the old man more closely. "He has been talking to you."

"Aye."

A growl of exasperation slipped from her lips. "I wish he would talk more to me. I am his wife."

"Truth to tell, I doona think he talks much to anyone," Mac commented. "He gives his men orders and such, but—" He shrugged.

Evelinde peered at the man. She already knew from Biddy that he was right, but was more interested in the stable master's willingness to talk to Cullen. Mac understood people as well as he did horses. He said 'twas why he preferred the animals; he didn't think much of people in general. She and Mildrede were the only people he'd bothered with at d'Aumesbery, but now it seemed he'd included Cullen in that small circle.

Evelinde found it reassuring to know he thought Cullen deserving of his time, it said he thought well of her husband. But she was also jealous that her husband would talk to Mac and yet did not speak to her.

"He doesna ken who to trust here," Mac volunteered. "I am an outsider and have not been involved in the matters presently plaguing him. He values yer opinion in trusting me and so came to me to talk after yer fall down the stairs."

Evelinde's eyebrows rose. Cullen valued her opinion in trusting Mac? That was encouraging. At least she thought it might be. "Why does he trust no one here? Is it because of the deaths and rumors?"

"Aye. He doesna ken what is what. He thought the deaths of his father and uncle were accidents, but when little Maggie died in the same spot as his father, he suspected foul play. He isna sure if all three were murder, or just hers. And then there are the rumors. He had too many say to his face that they knew he had nothing to do with the deaths, only later to overhear them tell another that 'Aye, hewas behind it for certain.'" Mac shrugged. "He has not known who to trust and has been forced to keep his own counsel."

Evelinde bit her lip at this news. It seemed a horrible way to live, surrounded by people who thought you a killer but said one thing to your face while saying another behind your back. And they were his own people. Even worse, as laird, he was the one responsible for their well-being and safety. It said much for him that he did not shirk that duty or use his position to avenge himself for their shabby treatment.

"I still do not understand why he will talk to you and yet does not see fit to talk to me," she said now, pushing those thoughts away. "I was not here then either."

"Some men do not speak much," he said, turning back to his horse. "Yer husband has been forced to be one of those men since the trouble here. But he does talk, and if he isna talking to ye, then 'tis probably because he fears revealing something he is not ready fer ye to ken."

Evelinde was puzzling over what that could be when he added, "But he follows ye everywhere with his eyes, and constantly finds excuses to go into the keep during the day to be near ye, and his worry over ye and anger about these accidents is excessive, at least the anger is. It suggests deep feelings."

She was silent for a moment. The week since her near fall down the stairs had been rather trying for Evelinde. She'd found herself with a husband who had suddenly turned cold and angry. He had not touched her since the incident and had been short and easily provoked. Between that and the fact that he never spoke a word to her, she'd thought he was angry with her for what she feared he saw as her clumsiness. Learning that he was not angry at her but angry about the possibility that she'd been attacked was rather reassuring, Evelinde thought, then realized what Mac had said.

"He thinks that other incidents besides the one on the stairs may have been attacks?" She had come to that conclusion herself, but was almost afraid to hope her husband might agree. It meant he might not see her as a completely clumsy fool.

"Aye. He suspects the bull being loosed in the paddock was deliberate, too," Mac said. "Hamish has