“Niall!” Her eyes filled with tears. “Please understand. I cannot even bear for Mag to touch me. My own good Mag. I bore Dom’s brutal lovemaking for three years. Even then I remembered how it had been with us, and I prayed that someday we could be together. There was no obscenity that Dom forced upon me that spoiled you for me, not ever. Not until the night he and his vile sister …” She could not go on.
He finished it quietly for her. “Until the night they both raped you.”
“Aye,” she said, and was silent once more.
“I do understand,” he said as his deep voice, soothing and tenderly warm, sought to reassure and comfort her. “The wounds are still too new and I, in my happiness, have foolishly assumed you would share my joy at the prospect of our being together again. Forgive me, my love. You have suffered two wicked shocks, and now you’re burdened with an awesome responsibility. You’ll need time to adjust, and you shall have it, sweetheart!”
Her lashes were silken smudges against her pale skin. A great wave of pity washed over him as two crystalline tears slipped from beneath her closed eyelids and down her cheeks. He wanted to reach out, enfold her in his arms, comfort her, wipe away completely all the terrible hurt. But he stood with clenched fists and fought to maintain a rigid control on himself lest he frighten her, and risk losing her forever.
Finally she spoke. “I love you, Niall. I have never loved anyone else.”
“I know, Skye,” he answered quietly, “and that is why I will wait.”
“What?!” Her wet jewel eyes flew open.
“Yes, my precious love. Wait. In time the terror will fade, and when it does I will be here, Skye. Be it a month from now, or a year. Or ten years.”
“You need an heir, Niall. Your father wants one so very much.”
“You’ll give me one someday, my love.”
“You’re mad.” But a small smile played at the corners of her mouth.
“Not mad, my darling, simply in love with a wild and sweet vixen who will eventually come home to me again.”
Suddenly she held out her hand to him. He grasped it, and felt her tremble, but she did not pull away. “Give me time, Niall. I will come back to you! I know now that I will! Just give me time.”
A wonderful warm smile lit his face, turning his mouth up at the edges, crinkling his silvery eyes at the corners. “Madam, I offer you whatever time you need, for I have surely never known anything better worth waiting for than you.” He bowed low over her slim hand, his cool lips gently brushing her skin, sending a small shiver—was it revulsion, or was it desire?—rippling through her. Then, straightening, he turned and left her chambers.
Skye stood frozen, barely breathing. He loved her! Despite it all, he still loved her! He was willing to wait! And now, as she felt the blood begin to course through her veins, warming her as she had not been warmed since that terrible night, she knew it would be all right. The horrible memories were fresh, but she would heal eventually. And when she did, Niall would be waiting!
On the following day the O’Malley thanked her overlord for his hospitality and, after a short ride to the coast, sailed home to Innisfana Island. Within the month word came to the MacWilliam that the transition from the old to the new O’Malley had been made smoothly, and that the fleet was sailing once again.
So Niall Burke waited. The healing process had begun for Skye, and when it was complete they would be together forever. He would not go to her before then. There was plenty of time.
CHAPTER 7
A YEAR PASSED, AND DOM DIED. HIS DEATH, THOUGH SUDDEN, was not unexpected. With the loss of his legs he had lost the will to live. Claire O’Flaherty disappeared shortly after the visit of an English cousin, and only Gilly remained at Ballyhennessey, a sad shadow of his former self, content to spend his days and nights in a drunken haze. The estate was well managed by Frang, the bailiff.
The small, prosperous trading empire of the O’Malleys grew more prosperous through Skye’s skillful handling, and the MacWilliam was forced to admit that Dubhdara O’Malley had known exactly what he was doing when he had placed his daughter in charge. How she would behave in wartime was another matter, and he had yet to call upon her for that.
At nine, Michael O’Malley was more a priest than child, his calling so obvious that Skye finally sent him to school at the monastery of St. Brendan’s, preparatory to his entering the priesthood at sixteen. He would not take his final vows until he was twenty, by which time his two oldest half-brothers would have wed and probably produced heirs.
Brian and Shane, at seven and a half and six and a half, had begun the process of learning about the sea, about ships, and about their late father’s half-legal, half-illegal methods of doing business. Brian was assigned to a ship named Western Wind, and Shane went aboard the North Star. Neither ship would ever be out when the other was also out, and occasionally the boys were at home at the same time, which gave Skye a chance to see her half-brothers working together, and to evaluate them as they grew. Each was a true O’Malley, taking to the sea as to an old and respected friend. Skye wished her father could have seen them, for he would have been proud.
With the aid of Bishop O’Malley, and the donation of a fine manor to the Church, Niall Burke was finally given an annulment from his wife Darragh O’Neill, and she happily returned to her convent, where she quickly took final vows. On his son’s behalf, the MacWilliam sent to Seamus O’Malley and formally requested his niece’s hand in marriage. With her permission, the negotiations would begin at once.
“I don’t know now,” said Skye mischievously.
“Christ’s bones!” roared the bishop, for a moment so like his late brother that his niece burst into laughter. Looking very aggrieved, the bishop demanded, “What do you mean, you don’t know now? From the moment Niall Burke looked at you nothing would do but that you have him! Now you can, and you don’t know if you will? God Almighty, woman! Make up your mind!” His plump face was red, and his blue eyes almost black with anger.
Skye’s laughter died in her throat. Kneeling, she leaned her silky head against the prelate’s knee. “It isn’t because I don’t love Niall, Uncle. I do. He is the only man for me, and he always will be. But I am no longer a girl whose only interest is her man and their babes. Perhaps I never really was.”
“Beware, lassie,” warned Seamus O’Malley. “This is the MacWilliam and his heir that we deal with. They are your overlords.”
“Let them beware also!” shot back Skye. “I am the O’Malley!”
Seamus O’Malley mastered his temper. “What is it you want, Niece? Specifically.”
“My marriage must not affect my status as the O’Malley, and neither must my husband or my father-in-law interfere with that. The responsibility for the clan remains mine until I see fit to pass it on to one of my brothers. Da wanted it that way. I will not have the Burkes dabbling greedy fingers into the O’Malley coffers!
“I will come to them with a dowry worthy of a princess, but that is all they will receive. I want no interference by the Burkes into O’Malley affairs.”
The bishop nodded. “ ’Tis shrewd you are, Niece, but I don’t know if we can get the MacWilliam to swallow such a big pill. He’s a sly old man.”
“Come, Uncle, you’re a brilliant negotiator. Did you not arrange with your ‘friends’ in Rome for Niall’s annulment? We both know the reason the MacWilliam seeks me for his son is not my bonnie blue eyes or my pretty tits. He looks to our ships, but they are not mine to give. They belong to my half-brothers, and I will not cheat my father’s sons out of their inheritance even to gain my own happiness. I offer that wicked old man a bigger dowry than any of his ‘better-bred’ wenches, and I also offer him something even better than money, for I am a proven breeder of sons! Tempt him with that! For all his cleverness he has but one heir. I will give him half a dozen more.”
The bishop laughed. “You’re a very naughty wench, Niece. Your attitude toward the holy sacrament of matrimony is really quite shockin
g. I am tempted to pile you with penances.”
“I will accept them gladly, Uncle, if Niall Burke truly loves me.” She became deadly serious now. “This is what I must know. The last time he accepted his father’s will too easily, and did not fight for me. Now he must battle the MacWilliam to prove his love.”
“And if the MacWilliam refuses your terms?”
“He won’t. But if he did then Niall would wed with me anyway if he really loves me.”
“Very well, Skye. ’Twill be your way.”
“Thank you, Uncle,” she replied meekly with downcast eyes, and he chuckled and fondly whacked her backside.
The MacWilliam angrily roared his outrage, but Seamus O’Malley stood firm. Even after Skye wed with Lord Burke she was to remain the O’Malley, and she was to retain complete control of O’Malley affairs.
“The O’Briens have a fine lass ripe for marriage,” said the MacWilliam slyly.
“The devil take her,” shouted Niall, and the bishop masked his smile. “ ’Tis Skye I want, and Skye I’ll have even if I must slit your scrawny throat!”
The MacWilliam looked at his son with an injured air. “If you’re that hot for her then you might as well have her. I hope you’ll quickly breed me several grandsons before much more time has passed. I am not growing any younger.”
Seamus O’Malley returned to his niece, happy to tell her that her terms had been accepted, and that Niall Burke had been willing to fight for her. The O’Malleys were in a state of great excitement because one of their own was to wed with Niall Burke. Yet Skye remained calm throughout.
“You must be made of ice,” remarked her sister Peigi. “He’s what you’ve always wanted. And God knows his reputation with women would set an ordinary woman to fainting. You’ve already had a taste of his lovemaking, so surely you must be excited to finally be marrying him.”
“I am, but we’re not wed yet, Peigi. I am fearful of rejoicing too soon lest I awaken to find it all nought but a dream. If I remain quiet and unobtrusive I will not attract the undue attention of those spirits who might envy me my good fortune.”
“God ha’ mercy, little sister, what unchristian nonsense is this? Thank the Lord you do not run our business so foolishly.”
Skye shook her head, but said nothing further. She knew that even here in the heart of devout Christian Ireland, food and drink were placed upon the doorsteps nightly in offering to the little people. She knew that certain maidens of unblemished virtue were marked as sacred, and the keeping of their virginity placed in the care of an ancient Celtic demon who materialized to destroy the violator if the girl’s innocence was threatened. She and the men of her fleet made verbal obeisance to Mannanan MacLir, the ancient Irish sea god, before each voyage.
It had been almost eighteen months since she had seen Niall, and she was somewhat frightened, for in all that time she had been free of men’s demands. Her aversion to being touched had eased somewhat, and Mag could again bathe and dress her.
As if sensing her fears from afar, Niall Burke came unannounced to Innisfana Island. He found her in her mother’s rose garden clipping some late blooms. For a few minutes he stood in the shadow of a tree and watched her. He realized he had never seen her in a moment of leisure. She was dressed in the Irish fashion, wearing a bright red skirt of soft, lightweight wool. She had tucked it up, and he saw that she was bare-legged and barefoot. Her blouse was of fine linen, as white as many washings could make it. The sleeves were short, and it was deep-necked, revealing her breasts when she bent to inhale the sweet fragrances of the flowers. Her blue-black hair was loose and billowed softly about her shoulders in the light breeze. She carried a wide, nearly flat straw basket, half-filled with roses. Her giant hound, Inis, walked slowly by her side.
She was lovelier than he had remembered, and his heart beat a little quicker when he realized that this beautiful woman had consented to be his wife. The young innocent of fifteen was long gone. He barely remembered her now, as this lovely creature of nineteen quickened his blood. He let his eyes feast on her, enjoying the soft pink in her cheeks, the way her lashes made a dark smudge against her skin. Her slim figure moved with such grace. It gave him pleasure just to watch her.
After a little longer, he stepped from behind the tree and the big hound stiffened, his hackles rising. Inis growled low in warning.
“I am glad to see you so well guarded, Skye.”
“Put your hand out, Niall, so Inis may get your scent.” She patted the dog. “Friend, Inis. Niall is a friend.”
Lord Burke suffered himself to be thoroughly sniffed. He patted the animal, speaking reassuringly to him, receiving first a long searching look from the liquid amber eyes, and then finally a wet, cold nose pushed into his palm.
“He likes you!”
“And if he hadn’t?”
“You might have had difficulty claiming your rights once we’re wed, my lord,” she said mischievously.
She sobered suddenly, and he did too. Then he held out his arms to her and, without a moment’s hesitation, she walked into them. His arms closed securely about her, and she stood quietly listening to the rapid beat of his heart just beneath her cheek.
“I love you, lass,” he said quietly.
“And I love you, my lord Burke. I would seal that love with a kiss,” she said softly, raising her head. His mouth gently found hers. At the first touch of his lips she panicked, but his big hand caressed her hair and he murmured against her mouth, “No, love, it’s Niall, and I love you.” With a sigh she gave herself up to him, and when he released her at last, her eyes were shining with joy.
“Is it all right now, sweetheart?” he asked, already knowing the answer.
“Yes, my lord. For a moment … but it quickly passed.”
“I will always be gentle with you, Skye.”
“I know.” She smiled happily. “How long were you watching me?”
“A few minutes. You’re a charming sight barefoot, and clipping roses.”
“But hardly dignified,” she blushed. “As the O’Malley, I should have sailed out to meet you, my betrothed husband.”
“Leave the O’Malley at sea, my love. I prefer shoeless lasses, especially the one now in my arms. Besides, you did not know I was coming. And but a day behind me is himself, anxious that your uncle perform the betrothal ceremony here in two days’ time, and that we sign the contracts. Would that please you, pet?”
“Oh, Niall! Yes! Yes! Yes!”
“And then,” he continued, “we can be wed in three weeks’ time after the banns are all read.”
“Yes!” Then her face fell. “No. It cannot be in three weeks’ time. Damn! I must go to Algiers, and we sail in a week.”
“To Algiers? Why?”
“It has been suggested that we set up a trading post in Algiers, and I cannot give my approval unless I have investigated the situation myself. I must not waste O’Malley gold, or O’Malley resources.”
“Why must you leave next week? Can’t you go another time?” She could hear the irritation in his voice.
“Oh, Niall, I am sorry. In order to gain a trading license in Algiers we must have permission from the Dey, who represents the Sublime Porte in Constantinople. Without the Dey’s approval we cannot trade safely in the Mediterranean.”
“Why not simply bribe him?”
Skye laughed. “We are going to, but the Turks do things differently than we do. We are rather straightforward, whereas they demand grace and elegance, even in their business dealings. When the Dey learned that the head of the O’Malley company was a woman he demanded to meet me. My representatives dared not refuse him. So I must go or else risk insulting the Dey. To insult the Dey is to insult the Sultan. In that case we would not get the trading permit. Worse, our ships would be marked as fair game by the Barbary pirates who sail out of Algiers under the Dey’s supervision. We would be ruined. I have to go. The appointment is set.”
“How long?”
“At least three months.”
“Three months? Dammit, Skye, it’s too long to be separated from you!”
Her eyes lit up. “Come with me, Niall! Sail with me to Algiers! I know we must allow our families the privilege of marrying us off with pomp and fuss. But once we’re betrothed and pledged to wed, no one will think to mind if you accompany me. We can have our church wedding when we get home. Come with me, my love! Oh, please come with me!”
It was a wild, impractical idea, and he almost said no. Then he thought of the long days and longer nights ahead. Niall Burke took a deep breath and said, “Yes, Skye, my love. I’ll sail with you, though I must be mad to do so.”
With a cry of joy she flung herself into his arms.
Several days later, in the same chapel that had seen Skye’s baptism and ill-fated marriage to Dom O’Flaherty, her betrothal to Niall Burke was celebrated. She regretted the absence of her father at the moment of her greatest happiness, but the MacWilliam’s open joy eased her sorrow.
The ceremony was barely over when Skye left her husband-to-be and their guests in the care of her sisters, so that she could oversee the preparation of her ships. They would sail in a fleet of nine ships. Skye’s flagship was the Faoileag (the Seagull). With her would be her father’s ship the Righ A’Mhara (King of the Sea); Anne’s ship the Ban-righ A’Ceo (Queen of the Mist), which had been a wedding gift from her late husband; and the six ships belonging to Skye and her sisters. These were known as the six Daughters for each was named a “Daughter of …” They were Inghean A-Sian (Daughter of the Storm), Inghean A’Ceo (Daughter of the Mist), Inghean A’Mhara (Daughter of the Sea), Inghean A’Ear (Daughter of the East), Inghean A’Iar (Daughter of the West), and the Inghean A’Ay (Daughter of the Island).
Each ship was carefully prepared and provisioned, and the crews were handpicked by Skye. She wished to make a good impression on the Dey. Permission to trade with Algiers meant untold wealth.
Thus it was that, one week from the day of his betrothal, Niall Burke found himself standing on the quarterdeck of a ship as it sailed south out of O’Malley Bay into the rolling blue Atlantic Ocean. He was not a sailor by nature, and had no special feeling for the sea. Nevertheless the weather was tolerable and he quickly found his sea legs. What he could not find as easily was an end to his amazement—for Skye O’Malley in command on the sea was completely different from the woman he knew and loved.
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