You are caught in a chain of events
"All right, now, I'm going to get something for those bruises and
scrapes of yours," Evelyn says, "but first, you should eat
something." She disappears for a moment and returns with a bowl
of soup, a piece of bread and cheese, and an apple. "Take what
you can, dearie, but don't overdo--you look half-starved, you do, and
if that bread in your pocket was what you were eating..."
"Thank you," you manage through more coughing. "I'm
sorry--I don't know what's wrong..."
"Don't give it another word. You're going to eat something, and
I'm going to take care of that nasty cut on your forehead, for
starters. And then you, my dear, are going straight to bed."
You nod and begin eating what is most certainly the best meal you've
had in awhile. As Evelyn says, you spend the next several days
recuperating. When you are feeling better, Evelyn comes up to your
room and asks if you can tell her more about who you are. You tell her
what you told Colin, but are surprised at her reaction.
"Mary Margaret," she asks, "who were your
parents?"
"Beatrice and Niall, Lord and Lady of Lachlan Hall," you
say, realizing with relief that you now know your parents' names, and
even where you came from.
"Ah!" Evelyn gasps. "But then that means
you're..."
But suddenly, you hear a commotion from the shop--tables overturning
and glass breaking, followed by,
"All right, McCune, where's that girl?"
You instinctively know that this is what has caused your deepest fear.
You glance pleadingly at Evelyn, who bolts the bedroom door and ushers
you quickly into a room under the floor.
About an hour later, Colin comes in and finds you, telling you it's
safe to come out now.
"Are you hurt?" you ask.
"No; the shop's in bad repair, but better its life than
yours."
"But why? Why am I that important? Please--who am I?"
Colin responds by taking off his hat. "My dear lass, you must've
'it your 'ead 'arder than you imagined. You are the Lady of Lachlan,
and moreover, you 'ave a destiny planned by the king, Eljeshanai
himself."
You are terribly shocked by this news, so you...
Evelyn continues to smother-mother you, calling you "poor
lass" and "dear heart" and all sorts of other names
like that. She gently helps you out of your dress and into the tub,
where you try to wash yourself, but find you're too weak. Evelyn has
to take over for you. At first, you're humiliated to be bathed like a
child, but then your illness takes over, and you relish the feeling of
a soap-covered cloth cleansing the grit, grime, and blood of your old
life away. Under Evelyn's ministrations, you go from an abandoned
orphan with a filthy body and matted hair to a young lady who could be
just about anyone, and when she helps you into a clean nightgown, you
feel nearly like a princess.
