Chapter 21

Cameron gritted his teeth and squared his shoulders. This was not a gathering he was looking forward to. A meeting had been called to discuss who now had ownership and who would run the Kilcarron Estate. Cameron knew that many of the clan elders would be hostile towards him because he was illegitimate and they did not approve of him.

There was another reason, however: jealousy. There were those members who had a more distant relationship to the former Laird but they were not bastards, even though their bloodline was not as direct as Cameron's. They reasoned that because his mother and father had not been married at the time of his birth, their claim was stronger.

However, Cameron had his supporters too. They were slightly outnumbered, but there was still a considerable number of them. Now, looking around at the assembly, Cameron was afraid. There were twenty four men here, and all of them had a say in his future. It was up to him to persuade them that he was the best choice.

Most of them were older than he was, although there were a sprinkling of younger men, and those looked to be the most hostile, since they had most of their lives ahead of them and Kilcarron Castle was a rich prize. He was relieved to see Hector Lewis, the man who had first welcomed him into the castle, come out of the Great hall to meet him. He smiled at Cameron, but it was a grim smile, since he too knew that there was a battle ahead.

"M'Laird." He bowed politely then addressed the company. "Gentlemen, for those who have not yet met him, this is Laird Cameron Dalziel-Lewis. As you know, his father, the former Laird Ross Lewis left him this estate and the Lairdship, but there is one condition here that has not been fulfilled. First, however, let me tell you about another matter that has a bearing on this case.

Laird Ross left instructions that Cameron would only take possession of the estate if he married the daughter of his steward, James Henderson. As you know, he has been a good and faithful servant to Ross for many years, but it seems that he was not the man we thought he was. He had plans to take over the Lairdship by fair means or foul."

Hector took a moment to sip his ale and look around the table. Most of the men knew James Henderson, and he had a good reputation as a hard worker and a competent man who knew his job, so what was Hector Lewis talking about?

"Two days ago, James Henderson tried to violate one of the sisters of the woman he is promised to. Fortunately, he was stopped by the intervention of our current Laird and Henderson's own daughter. James Henderson is now occupying the dungeon at this castle as we speak, and is likely to remain there for a very long while.

This leaves us with a problem. Gentlemen, Cameron Dalziel-Lewis will only inherit if he marries Davina Henderson, and he swears he will not do that. She does not want to wed him either."

There was a murmur of discontent from around the table.

Presently, Andrew Wilkie, son of a powerful elder who had not been able to attend that day, spoke up. "Then the situation is clear. Let one of his cousins inherit. This man," he glanced at Cameron, "is a bastard anyway. He should not even be here." He raked Cameron up and down with a withering glance of utter contempt before sitting down again. There was a murmur of agreement.

Cameron flushed bright red with rage. He stood up, squared his shoulders, and took a deep breath. "So you all think ye are much better than me because your mothers an' fathers were wed? Which one of you carries Ross Lewis's blood?" He looked all around the large table, spearing each man with a pointed glance as he went. "Any o' ye? Well, I do. Ye only have to look at me to see that. So when ye all go back to where ye come from an' ye have thrown me out o' here, which one o' ye will be Laird?" He pointed to one man. "You?" he pointed to another, and another, and another. "So who is goin' to claim the estate? Who will decide? Will I tell ye who?"

All of a sudden, a dagger seemed to leap into his hand, a collective gasp of shock went up, and the men instinctively drew away from Cameron. "This is who." His voice was almost a snarl. "You will a' start to fight among yourself for possession an' while a' that is happenin' there will be nobody to look after the place an' it will go to rack an' ruin.

Tenants will starve. Land will be overgrown wi' weeds. I will leave without complaint if that is what ye all desire, but think on this; Kilcarron is worth nothin' unless the land is producin' food, an' whoever wrests it out o' my hand will have to keep it goin', an' many o' you have no idea how to do that." He took a deep breath and looked around at them again.

"I do know how, although I admit to all of ye that I have much to learn, an' if ye let me I will do my best to keep the estate runnin', but I cannot do that without the support o' the woman I love. Davina Henderson does no' want to marry me, an' James Henderson will be spendin' a long time locked away, so Ava Struthers an' I are free to marry. Gentlemen, it is your decision. I have given ye a' the facts, but it is for you to decide." He turned to Hector Lewis, who nodded to him politely.

"M'Laird," he said. "We will take a while to discuss this, so perhaps you would like to leave us for a short time."

"Of course." Cameron marched swiftly out of the room, leaving the men to decide his fate. It was all in their hands now.

"I think we should leave him where he is," Hector Lewis said, as soon as the door had closed behind Cameron.

"He will hire a competent and honest steward to help him," Hector replied. "They are not all like Henderson."

"He might be a bastard, but he has a commanding presence," one of the other men said. "That has a great effect when it comes to intimidation - especially during negotiations."

"But that woman of his - she is pretty, but she is a commoner." Andrew Wilkie sounded disgusted. "So is he. What are other clans going to think of us?"

"They may think what they please," Hector replied grimly. "He has the kind of presence that commands respect, he is intelligent, and he has experience, if only in a small way as yet. I have confidence in him. As for marrying his sweetheart, they say that behind every great man is a great woman, so I think we should let him go ahead. James Henderson has no links to the estate any more, so why not let them do as their hearts desire?

He is Laird here now anyway, so why do we not let him stay? I think he will be a great asset to us. Let us vote on it."

They voted by a show of hands, and the verdict was overwhelming.

Ava was sitting in her chamber alone. Rona and Janet had gone down to the parlor to chat, sew and get to know Davina, but Ava was too nervous. She could not help thinking of everything that could be going on. What if the elders decided that Cameron should go? He had given away his cottage and land, just as she was about to do. What if they decided to let James Henderson out? She and Cameron would have to leave Kilcarron then, and god only knew where they would go.

She lay back on her bed to let tears of sheer misery leak from her eyes, and was about to turn over and burst into real tears on her pillow when there was a firm knock at the door.

Ava stood up to answer, and had just opened the door when she was wrapped in a pair of strong arms and a pair of firm lips descended on hers. She squealed in fright for a second, then relaxed. She knew Cameron's embrace, his smell, his kiss, and soon she hoped she would know it even better. She wanted to know every inch of him.

Presently, he drew back from her, and looked into her eyes. "I am sorry, Ava. I could no' wait a second longer."

"I forgive you," she murmured, tracing the outline of her lips with a forefinger. "What have they said?"

Cameron shrugged. "I am still waitin' for an answer," he replied. "God knows how long it will take. I went to see if ye were in the parlor, but Davina said ye were here. Ye should hear the noise they are makin' down there. A' that screamin' an' gigglin'!" he laughed. "I hope it is always like that."

Ava took his hand and pulled him onto the bed with her. He looked a little surprised but lay down willingly beside her, and once more Ava was wrapped in his comforting embrace.

"I could lie here like this forever," he murmured, kissing her forehead.

Ava sighed and snuggled closer to him. Strangely enough, she did not feel any desire or passion, even though their bodies were touching so intimately. All she felt was love, surrounding her and inside her, and all in the shape of this big, tender man. She wanted to hold him forever.

"So could I," Ava agreed. She could hear the thud of his heart next to her ear and wondered what it felt like to have a body like his. She had always envied men's strength, and Cameron was stronger than most.

She felt his voice rumble in his chest as he said: "Ava, what will we do if they take the Lairdship away from me?" He sounded anxious. "We have no homes now."

"I don't think it will come to that," she replied soothingly. "An' if it does, we will think o' somethin'. We will no' starve."

"I believe ye," he whispered. He tightened his arms around her and Ava, surrounded in his warmth, began to feel a little drowsy, but a few moments later she was jerked sharply awake as Cameron jumped up from the bed and strode to the door.

If Rona thought it odd that Cameron was in Ava's bed, she did not comment, but instead she said, "Cam, they are waitin' downstairs for ye."

Cameron nodded slowly and took Ava's hand. They made their way downstairs, but as Ava turned to make her way to the parlor, Cameron gently steered her to the meeting room which he entered, allowing her to go one step ahead of him.

Ava felt very intimidated when she saw the solemn gathering of men, and would have backed out were it not for Cameron's hand holding tightly onto hers. He pulled out a seat for her at the big table, then stood behind her with his hands protectively on her shoulders.

"What have you decided?" Cameron asked, hoping that no one could hear the thundering of his heartbeat. He was more nervous than he had ever been in his life.

"We have decided that it would be better for the estate if you stay on as Laird," Hector said, smiling at him. Then he looked at Ava. "And marry the woman you love, provided, of course, that she accepts you."

Cameron did not hesitate for a second, and was on his knees beside her at once. "You are the love o' my life, Ava Struthers." His eyes were shining as they looked into hers. "Will you make me the happiest man in the world an' be my wife? I promise ye will never regret it."

Ava smiled at him. If he was the happiest man in the world, then she was definitely the happiest woman! "Yes, Cam. I will marry you - as soon as possible, please."

Cameron laughed, then pulled her to her feet and kissed her soundly in front of everyone. There was a ripple of cheers and applause from the elders, but it was the cries of joy from behind them that made them turn around to find themselves in hugs from Rona, Janet and Davina.

"My God!" Cameron laughed in happiness and disbelief. "What have I let myself in for? All these women!"

"Most men would envy you, M'Laird," Hector said, winking at Cameron.

"As they should." Cameron laughed, and Ava joined in.

It was the happiest day of Ava's life up till that moment, but of course her wedding day was still to come.