Chapter 11

Chapter

Eleven

T he maiden had her way in the end, but not because anyone respected her wishes. Laird Donaldsson wanted time to send out invitations to neighboring clans and noblemen. There was a spectacular banquet to be organized, with feasting and entertainment, followed by a few days of Highland games.

"While I respect yer Faither's wishes to send ye forth with only four paltry escorts to protect ye, Maid Laura," Laird Redmond Donaldsson told her in a very condescending tone, "the price we paid for yer maidenhead was surely enough for him to hire more."

Besides the laird's callous dismissal of the men's lives, his forensic way of discussing her virginity did not please Laura at all. "My Father could hardly spare the money, Laird. That his financial difficulties pressed him to marry off his dear daughter should be some indication of this."

A few of the noblemen sniggered when they heard Laura defend Sir Raleigh's actions. "I wish more fathers fell into poverty if it means they put young lassies like ye on the market for sale." One man sidled up to Laura and whispered this in her ear. It was revolting, and made Laura feel like a sack of turnips that had been bought cheap at a tuppenny fair.

The men spoke about her physical appearance quite openly, darting critical looks in her direction and then holding a suggestive conversation about her. They openly admired the chubby curve of her cheeks and rotund backside. A few of them clustered around to chuck her under the chin and give her plump, rounded arms a teasing pinch.

Nurse Mildred shooed them away. "The maiden is spoken for. Go away." As outraged as Laura was about Donaldsson's boorish behavior, she had to marvel at how true her nurse's words were. Laura was spoken for, but not by Ethelred. With every beat of her heart, Laura obsessed about returning to Iolaire.

One man smacked Ethelred on the back. "Ye're a fortunate young man! Yer faither bought ye a bonny bride."

Ethelred shrugged, looking sheepish. "Aye, she's good enough, and will make me a cozy armful in bed. The Raleighs can trace their lineage all the way back to Sir Philip of Oldcoates at Bebbanburg. They will nae be able to say that we are upstart Vikings anymore once me bairns are bred on a Sassenach noblewoman."

Many cheers of congratulations and clinking of pewter ale mugs followed this statement. Ethelred glanced over at Laura. "Are ye still here? Toddle yerself off to the women's hoose, Maid. The great hall is set aside for the men's use."

Nurse Mildred tugged Laura's sleeve. "Come, my dear lamb. Do as your future husband orders."

The small flask Agnes had given her in the stone cottage preyed on Laura's mind. The first thing she did when she got to her bedchamber was open the shutters and look up at the sky. It was a typical summer's day on the north coast of the Highlands. Blue skies dominated the eastern horizon while lowering gray clouds loomed up from the west, curtains of rain coming to darken the land. The picturesque vista did not comfort her, however. In Laura's eyes, she only saw the rain.

The view was invigorating without being beautiful, but that was not what Laura was looking for. Straining her eyes from left to right, she searched for the familiar swooping dark shape. When no eagle flew in sight, Laura decided to wait before drinking the elixir. Now that she knew her wedding date was a few weeks away, she wanted a clear sign before wishing for her dream.

If Laura thought her welcome to the castle was exasperating, she was soon to find out that it could be a lot worse. Lady Donaldsson was a pale, spiritless woman who liked to spend her days in the women's house, spinning and weaving. Ethelred's sisters were boisterous and badly behaved, pushing Laura when they walked past them in the corridor or sticking out their tongues. At first, Laura was prepared to put this down to shyness. She was a stranger in their lives, after all. But the Donaldsson girls' behavior never improved, and could be said to get worse when Laura did not retaliate.

In her second week living at the coastal castle, Laura attempted to make friends. Curtsying to Lady Donaldsson, she sat beside the silent woman and asked questions about how the Donaldsson plaid was crafted. Mistress Berenson had told her that the wools used for clan plaids were dyed from ingredients sourced locally, so Laura knew she was on pretty safe ground with a subject she knew something about.

But the poor lady was so unused to someone paying attention to her that she got flustered, tangling her spindle and dropping the tapestry beater.

"Ye sweet child," Lady Donaldsson risked a wan smile. "I doubt if me son will let ye spin and weave, so what's the point o' learning oor plaid?"

Thinking she must have misheard, Laura looked incredulous. "Not allow me to spend my free time spinning and weaving? Ethelred is hardly likely to care what I do!"

To this, Lady Donaldsson shook her head. "Yer Faither's letter said ye visit the invalids on the estate, look after the hoose, and play hostess to the guests. That's what they bought ye for, lass, so it's likely that's all they will want ye to do."

Chuckling, Laura shook her head. "I do not think that my Father expected your son and husband to take his letter so literally."

The Lady shook her head. "Someone has to do it. Ye're a grand maiden from an elegant manor hoose. Me husband and son have wanted to elevate themselves in noble society for a long time. And they want to use ye to get there."

Aghast, Laura shook her head. "What about you, Milady? Surely?—"

Clucking her tongue, Lady Donaldsson smiled sadly. "I was the daughter of a local farmer. I'm no good for their ambitions."

The moment it was polite for her to do so, Laura excused herself and left. It had never dawned on her before that the Donaldsson clan were social climbers, but now she had all the proof she needed. And yet, underneath all of the jolly compliments and polite words of approval she got from the men of the clan, Laura sensed a strong current of barbaric violence underneath it all. It was like they were playacting at being nice, and all they really wanted was to jump into a boat and go off to burn down some poor village.

It would take more than a marriage to a blue-blooded Sassenach for the Donaldsson's to leave their Norse heritage behind.

Ten days after her arrival, Ethelred and Laura were allowed to walk to the beach with two of his sisters as escorts. Laura's face was flushed from all the times the Donaldsson girls scolded and bullied her that she kept the black wool arisaid pinned tightly over her head to hide the redness in her cheeks.

Ethelred was not a particularly astute young man, so he did not notice—or did not care—about his future bride's pale face and subdued manner. He was happy to ignore the way Laura held her arisaid tightly around her shoulders, as if the sea breeze was too cold for her skin. "I want ye to send that nanny o' yers away," he told Laura in an abrupt way. "Ye will nae need her when we are wed, and if ye want a companion, me sister, Gertrude, can sit with ye."

Laura had bridled at the bit all her life whenever she was forced to take Nurse Mildred everywhere with her, but to lose her only friend at the castle was unthinkable.

"It was dangerous enough for us coming here," she tried to reason with him. "Sending poor Mildred back alone would be the same as committing a murder."

Ethelred shrugged his meaty shoulders. "So what? She's a withered up auld crone who has nae use here. Gertie says she will do everything twice as good. I've told Faither to give yer nanny a pony and send her forth. If she's canny, she'll get back to England alright."

Laura could hardly believe what she was hearing. "I-I do not want Gertie as my companion!" Gertrude was Ethelred's eldest sister, far taller than Laura and twice as strong. Gertrude enjoyed pinning Laura against the hard castle walls and berating her for being a useless spying Sassenach. The more Laura came to think about it, the more she believed that Gertrude's name suited her very well, because Ethelred's sister was rude!

Turning around, Laura began to hurry back to the castle, desperate to make sure that Nurse Mildred was still there. She could not help staring up at the sky. Where was her eagle? Would no one help her? Then the realization hit her. When Mildred was gone, she would be completely alone.

Rushing to the bedchamber, she found all the remaining Donaldsson sisters in there, throwing the Nurse's tatting and embroidery into a traveling trunk while Mildred quaked and wept in the corner. "Where will I go, lambkin? I dare not go back home along the mountain pass."

This was the woman who had nursed her. Changed her swaddling when it was wet or soiled. Milled and sieved her porridge until it was soft enough for her to swallow. And watched as Laura took her first faltering steps.

Somewhere deep inside herself, Laura found the strength to be calm. Walking to Mildred, she put her arms around the weeping woman. "Do not cry, Nurse. I will sort this out." Straightening her windswept hair and pushing her shoulders back, she went to find the laird.

Redmond Donaldsson was sitting in the great hall with his chieftains, discussing the fishing rights along the coastline. The laird looked cross when he looked up to see who the sentries were allowing to come inside the hall, but when he saw it was Laura, he beamed. "Welcome! Such a bonny addition to oor dour discussion. To what do we owe this honor?"

The laird seemed to be in a temperate mood, so Laura promised herself that she would do or say nothing to change that. Curtsying in the English style that she knew he admired, Laura spoke softly. "Please, my Laird, I do beseech you to listen to my request. I wish to keep my nurse beside me. She is dear to me and will in no way impede my bond with the clan."

Redmond Donaldsson shook his head. "She's a Sassenach nanny, and unlike yerself, she is lowborn. I cannae have such a breed o' folk struttin' around me castle like they own the place."

At once, she was able to see Ethelred's sisters' plot clearly. They wanted Nurse Mildred gone so that they could bully Laura without anyone getting in the way. She remembered the other evening when Nurse had come down the passageway and found Gertrude pulling Laura's hair viciously. Mildred had scolded the girl and told her to keep away from Laura if she did not want a flea in her ear! Gertrude had faded into the dark corridors, muttering threats. And this was the outcome.

"But Laird," Laura made her eyes wide and innocent. "Surely, you would want my nurse to look after the bairns I have with Ethelred? Every noble house has an elderly nanny to care for the children. It is an ancient tradition. Even the King?—"

Laird Redmond cut her off. "Why dinnae ye say so? How was I to ken Nurse Mildred was a valuable member o' yer family's heritage? She must stay, by all means. And tell me steward to set aside a better room for her use."

And in this way, Laura was able to move both Nurse Mildred and herself out of the women's house, as far away from the Donaldsson daughters as they could go. When the steward asked Laura if she wanted a turret chamber, she shook her head firmly. "No, I thank you. I would prefer a set of rooms in the bailey. Nurse does not like stairs."

Like most castles established along the coast, the Donaldsson's stronghold had been built in stages, starting as a solitary watchtower and hall, and growing to become a great walled structure. There was an inner ring of walls. All the domestic housing was inside this—the hall where they ate and held meetings, the chapel, the women's house, and the donjon, a tall tower where the men were housed.

A second great wall for defense housed the men at arms, livestock, and stables. During the day, the castle occupants were free to pass from the inner walled area to the outer walls and beyond. At night, they had to answer to the sentries.

The bailey was a line of small houses and rooms situated alongside the inner wall. It was from here that craftsmen and women plied their trade—the blacksmith, the farrier, the cheese makers, and the baker—here they were free to sell their wares to visitors or castle dwellers, without the threat of an attack by brigands and thieves.

When the steward was gone, Mildred frowned. "I can climb stairs, you young scallywag. Why do you want such a remote chamber? We will have to walk so far if we want to visit anyone inside."

Laura smiled elusively. "Never you mind, Nurse. Are you not glad to be far away from those boisterous Donaldsson maidens?"

This made Mildred chuckle, but the two women's cheerful mood did not last for long. As they were unpacking their trunks and settling into their new rooms, Laura gave a small gasp. "Nurse! Have you seen my box of trinkets? You know the one I'm talking about. My mother's baubles."

Even though they searched as hard as they could, the box was nowhere to be found. Laura tried to be optimistic about finding it, but she knew in her heart it was gone.

"I bet it was that pestilent hoyden, Gertie, who took it," Mildred grumbled. "Those baubles will have no significance to that minx other than the fact you no longer have them!"

Laura was deeply upset, but she was determined not to let it show. "Do not worry, Nurse. I still have some of the gold coins Altair gave me."

Mildred shot her a quizzical look. "You are hardly likely to need money of your own, Laura. Ethelred will provide for all of your needs."

"Mmm," ignoring this statement, Laura pretended to be busy folding her precious black arisaid into one of the chests. She needed to make a better effort in pretending to be happy with her lot in life.

And even though she no longer had a bird's-eye view of the sky, she opened the shutters to let in the sunlight.

The next day at dinner, Gertie and her sisters made sure to persecute Laura more openly, as if they wanted to push the boundaries to see how far their faither and brither would allow them to go. Needless to say, when Redmond noticed his daughters pulling Laura's braids and prodding her sharply in the back, he guffawed. "Ha! It seems as if me daughters think ye should be toughened up, Maiden. Hold fast! If ye ignore them, they will soon find something else to take their minds off their new sister." And then he went back to stuffing his face with pigeon pie.

As for Ethelred, when he raised his eyes from the full platter of food in front of him, he said nothing. Pointing a finger, he sniggered and then went back to eating.

That evening, the eagle came.

Hovering in the sky with the wind under its wings, it observed the castle from its vantage point for what seemed like a long while. One of the sentries on guard duty elbowed his partner and then gestured at the bird, but they held pole-axes in their hands, not crossbows, so the eagle ignored them.

Spying the open shutters in the small bailey cottage, the bird of prey folded its wings close to its body. Speeding down like an arrow, it opened its wings wide before alighting on the window ledge with only a slight rustle of wings making a noise. Turning its head sideways, it looked around the empty room, waiting.

And that was what Laura saw when she came in. Laird Redmond had asked Nurse Mildred to stay behind after dinner so that he could show her the nursery and ask her how it measured up to the nurseries in the noble houses.

Free to return to the bailey and leave the Donaldsson sisters behind, Laura entered the room. The eagle was the sign she had been looking for.

"I will drink the elixir tonight," she said out loud, "I wish you had come sooner. No, I wish I had never left Iolaire at all."

Staying only long enough to watch Laura go to the water bucket and begin washing the flecks of pottage out of her hair, the eagle launched itself off the ledge and flew back into the sky.

Laura sighed. She would have to go to bed with wet hair. There was nothing better Gertrude liked to do than flick spoonfuls of food at Laura at the dinner table. When she smelled her braid, the strong aroma of onions and gruel met her sensitive nose.

Sighing again, Laura massaged scented oil into her scalp and then combed it through her long black hair. After braiding the strands into an intricate plait again, she went to watch the blacksmith work his forge. The fire was blazing hot, but the man seemed immune to the heat, removing a glowing item out of the fire with his tongs and then banging it on the anvil with his heavy hammer.

When he noticed her watching him, he touched his finger to his forehead like a salute. "Aye, Maid Laura?"

Shaking her head, Laura let the man know she was only watching. "The heat dries my hair very nicely. You must use a lot of wood to keep it so hot."

The man nodded. "That I do. The laird pays charcoal burners to keep the forest clear. I use that with wood for kindling."

"I have never seen a woodsman with a cart come by," Laura remarked in an offhand manner.

The blacksmith explained. "An' nor will ye. Those charcoal burners are a rough lot. They are nae allowed entrance into the castle. I take the cart doon to the village every morning and fetch the wood meself."

"But what if it rains?" Laura wondered.

Scoffing, the man explained. "I cover the kindling with a thick canvas, Maid. This is Scotland; we always factor in the dreich."

Wishing the man a good day, Laura went back inside. Nurse Mildred joined her there shortly. "Goodness, but those Donaldssons are a rowdy bunch! I find them exhausting. And as for Ethelred, he might be a stout and fair-faced young man, but he's a block."

Laura was already getting ready for bed, even though the sun would not be setting for a long time. "Yes, Nurse. He is not very clever. Or observant. But I wish him all the best despite it."

After saying this, Laura twisted the cork stopper out of the flask and drank the elixir. By the time Nurse Mildred thought to ask Laura why she wanted to wish her betrothed all the best, the young maiden was fast asleep.