Chapter 17

17

“Would you like to come for a ride with me today?” Elspeth asked as they were finishing breakfast that morning.

“Is it not too dangerous?” Gavin asked doubtfully. “My enemies may be out there awaiting me.”

“I never go out with less than four guards,” Elspeth reassured him. “And I never go out of sight of the castle—in fact, most of the time I visit my friends in the village. You have not been out of the castle grounds since you arrived here, Gavin. Will you not come with me?” Elspeth gazed into his eyes with a pleading expression, her cheeks rosy and her smile bright.

Gavin realised the truth of what she had said. The castle walls were beginning to close in on him, and a breath of fresh air would be most welcome.

“In that case, I will,” he agreed, and they smiled at each other. They stood up to leave, but at that moment, Laird Jamieson interrupted.

“Gavin, may I speak to you in my office, please? This will only take a moment. Elspeth, go and wait in the stables, please.”

A few minutes later, Gavin and Laird Jamieson were seated in his study.

“I have something important to tell you,” the Laird said, “but I do not want you to breathe a word of this to anyone. Do you understand, Gavin?”

Gavin felt like yelling that he was not a simpleton, and of course, he understood, but he kept his mouth shut and nodded.

“The Jamiesons will come to your aid,” Laird Jamieson told him. “I have yet to finalise our plans because we will have to observe Duncairn Castle for a few days, but I will give you the final details closer to the time. ”

“Thank you, my Laird,” Gavin said thankfully, feeling a weight he did not know he had been carrying fall from his shoulders. “But you must let me take part.”

“Your part of the bargain is to marry my daughter, and treat her well, or you will have me to answer to.” Laird Jamieson gave him a warning stare. “Now, you must not give away anything. Stay here with Elspeth—she must not suspect a thing—and I will keep you updated.”

“Thank you again, my Laird, I promise you won’t regret it,” Gavin breathed. “You have no idea what a service you are doing for me.” He reached out his hand to grasp the other man’s, and they shared a firm handshake.

“I think I do,” Laird Jamieson told him, his expression solemn. “I am not taking this one lightly, Gavin.”

Gavin smiled. “I know, and I am very happy to keep my part of the bargain, my Laird. Elspeth is a good woman, and she will make a wonderful wife.”

When Gavin entered the stable a few moments later he found Elspeth standing by her horse, a strawberry roan mare called Scarlet, who had been specially selected by the Laird for her calm temperament, which he judged to be suitable for a young lady.

She turned and smiled at him. “Is your secret business finished now?” she asked.

“It is,” he replied. “Now I have other business to attend to, getting some well-earned fresh air and sunshine.”

The Laird had allowed Gavin to choose his own mount, and had he found his perfect match in a bright chestnut stallion called Rusty, who rolled his eyes and stamped the first time they saw each other. Gavin was smitten at once; this was his kind of horse; one with spirit and fire, just like Sable. He often thought of his former companion, and wondered where he was. Hopefully, someone had found him and was looking after him properly.

When he told Elspeth the horse he had found for himself, she had laughed. “I knew it!” she said. “Men never go for the calm, sweet-natured horses.”

“Is he wild?” Gavin asked, frowning.

“No,” Laird Jamieson answered. “But he needs a strong hand.”

“I hope I can give him what he needs, then.” Gavin’s voice was firm.

He did not wish to boast, but he had been riding since he was six years old, and thought that he had mastered the art of controlling a horse by now.

He and Elspeth both mounted their horses and began to ride out of the mighty main gate, and Gavin was reassured to see that four guards on huge war horses were clattering along behind them.

“Where would you like to go?” he asked Elspeth, expecting her to suggest the village.

“I think we should go to see our two feuding farmers,” she answered. “It will make a very good impression on them to see a Laird coming to visit them. It shows that he cares about his tenants.”

“That sounds like a very good idea,” Gavin agreed. He was impressed, and surprised that Elspeth had thought of such a thing, since she had never struck him as being the kind of woman who reached out to ordinary people. In his opinion, this was a major point in her favour.

They rode onwards into the countryside that was dotted with huge pine and fir trees standing like sentinels over rocky outcrops and rolling expanses of bright-green grass. It was a rugged landscape, but one that was soul-stirringly beautiful.

At last, they came to the fence which had caused all the trouble, and the two farmers who had hitherto been at each other’s throats. Both of them smiled and came forward to greet them, bowing.

“Milady, M’Laird!” they both called as soon as they saw them. They looked a little intimidated by the guardsmen riding behind them, but Elspeth smiled at them and told them not to worry.

“We wanted to see how you are faring,” she told them. “To see if you have mended fences—in every way.”

They all laughed at her pun and Gavin stepped forward to inspect the repairs which they had done between them. He was no expert, but the woodwork looked sturdy and strong to him, and he congratulated both the farmers on the good job they had done.

“A tree fell on it a wee bit further up the hill,” Armstrong said. “It was a big thick pine an’ it cracked the fence so that even a cow walkin’ intae it would knock it down. A stone wall will fix the problem.”

“We have our stonemason ready to start work in the spring,” Gavin said. “I cannot stress enough how important it is that you come to the meeting at the Castle. Laird Jamieson would like to address all his tenants together, to explain how this new arbitration process will work.”

“We will both be there,” Armstrong said, beaming at Gavin, then Elspeth, whom he found much more attractive to look at.

“Indeed,” agreed MacLean, nodding. “M’Laird, Milady, would ye care for a bite tae eat at my house? Bettie will just be makin’ the dinner.”

“I am sorry,” Elspeth said regretfully, “but we have already made arrangements to eat in the village. We’ll see you soon.”

“I am sure these young people want a wee bit o’ time on their own,” Armstrong said, winking at them.

Elspeth blushed and smiled shyly, and Gavin gave a nervous laugh. They mounted their horses again and waved a cheerful goodbye to the two farmers, who stood watching them as they rode away.

“Are we not going back to the castle to eat?” Gavin asked.

“Well, the main road to Inverness runs through Ardneuk,” Elspeth replied, “and the coaching inn here, The Maid of the North , has the best cook for miles, in my humble opinion. We can eat there if you wish.”

“If you think the food is so good,” Gavin said, “then I will go on your recommendation.”

“Very wise,” Elspeth observed, laughing.

When they arrived at The Maid of the North , Gavin noticed at once that it was a cut above the kind of establishment like the Goose and Gander and the Ox and Plough . It had sturdy stone walls, and had been newly painted inside in a pale cream colour that made it seem bright and welcoming.

It was lit by the golden glow of the warm fire that was burning in the huge fireplace, and even though the furniture was old and rather worn, the wooden tables and chairs were brightly polished and shone under the lamplight. The whole place had a cosy, welcoming atmosphere that put Gavin at ease at once.

Elspeth ordered food for the guards first, and again he was impressed by her concern for those less privileged than herself.

“Now, what would you like to eat, my Laird?” Elspeth asked with a cheeky smile. “I recommend the lamb stew. One thing about this place is that they never hold back on the meat. There are always heaps of it! You can even order wine if you wish.”

Gavin raised his eyebrows; he was impressed. Wine in an ordinary tavern was very unusual. Ale was the drink of choice for most people because it was cheap and plentiful, but wine had to be imported, and was consequently less available and more expensive.

“Wine? Excellent,” he said. “But only one glass this time.”

Elspeth ordered a bottle of deep red wine from an estate which Gavin had not heard of before. He was by no means a connoisseur of wine, but he knew enough to realise that what he was drinking was passable, not excellent.

He looked around, interested in the kind of people who frequented the establishment. Most were strangers just passing through on the way to somewhere else, and although they were mostly of the middle class, there were quite a few who looked quite wealthy.

Gavin tucked into the stew, which was as delicious as Elspeth had promised, savouring every mouthful as they talked, comfortable and relaxed with each other. He could be content with her, he reasoned; they both had their faults, like everyone else.

“I am going to arrange to have my seamstress come to the castle with a length of Forsyth tartan.” Elspeth said. “To measure you for a new plaid, jacket and shirt, as well as some other clothes. Would you like that?”

Gavin smiled. “Indeed I would,” he replied. “I must admit that it has been a long time since I wore anything new. But do we need to talk about this now? Let us enjoy this delicious food first.”

“I told you it would be scrumptious,” Elspeth said, a hint of smugness in her voice.

“You have good taste,” Gavin agreed as he scooped up another spoonful of the delectable mixture.

They spent half an hour talking about nothing very much, such as who was marrying whom, the horses her father was buying, and the latest fashions. None of these subjects interested Gavin at all, but he dutifully smiled in all the right places and interjected with a one-syllable comment now and then. He was just about to make an excuse to leave for a moment when he looked up—and froze instantly.

The woman he was staring at had long, golden-brown hair, and as he watched her, she turned in his direction and he saw her bright blue eyes widen in surprise as she recognised him.

Maura had been smiling at someone, but as soon as she saw Gavin the smile faded from her face, then she turned away and disappeared into the kitchen.

He was relieved to see that Elspeth did not appear to have noticed that anything was amiss, and sat back in his chair again, wondering what to do next. He was tense and nervous, on the alert for Maura’s reappearance.

A thousand questions ran through his mind. Why had she stayed in Ardneuk instead of going back to Carmalcolm? Was she somehow being kept against her will? If so, would he be able to rescue her? He had to find out the answers.

Just then, he saw Maura striding past him without so much as a glance in his direction, and without thinking, he jumped to his feet and followed her. Elspeth had no time to say anything. She sat where she was, stupefied, and watched Gavin disappear through the door.

Gavin almost lost Maura, when she broke into a sprint as soon as she was outside and began to race away from him. She might have been wearing trailing skirts, but she could still manage a fair turn of speed for a woman.

“Maura! Stop!” he cried, but she kept on running.

However, a woman could never outrun a man, no matter how fit she was, and a few seconds later he caught up with her and dragged her to a halt. Then, holding her hand firmly, he marched back to the tavern, then slipped into the shadowy alley beside it.

Then, because he simply could not help himself, Gavin wrapped his arms around her and gave her a tight hug. He felt as though he could have stayed holding her forever, but sense prevailed, and he put her away a little to look into her eyes.

“What are you doing here?” he demanded. “I thought you had gone back to Carmalcolm.”

Maura looked at the ground and said nothing, although he had the feeling that she desperately wanted to answer him. Gavin stared at her for a long moment, then tilted her chin up so that she was looking at him, but she closed her eyes and pushed his hands away. He felt fury rising up inside him, and made a mighty effort to control it.

“I need to talk to you,” he said urgently. “I need to explain some things to you, and you must tell me what you are doing here. I will make some excuse to Elspeth and come back tomorrow night—please promise me you will be here.”

Maura nodded, then disappeared behind the building. Gavin stood for a moment, trying to calm himself down and collect his thoughts, then wondered what he was going to say to Elspeth. God help him—what was he going to do?

He walked inside again, hoping that he did not look as flustered as he felt. “Sorry about that,” he said to Elspeth, who cheeks looked flushed. “I just saw someone I knew and wanted a few words before they went away.”

It was a lame excuse, and he knew it, but Elspeth only smiled and said, “My goodness, I thought your breeches had caught fire.”

They laughed, and Gavin somehow managed to eat the rest of his food, even though his appetite had completely disappeared. The rest of the afternoon dragged on, and Gavin somehow managed to get through it, although it became more and more difficult to pretend to be engaged in their conversation.

The sun began to set in the middle of the afternoon, as it usually did in the depths of winter, and Elspeth suggested leaving. “My father will be worried about us,” she said, “and I have some letters to write before dinner.”

Gavin felt almost weak with relief.