Highland Tides (17 page)

Dunbar had been a popular option among folk at first, but then rumor had swirled it was Fawsyde, then Stirling, then it was widely believed the lovers were holed up in Holyrood Palace itself.

In the minds of most, Mary Darnley and James Hepburn had contrived the entire kidnapping scheme. Ill-feeling towards the monarch threatened to boil over.

Most expected the pair to resurface in Edinburgh already wed.
 

Braden reassured Callum such was not the case. “I hate to say this, but Bothwell and Mary will return soon to Edinburgh. When they do they aren’t wed, but the marriage takes place shortly thereafter.”

Callum’s shoulders slumped. “Then there’s no point our rushing off like ants the length and breadth of Scotland.”

Braden put a hand on his brother’s. “True, but dinna give up hope. I’m sure Lexi is safe. Bothwell willna want questions about the death of a niece on people’s lips. We have to hope she returns with them.”

Callum smiled weakly. “She is still alive, I’m sure o’ that,” he replied. “I’d have known if…”

He looked away, the words trapped in his throat.

Braden understood his brother’s torment. He had no way of knowing how much time had passed in Charlotte’s life since he’d left her, but his heart sensed she still lived. Somewhere.

The morning after the Queen’s arrival, Lexi tapped lightly on the door of the royal apartment and crept in. She stopped abruptly, astonished at the sight of her uncle strutting round the bedchamber, clad only in his nightshirt, masses of red hair blazing from his barely covered chest like the proverbial burning bush. Bile rose in her throat.

Queen Mary sat propped up in bed, her pale face expressionless, hair dishevelled.

The chamber reeked of sweat.

Lexi turned hastily, intending to leave.

“If you please, Alexandra,” her uncle said politely, “get the cook’s lads to bring up hot water and fill the tub in the garderobe.”

Her head full of an unwelcome image of James Hepburn cavorting in a bathtub with a Queen, she must have babbled some response before quitting the chamber.

Upon her return, she waited outside the door after tapping, unwilling to intrude again where she wasn’t wanted.

Her uncle opened the door, dressed in a shirt and leggings. He pecked a kiss on each of Lexi’s cheeks then sauntered off, a bemused smile on his face.

Feeling like a fly stuck in the spider’s sticky trap, she glanced over at the Queen, still sitting in bed, clad in the embroidered nightgown. To her dismay, the monarch suddenly burst into tears and buried her face in the linens.

Did she weep because James had assaulted her, or because she’d given herself to him willingly, or for some other reason? Lexi had been known to weep for no particular reason, and she didn’t bear the heavy burdens of governance. However, after making love with Callum, weeping had been the last thing on her mind.
 

It was unlikely the Queen would unburden her troubles to one such as Lexi Hepburn, but she had to say something. She tiptoed to the massive bed. “Majesty, I—”

Queen Mary dabbed at her eyes, her mouth drawn in a tight line. “Are they coming with the bathwater?” she asked, sounding like the Holy Roman Empress.

Chastened, Lexi cocked an ear towards the adjoining garderobe, relieved the scullery lads had responded quickly. “Yes, Majesty. Shall I help you prepare?”

A slight nod of response prompted her into action. Trembling from head to toe, she helped Mary disrobe and bathe. She had no experience being a lady-in-waiting. It was probably an awesome task at the best of times. In these circumstances it was nerve-wracking. She had noticed the previous night that the queen’s gown was cut too small for her belly and breasts, as if she’d gained weight and grown out of it.

From the armoire she retrieved one of the gowns her uncle had provided for his captive. He had evidently based his selections on her wardrobe. This gown also fitted snugly. Lexi deemed it inappropriate to comment on regal overindulgence, but when their eyes met for the briefest moment, the Queen’s anxious glance startled her.

Her heart raced. If Mary was with child…

Darnley’s? It was well known the Queen had visited her husband at Kirk o’ Field on the eve of his death and many claimed they’d reconciled.

James Hepburn’s? The implications were terrifying. It explained her uncle’s haste to wed Mary and his obvious infatuation, but would condemn her as an adulteress.

Completely exhausted after assisting with the bathing, drying and dressing of a Queen, Lexi was nervously fumbling to get shoes on the monarch’s feet when her uncle entered without knocking. His hair was damp, his doublet and hose splendid. He was a swain come wooing. “Leave us, Alexandra,” he commanded. “We’ll send for you when you’re needed.”

She scrambled to her feet and hurried away to her own chamber, mightily relieved to escape from the disturbing tryst.

The scene repeated itself over and over for eight days; her uncle in a nightshirt, the queen sobbing, the bath, the ill-fitting clothes. What the pair did during the day was anyone’s guess, but Lexi became more and more certain the queen was with child.
 

After waiting in vain for two days to be summoned, Lexi took to walking the battlements, looking out to sea. The always-brisk wind blew away the cobwebs from her numbed mind. The roiling waves drew her gaze and she shivered with fear at the terror Callum and his brother must have experienced when they drowned. Yet Braden had willingly undergone the ordeal twice more, once for his sister and again to reunite with his love, his Charlotte. He would try again. Would Callum go with him? Mayhap they had left already, believing her dead. Or perhaps he didn’t care.

The wind and the mocking gulls quickly dispelled the notion. The Ogilvies were men of their word. Callum had promised never to leave her.

Braden had foretold the wedding would happen in Edinburgh. She fervently hoped her uncle would take her with them when they returned to the city. Or perhaps he’d kill her, the only witness to their sinful coupling.

It didn’t take long for the mob to gather outside Holyrood Palace once word spread of the Queen’s return. The news Bothwell had accompanied her caused outrage.

Callum and Braden made their way to Holyrood, anxious for any indication Lexi had been seen with the royal party.

Callum was surprised by how quickly they arrived. “Seemed to take forever before.”

“It’s easier when ye ken the route,” Braden replied. “Besides, everybody seems to be heading there.”

The front gates were protected by the Queen’s Guard. The mob had no chance of swarming the Palace. The brothers sought out Macadam in the stables.

“Ye mean the young lass whose ‘oss ye sold?” the ornery fellow replied to their enquiry.

Callum’s hopes rose. “Aye. Ye’ve seen her?”

“Came first thing. With a guard, mind.” He chuckled, scratching his stubbled chin. “‘Oss knew her right off.”

Braden winked at his brother. He too probably took it as a good omen Lexi had apparently impressed the cantankerous ostler.

“Did she appear well?” Callum asked.

Macadam eyed him suspiciously. “What’s it to ye? She’s Bothwell’s niece.”

“She’s my wife,” he replied. “I care for her more than he does.”

Macadam shrugged and sucked on his pipe. “Yon Earl cares about naught but the throne o’ this country. Mark my words, folk willna stand fer it. He’s an assassin.”

“Can we trust ye to give her a message next time ye see her?” Braden asked.

The auld man blew out a ring of sweet smelling smoke. “Aye. However, I willna betray my Queen.”

“Nothing of the sort,” Callum reassured him. “Though best if the guard doesna overhear. Tell her I know she’s here, and that I love her, and that we’ll seek lodgings nearby.”

Macadam cackled like a crone. The cackle became a racking cough. Callum feared he might choke. “Love, ye say,” he rasped, wiping his eyes. “I’m nay a mon to relay such a message, but I’ll tell ‘er ye asked after ‘er. If it’s lodgings ye want, go to Mistress Beth in Canongate.”

Callum took the risk of clamping a grateful hand on the ostler’s shoulder. “Good enough. I thank ye.”

The auld man furrowed his brow and stared at his shoulder as if a spider had been foolish enough to land on him. Callum hastily removed his hand.

“One more favor,” his brother added. “Tell her we need invitations.”

Callum held his breath.
 

Macadam stared at Braden for long minutes, sucking on the pipe before grunting. “Will she ken what ye want to be invited to?”

Callum blinked rapidly, the smoke making his eyes water. “Aye. She’ll ken,” he replied hoarsely.

~~~

On one of the rare occasions when Lexi came across her uncle not in the company of the Queen, she plucked up her courage. “My husband will be worrying,” she said nervously. “We’ve been back in Edinburgh three days now. It’s only right I return to him.”

He looked up and down the empty corridor. “I doubt he remembers yer name, Alexandra,” he scoffed. “The wretch didna wish to wed ye, despite yer smuggling him into yer chamber.”

Indignation soared up her spine. She had an urge to spit back that at least Callum knew she preferred to be called Lexi. However, James Hepburn wasn’t a man to challenge. “But we’re man and wife in the sight of God,” she pleaded.

“’Twas a hasty marriage,” he replied. “Quickly set aside.”

It was on the tip of her tongue to reveal she and Callum had consummated their marriage, and that she intended to spend her life with the man she loved, but thought better of it. “Why do you need me here?” she asked, hating the whine in her voice.

He scratched his beard. “Mary trusts ye,” he replied.

Lexi doubted it was true. Once they’d returned to Holyrood she’d barely spent any time with the Queen. She suspected his desire to keep her at the Palace had more to do with Lexi’s awareness of the pregnancy. They wanted to keep her quiet. She would have to be wary. He’d already murdered the Queen’s consort and probably her own parents. Feigning compliance might save her life. She bowed her head submissively. “’Tis a great honor Her Majesty does me.”

To her horror, he swatted her backside. “Ne’er forget it, Alexandra. Run along now. I’ve important matters to attend to. Mary intends to declare me Earl of Orkney and Marquis of Fife. I must prepare.”

He hurried off, whistling a jaunty tune.

“She heaps honors on ye,” Lexi whispered to the silent walls, “as if to make ye fit to be a king.”

She was quickly understanding that the monarch was as out of touch with her people as Bothwell. Mayhap love had rendered them both witless.

Braden’s predictions were coming true. There would soon be a royal wedding. Lexi’s heart lurched, knowing rebellion would follow.

When she’d arrived in Holyrood, Lexi’s first thought had been for her beloved Ryssa. The sentry refused to allow her to exit the Palace, until she persuaded him she only wanted to see her horse. The pimply youth accompanied her to the stables, where she met Macadam.

Her obvious love for Ryssa seemed to win over the suspicious ostler. It had been a bittersweet reunion.

Since the first day, she hadn’t ventured to the stables again. Much as she loved her horse, knowing the mare now belonged to the royal stables rankled. The mood of the mob outside the gates darkened when Bothwell’s new titles were announced. The guard was doubled, and it was unlikely she’d be allowed out again. The stables were now heavily guarded.

She settled for paying a daily visit to the laundry on the pretext of making sure the Queen’s gowns were being properly taken care of. In reality, the door to the steaming hot place was usually left open and from there the stables were visible. Her spirits lifted when she caught the occasional glimpse of her mare.

On the day the announcement was made of James Hepburn and Mary Darnley’s intention to wed three days hence, she made her way to the laundry, her heart heavy. She’d heard nothing from Callum.

She leaned her head against the lintel of the open door, startled to see Macadam gesturing to her. She hazarded a glance at the sentry, busy inside charming a pretty laundress, and stepped out onto the path.

She cringed when her boots crunched on the gravel, but Macadam quickly ushered her into the shadows of the stable. She expected he wanted to afford her another opportunity to pet the horse and was completely taken aback when he said, “He loves ye.”

“What?” she replied.

“The lad who sold me yer ’oss. Came with his brother. They’re lodging at Mistress Beth’s on Canongate. Need invites.”

Callum
.

So near, all this time. He hadn’t abandoned her.

“Didna ken what they needed invites for ’til today’s news came,” he said with a rasping chuckle. “I’ll see ’em delivered. ’Tis only right ye be accompanied by yer ’usband on yer uncle’s wedding day.”

~~~

Callum paced the dark garret, four stories up atop
Mistress Beth’s Lodgings of Fine Repute
.

In reality the street level comprised a house of ill repute, but the hovel was the only place he and Braden had enough money for. He took some comfort in the sight of the towers of Holyrood from the narrow window. Did Lexi pace in one of those turret rooms, thinking of him?

They’d tried to meet with Macadam in the stables, but been turned away. The ostler had sent a lad a few days ago to tell them he hadn’t seen Lexi again.

“I canna understand why the Earl doesna let her go,” he complained to his brother. “We must get her out of his clutches.”

Braden put a hand on his shoulder. “It might be Lexi knows a secret.”

“Aye,” he replied grimly, “she kens Bothwell and Mary were rutting like dogs in Dunbar. We should have trusted our first instinct and gone there.”

“And done what? By all accounts the place is a fortress, though I’ve heard rumor of cannon being moved from there.”

“To where?”

“No one can say for sure, but they reckon the armaments are coming in this direction.”