Bedded by the Laird (Highland Warriors) (11 page)

‘Let me speak with
her,’ the laird said and in the end May relented a touch and left Bridie and
the laird alone.

‘But just for one
moment,’ May warned.

He held Bridie by
her heaving shoulders, lifted her chin so she must look at him and he did what
was right. ‘You will go.’

‘But Laird…’ She
begged, ‘you said I could be your leman. You said we’d be together.’

‘It’s not possible
now - you’re a lady born, Bridie.  You can’t be some laird’s leman.’

 ‘Well, if
I’m a lady….’

‘I need to marry a
proper …’ He stopped himself, but it was too late, the words were out and she
looked to him and as she did the last ray of hope died in her eyes, for it was
hopeless. It wasn’t just a titled lady that the laird needed, it was elegance
and beauty and the joining of lands and more than that there was centuries of
history that dictated the decision he must so carefully make.

 ‘I want to
stay here with my family.’ She pleaded and it tore right through to his soul,
but he had to stay firm.

‘We’re not your
family, Bridie.’ His hands let her go. ‘You’re a
Glenbarach
.’

She felt as if she
were being ripped away from all she loved.

Bridie looked back
to the castle and the loch as the carriage pulled her away and then, when it
was gone from sight, she stared to the mountains but May would have none of it.

‘I’ll not accept
your silence for long, lassie.’

Bridie was shown
into the
Glenbarach
Castle and there waiting to greet
her was Laird Peter, who she had just found out was her brother.

He seemed so much
older and Bridie tried to guess at his age as he introduced himself.

‘And you’ve a
sister, Donalda.’ Peter said and then looked over Bridie’s shoulder. ‘Ah, here
she is now.’

There was a very
angry looking woman walking towards them. ‘Donalda, this is…’ But he didn’t get
to finish, for Donalda turned and stalked off. ‘She’s upset.’ Peter explained.
‘’She’ll come around. It’s all been a bit of shock to everyone and no more than
to you…’ He was actually very kind, but he was a man who did not fight
alongside his men, Bridie reminded herself and stood bristling, except his eyes
were green, the same green as hers, the same as the auld Laird’s too, Peter
said and she looked at the portraits on the walls, saw for the first time her
parents’ images.

‘That’s my
mother?’

Peter nodded. ‘She
died when you would have been one, she never got over what happened to you and
our father died a few years later.’ Peter coughed and wheezed it was all to
clear that this was upsetting him and so Bridie did not ask any more for a
moment. As slowly Peter got his breath back it was clear now why he didn’t ride
alongside his men, for he’d slow then down in battle. She looked to the man who
she’d been raised, but not born, to loathe and she knew in her heart that he
was her brother. ‘You’re in your rightful place…’ Peter said. ‘You’ve endured
enough.’

Except she hadn’t
endured, but May would have none of it and all too soon Bridie was sitting in a
bath, a warm one and the water was scented and Gracie was being bathed too.

‘Look at your
hands!’ May
tutted
as she turned them over. They were
grazed from her protests at leaving McClelland, but May seemed more concerned
with the roughness of them and the state of her nails.  ‘And your
freckles.’ May shuddered and her lips nearly disappeared as Bridie climbed out
of the bath, for she saw the hand marks on Bridie’s bottom.

Aye, she was just
like her mother!

May looked at her
wild niece that must be tamed but her eyes did soften when they landed on
Gracie.

‘She looks like
your mother did as a
bairn
.’

‘
Mrs
Moffat said she looked like I did.’ Bridie held Gracie
close. ‘She was born too small, the Laird saved her….’

‘The Laird did not
save her,’ May corrected. ‘He asked for help from the
Glenbarachs
- you
can
thank your family that your
bairn
lived.’

‘What was my
mother like?’ Her whole life she had wondered and now she would know. ‘Tell
me,’ Bridie begged, for she ached now to hear.

‘I was nine when
she was born and there was never a more bonny lassie. She charmed whoever she
met, even the laird – he caused such a scandal marrying beneath himself,
but he was smitten.’

Bridie just sat;
May was combing the knots out of her hair as she told her what had happened.

‘There was another
side to her though,’ and Bridie swallowed as she felt the comb still in her
hair. ‘For all the times she was happy followed the dark days when she was sad,
for all the laughs, and there were many, then came tears. After she had Peter
she took to her bed for a very long time, it was the same with Donalda. I was
supposed to come when you were born, I knew what she could be like.’  She
let out a sigh of frustration. ‘
Och
, I’m not
explaining myself well.’

‘No,’ Bridie said.
‘I understand.’ She did, for she had taken to her bed too.

‘You were a wee
bit early and I lived in Edinburgh then. It’s a long journey, so while they
were waiting for me to get here, the laird had Rosemary, a wise women, come to
sit with her. Except she
didnae
.’

Bridie turned her
head around at the sudden venom in May’s voice. ‘One of the staff was having a
baby and was in trouble. Your mother was smiling and laughing and seemed happy
enough, so Rosemary left your mother and went to her. She was
told
!’ May
said. ‘She was
told
not to leave your mother, but she
didnae
listen.’ Even all these years on May still shook
with rage. ‘And your mother looked out and saw the beautiful day that it was,
saw that the sun was shining and so she decided to take you for a walk. She
should never have been left alone. I arrived in
Glenbarach
to the news that your mother was missing and so too were you. We were all
frantic, searching for the two of you and then your mother returned, but
alone…’ And Bridie clung hard to Gracie. ‘She didn’t know what she’d
done,
she didn’t even know what she was saying. Your father
was shaking her, asking where you were but she just kept smiling and, when
pushed, she said maybe the fairies had taken you. We searched for you lassie,
we were out for days searching, but you were gone and slowly your mother
realised
what she had done…’ May wiped tears from the back
of her cheeks. ‘I had to stay with her all the time, she was always wandering
off, trying to get out of the castle, trying to find you…’ It was Bridie
cuddling May, now instead of the other way around. ‘I
dinnae
expect you to understand or forgive her…’

‘But I do.’ Bridie
said. ‘I thought she’d jut got rid of me, hadn’t wanted me,’ Bridie said, ‘but
I do understand the dark place she was in…’

She did.

‘I would never
leave Gracie.’ Fiercely she held her daughter to her chest. ‘I would have done
anything to keep her yet, when the
vapours
came, I
almost did.’

Yes, she could
understand now her mother.

‘I came and helped
raise Donalda.’ May explained. ‘Be patient with Donalda, for her mother might
just as well have left her behind too that day. We’d never have known about
you, but the
Glenbarach
warrior was ranting when he
returned from battle. He said that Lady
Glenbarach
was being held captive at the McClelland castle, Laird Peter thought he had a
fever, but he
didnae
.’ She took Bridie’s face in her
hands. ‘You
are
a lady born, Lady Bridgette…’

‘Bridgette?’

‘You’d never have
been named Bridie.’ She looked over to little Gracie. ‘And whoever came up with
the name Gracie…’

‘The Laird did.’
Bridie said, remembering fondly the day Gracie was born, the Laird holding her
tiny
bairn
in his strong arms. ‘I told him she was my
saving grace,’ Bridie said. ‘And she was.’

May picked up
Gracie and smiled as she looked into china blue eyes and a small piece of her
heart was taken. ‘Well whatever they called you,’ she said to a beaming Gracie,
‘you came at the right time.’ May looked over to Bridie. ‘The laird was beside
himself, Bridgette. Our traps were empty, the crops had been terrible, things
were tough our side of the burn.’ She turned back to wee Gracie. ‘And then you
were born and the McClelland Laird was offering hunting rights to
Glenbarach
and our people were no longer hungry.’ She
handed Gracie back to Bridie, but not for long, she told her. ‘We’ve a lot of
work to do, but we’re going to do it. You’ll return for the McClelland ball
next week and we’ll show them…’

‘No!’ Bridie
begged, ‘I
cannae
sit and
watch as the Laird chooses his lady.’

‘You shall.’ May
said. ‘People are to see that you’re a proper lady as soon as possible, or
there’ll be word getting around that we’re housing a wild animal here in the
castle.’ She was back to being stern. ‘And
dinnae
go
getting fancy ideas that the Laird will choose you – you heard the hate
in his voice when he told you to leave and it’s bigger than us all.

‘You’re a
Glenbarach
.’

If they thought
she had suffered as a maid they were wrong, for Bridie suffered far more as
they tried to turn her rapidly into a lady.

She was up before
the sun and not in bed till long after it set and in the hours between she was
taught to walk, to curtsey, to dance, even to eat, for May was shocked when she
watched her.

There
was so little time though

‘You’re not to
speak.’ May shuddered at the prospect. ‘Apart from ‘good evening, Laird,’ which
we’ve practiced, you’re not to speak and when you sit…’ May rapped her knees
and then her ankles. ‘
Och
you’re too used to running
wild with hardly a thread on your back.’

‘I can’t do it,’
Bridie begged, for she knew full well how foolish she would look at the ball.
‘I can’t dance.’

‘I know that.’ May
sighed, for she had seen Bridie’s efforts.

‘She’s going to
make a show of us,’ Donalda stood watching.

‘Away, Donalda,’
May said. ‘
Dinnae
mind her,’ May said. ‘She’ll come
around.’

‘She hates me,’
Bridie said.

‘For now,’ May
said. ‘She’s not the only lady and…’ She looked at Bridie and sighed, but
didn’t elaborate. ‘’Come on…’ May stood. ‘Let’s go again.’

And they danced
over and over, around the Grand Room in the
Glenbarach
Castle. Bridie was twirled till she was dizzy and each and every time she fell
down, or went the wrong way, or her ankles would knot and she’d lose her
balance.

‘It’s one dance
you have to do with the laird.’ May hauled her back to her feet. ‘Surely you
can manage one!’

‘He might not ask
me.’ It was Bridie’s only hope, but May shook her head.

‘He’d be killed in
his sleep for the insult if he
didnae
.’

Hamish and his men
rode alongside the carriage that returned Bridie to McClelland. They were to arrive
late afternoon to give them time to prepare and the chosen family could, at the
laird’s request, stay overnight, though there was no need to pack for that,
Peter had said. Hamish and his men would wait to return them to
Glenbarach
.

 As she saw
her beloved McClelland come into view Bridie’s heart leapt in her throat like
the salmon in the burn. It was not just nerves that had her jumping in her
seat. Nor was it just that she would be seeing the laird - she was desperate to
see
Mrs
Moffat too and Mary, for she hadn’t even been
allowed to say goodbye.

‘Slowly.’ May
warned as she went to leap down from the carriage and it was a tortuously
prolonged walk they took into the castle with Peter, May and Donalda.

They were greeted
by the servants for the Laird must not glimpse the ladies afore the ball.

‘Lady Bridgette.’
Mary curtsied and led them to their rooms, all the guests were to be housed in
the turrets and they were shown there to prepare. Bridie was led to the room
the laird had let her stay in when the
vapours
had
hit and she was so pleased to finally be alone with Mary.

‘Where’s
Mrs
Moffat?’

‘Preparing for the
ball,’ Mary said.

‘Tell her I’m
here…’ Bridie begged, but Mary said nothing, she wouldn’t even look at Bridie,
in fact, she turned to go. ‘Mary, where are you going?’

‘I’ve got a lot of
work to do.’

‘Mary, please!’
Bridie caught her hand. ‘I’m still the same. We can be friends like before.’

‘No we can’t,’
Marry shouted. ‘I want it to be like before but it never can be again- you’re a
lady now and a
Glenbarach
…’ And then it all caught up
with Mary and she started to cry, but she wriggled away when Bridie tried to
give her a cuddle. ‘Oh Bridie, I miss you so much,
Mrs
Moffat is in tears every night…’ they stood and wept and Bridie told her she
wanted her simple life back, wanted her days to be spent here in McClelland
when the highlight of her day was her morning with the laird.