Highland Intrigue (Duncurra Book Book 3) (27 page)

After they had left, Fingal realized that he still held the rowan saltire in his right hand. He turned toward the bed. Bodie sat up and wagged his tail. Fingal scratched him behind the ears. “Katherine says ye have kept a good watch, Bodie. I need to rest now too, would ye mind making a little room for me lad?” Bodie moved to the bottom of the bed, resting his head on Gillian’s feet. Fingal climbed into the bed on her left side. Maneuvering with his rigidly splinted left arm was awkward at best but he managed to slide his right arm under the pillow and around her shoulders. He rested his hand, holding the blessed cross over her heart.

He lay awake for quite a while, praying fervently to every saint whose name he could remember.
Please protect her and make her well
. He did doze after a while but slept lightly. The men standing guard entered the chamber to check on them as he had asked. Most often they needed only to call from the door, “Laird are ye well?” to wake him.

He woke several other times to Bodie standing at the foot of the bed and growling. “That’s a good dog, Bodie. Do ye hear the men in the hall? It’s all right. They’re meant to be there lad.” Eventually Bodie laid back down.

Just before dawn he was awakened again. His beautiful wife lay facing him, gently stroking his face. “Fingal, ye’re here.”

“And praise be to God, so are ye, my sweet, lass.” He kissed her and rose from the bed, putting his hand out to steady himself a bit. His head throbbed and spun, reminding him painfully of his own images.

“Fingal, ye are hurt. Rest.”

“I will in a moment. I promised Katherine I’d let her know as soon as ye woke.” He found Alan on guard in the hall and sent him for Katherine. He also poured a mug of water from the pitcher and brought it to her. “How do ye feel? Katherine said ye should have some water if ye woke.”

“I-I feel a little better, I can manage some water.” She sat up and took a drink before saying, “did ye say Katherine? Are Niall and Katherine here?”

“Aye, love. Drink a bit more, Katherine says it is the best thing for ye.”

She obliged. “Truthfully, I am dreadfully thirsty. But Fingal, ye look awful. What happened to ye?”

“I had a little fall. ’Tis a long story and I don’t want ye to worry about me. I’ll be fine.”

“I’ll worry about ye unless ye come back to bed yerself and tell me what happened.”

Fingal sighed, but he wouldn’t argue with her. He adjusted the pillows so he could sit up propped against them and slid back under the covers. “Ye were so very sick yesterday I was terrified I was losing ye. Nothing we did was helping. I was desperate for anything. I went to see Rhiannon and she told me about an old charm made from rowan twigs.”

She smiled. “Aye, I know the one.”

“She said the charm would be stronger if I had never before seen the tree and if the tree itself grew out of an inhospitable place. She said she knew of just such a tree growing near the top of the cliffs. I went there with her. She showed me where the tree was and when I was on the cliff’s edge she shoved me off.”

“Oh, dear God, Fingal. Are ye all right? How did ye survive?”

“Oddly enough, I only fell part of the way before being caught by a
rowan tree
. As ye can see my arm is broken. Katherine stitched up a gash in my head and I have a few broken ribs, but I will heal. Sweetling, I am so sorry to tell ye this, but it appears Rhiannon is responsible for yer illness too. She has been poisoning ye and she tried to kill ye yesterday with poppy.”

“I know. After a few swallows of the tisane she brought me, I knew. She said the new ingredient would ‘put everything to rights’.”

“If ye knew, why did ye drink it?”

“I didn’t, certainly not all of it. The first few swallows were incredibly strong. I tried to refuse it. Then I tried to get her to send for ye. She got angry with me. I was too weak to get away from her. I thought it better to let her believe I was drinking it. I assumed she would leave once she was sure I had. I kept pouring little bits of it down the side of my face, into the pillow. Still, I had consumed enough that it was having an effect. When she thought I had drunk it all, she gloated about poisoning the herbs for the tisane. I don’t know what it was but apparently she killed Aunt Meara with it too.”

Fingal remembered the king’s words.
She died suddenly. When that happens one can never be sure it isn’t murder
. “Katherine believes she mixed tiny amounts of foxglove in the herbs she gave ye. It is what was making ye so ill but ye will get better now.” Taking her right hand in his, he lifted it to his lips. “I am so sorry, Gillian. I never imagined that the person charged with caring for ye would ever intentionally hurt ye.”

“Do ye know why she did it?”

“I suspect that Rhiannon intended for Coby to marry Fallon, as your mother wished, making him laird. A few weeks ago Eadoin told me about a prophecy concerning Fallon. It is hard to believe that anyone would do so many horrible things just so it would come true.”

“As Rhiannon gloated, she said the ‘sight’ isn’t what people think. She said something about reading situations and helping predictions come true. Perhaps that last part is the most important.”

“What else did she say?” Fingal didn’t want to tell her he suspected her mother may have played a role in this, but if Rhiannon had told her more, he needed to hear it.

“She talked about secrets being the source of good predictions. I didn’t understand it all. She said my mother had a secret. She talked about trying to convince mother to arrange the betrothal between Coby and Fallon. She said she had to kill us both and that she had accomplished that.”

“I’m sure she thought I was dead, or close to it. She sent Coby back, I suspect to ensure I had died. I had managed to climb out by then but he drew his sword intending to finish me off. I killed him, Gillian. But as of last night, Rhiannon had vanished.”

She moved close to him, resting her head on his right shoulder. “She’ll be found. But it’s over now. She won’t be able to hurt us again.”

He put his good arm around her and kissed her head. He wanted to believe her reassurances, but he wouldn’t let his guard down until he knew for sure that Lana too wasn’t involved. “Aye, she won’t hurt us. But, sweetling, I must be sure no one else was involved.”

She pushed back from him, a shocked expression on her face. “Ye don’t suspect Fallon?”

He pulled her close again. “Nay, of course not.” She seemed relieved.

“Fingal?”

“Aye, sweetling?”

“When did ye make this?” She opened her left hand, revealing the rowan cross.

He smiled. “When I awoke, stuck in that rowan tree on the cliff, I decided if that tree could save my life I would give it the chance to save yers as well. I tucked two twigs in my dagger sheath and Katherine helped me bind them together last night. Father Stephen blessed it. Where did ye find it? It was in my hand as I went to sleep.”

“When I woke, it was laying on my chest, under yer hand, over my heart. I knew what it meant and I knew ye had made it for me. Thank ye.”

Their quiet moment ended with a knock on the door. Katherine arrived with servants, trays of food, and supplies for tending Fingal’s wound. She fussed over them both, insisting they stay in bed.

“But I thought that was the worst thing for melancholia and an excess of black bile,” Gillian said.

“The only thing ye have had an excess of over the last weeks was foxglove. All of the symptoms ye had, nausea, headaches, the weariness and sadness ye felt, all of it was caused by the foxglove. Ye need to drink a lot, build yer strength back by eating well, and get lots of rest, preferably cuddled up next to yer husband because he needs rest too.”

Fingal was happy to comply. Shortly after noon, Ailsa, with Duff at her side, forced her way through the gauntlet of adults who tried to turn her back. She burst into the room and ran into Gillian’s arms. “I was so worried. No one would tell me anything. Then they carried the laird in yesterday, and Gillie, if ye think he looks bad now, ye should have seen him then.”

“Ailsa, that’s rude.”

Fingal laughed. “Aye, but it’s true. I’m sure I was a sorry sight.”

“I told ye, Gillie. What happened to ye both anyway?”

Fingal was unsure how much to tell the lass, but Gillian stepped in. “Ailsa, sometimes people make very bad decisions because of their own selfish desires.”

“Like when Laird Malcolm tried to take Duncurra from the MacIans?”

Gillian nodded. “Precisely. Well, Rhiannon has done something similar. She decided that she wanted her son to marry Fallon and be laird.”

Ailsa looked confused. “He couldn’t be laird by marrying Fallon. Fingal is the laird. Fallon doesn’t even want to marry that old Coby. She likes Quinn MacKenzie.”

Gillian smiled. “Aye, I think she does. And ye’re right, before anyone else could become laird, Fingal and I would both have to die, so Rhiannon tried to make that happen.”

“Are ye saying Rhiannon tried to kill ye? Both? How could she do that? What happened?”

“She has been mixing poison with the tisane she gave me. Instead of making me better, it was causing me to get sicker. And when Fingal wanted to make a rowan charm for me, she led him to the cliffs to find a special tree, then she pushed him off. He didn’t fall far, but that’s how he got hurt.”

Tears filled her eyes. “Are ye going to be all right?”

“Aye, pet, don’t worry. Lady Katherine thinks I’ll be fine.”

“And ye’ll be fine too, Laird?”

“Aye, little one, I’m just a bit banged up.”

“What’s going to happen now?”

“What do ye mean, pet?” Gillian asked.

“What is going to happen to Rhiannon? I don’t want her to hurt ye ever again.”

“Don’t worry about Rhiannon either. My brother is looking for her and we will make sure she can’t ever hurt anyone again.”

Ailsa nodded. That seemed to be enough information for her because she switched the topic, chattering on about her new best friend, Maeve MacBain.

Before long they were interrupted by a knock at the door.

Eadoin and Quinn entered. “Laird, I’ve come to tell ye, Laird MacIan has returned. If ye are feeling up to it, can ye join him in the great hall? Quinn will stay here and keep Gillian and Ailsa company.”

Ailsa’s face was wreathed in smiles but Gillian’s brow furrowed. “Don’t worry, love. Everything will be fine,” Fingal assured her.

When Fingal reached the great hall, Archie, Owen, Nolan and Daniel had gathered there as had a number of others.

“What in the hell has been going on here?” demanded Nolan. “Gillian is sick and ye were nowhere to be found yesterday.”

Owen added, “Not to mention the fact that no sooner do the MacIans arrive in force than they accuse poor old Rhiannon of harming Gillian.”

“Calm down and let the laird speak. Surely there is an explanation,” Archie said.

“Is she any better at all, laird?” Daniel asked.

Fingal sighed wearily. One glance at Niall told him he didn’t have good news either. “Gentlemen, please sit down. There is a good bit of information that ye need to know.” Fingal explained everything that had happened the previous day. Shocked silence filled the hall when he was done.

“Ye are certain Rhiannon pushed ye off the cliff? Could ye have just slipped? Ye clearly hit yer head. Maybe it didn’t happen quite the way ye seem to remember it?” Nolan asked.

Fingal had expected Nolan to be the most critical of the elders. “Even if ye don’t trust my memory, the fact she sent Coby back to make certain I was dead should leave no doubt.”

“She might have sent him to save ye and in yer delirious state ye killed him,” Owen said.

“I was in pain but not delirious. He drew his sword on me and he said his mother killed Gillian.”

“Say ye,” accused Nolan. “Coby is dead and there are no other witnesses.”

Fingal hadn’t considered having to defend himself. “Aye, there are no witnesses. However, Coby had guard duty yesterday. He was assigned to the gate. As I understand, Rhiannon arrived here at midday. Surely if she intended to help me, she would have sent help then. I understand she visited Gillian, then left with Coby, never mentioning my fall. Is that right, Tarmon?”

“Aye, Laird. I even asked her if she had seen ye because I thought ye might have been heading to her cottage when ye left. She said she hadn’t seen ye.”

Owen harrumphed. “There ye have it. If Rhiannon hadn’t seen him, the laird could be making this whole thing up. Maybe she knew nothing about it at all and Coby just happened on ye, the poor man. Ye could be the one who attacked him and shoved him off the cliff. Yer injuries could have been from yer fight. That is easier to believe than the story ye tell about surviving a fall off the cliff. What do ye have against Rhiannon and Coby?”

Fingal gritted his teeth. “I had nothing against them. I trusted Rhiannon with Gillian’s life and she repaid that trust by poisoning her.”

“Ye’re sure Rhiannon poisoned the herbs? Could it have been anyone else?” questioned Nolan.

Fingal sat quietly for a moment before answering, “I am certain it was Rhiannon who tried to kill Gillian yesterday. She admitted it to Gillian herself. Coby said it to me. However, I cannot be completely certain she acted alone.”

“What do ye mean?” Daniel asked.

“As I said, it seems she wanted to eliminate me and Gillian, so that Coby could marry Fallon and become laird. Lana tried to get me to agree to this betrothal some time ago and I refused.”

Nolan frowned. “She tried to get us to agree to it too, after Duncan died.”

“It is hard to believe Lana could be involved, but she did put a lot of faith in that blasted prophecy. She has always favored Fallon,” Daniel said.

“She denies any knowledge of Rhiannon’s plans,” Fingal said. “I don’t want to believe she could willingly harm one of her daughters but I will not risk Gillian’s life on what I wish to be true. I must know.”

“I don’t believe Lana played any part in this. I think it is another attempt to shift blame. Ye yerself could have been the one poisoning Gillian. Ye didn’t want to marry her any more than she did ye. Perhaps now that ye are laird of this clan ye wanted rid of her,” suggested Owen.

“Owen, ye are out of line,” Daniel said. “First, ye are forgetting he was laird by royal decree before he married her. Besides, it’s clear he has come to love her. He would not try to kill her.”

“Are ye suggesting her mother doesn’t love her?” demanded Owen.

“Enough!” shouted Nolan. “There is no denying I was not happy when the king made Fingal MacIan our laird. However, there is also no denying Lady Gillian was given poppy yesterday, enough to kill her if she had consumed the whole mug. By all accounts she was awake and alert until after Rhiannon saw her. Therefore, the laird could not have given it to her before he left the keep in the morning.”

Owen backed down. “Fine. I’ll accept that the laird didn’t give her the poppy.”

“And if Rhiannon tried to kill Gillian,” Archie said, “it stands to reason that the laird is telling the truth about her attempt on his life and Coby’s involvement in that. But I refuse to believe Lana was involved without proof. Rhiannon must be questioned.”

“Unfortunately, we can’t find her,” Niall said. “Tarmon was the last to see her. She told him Coby was out searching for a cow that wandered off. She left her cottage ostensibly to look for him. If ye believe she attempted to kill Fingal, then clearly this was not true. She knew Coby had gone to the cliff and that is where she went. She must have realized her intrigue was discovered when Fingal was not there but Coby lay dead in the gully. She didn’t return to her cottage. My men have searched through the night and haven’t found her.”

Owen started to interrupt him, but Niall cut him off. “Before ye say it, if she was innocent and merely lost, searching for her cow, she would have been found. I can only conclude she is in hiding somewhere.”

“Then we must allow Lana to defend herself,” Archie said.

“I want to speak with Lady Katherine as well,” Nolan said. At Niall’s scowl he added, “don’t get yer dander up, Niall. I know she is a good woman. The men who were captured after the siege on Duncurra said she was nothing but kind and cared for them well. I just want to hear her thoughts on all this from her own lips.”

After a moment Niall agreed, so Fingal sent men for both of them.

Gavin brought Lana to the hall. Her eyes were red and swollen as if from crying and she appeared to have had little sleep. Eadoin arrived minutes later, looking grim. Not only was Katherine with him, but a pale and drawn looking Gillian was as well with the ever present Bodie at her side. She went to her mother, wrapping her arms around her, causing Lana to burst into sobs. The hurt in Gillian’s eyes tore at his heart.

“I’m sorry, Laird. I found Lady Katherine with Lady Gillian,” Eadoin explained.

“Gillian, sweetling, ye don’t need to be here,” Fingal said. “Katherine, I’m surprised ye stood for this.”

“I do need to be here, Fingal, and although she tried, Katherine could not stop me. I gather that ye suspect my mother had something to do with all of this?”

“I told ye I intended to make certain no one else was involved,” Fingal tried to reassure her. “I don’t want to believe she would ever hurt ye, but I must know for sure. Please, love, go back to bed.”

“Nay, this concerns me and I will stay.”

In spite of her current frail state of health, she stood tall, the picture of strength and dignity. He was reminded of how she looked standing on the wall the night he arrived and as she left the keep on Daniel’s arm the next afternoon. “Ye are right. It concerns ye. Come sit with me. If ye get too tired we will take a break.” She nodded and joined him at the table.

“Laird, ye can’t believe I would harm my ch-child,” Lana said, her voice catching with a sob.

“Lana, I don’t want to, but I must know. Rhiannon clearly tried to kill both of us yesterday. Someone has been poisoning Gillian for weeks. Rhiannon admitted to Gillian that she intended to see Coby and Fallon wed and thus Coby made laird. Ye yerself have pushed for such a match for ages. Can ye at least understand why we might be concerned?”

“Aye, Laird, I can. I agree I wanted Fallon to wed Coby. I told ye that last night. Rhiannon was my friend. I thought it was a good match. I never intended for Fallon to replace Gillian as Lady MacLennan.”

Owen scowled. “That’s not true, Lana. After we learned that both Malcolm and Duncan were dead and we were argu—er, discussing—who should become chief, Meara suggested Gillian and ye were firmly against it. Ye said Fallon would be a better choice.”

This did not come as a shock to Fingal. Eadoin had told him as much.

Lana sputtered, “Aye, I did. I always believed it was her destiny.”

“Because of Rhiannon’s prophecy?” Daniel asked.

“Aye—nay, not just that. Fallon is special. Ye don’t understand.”

At Gillian’s soft gasp, Fingal took her hand in his. More than anything this is why he didn’t want her here for this. There was no way to avoid hurting her. “Help us understand, Lana.”

“I can’t,” she spat, some of her old defiance showing. “No one can understand. Rhiannon believed Fallon would be special and she is. That doesn’t mean I love Gillian less. Gillian, I would never hurt ye. Surely ye believe that.”

Gillian sighed. “Aye Mother, I do.”

“We are getting nowhere,” Nolan said. “Lana, what was supposed to be in the herb mixture?”

“Mint, thyme, comfrey, and chamomile.”

“And Lady Katherine, ye are sure there was more to it than that? Ye are certain Gillian was being poisoned before yesterday?”

“Aye. I tasted foxglove in the herbs.”

“I would like to taste them.”

“I thought ye might and I brought the packet with me. Do ye know what foxglove tastes like?”

Nolan frowned. “Nay. Now that ye mention it, if it is a poison how do ye know?”

Katherine laughed. “I began learning healing arts from my mother as a little girl, then from an old healer in my clan. Both of them made sure I could identify poisonous plants, especially those which can be confused with others. Young foxglove plants are very similar to comfrey but they taste different. You can tell instantly if ye crush a leaf and just touch it to yer tongue. There is a bitter burn to it.” She gave him a pinch of the herb mixture. “Rub it between yer fingers to release the oils in the leaves.” He did as she instructed. “Now just touch yer tongue to yer finger. Ye will feel a very slight heat.”

“Aye, I feel a bit of something.”

“If ye did that with a fresh leaf it would be much stronger. There isn’t much foxglove in that blend, but it doesn’t take much to make someone sick.”

“And the rest is as Lana says? Mint, thyme, comfrey and chamomile?”

“Well, there are some other herbs too.”

Katherine had only mentioned foxglove to him. “What else is there?” Fingal demanded.

“There is also pennyroyal and tansy. Neither of them are poisons, but they are known to bring on monthly fluxes.”

“Ye mean it could have caused her miscarriage?” Archie asked.

Fingal felt Gillian begin to tremble. He leaned close to her and whispered, “If this is too much, my love, we can stop.”

She shook her head, blinking back tears, waiting for Katherine to answer.

“Aye, Archie, it could have caused a miscarriage. But Gillian, it could have been the foxglove that brought on the sickness ye thought was morning sickness.”

“Are ye saying I wasn’t carrying?”

“I don’t know if ye were or not but it’s possible that ye weren’t.”

Fingal wasn’t sure it mattered. Either way they felt a terrible loss.”

Nolan shook his head. “So we are certain there was foxglove, among other things in the herbs Gillian used for the tisane, but we don’t know for certain who put them there.”

“I think we do,” Gillian said. “Mother, the packet that Katherine has, that isn’t the one ye have been using to make the brew recently.”

Lana shook her head. “Nay. Rhiannon took that one upstairs yesterday. I couldn’t find it in yer chamber last night, but I found this one.”

“That proves it,” Gillian said. “Nolan, Rhiannon gave me this packet the day after the wedding. I have had it the whole time. Mother never had access to it. She couldn’t have put the foxglove in it.”

“Is there any chance she made a mistake?” Archie asked. “Lady Katherine, ye said foxglove and comfrey appear similar when they are young. Could it be she made an error? Perhaps all of her store of comfrey has foxglove mixed in?”

Fingal shook his head. “Archie, I don’t think Rhiannon’s recent actions suggest this could be an accident, but I am happy to check. I can have her herbs brought here for Katherine to review. Do ye mind, Katherine?”

“I would be happy to, but I would learn more by seeing her stores for myself. However, it may take a while for me to sort through them. Fingal, both ye and Gillian need rest to recover. Perhaps we can address this tomorrow after I have had time to assess things.”

“Aye, that’s an excellent idea. Gillian and I will retire.”

“Not yet, Fingal. Are ye all convinced yet that my mother played no part in this?”

“I’m convinced,” Daniel said. “If the first herbs Rhiannon gave ye were tainted and yer mother never had access to them, I don’t see how she could have.”

Archie and Owen both agreed.

Nolan eyed Lana shrewdly. “I’m not completely convinced.” At the surprised looks on the other elders’ faces he added, “oh, I believe Lana didn’t adulterate the herbs, but I’m not sure she and Rhiannon weren’t working together.”