Regency Romance: The Rake's Fake Marriage (Historical Arranged Marriage Romance) (19th Century Victorian Romance) (7 page)

The forest near Drummond Castle was deep, dark and full of wildlife. Drummond Castle, the home of Laird Irvine of Shee, Chief of the Irvine Clan, was a huge granite fortress on top of Ben Shee, one of Scotland's highest mountains. Most members of the three thousand strong Irvine Clan lived in small fortified settlements around the castle.

Eana
Irvine, the Laird's daughter, grew up without friends or siblings and spent most of her time wandering through the forest, watching wildlife and gathering wild herbs. All her life, she'd been desperately lonely. Nobody except her parents talked to her, in fact, most people turned their backs when they saw her, and all the children in the clan had been warned to stay away from her.

Eana
loved
June;
it was her favorite month. Not only was it the month in which she was born, nineteen years ago, but it was the month in which the forest really came to
life
. As spring gave way to summer, the pine trees began to throw off their woody scent, and animals busied themselves with the task of bringing their young into the world.

As she always did,
Eana
left the castle by the back entrance at nine in the morning and took the steep path down the mountainside, to the blanket of trees which stretched from Ben Shee down into the glen below. She was proud to wear the tartan of her father's clan. She always wore a full-length skirt and shawl in the black and blue colors the clan had fought wars to protect. As she took the path into the forest, a deer stopped in its track and looked at her for a second, before jumping over a fallen tree and disappearing. Descending all the time, she followed the path as it wound it's way between the trees, eventually reaching the stream in the bottom of the glen. It was
Eana's
favorite place, a small clearing on the valley floor next to the water. She sat on a rock, reached down and untied her shoes. The water was cold and made her gasp as she put her feet in. She leaned forward and saw her reflection, the face of a beautiful young woman, flickering in the ripples. Her strawberry blonde hair fell forwards framing her
face,
and as she brushed it back, she saw a terrible witch.

Eana
was lonely because she had powers others were terrified of. If she hadn't been the daughter of Laird Irving, she was sure that she would already have been burned alive. She had no idea what she had done to deserve it, but someone had given her special powers. There was no evil in her thoughts or powers, as everyone imagined, only goodness. Three days ago she'd seen a bird hopping around on the forest
floor,
it's wing broken. All she did was look at it and wish it could fly again, and it did. It's wing straightened against
its
body, and it flew up and into the sky. When these things
happened,
it gave her a magnificent feeling, but there was a price to pay, her social exclusion.

''There she is,'' Angus whispered to his brother, Bran. The two men were dressed in the tartan of the Sutherland Clan, the largest and most aggressive clan in Scotland. The Sutherland Clan killed people for fun, but on this day it was serious. Laird Sutherland had sent his sons to find and kill
Eana
.

''She's full of evil, a witch. She has strange powers. Find her, kill her and bring her body back to me,'' he'd told them.

''It's a pity to kill such a beautiful woman,'' Angus whispered.

Bran
looked at her as he crouched behind a tree and nodded in  agreement. ''The most beautiful I have ever seen. But we must not defy father.''

''Perhaps we can have a little fun with her before we slay her?'' Angus looked exactly like his father. He was big, six feet three, and quite fat. His red hair was wild, and his beard hung down to his chest. Wrapped in red and white tartan, he looked intimidating.

''Yes, that's a good idea. We can have her first,'' Bran said, his cheeks puffed and red with the exertion of walking ten miles.

Eana
felt goose pimples and knew she should put her shoes back on. Years of conditioning had taught her tha
t when she felt goose pimples, danger
was imminent. As she fastened her laces, she scanned the trees looking for anything that would confirm how she felt. She saw nothing. She stood and began to walk back from where she had come. When she heard the sound of breaking wood, she began to run up the hill as fast as she could.

''Quick, she's seen us,'' Angus said, jumping up and running after her, his brother following close behind. They ran down the hill, jumped over the stream and began to follow
Eana
up the other side of the glen. She looked
behind
her and saw them, two large
red-haired
men, in vivid tartan bearing down on her. She knew they were Sutherland Clan, and the thought of what they would do to her if they caught her made her sprint.
She was slight, fit and remarkably fast, but the brothers had longer strides, and they soon began to catch her.
If, as everyone thought, she'd had any powers of evil she would have used them to stop her pursuers, but what use
were her well intended
powers in this situation?

The path became much
steeper,
and
Eana
slowed as the muscles in her legs began to burn. The two brothers although overweight were strong and they were now just yards behind her.

There's only one way, she thought. She left the path and ran to the left along the hillside, weaving in and out of the trees and ducking under branches. The two large men began to slow, their bodies not as agile as
Eana's
. She'd learned a few things about warfare from her father. He'd always told her having knowledge of the ground was a great advantage in a fight. She hoped it would be now.

''We're catching her,'' Angus shouted when he saw
Eana
slowing.
Eana
was standing with her hands on her knees, totally exhausted, unable to run another foot.

''Grab her,'' Angus shouted. He lunged forward and put out his arms to take hold of her, but she ducked and rolled away to the side, down an embankment. Angus, unable to stop his bulk from moving forward, fell over the cliff.
Bran
was able to stop himself, and when he looked down, he saw his beloved brother's body career into the rocks two hundred feet below.

Eana
got up and started to run back up the hill.
Bran
wasn't capable of continuing the chase. All he could do was cry out his brother's name and vomit at the sight of his contorted body.

*****

Laird Irving wiped his brow on his tartan sleeve and sat down next to the huge fireplace in the castle's grand hall. He looked at his wife and smiled. He'd married her twenty-five years earlier. Not for a single second in all those years had he had any regrets about marrying her. She'd given him a beautiful daughter and she'd always been ready to give her advice at times when he'd had no idea how to proceed.

''I've spoken to him,'' he said.

''What did he say?'' she asked. Her husband was older now, but still very attractive, she thought. He was a big
man,
and she felt protected by him. Strong and athletic he was fiercely loyal to his clan and despite being heavily outnumbered by the Sutherland clan, he'd always stood his ground. The deep scar on his left cheek was a testimony to that.

''He agreed we need each other. The Sutherland clan is larger than it was last time they attacked us, and after Angus's death, Laird Sutherland has declared his intention to slaughter all of us.''

''Then she will marry Laird Muir's son?''

''Yes. She will unite the Muir Clan and the Irvine Clan, and together we will be able to defend ourselves.''

''And is he a good man?
Eana
is a sensitive, shy young woman, and she will need an understanding man.'' She stared at the swords hanging on the wall above them and hoped her daughter's new husband would love her.

''
Eana
is a lonely person. Her powers have alienated her and made her the object of Laird Sutherland's aggression.'' Laird Irving leaned towards his wife and spoke more softly. ''You and I know that her powers are good in nature, but people are suspicious and believe her to be evil. Her husband will learn to understand her, and in time, her reputation will improve.''

“Shall I ask her to come and talk to us?'' she asked.

''Yes, I would like to tell her about her new future.''

When
Eana
arrived in the hall, her father gave her a loving smile. Her green eyes reminded him of the jewels the Sutherland Clan had stolen from his mother's room when they'd ransacked the castle thirty years before. It was the same day as they'd killed his father. 'My dear, I want to tell you what I have planned for you.'' She nodded. ''You are to marry Laird Muir's son. His name is Alexander.''

''I will not,''
Eana
looked desperately at her mother.

''It has been decided. Laird Muir and I have agreed to unite our
clans
against the danger of the Sutherland's.''

''Is that all I am to you? A pawn in a battle? I am your daughter, how can you treat me like this?''
Eana's
tears
flowing freely.

''You are in danger. When Angus Sutherland died, his father declared you his chief enemy. Alexander Muir is a strong man who will care for you long after your mother and I are gone.'' He was sorry for his daughter's
loneliness,
but none of her tears would change his mind.

''You are cruel people, both of you. Why don't you leave me alone?''
Eana
shouted and stormed out of the hall.

*****

Alexander Muir stood in the circle marked out by lines of sand and roared. ''Come on who's next?'' The group of men looked at each other, none of them wanted to step forward. ''Laurie, it's your turn.''

Laurie Hamilton was six feet three and broader than any other male in the clan. He walked into the ring and looked sheepishly at Alexander. ''Attack me,'' Alexander said. Laurie flew at him but Alexander swerved out of the
way,
and Laurie landed on his backside outside the ring. The other men laughed. He got up and charged again. This time, Alexander caught him in his arms, turned him around and slammed him into the ground. Laurie looked up at him and shook his head. ''Enough?'' Alexander asked him. When he nodded, Alexander turned to his men.

''Not one of you warriors can beat me at wrestling,'' he laughed. Every one of them liked and respected him. He was just twenty-one but a bear of a man whose loyalty to his fellow warriors knew no limits. They all knew that he would never expect any of them to do something he wouldn't do himself. At six feet six, he was the tallest and strongest. As a very young man he'd been thin and gangling, but after hundreds of hours of
training,
he'd developed awesome muscles. He was unusually dark for a Scotsman. His father was
fair,
but he'd met a dark haired French woman while fighting in Southern Scotland and fallen in love with her. She'd died soon after giving birth. ''You all need to....'' Alexander stopped talking when he saw two horses approaching. It was his father and his bodyguard. ''Father, would you like to wrestle,'' he quipped.

''You are not yet ready, my son,'' he joked. The men smiled at Laird Muir's quip. ''Please leave
us,
men, I want to speak to my son.'' The men walked over to an oak tree and sat down to rest. As they looked across at Laird Muir and Alexander, they saw them deep in conversation.

When Laird Irvine mounted his horse and rode away, Alexander shouted. ''Laurie come over here.''

******

The Village of
Wellbridge
was under the shadows of Drummond Castle, halfway up Ben Shee. It had a wall around it which was patrolled by men in kilts with axes and shields. Behind the walls, the houses were small with roofs made of thatch. People made a living growing vegetables and rearing livestock to sell at the weekly market. On market day, people came from many miles around to purchase supplies and catch up on the latest gossip.
Eana
liked market
day;
it was the only day she didn't go into the forest. It was also the only time in the week when she saw people other than her mother and father.

As she wandered
between
the market stalls, people talked about her as they always did. Their snide comments didn't seem to worry her
any more
. But when a young child looked at her and cried 'witch', something in her snapped.

''I'm not a witch, you horrible child,'' she shouted. The child was shocked and began to cry. His father took the child in his arms and shouted at her. ''You are a
witch,
and if your father wasn't the Laird, you'd be cast out of the village.''