The Border Hostage (27 page)

“There is, there is! It's a Gypsy curse!”

“Father, she takes pleasure in torturing you. Curses can have no effect unless you are foolish enough to believe in them.”

“Foolish? Och aye, I'm a fool alreet—I shoulda hanged the old witch years ago! Now it's over late! The curse has begun its evil, an' ye are the only one can stop it!”

“Father, calm down!” Heath knew he would have to listen to Rob's fears and try to soothe them. “Tell me of the curse.”

“Lizzie left me an' took wee Beth tae Carlisle. I was poorly, felt my heart was bein' squeezed in a vise. Bothwick sent fer Old Meg an' she told me I was cursed! Not just me—my whole family! The old witch told me my heart would kill me, but not afore I saw my male line die out. She told me my wife had left me, an' Beth would make a disastrous marriage like Tina. I argued wi' her, told her Valentina had a happy marriage an' was havin' a bairn. She shook her haid, said she saw
two
coffins an' red hair!
Two—
she knew there'd be
twins!
An' how did she know about the red hair?”

“Now there's a mystery,” Heath mocked gently.

Rob shook his head impatiently. “There was a great storm on Duncan's return voyage from Flanders; the
Thistledoon
was damaged bad an' Duncan near swept o'erboard. That's when I made up my mind tae find ye an' force Old Meg tae remove the curse. We sailed tae Carlisle an' the bloody English burned the
Galloway
an' all the winter fleeces. The curse'll be the death of me and mine!”

“And this curse is because of me? Because you got my mother, Lily Rose, with child?”

Rob looked at his son beseechingly. “Heath, I loved Lily Rose, I swear it tae ye!”

Heath believed him; he also believed Rob Kennedy's obsession with the curse would kill him if he didn't get a grip on himself. He appeased him by telling him what he wanted to hear. “I'll order Old Meg to remove the curse, Father. Nothing more will happen—be easy in your mind.”

“Ye'll leave today? How will ye find her?” “That's easy. I was with the Gypsies last night in Hawick.” Heath let Rob believe Old Meg was there. “Why are they in Hawick?”

“They followed the court. Margaret Tudor wed Archibald Douglas yesterday.”

Rob recoiled. “No good'll come of it. They shoulda'
packed the English bitch off tae her brother, Henry Tudor!”

“If Margaret went back to England, she'd try to take her son with her. Young Jamie Stewart is Scotland's king; the last thing we want to do is deliver him into the hands of the King of England.”

“Politics is a deep an' dirty business. Bad cess tae the lot!”

“Be careful with your curses, Father.”

“Aye, well, amen tae that.”

Heath noted his father's color was not as alarming as it had been. “Finish your whisky; I'll see they plenish a chamber for you, and I'll ask Mr. Burque to cook something special for your dinner.”

Heath found an Eskdale steward readying a chamber in the wing that ran from his own tower. “I think it would be better to give Lord Kennedy and Duncan the empty tower, so they can have adjoining chambers. His health isn't what it should be and it would be best if Duncan could keep an eye on him.” The steward readily agreed and went off to plenish the tower. Heath had accomplished what he intended. He did not want his and Raven's privacy compromised this night. Feeling a measure of satisfaction, Heath went down to the kitchens for a word with Mr. Burque.

When Raven returned to the castle, she found the ladies had retired to the solar. Tina was quizzing Beth about what had happened between their mother and father, while Ada was doing her best to keep a straight face as Beth ingenuously let all the dark cats out of their bags.

“We left Mother at Donal's; she absolutely refused to go to Castle Douglas. She told Father that you had Ada and wouldn't welcome her interference. At mention of Ada, Father let her stay.”

“I'll bet he did.” Tina winked at Ada, and they both dissolved into laughter.

Suddenly a bell began to peal, and they looked at each
other in surprise. “The swans!” Tina and Raven said in unison.

“I don't believe it!” Ada knelt on the window seat and opened the casement. There were the swans, tapping the bell with their orange beaks, making the rope swing, which in turn rang the bell. “Well, I'll be damned; they've learned to ring the bell when they want to be fed. Raven, you are so clever!”

Heath, who had been searching everywhere for Raven, heard their laughter and stepped into the solar. Relief washed over him, for he had feared that she had fled. “I asked the steward to put Father and Duncan in the north tower,” he informed Tina.

His sister looked from Heath to Raven and back again. She knew they had been intimate last night, so naturally he wanted their father at a distance from his own tower. She should have thought of it herself. “Very good. Now where shall we put Beth?”

“I would love to have Beth share my chamber,” Raven invited.

“Oh, thank you, Raven, I would love that too.” Beth was eager to talk about Heron Carleton.

Tina glanced quickly at Heath and saw his mouth harden.
Oh God, the consummation didn't go well.
Tina glanced at Raven and saw her look of victory that she had thwarted Heath.
They are not yet bound lovers.
She recalled the consummation of her own union with Ram; it had been utter disaster. She opened her mouth to speak, but Raven spoke first. “There is a small matter of a door off its hinges. Heath, do you suppose I could impose upon you to set matters right?”

His jaw clenched like a lump of iron, and he did not trust himself to speak. If Raven thought she had out-maneuvered him, she was deluding herself. She could evade him all she wanted, but the fact remained that she was his. She belonged to him body and soul, and if it took a forced marriage to convince her, then so be it! Heath
withdrew from the solar and went directly to his tower. As he lifted the heavy oaken door and set the iron pins to hold it in place, his thoughts were consumed by Raven.

When Rob Kennedy looked from the window of the north tower and saw Heath leave the stables mounted on a fine black stallion, he assumed his son was riding to Hawick to lay down the law to Old Meg. Rob felt so weak with relief that he had to sit down.
Nobody knows more about horses than Heath
, he thought with pride. Then a wave of guilt washed over him.
No thanks tae me! I loved Lily Rose, but when she died in childbirth, I blamed the bairn! I let Old Meg have him because I didn't want him.
He got to his feet, sighing heavily, then poured himself a large whisky.

Heath rode with slow determination toward the ancient stone church at Kirkstile. Though it lay a few miles from the castle, it was on Douglas land, and the priest owed his living to Lord Ramsay Douglas. Heath tethered Blackadder and entered the church. When he did not see the priest, he walked toward a door at the back that led into the holy man's living quarters. The priest must have heard someone enter, for before Heath could knock, the priest opened the door and joined him in the church.

“Father, I need you to perform a wedding ceremony. Today,” Heath added firmly.

The priest was a typical Borderer—square-built and dark, with an ungodly look about him. “Where is the bride?”

“She's at Eskdale—you'll have to come to the castle.”

“I see,” he said shrewdly. “Is she no' willin'?”

“Not completely,” Heath admitted.

The priest stared at him with hard eyes, and silence stretched between them before he spoke. “Have ye lain wi' the lass?”

“I have,” Heath said solemnly, knowing this would carry weight with the priest.

He nodded. “I'll come.”

Both heads lifted as a crash of crockery came from
inside the living quarters. Such a guilty look came over the priest's face that Heath became immediately suspicious. He moved to the door and threw it open. Heath's eyes widened in surprise. “You!” His dagger was in his hand before he finished uttering the word.

“I'm hiding him from the English—he's a Scot!”

“Blood of God!” Heath cursed.

“Take not the name of the Lord in vain!”

“Take not a bloody Douglas fugitive into your protection! This piece of offal was my prisoner. He escaped when the Eskdale stables were deliberately set ablaze!”

“He's a Scot!”

“Aye, he's a Scot—an Armstrong—yet he plotted to murder Lord Ramsay Douglas.”

The priest, incensed, did an immediate about-face. “Ye shoulda' hanged him!”

“Rope costs money.” Heath advanced upon the ugly fugitive, who stood rooted to the spot with fear. Blood lust gripped Heath as he thought of Raven's burns and the horses who had lost their lives.

“Mangey wanted me dead! Me own brother! He fired the stables!”

Heath paused. If this was Mangey's brother, he knew much more than he had ever admitted. Heath sheathed his knife and trussed his prisoner's hands behind his back, then he waited for the priest to gather the things he would need and saddle his pony. They rode back to Eskdale, with the prisoner walking between them.

This time Heath had no compunction about putting Armstrong in irons in Eskdale's dungeon; it would help loosen his tongue. Heath didn't expect Ramsay back until tomorrow night. When Douglas moss-troopers went out on Border patrol, they were usually out two days at a time, unless they encountered trouble on a large scale. Heath felt sure that if he and Ramsay confronted Armstrong together, he'd be intimidated enough to babble all.

Heath, not in the best of moods, led the priest up to his
tower. He could hear the voices of Beth and Raven through the adjoining door that he had set back in place. He opened it and saw that they were unpacking Beth's clothes and hanging them in the wardrobe. Both females glanced up as he opened the door. Heath fixed Beth with a piercing look and jerked his thumb. She took his meaning instantly and, used to obeying male authority, hurried out. Heath motioned for the priest to come into the room, then he turned the key in the lock and slipped it inside his doublet.

“What the devil are you doing?” Raven's glance swept from Heath to the priest and back again. Her look of panic told Heath she knew exactly what he was doing.

In two firm strides he was beside her and took her hand. She snatched it away, and roughly he took it back again. He nodded to the priest. “Her name is Raven Carleton.”

“This is a forced marriage!” Raven cried out to the priest.

“Has Heath Kennedy lain wi' ye, lass?”

She stared at him in dismay, not wanting to admit to the priest that they had been intimate. Then her eyes blazed with anger. “Yes, but—”

“Then it is right that ye marry.”

Raven lifted her head with pride and raised her eyes to Heath's. “No, it is
not
right that I am given no choice in the matter. It is
not
right that you are taking away my freedom. It is
not
right to misuse your power in this way, Heath Kennedy.”

Heath closed his ears to Raven's protests. She was his woman, the only one he would ever want. He nodded curtly to the priest and imprisoned her at his side in a vise

grip.

“We are gathered taegether in the sight of God, tae join this man and this woman in holy matrimony. If any man can show just cause why they may not lawfully be joined taegether, let him now speak, or else hereafter forever hold his peace.”

“I
will not
marry you!”

The priest ignored Raven's interruption. “Heath Kennedy, wilt thou have this woman tae thy wedded wife, tae live taegether after God's ordinance in the holy estate of matrimony? Wilt thou love her, comfort her, honor and keep her, in sickness and in health; and, forsaking all other, keep thee only untae her, so long as ye both shall live?”

“I will.” Heath's voice was implacable.

“Raven Carleton, wilt thou have this mon tae thy wedded husband, tae live taegether after God's ordinance in the holy estate of matrimony? Wilt thou obey him, and serve him, love, honor, and keep him, in sickness and in health; and, forsaking all other, keep thee only untae him, so long as ye both shall live?”

“I
will—”
Heath's mouth came down on hers, cutting off the word
not.
Raven struggled in vain. When Heath lifted his mouth from hers, she cried, “I
will not!”
but the priest continued.

“Repeat after me: I, Heath Kennedy, take thee, Raven Carleton, tae my wedded wife, tae have and tae hold from this day for'ard, fer better fer worse, fer richer fer poorer, in sickness and in health, tae love and tae cherish, till death us do part, according tae God's holy ordinance; and thereto I plight thee my troth.”

Heath looked down at Raven and knew he loved and cherished her too much to force her. His terrible pride had ruled him. He had thought he was showing her his strength, but suddenly realized that he was showing her his weakness. He had never felt as protective of her as he did at this moment. The only thing she wanted from him was her freedom, and he knew he would give it to her. Heath brushed the back of his fingers across her cheek. “I promised that if you let me woo you, I
would
give you the choice.” He searched her face. “Forgive me, Raven.” Heath reached inside his doublet and offered her the key.

Raven's eyes flooded with tears as her fingers closed over it.

A loud hammering came at the door. “Raven, are you all right? I know what's going on in there! Open this door!”

“Heron!” Raven paled.

“You cannot proceed with the marriage! I am her brother, and I object on the grounds that Raven is betrothed to Chris Dacre!”

Heath closed his eyes and cursed beneath his breath.

Raven dashed away her tears and unlocked the door. “Marriage? Heron, what in the world are you talking about? Beth, did you think we sent for the priest to marry us?” Raven laughed prettily. “The father is here to bless the twins. Heron, how lovely of you to come and escort me home!” She smiled at Beth. “Brothers—we rage against them, then suddenly they do something wonderful.”

H
eron, how did you find out I was here?” Raven walked beside her brother as they left the tower and descended the stairs.