The Imposter (3 page)

            I shifted my gaze to
the flock of women who were moving in on me from across the room.  Nathan’s
departure had been all the invitation that they needed to take over my care. 
My caretakers consisted of a group of middle aged women, clucking and stewing
as they pulled me forth into the large room.  They settled me at a wooden bench
at the table nearest the fire.

“Are ye hungry?” an
older woman with gray hair secured in a bun at the nape of her neck asked with
a distinct Scottish lilt.

“Can we bring ye
anything?” a second, younger looking woman clucked, nervously awaiting my
reply. 

“Sit,
sit,” a third woman pressed me down gently towards the bench.

Their eyes scanned
my face, all seeming anxious for my reply, clearly eager to cater to whatever I
wished.  I felt smothered by their overwhelming attention.   They were trying
to be welcoming, trying to set me at ease, but still I sensed their hesitance. 
As women often do, they were holding me at a safe distance, gauging my
character.  I felt as though they were testing to see if I could be trusted.

            “Um, sure.  I’d love
some food, I’ve had a long day,” I smiled uncomfortably, eyes darting between
the three women. 

“Food!”
the plump older woman with the bun bellowed, and then faked a smile.

As if she had been
waiting for the signal, a young woman carrying a tray laden with bread, cheese
and meat entered the great room.  She smiled at me warmly but nervously as she
approached.  She was quite beautiful, strawberry blonde hair framed her lightly
freckled face.  She had bright hazel eyes and a friendly look about her that
made me feel more at ease.

“I’m
Leti,” she said, setting down the tray on the wooden table and sitting down
beside me on the bench. “Actually, that’s short for Leticia, but everyone calls
me Leti.”

“Kate,”
I said with a tired, forced smile.

“I
know,” she met my eyes. “I’m sorry that your journey was, well…” she trailed
off, not sure how to finish.  “Hungry?” she asked, eyes darting towards the
tray in invitation. 

Her glance was all
of the invitation that I needed.  I was starving.  I reached for a slice of
bread, slathered it with some butter, and took a very unlady-like bite.

“I’m so sorry,
Kate,” Leti blurted as I stuffed my face with the warm bread, dripping with
fresh butter.  She reached out and touched my arm stopping me mid bite.  Her
eyes searched mine. They were piercing green orbs flecked with gold. 

            “Sorry about what?” I
responded, feeling foolish as soon as the words had escaped my mouth.  Clearly,
she was trying to express her sorrow at the murder of my companions.  I was
sure that this news had spread quickly through whatever this place was.

“Ohhh,” Leti
responded, face draining of color.  She smiled nervously and then bit her lower
lip indicating that she was puzzled by my strange response to her condolences.

  “I’d rather not
talk about what happened today,” I warned, trying to cover my blunder.  It was
true that I didn’t want to talk about the murders and as a matter-of-fact, I
didn’t want to talk at all.

Leti
bit her lip again and looked away.  She was fighting back tears. 

I
stopped chewing and looked directly at her. 

“Has no one told ye,
Kate?” she asked, searching my face for a glimmer of knowledge.

“Told me what?” I
prodded, swallowing my mouthful of bread in an unlady-like gulp.

“The
Laird, yer betrothed?” she questioned.  My eyes bulged at the word “betrothed.”
I waited, eyes bulging, willing her to go on.  A sick feeling settled in the
pit of my stomach.

This cannot be
happening.

 “He’s dead,” Leti
finished her voice but a whisper.  “My father is dead.  Ye were tae be his
wife.”

I exhaled the
breath that I hadn’t realized that I was holding.  My eyes darted around the
room, unwilling to look at the girl next to me.  I could feel here eyes
searching my face for a response. 

He’s dead.  I’m
still safe.

Leti
looked at me from under disapproving brows, her face scrunched visibly due to
the lack of regard that I had given to her dead father.  I hoped that my face didn’t
show the relief that I felt.        

I resumed the
chewing of my bread, unsure of what would be an appropriate response.  The
effort of retaining my rouse of composure was overwhelming.  I felt the slight
tremors of shock begin to shake in my hands and legs.

“I’m
sorry about your Father,” I said, taking a deep breath to calm myself.

Fresh
tears welled up in Leti’s eyes as she again reached out and grabbed my arm,
squeezing slightly.  “Thank you,” she whispered, her voice trembling, relieved
that I was finally acknowledging his death like any normal, sane person would. 
“He was a good man, and it was quite a shock to us all.  The doctor says that
his heart just failed,” she sniffled.  “He just went to sleep and didn’t wake
up the next morning.”

“At
least he wasn’t in pain,” I offered, trying to comfort this girl that I didn’t
know.  The wounds of losing her father unexpectedly were obviously fresh and
still stinging.

“Yer verra kind to
try to comfort me after all that ye have been through today,” she smiled slightly,
eyes red-rimmed from tears that she was trying to hold back.

If she only knew
what I’d been through today, I thought to myself.  She wouldn’t believe half of
it!  I felt guilty as the thought crept into my mind that I was glad that this
girl’s father was dead.  Marriage was what I was running from.  I must have the
worst luck in the world.  Running from one marriage only to narrowly elude
another.

“He would have
liked ye verra much.  I can tell ye that,” she smiled again, sniffling now as
she battled to regain her composure.  “My brothers have always said that I’m a
good judge of character.  I can tell right away that yer kind, thinking of
others in spite of yer own troubles.”

I
took another bite of the delicious bread, chewing vigorously to avoid talking.

“Speaking
of brothers, Collin will want to speak with ye after ye have some nourishment. 
He’s my oldest brother, half-brother really.  After Da’s passing, Collin’s the
new Laird.  I suppose that he’ll need to decide what to do with ye.”

I didn’t like the
statement “Decide what to do with you.”  The reality of my predicament
continued to settle in.  I had accidentally stolen another woman’s identity, or
at the very least been mistaken for Laird McClain’s betrothed and said nothing
to remedy this mistake. I was in deep, deep trouble.  I was resolute not to
crumble and confess myself to the new Laird.

            Nathan appeared in the
entry way to the great hall, and cleared his throat to get my attention.  I
smiled when I saw him.  His face turned pink beneath his beard when he
recognized that I was so happy to see him.

“The
Laird will see ye now, Mistress,” he announced, warm expression lingering on
his ruddy face.

I glanced at Leti,
still chewing my last bite of bread methodically.  I was weary to the bone and
dreaded my looming meeting with “The Laird.”  I had been warned in England
about the intricacies and the politics of the Scottish Clan system. 

Leti
reached in front of me and pulled the plate away from me, as if reading my
intentions of grabbing just one more bite.  “Better get going,” she instructed,
scooting the plate further out of my reach.  “Collin doesna like tae be kept
waiting,” she said with a tone of warning in her voice as she stood, lifting
the plate with one hand as she smoothed her skirts with the other.  I was still
hungry and had to resist the impulse to tackle her and claim my unfinished
dinner.

Instead, I
followed her instructions.  I stood and pushed myself reluctantly away from the
table. My legs were shaking from either exhaustion or fear, or a bit of both. 
Nathan turned around without a word and strode from the great hall.  I trudged
after him mechanically.  I followed him down a candle lit corridor and bumped
unceremoniously into his backside when he stopped abruptly at a door on our
right.  He knocked against the heavy wooden door twice, and was greeted with a
gruff “Enter,” from within.

Nathan
swung open the door and stood in the threshold, beckoning me to go into the
room with a wave of his massive hand.  I stepped forward, and was surprised by
the solid thunk of the door closing behind me.  Apparently this was to be a
private meeting.

Collin
didn’t acknowledge my presence, but sat behind a massive oak desk, chestnut
crowned head bent in concentration over a stack of papers.  He was a huge man,
even partially concealed behind his desk.  My eyes were drawn to the shear size
of his hands, one holding a paper that he was intently reading and the other
sprawled across the desk.

“Sit,”
he commanded, not looking up.  This was not an invitation, but an order.

I obeyed
reluctantly, and sat in a wooden chair facing his desk.  I was suddenly unsure
of what to do with my hands while I waited for him to speak to me.  I settled
on clasping my now sweaty palms together in an effort not to fidget, something
that I often did when nervous.  I had already made up my mind that I did not
like Collin McClain. 

A moment passed in
silence before he finally addressed me.  He eluded an air of arrogance and
power, even while sitting passively at his desk.   His eyes rose from whatever
he had been reading to meet mine.  They were green and striking.  He was a
handsome man with strong, masculine features.  I detested him strongly right
from the start, and met his gaze with my feistiest glare.  Two could play at this
game.

“Did ye see the
men who attacked yer people?” he asked straight-forwardly.  Apparently, Collin
was not the type to beat around the bush and waste time with introductions or
niceties.

“No,”
I responded, refusing to let the intensity with which he was examining me with
those probing green eyes intimidate me.

He
leaned back in his chair, and folded his fingers together, thinking as he
studied me.  “How did ye escape the attack?” he questioned, eyes still boring
holes into my skin, causing my heart to race and my body temperature to rise.

“I
don’t remember,” I said.  I was not a practiced liar, but I hoped that
confidence would bolster my story.

“Sae
ye mean tae tell me that ye remember nothing,” he said, separating his palms so
that the tips of his fingers were touching those of his matching hand.

“I know that I
woke up in the forest right before Nathan found me.  I knew that they were all
dead.  All that I can think of is that maybe I went into the trees to relieve
myself and they were attacked while I was away.  I must have come upon the
scene and run back into the forest.  Maybe I fainted,” I offered, still meeting
his green eyes, refusing to be the first to look away.

 Collin
McClain was a hard man to read.  He sat expressionless, starting back at me,
seeming to wait for me to continue.

“I
don’t remember,” I said.  “In fact, I don’t remember much about myself at all,”
I added as an extra defense measure against further questioning from Collin.

“I see,” he said,
watching me. “It was unwise of yer father tae send ye with only one guard.  Yer
lucky tae have escaped.”

“He didn’t think
that the journey would be so dangerous,” I lied, knowing nothing of the “father”
that I was defending.

“Then he is a
fool,” Collin said dismissively.  “Leti will have told ye about our father’s
passing now,” he stated without emotion. 

“Yes,”
I muttered in acknowledgement.

“Nathan!” Collin
bellowed straightening in his chair as the heavy wooden door creaked open
behind me.  “Find her a suitable place tae sleep.  Ye might as well put her in
the chambers that were prepared for her arrival.”

Nathan
walked over and stood beside me, nodding in approval to the Laird’s orders. 
“Yes, sir,” he mumbled as he reached down and took my elbow, encouraging me to
stand.

Collin was already
back to reading the papers on his desk, dismissing my presence as a nuisance to
his work.  “I’ll sort out what I plan tae do with ye now that father is dead. 
Stay out of trouble until then,” he said, not looking up.

Nathan guided me
from Collin’s study, closing the door quietly behind us.  His large hand
settled in the small of my back, warm and reassuring as he propelled me forward
down the corridor.  “I’ll take ye tae yer chambers, lass.  It’s been no doubt a
long day.  Ye’ll be needing tae rest.”

As soon as the
door to my chamber closed behind Nathan, I lost every last shred of compose
that I had and promptly fell apart.  I threw myself on the feather bed and
cried my eyes out.  My chest heaved with the reverberations of my emotions and
my eyes stung from the tears that continued to flow down my cheeks. 

Having
gotten that out of my system, I collected myself and began to formulate a
plan. 

 I’ve escaped
two marriages already, if I have to escape ten more, so be it.  I will be free.

Chapter Three

I awoke in a panic
to pounding on my chamber door. Had I bolted it last night?

“Kate! Kate, wake
up!” shouted the urgent voice amidst the banging on my door.

My feet felt the
shock of the cold flagstones as I slid from my warm cocoon of quilts and
stumbled blindly towards the door in the pitch darkness. 

“Kate! Hurry!” 
The banging grew more insistent. 

 I fumbled with
the latch that I had indeed locked and came face to face with a terror stricken
Leti as I cracked open the heavy wooden door.  Her face was ruddy from crying
and her usually striking green eyes were puffy and bloodshot.  Her nose was red
and she sniffled as she exclaimed, “Do ye ken anything about healing?” the
words coming out brokenly between the sobs that racked her small frame.