The Laird of Stonehaven (25 page)

“I wouldna bother ye otherwise. Heath has returned from Inverness with a tale ye will want to hear.”

“I’ll be down as soon as I dress. How long have I slept?”

“ ’Tis morning.”

“Morning!” Graeme gasped. “I must have been more exhausted than I thought.” He glanced at Blair, who was still sleeping soundly. “Tell Alyce not to disturb Blair.”

“Aye,” Jamie said as Graeme softly closed the door.

Graeme returned to his own bedchamber to wash and dress so as not to awaken Blair, then went below to greet Heath. He was anxious to know how the king had reacted to his absence.

Heath was digging into a bowl of porridge when Graeme entered the hall. He looked up when Graeme joined him. “I had a devil of a time getting here.”

Graeme sat down beside his cousin. “Finish your breakfast.”

“What happened? I waited for ye at Inverness.”

“Rains and floods,” Graeme said. “ ’Twas a nightmare. The bridges across the loch were lost in the raging waters, and our fields flooded. How did you get across the loch?”

“I hired a boat on the other side. I was shocked at how high the water had risen.”

Someone set a bowl of porridge in front of Graeme and he began eating. “Is the king angry with me?”

“Ah, Graeme, you canna know how happy I am ye didna show up for the meeting. Terrible things happened.”

Graeme’s spoon stopped halfway to his mouth. Had Blair been right all along? “What kind of things?”

“I dinna know where to begin.” Heath’s expression turned grim. “More than forty Highland chieftains were gathered at Inverness. The king arrived in a foul mood. Since I was merely an observer, I was able to keep apart and listen.”

“Go on,” Graeme urged, quite certain he wasn’t going to like what Heath had to say.

“To make a long story short, James accused the chieftains of treason. He said they were unpredictable and ungovernable and posed a danger to the Crown. He also charged them with supporting the House of Albany while he was held captive in England.

“ ’Twas unbelievable,” Heath continued. “James berated the chieftains for opposing the unification of the Highlands. Then he ordered them taken to Edinburgh and imprisoned.”

“I canna believe it.”

“MacKay and MacArthur supported James’s decision. They were not among the forty arrested.”

“Bastards,” Graeme growled.

“Aye.” Heath swallowed hard, then said, “We all assumed the Highland chiefs would languish behind bars until the king had gotten over his pique.”

“What is it, Heath? Something happened at Inverness.”

Heath sighed. “Five chieftains were singled out and executed. You would have been one of them had you been there.”

Graeme’s spoon dropped from his fingers. “How do you know?”

“Yer brother-in-law told me. He was quite put out when ye didna show up.”

“What about the king? Is he sending troops to arrest me?”

“ ’Tis unlikely, and I will tell ye why. While in Inverness, James learned that English soldiers are amassing on the border. England is demanding the ransom James failed to pay for his release from captivity. The English king threatens to march to Sterling and hold it hostage until the ransom is paid. James left immediately to defend his borders.”

“Didna he realize he needs the Highland lairds now more than ever? James has done many good things since he returned from captivity. This is not like him.”

“I believe he realized his mistake, for the chieftains were released before James left Inverness.”

“Little good that does the five innocent men he executed,” Graeme said bitterly.

“Had ye gone to Inverness, ye would have been one of those unfortunate men,” Heath muttered. “The floods couldna have come to Stonehaven at a better time.”

Graeme concurred wholeheartedly.

Blair hadn’t been lying. His life
had
been in jeopardy. And she had saved it.

“Where are ye going?” Heath asked when Graeme surged from his chair.

“To beg my wife’s forgiveness. Call a meeting of the clan. My people need to hear what I have to say.”

Blair awoke slowly and stretched, amazed at how contented she felt. Graeme might not love her, but he made love to her as if he did. More importantly, the coldness she had felt since Graeme had turned away from her no longer plagued her. She had no idea what it all meant, for her voices had been ominously silent of late.

Moments later, Graeme burst into the chamber. She feared something terrible had happened until she saw his face. His expression was one of wonderment and, amazingly, respect.

“What is it?” Blair cried. “Is aught amiss?”

“Nay, lass,” Graeme said as he lowered himself to the edge of the bed. “Everything is well, very well indeed.”

“Are you going to tell me, or must I drag it from you?”

“You saved my life. Had I gone to Inverness, I would have been accused of treason and executed along with five other Highland chieftains. The remaining chieftains were imprisoned in Edinburgh.”

Blair gasped. “Treason? How can that be?”

“Evidently James uncovered a plot by Walter, Earl of Atholl, to win the throne. He accused the chieftains of conspiring with his enemies.”

“Why would James suspect you of being one of the conspirators? How do you know what happened at Inverness?”

Graeme gave a snort of disgust. “Mayhap you should ask your brother, or MacKay. They are thick as thieves with the king. I wouldna be surprised if they named me one of the conspirators simply to be rid of me. I learned what happened just this morning, when Heath returned from Inverness. He hired a boat and rowed across the loch.”

“I dinna ken why Niall or MacKay want your death.”

“Do you not? Your brother doesna want to part with your dowry. After hearing what went on at Inverness, I no longer doubt your powers. Forgive me, my love. Next time you warn me of danger, it willna take a flood to make a believer of me.”

Blair’s shoulders slumped. “My powers are gone.”

“How do you know?”

“There is a strange emptiness inside me. ’Tis as if I’ve lost an important part of myself.”

He pulled her into his arms. “Is there aught I can do to help you?”

Love me
. “Nay, I shouldna have fallen in love with a man who canna return my love.”

Graeme went still. “Blair, I—”

“Nay, dinna say anything, Graeme. Forget I said that. Every word of the Prophecy is familiar to me, and I deliberately ignored the warning about loving in vain. I should have heeded you when you said you couldna love me.”

Graeme appeared at a loss for words. Then his brow furrowed, as if he remembered something. “Alyce said you were carrying my bairn. Is she right?”

Blair’s hands flew to her stomach. “I dinna think so. If I am, ’tis too soon to tell.”

Graeme pondered her words, then nodded, apparently willing to accept her answer. “You will tell me if I’m to become a father, will you not?”

“Of course. Why would I not?”

He searched her face, then said, “Get dressed and come down to the hall with me. I want everyone to know you saved my life. I dinna want my clansmen thinking ill of you. They should know you brought the rains for a good reason.”

Blair recoiled. “Graeme, nay! If you explain about the rains, they will think I am a witch. Dinna you ken how dangerous that is? Right now your clansmen can only speculate. They have no proof I did anything. But if you admit I summoned the spirits of nature, their fear of me will intensify. Whether or not I saved your life will make little difference. They will see me as evil.”

“But—”

“Leave it alone, Graeme. I dinna want to give Gunna any excuse to accuse me of using witchcraft.”

“I banished Gunna from the village. You have naught to fear from her.”

Blair blanched. “She is an old woman. Where will she go?”

“She is a MacKay by birth. They will take her in.” Graeme’s expression grew thoughtful. “I told Heath to gather everyone in the hall. I have to tell them something—they’ll expect it.”

“Tell them anything but the truth.”

“Verra well, but I still want you beside me. Hurry. I’ll wait while you dress.”

Blair hurried through her morning ablutions while Graeme watched, his eyes hooded and intense. Blair sensed his desire and felt her body responding. But Graeme must have realized that now was not the time to give in to lust, for he turned his back while she finished dressing.

“I am ready,” Blair said as she braided her long, pale hair and wound the braid around her head.

Graeme offered his arm. “Let us not keep my clansmen waiting.”

Blair had no idea what Graeme intended to tell his people. She knew they feared her, and she wondered what Graeme could say to ease their minds. Talk ceased the moment they entered the hall. Blair wanted to cringe at the sullen looks directed at her but walked steadily beside Graeme.

Graeme signaled for silence, and when he gained the attention he sought, began to speak. He started by explaining why King James had summoned the Highland chieftains to Inverness. Cries of protest filled the hall at the king’s treachery.

“If not for the floods, I would have gone to Inverness and been executed along with five other unfortunate chieftains. Heath was there. He brought word of the executions. Forty others were charged with treason. The king ordered them taken to Edinburgh and imprisoned.

“He rescinded those orders when he received word that the English army was massing at the border and threatening to take Sterling if his ransom wasn’t paid. James needs the Highlanders’ help to raise money for his ransom. He also needs them to fight on his behalf should the English invade.”

“What about those poor bastards he executed?” Stuart asked. “Did he strip their families of their lands?”

“I believe ’twas his intention,” Heath answered. “But he left Inverness with his army before he gave the order. For the time being, their families are safe.”

“Thank God for the flood!” someone yelled.

A chorus of ayes followed.

Graeme signaled for silence. “Had I gone to Inverness as planned, I would have been executed. But as you well know, I committed no treason.”

“ ’Twas MacArthur and MacKay who accused our laird,” Heath declared.

“ ’Tis the witch’s fault,” a voice from the back of the hall charged.

“My wife is blameless!” Graeme shouted over the din. “Yesterday she was attacked by a group of irate villagers. She almost died at their hands. My lady was thrown into the loch and would have drowned, had I not been nearby.

“I am giving everyone fair warning. I will not tolerate violence of any kind against my wife. She is innocent of any wrongdoing. ’Tis her brother who wishes me ill. He doesna want to part with Blair’s dowry. Anyone who tries to harm Blair will be punished. Do I make myself clear?”

“She has bewitched ye!” one of Graeme’s clansmen charged.

Graeme smiled at Blair. “Aye, Robbie, but not in the way you think. One day you or yours might need Blair’s healing skills, and when that day comes, you will be glad for her help.”

He grasped her hand and held it against his heart. “I am wed to a Faery Woman and glad of it. Go now and spread the word. I will protect what is mine with my dying breath.”

Blair couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Graeme’s protective words meant everything to her. No one except her parents and those MacArthurs who knew and loved her had ever spoken in her defense.

“Thank you,” Blair whispered as Graeme seated her at the high table.

“You saved my life. ’Tis the least I can do.” He kissed her forehead. “I have to go. There’s still work to be done on the bridge.”

The following days were some of the happiest Blair had ever known. During the day she worked with her herbs, and at night she lay in Graeme’s arms, making love until exhaustion claimed them.

It was wonderful waking up with Graeme beside her. Sometimes they made love in the morning, and she savored those precious moments, for something told her they wouldn’t last. All her life it had seemed that happiness lay just beyond her reach. Others might attain it, but not she.

One day Blair was in the stillroom when Alyce burst through the door. “Father Lachlan is here to see ye, lass. He says there’s sickness at Gairloch.”

“Oh, no! I must speak to him at once. Pack my herbs and medicines. If my kinsmen need my skills, I will go to them.”

“Yer husband will have something to say about that,” Alyce huffed. “I dinna think he will let ye go.”

“We will see about that,” Blair said as she rushed out the door.

Father Lachlan was waiting in the hall. His face lit up when he saw Blair.

“Ye’re looking well, lass,” the priest said.

“I am verra well, Father. What’s amiss at Gairloch?”

“I dinna know the nature of the illness that has felled yer brother, for he allows no one inside his chamber but one or two trusted servants. I offered to hear his confession and anoint him, but I was refused entrance to the sickroom.”

“Are others sick as well? What of Gavin and Cook?”

“Niall has dismissed yer father’s people and replaced them with those loyal to him. No one else is sick that I know of. Niall’s man told me he has been asking for you.”

Blair’s eyes went round with disbelief. “Niall is asking for me? ’Tis passing strange that he would do so.”

“I thought the same. What prompted me to come here was fear that his sickness would spread. Niall wouldna ask for ye unless he believed he was dying. There is no skilled healer at Gairloch, and I fear a contagious disease will decimate our people. Will ye come to Gairloch with me, lass?”

Blair considered Lachlan’s request. She knew the priest would neither harm her nor allow her to be harmed, but at the same time she wouldn’t put trickery past Niall. Still, if there was sickness at Gairloch, her kinsmen needed her skills to prevent an epidemic. She thanked God that despite her loss of powers, she still retained her healing skills and knowledge of herbs.

“Verra well, Father. When do you wish to leave?”

“The sooner the better, lass. I will speak with yer husband first, however.”

As if on cue, Graeme strode into the hall. “Father Lachlan, I heard you were here. Is something wrong?”