Everyone froze. Even Lindsey turned to the source of the voice, finding herself looking into the eyes of a man in his mid-fifties, as wide as he was tall, wrapped in thick furs despite the warmth of the summer sun.
“An intruder,” one of the guards said, grabbing hold of Lindsey by the arm.
The other also latched himself onto her. “We think she’s an English spy.”
“I’m no spy,” Lindsey replied, fighting to free herself. “I need to see Tavish.”
The enormous man beckoned her over. The guards lifted her off her feet and carried her squirming form over to him. He looked down at her without smiling. “What do you want with Tavish Sinclair?”
“I need to speak to him. Please, it won’t take a moment. I beg you.”
The man again examined her. “You ken, I’ve been laird here for thirty-six years and I’ve only once before seen one with eyes as honest as yours.” His voice came down as he spoke until he sounded almost warm. “You’ll find him in the infirmary.”
She followed his pointing finger as the guards slowly relaxed their grip. As soon as she was free, she ran over to the infirmary, pushing the door open before stopping dead.
There he was, leaning over a bed, administering drops of something into the mouth of an elderly man who had his eyes closed.
There was something around the old man’s neck. A locket. “Is that-?”
Tavish turned to look at her. “The laird gave my mother’s back to me. Thought it might help him recover.” He got to his feet slowly. “You’re looking well.”
“So are you.” Lindsey’s heart pounded as Tavish marched over to her, wondering what he was about to say, whether he was going to send her away as she’d done to him.
Before she knew what was happening, he put his hands on her cheeks and kissed her. This time she didn’t pull away.
Instead, she closed her eyes, breathing in his scent.
His hands slid down her back, drawing her body against his. The kiss deepened and her knees turned weak. If it wasn’t for his grip on her she would have fallen. At last, he pulled away and she returned to earth from somewhere high in the clouds.
He smiled at her. “Ah thought ah’d lost you.”
“I thought you hated me.” She could still feel his lips on hers.
“Ah thought this was what ah wanted. For me father tae be free and for me to be back in ma home.” He fell silent for a moment before continuing. “Ah want you, Lindsey MacMillan.”
A laugh and a sob left Lindsey at the same time. She put a hand to her mouth to calm herself, looking down and taking a deep breath before speaking. “I’m sorry for what I said. I didn’t mean it. I was just…I was scared.”
“No, you were right, lass. You need tae look after your mother while you have one. Ah shouldnae have been so selfish, asking ye tae stay wi’ me.”
“It wasn’t selfish. It was honest and I couldn’t handle it. I’m sorry, Tavish. Can you forgive me?”
“There’s no forgiving tae dae.”
“You don’t hate me then? I was so afraid you’d hate me.”
“Hate ye? Ah love you.”
Her heart soared out of her chest and into the air, she floated upward, leaving the floor until he grabbed her and kissed her again.
“I love you too,” she said between embraces.
It was some time before they parted again. Tavish frowned. “But what about your mother.”
“I don’t need to leave here to show her where the locket is.”
“What? But how, what are ye going tae dae?”
Footsteps sounded behind Lindsey. She glanced behind her in time to see a gaunt man in white robes walking in. “How is he?” the man asked.
“Lindsey, this is Robert, our apothecary.” He nodded to the figure by the door. “He’s still sleeping, Robert.”
“That’s good,” the apothecary replied, nodding toward Lindsey. “Go get some rest. There’s nothing you can do until he wakes up.”
“Will he live?”
“Another month in the deleterious miasma of the dungeon and I’d have said no but you got him out in time. He’ll recover soon enough. Now go, he needs peace. I will tend to him.”
“Send for me as soon as he wakes.”
“Of course.”
Lindsey looked down, surprised to find her hand entwined with Tavish’s. They walked out of the infirmary together.
“I want to stay,” Lindsey said. “If you’ll have me.”
“Ah couldnae have any other. But if you have tae go, ah understand. Ah willnae stop you.”
“I know and that means the world that you would say that.”
“I still dinnae understand what you’re going tae dae about the locket.”
She told him about her idea, writing a message in the book. “I only wish there was some way of knowing if she’ll get it.”
“Perhaps the druid might have a suggestion about that. Where is he anyway?”
“Probably waiting for his horse to come back to him. He let me borrow it to ride here.”
“Quinn let you ride his horse? Wonders never cease. Are you sure this is what you want? Tae be here with me.”
“Aye,” she said with a smile. “It’s the only thing I want.”
15
Lindsey got up from her armchair and looked out through the window. It was the same view as ever and she was yet to get used to it. Castle life going on down there as it did every single day.
Still no sign of Tavish. She sat back down, promising herself she’d wait at least ten minutes before checking again. The pile of wood shavings at her feet grew taller. In her hands was the figure she’d been carving since he left. She wanted to get it finished before he got back, a gift to thank him for everything he’d done for her.
The horn blew just as she was getting to her feet again to look out the window. Two blasts. That could mean only one thing.
Taking the stairs two at a time she was in the courtyard before the gates were open, craning her neck to observe the returning party.
There was the laird, as big as ever, his huge warhorse the only beast capable of bearing his weight. He was laughing and slapping Tavish on the back as they rode in together.
She ran through the crowd, reaching her husband in time to see him climbing down from his horse.
“Lindsey!” he said, sweeping her into his arms and holding her tight. “Ah’ve missed thee something wicked.”
“Did you find her?”
“Aye, we did.”
“And?”
“And we were lucky not to be attacked. The laird told me everything that’s been happening in the war since my exile. You must be ma lucky charm. Berwick’s been sacked and Edward’s close to taking Stirling again.”
“We can talk about all that later. What happened with Lilias? Did she confess?”
“Let’s get inside first, lass.” He took her hand, walking through the crowd and into the keep. Then it was up the stairs Lindsey had come to know so well.
Past the great hall, past the laird’s chamber, up to the top floor where crammed in beside the dovecote was the private rooms of the laird in waiting.
“You’ve kept it nice while ah’ve been away,” Tavish said, throwing his cloak onto the back of a chair.
“I’ve done nothing. The serving girls work hard to impress a laird in waiting. I better hope none of them catch your eye.”
“There’s none in this world or the next as fair as you, Lindsey. You need fear no serving girls. And what’s this?” He picked up the carving.
“Your parents and mine,” she replied, watching as he examined the carving closely. “Well, Quinn served as the model for my father, but you get the idea? Do you like it?”
Tavish looked up at her. “It looks beautiful. As do you.”
He placed the carving back on the table before crossing to Lindsey, grabbing hold of her and kissing her in that way she had missed more than anything else while he’d been gone.
They’d been toget
her a year, married six months, and yet still his kisses made her go weak at the knees. His hands ran down the small of her back.
“Is it time for bed yet?” he asked, cupping her buttocks gently.
“Not even close,” she replied, swatting his hands away. “Your father wishes to speak to you.”
Tavish groaned. “He can wait. Ah have more important matters to discuss with ma wife.”
“Oh yes, like what?”
“Like whether she wants to see the finished book.”
She leaped for joy. “He got it done while you were away?”
“Aye. The scribes have even produced a copy for us. It is a late wedding gift and an apology.”
“An apology?” Lindsey frowned while Tavish rummaged in his bag. “What for?”
He brought out the leather-bound volume before answering. “For not believing my father and for exiling me.”
“She confessed then?”
“Aye.”
“Where did you find her? Was she at the nunnery?”
“Lilias? We got there just in time. The Mother Superior is sending her to work with lepers on St. Jura, the isle toward the land of the North men.”
“Norway?”
“Is that what it’s called in your time?”
“This is my time, Tavish.”
“Aye, but ye ken what ah mean.”
“Come on, get to the point. I’ve waited a month to hear this story.”
“She couldnae live with the guilt of what she’d done, blaming me for the death of Margaret. She took herself off to the nunnery to shut herself off from the world and beg forgiveness for what she’d done. We were lucky.”
“Lucky?”
“Aye. Her Mother Superior told her to beg my forgiveness when ah got there. Let me in to see her in person. You should have seen the laird’s face. Two men given consent to enter a nunnery.”
“I can imagine.”
“She told him what really happened. Margaret went up on the roof when I rejected her and Lilias followed. The princess teetered too close to the edge and when a gust of wind caught her she started to fall. Lilias could have caught her but she didnae.
“She watched her fall tae her death, knowing she had the perfect change to get revenge on me for not loving her. Mother Superior said working in the leper colony would be the best way to atone for almost plunging the whole country into war.”
Lindsey shook her head slowly. “Now everyone knows the truth.”
“Aye, I return home an innocent man once again. Now do you want to look in this book or should I go deposit it in the library?”
She took the book from him and flicked through the pages. It felt surreal seeing the actual volume that had been referenced in the book she’d read before.
“This was one of the sources in the book I read about you,” she said, turning the pages slowly. “The colors are stunning.”
The writing had been interspersed with illustrations that were some of the finest work she’d ever seen. Toward the middle of the book, there were pages she didn’t recall reading about.
She glanced up at Tavish before continuing. Did he know how much had changed?
No longer did the story of Tavish Sinclair end in mystery, his disappearance was only the start of pages of description of the good he had done for the clan. Because of him, the clans had reunited.
Lindsey stopped, reading a sentence twice. She hadn’t been mistaken. That was her name right there in black ink on vellum.
‘Then Lindsey MacMillan guided Tavish Sinclair to Castle MacIntyre. There the sacred stone of Clan Sinclair was received in the spirit of friendship from the erstwhile bitter rival of the Sinclairs. With its return, the clans were bonded for all time and the defense of Scotland strengthened beyond measure in preparation to repel Edward. As a reward for all she had done, Lindsey MacMillan was given freedom by the laird of the Sinclairs to speak these words to the future and forevermore let these words shine forth for all those to read who praise God and love the Highlands as a free land for God’s people below Him upon high.’
She turned the page and there it was, her message to her mother. She read it. Then she read it again. Three, four, five times. It was really there. She ran her hands over the letters, expecting them to melt away. They remained as real as the touch of Tavish’s fingers on her shoulder.
“I told you I’d think of a way to get a message to your ma,” Tavish said.
She looked up to see him smiling. “You thought of it, did you?”
“You might have helped.”
They laughed. Taking his hand, she moved it down to the flat of her stomach, holding it there with her fingers entwined with his. “I have something to confess,” she said as realization dawned on his face.
“You’re not?”
She nodded. “I thought I was late when you went, but now I’m certain.”
A voice interrupted them from the doorway. “What are you two looking so happy about?”
They turned to find Fingal leaning on his walking stick. While Tavish had been away he’d improved in leaps and bounds. The apothecary had worked wonders and he no longer looked like a skeleton, his skin clean, the sores healing. The only sign of his prolonged incarceration was a fading limp.
He took a step into the room. “Ah heard you were back, Tavish. The laird tells me all is well. Your record is expunged. I suppose you have much to smile about.”
“Aye, Father,” Tavish said. “Once he knew the truth, he signed the contract. He has no prime heir of his blood. I am to be laird as recompense for what was done to thee and me, and my children after me will inherit the title.”
“Wonderful,” Fingal said with a smile. “And to think you might have ended your days an outlaw if you hadn’t met yon lass there.”
“Aye. Though that is not why we smile.” Tavish kept his hand pressed to Lindsey’s stomach.
Fingal’s smile broadened, his eyes growing wide. “You dinnae mean…is it true?”
Lindsey grinned. “I’m pregnant.”
Fingal threw his stick away, limping over toward her and throwing his arms around them both.
“That’s wonderful,” he said, losing his balance almost at once and falling onto the bed. He sat up laughing. “I am to be a grandfather.” His smile faded. “Your mother would have loved to see this moment.” The smile returned and lit up his face. “No doubt she is watching still. Now pass me my stick or you’ll be stuck with my company all day.”
“Your company is most welcome, Father.”
Fingal got to his feet slowly, holding out his hand for the stick. “I will not keep a man and wife from their reunion. I will see you tonight at dinner.”
By the time the horn blew for the evening meal, Lindsey and Tavish were thoroughly reacquainted. They joined the rest of the clan in the great hall, sitting on the high table beside the laird who called for silence before the food was brought out.
“Some of you will already have heard,” he began, his voice echoing around the candlelit walls. “We all now know the truth of what happened on that dark day so many years ago. Lilias the flower girl did not speak the truth during the trial of Tavish, son of Fingal. Princess Margaret, may she rest in peace, was murdered at the hands of no one. Her death was naught but an accident, most tragic and the fault of none here today.”
Lindsey glanced at Tavish who nodded almost imperceptibly. The laird was not sadistic in his response to finding out the truth. He was willing to show Lilias a little mercy, not mentioning that she could have caught the princess before she fell but chose not to. He continued his speech as the room listened in silence.
“Today we return with the knowledge that the man who was once an outlaw will one day become laird of Clan Sinclair. By his side, none could ask for a better wife and lady than Lindsey who, I dinnae mince my words, saved us all.
“In her name, the village of Tavistock will be rebuilt in honor of her, the sacred stone, and all good people of Clan Sinclair. I ask you now to raise your g
oblets and toast the man and woman who brought back the stone and ended our feud with the MacIntyres.” He lifted his horn cup above his head, mead splashing over the sides. “To Tavish and Lindsey. May they be bonded for all days, past, present, and future.”
“Tavish and Lindsey,” came the response from the crowd.
“Can we no eat yet?” Fingal called out. “I’m starved and you blether on like a fishwife.”
The crowd gasped but the laird just roared with laughter. “Bring in the food!”
The meal began, conversation spreading around the room. Lindsey looked at her husband and then out at the inhabitants of the castle. She smiled to herself. She was truly happy and truly in love.
She had everything she had always needed and the one thing she’d never even realized she wanted. A family with her outlaw Highlander.
Epilogue
They walked the last few yards together. It felt like the right thing to do. “Do you remember when we first came here?” Tavish asked as the carriage rolled on by.
Lindsey waited until the three of them were alone before answering. “How could I forget?”
“I want tae see the hoose!”
Tavish looked down at his son who was straining to run forward.
“Go on then,” he replied with a laugh, letting go of his hand.
Thomas was off like a shot, dashing across the grass and pushing open the door to Tavish’s old house. They watched him go.
“When did he get so big?” Lindsey asked. “It doesn’t seem like two minutes since he learned to walk.”
“It’s getting him to slow down that’s the problem,” Tavish replied. “I cannae keep up with him half the time.”
“You do all right.” She reached up and kissed his cheek before the two of them followed Thomas inside.
The house was finished. In the three years since Thomas had been born it had been completely refurbished. No longer the empty weed-strewn building Tavish remembered, it looked much like it had during his childhood.
He glanced into the main living space, unable to keep the smile from his face. “I’m going to like living here.”
Outlaw Highlander: A Scottish Time Travel Romance Page 12
