Rumors Among the Heather

by Amanda Balfour

  “What of Lord Bonnleigh?” Julie asked. She could see the rebellion was coming to a head, and things did not look good for Scotland or the prince.

  “That’s my second piece of news. His lordship will be here tomorrow night, and you can see for yourself.”

  * * *

  The next night Julie woke to a hand over her mouth. She opened her eyes wide to see Matthew, and after a tender kiss to her forehead, he took his hand away.

  “Oh, Matthew, I’ve been so worried.”

  “I know, but as you can see, I’m still in one piece,” he said with a smile.

  Before he could say another word, Julie was in his arms, kissing him. No other words were spoken. The war was forgotten. The outside world could not touch the need they had for each other. They came together each night and made the most of the short time they had together.

  * * *

  Three days later Matthew prepared to leave. He’d requested his beautiful bride to come to his study. He did not want to leave her, but his obligation to Scotland had to be served. He only wished—

  The door pushed open and Julie rushed into his arms. “Matthew, I don’t want you to leave. I’m so worried. If something happened to you, I don’t know what I would do. These few days we’ve had have been wonderful. I just wish you could stay.” Tears dotted her lashes.

  “Julie, please don’t cry. You know I have to go. I have pledged my support. It tears at my heart to leave you. These few days have been the best days of my life. Don’t worry, I promise I’ll come back to you, and when I do we will never be parted,” Matthew said and kissed her trembling lips.

  “How is the war going, really? Ribble gets the messages, but they are always late and second hand. Does the prince have a chance?”

  “I’m afraid not. I counseled him to go forward into England while the royal army was in disarray, but he would not listen. I’m afraid all is lost, but I can’t turn back now. My fear is that we have given the king’s army time to regroup. They know what they are up against now. They will throw their best at us, and I fear that will be the Duke of Cumberland. All will be coming to a head soon,” Matthew said dispiritedly.

  One last kiss and Matthew left by dark of night with Ribble. Ribble delivered him to the mainland. Matthew made his way through town to the Grant farm where he’d left his horse stabled. He saddled up and rode through the night to meet up with the prince and the rag-tag band of rebels.

  * * *

  Julie could not sleep for worrying. Days went by without any word. Her nerves were on edge. She jumped at the slightest sound. She went about her daily duties but could not keep her mind on her work. When she left the classroom, she paced the floor of her chamber or fell to her knees in prayer. One afternoon as she finished praying, she heard a knock. She opened the door to find Ribble.

  “Ribble, what’s wrong? Is it Matthew? Tell me.”

  “I don’t know about his lordship. What I do know is that all is lost. On the sixteenth of April, Prince Charles met the Duke of Cumberland at Culloden. Culloden was no place to pick for a battle. It’s too marshy. I heard his lordship tried to persuade the prince to choose another, but he wouldn’t. By this time, our Highlanders were in disarray. The Duke of Perth didn’t understand Murray’s orders, and I’m ashamed to say the MacDonalds held on to an insult and ignored him. They always charged from the right, and they were placed on the left. From what I hear Lord Bonnleigh tried to persuade them to advance, but they refused.

  “Cumberland kept his troops where they were and continued to bombard us. Finally the prince gave the order to advance—too late. It is the end of everything. Cumberland made the battlefield a massacre, and the prince is in hiding.

  “I’ve not heard what happened to his lordship. It’s early days yet, so don’t lose hope. I’m going back to Grant’s farm to see if there is any more news,” Ribble said and left quietly.

  Julie continued on at the castle as before, but with a tension she could not assuage. Each day she watched for Ribble, afraid he would tell her Matthew was wounded—or worse.

  Her marriage, in fact her entire life was not what she’d hoped for. It had been three months since her last monthly course. Every morning upon rising she became ill. She carried Matthew’s child. A blessing…but also a curse. With their marriage a secret, if her condition became known she would be considered a fallen woman. So she tried to hide her pregnancy from the staff by having her breakfast in her room. Of course the food would not stay down, but she found various ways to dispose of it without anyone finding out.

  She lost so much weight from her morning sickness that her predicament did not show. Luckily, there was not a hint of gossip in the servants’ quarters. No one took time for anything but the news of the doomed rebellion. No matter how she felt, she kept to her daily routine.

  The winter’s chill in the air did not keep Julie away from the garden whenever Ian had his riding lesson. This afternoon, she found a sheltered area away from the wind. The sun shone brightly and warmed her little nook. Exhausted from her pregnancy and sleepless nights, she closed her eyes. Almost asleep, at first she thought she imagined the voices, but upon looking between the foliage keeping her from view, she recognized the gardener and a helper from the village.

  “Hoots, toots, ye should’ve lived back in them days. The MacDonalds were a wild bunch and still are, especially Lord Bonnleigh. At the time, rumors flew that he was ta marry Master Ian’s mum before she run off with his brother Michael, ye ken,” the gardener said with a chuckle.

  “It’s a wonder there wasn’t blood spilled over that. Many a brother has been killed for less,” chimed in his assistant.

  “Aye, there would’ve been, had it nae been for the old man. They say wickedness skips a generation sometimes. He was as straight as a preacher. He packed Bonnleigh off to France. However, he never forgave his son. He kept up a good front. He dinnae let any outsiders know it. They bluffed it out. Pretended Michael was supposed to marry the lady all along. Pretty soon people forgot, but I guess Lord Bonnleigh never did. He never came back for longer than a day or two until his brother died.”

  “I heard Lord Bonnleigh was a wild one. Rumors always have some truth in them, eh?” the assistant said with a laugh.

  “Yep, jest as wild as his grandfather. Lord Bonnleigh looks the spitting image of the old sinner too. Same cold eyes. From what I hear, same rake as the old man. Every time he comes home to lick his wounds, every Christian woman on the island knows to keep her daughter close at hand and that’s a fact.”

  “You’ve been a gardener here a long time. What did the old man do that caused such a scandal?”

  “Not just him, but most of his ancestors before him did the same thing. One favorite trick they were famous for pulling was this. If there was this comely lass from the village, or a governess, say, that he took a fancy to, he wanted her favors, and most of them were good Christian girls and not likely to give their favors freely, if you know what I mean,” he said with a smirk. “He would promise ta marry them. The reluctant ones he even went so far as to take to the church and have a fake marriage ceremony performed,” he said, shaking his head.

  “Lord, man, that’s sacrilege. Did the poor stupid lasses really believe all this?”

  “Why wouldnae they believe it? They’d go to the church at night. His lordship would pretend to have a special license. The regular minister would conveniently be out of town, and a new minister would go through the ceremony. Then he would invent some excuse not to announce the wedding. Back in them days there was always some war or feud going on. It was easy to think of a reason,” he said with a laugh.

  The men walked away, and Julie sat still as a statue, unable to move. What the men said was her story. The knot in her throat threatened to choke her.

  Getting up to walk, her head reeled. She took several steps toward the castle before she collapsed in a heap. Sometime later, Julie wasn’t sure how much time had passed, Ribble found her and helped her to her feet.
/>   “Ribble, I’ve got to go to the mainland immediately! Please get a boat ready for me.”

  “Ye cannae go by yourself!”

  “Get a boat ready. I have to go right away,” she said urgently, grabbing him by the lapels of his coat. She would not release her grip until he promised to help.

  “I’ll take ye across myself.”

  She relaxed her hold and with Ribble to steady her, she walked down to the beach.

  Silence covered the boat as they made their way to the mainland. When Ribble beached the craft, she got out immediately and started walking. Julie barely noticed her surroundings. When Ribble caught up with her, Julie was at the church’s door. She needed to see the registry. The pages contained all the records of marriages, births, and deaths. Her hands shook as she searched each page, but she found nothing showing a listing of her marriage to Matthew.

  “May I help you?”

  Julie stifled a cry and turned around. “You frightened me!” Putting her hands to her cheeks, she took a deep breath to restore her composure and continued. “A wedding was performed here the first week in August of last year, but I don’t see a record of it,” she said, pointing to the page where it should have been.

  The young curate immediately responded. “I wasn’t here at the time, and the previous vicar wasn’t here either. He has since retired, you know. I don’t see how this marriage could have been performed on that date. Perhaps you are mistaken.”

  “No, no, I’m not mistaken.” Her words tumbled out in a desperate gush.

  “Perhaps you could check with the caretaker. His cottage is behind the manse. I’ll take you there.”

  “No, that won’t be necessary. I know where it is. Thank you for your help,” she said over her shoulder and hurried out.

  Julie ran to the caretaker’s cottage and pounded on his door. Her shoulders slumped in relief when he opened it—the man standing before her was the other witness. Her legs felt like undercooked fruit, but she steadied herself by holding onto the post by the door. “What can I do for ye?” he asked.

  “There are some things I must know. You were a witness at my wedding. You have to tell me, was the minister a real minister? Please, I have to know,” she pleaded.

  “I don’t know what ye be talkin’ about. I’m a caretaker, not a mind reader. Go on about yer business. Why are ye trying to get an honest man like meself into trouble? I got paid to keep my mouth shut about what happened. That’s all I know. That’s all I want to know. Get away from my door,” he said nastily and slammed it in her face.

  Tears burned her cheeks as she stood staring at the closed door. Ribble touched her hand and gently pulled her away. They walked back to the boat landing, but Julie did not speak until they were halfway to the island.

  “I thought you were my friend, Ribble. How could you let such a thing happen without telling me?”

  “Never said I wasn’t yer friend. What are ye talkin’ about?”

  “My marriage is a fake. It’s all been done before. I’m ruined, Ribble. I trusted him.”

  “Don’t you remember me being there? I witnessed the marriage and signed the book. What’s the matter with ye?”

  “There’s no record of our marriage in the church. I heard the gardener talking. He said Matthew’s grandfather had done this before. He said Matthew’s just like his grandfather.” She broke into sobs.

  They drifted for a while before Ribble spoke. “It did happen in the old days, but I dinnae think his lordship would do such a thing. I’ve known the man since he was a bairn. There must be some other explanation. I’ll go back myself tomorrow and look in the registry. The entry must be there. Maybe he put it on the wrong page. It was dark, and we were in such a hurry.”

  “I won’t be able to stay here much longer. No one knows how long the redcoats will stay in Scotland. Matthew and the prince are hiding out. I don’t know where they are, and I have to go before anyone finds out.”

  “Finds out about the bairn,” Ribble said shyly.

  “Who else knows? I can’t stay. I must leave right away,” Julie said in a panic.

  “Calm down, lass. Nobody else knows. I just put two and two together. I’ll not hear of ye leaving until his lordship comes back. He’ll straighten this all out.”

  “If I stay until he comes back, I won’t be able to go. I love him too much. Even now that I know what he’s done, I can’t be angry with him. I have to leave. I couldn’t stand the looks of shock and pity when everyone finds out.” She began to sob again.

  Chapter Six

  In the weeks that followed, misery and betrayal threatened to drown Julie. Helpless in a sea of emotional turmoil, she fought for control of her feelings. She tried desperately to go on as if nothing was wrong. Woodenly she went about her lessons with Ian and then shut herself away when the lessons were over. Her face did not betray her inner turmoil or emotion, but she had lost any sparkle of life. When someone spoke to her, they had to repeat everything.

  Into her fourth month of pregnancy, the morning sickness left her. Although she still had no desire for food, she forced herself to eat because of the baby. Her body had started to change, and she knew she would have to leave soon. Her pride could not bear to let anyone know what a fool she had been.

  Her cousin Hannah and Robert St. Clair would be back from their honeymoon in another month. They had spent a year traveling through Europe and missed the rebellion.

  Julie knew she should wait and confide in Hannah, but she could not. Hannah would do anything for her, but she would not burden her cousin with her problems. Neither did she want Hannah touched by the shame and reproach she would have to bear. The best thing to do would be to leave on her own without telling anyone. The days were becoming nicer since winter had fled. The spring rainstorms had begun to wane, and she felt now would be the time to leave.

  She had almost all the money from the sale of her parents’ belongings, and she had her wages as governess. If she left within the next month, she would have enough to keep her until the baby came, and if she found employment immediately after the birth, they would not starve. She only had to decide where to go.

  With her mind made up, she went in search of Ribble. Julie found him down by the boats repairing one using a combination of tar and oakum.

  “I’ve decided to leave. I can’t wait much longer. Will you help me?”

  Ribble looked at her for a long time before he spoke. Nodding his head, he said, “Aye, that I will. If ye’re intent on leaving, I know some people would keep ye. They’re common country folks, but they’d be good to ye…and the bairn.”

  Before Julie could say anything, his face took on a more serious look. “He’s coming tonight. I’m going over to the mainland to fetch him when I spy his signal,” he said matter-of-factly as he continued repairing the boat.

  His words rocked Julie from head to toe. Her heart beat faster. She felt weak, unable to stand. The ground seemed to whirl up in front of her. She reached out her hand to hold onto the boat to steady herself. She did not know what she expected from the confusion in her life, but certainly not a confrontation with Matthew so soon. Still, it needed to be done. He was the father of her child.

  “I’ll go in your place. I have to speak to him…alone,” she said unsteadily.

  “Aye, I figured as much. It’s why I waited to tell ye.”

  Ribble came for Julie just as the midnight bell pealed. “’Tis time, lass. He’ll be reaching the shore about the same time as ye, if ye leave at once.”

  She stood up and followed him without saying a word. When they reached the beach, he gave her some last-minute instructions about where to meet Matthew and about steering the boat. Julie listened but thoughts of Matthew crowded out the words.

  Soon she would see Matthew. Her heart rose up in her throat. Her legs felt too shaky to hold her up, but somehow she managed to get into the boat. Ribble pushed her away from the shore and watched as the wind filled her sail, pushing her stiffly toward the mainland.


  Julie looked back just as a flash of light shot up from the island. She continued to look but could see nothing else. Could it have been lightning, although she did not see a cloud in the sky, or possibly Ribble signaling to Matthew to watch for her arrival?

  She reached the appointed meeting place a mile down the beach north of Gairloch. Julie beached the boat and sat down to wait. An hour passed without any sign of Matthew. Growing more nervous as the minutes ticked by, she jumped as the crunch of a footfall broke the serenity of the deserted beach. Julie saw movement out of the corner of her eye. To her left, a man appeared. He moved quickly toward her from the sand dunes.

  Her heart constricted watching him approach from out of the mist. His smile suspended time. She could not move. She stood rooted to the spot waiting for his kiss, his touch to awaken her.

  Matthew’s heart leaped in his chest when Julie looked up at him and smiled the sweetest smile he had ever seen. He held her close then held her at arm’s length to get a good look at her. She had lost weight and looked pale. This caused him concern, but his joy at seeing his wife again drove all questions from his mind. He would have time enough to find out about all she had been doing while he had been gone.

  “Julie, I’ve missed you more than you’ll ever know. I’ve been through a nightmare trying to get here. Soldiers are everywhere. I narrowly missed being picked up coming through town. One of them reacted as if he recognized me, but he said nothing. Quickly, let’s get out to sea before anyone else sees us,” he said urgently as the hair stood up on the back of his neck. He turned around to see the beach being overrun with an angry, drunken mob.

  A man from the crowd swung and connected with Matthew’s jaw. He fell to the ground, rolled, and came to his feet. Someone else grabbed him from behind and held him while another started punching him in the stomach. Matthew braced himself against the man holding him, and when the man drew back to deliver another blow, he kicked out and knocked him down. Matthew threw the man holding him over his shoulders, and drew his sword and killed one of the men coming at him. The men formed a circle, and step-by-step they closed ranks. One of the men took up a piece of driftwood and struck the sword from Matthew’s hand. Two more of the mob grabbed Matthew while the others took turns beating him into submission.