by Alisa Adams
Highland Savior
Adamina Young
Alisa Adams
Contents
Highland Savior
1. Rosina
2. Maisie
3. Logan
4. Alasdair
5. The Wedding
6. After the Wedding
7. A Few Moments Earlier…
8. Covering Up
9. The Body
10. Aftermath
11. Connor
12. The Funeral
13. Maisie and Hugh
14. A Proposal
15. Logan's Thoughts
16. Talking to Logan
17. A Conversation
18. A Plan
19. Dinner at Rosie's
20. Sweet Dreams and Nightmares
21. Acting the Part
22. More Coffee
23. Dinner with Connor
24. Connor's Proposition
25. Fort William
26. Annie
27. Setting Off
28. Arriving at Annie's
29. Monique
30. The Promise
31. The Sight
32. Monique and Hugh -A Confession
33. Making Love
34. Laughing and Crying
35. Drunk
36. A Big Decision
37. Cockles and Mussels
38. Juliette and Monique
39. Letters
40. The Restless Logan
41. Trouble
42. Fort Augustus
43. The Lost Letter
44. Connor's Discovery
45. Battle of Words
46. Sanctuary
47. Logan's Story
48. Loretta
49. Maisie's Decision
50. Annie and Callum
51. Back to the Lowlands
52. Hiding Place
53. Christmas
54. Rosina's Story
55. Speaking to Sam
56. Preparing for Battle
57. Connor's Story
58. A Surprise
59. The Wedding
60. Afterglow
Highland Savior
By
Adamina Young
Alisa Adams
© 2018 All Rights Reserved
* * *
Disclaimer:
This book is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to any actual person, living or dead, is purely coincidental, since the characters herein exist only in the mind of the author. All events are fictional. Inverness, Loch Ness, Fort Augustus and Fort William are real places in the Highlands of Scotland. Dumbarton, Dumbarton Castle, Renton, Glasgow, Greenock, the islands of Cumbrae, Little Cumbrae, Bute, Arran and the River Clyde are all real, Castle Mhor and Castle Fraser are not. This book is for entertainment purposes only.
When Rosina Buchanan gets married to the dashing Alasdair McPhail, she has no idea she has wed an abusive monster. On their wedding night she kills him in self defense after he tries to rape her. She is helped by the dour and disliked Laird Logan Fraser, who arranges the murder scene to look like a robbery. But soon someone is spreading rumors that Logan had committed the killing and he is soon a wanted man. After fleeing to the Highlands, he and Rosina fall in love. Meanwhile Connor, Alasdair's brother has arranged to marry a beautiful Frenchwoman called Monique, but she has a passion for Rosina's father Hugh, which is returned. Will Connor take revenge? And will Logan be able to clear his name?
1
Rosina
Lady Rosina Buchanan thought that Alasdair McPhail was the most charming, handsome man she had ever seen. He had luxuriant dark brown hair and dark gray eyes with laugh lines around them, an aquiline nose and a mouth that seemed almost about to twitch into a smile. He wasn't as tall as Logan Fraser, but then few men were. But Fraser had never shown any interest in her and was known for his introverted, sullen nature, whereas Alasdair was bright, charming, witty and intelligent. She couldn't wait to be married to him, be with him every day, and have his children. She wondered if they would have her dramatic coloring of ginger-red hair and brown eyes or be dark like Alasdair's Spanish ancestors. She did not know if those tales about his forebears were true, but they added to his attraction in her eyes. He was considerably older than she was and had been married before, but his wife had died of scarlet fever twelve years before. His two children, a boy, and a girl were now married and had homes of their own, and he saw very little of them.
* * *
She stood at the window of her bedroom in the Castle of Dumbarton looking across at the majestic River Clyde flowing past on its way to the sea. Alasdair McPhail had lost his own stately home when his father and he had had a major disagreement resulting in an estrangement between them. The quarrel had never been forgotten or forgiven by either side. When his father died he bequeathed it to his younger son with along with most of his estate, apart from the town house where Alasdair now lived. Alasdair still mourned the loss of the castle, and could never understand why his father had done such a thing since it completely went against custom and tradition. He was given an adequate allowance though, and could still live in considerable comfort in his town house. It was well known that he and Connor, his junior by five years, despised each other. Rosina had begged Connor to come to the wedding, writing him letter after letter, but apart from a short, terse response to the first one, she had heard nothing. She despised him for being a heartless coward.
* * *
Their courtship had begun when her late mother's friend, Lady Melrose of Kirkintilloch, had arranged a ball to celebrate the anniversary of her thirty years of marriage to her husband, Laird David. Rosina had noticed the dark, attractive man with the mischievous smile and melodic laugh straight away. He was the most handsome man in the room and no other man could hold a candle to him. She was overjoyed when he asked her to dance, and he kept his gray eyes locked on her brown ones all the way through. When it was ended he bowed over her hand and said: "thank you, Milady. I am sure none of the angels in heaven dance half as well as you do."
* * *
"You are a shameless flatterer, Sir," she laughed, "but compliments are as meat and drink to a lady, as I am sure you know."
Alasdair led her off the dance floor, bowed to her again, then asked a stately woman in a red dress for the next dance. Rosina was very disappointed. He was quite the most charming fellow she had met for ages, and she was completely enchanted by him, so her heart quickened as he approached her again.
"Milady, I must confess that you have bewitched me," he smiled widely and extended his hand, "may I have the honor and the pleasure of this dance?"
She giggled and accepted his invitation willingly. For the rest of the evening he danced only with her, and at the end of the ball he approached her father and asked him if he could formally court his daughter. Her father approved without hesitation and from that day they had been inseparable. They went riding together, attended balls held by the local gentry and took picnics outside when the weather was fine enough, but he seemed to be taking an impossibly long time to propose to her. As a woman, proposing to him was unthinkable, and she was beginning to lose hope when he eventually did ask her to marry him, six months later on a bleak day in the middle of January. Snow had been blanketing the ground for the last week and the castle was freezing except within a twenty feet radius of the big log fires which had been lit in all the rooms.
* * *
Alasdair rode into the castle on a huge black horse wearing a massive fur-lined black cloak with a hood. He looked l
ike Death itself, Rosina thought with a shiver, silhouetted against the dazzling white snow, but as soon as he walked into her apartments he took the cloak off then smiled and the illusion was shattered because that mischievous grin was like the sun coming out. She ran into his arms and tilted her face up for his kiss, then he laughed softly and kissed her, sweetly and tenderly.
* * *
"I count myself a very lucky man to have found you," his voice was husky with emotion and his eyes full of love. Suddenly he knelt down on one knee in front of her and said formally:
* * *
"Rosina, I love you. Will you make me the happiest man in the world and be my wife?"
For a few seconds she had not the breath to speak, then she squealed and burst into tears. Alarmed, Alasdair got up and pulled her into his arms.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, my Love," he said anxiously, "I wouldn't have upset you for the world. I won't ask you again."
Rosina looked up at him, smiling through her tears.
"You don't understand," she replied happily,"these are tears of joy."
She cupped his face in her hands and looked deeply into his eyes, "I will marry you, tomorrow if you wish."
He embraced her tightly.
"I will have to ask your father," he said softly.
"I know, but he will say yes, without a doubt," she said firmly, "he loves you almost as much as I do."
Alasdair lifted her off her feet and whirled her around, both of them laughing happily.
"How much do you love me?" she asked playfully, looking down into his dark eyes.
He pretended to think for a moment.
"Hmmm…" he narrowed his eyes, "as much as the bees love the flowers? As much as the flowers love the sun? As much as Adam loved Eve?"
"And I love you as much as God loves His angels," she kissed him again, "my father is in the library - if you have the courage to speak to him!" She looked at him from under her eyelashes, smiling coyly.
"I would walk through fire for you if you told me to," Alasdair said lovingly, "and now I must go and do just that!"
"Good luck, my Love," Rosina called after him as he left. He stood at the door for a second and blew her a kiss.
She sat tensely by the fire till the short winter day began to fade into twilight and the housemaid came to light the candles.
Her own maid, Maisie, came in to ask if she wanted something to eat but she refused, sighing,
"Father and Alasdair have been in the library for an age discussing our possible marriage and I am so afraid Father will refuse," she looked up into Maisie's dark brown eyes, but the girl only smiled.
"Your Father knows what's best for you Mistress," she said kindly. Rosina and Maisie had a strangely familiar and intimate relationship with a mistress and maid, but they had enjoyed that since the first time they set eyes on each other. If one had been a boy and the other a girl it would have been love at first sight, but as it was it was a strong and lasting friendship, even though socially they were not equals. Maisie still called her 'mistress' and always would. Maisie's mother and grandmother had both been ladies' maids, only leaving service when they got married, so Maisie could read, write, sew and even ride. These were accomplishments beyond most girls her age. She had no more than a trace of the lilting Highland accent of her peers, although she spoke fluent Gaelic and French because of her French grandmother on her mother's side. Rosina always thought that if fate had thrown the dice more equally Maisie would have been her best friend and social equal.
Often they would sit together while Rosina did her tapestry and Maisie did her own sewing. She was smocking a dress for her sister's little girl, and her work was, as usual, painstaking and precise. They often spent evenings like this, sometimes in companionable silence and sometimes gossiping happily about everything under the sun. Occasionally Maisie would even read to her, and Rosina thought that she must be the luckiest woman alive to have such a companion. Maisie was one of those rare people who could be comfortable in the world of both upper and lower classes alike. She could bring in all the scandal and fun from the servants' quarters, kitchen and stables as well as the tittle-tattle from other ladies' maids, so she got the latest on the nobility too. When Rosina came back from an excursion with Alasdair she would tell her every detail of it, right down to the last kiss. They were more like sisters, sometimes, Maisie thought.
* * *
Now she was desperately worried, though. What if her father refused? What if Alasdair demanded a huge dowry? What if he insisted that they wait? So many things could go wrong. But suddenly the door opened and her father and Alasdair came striding in, both of them grinning all over their faces.
"Daughter," her father, Laird Hugh Buchanan came forward and hugged her, "I would like to introduce you to my future son-in-law!"
* * *
Alasdair bowed and kissed Rosina's hand, then looked back at her father.
"And I would like to introduce you to my future wife!"
Rosina beamed with joy. Her cup was overflowing with it, and she could never remember being so happy.
2
Maisie
After dinner that evening, when Alasdair had gone, Rosina sent for Maisie to come and share her news. She was so excited she could hardly contain herself. As soon as Maisie came in she rushed to meet her grabbing her hands and whirling her around in an exuberant dance. She was laughing so much that Maisie laughed too, caught up in her infectious mood. At last Rosina, breathless, came to a halt and put her arm around Maisie's shoulders.
* * *
"Now, Mistress," Maisie was laughing, "tell me what the big celebration is for!"
"Oh, Maisie!" Rosina clapped her hands, "Alasdair has asked me to marry him! And Father has agreed! I am to be wed!"
Maisie smiled.
"I am happy for you, Mistress!" Maisie said enthusiastically. She could not do otherwise than join in with Rosina's joy, but she wondered if she were ready for such a commitment. In many ways, she was much younger than Maisie even though they were almost exactly the same age, because Maisie had had a much less sheltered upbringing. Rosina had never wanted for a single thing in her life. She had never had to work hard for anything, and she had had the unconditional love of both her parents till her mother died when she was only eight years old.
Maisie was not poor. Her parents lived in a reasonably sized house in the town with their two other daughters, both of whom were to be married soon to respectable tradesmen. Maisie earned a moderate income, and although she would never be well off she would always be comfortable. But she knew the rougher side of life, not first hand, but she had seen ragged, hungry children, beggars, and women who sold their bodies to put food on the table for their families.
She had also seen the men who preyed on them, rich men who devoured them body and soul. These were men who could win or lose an entire year or more of her earnings or more on the turn of a card and think nothing of it. She had seen hundreds of them and despised them, and now her intuition told her she was looking at one more when she looked at Alasdair McPhail. She had caught him looking at her sometimes in a way that a certain type of man - she would not call them 'gentlemen' - looked at women servants. Maisie always dressed modestly, some might even say severely, so she had always been careful never to attract unwarranted attention. Even so, she was an attractive girl with her long, dark brown hair and deep-set eyes that were almost black in some lights. She attracted attention wherever she went. Sometimes this annoyed her and sometimes it did not, but it depended on who the attention was coming from. In spite of the fact that everyone seemed to like Alasdair and find him quite charming, there was something about him she could not trust, and apart from the occasional sideways glance - she could forgive him that - she could not put her finger on it. But now she summoned up a smile and congratulated her.
"He is a fine man," she lied, "and I am sure he will make you a wonderful husband. Now I think we must think about a dress!"
"Amongst the hundreds of othe
r things we have to think about, Maisie!"
Whatever Maisie thought about him, the man certainly had raised Rosina's spirits, and it was not her place to interfere. Still, she had nagging doubts about him, ones that she could not put into words. One blustery day in March, when Rosina and Alasdair had gone out riding Maisie found herself alone, bored and without any outlet for her pent-up energies. She was about to go to the kitchen for something to eat when she saw Laird Fraser entering the courtyard with his manservant Malcolm.
She had not much time for Laird Fraser. Few people had. Maisie was a charitable person who liked to think the best of everyone, so thought that there must be redeeming qualities inside him somewhere, but for the life of her, she could not think where. He was handsome enough, with his raven-black hair and striking blue eyes, and she could see that he was a Celt through and through. He was over six feet tall and looked as if he could lift an ox, but she could think of no maid in whom he had ever shown the slightest bit of interest and yet was the most eligible bachelor in the whole south west of Scotland.
