by Fiona Faris
Lady Claire shrieked in horror and panic as she rushed to the young woman. “Madeleine! Oh, my lass! What happened to ye? Are ye hurt badly?”
The thud of heavy footsteps followed the woman’s scream, and in moments Laird David Campbell was standing near his wife, taking in the state of his daughter. “What in the name of all that is holy has happened?” He demanded, his eyes wide as he held his hands out toward Madeleine.
Madeleine raised up the pheasants she had shot. “I was out huntin’. I’ve brought these back.”
Laird Campbell’s eyes bore into those of his daughter. He was a big man, with the same dark hair as hers, and the same stubbornness and strength, though much of the physical resemblance stopped there. “The blood on yer face and yer skirts is no’ from hunting. What happened to ye?” he insisted. “Are ye hurt?”
Madeleine sighed, knowing that her parents would not be pleased with the truth. “Oh, I’m fine,” she began matter-of-factly. “It’s no’ my blood. I should have washed me’self better.”
Laird Campbell furrowed his brow as his gaze grew keener. “Whose blood is it then?”
“I was set upon…,” she told them, her tone little more than explanatory, “attacked by two men of Clan Arthur. They wanted a bit o’ me, but I took a bit o’ them instead.”
The Laird closed his eyes and exhaled heavily. “Clan Arthur,” he said quietly. When he opened his eyes again, there was sorrow in them. “Things have been so tense with them lately. I have been trying to broker peace with them.” He eyed his daughter curiously. “How badly did ye wound them? Or did ye kill them?”
Madeleine rolled her eyes. “They’re no’ dead, though maybe they should be. I only wounded them a bit.”
Lady Claire stared in utter disbelief at her daughter. “Ye… ye wounded them? What does that mean?”
A smirk played over the young woman’s face. “Oh, they’ll live. They will no’ be havin’ bairns, but they’ll live.”
Laird Campbell shook his head. “This isnae good. Things will be more difficult between us now.”
Madeleine shot her father a dark look. “They would have been worse for me if I had no’ defended me’self!”
The Laird nodded and opened his arms out to her, and she went into them. “Aye, I’m sure they would have been. I’m glad ye can defend yerself. I just wish it had no’ happened at all, especially with them. Things have been g’tting worse of late. They are pushing further into our lands, past our old boundary, killing farm animals, burning crops, injuring and killing our clanspeople. It seems that they want more, and they are willing to take it by force. I have wanted tae keep a peace between them and us, so we have only defended, and no’ sought any attack against them, but they keep coming. I’m afraid it’s going tae come tae a head. I am glad that ye were no’ hurt today. That would have been a breaking point for me.”
“I ken how to defend me’self because ye taught me tae.” She hugged him warmly and smiled up at him.
“What are we goin’ to dae with ye?” Her father let out a long breath.
Lady Claire was still staring at Madeleine. She’d barely said anything up to that moment, but in an instant, with wide green eyes, she grabbed at her fanciful skirts and yanked them upward slightly, just over her feet. “I’ll tell ye what we’re goin’ to do! I’m writing tae my sister in France, and I am going tae send ye tae her! We can no’ seem to make a lady of ye here, but mayhap, if I send ye there, she can right these wrongs and get ye married to a French nobleman! Perhaps then ye’ll settle down like ye should!”
“Mother no!” Madeleine protested vehemently, but Lady Claire raised one hand and held it up between them.
Laird Campbell frowned. “Why should she be wed to a French nobleman when she could have a Scotsman?”
Lady Claire was resolute. “There have been a few Scottish lairds who have been interested in her, but she has no’ wanted them!”
Madeleine crossed her arms over her chest as her eyes darkened. “I didn’a like any o’ them!”
Her mother glared at her. “Marriage is no’ always about love! I am sending ye to France so that ye will be away from the danger here, and so that ye can find a match with a nobleman who will bring ye great wealth. The partnership of a man with considerable more power than many of our own Scots here, and havin’ his support, would be a boon to our clan! Noblemen have access to armies, and if these skirmishes grow worse with clan Arthur, we would be able to better defend ourselves if ye were married tae a nobleman! This is about ye rising up in your station and in the ranks of society. ‘Tis about making the most of your opportunities and those of your family. ‘Tis about keeping ye out of so much danger and trouble! I want the best for ye and this is the way to dae it! Ye must marry upward.”
“But I dinna want to go to France! This is my home!” Madeleine insisted as ire burned deeply within her. “I am no’ a horse to be bred to the finest stud ye can find!”
“This is no’ up for discussion! Ye are a lady, and ye’ll go and learn to be one, and ye’ll go soon! No more of this!” With that, Lady Claire held fast to her skirts and sashayed straight up the stairs in complete determination.
“Father!” Madeleine spun on her heel and pleaded with him.
Laird Campbell bit his lower lip a moment and lowered his eyes sympathetically to her. “I’m sorry my dear, but I dinna think there’s anything I can dae to stop her.”
“I dinna want to go to Aunt Margaret’s!” Madeleine insisted stubbornly.
Her father shrugged. “Yer mother obviously has her mind set. Perhaps ye could make the most of it. ‘Tis better weather, and Margaret is a braw woman. She’ll take fine care o’ ye. She has a bonnie home, and it would be a new experience for ye. Spread yer wings a bit and see some of the world. That would no’ be so bad, would it? Be wild and free beyond these lands?”
Madeleine pouted angrily, but she considered it. “I have wanted tae see Paris,” she admitted quietly.
“Make the most of this opportunity, Maddie,” her father encouraged her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.
“I’ll make the most of the journey and the experience, but dinna expect me to tie me’self down to a husband!” She looked up smartly at him. “I’ve got a home here that I’m comin’ back tae.”
The evening before Madeleine’s departure, she was carefully packing her traveling trunk when a knock sounded at the door to her chamber. A moment later, a beautiful face appeared from behind it. The girl, just a little younger than Madeleine, came into the room and walked over to the trunk, running a few fingers along the edge of it. Long waves of golden blonde hair lay over her shoulders and down her back to her waist. Her eyes were blue, and usually she wore a big, bright smile, but not on this night.
“Maddie, can’t ye make up with mother so that she let’s ye stay? I dinna want ye to go!” She pleaded with a sorrowful voice.
Madeleine sighed and shook her head. “I’ve tried. She will no’ relent. I’m so sorry, Fiona. She will no’ let me stay. I dae wish that ye were going with me, though. This would be a better journey if ye were on it with me.”
Fiona sat on her sister’s bed and watched Madeleine as she finished the last of her packing. “But, I am worried! If ye find a Frenchman to wed, ye will no’ likely be returning here to me! I fear that we will no’ live near each other, and ye and I will no’ get to see each other every day! I dinna want that to happen!”
Madeleine sighed and nodded. “Aye. Things are probably going to change quite a bit for us. Mother and aunt Margaret rarely see each other, but I know that they write letters to each other all the time to keep in touch. Dinna ye fash, I will write to ye, and ye can write to me, and that way we can still be connected.”
Fiona pouted and her shoulders slumped. “Can ye no’ marry a Scot? There are many who would have ye! I’ve no doubt!”
“I have ne’er met one that I liked. Mother would have me married to the wealthiest and highest ranked man of title that she could find, and if I d
id, I’d be sacrificing my dreams of marrying for love. She says marriage is more often an arrangement of benefit than one of love.” Madeleine spoke with a dejected tone, though she tried to hide it from her sister. “Maybe I just need to wrap my mind around being sold off instead of marrying for love, since she’s so set on finding me a husband now. I dinna even want one. I’d rather stay here with ye and go hunting and riding, and help father with the lairdship. That would be the life I would choose.”
She sat beside her younger sister on the bed and held her in an embrace. Fiona smiled a little. “Ye will get to be in France though, and that ‘tis a bright side of it. Aunt Margaret will take ye to balls hosted by the king, and ye will probably have lovely gowns and meet handsome men. I wish I could go and dae that!”
Madeleine laughed a little. “Aye, ye would certainly be better suited for it. Ye would love the world of ball gowns and parties. Perhaps when ‘tis your time to wed, mother will send ye to aunt Margaret.”
“What will happen to Bonnie if she does that?” Fiona asked worriedly about their much younger sister. “She’s but a wee thing! She’s just learning to ride!”
Madeleine looked thoughtfully at Fiona. “Ye will be with her as long as ye can be, and then we will visit her when we can, but I’m afraid unless mother has another wee one, she will be on her own for a time.”
Fiona fretted. “But ye and I, we are best friends! Who will Bonnie have?”
“Bonnie may find a best friend in one of the other children here at the castle; a servant’s child or a cousin, if one comes along. We dinna ken what will happen for her. She’s such a sweet, mild tempered girl. I’m sure she’ll be all right,” Madeleine comforted Fiona.
“She is, isn’t she?” Fiona laughed a little. “I am like mother, a fine lady with her proper ways, her lovely dresses, and her pretty hairstyles, and I am happy that way. Ye, ye are more like father, and I love ye for it. I think no one is as wonderful as ye, Madeleine. I admire you so much. Ye are brave and strong, resilient and clever. And fierce! Above all else, ye are fierce, in your love and loyalty, and in your spirit. Ye are so different from me.”
“We are different, and that’s a good thing!” Madeleine gazed at her younger sister. “Ye are sweet and thoughtful, ye can sing like and angel, and ye play the harp so well. I spend my time learning swordplay and archery so I can become the best in the clan at it. We all have different things that make us who we are. We will see what Bonnie likes best and who she is, whether we are with her or no’.”
“Aye. I suppose it must be the way of things. Ye will find a husband, and then I will, and Bonnie will be here with mother.” Fiona grew thoughtful and smiled in a dreamy way. “I hope someday I can wed a prince! Or if I canna, then perhaps a nobleman, like ye will. I want a fanciful, romantic wedding to a handsome and kind man, and then I can live a fine and pretty life as a wife and mother!”
Madeleine laughed. “Aye. That would be a good life for ye! No mere clansman for ye! Ye shall have a prince! I would rather avoid a wedding altogether. I am happy to live here, hunting and fishing, training in the use of weapons with our cousins, and helping father manage his duties as laird. I’ve been learning all that I can about his work and position. I’ve spent so much time learning about politics and business that I ne’er take a moment to think about men at all. I hardly notice them, and ne’er in a romantic way.”
Fiona gave her a teasing poke in the arm. “That has no’ stopped several of them from noticing ye! So many of them of have lost their hearts to ye!” She giggled, and her cheeks blushed pink.
Madeleine shrugged. “I ignored all of that. I dinna want romance. I wanted to remain friends with them, and so we have. All of the boys here who ye say have lost their hearts to me are still steadfast friends. We’ve kept those bonds strong.”
“Aye, but any one of them would wed ye in a moment if they thought ye would have them.” Fiona nudged her gently. “Then ye could stay.”
Madeleine shook her head. “I canna. Mother will no’ let me marry anyone here. I have to marry up. I am the eldest of her three daughters. I have to marry best, and then help ye and Bonnie find good husbands. None of the Scottish lairds have turned my head, so I guess ‘tis off to France with me. She is pleased about that, though. The men their have greater title and wealth and will make a better match for me than anyone here.”
Fiona gave her a wink. “Well try for the heart of a prince then, and I can marry his brother, and then we can always be together.” They both laughed and stayed at each other’s sides for the remainder of the night, talking until they slept. Fiona watched with sad tears when Madeleine left the next morning.
Madeleine stared out of the carriage window and wondered how her days of riding the hills and valleys of the Highlands, of hunting in the forests and fishing on the loch, could have come to such a sudden end. She could scarcely make herself believe that she was watching the French countryside roll by on the way to her mother’s sister’s home, bearing with her a letter from her mother to her aunt, pleading with Margaret to find a good husband for Madeleine and to make a fine lady out of her. Madeleine had the title of a lady, given to her by Mary, Queen of Scots, but she had never felt like a proper lady, and she had little interest at all in it.
Madeleine was still pondering over her jarring state of personal affairs when the carriage turned onto a lane and came to stop before a grand estate that looked just shy of befitting royalty. She stared open-mouthed for a moment out of the carriage window and managed to gather herself as the driver opened her door for her.
Margaret was her mother’s older sister, and Margaret had married a French duke many years before. He had been wealthy and held lands and titles, and when he died, Margaret had inherited all of it. Margaret had a son and a daughter, but they were married off and gone, and she lived alone in the big home, spending much of her time at the French royal court and with her friends. It was the furthest from any reality Madeleine had ever known.
With her heart pounding in her chest, Madeleine stepped down from the carriage and made herself take a deep breath. She stood tall and lifted her chin, knowing somehow that she should show no weakness or inhibition. At her father’s request, she was going to meet the challenge head on, as she did with every challenge, and she was going to master it, no matter what or who might come her way.
The house was surrounded by beautifully manicured gardens, all in bloom and radiant in the sunshine, and the floral scent that wafted in the air was a sweet perfume. Madeleine breathed it in and told herself that a place so charming couldn’t be so bad.
As she walked up a few steps to the promenade that led to the house, she saw that there was a flurry of activity at the entrance to the grand façade. The household staff lined up on either side of the walk, facing each other, as a stately and elegant looking woman came out of the home and stood before it with a wide smile on her face, her arms open wide.
“Madeleine, welcome to my home, mon cherie, how are you? How was your journey?”
Madeleine looked at her aunt with relief. She had faint memories of the woman, and though they were good, she’d had no real idea what to expect upon her arrival at the estate. Her aunt’s warm welcome lent her a sense of peace. “I… I’m good, thank ye. The journey was no’ too bad, either.”
Margaret laughed and grinned. “Oh, how I’ve missed hearing that accent! It reminds me of my childhood home. I’ve been in France so long that it’s a rare treat to hear it these days. Well, look at you! You’re so lovely! I don’t know how it can be possible that you’re not already married!”
“Ye look just as I remembered ye as a child. Ye came to visit us when I was eight or nine, I think.” Madeleine marveled at her aunt. Time seemed barely to have touched her.
Margaret beamed. “Oh, now that’s a sweet thing to say to an old lady like me! Merci! But come now, come in. You must be tired after your journey. I’ll show you to your room, and after you’ve rested, you can join me for tea and a meal in the dini
ng hall.”
Margaret took Madeleine by the arm and led her into the home while her things were brought in behind them. They went to a large and beautiful chamber overlooking a particularly pretty rose garden, and Madeleine could see a pond in the distance, dotted with white and black swans, and ducks. Her aunt made sure that she had everything that she needed and then left her in peace.
Madeleine stared around her new room. She was surprised at the amount of light in it; it had more windows than she was used to seeing in any building, as well as a large fireplace, and a large, luxurious bed, twice the size of her bed at home in Scotland. There were tapestries hanging on the walls and various pieces of elegant furniture throughout the room, from tables and chairs to a chaise lounge near one of the windows. It was more foreign to Madeleine than any place she had ever seen or been in, but it didn’t frighten her. She was fascinated by it, intrigued with the architecture and style of the place, and she began to wonder even more what her time there would be like.
