Capturing A Highland Knight

by Hyman, F. S.

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  Annabelle woke with a start. The chamber was dark with only the glow from the dying fire to illuminate it. She had overslept. She turned when the chamber door opened.

  “Ye are awake,” Megan said as she pushed the door completely open.

  Annabelle noticed that she carried a trey with her.

  “I missed the evening meal,” Annabelle exclaimed, moving off of the bed.

  “Aye, but I have brought ye something to eat,” Megan smiled at her. She set the trey on the table by the fireplace. She walked around and lit some candles.

  “Brighid was expecting me to join her,” Annabelle replied, going pass Megan to the door. She always shared her meals with Brighid since the men had been away.

  Megan chuckled. Annabelle stopped at the sound. She turned toward the older woman.

  “Nay need to go apologize, lass. The mistress understands that ye needed yer rest. It is that way when ye are in yer condition,” Megan chuckled again, looking at Annabelle with a twinkle in her eyes.

  “My condition? What mean ye? I feel fine,” Annabelle said, a frown marring her brow.

  Megan grinned and shook her head. She turned to arrange Annabelle’s food on the table. Annabelle walked over to her.

  “Megan, what do ye mean? I admit that I was a little tired after our work in the garden this afternoon, but that was all it was.”

  “Ach, lass. Ye are young. I told the mistress that ye dinna ken it yerself,” she shook her head.

  “Ken what?” Annabelle asked a little anxiously.

  “Ye are breeding, lass,” Megan said with a warm smile. She patted Annabelle on her hand.

  “Breeding? Nay, it isnae so,” Annabelle blurted.

  “Aye, lass. Ye are. Derek will be verra proud to ken he will be a Da. It doesnae surprise me that it happened so quickly,” Megan winked, taking the trey out of the door.

  Annabelle did not notice when Megan left. She was in too much shock. Pregnant? She walked over to the bed and sank down upon it. She looked down at her still flat stomach. She hesitantly reached a hand to cover her abdomen. How could she have not known? How could she have known? She covered her hand with her other hand. She was going to have a baby.

  She should have known. Now that she thought about it, she had not had her menses since before coming to Dunkirk. But with all that was going on, she had not noticed that time lapse. She stood and walked to the window. A baby. Will Derek be happy that he was going to be a father? Or will he not care at all? Would having a child change his life at all?

  Annabelle allowed herself to smile. A baby to love, and who would love her back. Maybe a baby would be enough comfort on those nights when Derek decided that he wanted to sleep elsewhere. The smile left her face. What should she do now? She was prepared to leave Derek when her father came for her. Now she was not so sure that her father could get the king to dissolve the marriage with a baby on the way. Maybe she would not tell anyone, especially Derek, until the marriage was abrogated.

  She walked over to the table to pick up a piece of bread from an assortment of bread, cheese, some cold meat, and ale. She chewed thoughtfully. Once she was back at Kinloch, Derek would never find out about the baby. She would beg her parents not to tell him. Somehow that thought twisted like a knife in her gut. This child was made out of love, at least on her part. Maybe Derek would be happy to know about the child. Would that change him? Will he stop his philandering ways once the baby was born? Brighid said that jealousy worked for her. Is this the catalyst she needed to have her husband to herself?

  She allowed the smile to return to her face. She barely noticed when someone came in to stir the fire in the fireplace and add more wood. She turned from the window when the door closed. She pulled her arisaid off and pulled on her nightdress. She blew out all of the candles and stood watching the firelight for a moment. She really missed her husband. She could almost feel his touch upon her skin and feel the warmth of his breath on her neck. They should be back soon. Brighid said that it usually took them a fortnight to get accomplished whatever they needed to do at court. She said that Laird Breac would not allow their business to go beyond that.

  Annabelle turned toward the bed and slipped under the covers. She pulled the comforter up to her chin and stared up in the darkness. She still could not get over the fact that she was going to have Derek’s child. When she had contemplated marriage to Laird Harold, she never included children in the equation. She had not thought beyond getting through the wedding. She turned on her side and sighed. She closed her eyes and let her mind relax. She drifted to sleep.

  Chapter 23

  Annabelle walked down the stairs to the great hall. She saw Brighid sitting at the upper table and moved to join her. Brighid’s mouth turned up in a smile upon seeing her.

  “Good morrow, Annabelle. Did ye sleep well?” she asked as Annabelle sat down next to her.

  “Aye,” Annabelle replied, returning her smile.

  “And how are ye feeling?” Brighid grinned at her.

  “I feel fine,” she replied, although she had a bout of dizziness upon waking this morning. It had taken her a moment to remember the reason for that.

  “Good,” Brighid said patting her hand. She returned to eating her meal.

  Annabelle waited as a servant put a trencher of kippers and oats and honey before her. Annabelle looked down at her food for a minute, willing her stomach not to turn over.

  “Are ye alright?” Brighid asked with a knowing smile on her face.

  Annabelle looked at her but could not answer, afraid something other than words would come out of her mouth. Brighid chuckled.

  “Take yerself outside and get some fresh air. It will pass.”

  Annabelle nodded and left the hall. When she stepped outside, she took a deep breath. The crisp morning air soothed her stomach and she felt better. She would have to ask Brighid or Megan if she would suffer thus for the entire pregnancy. She did not think she would be able to endure it if she did, but then she thought about the reward and knew that she could.

  Annabelle decided to go around the keep to the garden she and Brighid worked on the day before. As she rounded the corner, she bumped into Eilidh who was coming the other way.

  “Och, be careful! Derek will be verra angry if something should happen to his bairn!” Eilidh shouted at her as she put her hand protectively over her stomach.

  Annabelle stopped short, wondering how the woman knew she was carrying, but then her eyes saw that Eilidh had put her hands protectively against her own abdomen. She could barely conceal her surprise.

  “What?” she asked as she stared at the other woman.

  “Aye. I am breeding,” Eilidh smirked as she patted her abdomen. Annabelle looked at the woman’s stomach and noticed that it did seem to be rounded a little.

  “Breeding?”

  “Aye. Derek was so pleased when I told him the night before they left for court. He came to my chamber that night to say goodbye. When I told him the news, he made love to me all night, and again before they left the next morning,” Eilidh smiled as she reminisced.

  Annabelle could not believe what she was hearing. The content and happy look on Eilidh’s face made her feel as if her chest was being crushed. She could not seem to pull in enough air.

  “Derek is going to make a fine Da,” she continued as if Annabelle was in complete agreement. “He is already making plans to marry me when he returns.”

  “Marry ye?” Annabelle asked in confusion. “He is already married. To me.”

  Eilidh laughed and looked at Annabelle with a pitying look.

  “Aye, we ken it, but Derek never wanted to be married to ye, Annabelle. He had always planned to marry me, but circumstances demanded that he do the honorable thing. Even now, I am sure he is petitioning the king for a separation from ye. He said that he would once he got to court. He said that my being pregnant would help his case and the king would have no problem granting his petition. Why, I would think you would be happy. W
hy would ye want a man who was in love with another woman?” Eilidh said shaking her head.

  Annabelle watched as Eilidh caressed her stomach once again. She felt like a knife had been stuck in her gut and was slowly being twisted. Not only was she pregnant, but Derek had gotten his hure with child also. And now he plans to marry her, and would have married Eilidh if Annabelle had not come along.

  “If he hadnae found ye in that clearing, we would be married now. Maybe ye should have died with the rest of the McInnis clan,” Eilidh spat.

  “Died? What are ye talking about? Nothing has happened to the McInnises,” Annabelle said, looking hard at the woman.

  Eilidh laughed again.

  “Are ye really going to pretend that ye doona ken anything about what happened in Dunwiche? I ken that ye were the only survivor, and it is rumored that ye had something to do with it. Derek, even now, is gathering evidence against ye.”

  “What are ye talking about? Nothing has happened, and I had nothing to do with anything!” Annabelle said through clenched teeth.

  “Doona pretend that ye doona remember and are innocent. Derek is close to kenning who is responsible for the murders. He said ye pretend to not remember, but he kens ye are lying. He is asking King George for his help in bringing ye to justice. Ye poisoned the entire clan because ye didnae wish to marry the old laird, and then ye fled.”

  Annabelle reeled at the accusation. Eilidh made to walk past her, but then stopped right beside her and leaned toward her.

  “Derek is mine and always will be,” she hissed and walked inside the keep.

  Annabelle dropped her head at her words. Her insecurities began to resurface. Derek had not come to their chamber that night but had gone to Eilidh. He was going to petition the king for a separation so he could marry Eilidh. Even though she had thought to get her father to do the exact same thing, it hurt to actually know that Derek had planned to do so all along. She realized that a separation was not what she wanted after all.

  Annabelle continued on her way, but now she had no destination in mind. She did not know how long she had been walking before she looked up. She saw what looked like an abandoned hut not far ahead of her. She let her steps take her toward the hut. When she got close, she saw that the roof needed to be re-thatched, but the structure itself seemed sound. She pushed the door open and went inside. There was a table and two chairs in the middle of the one room hut. A cot sat against a far wall and a small table next to it. There was a single window that looked out toward the front of the hut.

  Annabelle closed the door and walked over to one of the chairs and sat down. She felt like the hut, alone and abandoned. Although she did not think Derek would ever love her, she had hoped that he at least had some feelings toward her. Eilidh erased all of her hopes to win her husband’s regard. She never had a chance. He never planned for them to have a real relationship. He only wanted to try to find out if she was the cause of the death of the McInnis clan.

  She still did not remember what Eilidh was talking about. She tried to think back to the time before she had woken up in Derek’s chamber. She vaguely remembered talking to her father about marrying the McInnis laird. He had informed her that they would be leaving for Dunwiche the following day, and she had gotten on her horse to ride out her frustrations. But she remembered returning home later, not falling off, and then traveling with her parents and many of the MacAlpin clan to Dunwiche for the marriage the next day. Annabelle gasped. She did remember…

  §

  Annabelle looked at her reflection in the mirror. Her pale face and green eyes stared back at her. This was her wedding day. A wedding she did not want, but had been contracted into by her father. She sighed. She turned and walked toward a window. She could see the sun reflecting off of the small loch a few yards from the keep. She saw a deer taking a drink on the other side. She wished that she could be free like that deer. She would not have to fulfill her obligation to marry. It was not that she did not have the desire to marry, but that she did not want to marry the old McInnis laird.

  She stood up and went over to look at her wedding dress. It was a plush burgundy with pink roses sewn down the right side and across the waist. Any other day, she may have thought the gown beautiful, but today she was repulsed by it. She grimaced and stalked back to the window.

  Her father had informed her a fortnight ago that she would have to marry Laird Harold as part of an alliance between the clans. She had rebelled and begged her father not to make her do it, but he had been adamant that it was for the best of the clans. Her father usually gave in to her whims, but nothing she could say could sway his decision. She really had no say so in the matter. She knew that it was custom for the father to find a husband for his daughter.

  Annabelle met Laird Harold once before when he visited Kinloch. She did not pay much attention to him at the time. She would have never thought that meeting would have led to this. He and her father were about the same age, but Laird Harold was still fit, where Laird Cullen had gotten round in the middle.

  “Annabelle, we have been o’er this! Laird Harold is a fine mon. Ye are lucky that I was able to arrange this marriage. He is a verra rich mon, and ye are nearing yer three-and-twentieth birthday. ‘Twill be a good alliance for our clan,” her father admonished her from the doorway.

  Annabelle turned and looked at her father with a mixture of anger and disgust. He knew she did not want this marriage, but no other man had asked for her hand. She had no options except maybe to run away. She wished that she could just say no, but this was the way it had to be. Most women were married through arrangement and alliances.

  “I just wish I could have picked my own husband, ye ken. He’s as old as ye are,” she muttered.

  Laird Cullen’s face turned hard. Annabelle knew that this was an argument she would not win. He was a burly man with bright red hair and rich brown eyes. Annabelle had his coloring. And, also, his temper. But his anger won out in most of their disagreements. In his day, Laird Cullen was a fierce warrior, and he still was. In his last battle, he had been wounded so severely, that he was no longer able to fight with his warriors. He now walked with a pronounced limp.

  “Anna,” he said, taking a deep breath to try to tame his anger. He was the only one to call her Anna. “Things will work out. I know that Laird Harold will treat ye with kindness. Maybe ye doona have any feelings for him now, but in time that could change, ye ken?”

  “I ken it, but I’d rather not have to wait on it,” she said wiping away a stray tear. She hated such weak displays of emotion, but she felt trapped.

  Her father walked over to her and cupped her face in his large hands, showing the rare side of him.

  “I love ye, Annabelle. I ken ye can find contentment in this,” he said with a small smile.

  “Aye, Da. I ken that too,” she said with a resigned sigh. She tried to smile.

  “That’s my bonny lass,” he said turning to leave.

  “Da?”

  “Everything will be fine, Annabelle,” he replied, reading her thoughts. His face softened a fraction.

  Annabelle smiled. Although they were always at odds, she was very close with her father. As the door closed behind him, her mother came charging in seconds later.

  “Och, Annabelle. No more crying,” she said wiping Annabelle’s face.

  “Aye, Mither.”

  “’Twill be a magnificent wedding, my lass. The McInnises have put out a lavish spread. I think ye will be pleased,’ she said cheerfully.

  Annabelle just nodded. Cadha MacAlpin was always cheerful, sometimes to Annabelle’s chagrin.

  “Come now. ‘Tis time. Smile, Annabelle, lass,” her mother said, with a slight frown between her brows.

  Annabelle sighed.

  “I ken that ye doona wants this, Annabelle. Yer Da shouldnae have allowed ye so much freedom. He almost raised ye as a lad. If he had let ye be, ye would accept yer lot in life, but he made ye too headstrong,” she said.

  “This will be good f
er the clan, Annabelle. ‘Tis yer duty.”

  “I ken it, Mither.”

  She pasted the prettiest smile on her face she could muster. She hoped that it would please her mother, and that no one would notice that it was strained.

  Her mother helped her dress. She had to admit that the burgundy of the dress was striking against her red hair and green eyes. She followed her mother from the room.

  “Yer father and I were contracted to marry,” Cadha said as they descended the stairs.

  Annabelle gasped. She would never have guessed that because of the way her father’s whole countenance changed when her mother walked into a room. She had seen their love displayed often throughout her life. It was something she coveted.

  “Aye. I was like ye, Annabelle. I didnae want to marry him, but I had nae choice. My father locked me in my room fer three days until the wedding. I was headstrong like ye, and I rebelled. I am glad I married yer father,” she said. Annabelle could hear the love in her voice.

  “Ye can have that, too. Laird Harold is nae a bad mon. He treats his servants and his people weel. I think he shall treat ye weel also. He’s a fierce warrior, but he is also a fair laird.”

  Annabelle said nothing. Maybe her mother was right. Even though Laird Harold was almost as old as her father, she could develop some affection for him. Lord knew that she really did not have any other options. She had grown up with all of the knights and warriors of Kinloch, and none of them made her feel anywhere near what she should feel for a man. None of the feelings she saw reflected in her parents’ faces. They were all like brothers to her. Indeed, many of them treated her like a younger brother because she was able to ride as well as they, and could handle a dirk as good as any of them, maybe better.

  As Annabelle and her mother walked down the stairs, Annabelle admired all of the richness of Dunwiche. Laird Harold was indeed a very rich man. Dunwiche hall was immense. It was certainly bigger than the MacAlpin’s home of Kinloch. There were four different towers of the keep. She would occupy her own towers after she married.