The Reluctant Highlander

by Scott, Amanda

  “Where is the castle entrance?”

  “Overlooking Strathnairn,” he said. “A hornwork protects it, and a portcullis. When we go onto the ramparts, the view will give you a more exact image of where we are. Come along now, and I’ll show you,” he added, urging her on down the hill.

  As they approached the castle, they met a wide, deep ditch cut vertically into the slope of the knoll below the castle’s base, forming an outer rampart, but soon they reached a pathway wending its way up around the knoll to the castle.

  Finlagh was rectangular, its end walls half the length of its longer ones. The stonework looked solid, but Fiona’s experience with the much larger fortresses at Edinburgh and Stirling made Finlagh look undersized and much less formidable.

  Setting the now-wriggling cat down, knowing it would not let her get far before coming in search of her, Fiona said, “Is the castle impregnable?”

  “As impregnable as a private castle can be,” he said, giving her a reassuring hug. “As you’ll see, the hornwork juts nearly to the cliff in front, so guards on the bastions can defend against any attackers approaching from north, south, or west.”

  “You must keep guards on the ramparts all the time then, too, aye?”

  “Aye, sure,” Àdham said. “You can see them, so they can see us here. Our position is strategically sound, lass. Fin believes an ancient fort once stood here.”

  “But what if someone besieges you? Is there a siege tunnel?”

  He shook his head in the same way that her brothers did when she questioned such confident declarations of theirs. But he was smiling. “You will be safe here, Fiona. However, we do have enemies, as you have seen.”

  “The Comyns,” she said, nodding. “If they were our attackers at Lochindorb, would they be the same ones who stole Raitt Castle? Lady Marsi said some Comyns did that. Rory said so, too.”

  “If our attackers were Comyns, then Comyn of Raitt would be responsible, although Malcolm said that Raitt was in St. John’s Town when we left.”

  “You never lived at Raitt, though, did you?”

  “Nae, I was but a bairn then and my two youngest cousins not yet born. But here we are,” he added, waving at someone in the bastion tower window above the path.

  The tall iron gates opened wide as they approached, and a pretty woman in her forties with long, thick, tawny hair and laughing eyes hurried across the small bailey and through the gateway to meet them.

  “That is Catriona,” Àdham said as he waved. “The big dark-haired fellow strolling in her wake is my uncle Fin.”

  “Faith, Àdham, who is this that you’ve brought to us?” Lady Catriona demanded in Scots with a wide, hopeful smile that warmed Fiona’s heart. To her surprise, her ladyship spoke Scots as fluently as Àdham did, without the heavy, nearly unintelligible accent that she’d heard from MacNab and other Highlanders.

  Àdham eyed his aunt narrowly. “Do you expect me to believe that you have not already heard all there is to know about us?” he demanded. “Especially when you greet me in Scots instead of the Gaelic?”

  “Mind your tongue, lad,” Fin said as they met, clapping him hard enough on the back to make him take a step to balance himself.

  Catriona grinned. “We did hear a rumor or two about a wedding,” she admitted. “We told each other it was blethers. But, since it clearly was not, prithee introduce your lady to us.”

  “Aye, Àdham, tell us about this lovely lass who stands so calmly whilst your aunt roasts you,” Fin said. “Methinks I like her already.”

  “Where are the twins?” Àdham asked. “I’d liefer tell this tale only once.”

  Catriona gestured grandly toward the entrance, where he saw his twin cousins standing at the top of the timber stairway, waving.

  “We’ll go to meet them,” Catriona said. “What have you done with Sirius?”

  Àdham whistled for the dog, and when Sirius loped up the pathway with Donsie scurrying erratically after him, Catriona laughed.

  “Where did he find the wee cat?” she asked, still chuckling.

  “Fiona will tell you about that later,” he said.

  “So her name is Fiona, is it?” Catriona said, raising her eyebrows but casting another warm smile at Fiona.

  “Aye, madam,” Fiona said, smiling back.

  “Her father is Ormiston of Ormiston, one of Jamie’s Lothian lairds,” Àdham said. “But I am nigh to starving, and it must be nearly time to eat. I trust you had warning enough to expect us for the midday meal.”

  “Even had we not, you ken fine that your aunt would not starve you,” Fin said. “But, since you seem determined to ignore your manners, I shall introduce myself to your lady. Prithee, call me Fin, Lady Fiona.”

  “She is Lady MacFinlagh, if you please, sir,” Àdham said.

  “But you must call me Fiona, all of you,” Fiona said, looking from Fin to Catriona and then including the twins, who were near enough now to hear her.

  Smiling, Fin said, “I trust that, if you married her ladyship in town, you did so properly in a kirk, even if it was without your closest kinsmen to bear witness.”

  “Are you vexed, sir?” Àdham asked. Noting the sudden worried frown on Fiona’s face, he added, “I’m teasing him, lass. You may trust me when I tell you that when Uncle Fin is angry, one does not have to ask if he is.”

  Her gaze still fixed on Fiona, Catriona said, “We must soon celebrate your marriage, so that you can meet everyone. Did you marry in your hair, Fiona?”

  Àdham cocked his head. “How could she have married without it?”

  Fiona was already nodding. She grinned at him and said, “It means that I wore my hair loose and unveiled, which I did. Joanna said it would please you.”

  “It did,” he said, holding her gaze.

  “Let me make our twins known to you, my dear,” Catriona said. “The one striding ahead with the wee scar on her forehead and her mouth open to talk is our Katy. The one in the lovely blue dress that she made herself is our gentle Clydia.”

  Fiona looked from one wheaten-blond twin to the other. Had the day not still been sunny, she doubted that she would have noticed Katy’s scar, but other than the scar and their clothing, she saw no way to tell them apart, especially as each wore her hair in thick plaits reaching almost to her waist.

  With a smile that matched Catriona’s, Katy exclaimed in equally fluent Scots as she neared them, “Why, how beautiful you are! Art sure, though, that you were wise to marry our homely Àdham? Had you taken a handsomer man, the two of you might have produced exceedingly beautiful bairns.”

  Àdham frowned, and Fin said quietly, “Enough, Katy.”

  Fiona saw that Fin’s darkly tanned skin made the scar on the left side of his forehead more noticeable than Katy’s. But his deep-set eyes drew more of her attention. Under thick, black lashes, their irises were an unusually clear gray.

  Glancing back at the twins, she saw that each had inherited those eyes.

  Katy, still smiling, silenced but undaunted, eyed Fiona critically.

  Amused, Fiona said, “Do you often tease Sir Àdham so? I vow I should hesitate to do so, myself.”

  “Then I can deduce two things about you straightaway,” Katy said. “You have already tasted his temper, and you failed to stand up to him. You will soon learn that, in our family, a woman who bends too easily will soon be a sad woman.”

  “I know one young woman who will hold her tongue now or forgo her dinner,” Fin said. “That is no way to talk to a guest.”

  “But Fiona is hardly a guest, sir,” Katy said, twinkling at him. “She is now my good-sister, is she not? And, since she is,” she added without awaiting a reply, “is it not my duty to help her feel at home here?”

  Fin said, “Look here . . .”

  “Sister?” Fiona said at the same time, looking from Katy to Àdham. When Fin fell sil
ent, she added, “I thought you said you were cousins, Àdham.”

  “I did,” Àdham said, giving Katy a look of amused exasperation.

  Returning his gaze steadily, Katy said, “Àdham has been more of a brother to me and Clydia than our own brothers have been. But mayhap you mean to live elsewhere and have come here now only to meet us and ride on. I do hope that is not so, because I think that we three sisters could become fast friends.”

  Fiona glanced again at Àdham, who seemed content to leave Katy to her. “I think Àdham means to stay for a time, at least,” she said. “And I’d like to have two new sisters.” Smiling at Clydia, who smiled shyly back, she added, “My own sister married before I was born, so I have known her only as one more adult in my family who orders me about.”

  “You three can talk whilst we eat,” Catriona said. “Àdham, you’ll share your chamber with Fiona, and I expect you both want to tidy yourselves before we dine. But don’t dally. We want to hear more about your wedding and your journey.”

  “Much more,” Fin said, giving Àdham a direct look.

  Fiona noted that, as Àdham began to lead her away, Fin put a light hand on Katy’s shoulder to keep her from following. Clydia stopped with her.

  Catriona caught up with Àdham and Fiona. “Fiona, I did hear that you have no woman of your own with you. Is that right?”

  “Aye, madam, it is. But I can look after myself.”

  “Nevertheless, my own Ailvie will attend you today, and mayhap her daughter Bridgett will suit you as an attire woman.”

  “Thank you, madam,” Fiona said with true gratitude. She missed Leah Nisbet more than she had thought she would. In truth, she missed Leah’s chatter almost as much as her skills as an attire woman.

  “This way, lass,” Àdham said, breaking into her reverie. “Our room lies near the top of the tower. You can see almost as far from there as from the ramparts.”

  “And you may come with me, Sirius,” Catriona said to the dog, which had followed them inside. “Bring your new friend and introduce her to the others.”

  “Others?” Fiona said to Àdham as he followed her up the stairs. “Do you have many cats?”

  “Nae,” he replied with a chuckle. “But Catriona raises wolf dogs. We have just two now, Eos and Argus, who are likely lying by the hall fire. They are the ‘others’ to whom Sirius is to introduce your cat.”

  “I have never seen a wolf dog. They won’t harm her, will they?”

  “Eos and Argus are gentle creatures unless something or someone threatens one of us,” Àdham replied, understanding her concern. “But, even if Donsie were to take it into her head to attack me again, I doubt that either dog would lift a paw.”

  He had not expected her to show fear of the dogs, but if she had never seen a wolf dog, he supposed the very name might make her wary. He and Cat would soon teach her how to manage them, though. What was more important to him was that Fiona seemed to like the twins and they liked her.

  “Is Fin angry with Katy?” she asked quietly, as if her thoughts echoed his.

  “We’ll know the answer to that if she joins us for our midday dinner. Or if she does not,” he added lightly, feeling little sympathy for Katy if Fin was scolding her. “That lassie too often lets her tongue run away with her good sense.”

  “I don’t want her to be in trouble on my account,” Fiona replied.

  “Fin did not send Clydia away,” Àdham pointed out. “So I expect that Katy will dine with us, but she does need to learn to think before she speaks. She often treads a narrow line between what he will accept and what he will not.”

  “I like her spirit,” Fiona said. “I think she was right, too, that we will become friends. Is Clydia always so quiet?”

  “They are usually together, and Katy has always talked more than enough for two. But if you want to learn about plants, trees, flowers, or forest creatures, or what will aid you if you fall ill or injure yourself, Clydia is the one to ask. Our room lies off the next landing,” he added, gesturing upward.

  A glimmer of hope stirred in Fiona’s mind. He did not sound as if he meant to confine her within Castle Finlagh’s walls, and she found herself more eager to explore the area around them than she had expected. She nearly asked if it would be safe for her to roam about. But she held her tongue when he reached the landing and opened the door to his chamber for her.

  His bed was larger than hers at home and much larger than the narrow cot she’d had at Blackfriars. Both the bed and the chamber were typically masculine, though, tidy and Spartan. Their two sumpter baskets looked out of place.

  Paying the baskets no heed, Àdham shut the door and went to the washstand.

  Watching him pour water from the ewer to the basin, Fiona decided that rather than ask if she could do something that he might forbid, she would discuss her question first with Katy and Clydia.

  Catriona’s Ailvie, a neatly garbed, blue-eyed woman several years younger than her mistress, rapped on the door moments later. With her help, Fiona hurried through her ablutions. Then, leaving Ailvie to see to her unpacking, she followed Àdham downstairs to join the others in the great hall.

  Scarcely noting two trestle tables flanked with people in the main portion of the high-ceilinged chamber, Fiona halted at the sight of the two enormous dogs lying with Sirius near a rather smoky hearth fire. Both were lean with rough, dark blue-gray coats, and they were the largest dogs she had ever seen, dwarfing Sirius.

  The two rose and stretched, watching her as they did, with their large heads slightly cocked and their ears rising. The taller and larger one—likely Argus, the male—measured a yard at least from the floor to his withers. Eos was a bit smaller.

  Feeling Àdham’s hand on her shoulder, urging her forward, she looked up at him. “You did not tell me what giants they are. Art sure they are friendly?”

  “I’m sure,” he said, raising his free hand, palm outward toward the dogs.

  They sat then, sweeping ashes off the hearth with their long, wagging tails.

  Looking beyond the trestles to the high table on its dais, Fiona saw Lady Catriona watching them. As Àdham had predicted, Clydia and Katy were there, too, and Fiona saw that they had left a place between Katy and Lady Catriona for her.

  Catching and holding her gaze, Catriona smiled and motioned her forward. To Fiona’s relief, the dogs lay back down again.

  When Àdham offered her his right forearm, she raised her chin, squared her shoulders, and walked confidently with him to her place on the dais, offering a smile to anyone who met her gaze along the way.

  When Àdham had taken his place beside Fin, Fin said the grace-before-meat and signed to a pair of gillies to begin serving as everyone took their seats.

  “I hope you don’t fear dogs,” Lady Catriona murmured to Fiona.

  “Oh, no, madam. I had simply never seen such large ones before.”

  “They are most biddable,” Catriona assured her. “If you like, we can take them into the woods this afternoon. I often walk outside the wall after our midday meal, and the twins like to go with me. However, Katy has chores to do, and Clydia will stay to help her unless you would like Clydia to go with us.”

  “I would like to know her better,” Fiona said, inhaling the welcome aroma of roast lamb as a gillie paused behind her with a platter. “But, prithee, do not make her come if she would liefer stay with her sister. Mayhap, if I help them both, we all might go together, unless Àdham has other plans for me.”

  “Fin wants to hear all the news from Perth,” Lady Catriona said, nodding to the gillie to serve her some lamb and remaining silent while he served Fiona. When he turned to serve Katy, she added quietly, “Katy needs no help with her chores, so I’ll invite Clydia to come with us. We’ll show you a few of our favorite places. The twins will show you others, too, so Clydia will want to see what you see. We’ll take the dogs, too, so you
can become acquainted with them and they with you.”

  Wide-eyed, Fiona said, “Could someone not shoot them from the hillside?”

  “We have watchers on the hills, and people in our woods, so even an archer as skilled as Ivor or Àdham would have difficulty shooting anything through such foliage without someone catching sight of him. Moreover, the dogs would likely become aware of any intruder before the intruder would see the dogs.”

  Somewhat reassured, Fiona said, “I would ask you something else, madam, but I am unaccustomed to having a husband, so mayhap I should ask Àdham first.”

  Lady Catriona’s hazel-gold eyes twinkled, and she leaned close to murmur, “Ask me anything you like, my dearling. But, prithee, stop calling me ‘madam’ and address me as Catriona or Cat. Nor need you fear that I’d tell Àdham aught that you say to me. If it is something that you should discuss with him first, I will say so.”

  Relaxing, Fiona said, “I have always been able to take time to myself, ma— That is,” she added hastily, lowering her voice, “I enjoy occasional solitude, and I have rarely lived where I could not take long walks alone. But I do not know the Highlands, and much of what I have heard has seemed fearsome to me. Also, I expect that Àdham has already told Sir Fin that someone attacked us . . .”

  “Aye, near Lochindorb,” Catriona said. “Duff and Rory told him.”

  “Then you likely know all about it,” Fiona said. “What I want to know is if you think it is too dangerous for me to go outside the wall.”

  Catriona tore a piece of meat into strips and dipped one strip into a nearby sauce bowl before she said, “Few people hereabouts stay indoors or within walls all day unless imminent conflict or a storm threatens. Most of our people live outside the wall, and I often walk alone to visit tenants or to amuse myself. I have done so since I was a child at Rothiemurchus, when I would row a boat across the loch and walk into the hills. Àdham may insist that you take someone with you until you know your way about, and I don’t recommend defying him. He is your husband.”