A Highland Conquest

by Sandra Heath

  Rory was silent for a moment and then went to the bedside. “Hester, I have been speaking to Lauren, and she has made a number of claims, not only about Emma but also about Jamie. She says that you can corroborate a great deal of it.”

  “Yes, I can. Rory, whatever Lauren has told you, it is the truth.”

  “Forgive me for saying this, Hester, but you and Lauren are cousins, and have become very close in a short time. I have to wonder if you would support her regardless.”

  Alex stepped indignantly forward. “I say—!”

  Rory held up a hand to him. “Please bear with me, Alex, for this is very important.” He looked at Hester again. “Can you tell me what you know?”

  “To see if my story matches Lauren’s?” Hester was taken aback.

  “Something of the sort, yes.”

  “But why would you doubt her?”

  “Please, Hester, just tell me what you know.”

  “Very well, but…” She broke off awkwardly, for to tell him anything meant to bring Jamie into it.

  Rory understood. “I’ve already been told about my brother’s apparent part in the scheme of things, Hester. I just need to hear your side of it all.”

  “I would prefer it if Lauren were here as well.”

  “Just tell me, Hester.”

  “As you wish,” she agreed reluctantly. “I didn’t know anything at first, but then Lauren told me what she’d seen at the Crown & Thistle, and about Emma leaving Jamie’s room that morning, when she was supposed to be still sleeping in her own bed after her tiring journey the day before. Anyway, not long after Lauren told me all this, Alex read the article in the newspaper and remembered where he’d seen Emma. Lauren and I then got together at the ball to search Emma’s things for any proof. We were thus engaged when she and Jamie actually came in and almost caught us red-handed. We managed to hide and therefore overheard everything they said. She and Jamie are most definitely lovers, and she is Mrs. du Maurier.” Hester looked apologetically at Rory.

  “Jamie knows all about her, Rory, but although he is reluctant to continue with some plan they have, he is very much under her influence.”

  Rory met her eyes for a long moment. “What was that plan, Hester?” he asked then.

  “I don’t exactly know, for it wasn’t quite clear. One thing I do know, and that is that they intend to implicate poor Lauren in some way, but then it is all—” She broke off, not knowing whether she should mention Isabel’s apparent part in it all.

  ‘Tell me everything, Hester,” Rory pressed gently.

  She glanced at Alex, and then at Rory again. “From what Jamie and Emma said, the plan is Isabel’s. She’s very jealous indeed, Rory, and has made herself exceedingly unpleasant to Lauren since we arrived here. She even threatened her with all manner of ill unless she left Glenvane immediately. That business with the locket was no mishap; it was done deliberately, no matter how many crocodile tears Isabel shed at the time. I don’t know whether she did it out of spite or whether there was more to it; I only know that it wasn’t an accident.”

  Lauren had been telling the truth. Rory knew it now and wished he hadn’t doubted her. He looked away for a moment. “I think we may now be sure that there was more to it. The plan was to take my mother’s jewel box. Emma and Jamie intend to use the contents to start a new life together; indeed, it appears they’ve probably already left. The locket was removed from the box and hidden in Lauren’s reticule in order to make it appear as if she’d taken not only it, but the entire box. And while I am busy accusing Lauren of everything, the real culprits make good their escape,” he finished.

  Hester stared at him. “How do you know all this?”

  “Because a great deal has happened since you fell at the ball last night.” He told them briefly about the finding of the locket, and the discovery that the jewel box had been taken as well.

  Hester sat up, her face growing pale. “You must believe me when I say that Lauren is innocent, Rory! She simply wouldn’t do any of those things. I know she wouldn’t.”

  “I know that too. Now,” He ran his fingers wearily through his hair.

  “What will you do?” Hester asked gently.

  “Well, first of all I will request Isabel to leave, for my friendship with her must necessarily be at a complete end. As for Emma and Jamie, I fear that if I wish to retrieve the jewels, I have no option but to inform the authorities about everything. It won’t be easy to accuse my own brother and know that he will be imprisoned for what he’s done, but this is one thing I cannot forgive.”

  “And what of Lauren? Now that you know she hasn’t lied about anything—”

  “Hasn’t lied about anything? Maybe not where the jewels are concerned, but I fear she has about other matters,” he replied unhappily.

  “What are you saying, Rory?”

  “What do you know of her life in Boston?”

  Hester was startled. “Boston? In what particular way?”

  “I refer to her betrothal to a Captain Hyde.”

  She stared at him, and then laughed incredulously. “But surely Lauren explained all about it?”

  “I want you to explain.”

  Her smile faded. “Am I to understand you believe it to be true?”

  “Is it?”

  “No.”

  “Sir Richard Finchley believes to the contrary,” he replied, relating the story that gentleman had told.

  “Yes, he was meant to.” Hester briefly described what had really happened. “So you see, Sir Richard was making a nuisance of himself, and Lauren invented the whole thing to get rid of him. There isn’t any Captain Hyde, nor is there to be a wedding in the new year. In my opinion, she was unnecessarily lenient where Sir Richard was concerned, for he was less than gentlemanly in his pursuit of her. He’d have had a flea in his ear from me, and no mistake.” Hester looked anxiously at him. “Rory, have you and Lauren fallen out over what Sir Richard says?”

  “That, and this other wretched business with the jewel box,” he confessed.

  Hester gave him a reproachful look. “How could you, Rory? How could you possibly think such ill of her? She is the most genuine person I know, and she loves you. If you let her go now, than I will know you to be a prize fool!”

  Alex shifted uncomfortably. “I say, Hester, that’s a bit strong.”

  “He deserves it,” she replied angrily.

  Rory cleared his throat. “Yes, I do deserve it.”

  “The real villains are Jamie, Emma, and dear Isabel, who is the most cat-clawed creature I ever met. So if you’ve accused my cousin of any wrongdoing, then I suggest you go and beg her forgiveness right now, sir, for everything she has told you has been the complete truth.”

  Before he could reply, Alex suddenly spoke up. “Aren’t we forgetting something in all this? What of poor Fitz? We have to warn him what’s afoot. He’ll be devastated to find out about Emma.”

  Hester looked wryly at her husband. “Devastated? Alex, he’ll be over the moon.”

  Alex was bewildered. “I trust you mean to explain?”

  “I was right when I said that Fitz regretted marrying Emma. I vow that if he could turn the clocks back, then he would. His heart is given elsewhere. That’s why Lauren and I wanted to find proof about Emma being Mrs. du Maurier, so that Fitz could be freed to follow his heart.”

  “Follow his heart where? Who is his real love?” Alex asked.

  “Well…” Hester glanced uneasily at Rory, for it would hardly do to name his sister.

  Rory searched her face and then his eyes cleared. “Mary? Is that what you’re saying? Fitz and my sister?”

  “Don’t be angry, Rory, for it’s true love. I know he’s much older than she is, but—”

  “I’m not angry, damn it, unless you count my fury with myself for not having observed it on my own. If Mary loves him, and he loves her, then I won’t stand in their way. Better that one Ardmore finds happiness than none at all.”

  Hester’s attention was upon
Rory. “Two Ardmores can find happiness, provided the one I’m looking at right now has the honor and courage to do the right thing. I trust you mean to crave Lauren’s pardon, sir?”

  “You know I do.”

  “I don’t know any such thing, sir. You’ve disappointed me, Rory Ardmore, for I thought more of you than this. It seems you are not the man I thought you were, and maybe you do not deserve my cousin.”

  Rory smiled a little wryly. “I know I don’t deserve her, Hester, but I promise you this; I will never fail her again. The moment I’ve dispatched Isabel and made the necessary arrangements about informing the authorities what’s happened here, I’ll go to Lauren. And if I have to beg her on bended knee to overlook my failings, then that is what I’ll do.”

  Suddenly the door flew open and a very distressed Peggy hurried in. “Mr. and Mrs. Kingston, oh, please, you must do something immediately!” she cried, coming to an abrupt standstill as she saw Rory.

  Hester looked anxiously. “What is it, Peggy?”

  “It’s Miss Lauren, madam. She’s gone.”

  “Gone? What do you mean?”

  “Just that, madam. She’s taken a horse to ride to the Crown & Thistle, where she means to hire a chaise to return to London.” The maid looked accusingly at Rory.

  He seized the maid by the arm. “How long has she been gone?” he demanded.

  “About an hour, sir. She made me promise not to—”

  “And she’s definitely gone to the Crown & Thistle?’

  “Oh, yes, sir.”

  Without another word Rory strode from the room.

  Hester and Alex looked at each other in dismay, and then Hester’s breath caught as a flash of lightning illuminated the dark skies outside. It was followed by a roll of thunder. The storm which had threatened all day was at last about to break.

  Chapter 21

  The same lightning and growl of thunder shuddered overhead as Lauren urged her horse up the narrow tree-choked glen toward Ben Vane. The portmanteau bounced against the pommel before her, and her cloak fluttered and flapped as the wind gusted down from the open slopes ahead. She felt an occasional raindrop touching her face, but she didn’t falter in her resolve to leave Glenvane forever. Tears were damp on her cheeks and she had to swallow back sobs as she rode out of the trees on to the open moorland which stretched up toward the summit of the ridge.

  The little River Vane splashed between the rocks beside the track, and she could hear curlews calling over the heather. More lightning scarred the heavens, followed by a roll of thunder which seemed to wander all around the mountains as she reined in to look back at the castle and loch in the valley far below. The loch was gray, and there weren’t any reflections upon the water. She could see Holy Island and just make out the ruins hidden among the trees. More tears wended their way down her cheeks. She had thought herself in paradise the day she’d gone there, but it had been a fool’s paradise… How little it had taken to shake Rory’s faith in her. He had claimed to love her and had offered marriage, but at the first moment of doubt she had been dashed aside.

  Another gust of wind lifted the hem of her cloak and tugged at her hood as she continued to gaze down at Glenvane for the last time. She had dreamed of such happiness with Rory, she had really believed herself destined to become his countess, but it had all turned to dust. She had deluded herself and had paid a very painful price. Now her heart was broken and all she wanted to do was escape, not only from Glenvane but from Britain itself. She belonged at home in Boston and she would never return here.

  Turning her horse, she urged it on once more. Please let the weather hold off a little longer. Let her be safely in the lee of the mountains before the storm unleashed its full fury. She could feel that fury approaching now, like an electricity in the air, tingling over her skin and making her want to shiver.

  A low cloud drifted over the incline ahead, a thin mist which would soon obscure the view behind her. As she rode into it, she resisted the desire to look back again. Rory Ardmore and all that he entailed meant nothing in her life from now on. The mist closed over her, swirling as she passed. There was no wind now, only an eerie stillness where the sound of her horse seemed to be magnified ten times over. Each rattling stone, each breath, echoed on all sides, and she could hear the roar of the waterfall as if it were only a few yards away. Lightning flashed again, turning the pale vapor to a brilliant silver-blue, and almost immediately there was a shuddering clap of thunder which seemed to shake the very mountain.

  Lauren’s horse was frightened, tossing its head and capering around in panic. She managed to keep control, but in the split second of lightning, she saw something which made her gasp. Jamie’s overturned cabriolet lay by the ford just ahead. Its wheel had evidently become stuck in a deep rut, and the shafts had broken as the little vehicle tipped over. There was no sign of the horse, nor was there any sign of either Jamie or Emma.

  Alarmed, Lauren dismounted, keeping a tight hold on the reins as she led the nervous horse toward the capsized vehicle. It lay like a toy, looking so fragile and unsafe that it seemed impossible anyone would wish to drive it at the breakneck pace judged de rigueur by gentlemen such as Jamie. Where were they? Had they continued their journey on the horse?

  As the thought occurred to her, she heard Emma’s raised voice. “We must go on, Jamie!”

  The sound came from the direction of the waterfall. Lauren tried to peer through the curling mist, “Lady Fitzsimmons?” she called.

  There was silence.

  “Lady Fitzsimmons?” Lauren called again, and this time she heard footsteps.

  “Miss Maitland?” It was Jamie. His figure was at first indistinct in the veils of moisture in the air, but as he came closer she saw him more clearly. Emma’s figure loomed out of the mist as well. She was clutching something—it was the jewel box.

  Jamie was astonished to see Lauren. “What are you doing here, Miss Maitland?” he asked.

  “I…”

  But before the words of explanation had left her lips, there was another jagged flash of lightning—so close that the air ticked—and almost immediately there was a mighty clap of thunder. Lauren gave a cry of alarm, but her horse was absolutely terrified, rearing away and almost snatching the reins from her hands. Somehow she managed to keep hold of the distracted animal, but her ankle twisted painfully.

  Jamie dashed forward to assist her, grabbing the reins and managing to soothe the horse before tethering it to a nearby thornbush. Then he turned anxiously to her as she bent to rub her ankle. “Are you all right, Miss Maitland?”

  Lauren winced with pain. “My ankle, I’ve wrenched it.”

  Emma stood nearby, making no move to help in any way. She glanced toward the horse. “Leave her, Jamie, for we can escape now.”

  “We can’t,” he replied shortly.

  “Yes, we can. We have her horse, the jewels, and—”

  “I said no,” he replied, turning to face her.

  “If her safety is so important to you, we can tell them at the inn that—”

  “No,” Jamie said again.

  Emma’s eyes hardened. “If you don’t come with me, I’ll go alone. I’m not about to give up now, not when it’s almost accomplished. Have you any idea what awaits me if I’m caught?”

  Jamie looked at her without emotion. “Emma, I no longer care, for I’m ashamed of everything I’ve done since meeting you.” He turned back to Lauren. “Miss Maitland, if you can sit on this rock over here, I’ll take a closer look at your ankle.”

  It was painful to put her foot down on the ground, but somehow Lauren managed it, hobbling to the rock and then sitting down thankfully as he knelt to gently begin to unhook the laces on her boot.

  Emma’s eyes hardened, and as soon as his attention was diverted, she moved quietly to the horse. She glanced back over her shoulder, but he was still intent upon Lauren’s injured ankle. Slowly she opened the portmanteau and pushed the jewel box inside, but there wasn’t much room, so it only res
ted precariously on the top. Then she untethered the reins and began to mount, which was not an easy task to accomplish in her flimsy rose muslin gown and tight-fitting pelisse.

  It was Lauren who realized what was happening. “Look! Quick!” she cried.

  Jamie leapt to his feet and whirled about, just as Emma gathered the reins to urge the horse away. He caught the bridle, and the frightened horse whinnied and reared. Emma tried to beat him with her fist and his grip slackened for a moment. It was all she needed. Digging her heel into the horse’s flanks, she urged it away again, but as she did so the jewel box was dislodged from the portmanteau and fell to the ground.

  Emma didn’t wait to see if she could retrieve anything. It was all up with her, and she knew it. She flung the horse away into the mist, and soon the drumming of its hooves died away, leaving only the endless rushing of the waterfall.

  Lauren looked at Jamie. “Why didn’t you go with her? You could have escaped and left me.”

  “My integrity has returned, albeit a little belatedly, Miss Maitland,” he replied, smiling a little ruefully at her. “I’ve hardly been a credit to the British aristocracy, have I?”

  “No, I suppose not,” she admitted.

  “Maybe it’s too late to redeem myself entirely, but at least I’ve done something toward salving my conscience.” Suddenly it began to rain heavily, a torrential downpour which almost drowned the noise of the waterfall. Quickly he pushed the jewel box under a thornbush, and then helped Lauren to her feet. “We must get to the cave behind the waterfall; it’s dry there,” he said, putting his arm around her waist and supporting her as much as he could as they made their way around the pool.

  As they reached the cave, there was another flash of lightning, and the accompanying thunder brought an even greater deluge of rain from the lowering heavens. Jamie set her gently down on the dry floor, where she could lean back against the wall of the cave. “Are you comfortable?” he asked.

  “As comfortable as I can be. I don’t think I’ve sprained it badly, just given it a sharp pull. It will be better soon.”