Highlander Found

by Rebecca Preston

  Colin nodded his head and looked at Mary. At that moment, Donal came bursting into the room.

  “Och, lookie here, laddie, Maeve has been returned to us. She’s no’ dead after all!” Colin cried.

  “No, please. I’m not Maeve! I swear to you.” She tried beseeching Mary, but the woman’s gaunt face was flush with excitement and her eyes shone with tears.

  “Such a sweet lass y’are, no’ havin’ yer wits but savin’ the wee lad anyway. We always had a laugh we did when he’d be up tae his antics.” Mary walked over and patted her on the cheek. “T’will be alrigh’, dearie. We’ll look after ye o’course.”

  Mary turned on her heel and began shooing the men from the room. “Go on w’it ye. Give the lass some time tae come t’her senses. She needs a bath she does.” She shooed the men out the door and they stared at Audrina as they went. There were mingled looks of excitement, concern and love from Colin. Mary turned back to Audrina and said, “It’s been a long hard journey for ye, go on and have a bath, t’will make ye feel better.”

  She pointed to the tub and Audrina walked over to it slowly. She looked down into the clear water and saw the reflection of her muddy face staring back at her. She realized then, just how thoroughly exhausted she was. Mary went to the trunk and pulled out a simple linen dress and a pair of slippers and laid them out on the bed for Audrina.

  “Call me back when ye’re ready to wash yer hair and I’ll halp ye,” she said softly. She walked to the door and closed it behind her, but Audrina heard the loud click of the lock behind her as she found herself locked in the room.

  Audrina stripped off her muddy clothes and placed them in a pile beside the tub and stepped into the water. It was considerably cooler, but in the sticky summer heat, she felt it was refreshing as she grabbed the soap and began to lather it over her skin, as she washed away all the sediment from the bog. Audrina wasn’t accustomed to anyone helping her bathe, so rather than calling Mary back into the room, she washed her hair and then wiped up where she had splashed water around the tub with the linen that was left with the soap.

  She pulled on the dress which was just about the right size for her and she tried to tie the laces at the back, but was unable to do so herself. Instead she opted to comb her hair with her fingers and was just working through the last of the tangles and snarls in her hair when a soft knock issued at the door.

  CHAPTER 10

  Mary stepped back through the door and smiled at Audrina. Audrina backed away swiftly, still wary of the woman.

  “T’is alright, lass,” she said softly to Audrina.

  She looked at Audrina’s wet hair and then went back to the door, calling someone to come in. The woman who had brought food for Audrina came in with another woman who was clearly a servant of some kind, and together the women lift the tub up and remove it from the room.

  “I suspect ye feel a wee bit better then, aye?” Mary asked Audrina.

  “Yes, the bath was nice, thank you,” Audrina replied. She knew the woman didn’t mean her any harm, but she had to make her see somehow.

  Before Audrina could think of anything else to say that would convince her, Mary said, “Aye, I suspected ye wouldnae want tae be touched after he got his hands on ye. T’is good ye washed yer hair though, lass. T’was crawling w’it vermin.”

  Audrina suspected whoever he was, wasn’t Colin, but she nodded her head politely as she gazed around the room. It brought on a feeling of déjà vu. She felt like she had been there before, but she knew that wasn’t possible. Audrina circled the room, touching the stone walls and the small table. She warmed her hands by the crackling fire in the hearth. She looked at the bed and felt like, she knew this place somehow. What she didn’t understand was, why had there been men’s clothes in the trunk as well as women’s? Why did this room seem so fond to her, when she had never set foot in it? She walked over to the nightstand which was only a small wooden table roughly carved and smoothed over. She fingered the lace that was draped over it, having been knitted to fit the table top width. There was a small portrait propped up on the stand. It made her curious so she picked it up.

  “I’ll lace yer gown for ye lass if ye don’t mind?” Mary asked softly from behind her.

  She nodded and felt Mary’s frail hands at her back, tying the gown up.

  She turned her attention back to the small likeness, it was a crude painting of three women, but they all had distinctive features. Audrina recognized one immediately, she had the same flaming red hair as Audrina. This must be Maeve everyone kept telling her about.

  “Mary…” she began.

  “Aye, lass?” Mary finished with the laces and stepped back.

  “Mary, can you please listen to me. Just listen to the whole story and then if you still think I’m Maeve, please…” Audrina implored.

  Mary looked at her kindly then sat on the edge of the bed and patted the soft cushion below her. It was a finer mattress than the one she had seen in her dream, but it still crunched under her, indicating it was straw, stitched into the material. But at least it wasn’t straight straw.

  Audrina sat on the edge of the bed and looked at Mary. She was so tired, and Mary had been so sweet to her, she just wanted someone to listen to her.

  “Alright lass, tell me yer story from the top, and I’ll then tell ye about our Maeve. We’ll see in the end how they match up, aye?”

  Audrina blinked back the tears of gratitude. She was so grateful Mary was finally going to hear her out, and listen. She told her everything. She started with the death of her mother and having to live with her grandfather. She told her about how he raised her in believing in the magic of Scotland, and ever since she was a little girl she had the strongest sense of fernweh, the wanderlust, the yearning to travel to this far off place because somehow it felt like home. She told Mary about when her grandfather died and how she threw herself into her job as a trauma nurse and more than a few times, Mary’s brow creased in confusion.

  She had to explain what a trauma nurse was to Mary who briefly interrupted to say, “Aye, a healer. I ken what that is.”

  Audrina continued and told her about little Donald Nightingale and how she had lost him in the trauma unit. She told Mary about going to sleep that night and making the vow that she would visit Scotland finally. She told her about the strange dream and the woman in the dream and the kilt pin. She told her about reading the brochure and seeing the pin on the paper and rushing to see it in the case. She felt breathless as she told her about the thief and how she chased him and knocked him down. Then she recounted how she had been sucked into the gray and black mist and she woke up in the field and was accosted by the farmer. She finished her story with the tale of sojourning into the city to discover where she was, and when she was and how she decided to camp out in the woods and that’s when she found Donal.

  Mary had grasped her hand halfway through the story, and she didn’t mind. It was comforting somehow, and Audrina felt her patting her hand as she finished her tale.

  “Och, lass,” Mary whispered with tears streaming down her gaunt face.

  “Do you believe me?” Audrina whispered hopefully.

  “I believe…” she began as she gazed into Audrina’s hopeful face. “I believe ye think t’is real.”

  Audrina’s face fell as she realized Mary didn’t believe her. She started to say something, but Mary held up her other hand.

  “Nay, lass. I listened to your story and ye promised to listen tae mine.” Mary smoothed her palms over her skirts. There were some things that made sense to her in this world, and some things that didn’t. Audrina, Maeve, whoever the woman was or what she called herself, was a mystery. But there was something she was absolutely certain of, and that was her daughter-in-law’s purity of heart. Mary had sensed it the moment they discovered she was a woman under all that mud. She knew without a shadow of a doubt that she had endured things that were inexplicable. She wanted to show her that, even if her story made no sense to her, it was alright, becau
se it made sense to someone, somehow and that was what mattered.

  CHAPTER 11

  Audrina fell silent as Mary continued. She would listen to Mary out of respect for a woman who had been exceedingly kind to her.

  “Now, as I was sayin,’ I believe ye think t’is real and what’s more important t’is tha’ sometimes the mind is a funny thing and sees things in a different way than most. Do ye ken wha’ I’m sayin?”

  Audrina nodded, and Mary continued.

  “Now, ye think t’is all real, and I believe t’is real and sometimes, when a person has tae believe in something so strongly, it therefore makes it real.”

  Audrina understood what she was saying. Her grandfather had been a staunch believer in God, and he brought Audrina up to go to church and worship and be a devout Christian and then when she had become an adult, she decided as she learned about more denominations and religions, that the God that was real, was whatever God that particular person believed in. So, for her, she called him God, where as other people may have called him Bhudda, Allah, or any other name of their particular religion. She believed there was some higher power and everyone who believed in that, called him or her, something different. As an adult she came to realize, it wasn’t important what he was called, what was important was the person’s beliefs. That was what Mary was trying to say to her now.

  “Ok, I understand what you are saying, Mary,” she said softly.

  Mary nodded and patted her hand again and continued, “Aye, so if I ken yer story, what I take from it tis, ye lost yer family at a young age. Well, that lines up with the likes of our Maeve. Her family was sent to the Heavens when a plague hit them. I’d known her mam when we was wee babies, and so she came tae live w’it us. She and Colin found each other and fell in love. Och and it was a sweet love t’was. The sun rose and shone on the likes o’Colin and Maeve. Maeve was such a sweet lass. Always lookin’ after the wee ones about the castle. She was a healer, like yerself and was always mixin’ brews and poultices. Some called her a witch, but nay, she was too kind-hearted a lass tae be anything o’the like. She and Colin used tae talk fer hours and hours and when we’d have a wee celebration, aye, the pair of them would be seen dancin’ until the soles o’their shoes were alight. And the love they had for each other…” Mary sighed as she remembered how sweet and innocent Maeve and Colin had been.

  “What happened to them, Mary?” Audrina pressed quietly.

  “What happens tae e’ry sweet couple tha’ finds one another round here. Now, ye ken the Scots and the English are warring w’it each other?”

  “Yes.” Audrina knew they were right in the middle of it.

  “Aye, ye ken it well. The English claimed rights o’er the marriage bed o’the lassies of Scotland. Prima Noctem they call it.”

  “Yes, I’ve heard of it,” Audrina said quietly.

  “Well, on the eve o’the wedding, the English came. They’re only supposed tae ha’ the one night w’it the lassie, but we’d kenned ye were lost tae the likes o’Cotswold.”

  “Cotswold?” Audrina asked. Her head suddenly began to swim as images flared up in her mind. Things she didn’t want to ever have to endure entered her mind and she rocked back and forth clutching her head.

  “Lass? Mayhap I shouldn’t be pressin’ ye w’it the details.”

  “No, please, Mary. I’m aright. Finish the story, please.” Audrina continued to clutch her head.

  “Are ye sure?”

  “Yes, just a bit of a headache is all. I’ll be fine,” Audrina told her. She sat up and smiled weakly at Mary. “I suppose you think I’m crazy,” Audrina started.

  “Shh, lass, tis alright. No one will think such a thing of ye. And yer wee Donald Nightingale. He must ha’been yer way o’comin’ face ta face wit our wee Donal. Ye had tae save him, but ye didn’t ken if we’d welcome ye back. And the farmer accosting ye? Well, I ken that was yer mind forming a way to deal wit’ the terrible things Cotswold did tae ye. Ye see, lass? It all does make sense in a fash. It’s just a wee bit jumbled from the truth of it all.”

  Audrina felt a rush of emotion the more Mary talked. She clutched her head again every time she mentioned the name Cotswold. The name invoked fear into her.

  “Nay, I’ll no’ be pressin’ ye anymore this nigh’ w’it the details. Ye’re too o’er come w’it emotions, lass. Ye rest now and we’ll speak on it tomorrow,” Mary insisted.

  Audrina stood up, wanting Mary to finish the story. She had to know what happened to Maeve, but Mary placed her hands firmly on Audrina’s shoulders and pushed her back down to the bed.

  “Rest now, lass.”

  Audrina didn’t think arguing was going to do her any good anymore, so she complied, lying down on the bed. It had all been so much so quickly. The museum and the pin and falling through time. Audrina didn’t think she had any more energy left in her to argue with Mary until tomorrow, but she would be sure to press her to finish the story. Mary blew out the candle on the bed side lamp and that only left a soft glow emanating from the coals on the hearth. Audrina watched her walk out the door and lock her in her room just as she had when she had been taking a bath.

  Audrina quickly got out of bed and tiptoed to the door, listening for anyone who might be on the other side of it.

  CHAPTER 12

  Audrina listened at the door and heard the soft thud of boots coming down the hall. Mary gasped and said “Oh!” as someone intercepted her just outside the door.

  “Mother, tis me, Colin. How is Maeve?” he asked in a hushed tone.

  “Och, Colin. I’m afraid for the wee lass. She doesnae seem to ken who she is. She’s fashed quite a story about how she came tae be in the bog, but I fear all that Cotswold has done tae her has made her lose her memory.”

  “How do ye mean, Mother? What has she said?” Colin asked.

  “She’s told quite a tale of magic and time travel and the like. She doesnae even have a glimmer of recognition in her eye when I speak yer name upon my lips. I’ve no doubt she’s Maeve alright, but she’s nae the same Maeve that was taken from us. Cotswold has broken her, lad. She’s romanticized the horrors he’s done tae her in this outlandish tale. The mind makes up strange things when there’s naught but horror and blackness tae fill it. We’ll have tae be careful w’it the lass. I’m afraid if we push her, she’ll snap and do somethin’ drastic. I’ve locked her in the room so she doesnae try tae run or hurt herself,” Mary finished.

  Audrina listened for further comment at the door, but only heard Colin’s whispered, “Alright, Mother.” Before the sounds of their footsteps receded down the hall.

  She turned from the door and began pacing the length of the room in the dark. What had Cotswold done to Maeve that had been so horrible? It was certain that he had invoked the rights of Prima Noctem, but was the man so horrid he had hurt Maeve in other ways? Audrina had to find out what was going on. She had to convince someone to believe her that she was not this Maeve they were all talking about. Audrina felt like for the first time, like she finally had time to be alone with her thoughts, but what she didn’t like was that they all seemed to be jumbled with the memories, no stories, that everyone was telling her about Maeve.

  Audrina went to her bag that she had been carrying with her from the bog. She was certain if she could find that pin, she could somehow find answers to what was going on. She had been nothing but confused and scared since she woke up in the field and she was sure if she could just get her hands on the kilt pin one more time, she would be sent home.

  Audrina searched for several minutes. She completely unpacked the back and dumped the contents on the bed. Flakes of dried mud fell on the bed and Audrina even untied the packages of food she had stolen from the farmer. She searched the dried and muddied clothes she had been wearing, and still couldn’t find the pin anywhere. Audrina packed it all away and began pacing the room again. She felt the tears fall from her eyes and she swiped angrily at them as she walked around the room in circles again and again.


  Audrina tried to calm herself down, but the more she let her thoughts wander about the unfairness and injustice of it all, the more she got worked up. She missed home. She missed her bed with her pictures of the pretty highland castles and the comfort of her foam mattress. Audrina missed electricity and modern commodities. She had never been a dress person and every time the skirts swished around her ankles, she kicked at them angrily. The linen was rough and scratchy, and Audrina had been itching ever since she had put it on.

  The more Audrina thought about these things, the more worked up she got and the harder the tears fell. Finally, she slumped down on the bed and tossed and turned for what seemed like hours as she cried. She realized the irony of her situation. She had never been able to fall asleep without staring at her pictures of the castle, and now that she was in one of the very castles she had dreamed about, she found it foreign and uninviting.

  Audrina wasn’t sure when she finally cried herself to sleep. She had lost track of time through most of the day because there weren’t any clocks.

  She sank into oblivion and soon found herself back in the tower.

  “SHE STOOD at the window of the tower and looked out over the courtyard. Cotswold Keep was large and English soldiers surrounded the turrets and towers and walked the long catwalks in between the lookout stations. Skirmishes from the Scots had been breaking out all over the highlands, and it was only a matter of time before the clans banded together and made a move on Cotswold Castle stood high on a hill overlooking the moors of Scotland. She could see heather rippling in waves in the sun. She had lost track of time during the journey here, there had been a hood placed over her head. She’d been thrown in the tower without a word and left to tear the cloth from her face. She’d tried the door, but of course the click had sounded when the soldiers threw her in here. Now she had the painstaking task of waiting until someone came for her. She spent the majority of the day at the window. She watched the comings and goings of the English soldiers. She watched the changing of the guards below and she watched several official looking couriers ride in and out of the gates. She had nothing to do but wait while the hours passed. Wait and think about what lie ahead that night. She’d heard rumors. They’d even reached as far as Claran Castle. It’s why she had denied him for so long, not wanting to face the dreadful act that would lie ahead. But she hadn’t been able to nay say to him any longer. And then they had come for her. At around lunch a small bowl of stew had been sent up. The soldier who brought it hadn’t said a word to her the entire time. They hadn’t even bothered with a spoon and she’d had to pick the larger chunks from it and eat it with her fingers.