A Time of Madness

by Marti Talbott

  “But not just any wife will do. She must be kind, resourceful and...”

  “And in love with you?”

  “Aye, and I in love with her, as Father keeps reminding me. He is right, of course.” Sawney paused for a moment. “I wonder brother, what opinion have you of Dena?”

  “Dena is comely, kind, resourceful on most occasions, and she has a pleasant smile. Unfortunately, I have not heard the sound of her laughter. Do you fancy her?”

  “I admit she is a bonny lass and I do consider her occasionally, which is not to say I am in love with her. I begin to think I understand nothing when it comes to love. Have you considered her?”

  “I have considered all but the widow Gormelia. As you said, marriage is forever and a lad cannot be too careful.”

  Sawney wrinkled his brow. “You do not favor Gormelia?”

  “Brother, she is sixty if she is a day.” Hew brushed a spider off his kilt and then changed the subject. “Father believes he will die soon, am I right?”

  “The pain in his side grows stronger and for his sake, I hope it does not linger much longer. I will greatly miss him, but if death is the only way to stop his suffering...”

  “I guessed as much. It is why he insists upon telling us the old stories after our evening meal.”

  “He wants to tell them and I never tire of hearing them. There is much to learn from those who have gone before, although I do not quite believe our great-grandmother married a Scot yet loved an English king.”

  Hew grinned. “It is that story Father loves telling most, just after he makes us pledge it is for the ears of our family only.”

  The brothers were quiet for a time, listening to the birds in the trees, for movement in the forest that might mean a fruitful hunt or a neighboring clansman with gossip to tell. At length, Hew broke the silence. “What will you do with Neasan now that he is back?”

  “I am not certain. Father says to send him off again, but I doubt he would stay away this time. He did not come back to see his mother, that much is clear, so why then did he come back?”

  “To boast of his accomplishments?” asked Hew.

  “Or because no other clan would have him.”

  “He seems a changed lad, perhaps he values his own clan more now.”

  Sawney lowered his gaze. “I pray you are right.”

  TO NEASAN, NOT MUCH had changed except the ages of the people that remained. The ones he called friends before his departure were a bit wiser, but still as bored with life as he had always been. It was these four he sought to speak to first and for his plan to work, he needed to know whom he could trust. With the first friend, he stood guard, with the second and third he joined in the hunt and with the last, he helped prepare the skin of a deer for tanning.

  All the while, he talked of the things he had seen and the great Scottish wealth easy for the taking. He chose his words wisely and in only a few days, other men began to seek him out. Whatever they desired to do, be it to fight, see the world or have valuable possessions, Neasan exaggerated the possibilities. The best of their desires was to become conquerors; the one he favored most himself. Yet these men were still too few and after careful consideration, he knew what he had to do.

  DENA MACGREAGOR HAD Neasan’s same blond hair and blue eyes, which made her pleasant enough to look at, Neasan thought. Moreover, she had exactly what he needed—she was closely related to several well-respected clansmen who could persuade others. Everyone believed Justin would die soon and that meant Neasan had no time to waste. “I wonder,” he began as he walked to where she stood in the glen.

  At first, Dena stared at the scar on his face until she realized her rudeness and looked away. “You wonder what?”

  “I was wondering if a lad with a scar such as mine might hope to have a wife someday.”

  Dena’s marriage possibilities had not been all that abundant and his question made her smile. “‘Tis not a lass, but a lad who is too particular. Some desire a lass with dark hair and brown eyes, or red hair with green. They choose tall, short, thin, round...”

  He chuckled. “You are right, but what do you prefer?”

  Neasan was far more emboldened than MacGreagor men usually were and Dena liked that. Even so, she took a moment before she answered. “I prefer a lad who is kind, gentle and keeps only unto me.”

  “Then my scar does not make you think ill of me?”

  “It might have, had I not known you before. The scar may make you look fierce, but I recall a very pleasant face.”

  Neasan quickly hid the fact that he did not remember her and smiled. “Then I am encouraged. Will you walk with me?”

  Dena found his request very tempting even though accepting meant she was sure to be the subject of the clan’s propensity to gossip. She too had fanciful notions and considered what accepting his advances might mean for her. More than anything, she wanted to be the clan’s mistress and she didn’t care who she had to marry to accomplish it.

  Everyone said Sawney was likely to be their next laird. Although she thought he might fancy her a little, he had never made his intentions known. On the other hand, there were rumors Neasan wanted to be the next laird, rumors she neither fully believed nor disbelieved. There was something very exciting about a man who knew what he wanted and wasn’t afraid to say it. Now it appeared he wanted her and she found it very flattering. At last, she nodded and when he began walking, she walked beside him.

  A FEW DAYS LATER, LAIRD Justin MacGreagor’s long, and for the most part, happy life came to an end sometime in the night. If he greatly suffered before he died, he told no one and when he was found, it looked as though he went peacefully in his sleep. His body was washed and then laid out on the long table in the great hall.

  In the great hall, Justin’s prize weapons hung on one wall, a faded tapestry hung on the other and the large, stuffed, colorful pillows his mother, Glenna, made lay along the walls. He liked his home clean and warm, and the women liked pleasing him. Yet to keep his body cool, they did not light the fire in the large hearth.

  For two days, those who chose to viewed his body and mourned the loss of him. Then they laid him in a box and once the lid was nailed shut, a green MacGreagor plaid was draped over it. With the Priest saying prayers and the clan following, Laird Justin MacGreagor was carried to the peaceful graveyard on the edge of the glen and buried next to his wife, Deora.

  The next day, the ache in Sawney’s heart over his father’s death was overwhelming. The aging three-story building he called home was so ghostly quiet he could not bear it, so he went outside to walk for a time and then sat down on a log facing the glen with his back to the graveyard.

  He watched the men and women go about their chores as usual, watched several clouds drift across a blue sky and listened to the birds chirping in the trees. All seemed oddly peaceful as though nothing was wrong in their world. Nevertheless, he knew the calm would turn to chaos if the clan had no laird to guide them.

  Sawney grew up knowing the clan might choose him as their next laird, just as they had his father and his father before him. He hoped they would, but he had not realized what a painful time it would be. Now, he had a few very important choices to make concerning whom he trusted to hold high positions.

  He ignored the whistle announcing yet another visitor come to pay their respects and watched instead the man and woman walking hand in hand toward the corrals. Hew mentioned it, but Justin’s death made Sawney pay little attention at the time. Now he saw it for himself. Dena, the woman he considered marrying, walked in the glen and her smile was for the man who held her hand - Neasan.

  Sawney closed his eyes and tried to remember if they were cousins. It would not be unusual for a brother and sister, or even cousins to walk together holding hands, but Neasan had no sisters, of that he was certain. Sawney charged himself to ask about that later and turned his thoughts back to the matters at hand.

  If chosen laird, he needed to consider strong men to protect him, advise him, and take c
ommand on his behalf when he needed them to. His cousin, Keter, would be a good choice for his second in command. He liked him well enough, he was a strong warrior and usually wise when it came to the ways of the world. Keter’s brother, Blare, would do equally as well.

  “Can you forgive me?”

  Sawney recognized her voice immediately and looked up to smile as his sister. “You have come after all?”

  “My husband refused to bring me.”

  He quickly stood up, took Paisley in his arms, and hugged her. Then he helped her sit on the log beside him. Paisley was still a vision of beauty with light blue eyes and white hair hidden under a dark blue scarf. When they were younger, he saw nothing remarkable in her looks, but once he began seeking a wife, he could not help comparing them to his sister. Perhaps that was the reason he found it impossible to choose a wife.

  “The river is high this time of year and I feared crossing, but as you can see, I managed it without getting too awfully wet.”

  “You came alone?”

  “Chisholm had banished me.”

  Sawney’s jaw dropped. “What?”

  Paisley puffed her cheeks. “My husband is petitioning the pope to have me set aside.”

  “He sets aside the most becoming lass in all of Scotland? Why?”

  “I am accused of adultery.”

  Sawney put his arm around his sister and let her lay her head on his shoulder. “Who would believe that?”

  “Chisholm does. My hair is a curse, you see. At first he only glared when a lad looked at me too long, then he began to draw his sword and twice he became enraged and nearly killed a lad.”

  “Simply because he looked at you?”

  “Aye. After that, he commanded his guards to be with me where ever I went, which I found as annoying as they did. Then yesterday, he turned on his guards. He convinced himself I was bedding one, or all, and killed two of them.”

  “He has gone daft.”

  “That he has.” She pulled off the scarf that matched the dark blue of her plaid and let her braided white hair show. “‘Tis my hair they stare at, not me, but I could not convince him. I am truly cursed.”

  Sawney hugged her a little tighter and laid his head against the top of hers. “There may be a remedy.”

  Paisley pulled back to see his eyes. “What remedy?”

  “Just last week Father told of a lass who boiled the fall leaves and turned her yellow hair to red. Aunt Carley will know how to do it.”

  “Why have I never heard that story?”

  “I had not heard it either until a few days ago. I suppose Father only just remembered it himself. ‘TIs the story of Charlet.”

  “You must tell it to me someday.”

  “Yesterday I could think of nothing but the stories he told. How shall I remember them all? Hopefully when all is settled, I can tell them and see if you and Hew remember them more clearly.”

  Paisley smiled. “As I recall, you are not fond of being corrected.”

  “As I recall, you are quite fond of doing the correcting.” It was so good to have her back even under such awful circumstances. She filled a void in his heart the way only a sister could and he vowed to do all he could to take away her suffering.

  Sawney’s attention was suddenly drawn to his brother. Hew’s pace was not urgent as he walked toward them, but his expression and the purposeful way he walked told a different story. Sawney often accused his brother of being part gray wolf the way he managed to sneak up on people. All their lives they shared a bedchamber and if anyone knew how to read Hew’s moods, Sawney did.

  CHAPTER III

  BOTH BROTHERS WAITED while Hew held out his hand to his sister, helped her stand, and then took her in his arms. “I heard.”

  Paisley closed her eyes. “I did not think the gossip would spread so quickly.”

  “A rider came the back way.” Hew intentionally kept her in his arms for fear she would collapse once she heard the news. “There is more. The rider said to say Chisholm went completely mad after you left.”

  She leaned back and stared into his eyes. At length she looked down. “Has he killed himself?”

  Hew hung his head.

  Paisley’s reaction was so unexpected, the brothers exchanged worried glances. She did not catch her breath and no hint of a tear rolled down her cheeks. Paisley let Hew hug her once more before she moved away, stepped over the log and walked to her Father’s grave. “I am happy I bore him no children.”

  Paisley had not realized anyone else could hear her until she noticed the gravediggers. She watched them finish putting the carved stone in the hole at the head of Justin’s grave, replace the loose dirt and pack it down with their shoes until the stone was secure. Each respectfully nodded to her and then walked away, but it wouldn’t be long until the whole clan knew every detail of what had happened.

  “You did not love your husband?” Hew couldn’t help but ask as both brothers stepped over the log and went to stand on each side of her.

  “Aye, at first I loved him with my whole heart, but brother, a lad can kill a wife’s love, particularly if she is falsely accused constantly. He found error with everything I said and everything I did. I will perhaps mourn and even miss him once I have had time to reflect, but for now I am glad to be shed of him.”

  It was difficult to grasp falling out of love with someone, but if Paisley said it, Sawney had no reason to doubt it was possible. The best thing to do was change the subject. “Come with me, wee sister.”

  “Wee? I am older than you.” Paisley looked up at one brother and then the other. “I am wee compared to the two of you.”

  She was smiling and it unnerved both her brothers, but as they had since they were children, Sawney and Hew locked arms to make a chair, swooped her up, turned her around and then carried her back over the log. Abruptly, they dumped her out, which always made her giggle.

  It was glorious to be back with her brothers and although she did not giggle, she did smile. As Paisley walked with them into the glen, men watched her, including Neasan whom she barely remembered, but that was normal and she paid them no mind.

  “I am so happy you have come,” said Hew. “We have been far too mournful and you bring back the sunshine.”

  Paisley stopped walking, which made both of her brothers stop as well. “There are rumors among the clans.” She had their full attention and wanted to tell her brothers where no one could hear her so she quickly glanced back. “They are about you, Sawney. They say you will be challenged now that Father has passed.”

  “Do they say by whom?”

  “Nay. Do be careful, I could not bear losing Father and you.” Finally, tears filled Paisley’s eyes. “Father came to see me just last month and I pretended all was well. I could tell he suspected, but I did not want him to see how dreadful my life had become.”

  Hew hid his own sorrow. “‘Tis all behind you now, wee sister. You will start a new life with us. Aunt Carley lives in that cottage and she will be pleased to have you stay with her.”

  Paisley was surprised, pulled a cloth out of her belt, and quickly wiped the tears off her cheeks. “That cottage?”

  “Aye, Father moved her there two months ago. It was better, he said, to have her closer to Keter and Blare where they could see about her often.”

  “Is everything still in that cottage?”

  Sawney smiled, “Aye, all is well with the MacGreagor wealth and we three are the only ones who know about it.”

  “We three and Aunt Carley,” Hew corrected.

  NEASAN, A GIANT OF a man in his own right, watched the brother’s take Paisley to her Aunt Carley’s cottage. She was back, at least for now, and he was very pleased.

  Dena was not pleased. She could not help but notice him watching Paisley and found it disdainful. “I have always hated her,” she said in a somewhat whiny voice. “Why has she come without her husband do you suppose?”

  After days of wooing her, Neasan was as tired of holding her hand as he was of her
. He let go of her hand, yet forced himself to be pleasant. “She means nothing to us. She will be gone soon enough.”

  “Not soon enough for me.”

  He was becoming steadily irritated and it would not do if he were to keep her convinced. “I have heard you prefer her brother?”

  “Perhaps I did before...”

  “Before what?”

  Dena shyly turned away. “Before you came back.”

  Both her jealousy and her words convinced him he had completely captured the affection of this stupid, stupid girl. There was one more thing he wanted to tempt her and her family with. “Tell me, if you were mistress, what would you change first?”

  The possibility pleased Dena more than she was willing to let on. It was exactly what she wanted, but she held her answer so as not to look too eager. “I suppose if I lived in the Keep, I would change everything. The furnishings are old, the tapestries are faded and...”

  He cared not to endure the boring details and interrupted her. “I am glad to hear it.” Neasan took her hand, started them walking again, and ignored the silly grin on her face. His next move was for her to spread the word and for that, he needed to let Dena get back to her family. He stopped, took her in his arms and lightly kissed her on the lips. Then he whispered in her ear. “I must leave you now.” Abruptly, he walked away.

  Dena was so thrilled, that she hurried off in the opposite direction. Her dreams were coming true and she could not believe her good fortune. Neasan wanted her and she wanted to be a mistress. They were a perfect match.

  She told her father first. Markus, one of the few remaining elders, beamed with pride. Having a daughter in the Keep opened all sorts of possibilities for his entire family. Perhaps his other daughters would be approached by men of more quality. Furthermore, his sons might hold positions of honor under Neasan, such as advisors, or even second and third in command. Markus told his wife and his other daughters, who went to tell all the relatives and soon the glorious news began to spread all across their peaceful glen.