by Amanda Scott
Just as Katy began to think she might still talk her way to safety, he added, “Who were those two men, and why were they, or you, near our standing stone?”
Fighting an impulse to chew her lip or do anything else that might reveal her tension, she said hastily, “They were Comyns, sir, and cousins, for one did call the other so. He said they had sworn a sacred oath not to tell another person and had come to that private place to talk, where only the rock would hear them. The second man even said that the rock could hear all they said but couldna repeat nowt of it.”
Then, before Fin could ask another discomfiting question, she added, “He said de Raite told Malcolm there were to be no weapons, so you will be unarmed, ‘as helpless as sheep to slaughter,’ he said. Also, that their men will be armed.”
“That villain,” Malcolm muttered. “I feared we couldna trust him, but he did lose dunamany men, and I didna want tae fling away the slightest chance o’ peace.”
“So the two mentioned de Raite by name?” Fin said, eyeing her skeptically.
Hesitating, because Will’s cousin had mostly said “your da,” Katy recalled that Will always called his father de Raite, so she said, “Aye, sir, at least one of them did. I cannot recall if both men said his name.”
“One be enough,” Malcolm snapped.
“Aye, it would be if any of it made sense,” Fin replied, still eyeing Katy sternly enough to make her squirm. “Sacred oaths and talking to a rock. You have yet to explain what took you to the standing stone, my lass, or how you came to recognize two men of Clan Comyn. Had you seen them before?”
When she hesitated again, he said dulcetly enough to send a cold chill up her spine, “You do recall that we are keeping the others from their supper.”
Having no choice, she said unhappily, “I had met one of them before, sir, but not the other.”
“I see that you and I must have a much longer talk,” he said. “But, for now, tell me why you think this is not someone trying to make mischief with de Raite’s banquet because that someone, other than de Raite, wants this reconciliation to fail. Just where were you when you heard all of this? Did they know you were there?”
“Nae, sir, for I had hidden behind the Stone when I heard two men coming. The one I know would have expected me to be there, though, because we had met there before. But, by my troth, Da,” she added fiercely, “Will would do naught to spoil the peacemaking. He is a good man and I … I know he would never let harm come to me or my family if he could stop it. In fact, I think he persuaded his cousin to have their talk at the Stone with the hope that I would overhear them.”
“Which one is this Will Comyn?” Malcolm asked. “I canna keep that lot sorted in my head.”
“He is de Raite’s youngest son, my lord,” Katy said. “De Raite sent him to live with his granduncle, Thomas Cummings, near Inverness soon after Will’s mother died. His brothers are years older. Then de Raite ordered him home again just before Inverlochy. Will did not participate in the battle, though.”
“I know Thomas Cummings,” Malcolm said. “He’s a good man, and his lot, though still calling theirselves Comyns then, helped hold Inverness for me afore Lochaber when Alexander o’ the Isles tried tae seize the castle and burn the town.”
“Will did not tell me that,” Katy said, recalling that Malcolm was Constable of Inverness Castle, appointed by the King soon after his grace’s return from England.
“You know much about this Will Comyn, Katy, more than I like to hear,” Fin said. “You seem to care for him and believe he cares for you, so I will discuss that further with you. I think we have heard enough for now, but you are not to discuss this with anyone else.”
“He is right, lass,” Malcolm said. “We dinna want word o’ this flitting about, not afore we decide what tae do about it. Likely, not afterward either.”
“I won’t tell anyone,” she said. “’Tis why I insisted on telling you both at once, but could you not ask to meet somewhere else, somewhere safer than Raitt?”
With a wry smile, Malcolm said, “Neither side would trust the choice o’ the other any more than we trust de Raite in his place or he would trust me in mine.”
“Off with you now, Katy,” Fin said. “But heed my warning, lass, for when I said not to tell anyone, I meant anyone … not even Clydia or your mother. You will suffer my gravest displeasure if you disobey me in this.”
“Then, may I tell Mam and Clydia that you have forbidden me to talk of aught that occurred in here, sir?”
“You will have no need to tell them,” Fin said. “You are going to forgo your supper and go upstairs to await me in my chamber. I won’t be long.”
Making them another curtsy, Katy accepted her dismissal with mixed relief and trepidation. She had no wish to face questions from Catriona or Clydia, and she knew that had she emerged from the inner chamber and taken her place between them at the high table, they would have asked many.
Even so, the thought of waiting for Fin in his chamber made her wish that Malcolm had not mentioned the word “tawse.” It had been years since Fin had employed corporal punishment with either twin. She could only hope he had not taken Malcolm’s use of the word as a hint that he should do so now.
Having returned home with his cousin in good time for supper, Will tried to persuade himself not only that he had done the right thing but that Katy had understood all they had said and was wise enough to tell Fin, without raising a din to everyone else, even if she feared his reaction.
Dae said he would wash for supper and vanished to the attic chamber, so Will went in search of Aly.
Learning from Colley that de Raite had ordered her to keep to her chamber with Meggie for supper lest someone let slip a word of the banquet’s purpose to her, Will followed Dae to the attic and found him there alone.
“Wrap up what you mean to wear home and set it in yon corner where I put my pallet,” Will whispered. “Anyone who sees it will assume it belongs to me.”
“I dinna ken if I can leave so,” Dae replied. “I’m that scared, Will.”
“Aye, but once you’re away, you’ll feel nobbut relief,” Will said, knowing he had to continue to act as if the banquet were going to take place. After all, it was possible that Katy had feared to report all they’d said or had chosen her words so carefully to excuse her presence there that her father had failed to grasp the danger. “No one will be at that loch tomorrow or Friday, Dae. You need only choose your time.”
“I were a-thinking I’d do yer route wi’ ye and head east on yon road we saw coming home from Loch Moigh. The one as ye said led tae Rothiemurchus.”
“We would put a noose round my neck if you did that,” Will said. “If we went together, Raite would blame me for your disappearance. He might even think we had conspired to warn them at Rothiemurchus and mayhap at Finlagh, too.”
Grimacing, Dae said, “I dinna want that. Still, I canna think a sensible thought about all o’ this. That be plain fact.”
“Then stop trying to think of all of it. You always wear boots, so just put breeks and a jerkin in yon corner, so I can take them to the loch for you. You do ken the boulders at the north end of the loch where we have oft built a fire, aye?”
“Aye,” Dae muttered.
“I’ll leave the sack amongst those boulders. Then, you need only go eastward till you reach the road south through Glen Spey that you have traveled before.”
“Aye,” Dae agreed. His tone remained dismal.
It was good that they had not counted on walking the ridge together the next day, for de Raite announced at supper that Liam and Colley would take that duty. “Nae one else is tae be on yon ridge the next two days save the pair o’ ye, tae see that our guests ha’ arrived and will no be coming here armed tae their teeth!”
Katy had not expected to enjoy her talk with Fin, nor did she. Within minutes of joining her in his chamber, he had
extracted all that she could tell him about how she had met Will, their secret meetings, and what she had overheard that afternoon.
She felt as if Fin had wrung every last word from her physically but was glad she had forced herself to tell him the whole truth and relieved to have it over.
After he had expressed his feelings about her behavior in his sternest, most withering way, he added, “This man has been sneaking about behind his father’s back, just as you did behind mine, my lass. If his family cannot trust him, why should we trust aught that he says or does, especially when he took such a torturous route to tell us instead of simply warning us not to attend the banquet?”
She had not tried to stem the tide of his anger while he directed it at her, but his accusations about Will brought her usual strength of mind surging back.
Blinking away tears but refusing to wipe away those that had spilled down her cheeks, she exclaimed, “Because Will believes as strongly in honor as you do, Da, and he risked his immortal soul to tell me! He is not one to do that lightly. You also believe in the immortal soul; I know you do!” she added angrily. “This was not easy for him, but he loves me and he knows I love him. He knows, too, that what his father means to do is a black sin and goes against every rule of hospitality.”
“I see,” Fin said when she paused for breath, and he spoke those two words much more mildly than she had had any reason to expect.
Had she not known him better, she might have thought that the look on his face then was a sympathetic, even a sad one. Whatever he meant by it, though, it told her that she had said enough.
The silence lengthened until he said gently, “Even if it is love for the pair of you, Katy-lass, it will likely prove fruitless in the end. You must know that.”
“I can tell you only what I told Clydia. If I cannot have him, I won’t marry.”
“Now, lass—”
“You would like him, Da. I felt as if I had known him all my life after that first meeting on the crag. I think much of it is because he reminds me of you. He scolded me as you just have, albeit not as fiercely, for climbing that crag.”
“I’d feel better about the man if he had put you across his knee for that,” Fin growled. “I’m sorely tempted to do it myself, I can tell you.”
Knowing that she had now said much more than enough, Katy bit her lip.
Fin smiled wearily and said, “You go on up to bed, lassie. Malcolm is doubtless impatiently awaiting me, and your mother will want to talk to me, too.”
“Will you tell them both all that I said?”
“Nae, only what little they need to know and that they must not quiz you now. You must eventually tell your mother everything, though, yourself.”
She grimaced at the thought but knew he was right and that, eventually, she would have to tell Clydia, too. Another thought stirred then. She said, “None of you can go to that banquet now, so what will Malcolm do?”
“I don’t know, Katy, but I do want to say one more thing to you before I go.”
When he did not immediately continue, tension flooded through her again.
Then he said gently, “I know it took courage for you to come to Malcolm and me as you did, lassie. You had to know that you would have to explain it all and that my reaction would be unpleasant at best, so the plain truth is that I’m gey proud to discover that you have that kind of courage.”
New tears spilled down her cheeks then, but he opened his arms to her, and she went to him. When she felt them close warmly around her, she hugged him back as tightly as she could until he murmured that they should go.
She ran up to her bedchamber then and was relieved to find it empty. Pouring water into the basin, she washed away the evidence of her tears.
Deciding that she did not want to talk to anyone until morning, she doffed her clothing, got into bed, wondered briefly what Will might be doing at that moment, and was sound asleep before Bridgett or Clydia came in.
Neither disturbed her and by the time she awakened Thursday morning, Clydia had already gone downstairs. Dressing quickly, plaiting her hair, and pinning the coiled plait up under a plain white veil, Katy soon followed.
Despite her father’s assurance that he would forbid Clydia and Catriona to quiz her, when she saw that both of them were still at the high table, she feared that each would find a way to satisfy her curiosity.
“I thought you meant to sleep the day away,” Cat said with a smile. “Do not forget that your uncle Ivor is coming with his tail of men. I think that we have all in readiness, though. Other than taking some meals here and the men sleeping in the hall, courtyard, or woods, Ivor’s men and Malcolm’s do look after themselves.”
Katy nearly asked how long they would stay but realized where that question might lead. Deciding that the less she said, the less likely it would be that she might tread where her father had forbidden her to go, she nodded but held her tongue.
Having managed to take Dae’s clothing to the loch the night before, Will had barely managed to inform his cousin of his success Thursday morning before de Raite ordered Hew to go into Nairn and see that the entertainers understood exactly when they were to arrive the next evening.
“Ye’ll also take their leader a wee partial payment tae encourage them tae be early. Dinna go alone, though,” de Raite said. “Take Will or your cousin with ye.”
“I dinna need either one,” Hew said. “I can take one o’ my own men.”
“Nae, ye’ll take one o’ them, so ye’ll no talk o’ aught that ye should keep tae yourself. Whatever ye tell your men, ye’ll tell them just aforehand and nae sooner.”
“Afore what, Da?” Alyssa asked as the stepped onto the dais, having apparently emerged from the tower in time to overhear the exchange.
“Nowt tae concern ye,” snapped de Raite. “Which will it be, Hew?” he added as Aly, flushing deeply, stepped off the dais and hurried around to the other end of the table, evidently deeming that route a safer one than passing behind her father.
Meantime, de Raite awaited Hew’s answer.
Dae gave Will a frantic look.
“I’ll go if you like, Hew,” Will said.
“Nae, if I’ve got tae have one o’ ye, I’ll take Dae. But dinna dally, cousin. Hie yourself, and dinna forget your boots, for I want tae be back here by midday.”
Visibly reluctant, Dae gave Will another look and went to fetch his boots.
De Raite left the hall when Hew did, so Will, taking pity on Alyssa, nearly offered to walk outside the wall with her. Realizing where she might ask him to take her and that if he left the castle, he would likely draw more attention from de Raite than he wanted, he reconsidered and invited her to play Tables with him instead.
She fetched the board, disks, and dice, and they played in the solar until midday, when Meggie brought Aly’s meal to her.
Will went downstairs then to have his meal and walked into an argument between de Raite and Hew, the latter having evidently just returned from Nairn.
“What the devil did ye do tae the man?” de Raite demanded.
His face scarlet with fury, Hew shouted back, “I did nowt, I tell ye! When we passed the harbor, going tae where ye’d said we’d find yon minstrels, a ship were about tae sail. Some’un said it be bound for Aberdeen, Perth, and mayhap Norway. They had cast off its lines and men were hauling the plank in, when that dafty Dae took off a-running and leaped on tae the plank whilst it were near six foot away.”
“Blast ye, Hew, ye should ha’ stopped him!”
“Sakes, Da, I expected him tae fall intae the water, but he did nae such thing. The ship were too far from the quay then for me tae jump, and men were setting the sail, heading east for the firth, so they couldna turn back. Likely, they’ll throw him overboard, though. I dinna think he had one shilling wi’ him, let alone more.”
“Well, ye must ha’ said summat tae irk th
e man.”
“Nae! Like I told ye, Dae be a feardie. Likely he wanted nowt tae do wi’—”
“I see,” de Raite cut in before Hew could finish the sentence. Then, catching sight of Will, he said, “Did ye ken aught o’ this notion o’ Dae’s?”
“Nae, sir,” Will replied. “He is not a talkative chap, as both of you must know. When he walked the ridge with me, we went hours without talking,” he added, comfortably aware that every word was true.
It occurred to him that it was also now true that someone else would benefit from the clothing he had left at the loch. Dae was unlikely to return to Raitt.
Sir Ivor and his men arrived late Thursday afternoon, but Katy had time only to greet him before Malcolm and Fin took Ivor, Tadhg—the captain of Ivor’s tail—Lochan, Malcolm’s second in command, and a few other chosen ones into the inner chamber, where they talked privately until suppertime.
Although Katy studied their faces when they emerged, she could tell nothing from their expressions or behavior. When supper proceeded as always, her curiosity began running amok and her frustration increased accordingly.
Tempted to ask Cat a question that might glean information without breaking her promise not to talk of what she knew, Katy could think of no such question.
Catriona had not asked her about anything she had done, nor had Clydia. They talked to her as they usually did without revealing a hint of knowledge other than that the men were to go to the banquet as planned.
Although Katy was sure they would not go now that their leaders knew of de Raite’s intended treachery, she had learned nothing to reassure her of that.
In fact, by every sign, Malcolm, Fin, Ivor, and their followers expected to go.
Catching Fin’s thoughtful gaze on her more than once that evening, she took good care to say nothing to anyone that might suggest she knew anything that the other person did not. Consequently, she had learned nothing new by the time she and Clydia retired for the night.
The following morning when Bridgett entered with their hot water, she was smiling for the first time in days.