Bride of the Solway

by Joanna Maitland

  'Yes, I'm sure. Don't worry, Morag. You can read his note for yourself, if you like. He says he wants to talk about how he can help me.' She pointed to the note on the table.

  Morag fastened the cloak snugly round Cassie's shoulders and then picked up the note. After a cursory glance and a brief nod, she threw it into the embers. Ignoring Cassie's gasp of outrage, she said quietly, 'Best if there's nothing for the laird to find.'

  The maid was right: Cassie paused on her way to the door. 'Morag, you must lock the door behind me. If my brother should come, you must refuse him entry. Tell him.. .tell him that I was feeling unwell, that I have taken a few drops of laudanum so that I can sleep. Say that it will not be possible to wake me.'

  'But ye never take laudanum! He kens that fine.'

  'Does he? I doubt it. He pays so little attention to what I do that he probably wouldn't notice if my eyes changed colour overnight.'

  That surprised Morag into a nervous laugh.

  Cassie touched her maid briefly on the arm. 'Don't worry. The chances are that he's had so much to drink by now that he's already passed out. And I'm sure that Captain Graham will have taken what precautions he can to ensure James is out of the way.'

  'Aye. Mr Fraser will see to that.' Morag sounded very decided.

  'Mr—? Oh, the captain's man. Yes, of course.' She opened the door a fraction and peeped out. The corridor was deserted. 'I'm going now. Lock the door after me.'

  Cassie slipped out into the passageway and waited a few moments while her eyes became accustomed to the gloom. She did not dare to risk a candle. Behind her, she heard the click of the lock. Good.

  Moving silently in her soft shoes, she stole along to the staircase, keep­ing close to the wall where the floor was less likely to creak. A few mo­ments more and she had reached the ground floor and was standing on the path outside the garden door. James's chamber was on the other side of the house. He would not be able to see her from his window. Captain Graham had been careful in his choice of rendezvous. As was to be ex­pected from a soldier.

  Now, for the first time, Cassie paused to wonder whether she was tak­ing a stupid risk. She was going to meet a man—a battle-hardened sol­dier—alone, and in the middle of the night. If they were caught together, her reputation would be in tatters. And if he chose to take advantage of her, she would have no defence. She could not scream, for that would only hasten her ruin. If she went forward now, her reputation, and her person, would be at Captain Graham's mercy. Did she dare trust him?

  Of course she did.

  She took a deep breath and squared her shoulders. She was sure she could trust him. He had saved her more than once and he had always be­haved as a gentleman should. And now he was offering to help her again. Something must have happened in the last few hours. Earlier, he had refused to help her. Now he was volunteering to do so. What had he seen, or heard, to change his mind?

  She hurried down the path to where he was leaning against the oak tree. There was only one way to find out.

  Ross straightened as she approached, noting approvingly that she, too, was shrouded in a dark cloak. From the house, they would look like no more that two dark shadows.

  'Miss Elliott. You have come.' He took her arm and guided her round to the far side of the great tree where they would not be visible to even the most determined watcher in the house.

  'Captain Graham, have you...have you changed your mind about the money?'

  By Jove, she was not mealy-mouthed. Good. They didn't have time for missish turns. They must agree a plan and then part, as soon as may be.

  'Miss Elliott, I will gladly help you. First, the money.' He reached into his pocket for the little packet of money he had prepared and pressed it into her hand.

  'Oh, but—'

  'Don't worry, ma'am. It is a loan, as you requested. You may repay me at your convenience.' He squeezed the fingers that held the packet. 'Best to tuck it away out of sight, I think.'

  'Oh. Oh, yes. Thank you.' She stowed it inside her grey cloak. Then, with a brief smile, she turned to go back to the house.

  'Miss Elliott. Wait. A moment more, if you would.'

  'Sir?'

  Ross fancied there was a shiver of nervousness in her voice. 'Do not be alarmed, Miss Elliott. I just wanted to say...I... The money is only part of it. If you need my services, in anything, you have but to say the word. If you need an escort to reach your godfather's house, I should be more than happy to provide it.'

  Even in the deep shadow of the tree, he could see that her eyes wid­ened at his words. Her jaw dropped, too, just a fraction. But she quickly recovered. In seconds, her wide mouth was set in a very determined line. And she was frowning up at him. Clearly, she mistrusted his sudden change of heart.

  'You may believe me, ma'am. Tell me how I may help you. You have my word, as a gentleman, that I stand ready to do whatever you need.'

  The frown relaxed. It was as if he had stroked it away by running a finger across her flawless skin. But she was still breathing quite rapidly, still quite heated. From the warmth of her skin, he could just detect a hint of her lavender fragrance among the night-time scents of grass and honeysuckle. And now she was smiling up at him, a little hesitantly, but enough to reassure Ross that she was willing to trust him. He felt sud­denly proud. And protective of her. She was a woman of strong charac­ter, but she had no chance against her brother's wickedness without a man by her side. He would be more than content to be that man.

  'Captain Graham,' she whispered, 'I cannot tell you how grateful I am. But I must ask you: why have you changed your mind?'

  Damnation! He had hoped she would not ask. He should have known that a woman like Cassie Elliott would not be satisfied with less than the truth.

  And, in that moment, he decided that she deserved to know. All of it, if she wished.

  'I had a.. .an encounter with your brother, ma'am. I now see that you do need to get away from him. No doubt your godfather will provide you with a refuge.'

  She was standing very still, her shoulders held rigid. 'Tell me, sir. What, exactly, did James do?'

  Ross had the impression that she was like a piece of fragile glass, read) to shatter at a touch. 'Forgive me for paining you, ma'am, but if you wilf have the truth of it...'

  She nodded stiffly.

  'Miss Elliott, your brother was very drunk, but...' She made a dismissive gesture with one hand. No doubt she had see her brother drunk many times.

  'He offered you to me. As a wife.'

  She did not move. She did not even blink. 'How much did he want?' Her voice was barely audible.

  Dear God, she knew already. Perhaps Ross was not the first man to whom the blackguard had tried to sell her?

  Ross swallowed hard, never taking his eyes off her strained face. 'Twenty thousand pounds.'

  Cassie wanted to run. But her feet had become like part of the roots of the great oak tree, immovable, encased in the earth. If only it would open and swallow her up. 'Miss Elliott?'

  His voice was low and full of understanding, but Cassie could not be­gin to look at him. She fixed her gaze on the deep shadows at her feet, hunching her body together, trying to make herself as small and incon­spicuous as possible. If only he would turn away, give her space to run, to hide in the dark.

  He did not move.

  'Miss Elliott,' he said again, but a little more firmly. 'Pray do not be embarrassed by this, ma'am. I tell you only because you have a right to know the full extent of your brother's wickedness. And so that you will understand why I am totally at your service. I understand now why you have decided that you must flee.'

  She dared one brief glance up at him. His face was full of com­passion.

  'And since no one else stands ready to help you... I will. Please believe me. I can help you escape. Sadly, there is no one else.'

  The words echoed in Cassie's head like metal balls rattling round in a tin drum. There is no one else. There is no one else. There is no one else.

 
It was true. She had this one—slight—chance. Or none at all.

  'Miss Elliott? Will you not trust me?'

  There was something about his tone of voice, and the depth of convic­tion in it. And something else that she could not quite place. But it tore at her emotions, already stretched so tight they were on the point of shatter­ing. She wanted to scream. Or weep. Or curse her brother to the end of time.

  Captain Graham must have seen the turmoil in her features for, before she could utter a sound, he grasped her knotted fingers in his strong hands and held them. His clasp was warm, and gentle, and very reassuring. 'Do not be afraid,' he said. 'You shall escape. I promise.' He pressed her hands within his.

  She had thought more than once that he had the merriest blue eyes. Now, in the gloom, it was impossible to distinguish any colour at all. His gaze was darkly intent and unwavering, willing her to believe.

  'Miss Elliott? Cassie...?'

  'I believe you, sir. And I do trust you.'

  'Thank God,' he breathed. 'And now,' he went on, raising a hand and running his fingers through his hair, 'now we must plan.'

  Cassie sensed the change in him. A moment ago he had been unsure, waiting for her to agree to trust him. Now, he was the soldier again, plan­ning a campaign, deciding how to outwit the enemy.

  'We must decide on a place where we may meet safely, without your brother. Will he allow you to leave home without him? To pay a call, perhaps?'

  Cassie shook her head. 'No. You saw how it was at Mrs Anstruther's. My brother always insists on accompanying me. I go nowhere alone.' She paused, thinking. 'Unless...'

  'Unless?'

  Cassie shuddered. She would have to tell him yet more of the dark secrets she had hoped to keep hidden from the world. 'There is only one circumstance in which James might permit me to go out without him. If I were meeting Colonel Anstruther.'

  'You mean Mrs Anstruther?'

  Cassie shook her head miserably. 'No. I do mean the colonel. And without his wife.'

  'But...'

  'Captain Graham, I beg you to try to understand. My brother is deep in debt, as you must have known when he tried to extract such a price from you. It proves just how desperate he is. His creditors must be very pressing, for his real target has never been you, but the colonel.' 'Anstruther? But he is—'

  'Yes. Colonel Anstruther. One of the richest men in Scotland. My brother has decided that I am to be the next Mrs Anstruther.' Cassie heard the sharp hiss of indrawn breath, betraying his shock. She ploughed on, desperate to complete the humiliating tale, even though it stripped her of every last scrap of dignity she possessed. 'I am afraid that James must have applied to you only because his creditors are at the door and, unlike the colonel, you are unmarried and available now. A husband in the hand, so to speak,' she added with a grimace of distaste. 'No doubt he would have hoped for much, much more from the colonel.'

  To her surprise, he laughed, shaking his head. 'Miss Elliott, you are worth twenty times twenty thousand, with that brave spirit of yours. And you shall not be married by force to Colonel Anstruther, nor to anyone else. You have my word on that.'

  In spite of her terrors, Cassie found herself smiling up at him. He was so sure that she, too, began to believe in possible deliverance. 'Sir, you are rash indeed, to make such a promise. I fear I must hold you to it.'

  'Good,' he said firmly. 'Now, when and where shall it be? Clearly I must persuade my friend Anstruther that he needs to take us both to yet another of the fine sights of the area, somewhere your brother would never wish to visit. Was there not a church—no, an abbey—that you men­tioned at one of our meetings, ma'am? I doubt your brother would wish to visit such a place.'

  'The ruins of Sweetheart Abbey,' Cassie said, remembering. 'Sweetheart Abbey, built by the Lady Devorguilla in memory of her husband. She is buried there, with her husband's heart.'

  'Is it far?'

  'No. It is less than ten miles from Dumfries. A fairly easy ride. If you were to invite the colonel to visit it with you, my brother would almost certainly allow me to join you, in order to further the colonel's interest in me. I should need a suitable chaperon, of course.'

  'Morag, I hope?'

  She nodded.

  'Good. Then I shall speak to the colonel over breakfast. With luck, your brother will be there to hear. He will probably take the bait.'

  Cassie shook her head. 'I doubt it. Not after tonight's hard drinking. He rarely rises before noon after such a night.'

  'Tomorrow, he will have to. All the colonel's guests are expected to leave a little after noon. I will ensure that the colonel's servants wake your brother in good time. He needs to have ample opportunity to hear us making plans. As do you. Then you may say, in all innocence, how much you long to see the abbey. I take it you have not visited before?'

  'No.'

  'Good. That's settled then. And when you come to the abbey, with Morag, you must bring only enough—'

  'Oh, no! How stupid of me! It will not do. We must think of some­where else.'

  'Why? It sounded to be the perfect pretext.'

  'It is not. I don't know what I was thinking of. Sweetheart Abbey is well to the south of Dumfries, quite near the coast, but on the wrong side of the river. There is no way from there to England, except by crossing the Nith. And the only bridges are in Dumfries itself. We dare not come back through Dumfries. My brother has too many spies there. And it would give him too much time to catch up with us. We must choose some­where closer to the border. Or to the wath—that's the ford—at Annan.'

  He groaned. 'You must be right, ma'am. We do need another solution. But I fear I have no knowledge of this country. You can light on some­where else, surely?'

  Cassie began to shake her head in frustration.

  'Think, ma'am.' He was beginning to sound impatient. And more than a little desperate.

  'I...' The answer came to her. 'Are you prepared to develop a sudden interest in ruined castles, Captain Graham?'

  'Anything, ma'am, so long as your brother has no such inclination.' Cassie grinned at him. 'Then I think I have the solution we need.'

  Cassie leaned back in the corner of the carriage and tried not to smile across at Morag. It would not do to count on success. Not until she had reached her goal. And it would be safest not to tell Morag exactly what was planned until much nearer the time. Just as she had not told Morag the detail of what she and the captain had discussed under the oak tree. Morag could be trusted—of course she could—but she might inadver­tently say or do something to give away Cassie's secrets, especially if she were confronted by Jamie in a rage, as he so often was.

  Besides, he was now riding alongside the carriage, rather than far out in front as he usually did. He might be nursing a sore head, and riding gently as a result, but there was nothing wrong with his hearing.

  'Mr Fraser tells me that the captain and the colonel are planning to visit some o' the sights,' Morag said.

  'Oh? Yes, I recall that something of the sort was mentioned over breakfast. The captain is keen to make the most of his time here.'

  'And ye said ye wanted to see them as well, did ye no'?'

  Now who had told Morag that? One of the colonel's footmen, perhaps, or even the captain's valet? Morag seemed to have become thick as inkle weavers with Fraser, judging by how often she repeated his opinions.

  Cassie tried to look unconcerned. 'The colonel was talking about a number of sights worth visiting, such as Sweetheart Abbey. I merely mentioned that I had not yet had an opportunity to visit them myself.'

  Morag frowned. 'Aye. Ye might as well be a prisoner in the gaol, for all the chances ye get to be away from Langrigg.'

  'Shh, Morag.' Cassie put a finger to her lips, and nodded towards the shadow of her brother, riding alongside.

  'Sorry,' Morag mumbled, reddening. Then dropping her voice even lower, she added, 'What harm would it do, if ye went wi' the gentlemen? Did ye not suggest it when ye had the chance? The laird couldna very well shout ye
down at the colonel's breakfast table.'

  'The colonel did invite me. I.. .I said that the abbey was probably too far for me to travel in the day. But there may be other invitations.' Cassie could still see the ferocious frown on her brother's face when the colonel had issued his invitation to the abbey. James had clearly not wished for either of them to waste a day on a ruined abbey. The colonel had probably seen that frown, too. Certainly he had not attempted to argue, merely adding politely that, if he and the captain should happen to be making a trip to somewhere nearer Miss Elliott's home, he would be sure to invite her to accompany them. Even James had been unable to grumble at that.

  Cassie hugged her secret to herself. There would be another invita­tion—and soon—and she would have to move heaven and earth to ensure that James allowed her to accept it. Her first task was to prepare the ground. She must take every opportunity to remind James that there was only one way to promote her relationship with Colonel Anstruther. He had to allow Cassie to spend time with the colonel. And what better than a leisurely trip to see a local ruin?

  She glanced out to see exactly where James was. Well within earshot. 'Colonel Anstruther is a most kind gentleman,' she said loudly, 'and an excellent host. I do find his company highly congenial. It is only a pity that we do not exchange visits more often.' From her corner, she nodded eagerly at Morag, willing her to take up the theme.

  'Ye certainly seemed to be becoming fast friends, Miss Cassie, when ye was talking about the colonel's new garden. 'Twas as if ye'd kent one another for years. He's taken rather a liking to ye, I'd say, probably be­cause ye ken sic a lot about plants and gardens. It seems to be a passion with him. 'Tis only a pity that his leddy canna leave the house to be there with the both o' ye.'

  Cassie shook her head fiercely at her maid. That was exactly the wrong thing to say. James must not be reminded of the existence of Mrs Anstruther.

  'Perhaps there will be another opportunity to further our acquain­tance,' Cassie said quickly. 'I should certainly like to learn more of the colonel. He is very much the gentleman. And so knowledgeable. Do you know, Morag, that he was reciting the history of Sweetheart Abbey over the breakfast table today? His knowledge far outstrips mine, I must say, even though I have read a great deal about such places.' 'But ye've not been to the abbey.'