The Beauty of the Mist

by May McGoldrick

  On the far side of the chamber, Caroline bent over a trunk. The tall, blonde woman was searching for something and tossed her cascading hair back in anger as it impeded her hunt. Suddenly, she stopped and Janet knew she had found what she was looking for.

  “Ahh, there you are.” Caroline’s words were soft but distinct.

  As she straightened up, Caroline was oblivious to everything but what she had before her. From this distance all Janet could make out was something dangling from the other woman’s hand. Janet squinted her eyes, trying to make out the object. A thin chain, she decided, with something at the end. Seeing Caroline lift the bauble at the end and slide it over a finger, Janet knew. A ring. A ring at the end of a chain.

  Caroline studied the ring for a moment and then gazed contemplatively into space. Janet watched in silence as a cold smile crept over Caroline’s face. There was malice in that look; Janet Maule had seen it before. Slowly, the blonde haired woman poured the chain and ring into one palm and closed her hand into a fist. Then, with a quick movement that nearly caused her onlooker to cry out, Caroline strode to the huge chamber door. Recovering her composure, Janet listened as her stepmother stood just beyond the threshold, calling out impatiently until a servingman came running. Though she strained to hear, she could make nothing of the whispered instructions.

  As the servant ran off, and Caroline reentered her chamber, Janet drew back a bit and hid behind the door. She heard the door close and Caroline’s low laugh rang hollowly in the empty room.

  “Dear Queen Maria.” A chill ran down Janet’s back. “You are mine!”

  “It is simply out of the question, John.” Maria tried to roll away from him and off the bed. “Don’t ask again. I simply cannot do it.”

  He wasn’t about to let her get away that easily. The Highlander grabbed her around the waist and pulled her back to his side.

  “You are being unreasonable, Maria. I’m quite certain the Emperor would love the opportunity to see another new face. Particularly a face as pretty as yours.”

  “Take someone else,” she responded vehemently. “I won’t go.” She didn’t know just how to tell him that taking the missing queen back to her brother’s palace for this dinner would most definitely be perceived as a serious breech of etiquette. Maria was quite certain that Charles would be a stickler on the point!

  She again tried to squirm away, but he held her tight.

  “I will not take someone else.” He pushed her hair away and began to kiss her neck. Breathing into her ear as he brushed his lips across the lobe, John felt her body soften in his arms.

  “You are the only woman I want by my side, for now and for ever.” His hand moved up from her waist and molded one breast. He felt her nipple harden between his fingers. “I love you, and I will be very proud to have you by me. Maria, I want you by my side. No one else will do, love.”

  Maria felt his words of tenderness go directly to her heart, but her head knew the impossibility of the situation. She tried, in vain, to think of excuses that he could not argue. What did other women say when they found themselves in such a dilemma? She tried to think what her female companions might say. She shook her head. You are a fool, she thought. What other queen would work herself into such a predicament? None, she answered silently. Only Maria of Hungry.

  “I wouldn’t have the slightest idea what is expected of me.”

  “I will show you what to do.” His fingers caressed her breasts, his thumbs making small circles. “I am a fine teacher, lass, and you’ve proved yourself an excellent pupil already.”

  She tried to ignore the hint of sexual intent in his words, but it was becoming more and more difficult. “Nay, John. I’ll embarrass you terribly.”

  “You’ll be a support to me.” His leg entrapped hers.

  She loved the feel of his strong body wrapped around hers. She could feel his arousal pressed intimately against her buttocks. It was impossible to think straight. “I have nothing to wear.”

  “I do like the sound of that,” the Highlander whispered, his mouth continuing to graze across the skin of her neck. “But if you insist on wearing anything, I’ll clothe you in gold.”

  She bit her lip, trying to force herself to concentrate on coming up with some way to make him understand. Cloth of gold. Her body was betraying her. It had happened during the night, and it was happening now. Every time he touched her, all reason disappeared. John Macpherson had a way about him that was impossible to ignore.

  “Maria, come with me.” He commanded, biting on her earlobe. “No more excuses. Just come.”

  She turned in his arms to face him. She gasped as his fingers slid downward. She had been about to say something, but whatever it was, it was gone now.

  “I’ve already told Pieter to have a seamstress ready by noon.” John pushed her onto her back and moved on top of her. He paused, gazing down into her beautiful but troubled eyes. “You need a new wardrobe, dresses to wear. So if that’s the problem...”

  “Don’t, John.” Maria placed her fingers against his lips and then pulled his face closer to hers. Nibbling at his lips, she arched her back, pressing her breasts against his body. He was trying to overwhelm her, kiss away her defenses so that she would just give in and go to the Palace. But two can play that game, she thought happily. Encircling his neck with her arms, Maria clung to him deepening the kiss.

  John growled as she devoured his mouth. He pulled back just long enough to whisper the words. “We’ll make love until noon.” He rolled to one side and she followed. His hands caressed her breasts, her sides, her hips. “And then, after the bloody seamstress has gone, I’ll drag you back here, and we’ll make love some more.” John’s hand moved between her legs and stroked at her flesh. “Then, after our dinner–at the Palace–we’ll come back and make love all night.”

  “I have a better plan,” she breathed. Her hand moved between their bodies, as well. “We’ll make love all day, and we’ll have Pieter bring us lunch here.” Her fingers wrapped themselves around him. She smiled at the way his whole body responded to her touch. “We’ll dine here, in bed. As we are now. Making love as we eat. Perhaps I could use you as a platter for my food.” She bit on his shoulder, and his head sank onto the pillow.

  John couldn’t wait any longer. Taking hold of her hips, he pushed her hand away as he rolled her again onto her back. Then, in a single motion, he drove into her.

  She let out a sharp breath as her body opened to accept him. “Then...then we’ll continue...into the night.” She gasped as he withdrew and plunged into her again. “Perhaps we’ll share...oh, love...a bath.”

  John’s hands dug into her hips and he lifted them as he continued his thrusts. Her body was already moving in tandem with his.

  “We might...never...never surface.”

  As the tempo of their love dance sped up, Maria’s breaths became shorter. “You’ll surface...” she offered. “You’ll have...dinner...Palace...”

  “We...will...” his words were spoken through gritted teeth.

  Her fingers clawed his back. “I’ll...be resting...” Her legs wrapped around his waist as their bodies rocked in perfect rhythm. “Waiting...for you. Oh, John!”

  Their climax lifted them once again into the heavens.

  Maria was the first to speak, and her body continued to shudder as his body draped exhaustedly over her. “We’ll...have a long night ahead of us. I’ll wait for you here.”

  “I am very sorry, Lady Caroline, but a private audience with the Emperor is impossible just now. And since you refuse to confide in me...”

  Janet pressed her back tightly against the wall of her bedchamber. She could hear everything that was being said, and there was no need to peek inside to know the identity of the speaker. She’d recognized his silvery voice immediately as belonging to the Emperor’s trusted minister, Count Diego de Guevara, the man who, the night before, had greeted them with such courtesy prior to the Emperor’s appearance.

  Whatever the message w
as that Caroline had sent the servant off with, it must have been important, for the minister had arrived in a very short time.

  “I have information that the Emperor must hear, Count Diego. But it is for him alone.” Janet could hear the sharp edge in her stepmother’s voice. “I assure you the Emperor will be very grateful to you for conveying me to him.”

  “I am certain what you say is true, señora. But the answer is still the same. He’ll not have time for a private audience.” The man cleared his throat. “On the other hand, since your information must reach the Emperor, I would suggest that you speak with Sir John Macpherson. I know that the Emperor intends to speak with him as soon as...”

  “WAIT!” Caroline cut the minister short and glared at the minister. Surprised at the vehemence of the outburst, Don Diego simply stood and stared back at her.

  The silence stretched so long that Janet Maule began to panic with the thought that she had been discovered. Just as the young woman pondered making a dash for the corridor, she heard Caroline speak.

  “You are treating me so dismissively because I am a woman.”

  “Hardly, m’lady. I am simply being...”

  “How dare you!” she snapped. “Haven’t you any idea who I am?”

  “But of course. You are Lady Caroline Maule, a member...”

  Her voice had the cold, hard edge of fury in it. “I am Caroline Douglas, cousin of Archibald Douglas, the Earl of Angus. We rule Scotland, and it is only through our good will that this marriage will take place at all. We, the Douglas clan, can make this alliance work...or crush it. Do you understand me? Now, I will see the Emperor!”

  When Count Diego spoke, his voice no longer had the silvery quality it had manifested earlier. “I certainly do understand you, señora. And I know who you are. It is the reason why I came here to begin with. But now, since you refuse to listen, I will take my leave. I again suggest you speak to Sir John.”

  “What if I told you that this marriage hinges on the Emperor having the information I have to convey? What if I told you that this information will incriminate your good Sir John?”

  Janet strained to hear what would come next. The minister was clearly considering Caroline’s words carefully.

  “It is not in our interest to meddle in Scottish politics, m’lady. However, if what you have to say concerns the safety of the royal family...”

  “I will say naught more...to you!”

  The pause was short, but ever so pointed. Janet heard the Count move away toward the door.

  “Very well, Lady Caroline. I believe I’ve stayed far longer than was warranted. If you will pardon me, there are other matters that need my immediate attention.”

  “Wait!” Caroline ordered. “Didn’t you hear what I’ve said? Are you such fools here that...”

  “I’ve heard!” Count Diego retorted sharply. “But then, you should hear yourself. Your own foolishness! How dare you expect the Emperor to respond as if he were some stable boy, waiting to be summoned! I am a fool? Let me tell you who I am. I am Don Diego, Count of Guevara and Oliveres, Minister of the Household and trusted advisor of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, master of Europe and the New World, and by the hand of the Pope, Protector of the Faith. I come to you in good faith, and in return, you talk nonsense.”

  “Nonsense?” Caroline’s angry voice faltered ever so slightly.

  “Nonsense!” he returned decisively. “Your entire Scottish delegation of nobles has nothing to say but words of praise for your commander. A man known the world over for his loyalty and his integrity. And here you stand, puffed up with false pride, and accuse him, John Macpherson, Lord of the Scottish Navy, a fellow countryman for God’s sake, of some vague treachery–and without even a single shred of evidence. And then, in the same breath, you again demand a private audience.” The man’s voice was growing louder as his patience continued to disintegrate. “You are very lucky, Lady Caroline, that you don’t live in this court. Now, I’ll be on my way.”

  Janet heard the door in the other chamber swing open.

  “I know the whereabouts of your queen!” Caroline’s voice was low but clear, and it stopped Count Diego dead in his tracks.

  “Our queen?” the man asked calmly. “Queen Isabella is in...”

  “Nay, not Queen Isabella,” she continued coldly. “Mary, Queen of Hungry. Though, as you know, she simply refers to herself as Maria. Now tell the Emperor that I need a private audience.”

  “Good day, m’lady.”

  “STOP!” she shouted. “Are you deaf? I know where she is hidden.”

  “Nay, I am not deaf,” Count Diego answered. “And you are wasting your time. We have no need to learn of her whereabouts because the Emperor’s sister is not missing.”

  “Then what is this?”

  Putting her eye to the small opening of the door, Janet watched in horror as Caroline extended her fist and let the ring fall, dangling between them at the end of the chain.

  “So Maria of Hungary is not missing, you say?” Gloating self-satisfaction saturated her tone. “Then you tell me how I came upon this.”

  Count Diego reached out and glanced briefly at the insignia on the ring. With only the slightest pause, the minister turned and closed the chamber door.

  “Now, let’s begin all over again.” Caroline smirked. “How soon will I see the Emperor?”

  Chapter 18

  The man is as stubborn as a mule.

  Maria had considered the matter settled. But now, watching the white-haired seamstress and her two assistants flutter about, she knew she’d been wrong. These women had specific instructions, and nothing she said seemed to make any difference. They had been directed to make her a formal dress first, undoubtedly for dinner, she thought, and they were determined to make the best use of what little time they had. John must have had Pieter offer the women quite a reward if could produce the gown in time.

  When they’d arrived Maria had insisted that they begin with a travel garment, but they only smiled and chattered among themselves. Maria understood Dutch fairly well, but their understanding of her Dutch seemed to be curiously lacking. Standing in her chemise on a low stool in the middle of her bedchamber as the three workers buzzed about, alternately poking her, measuring her, and ignoring her, Maria began to wish that John would return. But this time, words of love were not exactly what she had in mind to use in greeting.

  Just before noon, he’d been called to the Great Michael. Just a preliminary tour of the warship that would carry the Queen, the messenger had said, but the young man had also told John that Count Diego de Guevara, himself, would be leading the officials from the Palace.

  Maria scowled as one of the women draped a gold cloth over her shoulder. John had not been fooling when he’d said he’d clothe her in gold, she realized. So stubborn! But as she ran her fingers lightly over the fine gold threads of the brocade, something touched her deeply, and in her heart, a sense of joy overcame her annoyance. The gifts she’d received in the past had never meant much to her. After all, she had always had everything one could desire, and more. But John’s generosity, his desire to provide for her, somehow meant so much more to her. This dress was not to be a gift for a queen. This gown of gold was to clothe his beloved.

  The quiet tap at the door and the entry of a serving girl drew Maria’s attention.

  “M’lady. You have a visitor,” the girl whispered.

  Maria paused, sliding the material from her shoulder. Perhaps a messenger from Isabel, she thought. “Does he bring a message? A letter, perhaps, that you could deliver to me?”

  “It’s not a he, m’lady,” the servant chirped in response. “It’s a lady. A Scottish lady. And she has no message that she’ll leave. Pieter told her that you were quite busy at the moment, but she insisted on waiting in the front hall. She asked to tell you that it is essential that she see you in person, at once.”

  Maria handed the gold fabric to the seamstress and reached for her dress. “Did she tell you her name?”
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  “Aye, m’lady,” the girl answered. “Mistress Janet Maule.”

  Maria felt a wave of relief wash through her. The thought of facing Lady Caroline, for any reason, held no appeal for her. But Isabel had told her briefly of the dilemma facing Janet and David Maxwell. Most certainly, this visit had to do with that. She reached behind her neck and began to lace her dress, but one of the seamstresses jumped to the task.

  “Thank you,” she said before turning back to the serving girl. “Could you show the lady in here?”

  “But m’lady,” the seamstress was quick to put in. “To have your dress ready for tonight, we still have so much to do.”

  Maria addressed the serving girl first. “Please show Mistress Janet in.”

  With a quick glance at the white-haired seamstress, the girl disappeared into the corridor. When she was gone, Maria turned her attention back to the trio and addressed them all. “As I tried to tell you before, I have no need for a dress tonight.”

  “But Sir John gave specific instructions, m’lady. The steward has expressly...”

  “And I am giving you even more explicit instructions.” Maria smoothed a hand over her skirts. “We are finished here, but I thank you for your trouble.”

  “Very well, m’lady.” The woman’s eyes never stopped in their appraisal of her figure as she gestured for her helpers to gather up their cloth and equipment. “I think we have all we need.”

  “Please understand that I appreciate the position you are in, but as far as the gown is concerned...”