by Allison Shaw
Callie smiled and lifted Red Wolf up on her hip as Euan swung Mountain Rose up in his arms. “Fine by me, Mr. Wallace,” she replied. “We’ve got kids to raise, a house to build before the next set of kiddos gets here, and I’d like to celebrate our marriage right and proper if’n you don’t mind.”
Euan chuckled and pulled Callie close. “Och, lassie, tha’s a huge order there, but I’m certain for aye tha’ I can meet it fit braw!”
Chapter 20:
A Bane Is Healed
Six years later
Folks around the mountains knew that the Wallace-Hawken children were unusual and not just because they were all sets of fraternal twins, each set a boy and a girl. Nor was it simply because they all had that deep-dark red hair or unusual eye colors, or because they were unusually intelligent.
Strange things happened around those children.
Wild animals would eat out of their hands and not only tolerated but enjoyed their touch. Birds would light upon their shoulders or outstretched hands. Spirits came around and made their presence known. Shy folks felt at ease and mean folks became subdued in their presence. All it took was a smile or a touch from one of the Wallace-Hawken twins to make a person feel better if ailing or at peace if restless.
People wouldn’t call them witches in public, but it was often whispered in private.
Jim’s relatives considered them nan’yehi’i, from the Spirit People. The children were sacred beings gifted by Unelanvhi, the Creator, to heal creation and their fellow creatures.
Euan held his newest son as Callie rested while the midwife tended to her. Like his seven older siblings, he had his father’s dark red hair. His eyes were a murky gray which could either darken or lighten within a few weeks. His fingers and toes were long and fine, his skin fair.
And just like his older siblings he was a twin. His sister rested in their grandmother’s arms as she sang a little lullaby and rocked the dainty little girl with deep brown eyes.
Darlene smiled and teased, “Looks like y’all have turned another set of Wallace-Hawken twins loose on the world!”
Callie smiled and sighed. “It’ll take more than just my little heathens to turn the world on its ear, Mama,” she joked. “Good thing Caleb and Lacie are contributing to the cause!”
Caleb and Lacie had been married for four years now and had two children, Jimmy and Danny. Lacie had just found out they were expecting again and had already spread the news all over the mountains.
Layla had a little girl, Leah, who was two and gifted. Her daddy was Arlen Bird from Qualla Boundary, currently on active duty in the US Army. Layla and Arlen would marry when he came home on leave in a few months.
Eli was pursuing a major in business management at UT Knoxville, dating here and there but not serious about any one girl yet. “Ain’t got the time,” he explained.
The midwife directed Callie to get up and go to the bathroom, and Euan handed his son to Darlene so he could help his wife. “Are ye feelin’ alright?” he asked as he took her hand and put an arm about her shoulders.
She looked up at him with a cocked eyebrow. “Well, let me see,” she pondered. “I just gave birth to yet another pair of wild Highland brats and I’m a tad sore. Under the circumstances I’d say I’m doing just dandy.”
“Ayrshire is not the Highlands, wife. We’re border reivers. Lowlanders.”
“Alright then, wild Lowland brats,” she retorted. “Or better yet, how about just plain your brats?”
Euan chuckled. “Wife, has anyone told ye tha’ ye’re a smart arse?” he remarked.
“Every day of my life,” she returned. “Wanna fight about it?”
He laughed and bent down to kiss the crown of her head. “Nae, wife,” he said. “I much prefer makin’ love tae fightin’ wi’ ye, though I canna say it’s any safer. Ye’re as fierce a’ aen as the oother!”
“Coward!” she teased.
“A wise mon kens when hoo tae choose the better course o’ action,” Euan chuckled.
Callie smiled and leaned into Euan. “I don’t think I’m going to be doing either for a while,” she said. “I’ve got too many kids to look after. And by the way, I think eight is enough. If I’m going to pop ‘em out two at a time every time I get pregnant, maybe we need to think about quitting while we’re ahead.”
Before Euan could respond to that, Red Wolf and Mountain Rose rushed in with Gray Hawk, Summer Rain, Eagle Song, and Morning Star behind them. “Mama! Daddy!” they all called excitedly.
“Can we see the new babies?” Mountain Rose pleaded.
“Please?!” Summer Rain intoned.
“Be quiet and be gentle,” Callie said. “They’re too little for a lot of noise and fuss.”
“And doona ask tae hold them joost yet,” Euan ordered. “Ye can look a’ them whilst yer grandmathair holds them.”
“Yes sir,” the girls replied as they skipped into the room with their little sister between them.
“Daddy?” Gray Hawk asked.
“Aye, son?” Euan replied as he looked down at the five-year-old.
“Can I see, too? The girls always hog the view.” The boy’s gray eyes focused intently on his father’s face. Euan’s sons tended to have a rather serious nature and Gray Hawk was a very serious child. He had his mother’s face and complexion, his father’s stature.
Like his siblings he had the Robertson’s gift.
Even among the Robertsons, the children were unusually gifted and each child had a special strength. Gray Hawk had the healing touch. It wasn’t fully developed of course, so his abilities had limits as to the severity of illness or injury he could heal completely and the Grannies were keen on keeping the child from overextending himself. He could apparently remove toxic substances from things as well.
His twin, fair-skinned, indigo-eyed Summer Rain, apparently had the ability to communicate with animals of all kinds to the point that she could use their senses as if they were her own. Even the hogzillas were gentled down by her presence. It was not unusual to see her playing with full-grown mountain lions or scratching a bull elk around the base of his antlers. Or bringing sick or injured critters to her brother for healing.
Red Wolf was more adept at telepathy and telekinesis. He was able to make lightning with his finger tips, which was very useful for starting the fire in the hearth or fire pit or balling up to use as a light when exploring caves. He could move things by thought and sometimes did so to pull pranks on others. His telepathy skills were still developing but he could see quite clearly into the thoughts of others and often had glimpses of things within the subconscious mind as well.
Mountain Rose was proving to be more adept at telekinetic abilities than her twin, but her temper also made her gift potentially more destructive. Her ability to focus her anger as a whiplash of energy was of particular concern because she could seriously hurt someone. Fortunately her sense of compassion usually kept her temper somewhat in check. Her telepathic abilities weren’t quite as keen as Red Wolf’s as she was more of an empath, with the ability to restore clarity and calm in a person’s mental state.
Two-and-a-half-year-old twins Eagle Song and Morning Star were still too young for their gift to be as yet defined. Like their siblings, they had an uncanny rapport with animals and had obvious empathic abilities. Eagle Song had amber eyes and Morning Star’s eyes were a silvery moss-green. Both had their father’s face and stature, and their mother’s complexion.
Callie tended to herself and took a quick shower. Euan then escorted her back to bed. Jolena was bringing in a tray of fruit, crackers, and soft cheese and a cup of black alder tea to reduce the bleeding and ease post-natal discomfort. Greeting Callie with a broad smile, she offered her the cup of tea. “Drink this, hon,” she said. “Then make sure ye eat a bite. Ye need to build yer strength back up.”
“Thanks, Grandma,” Callie replied. “I’m not very hungry yet.” Still she picked up a piece of cheese and a grape and nibbled on them.
Euan had set
tled on the edge of the bed and was very gently massaging her feet and calves. Their children were busy checking over their newest siblings and talking with their grandmother and great-grandmother. Later, other relatives came by to drop off food and gifts. The banter was light and good-natured, with plenty of teasing and joking.
Their home, built on Callie’s land, was not as large as the Lodge but was just as welcoming to visitors. Euan had insisted on a home built to last as well as something which reflected their shared Scottish culture. The earth-sheltered home resembled a traditional Highland cottage, with thick walls, rounded corners, and a thick sod roof but was rather more spacious. Light wells built into the roof allowed natural light to illuminate the interior, which made for glowing warmth throughout. Caleb called it a “hobbit house” after those in the Lord of the Rings movie trilogy. It was more conventional in structure than hobbit barrows, but the construction and energy-efficiency of the dwelling were very impressive.
When visiting after the home was completed, John had decided to build himself such a domicile. People had admired the design so much that he had started a business designing and building earth-sheltered homes and structures. He had finally married Chrissie Grant and was the doting father of an eight-month-old daughter with red-gold hair and bright green eyes. The two men corresponded on the web frequently, as did all of the other lads in their tight-knit group.
Euan’s parents had “retired” to their plantation in Guyana, having fled there after leaving the wedding. As Euan had suspected, they had somehow gotten forged birth certificates for the children in an attempt to kidnap them. Facing felony charges in both the United States and the UK over the incident, as well as charges of fraud and tax evasion back in England, they had decided that the sunny South American nation - with its neutrality and non-extradition policies - better suited them.
Euan’s older brother, Andrew, had been granted control of their estate and had been given the burden of cleaning up the mess. Euan had flown back to Scotland to help his brother find and sort through all of the financial data and accounts. He had kept copies of the information he had provided to the Securities Ministry which had made the task much easier albeit still rather unpleasant.
He had coerced additional information out of his grandfather and uncle, who hadn’t been as lucky as Niall and Leona in escaping charges for tax evasion, by threatening to reveal secret accounts he knew of where they had hidden money. Nigel Wallace had handed a package containing hundreds of bearer’s bonds over to Andrew that provided most of what was needed to settle his parents’ back taxes and fines. Euan then gave Andrew the numbers of the private accounts their father, uncle, and grandfather had siphoned funds from various sources into. After getting a court order to retrieve these funds, Andrew finally resolved the legal and tax issues in the UK so that he could turn his attention into restoring the family’s good name and fortune, an effort Euan partnered in.
To the present day Niall and Leona had no contact with Euan or his family.
Neither Euan nor Callie was bothered by that fact. They visited twice yearly with Euan’s brother and his family, who had been much more open to Callie and were thus warmly received by her clan whenever they came stateside to visit. The younger generation of Wallaces was keener on establishing a warm family bond than their parents and grandparents had been.
After their visitors had left and the children had gone to sleep, Euan settled into bed beside his wife. Callie was nursing the newborns, which they had named Elk Thunder and Morning Glory. He gently brushed his fingers over their heads and gazed upon them lovingly. They were old hands at this by now, yet he never ceased to marvel at this miracle wrought in the love between a man and a woman. Part of him and part of her, their children were indeed blessings from Heaven.
“Are ye sure ye doona want more bairns?” he asked.
Callie gave him a sidelong glance and replied, “I’ve popped out the first eight. You want any more, you have them.” She sighed and said, “I don’t know, Euan. We’ve got our hands full as it is. Your children take a lot out of me.”
“My children?” he retorted. “I hae contributed only half their DNA, wife. Ye’ve stirred that pot right along wi’ me.”
“Well, you’ve given them that red hair and the attitude that goes along with it,” she countered, trying to look serious. “And your sons look more like you than they do me.”
“Aye but your daughters act more like ye than they do me,” Euan asserted. “They’re stubborn wee wenches wi’ quick tempers an’ smart mouths. But they’re bonny like ye, too. ‘Tis my hands that’ll be full once they get grown eneu for the lads tae notice ‘em.”
“They’re already noticing Mountain Rose and she’s not even ten yet,” Callie sighed. “It’s a good thing she still thinks boys are for playing ball and fighting with.”
“An’ I ken I should have a talk wi’ her aboot that,” Euan said. “It’s one thing tae play rough an’ tumble wi’ her brothers an’ cousins. It’s an entirely different thing with oother lads.”
“Our daughters are all beauties, Euan. You’ll have to have more than just a stick to beat the boys off with,” she teased. “You might have to tie them up and sit on them until they’re twenty or so.”
Euan smiled at Callie and traced his fingers along her cheek and jaw. “Ye’re a woman o’ deeper passions than any oother I’ve e’er kenned. If our daughters arre anythin’ like ye, we hae better forget that stick and set up a battery o’ cannon because the lads will come callin’.”
“Aren’t you forgetting that the Wallace-Hawken girls have the Wallace-Hawken boys for brothers?” she asked. “I think they’ll be rougher on anyone who comes sniffing around their sisters than even you could be.”
He considered that and shook his head slowly. “God help the poor lads then,” he breathed. “They’ll be lucky if they manage tae get away wi’ their manhood intact.”
The twins had fallen asleep. Euan got up and Callie handed him each one to put in the cradle beside the bed. He kissed each babe tenderly before settling them down and tucking them in. His eyes misted as he looked at them sleeping so peacefully side-by-side. So small and yet so perfectly formed. So innocent and helpless.
Euan got back in bed with Callie and pulled her close. He kissed her brow and gazed into her eyes as he caressed her cheek. “I love ye, Callie. I always hae. Always will.”
She was tired from giving birth and was sure it showed, yet the love in Euan’s eyes was as vibrant as ever and the desire flickering in their warm brown depths didn’t escape her notice. Of course his erection gave her more than sufficient proof that her husband found her sexy even now. “And I love you, too, Euan,” she purred. “But you’re going to have to wait a few weeks before I can take care of that thing there.” As he laughed, she added, “Honestly, after holding my hand and listening to me holler and all today, I don’t know how you could even be turned on like this.”
Euan’s mouth curled up in a wry smile as he shrugged. “It’s joost somethin’ tha’ happens when we’re close like this, Callie. I canna help it.”
Bringing his lips down upon hers, he kissed her gently but passionately and then ran his fingers through her hair while smiling at her. “Ye bewitched me the first time I saw ye, Callie, an’ it’s only gotten stronger o’er the years,” he said. “Is it any wonder tha’ I get hard joost lookin’ a’ ye?”
She chuckled. “Is it any wonder we’ve got eight kids?” she asked. “You witched me, too, you know. There’s never been any one else I ever wanted. Or loved.”
“There’s nae anoother mon who’d put up wi’ ye, either!” he teased, grabbing her hand as she swatted at him. He kissed her tenderly and settled into a more comfortable position so they could go to sleep. “But ‘tis a happy penance for me.”
Callie shifted and rested her head upon his shoulder, her body flush against his. His body was long, lean, and strong, and she always felt safe and loved when she was next to him like this. Her nostrils flare
d as she breathed in his clean masculine scent and her body relaxed as she let out a contented sigh. Exhaustion overtook her and she asked him to put out the light.
Euan cradled her in his arms and rested his chin upon the crown of her head. He listened as her breathing deepened in sleep and he felt the warmth of her body against his. Tenderness welled up from deep within and he tightened his embrace and kissed her forehead. Aye but he was blessed more than any man he knew.
Soft moonlight drifted down from the well in the ceiling and silvered their room and up on the mountain the pack sang out a hunting song. They still came to visit their former alpha and play with the children but they were almost truly wild now.
The original four- Raze, Smoke, Nightside, and Snake- were old, their muzzles gray and their joints a bit stiff. Euan had built them their own den in a sheltered place behind the house but this past winter had seen them sleeping in the house during a particularly harsh freeze. Whenever Euan and Callie went hunting with Sequa and Meatloaf, a pair from Brutus’ last-known litter of pups, any meat was always shared with the elderly wolves, which preferred to stay close to the house.
The four years they’d been apart seldom crossed his mind now, but when they did he always gave thanks that John had stuck his nose in.
Life wasn’t always easy and there were the occasional spirited debates or heated arguments. Given that both of them had a temper that was to be expected. There were the challenges of raising their growing brood, making a living, and managing family obligations on two continents. Some days things didn’t go quite right and some days were disasters.
Still, he wouldn’t trade it for anything. He had a good life here with his wife and lady, she who was the heart of his heart. Her mountains had become part of him as well, his heart beating to the rhythm of their song. Some day the two of them would be laid to rest here, living on not only in their descendents but also in the land itself.