He laughed and gathered his old crooked staff, his long dark cloak and a small leather pouch that he flung over his shoulder.
"Then let's be off."
With a nod of his head and one quick wave of his staff, the two of them disappeared in a spinning whirlwind that took Owl's breath. No matter how many times he traveled in this fashion with Wabi, he still found time weaving unnerving. But he had to admit, it was an expedient way to get somewhere when time was of the essence. He even agreed that the sights he often saw—when he was brave enough to open his eyes—were extraordinary. The universes melded together in a rainbow of colors he had never before seen and a myriad of sounds assaulted his ears with such glorious music he could almost enjoy this trip. Almost.
The Highlands were only short minutes away. Sometimes, however, Wabi’s and Owl's landings were not as eloquent as their departures. Gentle landings were not something Wabi had ever stopped long enough to perfect. He was usually in such a hurry to get to a specific place that he just got up and went, and often landed in a most jarring manner.
Tonight he was certainly in a rush. Only a few hours earlier he had sensed vibrations he knew were coming from his niece, Caitlin. He was a bit surprised as he thought the bairn wasn't due for another few weeks. However, he also knew bairns changed their mind often and didn't ask permission from anyone as to their arrival time.
He and Owl arrived at the steps of the lodge. Owl took roost in the rowan tree by the porch, and just as Wabi raised his staff to knock, the door opened and Ian greeted them.
"Uncle Wabi, I thought ye might show up. There's a lot of activity going on inside. Most of it's coming from Jack, Da and Uncle Andrew discussing the Crown's plans for us Scots. The rest of the noise is coming from Caitlin. She's calling out loud enough for ye to hear her in Skye. And every time she screams, Willie howls even louder."
Wabi grinned, then noticed another young lad standing behind Ian. Before he had a chance to ask about him Ian made the introduction.
"Uncle Wabi, this is Robbie, Robbie MacKinnon. Alex's son, ye ken?"
Wabi didn't miss the sullen look on the lad's face, nor the strong resemblance to Alex, but knew this was not the time to ask questions.
"Hello, Robbie. Good to meet you, lad." Then he turned back to Ian. "You say Caitlin's making herself heard? Then I got here just in time. She hasn't delivered yet, apparently."
"Nae, but ye can hear her screaming at Alex to sit down and stop pacing. She's actually yelling at him, Uncle Wabi. Ye should hear her."
"That means everything is as it should be. Just one of the phases of birthing a bairn, my lad."
"Maria, the midwife, is with her. But I heard Caitlin yelling at her, too. Glad I'm not in there."
Wabi smiled and walked to the kitchen to speak to Da and Andrew. The three oldsters had become friends and Wabi was glad Caitlin was a part of this family. It suited her for sure.
"Wabi, come, come in. Didn't know ye were due a visit, but we're always glad to see ye. Here, sit and have a cup of Millie's tea. It's even better than mine. We'll drink tea now, and save ourselves for a wee dram when the time comes." Da laughed.
The fact Wabi just showed up unannounced no longer phased the MacKinnons. He had earned his place in the family and his eccentricities were accepted by all of them.
A voice coming from Mam's room had them all turning their heads.
"I have to push, now! Stop telling me to not push! Get out of here!" Caitlin's voice was clearly heard above the other two. "I said get out of here, now!"
The next sound was that of a door being slammed, then total quietness for a moment. Shortly, Maria walked into the kitchen muttering to herself in her native language.
"¡Madre de Dios, ella es imposible!"
None of them spoke Spanish, but they all understood what she meant. Caitlin had a temper they had all witnessed, and a determination even greater. That she had sent the midwife out was not surprising to them at all. She usually managed to be in charge of most situations in which she was a participant. No one said a word, but offered Maria a cup of tea instead. Before the midwife finished her tea, they heard the next cry.
"Alex!"
Caitlin called out, then let out a scream that had everyone on the edge of their chairs, afraid of what exactly they did not know. Willie's long, mournful howl further set their nerves on fire. Finally, the wail of an infant filled the air, and this cry was almost as loud as Caitlin's and Willie's.
After waiting for a few minutes, Wabi excused himself and went to Caitlin's room and entered without stopping to knock. He was greeted by Willie, who licked his hand then ran back to the bed and put his front paws up on the edge of it, as if he’d had a hand in the proceedings. Wabi found Alex kneeling next to Caitlin's bed, trying to wrap a blanket around a wriggling, very pink bairn. The look on his face was so amusing Wabi wanted to laugh.
"Ah, Alex, so you survived then I see." Wabi smiled at him, then went over and placed a kiss on Caitlin's forehead.
"Uncle Wabi, you came. I'm so glad."
"Of course I came. I have work to do just as you did. Now, if I may, I'd like to hold your daughter."
"How did you know I had a daughter?"
Removing his cloak and standing his staff in the corner, he turned to his niece.
"That's a long story, Caitlin. But at first glance, I'd say she's healthy and certainly her lungs are working well. I was at the birth of your grandmother, Ci-Cero, you mother, Flinn, and of course yours. At each birth I performed a ritual I would like to perform with your daughter as well."
"What kind of ritual? I don't know anything about any ritual. Why would you do that?"
"It's part of the Creator's plan for me, as well as for you and all the others in your line of healers. It is simply a way of marking you that identifies you as belonging to this particular line. It's harmless, not painful, but important."
"What kind of mark? I don't have any mark."
"But of course you do, my girl. You may not have ever seen it, but it's there. I placed it on you myself."
"Where? Why haven't I seen it?"
"It's behind your left ear, just at your hairline. I suspect Alex has seen it."
"But, what does it look like?" She ran her fingertips behind her ear, but could feel nothing. Alex spoke up.
"Oh, you mean that small circle? I have seen it, assumed it was a birthmark. I've never actually examined it closely."
"Yes, you're right. It is a circle. To be precise, it's an ouroboros, which is a serpent with its tail in its mouth, a symbol of healing for millennia. Many ancient cultures regarded the serpent as sacred and used it in healing rituals. It's symbolic of immortality, the eternal unity of all things, the cycle of birth and death. Simply put, it's a sign of wholeness and infinity."
Alex stared at his newborn daughter, who already looked so like his Caitlin. Her hair was abundant and as flaming as her mother's, and she was so tiny he feared he would break her. Carefully handing her to Caitlin, he nodded his agreement with the ritual.
Wabi reached inside his old leather pouch and brought out a small rowan twig and held it above his head, high in the air, as if presenting it to some unseen entity. He reached out his arms and Caitlin placed the crying, squirming, bairn in them.
Wabi held her gently to his chest, then closed his eyes, all the while softly chanting in a language known only to a few. He carefully touched the twig to the area behind the bairn’s left ear. As the twig touched her skin, a small droplet of a deep blue fluid dripped from the rowan twig and a small circle appeared.
Caitlin held her breath, thinking perhaps the liquid would burn the child's skin. But the bairn quieted and stayed perfectly still, as though she intuitively knew this ritual was the bestowing of a gift. Wabi continued to chant as he sprinkled the droplet with silver dust that sparkled for a moment then was gone, leaving behind a perfect ouroboros behind her left ear.
"And now she, too, has been marked. She belongs to your line. The Creator will hav
e his own plans for her destiny, for her life."
He placed a kiss on the child's forehead, just as he had on Caitlin's, then handed her back to her mother. The wailing had ceased and the child slept quietly. The line of healers continued.
Caitlin looked at the ouroboros. "Uncle Wabi, that looks like some kind of blue ink. What is it?"
"It's fluid from the woad plant. It's been used for centuries by many peoples, and most certainly originated with your people."
"Woad plant? But, Wabi, that's poisonous isn't it?"
Wabi smiled and waited, as he could see Caitlin rummaging through her very fine mind searching for some lost information. Then she spoke.
"Oh, yes, the plant my ancestors, the Picts, used on their bodies. I've just started reading my grandmother's journal, The Wolf, The Wizard and the Woad in which Grandmother Ci-Cero tells the story of her people, my people I suppose.
They were a very fierce people who often went into battle with their bodies tattooed with blue fluid from the woad plant. The Romans began calling them Woads after losing to them in battle. It's said that Hadrian's Wall was erected in order to keep the Woads to the north of it because they were such fierce warriors. Most probably folklore, but the name stuck. I had no idea I came from such early folk."
Wabi nodded. "Ci-Cero's mother, Katalani, your great-grandmother, was indeed a Woad, and perhaps the earliest of this line of healers. I met Katalani only briefly, at the birth of your grandmother, who later was given the name Ci-Cero by the native tribe she lived with in North America."
"Yes, she tells how she received the name in her journal. It's an engrossing story. I'm afraid I haven't read much of it yet. But then, you lived through it yourself, so I don't need to tell you about it."
Wabi nodded to his niece.
"You must make time to read the entire story. Your people, the Picts and Vikings, are proud people. You have blood from both and you are so like your grandmother, Ci-Cero, even more so than like your mother, Flinn.
"Memories of that time are forever etched in my brain and heart, my girl. And they live on through you and now this bairn you hold. She has a destiny that will find its own path as all the others have. The Creator has honored me by allowing me to be a part of his plan for this line of healers. It is my destiny."
Wabi excused himself then and left the two new parents, who were busy counting fingers and toes and grinning from ear to ear.
"What are we going to call her, lass? We've talked about several names, but I haven't heard ye mention any lately." Alex looked at the two, his Caitlin and now his daughter, amazed to see the likeness—as alike as he and Robbie.
"I would like to honor both our mothers by naming our daughter after them. How does Alicia Flinn MacKinnon sound to you?"
"Aye. Aye. Mam would be pleased to know her name is carried on."
"I never knew my mother, but perhaps if we keep her name alive her spirit may find a place with us. I was thinking we would call our child Flinn. Is that alright with you?"
"Flinn, aye. Flinn it is."
~ ~ ~
Millie breathed a sigh of relief when the new bairn announced her arrival. It wasn't that long ago she had been through this same ordeal and she'd not forgotten what a difficult time it was. She would forever be grateful Caitlin had been there when she needed her help. Now, perhaps she'd return that favor by offering to tend the new child for a while so Caitlin and Alex could get some much needed rest.
Knocking lightly, she entered Caitlin's room. She almost laughed as she watched Alex struggling, trying to wrap the bairn in a blanket. This man, who was so very capable of doing most anything, had a look on his face that told her he was out of his comfort zone. One quick look at Caitlin and the two shared a smile they both understood.
"Well, now. What have we here? A playmate for Midge, I believe?"
She took the child from Alex, who looked relieved to let someone else hold his bundle. He stood and spoke a few words to Caitlin, kissed her, then went down to the kitchen to share his excitement with Da and the others.
Millie gathered the child to her breast and inhaled the warm, sweet aroma that every mother recognizes.
"Ah, Caitlin. She's such a beauty. Look at those sparkling eyes. And that hair. Don't think I've ever seen a lovelier child. Well, maybe Midge, of course."
That brought a smile to Caitlin's face and, for some reason, tears to her eyes. She wiped away her tears and looked again at her friend holding her child. Strange events had brought them together, and something told her they would share even more events in the future.
"Well, now. First things first. Why don't you give this child her first meal? This is the one time she'll know exactly what to do without any help. Then I'll take her so you can rest awhile."
"Thanks, Millie. But I think I'll just keep her here close to me. Somehow I'm not ready to let her go just yet. I don't understand it, but she seems more a part of me now than she did when I carried her."
Millie smiled but kept her thoughts to herself.
Yes, and that feeling will never leave you. There will be days when the responsibility of having a child is overwhelming, but even then you'll hold her close and feel what all mothers feel—never-ending love.
~ ~ ~
Alex's grin grew even bigger when all the men folk, and even Maria, stood as he entered the kitchen. Each of them had a cup of cider and raised it to him.
"And a toast to the latest MacKinnon, I say. And to her da and mam." Da tossed his cider back and the others followed.
Alex found himself speechless, a most unusual state for him. "Aye, and to the wee lass. A beauty like her mam." He had in mind to say more, but his throat was near to closing up on him so he stopped with those words.
Maria gathered her belongings and medicine bag. "As Señora MacKinnon's not in need of my services, I'll be off then." She was accustomed to being in charge of births, but this MacKinnon woman definitely had a mind of her own. However, Maria had to admit the woman had handled her own situation very well.
"Aye. Ian and Robbie will get the cart and take ye home then, Maria. I don't know what to tell ye except that Caitlin can be determined when she sets her mind to it." Alex looked about the room and observed nods all 'round.
"What matters is that she and the little one are well. That's all I need to know. Now, come young señor, I'm ready to get to mi casa."
Ian was more than glad to have been assigned a task. All the screaming coming from Caitlin and the howling of Willie, plus the anxiety reeling off Alex, was taxing his emotions. He had often spoken to Mam of feeling others' pain, a trait he shared with Caitlin. Mam had told him it was something he would learn to control, but as of yet he hadn't developed that ability either.
This evening was as painful for him as it had been for Caitlin and Alex, and he had been glad when Alex asked Robbie to go with him. He was sensing the uneasiness of this lad, too, and knew he would welcome a chance to get out of the lodge for a brief time.
"Good night, Maria," Ian called as he and Robbie left the midwife a little while later.
"Buenos noches, señors," Maria called out as she closed the door to her cottage.
The two lads climbed back on the cart. They were not in a hurry to get back to the lodge, so the cart creaked along the path and the two talked as easily as if they had known each other for a lifetime.
"So then, I suppose ye being Alex's son would make ye my nephew." Ian smiled broadly at Robbie, who returned it in kind.
"Yeah, I guess that's right. I believe you're maybe a bit older than I am. Seems strange somehow. As of this evening, I have a father, a stepmother, a grandfather, three uncles, two aunts, a cousin, and a half-sister."
"Did yer mam never tell ye about Alex or his family?"
Robbie avoided looking Ian in the eye. He'd already decided he wasn't going to like anyone at the lodge, but was now finding that difficult. Ian was just so interesting.
"No. She was a great storyteller and I suppose she just made up a
story she thought I would like. She told me my father was a soldier who died in battle. According to her, he saved many lives by his heroic acts and died on the battlefield. And that was what I believed until just a couple of months before she died. It was then she told me the real story and who my father really was, or is. The story of Alex and his Highland family."
"So ye never knew anything about Alex before then?"
"No. But when she told me about him, she spoke of him with such feeling I wondered why she didn't come to the Highlands with him. When I asked her, she simply said she knew she needed to be in the world of art, literature and academics. Most of her friends were from those backgrounds, and she was always happy with them. She never lacked for friends, but I can't recall any special man now that I think about it. It appeared her work, her teaching, and her friends were enough for her. Of course, most of them were English, although she had a couple of friends from India, too."
"Aye, then I'm glad ye know the truth. Uncle Wabi believes truth will always be that which frees us from our troubles."
"Uncle Wabi. The old gentleman I just met, right?"
"Aye. He's like a member of the family now, and as ye'll find out he's a wizard of sorts, if ye ken what I'm saying."
Ian wasn't sure Robbie would have any understanding of the true nature of Wabi, or him as far as that went. So he thought it better to keep some information to himself and let Robbie figure out a few things on his own.
"Well, the truth is I'm not just British, but am half Scots. And my mother lied to me my entire life about who my father was."
Ian's antennae picked up on the lad's extreme agitation and anger. But even at his young age, Ian knew this would be something Robbie would have to work out for himself.
"Alex is a man ye can be proud to have as yer da. Even if he is a Scot."
Robbie made no comment to that remark, but just stared ahead.
As they returned to the lodge, the menfolk were still in the kitchen discussing the situation regarding the Brits. The MacKinnons had barely escaped the Battle of Culloden with their lives. The Battle was over, but the repercussions of it were beginning to be felt throughout the land, even into the upper Highlands where they lived.
Highland Bloodline Page 4