Three
Two and a half days later, and not a moment’s rest for anyone except Maddie, they arrived home. They were all tired. The journey was full of silence, except when Maddie chatted his ears raw with her relentless, confusing banter.
“We’ve arrived.”
Maddie’s eyes took in the landscape. Cottages dotted the land. The castle was huge and magnificent. A river ran in front and the drawbridge was down, as if anticipating Connor’s return. To her left there was a loch and she saw a white bird swoop down. Maddie laughed.
Connor looked down at her and followed her gaze.
The landscape was dusted with flowers of all kinds of colors, namely reds, yellows, blues, and violet- her favorite color!
“It’s beautiful, Laird!”
“Connor. Aye, it is. This is Keisealle Castle.”
“The flowers are glorious! So alive and beautiful! Such a rare treat!”
“Rare treat? Flowers are easy to plant, milady.”
“Maddie. Aye, they are. My father, however, detests flowers and so there are none.”
Connor wasn’t much of an admirer of flowers or plants but his mother was proud of the gardens and adornments of the castle. He imagined their home without them and saw how dreary the castle would be.
“I gave this no thought earlier, Laird, but perhaps I will not be welcome here.”
“It will be difficult, yes, but ‘twill be only for a short time.”
Maddie squinted and brought a hand up to shield her eyes from the sun.
“‘Tis alright. I can defend myself.” She said it absently as she studied her surroundings
Connor looked down at her, curiosity lighting his eyes. He dismounted and helped her down. Connor led her up to the castle and his father was waiting.
“Father,” Connor said, gifting his father with a pat on the back.
“Welcome, my sons.”
“Sons?” Maddie turned confused eyes to Connor.
“Yes, milady, this is Iain and Kiel, my younger brothers.”
“How embarrassing! I did not know. You just mentioned their names, but no relation.”
“‘Twas improper for us not to introduce ourselves completely, milady. Pray forgive us for not having done so, for we were zealous in our wanting to reach Keisealle,” Iain said, bending and kissing her hand.
Connor watched him with hooded eyes.
Iain shot a smile to his older brother.
“That’s enough, Iain. Father, this is Lady Madeleine Wynton. The Kerrs abducted her from her home in England, planning to ransom her. We saved her from them, and since we were far from the border, I thought it would be better to have her come here and send a note to her father.”
“‘Tis a pleasure to meet ye, Lady Wynton,” Malcolm said, and eyed his son.
“Please, Sir Ramsay, call me Maddie,” she said, taking his hand between both of hers in a friendly grasp. She curtsied and gifted them all with a smile.
They stared at her, taken aback by her warmth and beauty.
“Oh, I’m sorry. My appearance. I bet my face looks dreadful!” She began fiddling with her hair and gown.
“Connor, take Lady Wynton in and-”
“Maddie, please.”
“Alright, Maddie,” Malcolm said, smiling at her. “Connor, take Maddie and tell Aimee to prepare a room and bath for our guest. I shall like to speak to ye and yer brothers afterward.”
Connor led Maddie into the castle.
“Oh my! ‘Tis even more beautiful in here!”
After having gone up the front steps, she entered doublewide doors that were surely twice her height and four times her weight. Inside, there were draperies and quilts of all colors hung on the walls. Flowers were everywhere. Such a sweet smelling scent permeated the air. Light filtered in seemingly from everywhere. It looked like the castle was glowing.
Connor shook his head. Everything impressed her. He wondered why. Aimee walked by then, stopping his musings.
“Aimee, this is Lady Wynton-”
“Please, just call me Maddie.”
Aimee’s eyes opened wide when she heard the English accent.
“Maddie is a guest and will be requiring a room and a bath. Please assist her. Also, ask Mairi for dresses. She traveled with no clothes.”
After a minute of trying to get her initial shock under control, Aimee nodded.
“Yes, Laird. Milady, please follow me,” Aimee said, curtsying to Connor and moving up the ornate staircase. He could hear Maddie correcting the servant, asking once again to be called Maddie.
His father approached behind him.
“Connor, let’s discuss this Maddie.”
Connor nodded and followed his father. Once in the laird’s room, Connor immediately asked about Katie.
“How is she father?”
“Terrible!” Malcolm said, running his hand through his grayish-brown hair. “She cries day and night, and she’s nay the girl she used to be. Now she rarely eats, and sleeps too much. Her sleep is riddled with nightmares. Miriam has not left her side once.”
Connor slammed his fist on the table.
“Damn them. I look forward to feeling his life slip out of him when I strangle the bastard!”
Malcolm shook his head.
“This Maddie, Connor. She’s a blameless. Just take her back. Let’s not make another innocent suffer in a game of men. I’ve thought about it much since ye left, and now that I’ve seen her, it’s what we must do.”
“Nay, father!” Connor slammed his hand twice on the table. “Dammit! No. They will pay!” Connor said, stabbing the air with his index finger.
Connor was seething.
“She’ll fall into the plan,” Connor said.
“She’s an innocent, Connor!” Malcolm took a step back and studied Connor. “She isna as mousy as we thought she would be, now is she?” Malcolm said, knowing the answer. He saw the way Connor had looked at the young lady.
“No, so it will be easier to bed her when the time comes.”
“‘Tis difficult, Connor. I am sympathetic to her. As much as I want them to pay for injuring Katie, I canna approve of ye doing this.”
Connor ignored his comment.
“We shall send a note to her father. We might as well demand a ransom, as we agreed to before,” Connor said, smiling.
Malcolm had nothing more to say. He could tell Connor would not be dissuaded.
“I have work to do, but first, I will visit with Katie,” Connor said and strode from the room.
Malcolm looked at his oldest son as he walked out. He hoped Connor would not follow through on it.
How wrong he had been to ever approve of this ghastly plan!
*****
“How is my Katie doing?” Connor asked as he slowly opened the door to her room.
After a couple of minutes of staring into nothing, Katie looked up at him and he saw her tears.
“Mother, leave us a bit. Go and eat something. Wash up. I shall stay.”
Connor gave his mom a stern but sympathetic look, and she acquiesced, nodding. She kissed the top of Katie’s head and headed for the door. With a look back her daughter, she left the room.
The room was dark and dreary. There was light coming through the now covered windows. The flowers she loved to place in her room were absent. Katie looked thin. Connor walked over to her and sat on the bed, taking her into his arms. Katie began to cry again. He leaned against the headboard and wrapped his right arm around her waist, resting his left hand on her head.
“Shh…’twill be alright, sweet Katie,” Connor said, as he kissed the top of her head.
He rocked her a little as his heart broke.
“What will I do, Connor? I feel dirty, no matter how many baths I take,” she said through clenched teeth. “Even if I live passed this, what life will I have? No one will want me,” she said in a small voice.
“Of course ye will live pass this, sweeting. We will help ye. We will always be here for ye. And as for a match, trust when I say that there isna a man who could say no to yer bonny face.”
“I’m damaged, Connor! No man will want to marry a defiled woman!” She paused. “I doona even think I could be with a man after this. I’ll be alone for the rest of my life! I cannot stand the touch of others.”
“Ye arena defiled, Katie. Ye are beautiful and-”
“I am not beautiful!” She screamed and covered her ears.
“Shh…shh…”
She sniffed and hiccupped.
“At least I am not with child.”
Her voice was so soft, he almost didn’t hear her. Connor stiffened. He hadn’t even given that a thought.
“Ye arena?” His mouth was dry.
“Nay. I’ve never been happier to get my monthly.”
Connor kissed the top of her head. She wasn’t embarrassed to share that with him. She was verra close to her brothers despite the large age gaps. They were all close.
“Katie, yer life isna over. Ye will soon put this behind ye. Ye have to, baby angel,” he said, using the endearment that her brothers had for her. “It will take time. Ye need time.”
“How long?”
He shook his head. “That I doona know, Katie. It will take as long as it needs to take. Ye need to take as long as ye need.” He kissed her head again. “Ye will overcome this, baby angel. Ye have all of us, and we are here to help ye.”
Connor felt the tension slowly ease out of her as she fell asleep. Time crept by, and before he knew it, his mother came into the room again. Connor nodded and slowly placed Katie down into the bed covers and tucked her in. He gave her a kiss on the cheek and touched her face before turning to leave the room.
His mother stopped him and spoke with him outside the room.
“I met Maddie.”
He inwardly groaned. Not yet, dammit! ‘Twas too much to deal with at one time.
“Aye, Mother.”
“She is such a dear! Imagine her wanting to clean the room she was in. She meant no insult, of course, she just insists on earning her keep, she said. She offered to clean the castle. I insisted that she do no such thing. Imagine a lady cleaning the keep.”
Connor simply crossed his arms and blinked. He hoped she wouldn’t say what his ears were dreading to hear.
“She’s beautiful! She isna snobbish. I was quite surprised at her English accent, but I never believed that the English were evil. ‘Twas nice of ye to rescue her. What a horrible ordeal she went through! She calls ye her rescuer, but then again, all my sons all have great integrity and honor,” she said and made him lean down so that she could kiss his cheek.
Miriam stepped into the room and closed the door.
Her words bothered him. It wasn’t what she’d said, necessarily, but rather it was what she hadn’t. It was apparent that she liked Maddie. That would help his plan, yes. Maddie would loosen up and trust more. He didn’t want his family to get comfortable with her, though. He didn’t want them to like her overly much, either. He would’ve settled for simple cordiality. Connor would have to keep Maddie away from his mother and sister by all means. They wouldn’t understand.
Integrity and honor.
Aye, he possessed those characteristics, but apparently, not at the moment.