"What do you think Lyle can do?" Davina asked as they rode along.

"He may be able to think of some way of detaining them," Athol replied, "their ship leaves Dornoch with the tide in the early afternoon. It is a five-mile ride over rough terrain, so they will have to leave early in the morning. I just need to keep them here an extra hour or so and it will be too late for them to board. The next ship going to Inverness and Fort Augustus does not leave until this time next week. It will buy us time."

"Once she finds out that I know she will tell Grant," Davina said, biting her lip anxiously.

"I won't tell her I have told you," he replied, "I have brought along some of the money she asked me for, a fraction. I will tell her that my servant is bringing the rest at dawn tomorrow - I will think of an excuse - then he will be late. She will wait for him if I know her as I think I do. If not, I will trust Lyle to find a way of staying their departure. I think the best way is to get Grant very, very drunk tonight. He likes his whiskey too much, and I suspect that is what got him into this predicament to start with. Maura will be very sparing with her liquor tonight, I expect."

"But he loves her… He told me so," Davina answered.

"That is why I won't tell him what she is doing," he said grimly, "because he will not believe me. He would rather take the word of that-that bitch instead of ours. Even if he did, it would wreck their marriage and I don't want to be responsible for that even if his wife is a monster."

Davina sighed. "It is going to be wrecked anyway, but I agree," she said. "Grant is a lovely man but he is very easily led." She thought for a moment then smiled. "Mind you, so are most men."

Athol gave her a threatening look. "You will pay for that when we get home, Mistress Murray!" he growled.

"Ooh!" she squealed, laughing. "I hope so."

They got to Lyle's house in the late evening. In the Scottish Highlands, the summer night does not fall completely until just before midnight, with about three hours of full darkness until dawn, so they had hours of daylight left to ride home. Maura and Grant could have ridden back to Fort Augustus, but the journey was much longer by road and Maura wanted to take no chances in her 'delicate condition' as she put it. She had not announced her pregnancy far and wide yet, but the family all knew; Grant was overjoyed and bursting with pride.

The retainer who met them at the door was not at all the kind of servant most people would have employed, but Athol and Davina were not surprised. Callum Shaw was a slightly eccentric. He collected people of the upper classes who were down on their luck to come and work for him in the higher echelons of the staff hierarchy. He had a butler who was a former laird, a ladies' maid who was the penniless widow of a gentleman farmer, and an under-manager of the estate who had been a baron.

His house was full to bursting with down-at-heel noblemen and women who for various reasons had lost their estates and their fortunes. Although Callum was not a laird, the house was big enough, with eighty bedrooms, to be a de facto castle, so he thought of himself as one, and acted as one.

Lyle was delighted to see them. "This is a very pleasant surprise," he said warmly, "come in. We have just finished dinner, but there is plenty more if you are hungry." They walked into the dining room where Mary, Grant and Maura were sitting with the remains of their meal, along with Lyle's parents.

Lyle was the masculine version of his mother. Finella Shaw had finer features, but there was no denying that with their white-blond hair and startling blue eyes, she and Lyle were mother and son. Callum had iron-gray hair with eyes to match and was tall and muscular. Despite his imposing appearance, he was one of the kindliest and most forgiving men anyone had ever met. Davina and Athol both loved him.

"Eat," Lyle ordered, as one of the staff put clean plates in front of them. "I know you, Athol. You have hollow legs."

"I am rapidly finding that out!" Davina said dryly, to the general amusement of everyone. Athol's appetite was the stuff of legend.

"To what do we owe the pleasure?" Finella asked, smiling.

"Well, I wanted to ask Lyle about the new breed of sheep Lyle is raising," Athol answered, "and Davina came with me to say goodbye."

"I'm so glad," Maura put her hand over Davina's on the table and smiled at her. Davina felt like snatching her hand away and slapping Maura's beautiful face with it, but she restrained herself and smiled back. "You were the one person I wish I'd had more time with. You must come and see us when the baby is born."

"I would love to." Davina pasted on a smile and tried to eat some of the delicious roast chicken, which tasted like sawdust in her mouth. She looked across at Athol who was eating as if he had not had a square meal for a year.

Presently, he leaned back, satisfied, and patted his lean stomach. Lyle poured him some whiskey and offered some to the other men since the ladies were all sitting with half-full glasses. Grant drank what was left of his in one draught and Lyle filled his glass to the brim, almost as if he had read Athol's mind.

"Come and I'll show you. I have three ewes and six lambs now," he said, with obvious pride, "all the ladies had twins."

As soon as they were out of earshot Lyle turned a puzzled face to Athol. "Tell me," he demanded.

Athol looked at his feet. "Maura is blackmailing me," he replied, frowning, "she says she will tell Davina that we lay together and that I am her baby's father."

Lyle digested this for a moment. "I sense you have a plan."

"I told Davina, explained all the circumstances, and she was completely understanding." He paused for a moment. "We were both single, and even though Maura was about to be betrothed, she was not at that time. Davina was shocked at the thought that another woman might be carrying my baby, of course, but she thinks the chances are very slim.”

'I think the chances are very good that she has another lover," Lyle stated, frowning. "Just another hunch. She flirts with every man she meets."

"We seem to be planning our strategy on hopes and hunches," Athol sighed.

"What do you want me to do?" Lyle asked, putting his hand on his friend's shoulder.

"I want you to keep them here," Athol replied, "we need to find out if she killed Ruaridh. And she is expecting me to give her money tonight since I pretended to give in to her blackmail."

"She truly is a devil in female form," Lyle stated angrily. He thought for a moment. "You would only need a little while. An hour?"

“The longer the better," Athol answered, "I want to be absolutely certain." They went back into the house again, where the butler bowed to them. Athol frowned in puzzlement, looking more closely at the man.

He was slim and tall, almost the same height as Athol, with straight grey hair and dark brown eyes. He looked to be around his mid-forties. Athol knew he had seen him before. He stared at the man, perplexed for a moment, before speaking to him.

"Excuse me," he began, "but I feel I have met you on another occasion. I am Athol Murray. What is your name?"

---

The man's gaze dropped to the floor in embarrassment, and when he met Athol's eyes again, Athol knew him at once. "The Laird of Doon!" he exclaimed in astonishment. "How good to see you." He thrust out his hand, but the butler refused to take it.

"Mr. Murray." He gave Athol the faintest of smiles. "I am no longer Laird Doon. That title now belongs to my friend Douglas McTavish."

Athol frowned. "How did this happen?" he asked, baffled. "Your estate was one of the wealthiest in Sutherland!"

Ewan Taggart, the former Laird of Doon, smiled sadly. "Entirely my own fault, young sir," he replied, "I was too fond of the dice. Night after night I would go drinking and gambling, despite the pleas of my family. They tried their best to stop me, but I simply could not stop myself. One night I happened to meet Douglas after a long absence. We talked and I drank too much, so did he, although I suspect he was much soberer than he looked. Anyway, I was in an expansive mood - I become very merry when I am in my cups - and I bet everything, castle, estate, money, on one throw of the dice. I lost.

“The fortune in property that had been in my family for generations was gone, and it had been taken by someone who called himself my friend. Now his wife and family live in comfort on my land while I am reduced to this."

"And what of your family?"

"My son married the daughter of the Baron of Mull, and my two daughters married young lairds. My wife lives with my younger daughter together with my two youngest sons. The entire family has forsaken me."

"I am sorry," Athol murmured. It was a tragic story, and he could not help feeling sorry for Ewan despite the stupidity of his actions.

"Do not be sorry for me, young sir," the man said in a stern voice, "for I do not deserve your pity. I brought this entire calamity upon myself. I care nothing about that. But my family…" He was almost in tears.

Athol looked around for Lyle, but he had already gone back into the dining room. He was bored with the conversation, but Athol was fascinated.

"But I landed on my feet here, young sir," Ewan went on, "when he heard of my difficulties Mr. Shaw employed me, first as a footman, then as a butler. I have clothes, food, accommodation, and money to spend. Not as much as before of course, but I am content. Even though I am a servant I still enjoy the finer things in life: a bottle of wine on occasion, even a little whiskey. I have a better life now than I deserve."

"I am so glad to hear it," Athol said and smiled. "Do you see your family?"

Ewan shook his head, then changed the subject. "Your food will be cold, Mr. Murray," he said, "and your lovely bride will be missing you."

"My food is eaten, Mr. Taggart," Athol answered, patting his stomach. "And my wife will not pine away in ten minutes. Thank you for telling me your story and rest assured it will stay between the two of us."

"Thank you, young sir." Ewan smiled.

The two of us, Davina, and I, Athol thought as he walked away, we will never have secrets from each other.