know we are not a very rich family, and I am too far out of the line for the throne now for you to be bartered away, but you are a beautiful girl, as I was. And that means you should always be on your guard against men who would take liberties.”
“Men have tried before.” Kensey laughed at little at the memories of men in France trying to steal her into a dark corner or whisper too closely to her while conversing, but she never needed protection. She held up a hand in an attempt to silence the conversation “I know how to defend myself.”
“Against the weak little boys who have chased you before, perhaps.” Gabrielle grasped her hand with urgency. “I just want you to promise me that you will guard your actions and your heart. I want to see you as happy as I have been with your father, not trapped in a loveless marriage just because circumstance required it.”
Kensey hugged her mother tightly, although the firm grasp on her hand was starting to throb. She knew how blessed she was to have such a mother, and such a father. And she never wanted to take them for granted, but she also knew that her mother worried needlessly. Not only could she protect herself from anyone, but she was smart enough not to get entangled with the wrong men.
Again, unbidden, the image of her rescuer’s face came to mind. Of course, her father would take issue with his family status, and her mother would never encourage something she knew Lachlan would be against. Plus, she didn’t even understand her own feelings for the man. But if her father wanted her to make a love match, the closest thing she’d felt to love since Albert was the warmth and safety she’d felt in the arms of the outcast Sinclair.
Chapter Six
Another two weeks passed, and still Lachlan did not appear or send word to his wife. As each day dawned, Gabrielle was a little more frantic about his absence. Duncan Sinclair, Colin Ross, and Gerald Sutherland had all gone to Berwick and returned. Lachlan MacLeod had been gone for over a month now, and there had been no messenger, no page, no note. Nothing.
Only news that he had refused to swear fealty to the king and lay in prison.
To make matters worse, Gabrielle had developed another troubling cough. Kensey had some knowledge of healing from working with Ete and Ene as a girl. Nothing like a real healer, but it passed in certain circumstances. In cases where the disease could not be cured, as Kensey had learned about Gabrielle’s coughing, she sought only to make her mother comfortable. They kept her room and her bed as warm as she could stand it, especially as All Saints Day came and went, and the weather became more unforgiving.
One afternoon without warning, the men sighted a group of men approaching, with two oxen between them carrying something on a large wooden cart. Flanking the oxen were two men walking and one man on horseback. When Reyf called for his mistress to identify them, Gabrielle was still abed, and Kensey came down to see who and what was approaching. She immediately recognized Duncan atop his horse, with his flaming red hair a contrast to the grey sky.
Duncan promised to visit before the first light snow flew, to bring a gift for Gabrielle for her hospitality to his men. On his first visit, he had mentioned to her that his mother had a beautiful loom, when he had seen Gabrielle’s own. They never spoke of Fiona.
Kensey brought her mother down to the hall when Duncan arrived, and smiled on as the two carters carried the giant instrument into their home. Duncan stood on the other side of Gabrielle, watching both mother and daughter marvel at the loom.
“My father had it brought over from Norway when he and his first wife were married,” explained Duncan as Gabrielle touched its sturdy warp beam. “That was long before I was born. She loved to weave.”
Gabrielle took a deep, rattling breath. “May I ask? What happened to your mother?”
“She died in childbirth,
“Men have tried before.” Kensey laughed at little at the memories of men in France trying to steal her into a dark corner or whisper too closely to her while conversing, but she never needed protection. She held up a hand in an attempt to silence the conversation “I know how to defend myself.”
“Against the weak little boys who have chased you before, perhaps.” Gabrielle grasped her hand with urgency. “I just want you to promise me that you will guard your actions and your heart. I want to see you as happy as I have been with your father, not trapped in a loveless marriage just because circumstance required it.”
Kensey hugged her mother tightly, although the firm grasp on her hand was starting to throb. She knew how blessed she was to have such a mother, and such a father. And she never wanted to take them for granted, but she also knew that her mother worried needlessly. Not only could she protect herself from anyone, but she was smart enough not to get entangled with the wrong men.
Again, unbidden, the image of her rescuer’s face came to mind. Of course, her father would take issue with his family status, and her mother would never encourage something she knew Lachlan would be against. Plus, she didn’t even understand her own feelings for the man. But if her father wanted her to make a love match, the closest thing she’d felt to love since Albert was the warmth and safety she’d felt in the arms of the outcast Sinclair.
Chapter Six
Another two weeks passed, and still Lachlan did not appear or send word to his wife. As each day dawned, Gabrielle was a little more frantic about his absence. Duncan Sinclair, Colin Ross, and Gerald Sutherland had all gone to Berwick and returned. Lachlan MacLeod had been gone for over a month now, and there had been no messenger, no page, no note. Nothing.
Only news that he had refused to swear fealty to the king and lay in prison.
To make matters worse, Gabrielle had developed another troubling cough. Kensey had some knowledge of healing from working with Ete and Ene as a girl. Nothing like a real healer, but it passed in certain circumstances. In cases where the disease could not be cured, as Kensey had learned about Gabrielle’s coughing, she sought only to make her mother comfortable. They kept her room and her bed as warm as she could stand it, especially as All Saints Day came and went, and the weather became more unforgiving.
One afternoon without warning, the men sighted a group of men approaching, with two oxen between them carrying something on a large wooden cart. Flanking the oxen were two men walking and one man on horseback. When Reyf called for his mistress to identify them, Gabrielle was still abed, and Kensey came down to see who and what was approaching. She immediately recognized Duncan atop his horse, with his flaming red hair a contrast to the grey sky.
Duncan promised to visit before the first light snow flew, to bring a gift for Gabrielle for her hospitality to his men. On his first visit, he had mentioned to her that his mother had a beautiful loom, when he had seen Gabrielle’s own. They never spoke of Fiona.
Kensey brought her mother down to the hall when Duncan arrived, and smiled on as the two carters carried the giant instrument into their home. Duncan stood on the other side of Gabrielle, watching both mother and daughter marvel at the loom.
“My father had it brought over from Norway when he and his first wife were married,” explained Duncan as Gabrielle touched its sturdy warp beam. “That was long before I was born. She loved to weave.”
Gabrielle took a deep, rattling breath. “May I ask? What happened to your mother?”
“She died in childbirth,
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