Page 31 of Tempted
A great clatter of horses echoed round the bailey as James Hamilton, Earl of Arran, Lord High Admiral of Scotland, with twenty men at his heels, arrived. Before he dismounted, he was hurling accusations. “Christ’s blood, I’ve worn ma nag’s legs down tae its fetlocks ridin’ about my holdin’s this week. Ma sheep an’ cattle hav’ been disappearin’ like snow in summer, an’ here are the bloody culprits holed up like a skulk o’ foxes!”
Archibald Kennedy, also an earl of the realm, decided to take exception to his words “Yer no’ insinuatin’ the Kennedys have dirtied their hands wi’ yer vermin-ridden sheep, are ye, Jamie boy?”
Arran’s dark, thin face was stiff with outrage. His eyes were narrowed to slits, and his pinched lips had disappeared altogether. Tina groaned inwardly. Just when she had Patrick Hamilton eating out of her hand, their families were determined to start a feud. Still, she mused wryly, if Patrick was going to look like his father in later years, perhaps it was just as well.
Rob tried to speak up, but Archibald was ahead of him He waved Tina’s bill of sale in his hand and said, “Everything on four legs on Kennedy land has been bought an’ paid for, an’ we’ve the papers tae prove it, which is more than ye can say, Hamilton! And while we’re talkin’ plain, our red hair may make us resemble foxes, but we’re all legitimately born here. We dinna ride about wi’ a passel o’ bastards at our back!”
Tina bit her lip at Archibald’s hypocrisy. Both he and her father had their share of by-blows
“We’ll no’ stop here tae be insulted. We’ll ride tae Edinburgh and lay our complaints afore the king,” Arran shouted.
Rob spoke at last. “An’ while yer at it, ye can report that yer doin’ such an admiral job as admiral, the bloody English are attackin’ our ships the minute they sail outa the Firth o’ Clyde!”
Arran dismounted, completely distracted for the moment. “I saw yer ship—I’ll need a full report. Don’t keep us standin’ aboot out here. Yer hospitality is as lackin’ as yer wits.”
Valentina closed her eyes at the thought of having to sit between these two men, who had taken on the characteristics of two bristling boars. In the hall, the Kennedys closed ranks, as any clan worth its salt did in times of trouble. The Kennedys of Cassillis and of Doon presented a solid flank to the Hamiltons.
No sooner were the servitors carrying in the first course of Mr. Burque’s culinary efforts than a great uproar of shouting and brawling was heard outside. Archibald Campbell, Earl of Argyll, strode into the long room. The escort at his back, all Highlanders, looked savage as prehistoric men. Campbell was blue-jowled, hard as granite, and foul-mouthed. “Firkin’ borderers!” He spat a gob of phlegm onto the flagstones. “I come in good faith tae sign the betrothal document, an’ I find ma own Highland cattle that went astray last week. So the Hamiltons and the Kennedys are up each other’s arses! Looks like a treasonable plot tae take ower the whole south!” His fierce eyes beneath his bushy brows challenged every last one seated on the dais table. When his eyes fell on Donal, he recalled his original mission. “Whoremonger! Ye ha’ taken gross and filthy advantage of ma foolish daughter.” He flung out his hand toward the entrance to the hall, and Tina and Donal both realized that Meggie must have accompanied her father. They arose in unison and hurried out to find her.
“Ye’ve foxed and duped, cheated and defrauded Argyll fer the first and last time!” he roared. “I’ll seek damages fra’ the crown, and if ma Meggie has a bairn in her belly, yer son will swing frae the turrets o’ Doon!”
Meggan Campbell, covered with shame, shrank into a corner of the passageway outside the hall Donal slipped a protective arm about her, and she buried her face against his powerful barrel-chest. “Dinna fash yersel, Meggie. I’ll put things right. I’ll tell the truth and confess all.”
Tina swept him with a scornful glance. “This calls for more than the truth! This calls for a magnificent lie! This lot will swallow lies a hell of a lot faster than the truth.”
Meggan was trembling, and Donal could not persuade her to come into the hall, so Tina said, “You go up to my chamber, Meggie. As soon as I can get away, I’ll bring you some comfits from Mr. Burque’s kitchen. Donal, stand beside me in the hall and back up whatever I say.”
When the beautiful young woman stood in the center of the hall and raised her hands for silence, she drew every eye until finally the men left off their curses and threats while they drank in the flaming hair and proud breasts. “My lord earls, we have all been the victims of a ruthless freebooter. My brothers are too ashamed to acknowledge how easily they were gulled in my father’s absence. You all know the name of the cattle thieves who’ve made merry hell in the borders for centuries. Their clan has made it their business to keep the rest of us at each other’s throats —made it their business to keep the throne and the kingdom weak to their own advantage. No wonder all men shudder when they hear the name Douglas! ‘Twas Black Ram Douglas sold us Campbell longhorns, Hamilton sheep and Cassillis horses, and provided us with bogus bills of sale. He knew Donal was needing to stock Castle Kennedy in Wigtown before he wed with Meggie Campbell.”
Arran took up the denigration of the Douglas name, and inside five minutes every man in the vast dining hall took up the cry and was banging his tankard or his sword hilt on the table.
Donal felt the sore spot on the top of his head where Douglas had brought down his broadsword. Christ, women were natural-born mischief-makers! A simple man didn’t stand a chance against a clever woman. He thanked God for his Meggie.
Before Tina left the hall, she was amazed that for once they were all in agreement. They would all go to the king in Edinburgh to lay the blame at the door of Douglas. Donal cast Tina a look of alarm. She shrugged one pretty shoulder and came to a quick decision. She wasn’t going to be left behind to face Black Ram Douglas when next he came hotspur to Doon.
Every Kennedy servant would be occupied this night, plenishing chambers and serving food and drink. Only the earls and Meggan would be provided with rooms, of course. Their men would bed down wherever they could, either in the hall or in the outbuildings surrounding the bailey. The stables were so overfilled with horses that stableboys were working around the clock to shovel out the piles of manure. The men-at-arms were so toughened, especially those from the Highlands, that if there were no shelter, they simply dug themselves a hole in the ground, no matter the season.
In the kitchen Tina found Ada making up a tray for her mother. “Damn it, I’ve missed all the fun.”
“God’s nightgown, it was like a scene from the Hobs of Hell where they house all the lunatics,” Tina said. “You warned me how coarse and uncouth men were. They are bad enough one at a time, but en masse they are unbearable, unreasonable, unruly, and unsavory. When Archibald Kennedy arrived, he made Father look refined. Then when Archibald Campbell crawled in, he made the others look like gentlemen!”
Ada laughed. “When I’ve taken this up to your mother, I’m going to leave her in Beth and Kirsty’s capable hands and slip down to the hall for a bit of fun.”
Valentina shuddered. “Better you than me. I’ll try to soothe Meggie Campbell. No wonder she wants to marry Donal. He must seem like a bloody prince after living with Argyll at Castle Gloom. Oh Ada, before I forget. I want you to talk Father into taking me to Edinburgh with him.”
“And how in God’s name am I to manage that?” Ada demanded.
Tina winked. “Oh, you’ll think of a way, love.”
The hour was extremely late when Rob Kennedy extricated himself from his unexpected guests and climbed the stairs. In the passageway outside his wife’s chamber, he was pleased to encounter Ada. He undid the laces of her gown and fondled her lovely breasts as they came spilling out. “Lass, lass, I’m in sore need o’ a real woman.”
She slipped her arms about his neck and rubbed against his hardness. “Valentina wants you to take her to Edinburgh, instead of your wife.”
He whispered, “Elizabeth will have a rapid recovery if she thinks she’s goin’ tae the queen’s court”
Ada pressed against him “I could come with Tina to do for her—and do for you,” she promised
“How will I manage it, Ada? Ye know what Elizabeth’s like.”
