Page 60 of Eloping with the Laird
‘Aye. We’ve had the recipe for as long as I can remember, and the lairds—’ He paused and paled.
‘And the lairds what?’ Moira enquired as she rose from her chair.
‘And the lairds have oft preferred it over regular wine. They say it’s sweeter and helps them sleep. I never thought...’
‘Fetch it, Angus. I’ll find the doctor.’
Moira rushed from the bedchamber in search of the doctor.Please don’t let him have left.She rounded a corner to the study and found him conversing with Uncle Leo. ‘Doctor,’ she called. ‘Please come with me. We may have discovered what ails him.’
Whether it was her voice or her face, they came to her, following closely as they returned to the main hall where Angus was also returning from the kitchen. He carried a small dark ceramic jar gingerly in both hands as if he now feared its contents. He placed it on the table and stepped back. ‘We’ve had it here at the castle as long as I can remember. ’Tis a sweetener that we get from the village. It makes sour wine taste sweet and fine wine even better, or so some say. I tried it once, but found it far too sweet for my liking.’
The doctor opened the jar slowly, resting its lid on the table. He took a measure of it from the container using the small spoon still resting inside of it. He dabbed a bit on his finger and tasted it before spitting it out on his handkerchief. ‘I have a few guesses. I’ll need to take it back with me to do some tests in my cottage in the village. I’ll return in the morn with answers, I hope. And who is it that you purchase this from?’ He wrapped the jar in a large handkerchief and tucked it in his medicine bag.
‘Two cottages down from the healer. See her, and she’ll show you the place. I can even go with ye if needed,’ Angus stated.
‘Nay. No need. I’ll go now and be back as soon as I can. Until then, keep the laird comfortable. If he wakes, give him milk and cheese. Nothing else.’
‘Aye. Thank you, Doctor.’ Moira could hardly stand still. What if they were a day away from discovering the cause of Rory’s illness? And they had a chance at a life, a long life, together as a family?
She rushed back to Rory’s bedside and knelt. Clutching his hands, she whispered to him. ‘I think we’ve found it, Rory. It is no curse. You will live. Please come back to me. Come back tous.’
Moira woke to the shouts of angry men and women from the main hall below. She pushed herself up from the floor and edge of the bed where she’d fallen asleep tending to Rory and rubbed her eyes. It was mid-afternoon based on the sun streaming across his bed, but he still slept soundly. Her heart twisted. Why would he not wake?
And what was going on?
She straightened her gowns, went down the stairs and came to the edge of the hallway near the front entrance and paused. One of the voices became clearer, and she froze. Every fibre of her being remembered that voice. Peter’s mother. She had long hoped her mother-in-law would accept her, but that had never happened. Peter had filled her with stories about how disobedient and troublesome she was, and his mother had accepted his words as truth.
But there was another voice she didn’t recognise. ‘You will bring her to me,’ the man commanded. ‘She will answer for her crimes against our family.’
‘My lady will not answer to the likes of anyone, especially you, Laird Fraser. I know what kind of man your cousin was and by extension I believe I also know you,’ Uncle Leo snarled. Rage coloured his voice.
‘Then no one will go in or out of Blackmore until she does. I have an army of soldiers in place. Allies you do not have. You are alone, McKenna, and I know your nephew is gravely ill. I will starve you and your people here out of the castle and let your laird die if you do not hand her over to me. Now. The elders have been assembled to hear our case against her, and we will not be denied our opportunity to determine the true cause of my cousin’s death.’
Moira shivered. They’d assembled an elders’ council to hear her side of the story and to determine the true cause of Peter’s death? And now they demanded her attendance or they would blockade Blackmore. Could he do such? Could he starve them out and keep the doctor from returning to tend to Rory? Was it even possible?
She knew the answer. Aye, it was. There was one main road up to Blackmore and one small exit and escape route down the other side of the castle that was large enough for carriages and supplies to be traversed upon. The other trails were smaller and too treacherous this time of year, even for the most experienced of riders. If Laird Fraser dug in and kept their supplies, their men—namely Rory’s doctor—from them, then they would eventually starve, but sooner than that Rory would die. He needed care from Dr Wilkes and quickly. If he’d found out what had made Rory so sick, he might be on his way back tomorrow to cure him. They wouldn’t have time for the Frasers to come to their senses or for a battle to wage and end. A day could be the very difference in Rory’s survival.
And more than anything, she wished for her husband to live. To continue to care for his clan and have a future. He couldn’t do that dead. She went to the door and stepped between two of the McKenna soldiers that blocked Laird Fraser’s path.
‘What is it you desire?’ she demanded.
‘You know what I want, my lady. You will join me and answer for your crime against my cousin.’
The McKenna soldiers closed ranks around her, their anger at Laird Fraser vibrating off them.
‘And what crime might that be, my laird?’ She crossed her arms against her chest and willed the fear that often scampered along her spine when she thought of Peter and his family to hide elsewhere. She had no time for fear. Not today.
‘The death of my cousin.’
She scoffed. ‘Oh? And how is that? No one has levelled any previous claim against me, and it has been over a year since his death. What has changed?’
‘I have a witness.’ He called behind him.
A witness? Only she and Peter had been in that room during their fight. Who could he possibly mean?
‘Bring her.’
A bedraggled young woman emerged from the carriage that sat at the edge of the drive. Moira gasped when she saw the young woman’s face.Enora.‘She is no witness. She was my lady’s maid. What have you done to her, you brute?’
