Page 19 of Highlander's Rebellious Affair
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Later in the evening before the sun set, Ian and Rhea rode out to the village. They dressed as peasants, something Ian preferred to do whenever he visited the village. Callum welcomed Ian with ale, and Rhea with fruits as his sister hated the strong taste of ale both he and Callum enjoyed.
They sat in front of his small cottage and watched his daughter Fiona play in the front yard. After his father’s death, Callum had retired and went to live in the village. His wife bore his daughter years after, and he had been around for the feast Callum held.
“It’s been a while, Ian,” Callum said as they sat, and Ian nodded. “I hear ye and Lyall are still at odds.”
“I was in Drummond days ago, I just returned and I got me a wife,” Ian told him, and Callum burst into a fit of laughter.
“A wife?”
Ian nodded. “The daughter of Laird Drummond.”
His smile dropped. “Did her faither approve of the union? Laird Drummond is a ken ally of yer uncle Lyall.”
“He had no other option. Lyall had bid for her hand, but I ousted him and took her for myself, of course she is bonnie and she would rather wed me, than someone as old as her faither.”
Callum sighed. “Then may yer union be blessed with wonderful bairns,” Callum said and raised his quaich for a toast. After Ian had gulped down half his ale, he turned to his sister and she spoke.
“Ian returned with a woman, Orlaith, she claims she ken our faither.”
Callum paused at first, and his eyes narrowed.
“Did ye ken her? Did my faither have a mistress outside the Castle while he lived?” Ian asked.
“Yer faither had one mistress after yer maither passed away, but that was many years after, and it was because I persuaded him to find someone to make him happy in a way me, his friend, or ye, his bairns, couldnae.”
“So, she told the truth?” Ian murmured, and Callum nodded.
“It depends on who this woman is. The woman I ken was Orlaith Beattie, and she left Galloway many years ago, after Lyall took the Lairdship.”
“Aye, she is Orlaith, and she is the sister of Laird Drummond’s wife. I have brought her here because I believe she kens something concernin’ the Treasure of Galloway, and she kens yer name.”
“Orlaith and I were good friends while she lived here.”
He waved his hand around, and added. “This used to be her Castle, and she was a healer, but nay one kens she was a mistress to the Laird as well. But nay one ken about the Treasure of Galloway, not even I, yer faither’s best friend, it was a secret passed down to Lairds.”
“My faither didnae tell me before he died, and I have to solve what clues I have found.”
Ian hummed the song about the treasure in his head, and Rhea said, “We believe Orlaith could lead us to somethin’. She claims she kens where the treasure is and that our faither shared the secret with her because she was his favorite.”
“But those could be the words of a mad woman,” Ian added. “Orlaith might be different from the woman ye ken when she lived here. She is called a witch where she lives in Cawdor.”
“Aye, she was from Cawdor, and even when she lived here, she always acted strange sometimes, but I believed it was because she was a quiet woman, and her love for nature and healin’ made her strange.”
“Lyall kens about the treasure, and he believes it is nay a myth. I have spies in his wing of the Castle who say he speaks about it to his trusted men, and there is a secret search of Galloway goin’ on. If he lays hands on the treasure before we do, then he will build an army.”
Knowing the extent of his uncle’s greed, Ian couldn’t let that happen. He had to find the treasure first, and he had to take back what was rightfully his.
Callum nodded, and then his daughter ran toward them and into his arms. She had a huge smile, and Ian admired the way he smiled back at her. For a moment he wondered if it would be the same when he had children with Hope, and his neck heated up when the memory of his night with Hope crossed his mind. He hadn’t made love to her yet, but touching her all over had ignited a passion that he needed to quench and he knew it wouldn’t be long before he had her, but he wanted her to come to him first.
He cleared his throat and Callum spoke with his eyes fixed on Ian’s. “There is however one truth I ken, Orlaith was yer faither’s favorite and he would let no harm come to her when he lived. He ken Lyall would do harm to him soon, and he made plans to get her out of Galloway the moment anythin’ happened to him.
“I helped her escape those many years ago. Nay one else kens about her, so it was easy to keep her away from Lyall. But if she is here in Galloway now, then it won’t be long before someone finds out. Ye have to get her out of the Castle, that is the safest idea for now.”
15
Hope and Orlaith strolled the small garden in the wing of the Castle where Ian stayed, and her aunt showed her some of the wild Highland flowers they had in their garden. She enjoyed her aunt’s company, and Hope wished she had known her while she was a little girl.
