Page 69 of The Highlander's Captured Bride
“Since I havenae the powers of an oracle and tell what ye have in yer mind, aye,” MacFerson replied, “But I havenae doubt, that just like ye’ve proven so far, ye might be right. Let me remind ye, little girl, that though whatever ye have contrived might be accurate, nae one is going to believe ye. That is if ye get the chance to speak it at all. It’s me word against yers and who dae ye ken others will believe? A man with multiple honors to his name and an unbroken record of fealty to his country or a little girl, desperate for attention and greedy for the wealth and prestige that comes from being the wife of a Laird?”
Her eyes narrowed, “If I recall, ye were offering me that before ye declared me a traitor.”
“That was me mistake, a lapse of sound judgment, irrationality, call it what ye will,” he shrugged. “Now that I’ve seen ye are alive, I am here to offer ye an offer.”
Violet decided to play his game, “And that would be?”
“I’ll tell yer faither ye ran away,” he said. “Or went to the loch and drowned, or took a ride out and had a nasty fall from yer horse. Really, yer death is only limited to the bounds of me imagination, he will leave this place heartbroken and ye will live, admittedly in bondage for the rest of yer natural days, but if nay, ye’ll both die; so choose.”
“Never,” she said coldly. “Ye’ll never have me dae anything like that.”
He sighed. “Then ye leave me with nay choice. Yer faither will die when we find him, if he isnae dead already. I’ll give ye till dawn to sunset tomorrow to ken over yer actions, little lass. Dae some soul searching. I must bid ye adieu.”
With an ostentatious bow, he left the room and it was only when the door closed and the lock grated shut she slipped down the wall.
Have I just sentence me faither to death?
* * *
He had ridden away, needing to find one of the people who he knew, a guard, a servant-woman,anyone, who had seen what had happened the days he had been gone. But then, being dismissed so suddenly would have birthed some bad blood and he prayed that if he did find anyone, they would set those grudges aside and speak to him. A thin memory told him where the captain of the guard lived, at near the loch with his wife, so he rode straight there.
As he took a path near the water’s edge, he briefly glanced at the water noting its deep shade of blue and the sunlight transforming the surface into glittering crystals, but Ethan did not see the beauty in it. He had no time to admire anything until he got Violet back safely beside him.
There were only three houses near the waterway and one looked old, decrepit and abandoned so he only had two to choose from. As he neared, the first, he spotted a young woman, her dark auburn hair a red shimmer down her back while she swept the porch. Could that be Adairs’ wife?
I bet Finley would have kent who she is. That’s what Lairds do.
Burying the urge to begin counting his short-comings, Ethan alighted of the horse and went near. The lady spotted him and stopped sweeping. “Ye must be Master MacFerson.”
“Aye,” he bowed. “Pardon, but are ye Commander Rogan’s wife?”
“I am his sister, actually, Genevie Rogan,” she said. “Please, come in, I’ll get him for ye.”
Ethan didn’t want to refuse her kind request but he did not have time to linger either. “Thank ye but I cannae stay. I’d rather we just speak here.”
“A moment then,” she said before going back into the home.
Lingering on the front walk, Ethan faced the glistening waters of the loch and tried to put his words together. When he heard the stomps of boots on the wood behind him, he turned. The commander did not look angry as he approached so he hoped there was no acrimony between them.
“Master MacFerson,” he dipped his head, “To what dae I owe this visit?”
“I won’t take much of yer time, Commander,” he said. “I’ve been told how this…dismissal happened and I will dae all I can to reverse it. But I need to ken, before ye were sent off, did ye see Miss O’Cain at any time?”
The head officer, leaned on a post and crossed his arms over his chest. “I cannae say I had. Nae in the castle or on the grounds, but then, I was nae placed in the position to dae so. I ken ye would have better luck with one of the guards who were placed to watch over ye all. Me position was on the field, nae in the house.”
“If I get me will, yer position will be back in the field,” Ethan said solemnly. “Yer one of the best commanders me family has ever had. And ye will be again.”
“Careful,” Adair cautioned. “Dinnae ye go making vows ye cannae keep, but I have faith in ye. I kent ye would step into the place Finley left. Ye are a smart man, Master MacFerson, aye, ye need help in many areas, we all dae but ye have people around ye who can help and if ye dae get back at the helm of this ship, I’ll be the first to stand at yer side.”
“Who can I find to help me with Violet?” he pondered.
“Mister MacTyre, her guard, lives in Sellek, if anyone kens what happened to her it might be him,” Rogan said.
A rush of gratitude filled Ethan at the assuring words and he stuck out his hand, “Thank ye, Commander.”
Riding out to Selleck, Ethan held those words to his heart. It felt comforting that another person saw what he was beginning to see in himself. His father had, Violet had, and now he was starting to see it himself.
Riding hard, he got to Selleck before the sun made it to noonday position, high in the sky. A few questions had him finding Mister MacTyre’s home but the man was not there.
