The Magnificent Rogue (25 page)

“Some things don’t change. I knew the first time I saw her at the gathering at Kilfirth. I was only a lad of fifteen and she was four years younger, but it made no difference. We belonged.” He added more wood to the fire. “We still belong.”

“What are you going to do?”

“Take her from Malcolm. Wed her. Love her.” He smiled. “It’s very simple, really.”

“If you aren’t killed while doing it.”

“Oh, yes, there’s always that problem. That was one of the reasons I went to sea with Robert. I’m not a great warrior, you see. I thought there were things I should learn to protect my Jeanie.” He added, “And I’ll
need my share of the booty when I have to leave Craighdhu.”

She looked at him in bewilderment. She knew he loved Craighdhu almost as much as Robert did. “Why would you leave Craighdhu?”

“Jeanie. I couldn’t expect Robert to harbor her when Alec comes after her. It would give Malcolm the excuse he’s been seeking to try to take Craighdhu.”

And Craighdhu must always come first with Robert, she thought sadly. “Have you talked to Robert?”

He nodded. “He says I’m a madman to give up everything for a woman.” He straightened his shoulders as if shrugging off a burden. “But maybe madmen are more content than sane ones. What do you think, Kate?”

She thought she was frightened and sad and a little angry at this woman who would cause Gavin to risk so much. “I think you should ponder this decision very carefully.”

“I have no intention of running straight to Jeanie the minute Alec’s back is turned.” His face lit with an impish smile. “I’ll wait, at least until he’s in Edinburgh and harder to reach by messenger.” His smile faded as he reached out and gently touched her cheek. “Stop frowning. All will be well.”

“When you have to leave the home you love?”

He shrugged and got to his feet. “It’s a choice I had to make. I can do nothing else.”

Craighdhu.

The island lay fifteen miles from shore, looming ghostlike in the gray-green sea, its mountains wreathed with swirling mists and clouds. The castle on the north side of Craighdhu looked as wild and dark as the mountains themselves, as if it had been hammered by the winds and sea until it seemed to have been wrought not by man but by Nature.

“Merciful God, no!” murmured Kate, stricken.

“I told you it wasn’t pretty.” Robert’s tone was sharp as he saw her expression. “But I didn’t expect you to hate it this much.”

“No, it’s not pretty,” she said dully.

“Well, you’ll have to put up with it for only a year.” He got down from his horse and moved to the large raft tied to the pier. “Help her dismount, Gavin.”

She was barely aware of Gavin lifting her to the ground.

Some things are meant to be, Gavin had said, but surely this cruel jest was not fashioned by the hand of God. She had accepted that she was not to have Robert because of his idiotic misconception of her importance, but this new loss was too much to bear.

Craighdhu. Her own special place. Home.

“Jock’s not going to be pleased with either of us,” Gavin said as he dipped his pole into the water. “What do you say we go back to Edinburgh, Robert?”

Robert grinned and shook his head. “Better to face him now than give him a chance to brood about it.”

Jock. Kate vaguely remembered Gavin talking about a Jock Candaron, who seemed to occupy a position of some authority on Craighdhu, but surely his consequence was minimal in comparison to Robert’s. This sudden concern from both the laird of Craighdhu and his henchman was puzzling.

“Why should you have to worry about his displeasure?”

Robert and Gavin exchanged glances, and they both grimaced.

“Jock makes sure he’s the subject of concern of everyone around him,” Robert said. His gaze shifted to the shore. “I think I see him on the dock.”

“We can still turn around,” Gavin suggested gloomily.

Kate could see three ships anchored at the dock, one galley and two large caravels, but the figures on the
dock were indistinguishable to her from this distance. “How did he know we were coming?” she asked.

“Edinburgh can be very pleasant this time of year,” Gavin said.

Robert answered Kate. “There’s always a watch on the harbor. The word would have gone to the castle the moment we stepped on the raft.”

“I believe Angus urgently needs my company. Would you not like to go reiving, Robert?” Gavin asked wistfully.

Robert turned and said, “I’ll send you wherever you like, if you promise to stay away from Malcolm.”

Gavin shook his head. “You know I cannot do that.” He smiled with effort. “And you’re right, we mustn’t let Jock brood.”

Jock Candaron was standing on the dock waiting for them when the raft reached the island.

He was close to his fortieth year, but the only signs of age were the faint creases at the corners of his eyes. He was a giant of a man with a deep chest, arms corded with muscle, and legs as thick as tree trunks. His hair, tied back in a queue that hung halfway down his back, shone white-gold in the pale winter sunlight. His cloak was thrown open as if he did not feel the chill wind that was causing the men behind him to stamp their feet and blow on their hands. He reminded Kate of one of those wild, strong Viking raiders her tutor had told her stories about.

“It’s about time you came home,” he said. Then he motioned to two men standing behind him and ordered, “Take the horses. We’ll walk back through the town. They’ll want to see him.” He turned back to Robert. “You could have sent word, dammit. Your ship arrived two months ago with news you’d decided to stop over in Edinburgh, and then we received word from MacGrath you’d been taken by the English.”

“It was true.”

Jock scowled. “You must have been careless. Have I taught you no better?”

Robert laughed and clapped him on the shoulder. “I stand chastised.”

“It was my fault,” Gavin said. “I took a sword thrust.”

Jock turned to him. “Not serious?”

Gavin shook his head.

“You’re entirely well?”

Gavin nodded.

“Good.” Jock’s huge fist lashed out and connected with Gavin’s stomach.

Gavin fell to his knees, gasping for air.

“You failed your duty,” Jock said without expression. “You should have kept him safe.”

Gavin clutched his stomach. “Dammit, Jock, you didn’t have to hit so hard.”

“A weak blow would not be remembered.” Jock reached out and pulled him to his feet. “You deserved it.”

“I know,” Gavin wheezed. “But I think you broke my rib.”

Jock smiled faintly. “You would be certain if I had. I was careful.”

“No more, Jock,” Robert said. “He served me well.”

“So I heard from your crew. That’s why I didn’t break all his ribs.” He shrugged. “It had to be done. Now it’s over.”

“Thank God,” Gavin breathed. A warm smile lit his face. “How have you been, Jock?”

“Doing my duty to Craighdhu, as you should have been.”

Kate gazed at them in bewilderment. It was clear a strong bond of affection existed between Jock Candaron and Gavin, and yet it seemed impossible her friend would accept that punishment without even a hint of bad feeling.

Robert turned and helped Kate onto the dock. “This is my wife, Kate, Jock.”

Jock did not change his expression, but she could sense an almost imperceptible stiffening. He bowed formally. “Welcome to Craighdhu, my lady,” he said without taking his gaze from her face. His eyes were Nordic blue and cool as the sea lapping against the dock. “A surprise, Robert. Where did you find her?”

“England.”

Jock shrugged his massive shoulders. “A foreigner. I suppose England is better than Spain. I would have preferred you to choose one of our lasses, but when did you ever listen to me?”

“When you gave me a blow as you just did Gavin.” Robert laughed. “She’s a brave honest lass. She’ll give us no trouble, and I expect you to protect her as you would me.” He kissed Kate’s palm lightly before turning away and starting down the dock. “Bring her along, Gavin. I’ll go ahead with Jock so he can tell me all the news.”

“If I can still walk,” Gavin muttered as he took Kate’s elbow and escorted her after Jock and Robert.

“The news isn’t good,” Jock said.

“I didn’t expect it to be,” Robert assured him. “Alec was much too self-satisfied when we ran into him two days ago on his way to Edinburgh.”

“He has a right to be,” Jock said. “I wasn’t sorry to hear James had sent for him. We need time to mend bridges.”

“While he may be preparing to tear down others.” Robert frowned. “Send a messenger to Bobby MacGrath in Edinburgh right away. I want to know what Alec’s movements are while he’s there and why James sent for him.”

Jock nodded. “It never hurts to keep an eye on the devil. However, your concern should be centered here, not in Edinburgh. You’re not going to like Alec’s latest …”

Jock’s words became inaudible to Kate as he and Robert drew farther ahead. She turned to Gavin. “Did he hurt you?”

“Aye, but it could have been worse. If Robert had been wounded, instead of me, I wouldn’t have been able to get out of bed for a week.”

She shivered. “He’s brutal.”

Gavin shook his head. “Just. I failed my duty, and that’s not permitted.”

“Who is he? Another cousin?”

He shook his head. “He came to Craighdhu when Robert and I were children. Robert’s father took him in, and he became one of us.”

“An outsider?”

“He earned his place. Even as a young boy he had the makings of a superb warrior, and he became Robert’s father’s henchman. When Robert’s father died and his mother took him to Spain, the clan appointed Jock acting head of the clan until Robert returned.”

“And he didn’t mind giving up his power when Robert returned?”

He shrugged. “He didn’t seem to, but who can tell what Jock is thinking? He’s not easy to read.”

She believed him. She had not been able to detect anything beneath that impassive exterior and those icy blue eyes.

“Anyway, he immediately stepped down and began to train Robert in what he should know.” He made a face. “He wasn’t always an easy taskmaster, but Robert learned.”

“And did you?”

“I had no talent for weapons, but he taught me to defend myself.”

“Does he still live at the castle?” she asked, her eyes on that stronghold in the distance.

“No, both he and I have our own lodgings here in town. Jock prefers to stay in his unless Robert is gone for an extended period.”

Relief surged through her. She could not imagine living harmoniously with Jock Candaron. “Who is this Bobby MacGrath in Edinburgh Robert was talking about?”

“When Robert and James had words three years ago, Robert sent one of our lads to Edinburgh to live so that he would have a man in the enemy camp and know what James was about.” His gaze shifted to the pair walking ahead of them, and he gave a low whistle. “Evidently, Jock wasn’t exaggerating the trouble Malcolm’s been concocting.”

She looked at Robert and saw that he was frowning. He was obviously displeased at something Jock was telling him. “The town appears very peaceful. What trouble could there be?”

“Plenty. There’s always trouble with Malcolm about. It’s just a question of where and on what scale.”

She didn’t want to think of Malcolm or this brutal Jock or anything but Craighdhu itself. She wanted to see it, smell it, touch it. She hungrily absorbed it all as if she had been starved all her life for the sight of it.

Warehouses, taverns, and small shops had formed a neat crescent around the harbor, but once they turned the corner, all sense of orderliness vanished. The town was built on three low hills, and thatched sod houses and shops clung precariously to the steep slopes. Yet, even though the impression was of an erratic, rambling landscape, she did not find it displeasing. The shop- and stall-bordered cobblestone street on which they were walking appeared to be the main thoroughfare and led to the castle.

“It’s very clean.” She sniffed. Not even the foul stench that usually pervaded a village. It was as if the blustery sea winds had scoured and buffed Craighdhu to pristine cleanliness. “It even smells pleasant.”

“Jock has a sensitive nose and a profound dislike for disorder. When he was acting in Robert’s stead, he passed a law that no chamber pots were to be emptied
in the street. Twice a week a wagon is sent around to collect foul matter, and there are penalties for anyone who doesn’t keep his property immaculate.”

She wondered why no one had thought to do the same in Sheffield. Heaven knows, it smelled far sweeter here than the village where she had lived all her life.

The street was crowded with men, women, and children, all of whom were laughing, talking. Jock had said the people would want to see Robert, but they wanted more. They reached out and touched him in affection and greeting. It was not the return of a feudal lord, but the homecoming of a family head.

Kate felt alone, the outsider, as she watched. “They love him.”

“Aye, as much as he’ll let them.”

She turned to look at him.

“He gives them everything, food, riches, safety.…”

“But not himself?”

He nodded. “Sometimes I think he’s lonely, that he wishes he were different, but he cannot be. They changed him.”

She would
not
feel sorry for Robert. He had everything she wanted, and if he was foolish enough not to be satisfied, then he deserved this loneliness. She changed the subject. “Why do some of the men wear those short skirts?”

Gavin looked outraged. “Not skirts, kilts. And they’re short because we Highlanders are not afraid of a little weather or rough country, as Sassenachs are.”

“Angus didn’t wear them.”

“He’s a Lowlander and has been corrupted by the easiness of the life.”

She had evidently struck a sensitive subject, and his defensiveness amused her. “Neither do you and Robert.” She smiled teasingly. “Have you also been corrupted?”

“Robert says it’s better to blend into the crowd when you’re in enemy territory.”

She took another look at the short green, purple, and dark blue plaid kilts that a good portion of the men wore. “Well, you certainly would not go unnoticed in that garment.” Seeing him start to frown, she gestured to the small, beautiful church they were passing. It was like a finely polished gem set in the busy square. “Robert said his mother was very devout. Was that her church?”