“Aye,” the queen said. “The Scots are clever, but they are also stubborn. Wait. It will not be long before they are arguing with your father over something, my son. Mark them well, for you shall one day have to deal with them, and they are a proud and difficult people. And you may be certain that the Presbyterians will give him trouble.”
The king, however, was delighted to be back. He was flattered by the many delegations greeting him with kind wordsand by the fine statue of himself that had been raised at the Nether Bow. His reign from England had already brought new prosperity to his native land. Best of all, the peace and order he had struggled so hard to bring to Scotland while he was still only its king was still fairly secure and in place.
The court was to stay at Holyrood, a mile down the Cannongate from Edinburgh Castle. Originally an abbey built in the twelfth century, it took its name from a piece of the true cross, or rood, which was its most prized possession. The abbey guesthouse had become a favorite lodging of the Scots kings. Marriages, funerals, births, and other state occasions took place at the abbey. Finally, James IV decided that the guesthouse should become a royal palace. Of course it was necessary that the new palace be enlarged and its appointments enhanced.
James IV built a large northwest tower with pointed turrets and a crenellated parapet that reminded Jasmine of the châteaux in the Loire near Archambault, and Belle Fleurs. He then added a south wing to the tower that had its main door flanked by two semicircular towers with witches’ caps roofs. Holyrood had a distinct elegance to it. It was surrounded by lovely gardens and set within a large forested park overseen by one Thomas Fentoun, the royal keeper of the park, and of the king’s beasts, which included a lion, a tiger, several lynx, and a vast number of game birds. Deer roamed freely.
The royal suite was in the northwest tower. The queen was housed on the second floor, in rooms that had belonged to her late and never known mother-in-law, Mary, Queen of Scots. There was a Presence Chamber hung with black velvet with the arms of Marie de Guise, who had been James’s French grandmother, emblazoned upon the ceiling. Off of this chamber was the queen’s bedchamber. There were two other small rooms, one for dressing and one for dining, which was draped in crimson and green. A narrow private staircase, which openedinto the queen’s bedchamber, connected the queen’s apartments with the king’s, which were directly below it. Those rooms had belonged to the king’s father, Lord Darnley. Prince Charles and the earl of Buckingham were housed near the king’s apartments.
As the royal party entered the park of Holyrood, they found awaiting them a number of the Highland families, including the Leslies of Glenkirk. Jasmine and Jemmie had arrived earlier and, finding the palace steward, had been informed a bedchamber had been set aside for them, for the king had expressly sent orders that they were to stay at Holyrood while he was there.
“We have a house just several streets away,” the earl told the king’s steward. “Give our chamber to another.”
“I am sorry, my lord, but I have my orders. His Majesty wishes you to be near him during this visit,” the steward said firmly.
“How kind of him,” Jasmine chimed in smiling. “And what an honor, my lord, to stay in the king’s house.”
James Leslie heard the warning in his wife’s voice. “Very well, darling Jasmine,” he said. “I but thought only to help the royal steward, who must find housing for the entire court, not to mention many of those who have come down from the Highlands.”
“Your lordship is most thoughtful,” the royal steward replied. “Tell your servants they may sleep in the servants’ hall.”
They were directed to the appointed chamber in the south wing. It was very tiny, with a south window and a corner fireplace. Its only piece of furniture was an oaken bedstead.
“Where on earth are we to put the trunks?” Jasmine wailed.
“What an honor to stay in the king’s house,” he mocked her.
“It did not occur to me that the king would have such tiny guest chambers,” Jasmine grumbled. Then she said, “If we push the bedstead against the window wall, we can just fit in two smallchests of clothes along the opposite wall. There is no place to hang my clothing. Toramalli and Rohana will have to fetch my gowns from Glenkirk House each day, and they can sleep there, too.” She turned and bumped into Red Hugh.
“Sorry, m’lady,” he said.
“Red Hugh, you must stop chasing at my heels,” she scolded him. “It wasn’t your fault, dammit! How many times must I say it?”
“I was derelict in my duty, m’lady.” he told her. “If I hae been wi ye that day, that English bugger would nae hae caught ye. Praise God ye were nae harmed, but ye could hae been, and ‘twas my fault, for I let ye send me away instead of remaining wi ye. I’ll nae do it again!”
“I am safe with my husband,” Jasmine said. “Now go back to Glenkirk House and tell Adali that we will need curtains, linens, and bedding. Then come back with him and show him this chamber. Can you not hear the crowds cheering already? The king has entered Edinburgh. He will soon be here, and my lord and I must be among the first to greet him, Red Hugh. Now go, and after you have shown Adali this room, you may come and find us, and dog my heels once more,” she concluded, gently teasing the big Highlander. He really had been very upset by her brief kidnapping.
They left the palace and, mounting their horses, rode back into the park, mingling with the other Highland families awaiting the royal party. Finally they arrived, all a-horse, the cheers of the Edinburghers filling the air. The king looked a trifle tired with his long journey, but extremely pleased to be in Scotland. Spotting the Leslies of Glenkirk, he leaned over, first to the queen, and then the prince. Then, making eye contact with his cousins, the monarch nodded his greeting, and the queen waved brightly.
The Scots nobility joined in with the English nobility and rode through the park to the palace, where scores of groomsmen were waiting to take their horses. The king had already gone inside with his personal party by the time the Leslies reached the courtyard. They had no sooner dismounted, however, when the earl of Buckingham hurried over to them. He bowed to them with a flourish.
“Steenie, our congratulations,” Jasmine said. “One more step up the ladder, eh?” Then she laughed.
George Villiers raised an amused eyebrow in agreement and kissed Jasmine’s hand. “You are ravishing as always, madame. Living in the wilds of Scotland has not diminished your beauty one whit. You are a mother again, I am told. How many is that now, madame, six? And yet you keep your figure.” He eyed her lasciviously, waggling his eyebrows, and then he laughed. “May my sweet Kate be as fortunate.”
“You are not married then yet?” the earl said.
“Her father says I must climb a bit higher,” George Villiers said low. “He fears I shall lose the king’s favor if I marry his daughter too soon. He desires that Kate marry higher than an earl.” Villiers lowered his voice even more. “I shall be a marquis next year.” He linked his arms through theirs. “Come now and let us go in. What a lovely place this is. I shall enjoy exploring it, and I am relieved to know we shall not have to travel again for a while. The king has invited you to a private supper in his apartment tonight. The round of state banquets will begin tomorrow, but tonight the king says is for old friends.”
And it was a most intimate party, much to Jasmine’s surprise. The great families were left to fend for themselves while the king ate a simple supper of salmon and rabbit pie, surrounded by his immediate family and a few cousins, among whom were the earl of Glenkirk, and his father-in-law of BrocCairn. The queen looked weary, and admitted to it.
“Heaven only knows that I love to ride,” she said, “but I have ridden all the way from England, and my bottom is worn out.” She sipped listlessly at her wine cup.
“We will put a sheepskin on your saddle, madame, like we do in the northeast,” the earl of Glenkirk said with a smile. “You will not want to miss the hunting season, for I know how much you love to hunt, and you will remember how good a season we have here in Scotland. Soon the deer and the grouse will be ripe for the picking, eh?”
The queen favored him with a smile. “I do, indeed, remember hunting in Scotland. Holyrood Palace will not be enough for us once we have rested up. We will want to go to Falklands and into Perthshire as well.”
“Oh sweet Jesu,” Buckingham moaned low. “More traveling.”
