The guards had pulled open the gate, and they had come to meet a multitude of people who waited in the keep. There were faces that he knew and many that he did not. They all made a path in their midst for the horses to move past them.
Torcall could hear whispers from each side of his thin path. As he rode in their midst, he heard his name being spoken by the people. He was the man that had been wronged by them all, for no one had stood to defend him except Ceana. His keen eyes searched for her, but he could not find her in the crowd.
At the end of the crowd was a built platform upon the Laird waited to receive him. The large man had a large smile on his face as Torcall, and the guards came before him.
The jailor dismounted first and tried to help Torcall get off his horse, but Torcall had insisted on getting off the steed by his own effort. His legs had buckled from the impact, but he had stood proud and tall amongst his clansmen.
Followed by the jailor, he came up to the wood platform built for executions and announcements intended that day. The Laird stood next to his brother Francis as they awaited his approach.
Torcall came to their sides, and the Laird opened his arms to Torcall. The younger man had no other choice but to accept the embrace of his Clan Chief. After the hug, the Laird turned back to his subjects.
“This day is a day of great celebration, one of grief and one of restitution,” the Laird started his speech. Standing there, unflinching, Torcall just stared ahead, trying as much as possible not to crumble under the pressure he felt in his lungs. Every eye was on him.
“For a long time now, our clan lands have been plagued by a single man, a man of great bitterness who sought to kill innocent women. We ken nae the reason he did this, but in his stead, we accused an innocent and brave man of the crimes of the killer.” The Laird pointed to Torcall, “We jailed him and sentenced him to be executed, and yet, he was the one that saved me niece’s life. Though he was mocked, beaten and bruised for a crime that he kens nothin’ of, he still saved the life of one of us,” the Laird said.
The people listened and kept their eyes on Torcall, the man they had all accused and cursed.
“Yesterday night, the killer was caught and slain by Torcall here, and our clan lands are safe, nae because of me, but because one among us has goodness within him. So,” he straightened up and stared at his subjects, “this day, I declare Torcall free of all the crimes he has been accused of. He is a free man on this day.” The people clapped their hands. Some of the women cried for Torcall while the men cheered. To them, he was a hero.
“But that is nae all. Words cannae convey our gratitude to ye, so I shall give unto ye lands and livestock.”
Torcall still kept a straight face through it all, nodding only his acceptance and respect to his chief. In the crowd then, he spotted Ceana staring back at him with a smile on her face. Then, he smiled, for he had sought her face ever since he had gotten to the keep. She had been who he had looked forward to seeing.
Francis stepped closer to his brother and whispered in the Laird’s ears. The Laird nodded his understanding.
“It has come to my knowledge that ye wish to leave our clan lands. I promise ye that ye shall have the title of the advisor to our Chief and lands here if ye choose to stay. If ye do leave, ye would have all the wealth that ye might need. Ye would never lack for a thin’ in yer life,” the Laird added.
The crowd erupted, but amid the leaps and noise, he had only seen Ceana’s face.Shall I leave, or shall I stay?He asked himself as he stared at her. It was one reason he had not walked over to her and took her hands in his. He had a choice to make. He wanted her. This, he did not doubt, but the clan lands, he wasn’t certain.
He had sought to flee the clan lands all his life and leave his pain behind, the pain of losing his parents. There had been nothing but sadness and misery in the land that was his home, but through it all, there had been a spark of light and joy. It was Ceana.
If I choose to leave, would ye come with me?He asked fate, but Ceana looked away from him as if shy.
“What say ye?” The Laird asked him.
“I would like some time to think on it, me Laird,” Torcall replied, and the Laird was satisfied.
After the meeting, people dispersed. Some stayed behind to show their gratitude to Torcall, especially those who had known the women who had been murdered by Rannoch. Torcall accepted their gifts, prayers and wishes politely, almost overwhelmed, but he smiled through it all. All he wanted to do was get to Ceana, but it seemed she had left, as had most of the people gathered in the keep.
Francis, the Laird’s brother and faither to Lottie, the woman he had saved from Rannoch, also showed his gratitude, promising Torcall a debt he could call on any day he needed it.
“A life for a life,” Francis promised Torcall.
When he was able to escape, he got onto his horse and rode out of the keep. He was to head home, which was a conflicting thought that he had not wanted to entertain so much. He had wondered how his uncle, his aunt, and especially Tam would feel about him, knowing that he had been the one to strike Rannoch down.
But he rode still, hoping to catch up with Ceana, but she was nowhere to be found. Everything was going well for him, and he had gotten more than he had ever dreamt of, and all through it, the one thing he desired most of all was Ceana. He wanted her to spend that moment with him, but she was gone.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Ceana returned home to her family. They had left the meeting before she had as she had hoped to get a word with Torcall after, but he had been overwhelmed by the people. It was a spotlight that she knew he deserved and felt no envy towards him, only sadness that she had not been able to have him to herself.
Through the time that he had been on his bed, being treated for his wounds, she’d had him to herself, and that had made her happy. However, those days were gone.
The house was quiet when she came to it. Her family was inside, she knew it, but they had gone quiet as they had sensed her approach towards the house. When she entered, she found her father, mother and sister staring at her.
“I have nothing to say to ye,” she told them as she made for her room, but Alina got in her way to stop her.
“Maither and Faither wish to speak to ye,” Alina told her.
