Once their father had left, Broc pulled Keely aside. “I am sorry for smacking ye, Keely.”
She stared at the floor. Ten years older than she, Keely had always regarded Broc as the champion of their family. He was the future laird and very much like their father. She gazed up at him and the anger that had flared inside her when he hit her faded. “I forgive ye.”
Chapter Nineteen
“Six masons andfifteen laborers are already rebuilding the cottages and the wall in the west village, Laird Alex,” Jamie reported. “The extra hands will assure quick completion.”
“Have ye taken an inventory for what we’ll need for the other four villages? The same should be done—providing defenses so the next time the Sutherlands come looking for a fight, they’ll get one.”
“Aye. Accommodations for the guards are also being constructed.”
Petro slid a ledger across the table to Alex. “I’ve finished the calculations, Alexander. There’s enough gold to hire the necessary hands to make the improvements on the keep, build the second tower, and pay two hundred retainers through next year. But we’ll need more money.”
Alex scanned the parchment. Clan MacKay was luckily self-sufficient, yielding enough crops—oats, barley, turnips, and kale—to sustain the tenants. The storerooms were also well-stocked with preserved meats, butter, cheese, and ale. The cattle and sheep herds flourished. Fortunately, his sire and brother had exercised temperance when it came to spending money, sometimes to a fault. He dinna mind investing in his clan, using his own wealth to improve the lives of the people. But there remained one question: it would be necessary to send a representative back to Constantinople to settle his accounts and sell his property.
He’d considered several candidates, including Petro. But Alex dinna want to part ways with him. He needed his secretary to help run the keep and maintain a friendship with Keely. Mathe was a soldier and dinna have the disposition to deal with foreigners. But Jamie had a good head on his shoulders. And like Alex, he was tall and fierce looking and would win the respect of the lords in the east.
“There is something I wish to discuss with ye,” Alex said to his cousin.
“Whatever ye need.”
“Sit.” Alex gestured to one of the chairs by the table. “As ye know, I dinna prepare for a long stay in Scotland.”
“Aye,” Jamie acknowledged, crossing his legs.
“I own extensive properties in Constantinople, employ sixty servants, own twenty slaves, and my concubines…”
Jamie coughed exaggeratedly.
“Tis a delicate subject,” Alex said.
“I never imagined ye as anything but a Highlander, Cousin.”
“I am a Highlander first.” Alex thumped his chest. “But if a man leaves his homeland, ye canna fault him for building a life elsewhere.”
“Nay,” Jamie said. “But I canna understand keeping slaves.”
“Doona fash, Father Michael has provided the guidance I need to save my soul.”
Jamie chuckled.
“It seems a man can be absolved of any sin as long as he has enough coin,” Alex added.
“I’ll remember it when I need forgiveness.”
Alex rolled his eyes. There were stark differences between life in Scotland and Constantinople. Sometimes he still missed the heat and sand. But he’d willingly let go of that life and there was no going back now. “I want ye to sail to Constantinople.”
Jamie leaned forward in the chair, resting his palms on the edge of the table. “Are ye daft? Leave home?”
“Aye. Ye’ve been to England and France.”
“To advance MacKay interests, to fight for my laird,” Jamie pointed out.
“And now ye will serve my interests by dissolving any ties I have in the east. I will pay ye a king’s ransom, Jamie. Ye’ll have enough coin to attract the kind of bride ye deserve.”
His cousin dinna look convinced.
“What do I know of such a place? The people?”
