Page 26 of A Scot to Wed

“But the little ones? It will take ye a while to build something. It might rain.”

Hannah, Riley’s wife, looked up at her husband, her hands fisted at her waist. He was a giant of a man, and she a wee lass of no more than five feet. Yet she’d always stood up to the man, much to the delight of the other clansmen. “What are ye thinking, ye numbskull? The wee ones have been sleeping outside for weeks. They need a warm bed and some decent food. If ye and ye fool brother want to build yer own cottage, go ahead; Marilea and I will stay here with the bairns.”

“I think that’s a good idea, Riley,” Katie said. “The little ones look a bit tired.” All five of them turned to watch the children race around the area, run up and down the stairs, and slide down the bannister, screaming and yelling with delight.

“Aye, Mistress. They do look a bit worn out.” Michael smirked at her and reached out to snatch one of his bairns by the neck of his shirt. “Stop yer blasted running around, or I will take a switch to ye.”

…

Evan closed the door to the library, thinking the Battle of Culloden had been quieter than the crowd at the entrance hall. If they didn’t find cottages for these people soon, he would be forced to sleep in the stables. Which, given the chaos, might not be a bad idea.

The door opened and Colum and Meggie stepped into the room. “Ye sent for us, my laird?”

“Aye.” He waved to the chairs across from him. “Sit. I have an assignment for ye.” He rose and placed his hands behind his back and began to pace. Something that oftentimes helped him put his thoughts into words. ”Ye are both familiar with Richard Armstrong? He thinks he is betrothed to Mistress Stirling?”

“Aye,” Meggie snapped. “The mon is a monster. He tried to convince my mistress that she was betrothed to him. Her da would never have agreed to a marriage with that vile man.”

“That is what Mistress Stirling said. Ye believe her?”

“Aye! She wouldn’t lie about that.” Meggie shifted in her chair in her agitation. “Her da was a neglectful man in some ways, but he kenned that Richard was an evil man. A devil’s spawn, to be certain.” Meggie looked over at Colum, who nodded his agreement.

“Verra well; then this is what I want ye to do. Once this Richard discovers that Katie—er, Mistress Stirling—has left, it probably won’t take too much effort on his part to find out where she was headed. If he follows her, I want to ken the minute he arrives. Since the two of ye are familiar with the mon, I’m charging ye with the job of watching for him. He is not to get anywhere near Mistress Stirling or her brother. Do ye understand?”

Meggie and Colum glanced at each other and nodded. He wasn’t certain if they kenned about Richard’s preference for young lads, but he guessed from the look they shared that they did. “Ye are to summon me immediately and send word to Mistress Stirling to find her brother and wait in her bedchamber until I send for her.”

“Aye,” Colum and Meggie replied at once.

“That’s all. I’d like ye to start now. If this mon does arrive, I want to see him right away.”

The two left the library, and Evan sat and thought for a few minutes. Then, determination in his steps, he left the room and grabbed Meggie’s arm. “Do ye ken where wee Gavin is?”

“Most likely in his bedchamber. He’s sharing one with Mistress.”

God’s toes! The lad would never become a mon with Katie treating him like a wee bairn barely out of nappies. “Nay. That won’t do. Have ye set up a room for all the wee ones to sleep together?”

“Aye, but Mistress Katie told me to put Gavin in her room.” Meggie looked a wee bit nervous, twisting her hands. Apparently, when it came to the lad, Katie was adamant about her wishes for him. That would change. As long as Gavin lived under his roof, he would act like a lad and not a bairn.

He spread his feet apart and crossed his arms over his chest. “I am instructing you to move Gavin from her room into the nursery, or wherever all the other bairns are.”

The lass’s nervousness increased. “She won’t like that, my laird.”

“No matter. ’Tis my decision. In the meantime, summon the lad and tell him to meet me in the stables.”

“Gavin? To the stables, my laird? The lad is not fond of horses.” He had to give the lass credit. Despite the authority he wielded over the clan, she stood up for what her mistress wanted. ’Twas good to have much loyalty in a servant, but her loyalty should revert to him. ’Twas the way things worked, and that was that.

“Aye, the stables.” With those words, he left the noise and confusion behind and headed down the path to the stables, dodging more of Katie’s arriving clansmen.

About a half hour later, when he was about to go back to the castle and drag young Gavin out of his bedchamber where he was most likely hiding, the lad arrived. His eyes were as big as saucers, and he dragged his feet—’twas almost as if he were facing his executioner. Attempting to ease the lad, Evan knelt in front of him and put his hand out.

The lad stared at his hand until Evan said, “Put yer hand out and shake my hand. ’Tis what a mon does.”

“I’m not yet a man.” The whispered words barely reached Evan’s ears. His pinched face and flushed cheeks declared his nervousness. He seemed to be a bright boy, and his fine looks, delicate build, and timid manner were probably what appealed to the monster who wanted him.

“Aye, ’tis true ye are not yet a mon. How old are ye?”

He looked up, then back down again. “Ten years, my laird.”

“Well, ye won’t be a mon if you dinnaelearnhow to be one. Now, shake my hand.”