Page 35 of Highlander’s False Identity

“This is a couple of hours from where my grandma Sine used to live, the castle we’re going to. It’s almost in the Duncan lands. I reckon this place has been abandoned for a while now. I think a farmer might have used it for a bit, but don’t worry, he’s gone now. We used to camp here as bairns!” he said, taking something from out of his haversack and unwrapping it.

“Who’s we?” Edme said curiously. She still hadn’t gotten used to this croft, and her eyes kept darting all around the room, expecting to find someone hiding in the shadows.

Beathan smiled at her. “Me an’ some of the other bairns, I dinnae ken exactly…, I thought ye were there, but…, I guess there was Sheelagh…”

At the mention of her name, a jolt ran through Edme. She tried not to show it, but already her heart was beating a little quicker.

“Och,” she said softly. “I see….” She couldn’t help being curious, although it wouldn’t do to let it show too much.

Beathan watched her unsurely. “Do ye?” he reached over for her chin, stroking it tenderly. “What’s the matter? Did I say something?”

“Nae,” said Edme, pulling away. She looked at him, smiling, and resolved to keep her feelings hidden. “So ye used to come here with Sheelagh, on yer own?” she asked slyly. Beathan looked surprised.

“Nae, not at all. There were a few of us, William an’ Patrick, her brothers… ye ken?”

“Aye,” said Edme guardedly. “I remember them all right. They used to laugh at me, along wi’ their sister,” she started, her mind now in overdrive. It was silly to think that this could still upset her after all these years.

Beathan looked at her sympathetically. “Laugh at ye?” he asked as he handed her a hunk of meat, which he had unwrapped from his knapsack. Hungrily, Edme took it.

“Aye,” she said, tucking into the slice of game he handed her. “They all did, all the noble bairns. My mother was nae married to my father. They called me names…. Ye might remember?”

She broke off from her questioning to look Beathan deeply in the eyes.

“Do ye remember? One time they were teasing me so bad about it, calling me a bastard, an’ ye dived in an’ stopped it all?” she said, her eyes shining at the memory. She looked at him in wonder. “Dinnae say ye cannae remember that?” she paused a moment. “Well, it doesnae matter if ye dinnae, but ye were magnificent!”

Edme was grinning now, as the memory of that day at the castle came back to her in full. It was sometime around about Yule, at the annual gathering at the McKinley Keep. All she knew was that she was in the center of a large group of kids, making merriment in the hall of the castle.

Even though McKinley Keep was her home, she had still found herself intimidated by the neighboring clans’ kids. They had formed a ring around her, chanting, calling her a bastard. The scene still haunted her to this day, but she knew she could not expect him to remember.

But against her expectations, Beathan nodded his head. “Nae, I remember it alright, lass,” he said.

Edme dropped her eyes. “Well, ye were my hero that day, Beathan, even if I didnae show it!” she said.

“Really?” said Beathan. He looked a little embarrassed. “I just dinnae like seeing anyone bullied, that’s all.”

“Aye, I ken. I think I always had a crush on ye after that…,” Edme’s voice trailed off. “I guess I was a bit sensitive about it. That’s why I reacted so badly when ye teased me the first time!”

Beathan just looked at her, entranced, his fingers picking at the loosened hairs around her face.

Edme found herself staring into his eyes, drawn into their green depths. Shadows from the flickering candle cast his features differently somehow. He was animated, aglow, mysterious, and something else… energized. All the same, Edme hesitated awhile.

“Ye ken, I was a wee bit surprised to find ye weren’t already married,” she said, holding back from his kiss. Beathan looked as if he had been slapped. His expression was so full of horror that Edme could not help laughing out loud.

“Married?” he said, with a look of faint disgust. “Me?”

“Yer face,” she giggled at him. “Aye, married. Why nae? Yer of age!”

“Married?” said Beathan, still looking shocked. “Who on earth to?”

Edme looked at him in disbelief. “Well, to Sheelagh, of course!”

Beathan, who had been close enough to kiss her, suddenly sank back down onto the floor where they were squatting.

“Och, her,” he said, with such a look that made Edme instantly regret ever mentioning her.

She desperately wanted to ask him about Sheelagh, but looking at his face, she couldn’t pluck up the courage.

“Sheelagh,” he murmured. Something stirred in Edme’s heart. She feared what she was about to hear.