He rode hard for about an hour along the beaten road passing verdant, rolling farmland until he stopped near a small loch. The sun broke through the clouds and daytime stars twinkled on its flat surface. Shady trees clung together on one side while the other spread out into a green carpet forming a large field. These lush surroundings weren’t far from Chattan lands. He dismounted and walked Arion over to a small babbling stream for a well-deserved drink, patting the horse’s thick neck.
The cool air helped. Refusing Chattan’s proposal should have been easy, yet he couldn’t without revealing his larger plan. His neighbours would never support him outright. No, he must stay the course and allow them to follow his lead over time. If Scotland were to survive as a thriving, independent state, she must unify, in every sense of the word, and the one man who had the drive and intelligence to make that happen was the Stewart king.
James remounted Arion and headed to Chattan Castle where he would put an end to this ridiculous arrangement once and for all.
* * *
Aileana paced. Something was wrong with Gawain and wondering about it was exhausting. He’d disappeared straight after the burial and she hadn’t seen him since. Normally, he greeted her each morning without fail, but today he was nowhere to be found.
Since her uncle’s death, Gawain had been short tempered with many servants, including this morning at sunrise when he’d pitched into Andrews for questioning him on his whereabouts the previous evening. When Andrews reported this to her she was quick to defend, but did Gawain deserve her faith?
She jumped when Gwen cleared her throat from the doorway of the great hall.
“What!” Aileana hadn’t meant to snap.
Gwen smiled. “I apologize for interrupting you, my lady, but I was wondering if you would care to break your fast?”
“Oh Gwen, I am so sorry. Please forgive my rudeness.”
“No need to apologize, my lady,” Gwen smiled. “You’ve been through a great ordeal. Would you like some bread and mead?”
Gwen didn’t deserve Aileana’s frustration, she was ever the comforter. The woman could ease tension out of stone with one of those smiles. What Aileana needed wasn’t nourishment or to remain cooped up inside the cheerless walls of the castle.
“Thank you, no. I believe I shall walk for a time and collect wildflowers.” She drew in a deep breath. “I’m overdue for fresh air and I see the cowslip are wilting. Heaven knows we need all the peace and tranquility we can acquire from their energy these days.” Aileana walked past Gwen and squeezed her hand.
“An excellent choice, my lady,” Gwen grinned.
“You have taught me well.” Aileana smiled back. Gwen was a practicing pagan as were many others at the castle. Aileana herself was a Catholic Christian, however, under the kind-hearted guidance of Father Addison, she’d been taught tolerance. There were times, she feared, she and he were in the minority in this world.
Gwen fetched Aileana’s blue cloak and draped it over her shoulders. The air was warm enough to leave her hair uncovered so she let her long blonde curls hang loose across her back. She replaced her soft-soled slippers with hard, leather shoes better suited for the outdoors and left Chattan Castle.
The early morning mist was refreshing as she walked along the well-beaten road leading north toward Inverness. The fog lifted just enough to expose the stunning landscape. Out here, with the rolling green hills and explosions of colour, she could spread her arms wide and feel free from the pain gripping her. The tightness in her chest eased. In the distance, the sharp mountain peaks protruded from the crawling mist towards the blue sky. The day would be lovely when the fog burned off.
Aileana reached the crossroads and turned right, following a smaller path leading east. Thick brush and oak trees framed the path, often giving way to vast farmlands that lay beyond. Littered here and there were bluebells, lady fingers, and cowslip. She knelt to collect some, pausing to inhale their sweet scent.
The flowers brought back memories of the many times her uncle had brought them to her. Widowed and with no children of his own, he took guardianship of Aileana after her father’s death and came to love and treat her as if she were his own. All these years, they had only each other and she was lost without him.
Her hair prickled at her nape. She stepped onto the road and looked both ways, her arms full of flowers. The thunder of hooves reached her ears at about the same time her peripheral vision caught a flash of something white and very large coming around the bend just ahead. She leapt out of the way to avoid being trampled, landing on her backside. She strained her neck and viewed the largest horse she’d ever seen. The dense fog had prevented her from seeing the horse or its rider approaching at top speed. She was lucky to have avoided serious injury.