Chapter 7
CHAPTER SEVEN
“Oh! Ye’re still here.”
The words bumbled out of Emilie the moment she stepped from her chamber and into the corridor beyond. The young maid, the one who had brought her the gowns, was waiting just beyond the door.
The young woman gave her a friendly smile.
“I was ordered by the Laird to tend to ye and to bring ye to breakfast,” she explained. “So, I needed to wait for ye. It’s a lovely gown that ye’ve chosen, me lady. It really suits ye.”
Emilie smiled, trying not to let the kind words go to her head. It was the same thought she’d had only moments before as she smiled to herself at the mirror.
She had never really seen herself donning so much color. Not since she was a young girl. And back then, she didn’t much care to appreciate what that was like.
But now? After years of wearing nothing but her habit?
Emilie’s hands shook as she rubbed them over the beautifully woven fabric. She tried to banish the words from her mind, tried to push them down as far as she could.
But she couldn’t quite push the satisfaction out of her mind as she turned to the maid.
“What is yer name?” Emilie asked abruptly, desperate to change the conversation. “I’m assumin’ if the Laird has ordered ye to tend to me, it’s somethin’ he’ll be havin’ ye do for quite some time. So, we might as well get to ken each other.”
The maid blinked at her for a moment, seemingly stunned once again by Emilie treating her as an equal. But she got over it more quickly than she had when Emilie had helped her with the gowns.
“Me name is Catherine, me Lady,” she answered, giving Emilie a gracious bow of her head. “And, ye are right. The Laird will have me tendin’ to ye until ye at least ken how to get around the castle. Which will take some time.”
Emilie glanced around at that. The front of the bedroom she shared with Laird McGregor was curved, letting her know that it was in one of the turrets. But she recalled seeing more than one when they arrived yesterday.
The back of the room, however, had been straight. And the corridor they were in now was long, stretching in either direction before disappearing around sharp, perfectly angled corners.
We’re low enough near that turret that it connects with the main structure of the castle. But where are we?
No matter how hard Emilie tried to map it all out in her mind, she could not place it.
Catherine was right. Emilie would never be able to get around without her.
“All right,” Emilie murmured. “Show me around.”
Catherine beamed at her as she turned and walked to the right.
“Ye’re in the northernmost part of the castle,” Catherine explained, her voice lilting and friendly as she spoke. “All the rooms belong to either ye or the Laird are in this wing. His study, yer study, the bairns’ rooms, where they play, sleep, and learn. It’s all here.”
Emilie nodded. “That makes sense, that everythin’ would be focused in this one wing.”
“Whenever ye look out the windows,” Catherine said, pointing to one of the windows in front of them. “If ye can see the sea, ye’ll only be in one of two places. Ye can only see the sea from the North and the East.”
Emilie nodded, glancing out the window as they passed it. Sure enough, the gray sea lay just beyond. It was tossing over waves, their white caps breaking in the distance.
“Ye can tell if ye’re in the East if ye can see the cliffs on the other side of the firth,” Catherine continued. “If ye cannae see the cliffs, that means ye’re to the north.”
Emilie took that all in, glancing out the next window. Lush, green cliffs were just beyond the sea, giving way to rocky beaches at their feet.
“So, we are walkin’ along the easternmost side of the castle?” Emilie asked.
Catherine beamed at her, nodding. “Aye! Very good, me Lady. Yer bedchambers are in the Northeast corner. So, dependin’ on which way ye turn when ye come out of yer rooms, ye’ll either be walkin’ along the North or East wall.”
“The firth and the sea beyond, it’s one of the reasons Clan McGregor is so successful,” Catherine explained.
They reached the top of a grand staircase, which gave way to a beautiful atrium. Catherine did not miss a beat as they walked down them, continuing to chatter away as they moved into an entirely new part of the castle.
“All the villages that pay taxes to the Laird,” Catherine continued. “They are all along the coast. They’re fishin’ villages and small towns that control the ports. And, when ye control access to the sea…”
Catherine’s words broke off, turning to glance at Emilie expectantly. The silence dragged on.
The maid clearly expected Emilie to finish her sentence, and Emilie did her best to comb through her memories to see if she knew anything about what Catherine was getting at. But she did not.
In all her studies, all her time poring over books with her tutors about the history of Scotland, history of the world beyond, of language and arts and arithmetic—she had not come across anything that would help her in this moment.
She shook her head ruefully, a silent explanation to Catherine that she didn’t know what she was talking about.
Catherine’s eyes widened in surprise.
“If ye control access to the sea,” she said slowly, as if she thought Emilie might be daft for not knowing. “Ye control the world.”
Emilie nodded, taking it all in.
“So, Laird McGregor believes he controls the world?” she supplied.
Catherine chuckled as if Emilie had just told the funniest joke she’d heard in a while.
“Well, of course he does. He’s Laird McGregor.
” The maid waved a hand, dismissing Emilie’s words.
“Our clan has a history of bein’ one of the most powerful.
Because of the sea and the land that we occupy.
We’re one of the few clans in Scotland with this much access, with this much food supply. And it makes us powerful.”
Emilie nodded, taking in every word that Catherine uttered. And she uttered many.
They continued walking, with the young maid pausing every once in a while to point out an important room within the Castle. But mostly, the young woman just prattled on about the Clan.
She told Emilie all about the deep history of their people. The way that they collaborate under the eyes of the Laird to ensure that no village that he cares for goes hungry.
Emilie’s mind was spinning from all the information. When her parents had first told her that she was to marry, Emilie had been certain that they had only been able to secure a lowly laird for her.
Her parents were not especially powerful. Their success was moderate and respectable enough as merchants. But they were not terribly influential.
So, she’d been certain that the only type of Laird that would be interested in their daughter would have been one who oversaw struggling people. One that would benefit from the modest amount of trade and money that her parents oversaw.
So, never had she thought she would find herself as the Lady of a clan anywhere near this prestigious.
And yet, here she was.
“And here we are,” Catherine said, stopping in front of a wide doorway. “This is the family dinin’ room. Whenever ye have meals nae attended by guests, this is where ye’ll be eatin’.”
Emilie peeked her head inside. A large wooden table with a red hue decorated the middle of the room. There were a total of six chairs, two on each side and one on each end, and each one of them was as ornately carved as the next.
Aside from the serving dishes that decorated the table, the room was entirely empty.
“Will I be eatin’ by meself?” Emilie asked, walking forward to step into the room. “Or, will the bairns be joinin’ me?”
Catherine immediately began shaking her head.
“Ye had a bit of a late start this mornin’, me Lady,” she explained. “The bairns and the Laird have all already eaten.”
Emilie cocked her head to the side. “A late start? It’s barely gone on nine in the mornin’.”
She glanced at the large grandfather clock that decorated one far corner, double-checking that she was correct. And, of course, she was.
“It’s a house of early risers,” Catherine said cheerfully. “The Laird is strict about the bairns beginnin’ their studies early. So, they get up each mornin’ at the same time that he does. They eat and then go to meet their tutor.”
“Then I will be eatin’ alone.”
The words were out of Emilie’s mouth before she heard how whiny they sounded.
Who was she to whine about her current situation? She was wearing fine clothes. And no doubt, when she walked into that dining room and moved one of the coverings from the plate of food, it would be food that was rich in flavor and prepared with great care.
“Me apologies,” she said quickly, shaking her head to clear it. “I dinnae mean to sound ungrateful. I’ve just…”
Emilie paused, her mind casting around as she tried to figure out how to explain it all. She was unsure how much everyone within the castle knew about Emilie’s past, whether she had come from the abbey or how long she had spent there.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve eaten alone, is all,” was how she decided to finish.
She glanced at Catherine, noticing the other woman shifting awkwardly on her feet.
The poor lass doesnae ken what to do.
An idea struck Emilie, making her smile.
“Would ye sit with me?” she asked, her question clearly catching Catherine off guard.
The young maid’s eyes lit with shock, her eyebrows nearly disappearing into her hairline.
“Ye want me to stay with ye? To sit?”
Catherine’s voice was filled with disbelief, and Emilie could not stifle the small chuckle that bubbled up.
“I insist that ye do,” Emilie said, reaching forward and grabbing Catherine’s hand.
She led her through the dining room, stopping when they reached one of the sides containing two chairs.
“We’ll need them to bring out another plate,” Emilie said, glancing down at the singular setting sitting on the table.
“I already ate, me Lady,” Catherine responded quickly. “But I can sit and keep ye company.”
Emilie gave her another grateful grin, pulling out her chair and sitting down in it. Catherine settled herself beside her, turning and looking at her expectantly.
“It will be nice,” Emilie chimed, reaching forward and pulling up one of the covers on a dish, revealing roasted potatoes, “havin’ a friend in the castle.”
Color rose in the other woman’s cheeks.
“I daenae ken about that,” Catherine said quickly. “I’ve never been friends with a lady before. But I can be awfully good company.”
Emilie busied herself with loading up her plate, picking roasted potatoes, eggs, and a bit of carrots before turning back to Catherine.
“Well, either way, it’ll all be absolutely grand.”
She speared one of the carrots on her fork, bringing it to her mouth. This would be the perfect opportunity to get to know more about the Laird, and that was not an opportunity she was going to pass on.
“Tell me about Laird McGregor,” Emilie gushed, facing Catherine while she continued to eat. “How long have ye worked in the castle?”
“Well, I’ve been here since I was nineteen,” Catherine said, “so mayhaps three years now? And, he’s a fair employer. I have nae complaints.”
“He seems to have a bit of a temper on him,” Emilie mused, planning to hurl words and questions at Catherine so quickly that the woman wouldn’t have time to second-guess it. “Have ye ever seen him turn that temper on ye, or anyone else?”
Catherine shook her head, “Never. He is strict. But he is fair. All those he oversees love him. He’s ferocious to those who threaten us, though. And he will always protect the people he cares about.”
“He seems like someone who would get frustrated easily, though. Is that true?”
Catherine just blinked at her, shaking her head. “I daenae ken what ye mean.”
“He seems like the type of man who would be easily annoyed,” Emilie explained, trying to keep her tone light and probing. “What kind of things annoy him?”
“Ye want to know how to annoy the Laird?” Catherine asked, cocking her head to the side.
She’s too close to the truth.
Emilie shook her head, immediately backtracking.
“I daenae want to annoy him,” she amended, an idea coming to her as she spoke. “I want to learn how to nae annoy him. I want to make sure I stay on me husband’s good side. Cannae have him wantin’ to annul the marriage.”
She forced herself to laugh, the sound coming out more than a little fake. Catherine gave her a curious look. But thankfully, it was not the young woman’s job to question her lady.
Catherine did not speak for a moment, and Emilie worried that she had gone too far.
I’ve revealed too much. I shouldnae have said that, I shouldnae—
“I suppose that makes sense,” Catherine said finally, giving a small nod of approval. “The Laird has always seemed to nae have much patience for those that talk a lot. From what I’ve witnessed, he prefers conversations that are to the point.”
Emilie nodded, taking it all in.
“He doesnae suffer fools lightly,” Catherine continued, really getting herself going now.
She was talking quickly, as fast as she had been when they had been walking to the dining room, and Emilie was thankful for it. It saved her from having to respond too much.
“All the older maids, they talk about how much he studied when he was younger,” Catherine continued. “So, he is very smart. And he doesnae have patience for those who are fools.”
Emilie just nodded along, allowing the words that Catherine was saying to wash over her.
Before she’d come down for breakfast, Emilie had already decided that she would annoy her husband into the annulment. And now, with Catherine’s help, she was finding out exactly how to do it.
Emilie finished her breakfast, not having to say much else as Catherine continued to prattle. Once the girl got going about some topic or another, she seemed to not really be able to stop.
She was sweet, though. And Emilie was finding that she liked that about her.
“I suppose that’s all I ken,” Catherine said eventually, once Emilie had placed her fork down upon her now empty plate.
“And it is more than enough,” Emilie answered with a smile. “Thank ye. I do think I would like to see me husband, though. Do ye happen to ken where he is?”
Catherine screwed up her face, thinking.
“Likely in the cellars,” she finally responded. “He and Marcus will be goin’ over their whisky count today. Makin’ sure they have everythin’ they need for the upcomin’ week.”
Their whisky count?
Emilie wanted to press further, but that wasn’t what was important right now. Giving Catherine her widest, friendliest smile, Emilie spoke again.
“Do ye think ye could show me to the cellars?”