Chapter 22
“This is the carriage we are to travel in?” Katie exclaimed, her face contorting into a displeased expression as she looked it over.
Leah was trying to hold back a laugh because she was rather surprised by it, too.
Magnus had many horses in his stables that were very well cared for. The two chestnut mares that were harnassed to the carriage were beautiful creatures, their coats gleaming.
The carriage, however, had seen better days.
Magnus had explained to her that he tended to travel everywhere on foot. Indeed, Katie had told her that before Oskar offered Magnus his carriage, he had planned to walk home from MacIrvin Castle, which was several miles of undulating terrain.
The carriage before her now only proved how true that story was. It clearly had not been used since the Dark Ages. The fabric on either side of the outer canopy was so faded and worn that a stiff breeze could shred it in two.
The wheels looked as though they could do with being replaced. Thinking of her father’s carriages—he had a phaeton in his possession which was his pride and joy—she would have been laughed off the streets of London if she had traveled anywhere in this monstrosity.
“Perhaps we could go on foot,” Katie suggested, looking reluctantly at the long path winding toward the expanse of water in the distance.
Leah wrenched open one of the doors, hoping that the suspension would be adequate enough to prevent her spine from snapping in two on the journey. “Magnus said it would take twenty minutes by carriage. But on foot, it is nearly a two-hour walk. Come, it will be fine. We can entertain one another.”
Katie looked at her skeptically but sighed and followed her into the gloomy interior. The inside had once been covered in dark green leather, which would have been very handsome in its day, but now looked faded and worn.
Leah felt a pang in her stomach as she looked around, and it suddenly occurred to her why the carriage was in such a state.
His wife was killed in the other one, and he has not traveled in it since.
The thought was obvious now that she came to analyze things, and she felt horribly guilty that she had ever criticized it.
“It will be fine,” she said with finality to Katie, who was trying her best not to touch anything. “It is only a short journey.”
As she spoke, the driver nudged the horses into a trot, and there was an almighty squeak from all sides as the carriage swayed over the cobbles.
Katie and Leah took one look at one another and burst out laughing. If they were not deaf by the time they reached their destination, it would be a blessing.
They reached the castle in just under twenty minutes, just as Magnus had said they would, and in the end, the carriage ride had not been half as bad as Leah had expected—once she had grown used to the bumps in the road.
Her castle was a good deal smaller than the one where Magnus lived and had a neater and more sustainable garden. She liked the idea of planting roses in the forecourt so that visitors could be greeted by fresh blooms when they arrived.
The keep was bustling with activity, with furniture being carried over the cobbles and barrels being taken into the cellars. Leah felt rather overwhelmed as she watched all of the servants hurrying about.
She had spent much of the day learning of her new duties as the lady of the castle.
Despite being an unconventional laird’s wife, she would still need to manage her household, and her list of responsibilities was significant.
When she thought of the number of things that would need to be addressed, the castle suddenly felt enormous.
Katie, who had been in rather a sour mood all morning, had brightened considerably at the sight of it, however.
“It is a better size,” she declared, turning around in a circle to look at the ramparts all around them. “More compact.”
“Let us explore inside,” Leah said eagerly.
In her mind, she wanted to find the perfect writing space, just like the one Magnus had shown her that morning.
They walked into the main hall, which was very grand and beautiful. It backed onto the chapel, and stained glass could be seen in the windows. There was a long table in the center of the dining hall, and Katie walked about excitedly, talking nonstop about the amenities that were available to them.
Leah just stared at the table and the surrounding room, imagining her nights here all alone with only the servants for company. It seemed like a very lonely life.
Katie came back to her, taking her arm, and they continued on, looking through the other rooms and the multitude of different bedchambers.
“What am I going to use all of this space for?” Leah asked in bewilderment.
Katie turned to her, a puzzled frown on her face. “What do you mean?”
“No, no, I’m lucky,” Leah insisted quickly.
“It’s everything I have ever wanted. To be free.
I will be able to do whatever I like, be away from my father, and write my books.
” She tried to smile as she glanced at the cavernous ceiling.
“I shall have to collect cats, I think. Magnus said there are several of them living around the castles. Perhaps I can tame one.”
Katie was still frowning at her as they walked on for a little while until they finally reached the kitchens, which were just as big and imposing as all the other areas of the castle.
Every room seemed to reiterate to Leah that she was going to be living there alone with no one to talk to.
And how will our separation work when we have a child? Will we send the baby back and forth between the castles on weekdays?
She felt anxiety rising in her chest, and she tightened her hand on Katie’s arm.
“Come,” Katie said, pulling her over to the kitchen table. “I’ll wager there’s a dram or two in this place.”
She had a mischievous look on her face, and Leah laughed at her as she scurried about the room, opening all of the cupboards.
“Katie!” Leah protested as her friend started rifling through the pantry.
“It is your castle—the lady of the castle receives what she desires.”
With a triumphant shout, Katie pulled out a bottle of whisky that looked as though it hadn’t been drunk for centuries.
She managed to uncork it using a knife from the kitchen drawer and poured them both a dram into two metal tankards she found in a box.
“If I die from drinking this, it will be your fault,” Leah scolded, but she did take a sip all the same. She looked at the bottle and raised her eyebrows. “It’s excellent. I wonder how long it has been here.”
“Who cares?” Katie said in a most unladylike fashion as she knocked back her glass in one swallow. The coughing fit that followed was rather satisfying to watch.
“You have never tried whisky before, have you?” Leah snorted as her friend gasped and spluttered, pushing the cup away with some vigor.
“Urgh! No. How do you drink that?”
Leah felt the whisky trickle down her throat, the warmth hitting her stomach in a pleasing shower of drops.
“Easily,” she said with a wink, taking another sip, “and slowly.”
Katie cleared her throat to dispel the coughing fit and shook her head, wiping her eyes as she gathered herself. It was only when she reached for the bottle and poured Leah another dram that Leah looked at her in surprise.
She knew her friend had something to say by the way she was staring at her.
“Spit it out,” she urged wearily.
“Are you happy?” Katie asked. “You seemed happy at the wedding, and I thought… but now you do not seem as content.”
Leah shook her head with a sigh and looked around her at the huge kitchen. It would soon be bustling with staff making endless meals that she would be eating alone in that vast dining hall.
“I think I have been na?ve in my assumptions,” Leah admitted.
“How so?” Katie asked, looking around them. “You do not think he will honor this?”
“No,” Leah replied softly. “I think that he will.”
Her voice was so low that Katie had to lean in to hear her.
“But that is a good thing, is it not? I thought that you were relieved that he was not trapping you into a traditional marriage.”
“I was—I am,” Leah said in frustration. “Or I thought I was.”
She drank the rest of the whisky and stood up, needing to move as she considered the truth of her predicament.
“I was simply happy that he was not going to be Wellton at first. That was the truth of it. I hated the idea that my father was going to marry me off to some aristocrat he befriended at his club thirty years ago. Marrying Magnus was a way to get back at him. I know my father looks down on Daphne for marrying Oskar and has no time for Scottish society. I thought he would be furious, and that was enough for me.”
She was pacing, walking back and forth in front of the hearth. A flagstone beneath her feet rattled every time she walked across it. She would need to get it fixed.
“I didn’t really think about what Magnus wanted or what he might need from me.
I just wanted to be rid of my father’s expectations.
” She wrung her hands. “And then he was everything I could have hoped for. He was courteous and polite—for the most part,” she added with a rueful smile.
“He didn’t expect anything from me. He supports my writing and has given me this castle! ”
She came to a stop, leaning against the fire surround, out of breath and feeling as though she had run a mile.
“But?” Katie prompted.
“But I am not sure that is what I want anymore,” Leah said angrily.
“Magnus is a good man, but he is pushing me away every chance he gets, and he insists that we will live as strangers.” Her fingers went up to her hair, pulling the unruly strands together and twisting them anxiously.
“It does not help that he is so handsome,” she admitted sheepishly.
Katie chuckled. “I knew you felt that way. You got doe-eyed when you first saw him at the ceilidh.”
“I did not! Well, you weren’t close enough to know that,” Leah argued, laughing. But her laughter soon died down. “I told him I wanted us to get to know one another before we…” She made a rapid hand gesture to express what she was unable to say aloud.
“Lie together?” Katie supplied boldly.
Leah’s cheeks turned crimson. “Yes. That. And he did not even notice. I do not think he had even considered the possibility. He seemed not to care.”
“But you said he kissed you.”
Leah cleared her throat and nodded. “Yes.”
“Well then, he must see you as more than just a convenient wife.”
“But he wishes us to live separately.”
“Because he believes that is what you want. He met your father, and he knows why you hid in that carriage. Do you not think he would have wanted to avoid becoming just what you expected him to be?”
Leah was not really listening, looking around the room with a sense of despair growing within her. “What am I going to do here, Katie?”
Katie stood up and came to stand beside her, taking her hands. “You must talk to him, Leah, before it is too late.”
Leah shook her head. “I know he does not feel the same. I imagine he is counting the days until he is rid of me. He has been a bachelor all his life and lost his wife and child too many years ago to miss a woman’s company. He doesn’t want me, Katie. He has made that very clear.”
“Well then, he’s a fool.” Katie spat, holding their hands close to her chest and holding her eyes earnestly. “He is lucky to have you. Any man would be, and you are a talented writer. You will make him see that you are better off without him.”
Leah smiled at her friend but felt no comfort from her words. Magnus had only married her because her father had given him no choice. The knowledge ate at her. She had been looking forward to seeing the castle, making it her home, but now she loathed it.
She could not imagine spending the rest of her days here with only servants for company.
“It will be alright,” she lied, trying to placate her friend to ease the worry in her eyes. “I am being silly. This will be a beautiful home, and I will make the most of it. It is better than being married to Grandpa Wellton. Anything is better than that.”
Katie finally gave her a genuine smile and tugged on her hand, walking toward the door.
“Where are we going?” Leah asked.
“I am going to take you to see the gardens—they always cheer you up. We can plan where those roses will be planted.”
Leah reluctantly followed her out of the kitchen, through the endless corridors, into the entrance hall, and down to the courtyard.
The gardens were indeed very lovely, and she got swept up into looking at the many areas that could be improved and new trees planted around the grounds.
Katie was overly enthusiastic about everything now, trying to convince her with her excitement that she would love living here.
Leah only realized they were not alone when she caught a glimpse of someone approaching them out of the corner of her eye.
He was a burly man in dark clothing who she had not seen before.
“M’Lady,” he greeted with a crooked smile. “I heard ye speakin’ of a rose garden. There is just the place for it ahead of us if ye’ll allow me the liberty?”
Katie gave her an enthusiastic smile, and Leah almost rolled her eyes at her friend as she nodded at him.
The man led them a little way down the path and behind the castle.
The area they reached looked out over the water, but Leah was confused as to why he had suggested this spot. It would be entirely devoid of sunlight throughout much of the day and inappropriate for her needs.
She turned to ask him a question, and that was when Katie screamed.