Chapter Sixteen #2
“Indeed,” Evan said. “I had not realized the extent of it.”
“There is much you do not know about your bride,” Grant said. “Given the circumstances, it is not surprising.” The smooth tone, the sly assurance, made Evan glance sharply at him.
“I am a quick study,” Evan replied.
“No doubt. Before I go, Lord Kildonan, allow me to make a request.”
“Sir?” Evan waited, wary.
“I hear you may be interested in selling portions of the estate.”
Evan shrugged. “I am exploring the possibility, that is all. The estate is very large, and there is some benefit in reducing the size.” He was not about to tell Grant that he already had an interested party who had also inquired about renting or even buying the castle.
All that, of course, was before he met and married Catriona. He needed to reconsider everything now if she decided to remain his wife. He hoped against hope, not yet sure. The pull of this glen was strong for her, and he felt the pull as well, to the glen—and to her.
Grant brought his attention back. “When you decide to sell, allow me to make an offer, sir. I am interested in acquiring Kildonan lands bordering Kilmallie. I mean to expand my sheep runs, so this could prove the perfect arrangement for both of us.”
“I will consider it,” Evan said.
“Excellent. Good day, then. I must be on my way, for I promised to visit Glenachan to take tea with Reverend MacConn and Mrs. Rennie.” He gathered both his gun and Arthur’s loaned weapon as well.
“I enjoyed the day, Grant! We must go again,” Arthur said.
“Give my regards to the reverend and his sister,” Evan murmured.
“Of course.” Grant touched his hat and strode away.
Evan turned with Arthur to walk toward Kildonan Castle. In the sunlight, its stone shone golden against a rugged backdrop of purple mountains under a calm blue sky.
“Selling some land to Grant might be helpful,” Arthur said.
“Could be. And selling to a local laird is another benefit for the glen. But there is something about that fellow that does not sit well with me. I am not sure I trust him.”
“Good man overall, but he does have the look of the wolf to him. A bit too clever under that polite smile. I’d be wary. He picked up the grouse I shot today and claimed the brace as his own. Not very sporting.”
“Huh.” Evan noted the warning. Glancing again toward Kildonan Castle, he saw a few people strolling the grounds—three women in wide-belled skirts walking with a few gentlemen. He stopped and shaded his brow with a hand.
“Our guests are earlier than expected,” Arthur said.
*
The bridge was the quickest route back to the castle, and though Evan did not want her to cross it, Catriona was not worried. The structure had not crumbled much lately, and Evan had intended to do some temporary repairs that morning. If she hurried and kept to one side, she would be fine.
Ahead, as she descended the forested lower slope, she heard little more than the tumbling rush of water through the shallow gorge spanned by the old bridge.
As she came around the curve of the hill, she saw a man on the other side of the bridge.
She slowed her step, wary. Kenneth Grant looked up to see her and waved.
“Lady Kildonan! How nice to find you here!”
She came toward the bridge feeling as if she entered a trap, but it was the only way across now. “Mr. Grant,” she said cautiously.
“I saw you on the hill, and wanted to make sure you got safely across.” He came toward her, holding out a hand.
She stopped on a solid edge of the bridge deck beside the parapet. The gap between them held additional stones wedged in the raw edges of the break and stout sticks supported the breach. So Evan had been here, though she did not see him anywhere now.
“I am fine, sir. I can get across without help.”
“You missed your husband earlier. He’s concerned about the condition of the bridge. He worked like a laborer today on repairs, just so you would be safe.”
“It looks quite sturdy now. I do not need help, Mr. Grant. You can go home.”
“As long as I am here, I thought we could talk. Come on,” he said, beckoning.
Resigned, she took a deep breath and leaped the gap easily. As her feet touched stone, she could feel better stability in the broken arch of the old deck.
“Let me help!” Grant took a long step and grabbed her arm to yank her toward him. Gasping, she stumbled, so that one foot slipped off the ragged edge of the broken arch, knocking one of the propping sticks loose.
Grant tilted her so that she had to cling to him for balance, one foot dangling in the space above the water. Grant pulled her closer so that she stood beside him in a stable area on the other side of the arch. “Careful, my dear! I will keep you from falling.”
Catriona leaned away, heart slamming. Had he intended for her to stumble? She pulled, but he did not release her.
“Thank you. You can let go.”
“Such a dangerous bridge. So precarious.”
“I am fine now.” She shrugged him off, and this time he released her.
“Of course. Congratulations, by the way. I did not realize you and Kildonan would be married, and so suddenly,” he added.
“It happened all very quickly.” She tried to step past him, but he stepped in her way.
“As I said, it is precarious. Watch your step. You can trust me,” he added. “And I thought I could trust you. But you’ve hurt me to the quick.”
“How, sir?” She edged around him, but he blocked her. Behind her lay another part of the gap. She stilled. “I made no promise to you.”
“I hoped that if you did decide to marry, you would turn to me. Something changed when you met Mackenzie. Did he charm a plain and lonely young woman? Or did you set out to trap him for his title and his fortune?”
“How dare you think that! You know the circumstances.”
“Oh, aye, no choice but to marry. And what, my dear, does that mean?”
“Mr. Mac—Kildonan offered and my family wanted it. I need not explain it to you. It was a private matter, a private decision.”
“And I am your physician, so private matters are often my business.”
She felt far too vulnerable standing so close to him in a narrow stretch of secured stone. “You do not understand.”
“No? I never expected you would give yourself to a stranger. Truly, I never thought that particular man would come back here, with his sister and her husband running the estate. His return has made things difficult for me.” He looked cold, somehow dangerous, not the doctor she had known for years.
“For you? What is it you want, Mr. Grant?”
“I want what he took from me.” He pulled her to him. “You, and land.”
“Land!”
“Land was stolen from my family a hundred years ago by the Mackenzies of Kildonan. I want it returned.”
“Evan Mackenzie had nothing to do with that, or his father either.”
“I have offered to buy it when he sells off more of the land. But if I have you—” He tugged her closer. “You will tell him to give it to me. And you will tell him you are leaving him.”
“I would never do either.”
“Ah, remember, Plain Girl.” He tipped up her chin.
“You need my silence regarding your brother. How far would you go to make sure your family stays in the glen without disgrace? You have already damaged it. A word to Kildonan, a word to the magistrate—they will not take betrayal lightly. Yours or your brother’s. ” He shrugged.
Breath heaving, she felt a twist of fear in her gut. Grant was right. She could not speak out against his threats without bringing consequences. Without Finlay to help the crofters, or her father to shepherd their souls, the glen folk would suffer further.
Could she take the chance that Evan would side with the glen and look away from Finlay’s covert activities, or would he choose profits for the estate?
“Leave me be,” she said low. “Go back to your work, your patients, and try to convince them that you are a good sort. I know better now. And I have not yet decided what to do about that.”
“So it’s prison for Finlay, and losing the manse for Thomas MacConn? What a pity. I like them both. Well then, think about it. I have composed letters to the sheriff and magistrate, and a letter for the earl. I just need to post them.” He stepped back.
She stepped back too. “I would never have guessed you could be so hateful. You are respected in this glen. You have been fooling everyone.”
“Not really. I am a good physician where it counts. But I have two desires, as I told you. I want Kilmallie lands restored. And I want you. I always thought you would be a good wife for a doctor. You care about the glen folk and they respect you. It makes things easier for me. I need a wife who can keep secrets while she enjoys a comfortable life in the glen.”
“I already have a comfortable life here.”
“But your earl plans to sell more property and go back to the city. Then what, lass?”
“You cannot know what he will do!” Neither did she, but would not admit it.
“I know he must adhere to his father’s will in managing the estate, which includes resolving debts. And that may mean selling land.” He glanced into the distance then. “Ah, your bridegroom is coming back to rescue you.”
She turned to see Evan heading across the moorland toward the bridge. “Kildonan!” she called. “Evan!”
As she spoke, Grant tugged her off the bridge, holding her arm, waiting with her. Despite her pounding heart, she stayed calm, knowing that Evan would be unaware of what Grant had said. Given the turn in the water course here, he might not even have seen them on the bridge.
“Fortunate that you came back, sir!” Kenneth Grant called as Evan raised a hand and strode over the moorland. “Your bride had quite a fright when she nearly fell off that infernal bridge. Luckily I happened to be passing by.”
Struck by his bold claim, Catriona stared, silent. But Evan’s expression turned grim, and he strode over to circle an arm around her. Relief poured through her and she leaned against him.
“Nearly fell? Are you hurt?”
“I am fine.” She wanted to linger in his secure embrace, but only clutched the back of his tweed coat.
“Sure?” He looked at her with concern and a touch of doubt. She nodded stiffly.