Chapter Five #3
There was the sound of a chair being scraped back and Jamie rose from his seat at the far end of the table. Elise’s gaze sprang to him and damn her if her stomach didn’t do an odd little flip.
“Lady MacFinnan,” he addressed her formally. “Thank ye for coming. Please be seated.” He indicated an empty seat next to his.
Elise wove her way through the room and slumped gratefully into the chair, doing her best to sink into it and become as invisible as possible. Why had she agreed to this again?
Jamie cleared his throat and resumed his seat. “I’m sure ye’ve heard by now that we have a MacFinnan spellweaver visiting us,” he said to the men around the table. “This is Lady Elise and she will be sitting in on our councils from now on.”
He proceeded to introduce everyone—names that Elise was sure she’d never remember. Phillip MacClelland and Albie she already knew, but everyone else was a stranger. They were all gruff older men who looked like they’d lived a hard life.
They greeted her politely enough, but some seemed as awed as Bryn and Martin had been. Elise tried not to squirm. What did she have to offer to this room of battle-hardened Highlanders?
Jamie leaned forward, clasping his hands together on the smoothly polished tabletop. “I’ve called ye all here because an urgent report has just come in. Our latest cargo shipment has been seized by the pirates.”
His voice was low but carried through the room like the tolling of thunder. The effect on the gathering was instantaneous. Outraged murmurs went around the chamber, fists banged on the table, and a few began gesticulating wildly.
Jamie let the hubbub rage for a minute before banging his fist on the table for silence.
When the noise finally died away, he said, “Those ships weren’t carrying gold or anything of obvious value, but grain from the mainland, grain that our people badly need.
Grain whose value hardly seems worth the effort of capturing it.
So it begs the question: Why did they seize it? ”
A squat bald man growled low in his throat. “Because they can! They’re nothing but cutthroats and scoundrels. What other reason do they need? We should wipe them from the face of the Earth as Albie would have us do!”
There were shouts of agreement at this. Jamie said nothing, merely waited patiently for the noise to die down again.
When it had he said, “Even pirates have a reason for what they do. There are far more lucrative prizes on the open seas. Why seize grain when they could seize whisky, gunpowder, textiles? All would fetch a far higher price.”
Nobody answered. Elise looked between Jamie and his men, trying to follow the threads of the conversation. She felt like she was treading water, trying to figure out what was going on without a solid footing under her feet.
“It suggests,” a man with a bold nose and a pock-marked face said into the silence, “that plunder and riches isnae their goal. It suggests that there is another reason behind their attacks.”
Jamie nodded. “Aye. It does. So the question is: What do they want? There have been no demands. The few of them we’ve managed to capture have been lowly sailors following orders, with no clue as to their bigger stratagem.
But something is behind all this. Whoever is coordinating these attacks has a bigger, greater goal in mind. ”
Nobody answered. The silence in the room became so absolute that Elise could hear the breathing of those around her. Tension filled the air like a storm cloud.
“What about the ship?” Phillip MacClelland said into the silence. “And her crew?”
Jamie winced, a spasm of anguish passing across his features. “Lost. All hands killed or taken.”
“By God!” the big man, Albie cried, surging to his feet. “Damn them to the deepest level of hell! This is the final straw! We have to attack, my lord. Show these bastards what the Kingdom of the Isles is made of!” He slammed his fist down on the table to emphasize his point.
There were rumbles of agreement. Jamie pinched the bridge of his nose before turning his attention to the big man. His voice was quiet, but Elise could see the rage boiling in his eyes.
“And who do ye propose we attack?” he asked. “I’ve already sent our fastest galleys after the pirates and as always, they have disappeared without trace, back to whatever infernal hole they crawled from.”
“Then we have to keep looking!” Albie thundered. “We have to stop these attacks! It’s been a poor harvest. How long before our people begin to starve if we canna get our grain shipments through?”
“Do ye think I dinna know that?” Jamie snapped.
“That is why we are here: to decide how we respond.” He glared at Albie and the big man glared right back.
Their battle of wills crackled in the air between them until finally Albie backed down.
With a growled curse, he crossed his arms over his broad chest and leaned back in his chair.
Elise shrank farther into her seat. What had Lir been thinking in bringing her here? What did she think she could do to help these people? Pirate attacks? Destroyed ships? Battles at sea? What could she hope to do against any of that?
Back home, she used her spellweaving powers to find lost pets, heal minor illnesses, and predict when they were going to have a particularly bad storm. But battling pirates in fifteenth century Scotland? That was way out of her comfort zone.
Her eyes flicked to Jamie. He was leaning forward, elbows resting on the table, all focused alertness and determination.
Oh, heck. He was the reason she’d agreed to come, wasn’t he?
Lir known exactly the right carrot to dangle in front of her.
Damn it. Why did she never think these things through?
Why did she always dive in without stopping to consider the consequences?
Now she was in way over her head with no idea what she was supposed to do.
Phillip MacClelland suddenly turned his watery gaze on her. The scar down the side of his face pinched tight as he smiled. “Perhaps our spellweaver could add some insight?”
It took a moment for her to register he was talking to her. She blinked and sat up straight. “Me?”
Phillip shrugged. “Ye have an outside perspective. Perhaps ye will see something the rest of us have missed. What advice would ye give on how we should proceed against these pirate attacks?”
All eyes turned to her and Elise felt suddenly very hot. “Um…”
What was she supposed to say? Sorry, I’ve no idea about any of this. Then her brain latched onto something. “How do these pirates know where your ships are going to be?”
Phillip blinked. “I’m sorry?”
“You said that they attacked your ship bringing cargo from the mainland. The sea is a pretty big place with lots of different routes across it. How did the pirates know where your ship would be?”
Silence greeted her words. Some of the men shifted uncomfortably. Phillip opened his mouth and closed it again.
Jamie cleared his throat and turned to her.
“Ye have cut to the heart of the matter. The routes into our harbor are heavily guarded by our fleet. Once the cargo ships reach these routes, they are safe. But we canna patrol the entire ocean and they are at risk as they make the crossing from the mainland. We change the routes regularly to try and avoid being caught.” He spread his hands wide.
“But it isnae working. They always seem to know where our ships will be, regardless of the precautions we take.”
“So that information is obviously being leaked,” Elise said. “Who knows what the shipping routes are going to be?”
Jamie shook his head. “And therein lies the problem. Those routes are known only to myself and the captain of the ships who sail them.”
“But that makes no sense. If only you and the captains know, then how are the pirates finding out?”
“Devilry, that’s what,” Albie rumbled. “There’s no other explanation. Witchcraft and dark magic!”
“That isnae helpful,” Jamie said, giving the man a flat look. “I willnae tolerate prattle about ghouls and phantoms.”
“And yet ye brought a MacFinnan spellweaver here to help us,” Albie snapped back.
The two men glared at each other and Elise felt the tension in the room go up a notch. Phillip stood up and spoke into the heavy silence.
“Gentlemen, please. Arguing amongst ourselves will get us nowhere. It comes down to one simple fact: We dinna have enough ships to patrol both the routes into Islay and the crossing from the mainland. But we all know there is a way to remedy that situation. Perhaps it’s time we discuss the other matter. ”
Jamie suddenly stiffened. “I dinna wish to discuss that now.” His voice was low and dangerous, full of warning.
“What better time to discuss it?” Phillip countered. He pulled out a scroll and placed it on the table. It was crinkled and a little battered, as though it had been screwed up and tossed about a few times.
“Surely this latest attack only makes it more urgent to agree to the king’s terms?” Phillip said. “This bickering is putting us all at risk. If ye sign the contract, ships and warriors could be here within the month. Why do ye delay?”
Jamie glanced at Elise. “This isnae the time nor the place for this discussion, Phillip.”
Elise looked from Jamie to Phillip and back again. What were they talking about? Why did Jamie suddenly look like he was going to throw up?
“Forgive me, my lord,” Phillip countered.
“But this is exactly the time and the place. It is our duty as yer advisors to ensure ye make choices in the best interests of the Kingdom of the Isles. And what more important choice is there than yer marriage? Sign the contract, my lord. I’m sure Lady Margaret will make a fine wife. ”
Elise felt her jaw drop. Wait. Had she heard that right? Jamie was getting married?
Something seemed to punch her in the stomach and all the breath left her in a rush. With an effort, she sucked in a breath and struggled to keep her expression neutral as she turned to look at Phillip. “Who is Lady Margaret?”
“The king’s great-niece,” Phillip replied. “And our future Lady of the Isles. If”—he turned a scowl on Jamie—“our laird ever sees sense and agrees to the marriage.”
“Phillip,” Jamie snarled. “Leave it. I’ve said I will consider the matter and I will.”
“But—”
“Ye have yer answer!” Jamie thundered, slamming his fist against the arm of his chair. “Sit down, man!”
Phillip didn’t seem mollified but he said nothing more.
Tucking the scroll back into his plaid, he resumed his seat.
Elise stared straight ahead, not looking at anyone.
Certainly not looking at Jamie. She would not be able to keep her emotions from her expression if she did. Married? Bloody married?
Why was she so bothered by that? She really shouldn’t be.
After all, there was nothing between her and Jamie Donald except one evening where they’d enjoyed each other’s company.
And this was the fifteenth century for pity’s sake!
Of course, the Lord of the Isles would be expected to marry.
Had she secretly been harboring a notion that he would be waiting for her?
That the single evening they’d spent together would have left the same impression on him that it had on her?
Ridiculous! What the hell was wrong with her?
The conversation in the room started up again but Elise barely heard it.
They discussed the fleet’s capability, ideas on where the pirate base might be found, how they might counter these attacks in the future, but she found it hard to pay any attention.
Her thoughts kept flicking to the man seated beside her.
Although she didn’t look at him, she could feel him.
He was a silent, glowering presence, his displeasure throbbing in the room like the charged air before a storm.
She was relieved when he finally called the meeting to a close. As everyone pushed their chairs back, she mumbled her excuses and fled the chamber. She suddenly needed some air.