Page 18 of Highlander’s Fruit of Eden

Warnings

A melia woke with a smile on her face. She could not remember a time in her life when she had been happier.

Jon completed her, and she could feel her own heart beating, overcome with love.

As soon as the notion of marriage had entered her head, she knew that she loved him.

She did not want to tell him that just yet—talk of marriage had scared him a little—but she was sure that he felt the same way.

She got out of bed and went straight to the window.

The scene outside mirrored how she was feeling.

The sun was shining once more, the sky was blue, and the fields and hills beyond were greener than she had seen them before.

Amelia took a deep breath and smiled. She opened her arms as if accepting the world.

There were plans to spend time with Jon too, and she hoped that he had a chance to speak with the Laird before then.

First, she had work to do. She liked being the housekeeper in the castle, and she wondered if she would keep the job once she was married.

She enjoyed the people she worked with, and Maggie, especially, had become her friend.

Amelia got dressed for her day, putting on one of her brighter gowns and adding an apron on the front. She headed for the kitchens, knowing that Maggie would be waiting for her, and they would have breakfast together. She hummed a song to herself as she made her way down.

The smell coming from the kitchens was divine. Amelia continued to hum as she reached the kitchens, and she took a plate and a couple of sausages, sitting down across from Maggie. Amelia only stopped humming when she had stuck a fork in one of the sausages and brought it to her mouth.

“And what has ye in this fine mood?” asked Maggie when Amelia was chewing on her first bite of sausage.

“Life is good,” said Amelia. “Is that coffee that I smell? That is just what I need.”

“Nay, nay, nay. Hold up, said Maggie. “Yer going naywhere until ye share with me. It’s yer man, isn’t it? Is it going that well with the Laird’s nephew? Are ye really going to be made queen one day?”

“I am,” said Amelia with a laugh. “And when I am, my first royal decree will be to make you a princess, Maggie.” Amelia poured some coffee from the pot on the stove and sat back down at the table.

“I cannae believe that this is happenin’ for ye,” said Maggie. “I dinnae ken much about the Laird’s nephew, but if he makes ye happy, then he must be a good man.”

“Oh, he is,” said Amelia. “We….”

“What?” asked Maggie.

Amelia leaned in close, even though there was no one else in the kitchens. “We spoke about getting married.”

“What!” gasped Maggie.

“Shh,” said Amelia. “You cannot tell anyone. Jon is a mess with the news already, and I cannot have anyone else knowing about this just yet, but it will happen, and you are going to be invited to the wedding, of course, and, oh, I just cannot wait.”

“Wait, why is Jon a mess?” asked Maggie.

“Well, he did not actually ask me to marry him, the Laird said that it would be so, but when I told Jon, he did not say no, and he started to like the idea by the end of our walk.”

“Yer going to have to explain this to me, Amelia. I’m lost.”

“It is very simple,” said Amelia. She thought about it, and maybe it was not as simple as it should be.

“The Laird invited me to his room to make sure that I was settling in well, and he spoke about trying to find a wife for his nephew, and he must have known that Jon had taken a liking to me, and he all but said that we should be married.”

“Wait, did anyone talk about a wedding?” asked Maggie.

“Not as such, but it was heavily implied.”

“Are ye sure that was the real reason ye were invited up to the Laird’s room?” asked Maggie.

“What is that supposed to mean?” asked Amelia.

“I hear that he has women up there in secret,” said Maggie with a knowing smile.

“Ew,” said Amelia. “No, it was definitely not for that. I have to admit that he does look good for a man his age, but he is old enough to be my faither. No, he was not interested in that at all, and I am certainly not. No, Jon is the man for me, and we are to be married. Sometime in the future. I am sure of it.”

“Well, I’m happy for ye,” said Maggie. “Though, I will be sad if that means we need to get a new housekeeper. Everyone likes ye here, and ye make all of our lives easier.”

“I would be sad to go, but I do not know what the future holds.”

“I ken what the immediate future holds,” said Maggie, standing up from the table and dusting herself down. “Those walls are not going to clean themselves.”

“No, they are not, and I thought that you could do with some help today, so I am going to help you.”

“Well, that is braw news,” said Maggie. Amelia got up too and rinsed out her cup.

The two of them set off, scrubbing the walls and singing songs as they worked.

Amelia taught Maggie her favorite English songs, and Amelia tried really hard to get her way through the old Scottish songs that were filled with words that she had not heard before.

With the singing, and even with how hard the work was, the day passed quickly.

“So, are ye seein’ the Laird’s nephew tonight?” asked Maggie with a smile. She had heard more about Jon as they had worked, Amelia unable to stop talking about him.

“We have agreed to have supper together,” said Amelia. “Which means that I have to go and get cleaned up. I cannot meet him in these dusty clothes.” While the gown was still bright, it was covered in dust that had come from the walls. She said her goodbyes to Maggie and went back up to her room.

She went inside and started to undress quickly, stopping abruptly when she saw the letter on her desk. Curiosity took over, and she picked it up. Amelia , it said on the paper. She unfolded it and read.

This is your last warning, Amelia.

You have caused far too much trouble, and it is time for you to leave. You think that you are helping people, but you are hurting them. You are going to destroy everything before long. I cannot sit here and bite my tongue any longer. If you know what is good for you, you will leave this castle.

Just so I am not mincing my words, consider this a warning. Leave the castle, or you will face the consequences.

Amelia almost dropped the letter when she had finished reading it.

Suddenly, all the joy was sucked from the room.

She had been on a high all day, but the letter had brought her crashing back down.

She did not get changed, running from the room with the letter gripped in her hand.

She ran straight for Jon’s room, hoping that he would be there.

The tears came as she traveled through the stone hallways.

She did not know who would do such a thing.

She had treated everyone well, and now she found that someone wished her harm. She had no idea who that could be.

“Jon!” she shouted as she knocked on the door. “Jon, are you in there?”

The door swung open suddenly, and the man she knew she loved stood before her. “What is it?” he asked. “Are ye hurt? Has somethin’ happened?”

“I do not know,” wailed Amelia, stepping into the room.

“I got back to my room after work today, and I found this.” She handed the letter to Jon, and he quickly read it.

When he was done, there was a frown on his face.

He strode over to his desk, picking up another folded letter and handing it to Amelia.

“I found this in me room earlier today. Someone must have slipped it in when I was out.”

Consorting with an English lass? You are going to bring shame on the whole Clan. The way you are acting is not as a Laird should act, and you will never be like your uncle. Nor will you ever be Laird here.

People are speaking about you, and you are bringing shame to your uncle, but there is a simple solution. All you need to do is get rid of the problem. End your relationship with the English lass, and maybe you can salvage what little reputation you have left.

If you do not do as told, you will have to face the consequences.

Amelia dropped her hand to her side and stared blankly at Jon.

“What does this all mean? Why is someone targeting us when we have done nothing wrong? We have the blessing of the Laird. How can they say that you are bringing shame to the Laird when he is the one who wants us together? I do not understand any of this.”

“Come here,” said Jon. He took Amelia in his arms and held her tight. “I’m not going to let anythin’ happen to ye, ye have me word on that. And, if someone wants to come after me, then let them. It won’t be the first, and it won’t be the last.”

“How can you say that?” asked Amelia. “Oh, I am so worried, Jon. What if something happens to you or to me?”

“Nothin’ will happen to us, and that’s because I ken exactly who sent these letters. When I read mine, I had a hunch, but seein’ yers too has only confirmed that. There is only one person in the castle who does nae want us to be together.”

Amelia thought for a second before she blurted it out. “Ruben! No, he would not, would he? I cannot believe he would do something like this.”

“Ye saw how he was,” said Jon. “Ye saw how he acted. He thinks that ye belong to him, and he won’t let anyone get in his way.”

“What are you going to do?” asked Amelia.

“I’m going to go down to the stables and talk to him. I’ll be back very shortly.”

“No, I am coming with you.”

“Nay, he might be dangerous.”

“I do not care. I am more worried about what you are going to do to him, and I want to talk to him too. If he sent these letters, then I want to give him a piece of my mind too. Besides, I will have you there to protect me, right?”

“Aye, I suppose that ye’re right,” said Jon.

He took the letter from Amelia, folding both together.

They left the room, and Amelia had almost to run to keep up with him as he took long strides down the hallways.

She ran a little when they got out to the courtyard, taking two steps for every one that he took.

“Please promise me that you will let him talk first before you go in there with your fists,” said Amelia as they closed in on the stables.

“I promise,” said Jon. “But, if I find out that he’s the one behind this, ye have to let me take justice for these threats. He does nae deserve anythin’ else.”

“I can live with that,” said Amelia.

“Where is he!” shouted Jon when they got close to the stables. There were some stable hands milling about outside, and they looked at Jon with confusion. “Where’s Ruben!” he boomed.

“Uh, he’s inside,” said one.

Jon strode past them with Amelia in tow. He pushed the wooden door open with such force that it slammed into the wall, and the whole enclosure seemed to shake.

“Ruben!” Jon shouted.

Ruben poked his head out from one of the stalls. He let out a sigh when he saw Jon and Amelia. He dusted off his hands and stepped out of the area where he was working.

“Look, I dinnae want any trouble. I might have overreacted the other day, but ye did too, so ye cannae blame me for what happened to yer eye.”

“Me eye!” shouted Jon. “Me eye is the least of me worries. Dinnae try and deny it, I ken that this was ye.”

“What was me?” asked Ruben, raising his hands into the air.

“Dinnae play daft.” Jon strode forward with the letters in one hand, and he grabbed Ruben’s neck with the other. He pushed Ruben back until he slammed against the wall behind. “The letters!” Jon shouted, waving them in front of Ruben’s face.

“I dinnae ken what ye’re talkin’ about,” said Ruben. “Amelia, ye have to get him off of me.”

“Let him speak,” said Amelia, placing a hand on Jon’s shoulder. Jon kept Ruben pinned there for a moment more before he let him go. Ruben quickly stepped to the side and rubbed his neck.

“We ken that ye wrote these letters to Amelia and me, and we ken why ye did it. Ye cannae stand that she wants to be with me and nae with ye, can ye.”

Amelia looked around to see that another small crowd had gathered to see what was going on.

“I did nae write the letters,” said Ruben.

“Just admit it and be done with it,” said Jon.

“Nay, I did nae write them because… well… I cannae write. I couldnae have written them.”

“Is that true?” asked Amelia. “You really do not know how to write.”

“I swear,” said Ruben. “It was nae me who wrote those letters.”

“Well, if you did not write them, then who did?” asked Amelia.