Page 16 of Midnight Honor (Highland Wolves #3)

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A nne was in no fit mood for company when Robbie and Jamie Farquharson came pounding on her door shortly after dawn. Angus had been gone perhaps an hour, and she had spent the time sitting alone in the dark, wrapped in a blanket that still held the scent of his body. At first she had only felt abysmally sorry for herself. But knowing that would never do, she allowed anger, then resentment to flood into the empty spaces Angus had so recently filled with hope and promise.

Try as she might, she could not be entirely angry with her husband, for he had made the point well when he asked if his honor was worth any less than hers. It was not, of course, and she supposed she had known it all along; it had just been difficult to accept. Oddly enough, it brought some measure of relief, in a way, because she knew she no longer had to question or justify her love for him to herself or anyone else. He was every bit as honorable as Fearchar or John MacGillivray or Alexander Cameron, and what was more, he loved her despite their opposing politics, despite their different backgrounds, different temperaments, and that was far more than most wives could ever hope to have in their marriages.

The pounding on the door startled her out of her reverie and she answered it with an irritated yank. “I am awake. No need to bring down the—”

The appearance of the twins stopped the breath in her throat, for they stood under the glowering gray sky and looked more fearsome than usual, with muskets in their hands and broadswords strapped about their waists. They both wore pistols and dirks thrust into their belts, another dirk tucked into the garter on their right calves. They carried targes of wood and leather studded with nails, and even though it clearly threatened rain, they were not encumbered by extra lengths of plaid around their shoulders. Their bonnets had been brushed clean, and new sprigs of red whortleberry—the clan badge—were pinned to the crest. Whatever weariness they might have been feeling from the debauchery at the tavern had been replaced with the hard, bright sparkle of excitement.

“Well?” Jamie demanded. “Ye're starin' at us like as we've got three heads, no' two.”

Anne glanced over their shoulders and saw more men on the road, all of them bristling with guns and swords, pikes and axes. One of the MacCrimmon pipers was coming from the direction of the main camp, leading a hundred or more of his clansmen in a brisk march through St. Ninians. The revelers who had fallen asleep by the roadside were sitting up slowly and scratching their heads, but they seemed to know exactly what was happening and within moments staggered to their feet and were running in the opposite direction, shouting at their comrades not to kill all the English before they could arm themselves and return.

“What is happening?” Anne asked. “Where is everyone going?”

“Lord George says if the bastard willna bring the fight tae us, we'll damn well take it tae him. The MacGillivray gave us orders we were tae come fetch ye and take ye tae ride by the prince's side. We'll be marchin' in the second column alongside the Camerons, by Christ's bonny blood!”

“Aye,” Robbie beamed proudly. “We'll be wi' them on the field too, an' that's the best place a fightin' man could hope tae be! Come on, come on, lass! Ye dinna want tae be left behind, do ye?”

Anne whirled around and flung off the blanket she had been holding around her shoulders. She had swum naked with her cousins more times than she could recall—albeit mostly in their youth—and thus had no reservations about running to and fro in various stages of undress while she found and pulled on the layers of her clothing. She donned trews and a heavy linen shirt, then slammed her feet into stockings and boots. Ignoring an impatient shout from Robbie, she shoved her arms into a long-skirted waistcoat quilted in satin, embroidered with sprigs of whortleberry, and added a fine lace jabot around her collar. There was no time to brush her hair properly, but a few savage strokes allowed her to divide it into three thick sections and plait it quickly over her shoulder. When the plait had been pinned, tucked, and crammed under a bonnet, she donned a blue velvet coat with gold buttons and lace on the cuffs, and strapped on two leather belts—one that held her pistols, the other a sword and dirk.

She doubted she had ever dressed faster in her life, but the twins were pacing back and forth like cats with turpentine up their tails. The three of them hastened down the path to where some clansmen were waiting with Robert the Bruce—her heroically and hopefully portentously named gray gelding— but before she put a toe to the stirrup, she gasped and ran back to the cottage. Finding the common clothes she had worn the previous day, she searched an inner pocket and withdrew the cameo locket with Angus's picture inside. After pinning it over her breast, she drew on her leather gloves and went back outside.

The three Farquharsons mounted and rode off at a quick trot to rendezvous with MacGillivray and the rest of the men from Clan Chattan. The fields were swarming with men, some already formed into companies, brigades, and regiments. The sixty-seven-year-old Lord Pitsligo saw Anne and waved, as did the younger Murray of Broughton standing at the head of his splendidly attired hussars, the latter distinguishable by their fur caps and black leather cross straps. Lord Elcho's company of Lifeguards was composed of gentlemen, all of great fortune. Their uniforms were red and blue, and to a man they were well mounted on horses that would not have looked out of place at a race ground .

For the most part, however, the clansmen wore their kilted plaids, warm bullhide doublets, and tartan coats. On their bonnets was the badge that identified their clan, and on their lips the cath-ghairm that rallied them for battle. Every clan had their own piper to stir their blood to fever pitch and strike a note of terror into the enemy who faced them across a field. The chiefs brought along a bard as well, who would record the day's events in exacting detail so that the valorous acts of bravery would be set down for posterity and the glory of the clan. These were usually men of meticulous memories and sonorous voices who would later compose the songs and poems to be retold around the campfires.

Anne's heart swelled with pride when they breasted the last hill and she saw the men of Clan Chattan. They were waiting for their colonel to lead them in prayer, and when they saw her, a great cheer went up, louder than any skirling piper. Some would die this day, others would come away with dreadful, crippling injuries. But to a man they cheered, and half a dozen of them hoisted John MacGillivray onto their shoulders before depositing him on his horse.

MacGillivray was grinning as hugely as his men, his blond hair streaming back in the gusts of wind. He too had dressed with care, substituting the plain woolen jacket he had worn away from Aberdeen with a more regal one dyed a rich crotal blue. His hose and breacan were red with blue and black stripes; brógs had replaced his boots, the deer-hide worn fur out, and she knew this would be for ease of running. His bonnet sat on a jaunty angle on his head, the white Stuart cockade prominent beside the sprig of whortleberry. Strapped across his back was the steel of his clai' mór , deadly enough in his powerful hands without the need for the assorted pistols and dirks that bristled over all points of his body.

He tugged a burnished forelock as a sign of respect as he greeted Anne, then grinned even wider. “Lord George wanted ye to ride with the prince, but I told him we wanted ye here with us, Colonel. With yer men. At least until we reach the moor.”

He said it loud enough to cause another roar of approval and Anne, blinking with her determination to keep her eyes dry, proudly took her place at the head of the long column of men. The Bruce seemed to know he carried someone very important that day, for his steps were high and sure, his tail held aloft in a fan of gray silk. Unlike other mounts that were unaccustomed to so many men and drums and pipers, the stallion neither flinched nor broke out of line as the prince's army marched to war.

Twelve miles to the south, Adrienne de Boule lowered the delicate china cup from her mouth, leaving a small bead of chocolate on her lower lip. Without preamble, Major Roger Worsham leaned over and licked it away, his tongue continuing the sweep by snaking between her lips and embarking on a deep, prowling kiss.

He had no idea of the time, for the light that came through the window was dull and gray. The wind was gusting, spraying the glass with spatters of rain that seemed to justify a leisurely stretch and subsequent snuggling down onto the soft cushion of her breasts. His head was still fuddled and thick from the wine he had consumed the previous evening—a fact he considered odd, since he could have sworn he only had two, perhaps three glasses. And although he could not recall with any certainty how well he had performed, he assumed he had not left the company flags unfurled, for the minx looked tousled and smelled deliciously of sex.

He let his hand wander along the satiny smoothness of her body, marveling for the thousandth time how such a beauty had come to choose him over the scores of others competing for her attention. When he curled his fingers between her thighs he was rewarded with a sultry purr, and wondered if there was enough time before the rest of the household stirred.

Two doors away in a bedroom decorated in purple damask with pale yellow accents, Major Hamilton Garner was groaning. He was lying facedown on the bed, his arms and legs sprawled, a spidery thread of saliva trickling from his open mouth. The woman beside him moved carefully to extricate herself from the tangle of covers, praying he would not waken. Her thighs were bruised, her breasts were scratched as if some wild beast had savaged her, and every orifice of her body ached so badly she wanted to weep.

Accompanying one of the British officers to bed had not been intentional on her part, and she only had herself to blame. The major had been so handsome, his green eyes so boldly seductive, she had been flowing like a fountain all through dinner and could barely wait to feel his hands, his mouth on her body.

Now she moved as quietly and quickly as she could, gathering up her clothes like a frightened mouse collecting crumbs. Not until she stood at the door did she turn and glare at the major's milk-white body. He was groaning again, thrashing out at some unseen enemy. It had been her mistake to waken him after one such nightmare last night, and she had paid dearly for her compassion. He had lashed out at her, calling her “Catherine,” and forced her to do things that made her yearn to take a knife to his body and carve away the offending parts. She felt nothing but disgust now as she gave her long blond hair a toss, bidding him farewell with a crudely up-thrust middle finger.

One floor below, in the morning room, General Henry Hawley sat at the breakfast table, his head aching, his tongue coated with a sour fur that no amount of chocolate seemed to remedy. He felt groggy and stupid and was certain he was overlooking something vital in his dictations to the aide-de-camp who sat beside him.

“I shall want the linens and the bedding—once it has been laundered, of course—and I imagine the Earl of Kilmarnock must have a respectable wardrobe of clothing. I noticed a very fine library as well; take care to pack the books in sturdy crates, for I should not want them to suffer during transport to Edinburgh. There is a rather handsome repeating clock in my bedchamber, and I am particularly fond of that japanned board—” He paused and indicated the inlaid cupboard on which pots of chocolate, tea, and coffee sat. “Might as well include the china and silver plate. It will make a pleasant gift for my sister-in-law, who puts great store in such things. And check the larder. There seems to be an ample supply of salt beef, sugar, ham, and whatnot for the lady to spare enough victuals to make the journey back to Edinburgh palatable. Devil me, for that matter: Take the lot. Have the extra sent in care of myself to Holyrood House.”

“Yessir. What shall I tell the Lady Kilmarnock with regard to compensation?”

“Tell her what we tell them all: After we have gone, she may apply to the offices of the Judge Advocate if she wishes an accounting. Her generosity has not fooled me in the least, I say, not in the least. She claims her husband is away on business, but I suspect that business is being conducted in the company of the Pretender's camp. She should therefore count herself lucky we do not confiscate every scrap of furniture and every grain of salt, and peel the silk off the walls as well.”

“Yessir.”

“Which reminds me—” He sipped and pointed. “Those curtains—?”

“Yessir. I shall see to it.”

A delicate peal of laughter from the hallway made Hawley wince as he turned his head. Grudging the effort, he lowered his boots from the corner of the table and stood as their hostess swept through the open doorway. Lady Kilmarnock was young, with a lively eye and a ready laugh that she used freely with guests and servants alike. She dismissed the maid to whom she had been giving instructions, then smiled and dropped in a gracious curtsy when she saw the general.

Hawley's thin-lipped response was somewhat less genuine. He had bought his first commission in 1694 and spent most of his life in the army. Approaching his seventh decade, he was unmarried and biliously unattractive. Lady Kilmarnock had not had to worry about the sanctity of her own boudoir in the absence of her husband. The general was as particular about his companions as he was his accommodations, and there was no one in Callendar House who might have enticed him save for the cook's daughter, who was barely above nine years of age and plump as a dumpling.

“Good morning, General. Good heavens, can it really be nearing noon? I trust you slept well?”

“In truth,” he scowled, “I barely recall. My head feels a treat and I have stayed abed much later than my normal hour—a fit of sloth that appears to have affected my officers as well.”

“It must be the sleeping draught I put in the supper wine.”

Hawley looked startled for a moment, but when she tipped her head and laughed, he saw the jest for what it was and nodded. “I prefer to credit my lethargy to my berth, madam. Would I could fit such a comfortable bed in my tent—I should do so upon the instant.” He thought about that statement a moment and looked inquiringly at his aide-de-camp, who nodded and scratched another notation on his writing tablet. When he was done, the general dismissed him with a wave of his hand. “That will be all for the time being, Corporal Martin, thank you. Please inform Majors Worsham and Garner that I expect them to be occupying those two chairs—"he pointed to opposite sides of the long table— “within five minutes, or they risk court-martial.”

The aide snatched up his cap and offered a smart salute, then departed, leaving the general and Lady Kilmarnock to their breakfast. Hawley's plate was heaped high with sliced ham and beef tongue, cheese, and sweetmeats swimming in a robust gravy, none of which had appealed to him thus far, but when he heard the lady order a rasher of bacon and sausage, he signaled to the manservant to fetch two.

“I admire a female with an appetite,” he said. “None of this picking at bits and slivers.”

“My husband accuses me of eating like one of the cattle, though if you met him, you would see he has no shy hand at the table himself.”

“Ah, yes, the cattle. We will have need of your livestock, madam, in the days ahead. There will be prisoners to feed over and above the requirements of my own men.”

Lady Kilmarnock smiled. “You sound confident of victory, General.”

“I am confident of the resolve of my men, dear lady. Oh yes, I know their discipline is wanting and their valor has been precarious in the past, to say the least. Having said that—" he waved a fork with a piece of ham impaled on the tines— “a more magnificent sight than the British army standing at the ready in full battle dress is not to be found anywhere. Imagine it. Eight thousand men lined up straight as arrows. A field of scarlet, with drums beating and flags snapping overhead. It almost brings a tear to the eye. I say it almost brings a tear! What it will do to an ill-trained band of skirted rabble? It only remains to be seen.”

“I have been told,” she said carefully, “that ill-trained rabble can be quite intimidating.”

“Grown men in petticoats?” The general guffawed, spitting a morsel of cheese across the table. “I should think a strong wind up the backside would render their appearance somewhat more farcical than intimidating. A most despicable enemy, I assure you. Unmannered, unprincipled. Undisciplined in the extreme, with a dire want of military acumen that simply stupefies the mind. Why, they have left the Pretender's standard flying in plain view these last two days on a small moor to the south and east of Bannockburn, as if that should entice us to panic. Panic? Faugh ! I have been tempted to send a man on foot, on foot I say, to retrieve the damned thing for a trophy.”

Lady Kilmarnock set her jaw but glanced at the door where the houseman had suddenly appeared.

“My apologies for the interruption, my lady. A courier has arrived from the general's field headquarters. A most agitated young man. He insists on seeing the general at once.”

“Insists, does he?” the general asked, frowning. “Tell him I am engaged and will see him when it is convenient.”

The houseman glanced surreptitiously at Lady Kilmarnock before apologizing to the general again. “I have already told him you were indisposed, sir, but he is most obstinate.”

“Tell him to wait,” the general said, pronouncing each word as if it were ten syllables long.

“Aye, sir. Very good, sir.”

Hawley sucked a shred of ham out of his teeth and glared along the table at Lady Kilmarnock. “You must excuse the lack of manners in my men, dear lady. Most are villains recruited straight out of the brothels, and with little more than a sworn oath of their being Protestant and without rupture, they are entrusted with a musket and sixpence a day. They complain about the climate, they complain about their rations of biscuit and water—” he paused to shovel another forkful of dripping egg into his mouth. “I vow, some days my head aches from the sound of the lash.”

“As you say, however, they do look magnificent on the battlefield,” Lady Kilmarnock murmured.

Hawley's lip twisted, but before he could address her comment, the houseman was back, coughing anxiously into his hand.

“Yes, Donald?” Lady Kilmarnock arched an eyebrow.

“It is the general's courier, my lady. He is quite beside himself. He is threatening violence unless he is brought before the general at once.”

“You see, m'dear?” Hawley spread his hands in a gesture of futility. “Self-aggrandizement. Oh, very well. Show him in, show him in.”

The houseman stepped aside and nodded to a figure out in the hallway. A corporal hurried past, his hat under his arm, his hair and clothing shedding rainwater as he crossed to the general's side and, without waiting for leave, leaned over and murmured a few taut words in his ear.

The general stopped chewing. “What? What's this you say?”

The corporal bent forward again.

“On the moor! Impossible! The morning report said they were twelve miles to the north and west.”

“I assure you, sir, there is no mistake. They may have marched north and west, but only in order that they might circumvent Torwood and cross the river Carron at Dunipace. The rebels have taken Falkirk Moor, sir, and they look to hold it.”

“Look to hold it? The devil you say!”

Hawley scraped to his feet. He strode to the door without so much as a nod in Lady Kilmarnock's direction, his shouts echoing along the hallway, startling both Major Garner and Major Worsham as they were descending the staircase. Screaming obscenities, he called for his horse and guards. At the main door, one of his aides flung his cape around his shoulders, dislodging his wig. Another scrambled to pick it up, but the general was already gone, hatless and hairless out into the rain, his napkin still tucked into his collar.

Back in the breakfast room Lady Kilmarnock lifted her cup and took a sip of hot chocolate. She closed her eyes a moment to savor the sweetness, then set about enjoying the rest of her meal.