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THE LITTLE COTTAGE Glenna took Catlin and Julia to was clean and held a bowl of fresh flowers floating in water on the table, a clan tradition of sorts. Julia was so tired she quickly collapsed into the nearest bed and went right to sleep.
Catlin spread a plaid over her and then walked to the other bed. Next to it, a candle on a small table gave off the sweet smell of honey. She turned down the covers, unbuckled her belt and caught her MacGreagor plaid before it fell to the floor. Carefully, she folded it, laid it and her belt across the back of a chair and climbed into bed wearing only her long shirt.
She scooted down, covered herself and rested her head on her arm, but as exhausted as she was, her eyes remained wide open - Catlin Cameron MacGreagor was in line to inherit the throne of England. It was a thought she could not manage to fully grasp.
*
THE NEXT MORNING, NEIL took Thomas to see the cobbler and then took Julia to meet some of the young women her age. Once they were distracted, he asked Catlin to walk with him and soon they were joined by Glenna and Walrick.
Neil found a clean area, spread the plaid he brought with him on the grass and helped Glenna sit while Walrick helped Catlin. Then the men crossed their feet at the ankle and sat down. Their usual guards were there but too far away to hear.
Neil pulled a blade of grass out of the meadow and examined it. “Catlin, Walrick is my second and he remembers your mother. He is here to help you. Glenna is my wife from whom I have no secrets.
“I see.” She looked at Glenna, at Walrick and then at Neil, “When I was growing up, there were rumors that Bridget was not my mother’s true name, but I believed none of it and never was the name ‘Charlet’ mentioned. How could my mother be English? She said Scotland was the only home she had ever known.”
“Your mother was but a few days old when the king asked my father to hide her. Father let the clan believe she had been abandoned, gave her the name Charlet and she happily grew up among the MacGreagors. Then one day, the cottage she shared with the man and lass who cared for her caught fire. They died and she survived. Not long after, father got word an Englishman wanted her hand in marriage.”
“Did she know this Englishman?” Catlin asked.
“She had never laid eyes on any Englishman and my father grew immediately suspicious. To keep her safe, he asked Blair Cameron to hide her. At the time, your mother knew nothing more than my father did - she was English not Scottish and she was in danger. By the time it was safe enough for her to come home, mother had spoken to the king, learned Charlet was his niece and first in line to inherit the crown. It was the king’s nephew who tried to kill her, for which he was executed.”
“But she did not become queen.”
“Nay, by then your mother loved your father too much to leave him.”
Catlin’s mouth dropped. “She turned down the throne of England?”
Neil was surprised by her reaction. “Have you any doubt she loved your father that much?”
“I could never love a lad that much.”
Glenna smiled and patted Catlin’s hand. “I said the same at your age. But when...”
Catlin ignored her. “Is the present king in line before or behind my mother?”
Still caught off guard, Neil tried to read what Catlin was thinking. Slowly, he answered, “I dare say he is behind or he would not be looking for her.”
“And the English want her to be queen?”
“Some do.”
Catlin was becoming angry and she did not know exactly why. To stall for time, she ran her fingers through the sides of her long auburn hair. “And now that she is dead, am I before or after this new king in lineage?”
“I do not know.” A thousand thoughts were running through Neil’s mind. A Scot becoming the Queen of England opened a lot of good possibilities. Catlin hiding among the MacGreagor Clan opened a lot of dangerous possibilities too. “There might be a way to find out, if it becomes important.”
“It is important to me.”
“Why?”
Catlin was not ready to speak her thoughts and decided instead to dismiss the subject. “You are right, Laird MacGreagor. It does not really matter.”
Neil was not fooled. “I am concerned you do not clearly see the danger. Without careful thought you could bring the whole of England down upon us.”
Catlin got to her knees, accepted Walrick’s help and stood up. “I am not as simple minded as you assume.” With that...and without anyone’s permission, she turned and walked away.
Glenna started to call after her but Neil grabbed her hand. “Let her go.”
*
CURED OF THE INCESSANT stomachaches he had as a newborn, Jessup’s son was sleeping peacefully when Glenna, Neil and Walrick came to visit. She invited them to sit down and then offered each a goblet of water or wine. The men declined and remained standing, but Glenna accepted a chair and the wine.
“Have you ever heard the name, Charlet?” Neil asked.
Jessup’s eyes lit up. “Ah, you have come to talk of ghosts and fables. I am enthralled.”
“Then you have heard of her?”
“In a manner of speaking. She is illusive and the last I heard only a few have ever seen her. She has red hair, or so they report, and she was once first in line to the throne. But she disappeared and I think someone did her in years ago.”
“Why do you think that?”
“Because she never again was seen. My beloved king Richard asked that she be found after he took the throne, but nothing ever came of it ... at least not that he told me. I dearly wish we did know where she is. Charlet is possibly our only hope of getting the throne out of the hands of the wretched George of Leics.”
“What if Charlet died, but had a child before she passed. What say you about that?” Neil asked.
Jessup slowly turned to look into Neil’s eyes. “Which one?”
“Which one what?”
“Which of the three Camerons is Charlet’s child? Wait; if Thomas and Julia are your cousins, then it must be Catlin. Of course it is Catlin; I should have guessed by the way she holds herself.” Jessup could hardly contain her excitement, stood up and clapped her hands. “She is royalty, Neil. She belongs to England and England needs her.”
“Jessup, do you not see the complications? We are Scots and we cannot march into England even if Scotland might be the better for it.”
“Of course not. On the other hand, once they get wind that she is here we will have the English marching up our glen wanting to kill her.”
“They will not get wind of it.”
“Not as long as they think Charlet is still alive. Once they know she is not, they will search for her children.”
Neil hung his head. “I had not thought of that.”
The whole time, Walrick stood with his hands behind his back listening. “Perhaps we could start a rumor that Charlet boarded a ship bound for France several years ago.”
Jessup smiled. “I doubt George has neglected to look for her there already. Nay, you best not start any rumors at all. Let the other clans think you have no interest in the subject.” She turned her attention back to Neil. “Does Catlin know?”
“She does now and I was not pleased with her reaction. I believe her thinking matches yours on the subject, although she sees it in a different light than that of freeing her countrymen from an unrighteous king.”
Glenna rolled her eyes, “You mean she covets the crown for her own gain? You cannot know that.”
“I do not care in what light she sees it,” Jessup said, retaking her seat. “George of Leics is a liar and a murderer. I will be more than pleased if Catlin can manage to dethrone him no matter her intentions.”
Glenna reached across the table and took hold of her friend’s hand. “Before we decide her future we should get to know her better. Perhaps she wants to be queen, and perhaps she wants no part of the English.”
“She is right,” said Walrick. ‘What daughter of Scotland would want to be English? It is unthinkable.”
