Honor Restored Read online

  “Ye are sure that ye are strong enough, Mother?” Callum’s voice echoed along the corridor.

  Una held her breath, pressing herself into the doorway, concealed only by the shadows.

  “Daenae fuss, son. This may be my last Christmas and I am determined to see it with my clan,” Mary replied.

  “I am glad, for there is somethin’ else ye shall see this night too,” Callum replied.

  “Oh yes, and what is that, son?” his mother asked, as the pair passed within a few feet of Una’s hiding place.

  “I intend to ask Una to marry me this night,” Callum replied.

  Una almost let out a cry of surprise, but she held her hand to her mouth. Daring not to breathe as they passed. She had known he was falling in love with her, that much was certain. But to propose marriage seemed a step further than she had ever imagined. What would she have said? Could she ever have agreed? For a moment, she imagined the scene as Callum knelt before her and proposed in front of the whole clan. To say yes seemed almost a betrayal of herself and her father, yet part of her wondered if she ever could love Callum McNeil. Maybe she already did …

  Callum and his mother passed by and Una crept out of the shadows and along the corridor. There was no time to think further about her flight. She must escape now or resign herself to a life behind these walls. To refuse Callum would be to imprison herself further, for surely, she would never be allowed to leave Gilloch Castle. Yet to accept his proposal would be to admit she no longer saw him as a jailer but as man whom she could love. Only one solution lay before her and as she let herself out of the keep and into the courtyard Una knew she was doing the right thing.

  The courtyard was even more crowded than before and it seemed as though the whole village had turned out for the celebrations. The smell of food wafted through the air and men and women greeted one another jovially, as Una slipped through the crowd. In the darkness, lit only by flaming torches at intervals upon the wall, she easily passed through without being recognized. She had wrapped a shawl over her head and kept her face bowed low, as she hurried towards the open gates.

  A steady stream of people was passing in and out and she chanced a look behind her, as she stood upon the threshold. The windows of the keep were lit by candles and the sounds of revelry echoed around the courtyard. She pictured Callum and his mother, waiting for her in the Great Hall. Perhaps he had already gone to her chambers and discovered she was gone. At any moment there might come the cry of escape and the gates be closed. She could not wait a moment longer and turning she crossed the threshold to freedom.

  “Where dae ye think yer going?” a voice came from behind.

  She turned, keeping her face bowed low and raising her eyes.

  “I …” she began.

  “Tis’ Christmas, ye cannae leave before the yule log is burned,” the man said, holding up a flagon of ale.

  “Aye … I shall be back. I have the bairns to see to,” she lied, relieved that it was only a drunken man who prevented her from leaving.

  “Be sure to, ye wouldnae wish to miss that,” he said, raising his flagon to her, as she nodded and hurried on.

  She had only been outside the castle on several occasions since her arrival and in the dark the path seemed strange and unfamiliar. She tripped and stumbled, looking back behind her at the castle and out towards the dark and foreboding glen beyond. For a moment, she wondered if she should turn back, slip back into the castle and appear in the Great Hall as though nothing had occurred. But Una Gordon was the daughter of Lairds with a resolute and determined spirit. She would not be cowed, nor let fear get the better of her. She had been determined to escape and now that she had done so it would be foolish to return and admit defeat. Instead, she looked forward, hurrying off into the trees.

  She had little idea where exactly she was heading, for she knew not the land nor its lie. But she was determined to find her way to her father’s castle. Perhaps there she could find friendly men still loyal to the Gordons and together they could retake the castle. It was a fanciful idea and had seemed far easier when she was sat in the warmth and safety of the library at Gilloch Castle or walking in the garden below the walls. An owl hooted in the trees above, startling her, as she came to edge of the loch.

  The moon was reflecting upon the surface, as ripples crossed the water and she caught her breath. Glancing around lest anyone should be following her. But all was still, and it seemed as though no one had yet noticed her absence. The path led along the loch and from the maps she had seen in the castle library she knew it would take her as far as the Mull of Kildoon, over which lay the lands of the Gordons. From there, she hoped to see her father’s castle and find refuge amongst the scattered clansmen. In truth, she knew that things would be very different and that she could not be assured a welcome amongst the Gordons now living in subjection to Feargan McDonald.

  The night was cold and Una wrapped her shawl around her shoulders, pulling the cloak tightly around her as she hurried on along the loch side. Her absence was bound to have been discovered and she could not help but wonder just how Callum was feeling at that moment. A surge of guilt ran through her at the knowledge that she had certainly broken her heart. But what of her own heart, she thought to herself? Did she not owe it to her father to try her best to retake the castle and see her clan’s name restored? She was no one’s prisoner and despite his kindness she knew she owed Callum McNeil nothing, not even her loyalty.

  She had walked for around a mile, picking her way along the moonlit path when a sound behind her caused her to freeze. There were shouts coming from the far end of the loch, as though a search party were following her, and Una began to run along the Loch side. Soon the shouting grew louder, and it seemed certain that her pursuers were close at hand. On one side of her was the loch, its deep and still waters providing no hope of a hiding place. Instead she looked off to her right, where the trees grew tall above her.

  One of the trees had low-hanging branches, reaching almost down to the water’s edge. With the shouts of her pursuers coming ever closer, Una clambered onto the lower branches, hoisting herself up into the tree. Hidden amongst the firs she watched, as along the loch side path there came a band of soldiers, hurrying along.

  To her surprise, Una could see Callum at their head, running desperately along. Just below the tree he paused and Una held her breath, as for the second time that night she hid from Callum’s gaze.

  “Nay sign of her, Laird. The lass is gone,” one of the soldiers said, as the band of men came to a halt.

  “She cannae be, we must keep lookin’ for her. If she is caught out here, then there is nay tellin’ what barbarous things might be done to her. Tis’ nae safe out here, nae for a lass on her own,” Callum replied.

  “If she was determined to escape, Laird then there is nothin’ ye nor I can dae about it,” the soldier said.

  “I … I thought she wanted to stay. I never wanted her to be a prisoner at Gilloch Castle, I wanted to marry her …” Callum said, his words trailing off.

  “Never trust a Gordon, that is what my father used to say. The auld alliance may have held once, but they are nae to be trusted now,” the soldier said.

  Through the branches, Una could see Callum standing beneath the tree. His head was bowed, and she heard him heave a heavy sigh, as he looked around once more.

  “I … I trusted her, I thought she felt the same. She was nay prisoner, I love her …” Callum said.

  “And she has betrayed ye, Laird. That is the fact of the matter,” the soldier replied, “and in this darkness she could be anywhere and already miles away. For all ye know, she had help.”

  Una heard Callum sigh deeply and watched as he shook his head.

  “Aye, ye are right men, there is nay hope in findin’ her now. Let us return to the castle and salvage what festivities we might. Though tis’ a dark day for the McNeil’s and make nay mistake,” Callum said, and Una watched as they disappeared back along the loch side path.

&n
bsp; Her stomach felt knotted, twisted in emotion. The tone of his voice had not been anger, but sorrow. He sounded heartbroken, as though her sudden departure had left him bereft of happiness. She had never imagined his true feelings nor what the sight of him and the sound of his words would do to her. A tear ran down her cheek and she brushed it away, she could not go back now. She had risked too much already and now she knew the time had come. Dismissing her emotions, she clambered down from the tree and made off down the path, in the opposite direction to Callum and his men.

  The moon was bright and she could see the outline of the far-off mountains beyond. Across the Mull lay her father’s castle and the hope that was in her heart. But she had not counted upon a portion of that heart remaining here at Gilloch, where the man she had believed to be her jailer now turned out to be her friend.

  Chapter 5

  A Perilous Journey

  That Christmas day was a perilous one for Una, snow had come to the glen and she was cold and hungry as she pressed on through the forest. She knew little of the lay of the land except that she must keep walking towards the far-off mountains, through which lay her father’s castle and the hope she longed for. Now that she was alone, danger seemed to lurk around every corner and on several occasions, she heard far off noises of men and animals.

  But Una stuck to the paths and survived on a diet of berries and drank water from the lochs and streams which she passed on the days that followed. Until she arrived in sight of the Mull of Kildoon. Here, the trees grew thick, and the path became narrower. But eventually, as she crossed through the treacherous wilderness, she began to recognize the landscape and the lay of the land. She had walked here as a child and joined her father on hunting parties to this, the farthest reaches of his realm.

  Tired and weary, she felt a renewed vigor at being close to home. She was no longer a prisoner but instead a free woman and as she approached the Gordon castle, she knew she had made the right decision. But hunger and fatigue soon overcame her and despite her caution she found herself in desperate need of food. There were peasants living out in the forest, men and women who would surely still be loyal to her father. If enough of them could be persuaded to join her, then perhaps there was a chance that the castle could be retaken and the honor of the Gordon clan restored.

  As she came around a corner, three days after her escape from Gilloch Castle and the McNeils, she came across a man gathering firewood. She paused, hiding behind a tree as he went about his business.

  He was humming snatches of a tune, as he dug about in the snow for sticks. It was one she recognized, a tune her mother would hum to her when she was a child, a song about a bonnie lad who finds his love across the loch. The man could only be a Gordon and clearing her throat she stepped out into the clearing.

  The peasant was so startled that he dropped his firewood in shock, taking two steps back and falling over, scrabbling in the snow with a look of disbelief on his face.

  “Tis’ all right, ye are a Gordon, are ye nae? My name is Una, Una Gordon, daughter of yer late Laird,” Una said, holding out her hands in peace.

  The peasant was even more taken aback by these words but as he peered through the gloom of the forest clearing, his face turned to a smile.

  “Aye … well now, if it nae wee Una. We speak of ye often, lass. What a terrible tragedy befell yer dear father and when ye were taken there was such sorrow in the glen. Have ye escaped yer captors? Ye are nae safe here, the McDonalds have spies everywhere, come now, we must get ye inside,” he said, beckoning to her.

  Una knew she had no choice but to trust him and she followed him through the forest, glancing cautiously around her. She had thought so much of escape these past months that what she actually did after that happy event had seemed of little consequence. But now that she had arrived in the vicinity of her father’s castle, she wondered what precisely she could do to be of any use. Certainly, she was brave, but one woman against the McDonalds would be of little use, however brave she felt. It had seemed so simple before, but now she realized just how futile the situation was. The peasant was leading her through a maze of paths and it had begun to snow as they arrived outside a little hovel in a clearing, where a woman was tending a feebly smoking fire.

  “Yer wife?” Una asked, and the man nodded.

  “Aye,” he said, as the woman looked up in surprise.

  “Tis Una Gordon, the Laird’s daughter. See, she has come back to us, we must find her some food to eat,” the man explained, and the woman nodded, her eyes fixed on Una in disbelief.

  A bowl of stew was warmed upon the fire and Una was wrapped in a blanket and sat upon a makeshift bed inside the hovel which was built into an opening in the hollow of a fallen tree. These were poor people and Una was grateful to them for their kindness to her, the man and woman both fussing around her, as she began to feel warm for the first time in days.

  “Ye poor thing. After the castle was captured, we feared the worst,” the woman said, as she ladled out another bowl of stew for Una. “That wicked Feargan McDonald laid waste around this glen, he showed nay mercy and especially to those of us still loyal to yer father and ye.”

  “And what has happened to these good folks? Are there still loyal Gordons in the woods or hiding out on the moorlands?” Una asked, keen to know if she would have any support in her attempt to retake the castle.

  “There is much unrest amongst our neighbors, aye,” the man replied. “Ye have friends here Una, but I fear that there are many enemies too. Feargan McDonald’s banner flies over yer father’s castle and it will take more than a few peasants and a brave lass like ye to take back what is rightfully yers.”

  Una was silent for a moment. If that was truly the case, then her cause was lost. There would be no point in mounting an assault upon the castle or encouraging insurrection if Feargan McDonald would crush it as viciously as he had done her father and his men. But Una still had a burning desire to see her former home and the place in which she had grown up. It was as though something were drawing here there, a desperate need to be close to her father’s memory. And when she had finished her stew and warmed herself upon the fire, she made ready to leave.

  “Ye cannae walk in this, lass. At least stay here the night and leave at first light. We are simple folks but we shall gladly share what we have with ye?” the kindly peasant woman said, placing her hand upon Una’s arm.

  “Aye, perhaps ye are right,” Una replied. “There is nothin’ brave in freezing to death at night in the forest,” and she settled back down by the fire.

  The couple told her stories of what had happened in the glen these long months past. Una was devastated to learn that her faithful maidservant Mary Macready had been sent away and that the castle was promised to a distant cousin of Feargan, a wicked man by all accounts from far away in the north. The clansmen had been scattered and forced to eke out a living in the forest, foraging for food and living as peasants. It was a sad ending to the once noble clan of Gordon and Una could not help but shed a tear as these somber tales were recounted.

  When the fire had burned low, the woman brought her another blanket and bid her rest. Una had not slept properly since her last night at Gilloch Castle and as she lay down, she felt sleep overwhelm her. But her last thought was not of the Gordons or her father’s castle, but of Callum. Would he still be searching for her? Was he even now awake and sorrowful at his loss? A pang of guilt ran through her and a tear rolled down her cheek. How foolish she felt for having behaved so cruelly towards him, escaping as he was about to declare his love. Could she love him too? Her feelings now quite overwhelmed her and it was with a heavy heart that she fell asleep that night, her dreams filled with images of Callum and the love that could so easily have been hers.

  ***

  Una awoke shivering, for despite the blankets lying over her it was cold in the peasant’s hovel and the fire had not yet been stoked from its smoky embers. She sat up and stretched her arms, as the woman, whose name she discovered was L
ena, appeared at the door.

  “We thought ye would sleep all day,” she said, brushing snow from her shoulders, as she stooped inside.

  “Thank ye again for yer kindness,” Una replied.

  “Tis nay kindness, lass. Ye are the daughter of our Laird and the rightful leader of our clan. We owe ye our loyalty,” the woman replied, and Una smiled.

  She wrapped her cloak around her and the shawl about her head.

  “Will ye eat with us first, lass?” the man, whose name was Blayne, said, offering her some scones of wheat from the fire he had now stoked into a merry little blaze.

  “Perhaps to take with me. I must see my father’s castle and seek out our clansmen,” Una replied, as Blayne passed her one of the scones and she tucked it into her tunic.

  “Ye will find that a hard task, lass. They are scattered across the glen and many are wary of trouble,” Blayne replied.

  “I have to try,” Una said and thanking the couple again for their hospitality she made her way back out into the forest.

  Fresh snow was falling and the scene would have been a pretty one, had she not been in the midst of danger. She suddenly felt very alone and the futility of her intentions now rose to the fore. She could not simply march up to the castle and demand to take it back, she had no plan except the determination to see herself revenged upon Feargan McDonald come what may.

  Cautiously, she made her way through the forest. Pausing as she went to check her bearings and look for signs of danger. She watched for a moment, as a deer fed amongst the trees, startling, as it turned to see her standing stock still upon the path.

  “Hello there,” she said, as it ambled off into the trees.

  She was following a path which she recognized now, one which led towards the castle and which she and her father had often walked along in happier days. The trees grew thick here, though snow had still fallen through the canopy above. The fir trees never shedding their greenery, despite the cold depths of the Scottish winters they endured. She glanced around warily, but so far, she had seen no one since leaving the home of Blayne and his wife. She pulled her cloak more closely around her and paused to breathe in the stillness of the forest. A gentle breeze was blowing through the trees and jackdaws were calling in the trees above, she felt uneasy, but she did not know why.