The Seas Between Us, page 22
This was the crux of the matter and Anna knew she had to be cautious.
“That is for your son to explain. All I ask is that you not dismiss Fiona Jameson because of the less-than-ideal circumstances of your first meeting.”
“What, specifically, are you asking me to do?”
“It’s simple, but I believe it will be vital to the future of your son and of Fiona and, not to put too fine a point on it, it may affect your own future.”
“Forgive me, Ms. Mason, but I think you are in no position to comment on my family affairs.”
Ah, how little you know, sir, of these family affairs!
“Please excuse my presumption. If you will consider wiping today’s encounter with Fiona from your mind and starting anew, that is all I can ask. I won’t take up any more of your time but thank you once again for allowing me this opportunity.”
She got up and exited quickly before he could protest. She had done what she could. Please God she had not made matters worse for the young couple.
Her coat was lying across the hotel desk. Obviously Finlay had not had time to stow it away.
She grabbed it and left by the door. Bev had turned the car around and once more the engine was purring.
“More and more like a movie get-away,” she chuckled gleefully.
Anna could hardly disagree. She was overcome with delight at escaping with her mission attempted, if not accomplished, and equally exhausted at the effort it had taken.
“Get me home, Bev, and pray Fiona never finds out about this night’s work.”
* * *
Bev dropped Anna off outside the front gate and waved goodbye. Anna walked softly up the paved pathway, glad once again that she had dispensed with the noisy gravel. She entered through the red door and stopped to listen. Not a sound. Perhaps she would have no need to explain her absence after all. But first she must dispose of the note she had left in the kitchen.
She was just tossing the note into the garbage can when Fiona came up behind her and said, “I thought I heard someone in here. I feel so much better after that sleep, Anna. I woke up and was sick once. I must have had a stomach upset. You would have been upstairs then. I went right back to sleep afterwards until a minute ago.”
She peered at the kitchen clock on the wall and jumped. “Gracious me! Look at the time! Gordon will be back by now and wondering where I am.”
Fiona rushed out with her car coat over her arm and headed for the driveway at the side of the house where her Land Rover was parked. Over her shoulder she assured Anna that she was ready to tell Gordon everything, or almost everything. There were some embarrassing things she would eliminate.
“I feel much more able to cope now, Anna, thanks to you!
We’ll talk again soon!”
With that, the big car was gone in a swirl of dust and Anna could relax at last. She was happy that she had not had to lie to Fiona. The girl would not suspect the devious nature of her dear friend’s evening activities.
Anna closed the front door, shutting out the world.
So Fiona had been sick to her stomach again? It was still possible there was a baby on the way.
Early days yet.
No one knows of my suspicions. Not even Bev.
Time, as with all things, would tell.
Chapter Twenty-Three
“All right, sleeping beauty! Enough of this lazing around! You were sound asleep when I got back last night and here you are in the broad light of day still snoozing away! Just as well Jeanette insisted on feeding me a meal before I left town or I would have been famished by now.”
Anna was just coming to the surface and only caught a portion of Lawren’s complaint. She could believe she had slept straight through the night. She could not remember being that tired for years. Bev’s notion that spy work was thrilling for the participants, was not Anna’s opinion.
Once her eyes were open fully, she saw that Lawren was dressed to go out and carrying a tray with, not only a boiled egg and brown toast, but also juice, a pot of tea and an autumn crocus in a tiny glass vase.
“Oh, my darling! This is a wonderful treat and I don’t deserve it after neglecting you so.”
“Nonsense, woman! I am the one who deserted you last night although it was a highly productive session with the McLennan family. I am off to the barn now to finish up some painting details so take your time and eat every little crumb.”
“Lawren, I would kiss you madly but I suspect my teeth need brushing.”
“See if I care about that!”
* * *
Anna was only two bites into the toast finger which was now dripping with egg yolk, when the events of the previous evening suddenly flooded into her mind. She stopped chewing and waited while the entire scene in the hotel rushed through her. Had she done anything to jeopardize Fiona’s relationship with Gordon? Would Gordon’s father think she was some weird woman who had accosted him for no good reason? Would Captain Campbell discuss the incident with his son?
She swallowed convulsively and glanced over at the clock on her bedside table. Ten o’clock already! No wonder Lawren was worried about her. By now Gordon had probably met up with his father at the castle and they were discussing various topics of interest. Anna could only hope that these topics were focused on Gordon’s responsibilities at the castle estate and not on Fiona, or a meeting with Fiona’s unlikely female champion.
“There’s nothing I can do about it now!” she asserted, with rather more confidence than she actually felt. “Fiona will let me know what transpires, eventually.”
She hoped that conversation would not be reported anytime soon. She had had enough of the Campbells and their family issues for the time being.
The sun was high in a sky washed clean by the previous day’s rain. The impulse to run away filled her. There had been too much happening lately. She needed to escape for a while and talk to Lawren about a wedding and just be with him, without interruption, for a few hours before they headed back home to Canada.
Her appetite returned with a rush and she soon obeyed Lawren’s order and cleaned up every crumb and each drop of liquid nourishment. With energy restored, she plucked the flower from the tray and placed it behind her ear before walking across the hall and into the washroom where Lawren had left the heated towel rack on high and the thick towels were comfortingly warm on her body.
She dressed for an outdoor adventure before she had thought what they might do, but by the time she had unearthed Lawren in the barn where he was cleaning brushes, she knew.
“Let’s take a day for ourselves my darling man! I have an idea where we can go and I’ll explain on the way. I’ll call Grant and book him for the day if at all possible, then we can……….…”
“Wait! If you want a day on our own, we’ll hire a car and I’ll drive.”
“What? You can drive? Why didn’t I know this?”
“There wasn’t any need for you to know. I cycle everywhere in London but I learned to drive a stick shift years ago on my dad’s car and I have a current licence. You never asked me to drive your car so I didn’t mention it.”
“Well, this is a surprise! We’ll get onto Grant right away and see if there’s a car for hire in Oban. He’ll know, for sure. Oh, I am so looking forward to this!”
By noon it was all settled. Grant picked them up at the farmhouse and drove them to a local garage where the owner kept two cars for use when customers had their own vehicles in for servicing.
It was a neat little two-seater sports model and Lawren’s eyes lit up when he saw it.
There are some days in life when the open road beckons irresistibly. Anna remembered such days when she was immersed in teaching and the responsibilities that came with the job. She would occasionally leave the school at lunchtime for a quick bite away from the politics and gossip of the busy staffroom.
Inevitably, on the hurried ride back to the school, she would get that longing to just keep on driving and bypass the school building, speeding along the roads and out into the country and freedom for a few hours. She had never actually followed that impulse, but today was another time and another place and beside her was the man she might have dreamt of long ago.
They were like two teenagers. They wound down the windows and revved up the engine and turned the radio up to full blast. It was a station with an eclectic mix of music tastes and they sang out loud together whenever an oldie came along. Anna discovered that Lawren was a natural at harmony if he knew the tune. She gazed at him in wonder as their voices blended. What new thing would she find out about him next? He really was a remarkable man. She only hoped she fascinated him half as much as he did her.
The next song on the radio was a new piece the announcer stated to be an early entry in the annual British ‘Favourite Christmas Song’ contest. As soon as the haunting music began, Anna knew she had heard it somewhere before. Her mind was occupied with trying to remember the place and time and she almost missed the words. In the second verse a solo male voice with a simple piano accompaniment struck right to her heart.
“I see your smile and need to tell you
I am here, right now.
All of my love is yours forever
All my life
All that I am
Is here for you
I vow
I vow
I vow”
There was silence inside the speeding car. Anna had no idea if the plaintive words had also struck a chord in Lawren. She hesitated to break the spell by looking at him but it was he who moved first. He turned off the radio and the road noise filled the space where the music had faded away.
“What was that?” he gasped.
“I think I have heard it in the background once or twice since I’ve been here, but not like that. The words are so powerful. I think my heart stopped for a moment.”
He reached over and grasped her hand bringing it to his chest. “I think mine speeded up incredibly. Those are the words I will promise you, with my whole heart, when we marry.”
“Lawren!” She could say no more. She was overcome with emotion.
He pulled the car off the road at the next side road and they sat there, hand in hand, speechless, as the sounds of nature gradually drifted in through the open window.
Finally, Anna had to retrieve her hand so she could wipe the tears from her cheeks. The moment was right to discuss the wedding. The event which, it was now abundantly clear, they both wished for.
“When should we do it, Lawren, and where?”
“I said it would be your choice Anna, and I haven’t changed my mind; anywhere and anytime will suit me. Your decision is much more complicated, I realize.”
“You are right, of course. There are friends and family who would be hurt if they were not included but those people are on two different sides of the Atlantic. I would hate to exclude Susan and Jake if we had a ceremony here. Fiona and Bev and Jeanette would have to travel to Canada at great expense and inconvenience if we wait until we are back home. I don’t know what to do for the best.”
Lawren heard the dismay in her voice and turned her face to his.
“Listen, my lovely, I won’t have you troubled by this. It’s about us; just the two of us. We can have a simple civil ceremony and host two parties afterward with everyone who wants to, coming to Canada or Scotland, or both, to celebrate with us.”
“Oh, Lawren, that’s a wonderful idea. I really don’t want a lot of fuss. I do want it to be special for us and I could cope with parties much better when we are officially a couple. There are marvelous places here in Scotland from mansions and grand hotels to castles and islands where we could book an event and in London we could use the Elsie Perrin Williams estate or Elmhurst or…………….”
Anna’s eager voice tailed off as she caught sight of her partner’s expression. She took a breath and calmed down.
“I know. I know. You were right. It’s not about all that. I promise to concentrate on what is important. The rest will fall into place when it’s time.”
“Exactly! Now where did you say you wanted to go today, right now?”
“Just drive on! I’ll tell you later. Let’s enjoy this magical day together.”
Lawren obliged and happily turned his attention to the road ahead. They were traveling north on a coastal road with the sea on their left and spectacular views everywhere they looked. They reached a sea loch and soon the town of Fort William came into view. Anna indicated they should carry on and they left the town behind and continued inland until they saw something so remarkable that they agreed to take a break.
Snow was on the tops of the high mountains to their right but in the valley, miles from anywhere, was a most impressive bronze memorial. Three soldiers, in full uniform stood looking out to the mountains. Their courage and determination was evident in every carved line.
Anna and Lawren walked around the base of the monument and read the information. The three men represented thousands of allied British volunteer troops who trained near this spot for warfare during World War II. Those who survived their rigorous training earned the right to wear the green beret and call themselves Commandos. Their motto was United We Conquer.
For the second time that day, Anna was speechless. This reminder of the sacrifices made by soldiers and by extraordinary men and women for the freedoms many take for granted in the 21st century, did not allow for any facile comment. It was a moment to tuck away in the heart.
When they walked back to the car, Lawren asked, “Was that what you wanted to see?”
“Not really. I didn’t know about the monument but I am very glad we saw it together.
We need to find the A 87 now and go a bit further. There’s a special castle I want to see.”
Lawren was happy to oblige. The roads were quiet and although it was turning colder as the afternoon advanced, he was content to be sitting beside Anna and listening as she reminded him about her meeting in Glasgow with her Uncle Ross and the story of how her grandmother had revealed an unknown family history involving Anna’s father Angus, when they visited Eilean Donan.
“I have thought about going there ever since then and as it is one of the most romantic places in Scotland I felt we should go together.”
“Aren’t you just full of the unexpected today!” he murmured.
Anna snuggled into her warm coat and watched the scenery fly by. She was as happy as she had ever felt in her life. The future no longer scared her. The time she and Lawren might have together was not to be measured in decades as an earlier marriage might be, yet it was clear to her that each and every minute would be precious beyond counting. No one could take away what they had shared already. Even if, God forbid, they should decide to part, she would never regret one second of their time.
Lawren shook her awake some time later and gently asked if this might be what she was looking for.
Anna began to apologize for falling asleep and leaving him to navigate on his own but he stopped her with a raised hand and said, “Just look down there.”
Anna blinked several times to clear her vision. She could hardly believe what she was seeing. Below the rise where they were parked lay a stronghold linked to the land by a triple-arched bridge built of the same stone. The rugged castle projected out into the sea on a spit of land and the scene was lit by the low sun of the late afternoon. It was breathtaking.
“That’s it! That’s Eilean Donan! Lawren, thank you! Can we go down the hill and go in?”
“Your wish is my command, my lady!”
They parked and bought tickets in the gift shop where they were cautioned that the castle closed in one hour. Anna looked worried at this news but Lawren pointed out that there were very few cars in the parking lot so the chances were good that they would be able to explore by themselves and get around more quickly.
Hand in hand they crossed the bridge and followed signs to the entrance. Inside there were plaques here and there pointing out interesting facts. The castle was not as old as it looked, having been rebuilt in the 19th century, but there had been a MacRae Clan fortification on the site 800 years ago. Its location at the junction of three lochs gave the castle huge advantage against invaders from the sea.
There were several floors of accommodation reached by spiral stone stairs which had to be negotiated carefully as excess speed caused dizziness. They wandered through banquet halls and four-poster bedrooms and descended below ground level to dungeons. Anna quickly left these areas as she hated the sad, dank, cold atmosphere there.
“Let’s go up to the battlements now. I want to look out at the view.”
Lawren soon figured out she was searching for something in particular and he let her forge ahead just out of his reach but within calling distance. As he ascended to a higher level he saw a dark figure leaning on a guard railing that spanned an arch of stone. The figure was that of an older woman and immediately he had the feeling of regret, despair and longing emanating from her in waves of pain.
Shaken at the impact on his senses, he turned away, unwilling to impose on this private moment. He slipped quietly down to the next level and waited there until Anna finally appeared. She was saying a man had told her the land she could see out in the water was the Isle of Skye and beyond that there was almost no more land until the shores of Newfoundland.
“Did you see the old woman?”
“What old woman?”
“The one who was looking out from the stone arch on the level above.”
“I saw no one there, Lawren, but I heard someone singing the song ‘Speed bonnie boat like a bird on the wing, over the sea to Skye’. My mother used to sing it to Simon and me to lull us to sleep when we were small. I had forgotten it until I heard it again just now.”
Something about Lawren’s posture and the sudden darkness of his golden eyes drew her attention.
“Wait! What did you see? I didn’t tell you where Ross and his mother stood that day. I missed it on the way up. Did you see her? Did you see my grandmother?”
