She made a rude sound. “You said that she took part in all those fantastic Scottish games as a young girl. You showed me how hard she worked at winning them. She even drew the rocks and creeks on the property. I doubt if she’d think that being some rich man’s glorified housekeeper would thrill her.”

“You’re speaking from your own viewpoint.”

Jane looked down at the diary on her lap. “No, I believe I’m speaking from hers. Did her father find that rich match for Fiona?”

MacDuff nodded. “Alastair Graeme. He was a man in his fifties, no title and not considered to be honorable by any means. He hadn’t been a border reiver for years, but he was very, very rich.”

“Reiver?” She was searching her mind for the meaning. Then it came to her. “They were raiders along the Anglo-Scottish border from the thirteenth century to the sixteenth century. So, this Graeme was a thief?”

“His family had been raiders for centuries. The practice had almost ended by the time Graeme inherited. But evidently, he was very accomplished and had a good many enemies. Practically no friends or respectable connections. And that could be why he might have taken Jamie MacDuff up on his offer of an arranged marriage with Fiona. The MacDuffs did have a certain status even then.”

“Friendless? That might also have put Fiona in a bad position. Besides being forced to marry a husband twice her age.”

“But she wasn’t forced to marry him. She was betrothed, but she disappeared a week before the actual vows.”

“Aha.” Jane grinned. “Now, that was the Fiona who won that ribbon. Good for her.”

“Don’t be so happy about it,” he said quietly. “If she did decide to skip out on Alastair, her father would have been furious. I told you he was a son of a bitch. He wouldn’t have tolerated the humiliation. There are all kinds of ways to rid yourself of a disobedient daughter. Perhaps throw her down a deep well? Poison? She might have even been buried in the dungeon at Jamie’s castle. At any rate, he would have hunted her down. She might not have survived.”

Jane’s smile vanished. “Or she might have. We don’t know, do we? I’ll just have to learn more about her.” She looked down at the second journal MacDuff had given her. “What’s in this one?”

“I don’t know. Less than the first one. No memories to ponder over. Addresses, a few names, something that looks like a trunk. Markings that I’ve never been able to decipher. See if you can.”