Chapters (76)
- Cover
- About the Author
- Also by Karen Brooks
- Title Page
- Dedication
- EXPLANATORY NOTE
- PART ONE
- One
- Two
- Three
- Four
- Five
- Six
- Seven
- Eight
- Nine
- Ten
- Eleven
- Twelve
- Thirteen
- Fourteen
- Fifteen
- Sixteen
- Seventeen
- Eighteen
- Nineteen
- Twenty
- Twenty-One
- Twenty-Two
- Twenty-Three
- Twenty-Four
- Twenty-Five
- Twenty-Six
- Twenty-Seven
- Twenty-Eight
- PART TWO
- Twenty-Nine
- Thirty
- Thirty-One
- Thirty-Two
- Thirty-Three
- Thirty-Four
- Thirty-Five
- PART THREE
- Thirty-Six
- Thirty-Seven
- Thirty-Eight
- Thirty-Nine
- Forty
- Forty-One
- Forty-Two
- Forty-Three
- Forty-Four
- Forty-Five
- Forty-Six
- Forty-Seven
- Forty-Eight
- Forty-Nine
- Fifty
- Fifty-One
- Fifty-Two
- PART FOUR
- Fifty-Three
- Fifty-Four
- Fifty-Five
- Fifty-Six
- Fifty-Seven
- Fifty-Eight
- Fifty-Nine
- Sixty
- Sixty-One
- Epilogue: Autumn 1706
- AUTHOR’S NOTE
- GLOSSARY
- LIST OF CHARACTERS
- ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
For all she was trying to keep up a brave front, Beatrix was badly shaken. The men had come upon her in the High Street and before she could object, marched her to the Mortons.
‘They waited until William was away in the city, didn’t they? Not one word of explanation was I given. Just carted away like a common criminal,’ she grumbled. ‘They took my basket and all.’ She clasped it tightly to her chest lest someone snatch it away again.
‘What happened once you were at the Mortons?’ asked Nettie, prising the basket away from her and placing a mug of tea in her hands.
Beatrix stared at her drink for so long, the steam wavering before her face, Sorcha thought she must have forgotten the question. ‘I was taken into the main room,’ she said finally. ‘It was full of folk I knew, like it was my wake or something. There were the older of the Cowper children — the lads only, you ken. There were the bailies, and other important folk — MacDougall was there, MacDonald and Frost, the nosy bastard. There were so many I knew… Or thought I did.’ She took a deep breath. ‘The reverend was there as well.’ Her eyes narrowed and she folded her top lip over her bottom one. Thinking. ‘He didn’t say anything at first.’ She chewed her lips for a full minute. No one dared interrupt. ‘Then, in front of all these men, the bailies began to question me.’
‘What about?’ asked Sorcha softly, though she knew.
‘The bucket with the coal in it. They wanted to know if I set it at the smithy door.’
The women waited.
‘What did you tell them?’ asked Sorcha eventually.
‘That I did.’
Sorcha’s heart lurched.
‘And?’ prompted Nettie. ‘What did they say to that?’
‘Say? They wanted to know why I put it there.’
‘What did you answer?’
‘Naught. I said naught. Well, that’s not exactly true. What I said was, I’d no reason for doing it except a fancy to be putting my bucket there and placing a coal in it.’ She raised her chin and grinned at them before taking a slurp of her tea.
Unable to find any humour in the situation, Sorcha sat very still. Nicolas clicked her tongue and folded her arms, shaking her head. Katherine looked grim.
‘What?’ said Beatrix. ‘What did you expect me to say? I knew what they wanted. They wanted me to own that I put it there to charm the lad.’
‘Didn’t you?’ asked Katherine crossly.
‘Aye, but not so he sickened. The charm isn’t supposed to work like that. I had no part in that. That was something else altogether.’
Before anyone could respond, there was a pounding on the door.
They froze.