Besieged

Chapter 7

Midsummer's Eve on June twenty-first marked the halfway point in the growing season between May Day and Lammas-tide on August first. In Ulster this year it dawned unusually sunny. Kieran Devers rode that day from Erne Rock to Mallow Court to make certain his father's estate was being managed properly in his absence. He was very surprised to find his sister, Lady Colleen Kelly, in residence.

"When did you get here?" he asked her, giving her a kiss.

"Mama wrote from England that I should come and check on you," she told him with a smile. "Where have you been, Kieran? I have been here three days already, and the servants were most mysterious." She was a pretty young woman with black hair like her brother's, and fine blue eyes. "Mama is still smarting over the fact that Willy was turned down by Lady Lindley, and yet she is already planning his wedding to Emily Anne. She says he is coming around, which of course means she has finally badgered him into submission." Colleen laughed. Then she said, "Was Lady Lindley really as awful as Mama says she is?"

"Fortune Lindley is independent, headstrong, intelligent, clever, and beautiful," he replied. "She would have made Willy absolutely miserable, for he would have found himself torn between her and his mother. She was wise enough to see it, and so she sent him away, albeit gently for she is not unkind."

"You seem to know her well, big brother," Colleen Kelly said softly, her blue eyes curious.

"I'm going to marry her, Colleen," came the surprising reply.

"Oh, Kieran," his sister said breathily, her hand flying to her heart with surprise.

He put an arm about her shoulders. "I know, Colleen, I know. Fortune and I have done the unthinkable. We have fallen in love. We will not be forgiven by Lady Jane, or Willy, for our recklessness, but there it is. It is impossible to control the direction of the heart as I have found much to my surprise." He smiled at her wryly.

"Mama has had her eye on Maguire's Ford ever since she learned from the Reverend Steen it was owned by a duchess with an eligible daughter. For you to steal that girl from under her nose is an insult she will never forgive, Kieran," his sister warned him.

"Once she met Fortune she didn't even like her, and did all in her power to remove Willy from the girl's influence," he replied.

"But for you to acquire Maguire's Ford, which is so much bigger, and more prosperous than Mallow Court, after Willy has been sent down by this heiress is a terrible affront. You know it as well as I, big brother. If Mama would not allow you to inherit Da's holding one day unless you became a Protestant, do you really think she will be content to sit by while you snap up a larger and richer estate from under her nose?"

"Maguire's Ford does not belong to Fortune," Kieran told his younger sister. "It belongs to her mother, the duchess of Glenkirk. It was only to be Fortune's if she married a Protestant. Lady Leslie is no fool, Colleen. Fortune and I will go to England, and from there we will probably go to the New World. Neither of us has ever felt at home in any place we have lived."

"Why can you not simply become a Protestant? Just think if your Fortune managed to bring you to our church how frustrating it would be for Mama after all her years of trying," Colleen chuckled.

"You know why I will not convert," he said quietly.

"Kieran, our mother has been dead these twenty-seven years. You have made your point. I hate it that you will have to leave Ireland! We will never see you again. If you did not have that tiny miniature of our mother you would not even remember what she looked like," Colleen told him desperately.

"She looked like you, Colleen," he replied with devastating effect. "She was fair with her blue eyes, and raven's wing hair, and she was but twenty years old when she died birthing you. I do not blame you for what happened, Colleen. You were only two when Da remarried. I do not blame Moire, for she didn't want to be cut out of Da's life. As for me, I made my decision long ago. I see no reason to change it."

"But you aren't even particularly devout, or prayerful," his sister noted. "Why you even care is beyond me."

"Come with me over to Erne Rock Castle, and meet Fortune," her brother said. "The Leslies are very hospitable folk."

"Nay," Colleen said, shaking her head vigorously. "If I go I shall have to tell Mama I knew what you were up to, and I don't want to do that, Kieran. You recall our mother, but remember that Lady Jane is the only mother I have ever known. She made no distinction between me, or Mary, or the children she bore our father. And even when I disappointed her by marrying an Irish Protestant rather than an English one, she never deserted me. Even Mary loves her. You were the only one of Da's offspring who could not get on with her, Kieran."

"You'll be going back home," he wheedled her, "and not see our dear stepmother until Willy's wedding to Emily Anne. By then it will be known that Fortune and I are to be wed. Our stepmother will be so torn between her joy over getting Emily Anne as a daughter-in-law, and her outrage at my own marriage, she won't think to wonder if you met the Leslies while you were here in Ulster checking up on me. She will assume I slyly kept it from you because you would certainly have told her had you known. You've always been so good, Colleen; our stepmother would never suspect you of a subterfuge." He grinned mischievously at his younger sister, then grew serious again. "It will probably be the last time we see each other, Colleen, and the only opportunity you will have to meet Fortune. I want you to know the girl who is to be my wife. You are my favorite sister, and our true mam's last gift to her family."

"Damn you, Kieran," she said, tears in her eyes. "You have the tongue of the devil himself. Very well, I will come and meet your lass, and then I shall flee south to my own home. Mama will be home shortly after Lammastide for Willy's wedding which is planned for Michaelmas."

"I need a few hours to go over the estate books for Da," he told her. "I'll remain the night, and then tomorrow we'll ride over to Maguire's Ford."

"I'll have to pretend I'm departing for home," Colleen said. "I don't want Mama's servants gossiping when she returns, and they will. It doesn't matter to you, I know, but it does to me, Kieran."

"Aye," he replied. "I really do understand, Colleen, but I wanted you, of all my siblings, to know that Fortune is not the terrible creature Lady Jane claims she is."

"God's blood, Kieran," his sister swore softly. "You're in love! Really in love! I would have never thought it of you."

"Catholics fall in love, too," he remarked dryly.

She laughed. "Now, big brother, do not paint me with the same brush you do Mama. I am not that close-minded thanks to you."

He chuckled. "If Lady Jane ever knew that you occasionally attended the mass with me she would have disowned you entirely. And worse, you met our half-sisters, and Da's kind Molly. I knew I could trust you. Not Moire, for she would have never done anything to earn our stepmother's disapproval, but you had a bit of an adventurous spirit unlike the others."

"It's a wonder I wasn't caught. I almost was when Bessie was eight. She got very curious about where you and I used to roam. I told her we were searching for a leprechaun and his gold. She was so like Mama, and made fun of me for believing in such things, but it quelled her curiosity. Not Mary, however. She followed us one day when we went to visit Molly and the girls. When I got back she threatened to tell Mama. She was so mean! I said if she did, you would put an Irish curse on her, and she would grow a wart on the very tip of her nose so she could never find a husband. She scoffed at me, but she was afraid, I know, for she never told Mama."

"So that is why you never went back to Molly's," he said.

Colleen nodded. "I thought it better I didn't. Mary was never certain if the visit she spied upon was a one time thing, or not. It was better that way."

That evening brother and sister watched as the bonfires were lit upon the hills in honor of Midsummer's Eve. There would be dancing and feasting in the nearby villages. Kieran gave his permission for the servants to celebrate if they chose to do so. Without the presence of Lady Jane, or her disapproval, the house was emptied by late afternoon. A cold supper had been left for the siblings in the larder. Colleen had instructed her coachman and her maid that they would be returning south the following day, and she should like to leave as early as possible.

In the morning they departed Mallow Court, but no sooner were they out upon the high road than Colleen signaled her coachman to stop. Exiting her carriage she untied her mare from the rear of the vehicle, mounted it, and said to her driver, "I have a stop to make before we go south, Joseph. Just follow along after my brother and me."

By midafternoon they were within sight of Maguire's Ford. Fortune came to meet them, riding her great gray gelding, her red hair flying as she galloped across the hills to greet them. They stopped to await her as Fortune drew Thunder to a halt.

"If this is your wife, and you've lied to me, Kieran Devers, I'll cut your black heart out!" she said to him, grinning.

" 'Tis my sister, Colleen, and I've brought her to meet you so at least someone in my family could defend your reputation. Now, however, you bad-tempered wench, you've disgraced youself," he teased her back.

Fortune's blue-green eyes swung to meet Lady Colleen Kelly's gaze. "You're Mary Maguire's last child," she said. "Welcome to Maguire's Ford, m'lady. You'll remain a few days?"

"I think I will," Colleen heard herself reply.

"Good!" Fortune responded. "Come on, you two, and I'll race you home. I hope you're better at racing than your brother. He always whines, and cries foul when he loses, which is more often than not."

"I never whine," Colleen said, and kicking her mare she raced off down the road away from them.

With a delighted whoop Fortune followed her. Shaking his head Kieran dashed after the two young women, catching up to them only when he arrived in the courtyard of Erne Rock castle where they stood, already dismounted, laughing madly, their arms about each other.

"I suspected you were two of a kind," he said, sliding from his saddle.

"Come into the house," Fortune said, linking her arm with Colleen's. "My parents will be delighted to meet you."

Jasmine and James Leslie were in the hall of Erne Rock. She seated by the fire, and he standing next to the stone mantel. Introductions were made, but Fortune suddenly realized that her parents seemed rather subdued and perhaps even a bit distracted.

"What is wrong?" she asked. "Is everything all right?"

"Your mother has some rather startling news," the duke said, putting a hand upon Jasmine's shoulder, and giving it a small squeeze.

"Mama?" Fortune's beautiful face was concerned, and she knelt by her mother's side.

"Perhaps this is not a good time for uninvited guests," Colleen said.

"Nay, my dear, you are more than welcome," Jasmine said. "It is just that I have gotten a bit of a surprise today. It seems that I am going to have a baby."

"What?" The color drained from Fortune's face. "Mama! It cannot be! You are much too old to have another baby!"

Jasmine laughed, and patted her daughter's cheek. " 'Tis exactly what I thought, poppet, but it would seem I am not too old after all."

"And I am certainly not too old," James Leslie replied.

Fortune blushed, clearly embarrassed by her parents' behavior, and yet the thought of another baby was rather nice. It would keep Mama and Papa from missing her too much when she and Kieran went away. "When is this baby to arrive?" she asked her parent.

"Sometime in November," Jasmine said.

"Madame, you have my warmest felicitations," Colleen said. "I have three of my own."

"How can you be certain?" Fortune asked.

"I am certain because I have borne eight children previously," Jasmine said, "although I will admit when my moon link broke, I thought it was the autumn of my years come upon me. But then I noticed…" She stopped. "I do not think this is a conversation for mixed company, poppet. Let us just say I am certain, and Bride Murphy, who acts as the village midwife, has confirmed my suspicions."

"Then we must go back to Glenkirk right away," Fortune said.

Jasmine shook her head. "Nay. Bride has advised me against traveling because of my age. This baby will be born here as you were. I have already sent home for Adam and Duncan to come so the people of the estate can learn to know them even sooner. Your brother, Patrick, will have to remain at Glenkirk on his own. I have sent down to Edinburgh for Uncle Adam and Aunt Fiona Leslie to come and watch over him. He enjoys their company, and will not feel quite so bereft of his family with them there. I know Adam and Fiona have grown quite bored with the city in recent years. I believe they will welcome the chance to return to Glenkirk. So, my dears, we must settle ourselves in for a bit of a stay here," Jasmine concluded.

"Then Kieran and I must wed immediately," Fortune said. "Colleen tells me the Deverses will return from England by Lammastide. Will is to marry his cousin Emily Anne at Michaelmas."

"Then you most certainly cannot be wed to Kieran until after his brother has married, Fortune," James Leslie said firmly. "The Deverses will not be pleased by what has transpired while they were away. If they return to find you married to Kieran it will make bad blood between the people of Maguire's Ford and the people of Lisnaskea. William Devers asked you to marry him, and you turned him down. Nicely, but it was still a refusal. If you and Kieran publicly declare yourselves, and wed before William marries his cousin, it will be an even greater insult. You know you have our permission to wed Kieran. All we ask is that you wait until after Michaelmas, and William's nuptials."

"I agree with you, my lord," Kieran Devers said quickly, forestalling any vocal outburst by Fortune, to whom he now turned. "Your father is right, sweetheart. I love my father, and my brother. I don't want a feud between us over our decision."

"But they will be offended anyway," Fortune reasoned.

"But their offense will be less since Willy married first," Colleen interjected. "My stepmother will fume, I guarantee you, but with Willy wed she will be able to put a far better face on the situation than if she returned to find you and Kieran a fait accompli. What worries me is her desire to possess Maguire's Ford which she had hoped to gain when Willy married Fortune." Colleen turned to the duchess. "Kieran says the estate is yours, my lady. Is it so? Please understand that while I love my stepmother, and would not be disloyal to her, I love my older brother too. Lady Jane is acquisitive. She will not like the idea that Kieran will have this place through marriage to your daughter who spurned her son."

"Kieran will not gain Maguire's Ford," Jasmine said quietly. "My two younger Leslie sons have been raised Protestants. Being the younger in our family, they have nothing to recommend them but their good name. My eldest son is the marquess of Westleigh. My second son, the duke of Lundy. My third son will one day inherit his father's dukedom. Only Adam and Duncan are titleless, and landless. They can well live without the former, but it is difficult to live without the latter. I shall divide Maguire's Ford equally between them. To steal this estate away from me on any grounds would require a great deal of influence at court. I do not believe your stepmother has that particular resource, but I do."

"But then where will Kieran and Fortune go, especially given his intransigence regarding the matter of religion?" Colleen wondered. "He has said something to me about the New World."

"Aye. Sir George Calvert is attempting to found a colony in the New World based on the principles of religious freedom. He is a Catholic himself, well-liked, and well respected. The king is very fond of him. If anyone can succeed in such an endeavor, he can. I believe there is a place for Fortune and your brother in his colony. When we return to England we will see what progress he has made. In the meantime I shall write to my son, Charlie, who is at court. He will obtain whatever information I need. Do not worry about Kieran, my dear. There is a safe harbor for him, and for Fortune. Now, however, we must make a berth for you. Our guest chambers are small, but very comfortable. I'm certain Adali has already shown your maidservant where you will lay your pretty head." She smiled at Colleen.

"You are most gracious, my lady," the younger woman said, curtsying. "I am so glad that Kieran insisted I come to Erne Rock to meet Fortune, and her family. My mind is at peace now knowing my brother will be safe."

Lady Colleen Kelly did not depart Erne Rock for several days despite her good intentions to do so. She found she liked the duke and his wife. Fortune frankly delighted her, despite her outspoken ways. She could well understand why her stepmother had not taken to the girl, but she could also see that while Fortune had been the wrong lass for Willy, she was absolutely the right girl for Kieran. Lady Jane lived a rather insular life in Lisnaskea, Colleen realized, for she herself had been gone for several years, and knew that in Dublin Fortune Lindley would have been much appreciated for her wit, her beauty, and her intellect. Her older brother and Fortune were a perfect match although she knew that their marriage would bring trouble for them. Her stepmother would find some way to exact revenge.

"Have you chosen a wedding day?" she asked the couple the night before she was to finally leave for her own home. Kieran looked to Fortune.

"A few days after William is wed," Fortune said. "When Lady Jane learns we are remaining here at Maguire's Ford for the next few months, she will have no choice but to invite my family to the wedding, for to exclude us would be a dreadful faux pas as my parents are of high rank, and friends of the king. And we will have no choice but to go, lest we appear to either be snubbing the Deverses, or our absence give rumor to the lie that it is Will who turned me away in favor of his cousin, Mistress Elliot. Such a thing would be unthinkable."

"Mama would like that," Colleen said candidly. "When will you tell the family of your own plans?"

Fortune's brow grew troubled. "I do not know," she said. "I am frankly at a loss how to broach it. I do not want to spoil your younger brother's wedding day, and I fear such knowledge would."

Colleen nodded. "Kieran will have to go back to Mallow Court," she said. "If he remains here at Erne Rock there will be no stopping the gossip. It will certainly come to my parents' ears when they return. Mama's servants love Kieran, but now that he is not the heir, they are loyaler to my stepmother and Willy, mindful of their own futures. I cannot blame them."

"Lady Kelly is absolutely right," the duke of Glenkirk said. He put a comforting arm about Fortune. "I know you love each other, poppet, but until the day you are wed, you and Kieran must be separated. The Deverses will be angry enough when they learn of this turn of events. However, Sir Shane is a reasonable man. I shall be able to make our peace wi him, but his wife, and her son will be mortally offended. There will be nae forgiveness there, poppet. If I am nae mistaken, they will go out of their way to make difficulties."

"But Lady Jane is getting what she always wanted. Will will wed his cousin, Mistress Elliot," Fortune said despairingly.

" 'Twas not you Mama wanted for Willy, Fortune," Colleen said. " 'Twas your rich estate. She thought she could stifle her disappointment over her niece, and accept you as a daughter-in-law because you would bring her son Maguire's Ford, and Erne Rock castle. But once she met you, saw how beautiful you were, how willful, and determined you were to run your own life, she knew she could not bear you, for you would have taken Willy away from her, which is something that poor Emily Anne will never do."

"How astute you are," the duchess said quietly.

"Please, do not think me disloyal, madame," Colleen replied. "I love all my family, and would have them happy. Mama cannot help herself. She is ambitious for all her children. Using some of the inheritance her father left her she arranged marriages for my sisters, Mary, and Bessie, with minor lordlings in England. She was very proud of those matches. Only the fact that my Hugh's mother is English placated her and enabled her to give her consent to my marriage. She doesn't really like the Irish even if she is the wife of an Irishman. She means no harm. She has done her best to be a good wife to Papa, and a good mother to all of his children. Only Kieran escaped her vigilance, but because he has been so amenable about Willy being made Papa's heir, she is willing to tolerate what she refers to as his impossible behavior. Every family, she says, has at least one bad penny."

"Kieran isn't a bad penny," Fortune said indignantly. "He is a man of strong principles."

"Unfortunately my principles are not those of my stepmother," Kieran Devers said with a wry grin.

Colleen laughed. "Nay, they are not, brother."

In the morning, Lady Kelly departed Erne Rock Castle for her home outside of Dublin. "I may offend Mama, madame," she told Jasmine, "but if Kieran's wedding to your daughter is shortly after our brother Willy's wedding, then I would be there to see it. Will you write, and let me know what date they have chosen? If I am not mistaken, Papa will be there with me. He says nothing for he does love Mama, but he loves Kieran too, even though my older brother's intransigence hurts him deeply."

"I will write," Jasmine promised.

Lady Kelly's coach moved out of the courtyard and across the little drawbridge. Kieran and Fortune rode alongside of the vehicle as far as the Dublin road. There the coach stopped for a minute while brother and sister bid each other a tender farewell, and Fortune kissed Colleen's cheek lovingly. Then the carriage rumbled away, Kieran and Fortune waving after it until it was out of sight around a bend.

The late June morning was cloudy and warmish. It was obvious that a storm would threaten by late afternoon. They rode a ways without speaking, heading for their favorite place, the ruins of the hall of Black Colm Maguire. Fortune had asked Rory about it after the first time she and Kieran had sheltered there. Black Colm had been so called not for his dark hair, but his black heart. When he carried off the wife of his chieftain, and raped her, his enraged relations had finally had enough of him. They had stormed Black Colm's hall one moonless night. He had disappeared, however, gone to his master, the devil, so it was said. He was never seen again. His unfortunate victim was rescued and brought back to her home, but never again did she speak a word to anyone to her husband's sorrow. Black Colm's hall was pulled down and razed.

" 'Tis an unhappy place," Rory said, but Fortune did not find it so, for it was here she and Kieran might be alone, free from spying eyes. To her the ruined hall was a place of happiness. The summer rain came suddenly with a small rumble of thunder. It poured down in sheets, obscuring the lough, and the hills beyond. The horses huddled beneath a wide stone arch, almost dry. Nearby Fortune and Kieran sat within their sheltered alcove, arms about each other.

"We should choose a wedding day before you leave me," she said.

"You need but tell me, sweetheart" he replied, "and I will be there." He kissed the top of her red head, his arm tightening about her.

She snuggled against him, rubbing her cheek against the leather of his doublet. "October," she said. "As soon as possible after Willy marries his cousin. October fifth?" She looked questioningly up at him.

"It sounds as good a day as any, my love." He brushed his lips against hers softly. "Sweet, sweet," he murmured low.

"Kieran, I cannot bear it that you are to leave me," Fortune whispered. "I am behaving like a child, I know, yet the thought of not seeing you every day is hard." Her hand cupped his dark head, and drew him to her so she might kiss him softly.

"It is not forever, my love," he soothed her, nibbling on her lower lip. She was so damned exciting in her innocence.

"Could we not meet here where there is no one to see us?" she cajoled him sweetly, her tongue sweeping around his lips.

"The family is due back at Lammastide, and that is just a little over a month away, Fortune. Once they return it will be difficult for me to disappear too often without rousing suspicion. When my dear stepmother orchestrates a family celebration, we are all pressed into her service, and expected to be at her immediate beck and call. Willy's wedding will be the triumph of her life to date, for he is the heir to Mallow Court. If poor Emily Anne thinks it is to be her day as the blushing bride, she will find herself sadly mistaken, and overshadowed by her mother-in-law," Kieran chuckled. "We can meet here several times a week until the preparations begin. After that I cannot say when I will see you, sweetheart."

For a long moment Fortune felt overwhelmed with her disappointment, but then she laughed. "I suppose I will be so busy preparing for our own wedding that I will not miss you at all. Well," she amended, "almost not at all. Won't they be surprised when we marry just a week after Will and his Emily?" Her eyes danced wickedly.

"Shocked is more like it," he said with a grin. "You don't want to give them any warning?"

"Nay, Kieran! There is simply no good time to tell your family. 'Twould but spoil Will's wedding, and cause such an uproar that we would be the focus of everyone's attention, and I do not think that would please Lady Jane. Besides, while I dislike your stepmother, I do like Will, and would not deliberately cause his unhappiness."

"Our marriage will not please my stepmother," he said.

"Nay, it will absolutely not, but then it is not really her concern, is it?" Fortune said with complete logic. "You are not her son, and she has, in her bigotry, done you a great disservice, stealing your inheritance from you for her son. I hold no sympathy for Lady Jane."

"You are so strong and so fierce," he said, wrapping her in his embrace, and kissing her hard so that her lips felt almost bruised.

"Make love to me, Kieran," Fortune murmured into his ear. She tickled it with the pointed end of her tongue, and breathed softly into the whorl of it even as she moved her body provocatively against his. "You want me, Kieran. I know that you do." She slid a hand up to caress the back of his neck, entwining her fingers through the thick dark hair at the nape. It felt silken yet rough to her touch.

"You're a wicked wench," he told her through gritted teeth. He could feel his male member beginning to stir with serious interest.

In response Fortune took her other hand, slipped the buttons on her doeskin doublet, and unlaced her shirt front. She smiled as, unable to help himself, he slid his hand into her blouse and cupped her breast within it. "Ummmmm," she murmured as he fondled her. "Ohhh!" she squealed as he teased at her nipple, pinching it lightly.

He backed her hard against the stone wall of the alcove. "You mustn't tease me, Fortune. You don't know what you are doing," he told her. He was beginning to throb with his need for her.

Her head was spinning with the nearness of him. "Yes, I do know exactly what I am doing, Kieran," she told him breathlessly. "I am tired of being a virgin! Make love to me!"

"No," he said. "You will come to me on our wedding night a proper virgin, Fortune, but since you are so damned curious I will offer you a small lesson in passion. I wonder if you are brave enough to manage it." Then before she might answer he pulled off her doublet and her shirt, baring her to the waist. "Ahhh," he breathed. "How lovely you are, sweetheart." His big hands encircled her waist, and he lifted her up onto the stone bench where he might view her at his leisure.

Fortune was surprised at first, but then she smiled very seductively down into his handsome face, and loosening her belt she pulled her breeches down, letting them fall to her calves where her boot tops stopped them. "Just how brave are you, sir?" she asked him.

"Jesu," he groaned, seeing her, for all intents and purposes, naked. Her skin was pale and flawless. Her Venus mont was hairless. He had heard that great ladies denuded themselves in this manner but he had never seen such a sight before. His country lovers had sported curls where her mound was pink and smooth. Her cleft was mauve shadowed, a long tempting slash that seemed to beckon him to his destruction. "Cover yourself," he begged her. "You are too beautiful, Fortune." He could not restrain himself. His hands reached up and caressed her.

With a deep sigh of pleasure Fortune closed her eyes, not in the least afraid when he cupped her buttocks in his palms, drawing her near so that his face pressed into her soft belly. She gasped softly as he covered her flesh with little kisses. Then his hands slid upwards to grasp her breasts in a hard embrace. Her body arced itself, pressing harder against his face, feeling the sandy roughness of his cheek against her.

Kieran Devers was shaken to the core of his very being by her beauty, and her obvious willingness to give herself to him without reservation. His manhood was iron hard now. Why not? he thought to himself. Where was the harm in it? They were to be wed soon. Then his conscience began to niggle at him. Aye, they were to be wed, but he held Fortune in the deepest love and respect. What if he got her with child? What if, God forbid! he were killed in an accident, and their child was born a bastard? She was not her mother, a royal Mughal princess, nor was he a Stuart prince whose bastard child had been welcomed as if he were every bit as legitimate as that prince himself. He felt himself begin to tremble as he reached the outer edge of sanity, and restraint. With a groan he pulled her breeches up, and buckled her belt. "Clothe yourself," he growled angrily at her.

"What is the matter?" Fortune asked him. "How have I displeased you, Kieran, that you do not want me?"

"Put your shirt on, and we will talk," he said harshly, turning away from her as he saw the tears in her eyes.

Confused, and burning with feelings she had never felt before, and certainly didn't understand, Fortune picked up her silk shirt, and pulling it over her head, tied it. Her doublet followed, and she buttoned it up. "I am dressed now," she said, still standing upon the bench.

He turned, lifting her down, and enfolded her tightly in his arms. "I love you," he said. "When I take your virginity, I want it to be in our marriage bed. I want the leisure to caress and admire your loveliness. To kiss you long and sweet kisses, not just on your lips, but all over your fair body, Fortune. If anything should happen to me before we said our marriage vows, and you were with child, our child, a child created from our love for each other; our innocent offspring would be considered bastardborn, shunned. I will not do that to you, Fortune. I will not do that to our child. Do you understand?"

She nodded her head against his chest, then said, "But I long for you so much, Kieran. My body aches with its need for the unknown."

"As mine burns for you, and the thousand pleasures that will come when we are joined together, sweetheart," he told her. "I see now it is better that we be separated else our passions overcome us."

"But we will continue to meet here?" she begged him. "At least until Lammastide?"

"We Celts in Ireland call it Lugnasadh," he told her. "It is a harvest festival, but in ancient times it was the yearly celebration of the many-skilled god, Lugh."

"You know the ancient stories, don't you?" Fortune said. "And yet you claim to have no place here in Ireland. Are you certain, Kieran?"

He smiled down at her. "I like the old history, and the old tales, sweetheart, but it does not mean I feel at home here. Nay, my sweet Fortune, our future together is somewhere else. Perhaps in that new colony your mother's acquaintance, Lord Baltimore, seeks to found. I like the idea of starting afresh in a new place where we will be accepted for ourselves, and not judged by others."

"There will always be those who judge," Fortune replied cynically.

He laughed. "You are so innocent on one hand, yet on the other you are very worldly, my love."

"I have had a rather eclectic upbringing," Fortune said dryly. "Whenever Mama went to court we were left behind at Queen's Malvern with her grandparents. It was, frankly, my favorite place, for Madame Skye was so interesting, and so knowledgeable. We were very small then. I was just four and a half when my greatgrandfather de Marisco died. After that Madame Skye was never quite the same, although she never stopped loving us, or involving herself in our lives. I have lived in France, and in Scotland. I saw the proxy marriage of King Charles in Paris. I have never been bored, Kieran. I look forward to finding this new place with you, for although I have never thought myself adventurous, and I wish only for a good marriage, there is something in me that longs to leave this old world and see the new. I have always been considered practical. Yet of late I have discovered that I am, perhaps, a bit more like the women in my family than I had previously believed. I have never really wanted to be like them. They are too impossible, and wildly passionate to the point of disaster."

He burst out laughing. "And you do not consider removing your clothing before a man in a stone ruin in a driving rainstorm impossible, or wildly passionate?"

"But I wanted you to make love to me," she wailed. "I don't really know what lovemaking is all about, and yet I know I must do it, or die of this terrible longing that has engulfed me," she told him.

He hugged her hard. "I adore you, Fortune Lindley. You are mad, and marvelous! I never thought to find a girl like you, but now that I have I shall not let you go!"

Fortune sighed happily. "I don't care where we go, Kieran, as long as we are together," she told him.

"Go home, you adorable temptress. I will be here at this same time in three days," he said. "If my family is due home at the beginning of August, there will shortly be a message from England for me. My stepmother is extremely organized. If Willy is to be married on September twenty-ninth, she will already have certain instructions for the staff; and she will want me to be her liaison between the Deverses and the Elliots before her return. Poor Willy! His whole life is now quite neatly mapped out."

"Your brother will be happy that way," Fortune replied. "He does not appear to me to be a venturesome lad. That's why I was so certain that he would suit me. Then I discovered I wasn't a demure and retiring girl after all."

He chuckled. "Demure is not a word I would use to describe you, Fortune. Wild and willful is more like it." He ducked the blow she aimed at his head. "Come on, lass, and up on your great Thunder. I've a longer ride than you to get home." He caught her gelding, and helped her to mount.

"I'll be glad when home is the same resting place for us both," she told him softly. She had almost succeeded in seducing him today. She intended trying again. She knew her mother had some concoction she took that had been handed down from generation to generation that prevented conception. She didn't want to wait until October to feel his hard body on hers, loving her as she had never been loved before. She wanted him now, not later!

"Three days from now, sweeting," he told her, wondering what that light of battle in her eye had been about. He took her gloved hand in his, and kissed it, then smacked Thunder's rump hard. The gelding bolted off, Fortune clinging to his back like a burr. He smiled watching her go, his wild and willful lass. She had almost tempted him beyond perdition today, but he would not allow it to happen again. He was older, and the responsibility for her reputation rested in his hands. He loved her too much to fail her.

Chapter 8

“What is it that Mama uses when she wants to prevent babies?" Fortune inquired of her mother's serving woman, Rohana. Then she giggled. "She obviously hasn't been using it lately, or she would not be with child again."

Rohana's dark eyes were expressionless as she carefully folded her mistress's newly laundered chemises. "Your mother thought herself past the time of bearing new life, child," she replied, and closed the storage chest. "As for your question, it is not for me to answer you. Ask your mama, but I am sure she will tell you before you wed with Master Kieran."

Fortune stamped her foot. "Damn it, Rohana, you know! Why will you not tell me?"

"For the very reason you will not ask your mother," was the sharp reply. "You are a grandchild of the Mughal, and your blood runs hot, Fortune. You seek to seduce your beloved, and escape any of the consequences of your bad actions. I will not help you."

Fortune shrugged. "It matters not. I shall have him when I want him anyhow," she said petulantly.

"What is the matter?" Rohana demanded. "You have always been the one child my lady did not have to worry over. What has made you turn into such a heedless and willful girl?"

Fortune sighed. "I know, I know," she said. "I do not understand it myself, Rohana. I am the sensible and practical one, but I do not want to be either of those things any longer. I just want to be with Kieran. What has happened to me?"

"Love," Rohana replied sanguinely, her dark eyes suddenly alight with comprehension. "You are in love, child. It tends to make the women of your family reckless. Still, it is now the month of July, and you will be wed in three more months' time. Be patient."

"But what if what I want is a disappointment to me when I finally obtain it?" Fortune worried.

Rohana laughed. "It will not be, and certainly not with that great, handsome, dark, and glowering Celt who has stolen your heart, my child. A word of warning to you. If the cow should give away her cream to a prospective purchaser, and he decide he does not like it, then perhaps he will not want the cow, eh? Master Kieran is a man in every sense as several of the girls in this village will attest to, Fortune. You are but an inexperienced virgin. Save yourself until you have his ring on your finger else he lose interest."

"I had not thought of it that way," Fortune considered. "I have allowed my passions to overwhelm me, and am behaving foolishly. You are right, Rohana. Best his ring is on my finger, and my ring in his nose before I give myself to Kieran Devers."

Rohana chuckled. "Aye," she agreed. "Tease him if you will to keep his interest up, and to keep him eager, but wait until your wedding night to let him get between your legs, child."

"How can you know so much, and you still considered a maiden?" Fortune wondered.

"Amaiden? At my age?" Rohana snorted. "I know because I have in my day had my little adventures. I know because I have a married sister. I know because I have been your mother's servant since she was born. I know."

"Why have you never wed?" Fortune asked her.

"Because I never wanted to marry," Rohana answered. "I like the freedom I have being a maiden. I like serving your mother. This makes me happy, Fortune, and every woman has the right to be happy." She put a loving arm about the girl. "Now, child, no more questions, and promise me that you will cultivate your patience, and behave yourself."

Fortune nodded. "Will you tell Mama?"

"Nay. I know I can trust you, and that this conversation was just between us. Do not disappoint me, child," Rohana said softly.

"It won't be easy," Fortune admitted.

"I know," came the sympathetic reply.

The next few weeks seemed to pass quickly. Fortune spent most her time out of doors riding Thunder. She saw Kieran but briefly now and again. Her appetite ceased. She was restless at night, and sleep, when it did come, was unsettled, and filled with confusing dreams that she could only just vaguely recall when morning came, but she could never really remember what she had dreamed. Toward the end of July Kieran and Fortune met at Black Colm's Hall.

"This will be the last time we see each other for awhile," he told her. "My brother will be home on the first. My dear stepmother is, as always, prompt and efficient. The Elliots will arrive from Londonderry on the fifth to finalize the marriage agreement, and the wedding plans. It will be impossible for me to get away, sweetheart. Every moment of my day will be taken up by my father and his wife in pursuit of the perfect wedding day for Willy and his cousin. I'll try and come if I can get away, but I'll be unable to send word. If you are not here, I will leave a message for you beneath our bench, held down with a large rock. You do the same."

Fortune nodded bleakly. Weeping and bemoaning this turn of events wouldn't change anything. "It will be hard, Kieran," she said.

He took her in his arms, holding her against him. "I know." He kissed her lips softly. "You have not attempted to seduce me in our last meetings, Fortune. Do you yet love me, or have you had a change of heart?"

"Do you think me that fickle then?" she demanded half-angrily. "And what do you mean I haven't tried to seduce you? When did I ever attempt to seduce you, Kieran Devers? It is said that women are vain, but I think it is you men who are filled with conceit!"

He laughed wickedly. "If I offered to make love to you now, this very minute, what would you say, sweetheart?" he teased her.

"I would say you are a pompous ass!" Fortune snapped at him.

He laughed all the harder. "I love you, my wild wench," he told her, "and in a bit over two months you will be my wife. I can hardly wait, Fortune, and that is the truth."

She pulled his head down to hers, and kissed him slowly and deeply. Her firm young body pressed itself seductively against him as her lips worked themselves against his lips. She ran her tongue over his mouth, then pushed it into his mouth to stroke his tongue sensuously, nipping at that tongue when he played too fiercely with hers. Her fingers kneaded the nape of his neck, and she rubbed herself suggestively against him. It grew more difficult to remember her promise to Rohana as each minute passed. Her riding trousers did not offer the kind of protection that her many skirts would have, and she could feel him, hard and eager, against her belly.

His head was spinning. He held her so tightly that he wondered if she could breathe, and yet she writhed and twisted in his arms easily, arousing his basest passions. It was all he could do not to push her to the ground, and ravish her as he desired her so terribly. He could feel the full softness of her young breasts, and the flatness of her tender belly pressing against his muscled body. He wanted her as he had never wanted any woman, yet he felt something was different. A month ago she would have succumbed to his erotic blandishments. Now, however, he sensed the steel in her. She would not seduce him, nor would he be able to seduce her. His arms dropped from about her, and Fortune stepped back.

"Remember me until we meet again, Kieran Devers," she said softly, and then turning from him she mounted Thunder, and without a backward glance rode off.

He watched her go. She was his, he knew, and would eventually become more woman than any he had known, but he had been right. She would have destroyed his younger brother. Willy would be angry when he learned the truth of Fortune's passions, but Kieran Devers knew in his heart that Emily Anne Elliot was a better match for the heir to Mallow Court. His hand went to his groin, and he rubbed himself. The little witch who would shortly be his wife had roused him mightily. He walked slowly back and forth across the ruins of Black Colm's Hall, quieting his lust. His passions finally eased, he mounted his own stallion and galloped off towards his home.

In early afternoon on the first of August the Deverses returned to Lisnaskea, their coach rumbling down the drive of Mallow Court to stop before its front door. The footman hurried from the house to open the door, let down the carriage steps, and help his mistress from her traveling equipage. Jane Anne Devers looked about her with a pleased smile, and shook her skirts which had become crumpled within the confines of her vehicle.

"Welcome home, madame," Kieran said, coming forward to greet his stepmother, a smile on his handsome face. "I trust my sisters, and their families are all well. Will they be coming home for Willy's nuptials?"

"Unfortunately no as both of them are breeding again. They are more like Catholics than Protestants in their desire to have large, and rather unwieldy, families," his stepmother replied. She glanced about. "All looks in good order, Kieran. You have done well, and I thank you for husbanding your brother's patrimony so diligently." She then swept past him into the house.

His father descended from the coach followed by his younger brother.

"Thank God we're home," Shane Devers said. "May I never have to go more than five miles from Lisnaskea ever again, laddie. Yer sister, Colleen, wrote well of ye, and as you can see, yer stepmother is pleased. Now, laddies, I want a good sup of my own whiskey."

"The tray is awaiting you in the library, Da. Coming, Willy?" Kieran looked to his sibling who was oddly quiet.

"I'm marrying Emily Anne," William Devers said dully.

"I know," his brother answered.

"I don't love her," William replied.

"Ye'll learn to love her," his father said impatiently. "Come along now, and let's have a drink." He hurried into the house.

"I suppose the Leslies have returned to Scotland," William said. "I'll never see Fortune again."

"Nay, they're still here," Kieran told William. "The duchess has, much to her surprise, found herself to be enceinte. It was quite a shock. The child is due in November, and her ladyship has been advised not to travel. It's quite the gossip in Maguire's Ford. As you know, I have several friends in that most hospitable little village."

"If they are here then they must be invited to my wedding," William Devers said horrified. "I do not think I can bear to see her on the day I wed another woman."

His elder brother took him by the shoulders and shook him hard. "Get ahold of yourself, Willy. You are no longer a little lad denied a toy you desired. You're a man. Lady Lindley turned you down. Move past it and be glad you have such a faithful, and devoted young girl as Emily Anne willing to marry you. Stop feeling sorry for yourself, and whining about what might have been. You have agreed to marry your cousin, who is, whether you realize it or not, the perfect wife for you. Do not hurt Emily Anne by your selfish and childish fantasy that there was something between you and Lady Lindley. There wasn't. There could never be, and there will not be," Kieran told him harshly. "Now come into the house, and have that drink with Da."

"Have you seen her?" William asked as they walked together into the house.

"Aye, out riding," Kieran replied.

"Was she alone?" his brother probed.

"Aye, she was alone. There was no gallant with her, Willy. I suspect she doesn't fancy the Irish."

"I'm not Irish," William said.

"Of course you are," Kieran told him. "Our father is Irish. You live in Ireland. You are Irish."

"She once said very much the same thing to me," William said.

"Then she has more sense than I ever gave her credit for," Kieran noted. He opened the library door. "Here we are, Da."

Their father, now seated before his own peat fire, his boots off, his stockinged feet turned towards the blaze as he sipped his whiskey. He waved them both to the sideboard where the decanter sat upon a silver tray. "Help yerselves, laddies, and come sit with me," he said. "Ahh, now, I've been waiting for this since yer mam hustled me from here in June. Both yer sisters live in the country, and their homes were intolerably damp the summer long. Mary is the mother of five, and Bessie has four. Such noisy, ill-mannered children I have never met, and even yer mam agreed with me on that even if they are our grandchildren. What unruly households yer sisters run. Children, and nursemaids, and dogs running all about, and never a moment's peace. There were five of you, but my house was never in such an uproar, thanks to my Jane," Shane Devers said.

Kieran Devers laughed. "I will have to agree with you, Da. My stepmother has always managed to keep an orderly establishment, and whatever good manners I may have, I will lay credit at her feet."

Shane Devers looked up from his whiskey tumbler at his eldest son. The look was piercing. "If only…" he began.

Kieran held up his hand to silence his father. "I will gain what I want on my own, Da," he said softly. "I am not suited to your life. Willy is. I have no regrets, nor am I filled with any choler. Everything is as it should be, and the Devers bloodline will continue on at Mallow Court."

"You're so damned noble!" William Devers suddenly said angrily.

"Go to the devil, little brother," Kieran replied pleasantly.

"You don't have to marry someone you don't love!" came the petulant reply. "I do. My whole life has been mapped out for me!" He angrily smashed his crystal tumbler into the blazing fire.

Kieran Devers's dark green eyes narrowed with annoyance. He grasped his younger brother with one hand at his neckline, and yanked him forward so that they were face to face. "Listen to me, wee Willy," he said in a menacing voice, "you have nothing to complain about. You are heir to a fine estate, and bear an ancient respected name. You are to wed a girl you have known your entire life. A lass who is utterly devoted to you, and will make your life happy if you will but let her. What the hell is the matter with you? You don't want adventure, or excitement in your life for you are too much your mother's son. Now, hear me well, little brother. If you make Emily Anne's life miserable, I will personally beat you to a pulp. That girl comes to this house bringing her hopes and dreams. You will not destroy them!"

"Why should you care?" William sneered.

"I care because I so generously gave you all you have, and will have one day. If I should decide to become a Protestant, Willy, do you really believe Da would keep you on as his heir? A second son isn't usually as fortunate as you have been. All that could change in the blink of an eye should I will it, little brother. Even your formidable dear mama couldn't stop it. Now, accept your good fortune, and be kind to your cousin. You really don't deserve either Mallow Court or Emily Anne, for you are truly a callow youth. Try to change for all our sakes." He loosed his grip on his brother's shirt, and pushed him away.

William Devers stormed from the room, slamming the door behind him as he went.

Kieran laughed, and sat opposite his father. "I hope you will live a good long life, Da, for it is obvious our Willy isn't ready for all the responsibilities that you will pass on to him eventually." He gulped his whiskey, enjoying the satisfying warmth it spread through his veins.

"I intend living a very long life, laddie," Shane Devers replied. "I can see the youngster needs seasoning. Traveling with him was no joy, I can tell you. He did nothing but bemoan his loss of Lady Lindley. I wish to God the wench had never come to Ulster! She must be a witch to have such a hold over William. I do not understand it, Kieran."

"Fortune Lindley is exerting no hold over William, Da. It is all in his imagination, I fear. How in the name of God did my stepmother get him to agree to marry Emily Anne Elliot?"

"She told him he had no other choice since there was no other young woman of his acquaintance he fancied who would have him. She told him it was his duty to wed and sire another generation of Deverses for Mallow Court. You know your stepmother, Kieran. When she wants something she will not be denied. At first William resisted her, but when Mary and Bessie agreed with Jane, he could no longer fight against his obvious fate. Even I have to agree 'tis best for him."

"You had best be certain Willy is pleasant, and affectionate toward his cousin when the Elliots arrive in several days, Da."

"I'll speak to him myself, and so will his mother. He'll treat the lass properly, or Catholic or no, you'll find yerself heir to my estate once again," Shane Devers said bluntly.

"God forbid!" Kieran chuckled. "With that threat hanging over me, Da, I'll speak to my brother myself!"

The two men laughed. Shane Devers loved both his sons, but he truly liked the elder. Kieran was strangely sensible for a man with such a stubborn nature, and he was honorable to a fault. It saddened Shane Devers that his eldest son had so easily given up his patrimony, but in a strange way the older man understood. Kieran, with his Celtic heritage, harked back to their more adventurous ancestors. William, with his English mother, was truly more suited to Mallow Court, particularly in their world which was changing so rapidly. Ulster, with its farms and its Scots and English immigrants, was gaining a smooth veneer more suited to the midlands of England than to the north of Ireland.

Jane Devers was horrified to learn that the duke and duchess of Glenkirk remained in residence at Erne Rock Castle. There was no way she could avoid asking them to William and Emily's wedding. There were none of greater rank currently in the vicinity, and everyone knew the Deverses knew the Leslies because of the match gone awry. While no one was particularly surprised that William and Emily were marrying-it had always been a given despite the Deverses' try for the Lindley heiress-the scandal that would ensue if the Leslies of Glenkirk were not invited to the Devers wedding would be impossible to live down.

The invitation was dispatched, and accepted. A large silver punch bowl, embossed with grapevines, leaves, and clusters of fat grapes, along with twenty-four matching silver cups, and a large silver ladle engraved with the family crest, arrived in the care of Adali himself. Lady Devers could scarce contain her excitement as the bowl and its accoutrements were carefully lifted by the white turbaned major-domo from the velvet-lined, polished ebony box with its silver corners and silver Devers nameplate. She managed to contain herself long enough to say, "Thank the duke and the duchess for their generosity. The bride will certainly write them when she arrives from Londonderry next week. We look forward to seeing his lordship and his family at the wedding." She smiled faintly.

Adali made his most elegant bow. "I shall convey your kind words to my master and mistress," he said. Then he backed from the room.

When he had gone Jane Devers made no attempt to hide her delight. "Shane, will you look at it! It's magnificent! William, is it not wonderful? Dearest Emily will be so pleased. It will provide a point of conversation for anyone who admires it. You shall be able to tell them it was a wedding gift from the duke and duchess of Glenkirk, who are related to the king himself! What generosity, especially considering.…" Her voice ceased. "It is lovely," she finished weakly.

"I shall think of Fortune each time I see it," William said.

"Stop it!" his mother screeched. "I truly believe you have lost your mind, William. I can only pray for you. Stop thinking of yourself! Think of Emily Anne. You hardly spoke to her when she was here in August. The Elliots thought it strange, but I told them you were just exhausted from your travels in England. When your cousin and her family arrive next week I expect you to behave lovingly toward Emily, and with dignity and respect towards her family."

"Come on, laddie, and ride out with me," Kieran said, with a quick wink towards his stepmother. "The September air will clear your head, and you'll be thinking straighter."

Jane Devers gave but an imperceptible nod of her head to her stepson. Kieran had been so helpful of late, and while he had certainly never been difficult with her except in the matter of religion, she wondered about his attitude. Still, she was grateful for he seemed to be the only one that William would listen to these days. She watched from the window of her salon as the two brothers rode off together.

"Can you feel her watching us?" William said as they set their horses into a canter. "She is so afraid that I shall cry off at the last minute, and spoil her dreams, but I won't. I have no choices left to me at all. I shall marry my cousin, sire children, and do all that is expected of me. And why? Because I fully believe Da capable of turning about and giving you back your inheritance," he concluded.

"I don't want Mallow Court," Kieran replied.

"But I do," his brother said, for the first time admitting what Kieran had always known. Willy was indeed his mother's son.

The two brothers rode in silence for some time, and then Kieran realized they were coming up on Black Colm's Hall. From the opposite direction another horse and rider were visible. Kieran recognized Thunder, and attempted to distract his brother, and turn about, but William, too, had recognized Fortune's gelding. He spurred forward eagerly. Cursing beneath his breath Kieran followed.

Fortune recognized the brothers, and swore softly. She could hardly turn and run at this point. At least she would get to see Kieran even if he was with Will. She had only managed to see him once since the end of July, and then but briefly because he wanted no questions asked as to a lengthy absence. As they drew abreast of her Fortune smiled, drawing Thunder to a halt. "Hallo!" she greeted them. "What a surprise to meet you two out here. Will, how was England? Your sisters are well, I hope. My most hearty felicitations on your upcoming marriage. I look forward to meeting your bride."

"I love you!" William Devers cried. "But say the word, Fortune, and I will tell my cousin our wedding is no longer possible!" His blue eyes were pleading with her.

Fortune glared at him as if he had insulted her deeply. Kieran had warned her about Will's continuing infatuation. She had to stop it right now for all their sakes. "You stupid puppy!" she snapped. "I do not want to marry you! Did my family not make it clear? If they did not, then I will. You are a nice young man, Will Devers, but I would not wed you were you the last man living on the face of the earth."

"But why?" he wailed at her.

Fortune sighed. It was obvious her blunt tact had not worked, and was not going to work. She continued on in battle mode. "Why? Because you bore me, Will. You are the dullest fellow I have ever met. Why even Mama's estate manager, Rory Maguire, has more vitality than you, and is far better read to boot. Why? Because we have absolutely nothing in common. I am educated. You care naught for knowledge. I believe a woman can do almost anything. You think women are only good for running a household, and having babies. I could never marry a man like you. Now, do you understand?"

He stared at her, astounded by her words. "You do not love me?" he said bleakly.

"Nay, I do not love you, nor could I ever love you, Will," Fortune replied.

"Then why can I not get you out of my heart and soul?" he demanded of her. "You haunt me, Fortune, both when I am awake, and when I am asleep. Why have you bewitched me?"

"I have not bewitched you, Will. You have simply been loved your whole life by your family, and never been denied anything. I am probably the first thing you thought you wanted that you cannot have. You are most fortunate to have your cousin to wed. I am told she is perfect for you, and will be a good wife to you. Be satisfied with that, Will Devers."

He stared at her blankly and then, turning his horse, spurred away from them.

"You were hard on him," Kieran said softly.

"Should I have been otherwise?" Fortune replied.

"Nay. You knew just what had to be done, and you did it," he told her. "I miss you, sweetheart!"

"And I you, but you had best follow your brother lest he grow suspicious. I will see you in a fortnight at the wedding." She turned Thunder about and rode off. She didn't look back. She didn't dare. The longing for Kieran had overwhelmed her when she had first seen him riding towards her. It was only in afterthought that she had noticed Will. Until today she had felt pity for him. Now, however, she felt irritation. William Devers was a fool. Her parents had refused his suit. He had spent a summer away from Ulster so he might forget. He had returned supposedly ready to wed his cousin. Poor girl, Fortune thought.

But to everyone's delight William Devers greeted his bride-to-be enthusiastically when she arrived a week before their wedding. She was a pretty young woman, just turned sixteen, with a round, sweet face, and large blue eyes. Her strawberry-blond hair was styled in bunches of corkscrew curls that bobbed about her face. She had a straight little nose, and a cupid's bow of a mouth. Her skin was the peaches and cream tone so currently in fashion. William kissed her heartily upon the lips, and left her blushing.

"Ohh, William!" she managed to gasp.

"Welcome home, dearest Emily," he greeted her, and taking her by the arm led her into the house.

"What has caused this turn?" Shane Devers murmured to his eldest son.

"We ran into Lady Lindley several days ago out riding. Will made a perfect fool of himself, and she gave him a tongue-lashing the like of which I have never heard. I believe the words fool and bore were used several times, Da. She left him absolutely no maneuvering room, or any doubt that she didn't love him, never loved him, or ever could love him. She shattered his dream entirely, and I believe it brought him to his senses rather abruptly. He was quite surprised, for you know he has harbored this boyish infatuation for months now."

"Thank God!" Sir Shane said softly. "Your stepmother has been hell to live with of late because she has been in fear that William would cry off at the last moment. She wants this marriage, and always has. She was only willing to give it up for Maguire's Ford, but once she met Lady Lindley, she saw an enemy who could actually take William from her, and was relieved to have her son turned down."

"But she still covets Maguire's Ford," Kieran said.

"Aye," his father admitted.

"They say Lady Leslie is dividing it between her two younger Leslie sons, who are both staunch Protestants. They are already here from Scotland, I have heard," Kieran told his father. "I expect we will meet them at the wedding."

"Yer stepmother knows," Shane Devers replied. "She is hoping that William will impregnate Emily with a daughter first. Then she hopes to match that child to one of the Leslie lads. If she cannot have all of Maguire's Ford, she is willing to settle for a half."

"I stand in awe of your wife, sir," Kieran Devers responded.

"As we all do," his father replied dryly. "As we all do. Praise God this wedding is but a few days hence. I do not think I can stand much more of this tarah, laddie."

Kieran chuckled. He knew just how his father felt for he felt the same way, although for different reasons. But six days after his brother wed Emily Anne Elliot, he would marry Lady Fortune Lindley in the ancient church at Maguire's Ford. He longed for that day. He had thought the Leslies overcautious regarding his wedding to Fortune. He had wanted to share his happiness with at least his father, but today he had seen that they were right. William's infatuation for Fortune made it impossible. He didn't trust his brother now, for despite the severe put-down he had received, Kieran suspected Willy still harbored feelings for Fortune Lindley. His attitude toward young Emily was only partially sincere. When William Devers learned that his older brother, Kieran, had married the woman he secretly coveted, all hell could break loose. He would have to wait until Willy was safely off on his wedding trip to Dublin before saying a word.

Still, he suddenly found the need to speak with someone, and so he rode to the north edge of the village of Lisnaskea to see his father's longtime mistress, Molly Fitzgerald, and his two half-sisters. Molly's home was always referred to as a cottage, but it was in actuality a fine brick house that Shane Devers had built for his mistress. Molly's old servant, Biddy, opened the door when he knocked, and seeing him her face broke into a wide smile.

"Master Kieran, and 'tis it truly you now? Come in, come in! The mistress will be happy to see you, and so will yer sisters." She ushered him into the front salon where a good peat fire was burning in the fireplace. "Ye know where the whiskey is, Master Kieran. I'll go and fetch the mistress." She bustled out.

He poured himself a whiskey, swallowing it down, for the ride had been chilly. Hearing the door to the salon open he turned with a smile. "Molly, you will forgive me calling unannounced."

"Always, Kieran Devers, always," she said in her husky voice. She was a truly beautiful woman with thick dark hair, and warm amber eyes. "The lasses have missed you, but I am told you ride with the English girl at Erne Rock, and meet often at Black Colm's Hall."

He laughed. "I had thought we were being discreet, Molly," he said. "Thank God no one has gossiped aloud lest I be in a great deal of trouble at home. You know she turned Willy down. Well, she didn't turn me down. Father Butler will marry us on the fifth of October."

"And your father doesn't know?" Molly looked concerned.

"How can I say anything right now?" Kieran replied. "William still fancies himself in love with her although she gave him a severe set-down the other day when we met out riding. He now pretends he is content with his cousin, but I know Willy. He still harbors passions for Fortune. We didn't want to spoil my brother's wedding by announcing our betrothal. I'll tell Da when Willy and Emily are safe off on their wedding trip to Dublin. If Da wants to come to our wedding we'll be glad to see him. If not, then we'll still be married."

"I trust your sisters and I will be invited," Molly Fitzgerald said quietly. She took his hand in hers and led him to an upholstered settle by the fire.

"Of course!" he said, sitting by her side.

"So, Kieran Devers, you'll be the master of Erne Rock and Maguire's Ford," she said. "Her ladyship won't like that, I fear."

"Nay, Moll, I'll not have either Erne Rock or Maguire's Ford. Fortune's mother understands the situation here in Ulster. She knows if she gave the estate to Fortune, and I married her, that my stepmother and brother would cause all kinds of difficulty, trying to take those lands away from me because I remain a Catholic. Instead she has arranged for her two youngest sons, Protestants both, to have Maguire's Ford. Fortune and I will not be remaining in Ulster. We'll go to England first, and then to the New World. The duchess says there is a gentleman, high in the king's favor, who is founding a colony for Catholics and others who suffer persecution, in the New World. We will go there to start our new life together."

"The duke and duchess don't object to you marrying their lass? I had heard they were strange people; and they say she is a foreigner with a servant who wears a funny white pudding of a hat on his head. Is it all true then, Kieran?"

He chuckled. "The funny hat is called a turban. Adali is half-French, and half-Indian. The duchess was born a princess in another land, and is the daughter of a great king. She came to England when she was sixteen, and has lived here ever since. She's very beautiful, and very kind. Her husband is a decent gentleman who adores her. Fortune is a daughter of her second marriage. The duchess was widowed twice before she wed the duke of Glenkirk. She has seven living children. Does that satisfy your curiosity, Molly-O?"

"It's a start," Molly Fitzgerald replied with a smile. "I hear the duchess is expecting another child."

"Aye, and quite a surprise it was to her, I can tell you," he answered with a chuckle. "They plan to remain in Ireland until next summer when the child will have been long born, and ready to travel."

"Will you and Fortune remain with them?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. I haven't been able to go over to Erne Rock and discuss the matter since the family returned home from England. They'll do whatever needs to be done, Moll, and I'll have to be satisfied with that for now. It's rather odd, for I'm used to running my own life."

"You will again, Kieran. Now, tell me how your da is. I haven't seen him since he returned. 'Tis the wedding preparations that keep him away, I know. Tell him I miss seeing him, as do the girls."

"Where are Maeve and Aine?" he asked her.

"In the kitchen learning how to make fine soap," Molly answered. "I'll not have them running about the village getting a reputation. There are enough small minds out there who think because I'm not considered respectable, my girls are fair game. My daughters will make respectable marriages, they will!"

"There are few Catholic lads about any longer, Moll," he said quietly. "You may have to settle for a pair of Protestants, or ship the girls to a convent in France, or Spain." He grinned at her.

"A convent?" Molly Fitzgerald snorted. "My girls are meant to be wives and mothers. Protestants, or Catholics, I don't care as long as the banns are read publicly, and the ceremony performed properly before all of Lisnaskea. I want grandchildren from those two!"

"Kieran!" His two half-sisters burst into the salon. They were pretty girls with long dark hair. Maeve had her mother's amber eyes, but Aine, the younger, had their father's bright blue eyes. He kissed them heartily upon the cheeks, and hugged them warmly. Maeve was seventeen now, and a husband should certainly be found for her soon, he thought. She looked ripe for the picking, and he understood Molly's concern. Aine, however, was just fourteen, and only now growing out of her coltishness. She snuggled next to him on the settle.

"They say you have a lover," Aine said.

"Aine!" Her mother was mortified.

"Well, they do, Mam," Aine replied defensively.

"I'm getting married, but you must keep it a secret, Mistress Minx," Kieran said to his youngest sibling.

"Why?" Aine demanded.

"Because I am marrying Lady Fortune Lindley on October fifth, and you shall be invited only if you behave yourself," he told her.

"The lass who was to marry William Devers?" Maeve said, surprised.

"The lass who turned down brother Willy," Kieran said, "but we don't want to spoil his wedding to Emily Anne Elliot; nor do I want him challenging me to some sort of duel because he still secretly harbors feelings for Fortune."

"She's a fickle wench to have toyed with him, and then chosen you," Maeve remarked scathingly.

"She isn't fickle at all," Kieran defended Fortune. "She was brought to Ulster for the purpose of seeing if she and Willy suited each other. She saw they didn't, and told her parents, who immediately spoke with Da and Lady Jane. They took Willy off to England to prevent any scandal arising, for he was ready to make a fool of himself. Fortune did not lead our brother on, or promise him anything. Willy is infatuated with her, and has behaved like a perfect simpleton. The other day out riding we met her, and he declared himself in love with her. She was forced to tell him exactly how she felt, although she had attempted to spare his feelings in the past. Fortune Lindley is everything I could ever want in a woman, and you will like her."

"Kieran is in love!" Aine singsonged. "Kieran is in love!"

He grinned at her, and ruffled her dark hair. "Someday you will be in love, Mistress Minx. I am only sorry I won't be here to see it." He turned to Maeve who stood by the fire. "Well, Maeve-mine?"

"I don't often agree with Aine," came the reply, "but she does seem to be correct. You're in love, Kieran Devers. Never did I think to see the day that would happen."

He chuckled. "Anything is possible, Maeve-mine," he told her. "Why even you might fall in love one day."

"I don't believe I have that luxury, brother," Maeve said seriously. "I must be respectable, and wed a respectable man, or so Mam is constantly telling me, even if she did choose love."

"I was a respectable widow when yer da came to me," Molly said spiritedly. "I was a grown woman who knew exactly what she was doing, and what the consequences of her actions would be. Yer a girl, Maeve, with no experience. You'll do what I tell you, lass, for I'm yer mam, and I'll tolerate no disobedience from you!"

"Now, lasses, now," Kieran interceded. "I came to see you, not to bring discord into the house. Tell me, Molly-O, what will you be giving me for my supper? I'm a big man, and I've ridden a ways in the chill damp." He smiled winningly at the older woman.

"You don't fool me, Kieran Devers," she said. "Yer nothing but a charmer like yer da. God help yer lass. Will you bring her to see us, and meet yer half-sisters?"

"I will," he agreed, "but it can't be until after Willy's wedding. Today I can remain with you just long enough to eat. Then I must get back up to the hall for my stepmother will be wondering where I have gotten to, and why I was not there to be at her beck and call."

" 'Tis to be grand doings, I'm told, by those who have been called into temporary service," Molly said.

"I wish we could go," Aine said wistfully.

"Well, we can't!" Maeve snapped. "The shock would echo around Fermanagh for years should Da's two pretty bastards appear at the wedding of his most legitimate son and heir. Be grateful Lady Jane hasn't had us driven out of Lisnaskea, and our mam with us."

"She wouldn't do that!" Aine cried, distressed.

"She wouldn't? She would if it suited her, just like she convinced Da to disinherit Kieran if he didn't become a Protestant," Maeve said. "She's a devil, that one!"

"Enough," Kieran Devers said quietly. "Maeve-mine, listen to me, for you're old enough to understand. I didn't want Mallow Court. If I had, I would have done what was necessary to keep it. Now set your anger aside, lass, and go see what Biddy is fixing for my supper." He stood, and held out his arms to her.

Maeve flew into them. "Don't go, Kieran! Don't leave Ireland, or if you do, take Aine and me with you! Mam holds her hopes and dreams high, but there are none here who would marry Sir Shane's bastard lasses. We need to make a new life every bit as much as you do!"

Kieran held his half-sister tightly in his embrace, looking over her dark head to Molly. "She could be right, Molly-O," he said quietly. "If this colony is indeed a safe place, it might be a better place for your two lasses."

Tears began to roll down Molly Fitzgerald's face. She nodded slowly. "I have always known that I would end my days alone," she said to him. "You could be right, Kieran, but would you be willing to take on the responsibility of these two, and what will yer Fortune think?"

"We won't know until we ask her," he replied, "but she's a practical lass, and has a good heart. Let her meet you first, Molly-O, and then we'll see, eh?"

^{Chapter 9}

“Madame, you look lovely," the duke of Glenkirk complimented Lady Jane Devers. "What a happy day this is for you, and Sir Shane. I regret my wife canna be wi us, but at this time her condition forbids even a short journey, you understand." He bowed, and kissed her hand.

How handsome he was, Jane Devers thought. And so very elegant and distinguished in his bejeweled doublet and black velvet breeches. The tops of his boots were turned down to reveal the broad lace fold of his boot hose. He would add such prestige to the wedding gathering. She smiled, and then her eye swung to his companion.

Fortune curtsied. "What a fine day for a wedding," she said sweetly. "It was kind of you to include me, madame."

"How could we not?" Jane Devers said in return, her eye sharply assessing the girl.

She was beautifully garbed in deep purple velvet; the gown was cut very wide on the shoulder with a low neckline and an exquisite broad draped lace collar that extended low on the shoulder. Her sleeves were divided by lavender ribbons into two paned puffs. Fortune's skirt fell to the floor in loose folds, its fullness towards the back, the skirt open to display a cream-colored petticoat delicately embroidered with gold-thread butterflies and daisies. Her red hair was coiled into a knot at the nape of her neck, a single lovelock tied with a lavender silk ribbon. She wore a long rope of perfectly matched pearls and pear-shaped amethyst earbobs. She was supremely fashionable, certainly more so than any other woman guest; and yet her garb was not ostentatious, nor was it so splendid that it would draw attention away from the bride.

Lady Jane Devers had to admit that it would appear young Lady Lindley had dressed with utmost propriety. And, her manner was most discreet. Her hand rested upon her stepfather's arm, her eyes modestly lowered. In a way it galled Jane Devers that Fortune would appear so perfect to their guests. She had hoped people would not wonder why such a paragon had turned her son's proposal of marriage down. It could reflect badly on them all, but there was nothing she could do about it now, worse luck! She smiled as the duke and Fortune moved on, and turned to greet the next guests.

The wedding itself was to be held in the main salon of Mallow Court as the church at Lisnaskea was too small to contain all the guests who had been invited. The bride was lovely in her rose satin, taffeta, and lace gown. Her head was topped with a wreath of delicate Michaelmas daisies. The groom was somber in his sky blue velvet suit. There was an almost sullen look upon his handsome face although the bride smiled constantly, obviously unable to contain herself. Her responses were clear. His, muttered and low. When the couple were finally pronounced man and wife, the guests cheered. William Devers dutifully kissed his new wife.

Fortune felt absolutely no regret at the union. Her eyes were fixed upon Kieran, elegant in forest green velvet that matched his eyes. She could barely wait until they could be alone. It had been so long. She sighed aloud, and then blushed at James Leslie's chuckle.

"Easy, lassie," he cautioned her, having noted the direction her gaze was taking. "You've managed to be circumspect for weeks now. Dinna gie the game up now when the finish line is so near."

"Papa!" Her cheeks felt so warm.

"Discretion, my lady Lindley," he said softly. "We hae to remain here until next summer. I want nae feuds between our families."

"And you don't think our marriage will cause ill will?" she asked him, almost mockingly.

"They'll nae be happy at first, I agree, but we'll work around them, lassie, especially as yer husband will nae hae Maguire's Ford," the duke responded. "You know the truth of what Lady D. really wanted."

The wedding feast had been set up in Mallow Court's grand dining room, which had once been the house's Great Hall. Servants hurried to and fro carrying platters of salmon, beef, capons, ducks, and small game birds. There were hams, and plates of lamb chops; artichokes swimming in white wine, braised lettuces, bowls of peas with shredded mint, breads, sweet crocks of butter, fine English cheddar, and soft French cheeses. The goblets were kept filled with the best wine that the Deverses had been able to import. Some of the men grumbled that there was no ale, but Lady Devers did not consider ale a refined beverage.

The guests thoroughly enjoyed themselves, and toast after toast was raised to the newlyweds. A bridal cake, decorated in spun sugar, was carried in to much cheering. This was quite an unusual luxury, but Lady Devers had learned while in England that it was the latest and most fashionable extravagance at important weddings. It was therefore imperative that such a cake be served at her only son's marriage feast.

Now the guests were invited to partake in the dancing in the large salon where the marriage ceremony had been celebrated. The furniture had been cleared from the room while they ate, and a dais for the musicians had been set up at one end of the room. In the corners at the opposite end of the chamber were painted screens behind which the guests would find the necessary chairs and chamber pots for their convenience. The dances at first were mostly country style; the dancers executed the steps either holding hands in a circle, or in a line. Lady Devers, frowning, spoke with the musicians, and they began to play a spritely galliard.

Kieran Devers led Fortune out onto the floor. His hand was warm in hers, and their eyes met in silent passion. The music for the galliard was bright and quick. Only the young people danced. All but the bride and groom. Williams Devers glared at his brother and Fortune. He had not been forced to notice her until now. But as she flaunted herself before him with his brother, he could not help but stare. Her bosom was so white against the purple and lace of her gown. How he desired her!

"Who is that beautiful girl dancing with your brother?" his bride asked him innocently.

"Lady Lindley," William replied tersely.

"Oh," Emily Devers said softly. Her mother had been most honest in explaining the situation with Lady Lindley before she would allow her daughter to accept her cousin William's proposal of marriage. William Devers had asked Lady Lindley to be his wife, and she had turned him down. He had been most distraught over her refusal, Mistress Elliot told her daughter. It was possible he still loved her.

"I will make him forget," Emily Anne had answered her parent with the pure innocence of youth. But now seeing her one-time rival in the flesh, the new Mistress Devers was not at all certain that she could make William forget the beauteous and fascinating Fortune Lindley. Emily Anne felt the beginnings of jealousy starting to gnaw at her vitals.

The galliard was over. Fortune laughed up into Kieran Devers's face with delight. He was an excellent dancer, she had discovered to her enjoyment. Her own visage was flushed with her exertion, and her cheeks pink. The neat coil of hair at the nape of her neck had become undone, allowing the flaming red-gold curls to tumble down her back in a most disorderly fashion.

"You are so beautiful," he said, bending to whisper the compliment in her ear. "Were I not an honorable man I should take you off into a dark corner, and make love to you, my darling."

Fortune blushed deeper with the pleasure his words gave her.

The musicians took up their instruments once again. The notes of the gracious and courtly pavane sounded. Kieran caught Fortune's hand in his again, and they danced, suddenly so absorbed in each other that they were oblivious to anyone else in the salon. They were so absolutely perfect together that the other guests stopped dancing, stepping back as the young couple swayed with the elegant steps of the dance.

Her head was turned looking up at him. Her face was alight with her love for him. Her blue-green eyes glittered like fine jewels. Her lips were slightly parted, and there was a faint, secret smile upon them. His dark head, turned towards hers, was bent so low that their mouths were close to touching. They twisted and turned with every nuance and beat of the sensuous music; their bodies curled gracefully into each other with the dance. As he gazed upon her his love was unmistakable, his passion palpable. They were one, and the obviousness of it swept through the salon like a brush fire.

Jesu! James Leslie thought looking at them. The secret will be out now for certain. His eyes swung to the bridegroom, and as he saw the look of sudden realization and naked fury upon the younger man's face, it dawned upon the duke of Glenkirk that he was unarmed.

Then William Devers' voice broke the magic that had surrounded them all, stopping the music with his venom. "You bastard!" he snarled. "You lying bastard! You have wanted her all along though you denied it! I could kill you!"

"William!" his father's stern voice warned.

"If I couldn't have her, why should you?" William Devers said, his tone anguished. He was almost weeping.

Jane Devers thought she would die then and there so acute was her embarrassment. Now all of Fermanagh, nay all of Ulster, would be gossiping with this outrageous scandal.

"You bitch!" William cried, his anger rising again to encompass Fortune. "You led me on, and all the while you were whoring after my brother!"

The guests' heads snapped back and forth between the trio. Kieran Devers had remained silent in the face of his brother's charges. Fortune, however, was not so restrained.

"How dare you, sir?" she said in her most regal tones. Her voice was scathing, and dripping with contempt. Then she turned away from him and walked over to Emily Devers, who stood pale and trembling. She spoke more gently to the girl. "Madame, I apologize that my presence has upset your wedding day. I shall withdraw now in the hope that normalcy may be restored to this festive gathering." Then Fortune curtsied, her violet skirts brushing the parquet floor.

James Leslie was immediately at his stepdaughter's side. He bowed to the bride, to Lady Jane and Sir Shane, but he said not a word, and his look was stern. Then he led Fortune from the salon, his large hand laid comfortingly over hers, which she had placed on his velvet-clad arm.

When William made to follow, Kieran Devers reached out, and grasped his younger brother by the arm. His strong fingers dug into his sibling's flesh. "Are you not satisfied, Willy, to have broken young Emily's heart, and spoiled her wedding day with your obsession?" he said low through gritted teeth. "Go and apologize to your wife, or she'll be widowed before you can have her virginity, for I'll kill you myself to restore the family's honor, which you do not seem to care about at all." His head turned, and he signaled to the musicians to begin to play again. They took up a lively reel, and Kieran Devers shoved his brother toward his bride. Then he walked over to where his stepmother stood, ashen, and kissing her hand led her out onto the floor. "Come, madame," he said softly to her, "and let us try and smooth over this discomfiture that your son has brought upon us all." For the first time in his life he actually felt sorry for her, Kieran thought.

"Oh, Kieran, do you think we can?" Jane Devers whispered, her voice tremulous.

"We must, madame," he told her sternly.

Sir Shane, over his initial shock, bowed to Emily's mother. "Shall we join the dancers, ma'am, and allow our children to settle this foolish matter?" He led the abashed Mistress Elliot onto the floor to join the circle of dancers that was now forming. Her husband, with not a backward glance at his daughter and her bridegroom, chose a nearby lady, leading her off to join them.

Bride and groom were now alone in their corner of the room. "She has bewitched you," Emily Anne said calmly to William. "I can see that, my poor dear. She must be a very wicked girl, but I love you, William. I will help you to overcome her sorcery if you will but allow me." Standing on her tiptoes she leaned over and kissed his cheek. "You will never have to see her again. Tomorrow we shall leave on our wedding trip down to Dublin. When we return your mama will see that Lady Lindley is not allowed at Mallow Court any longer, or at any gathering which we may attend. I was shocked by her open, and most lewd behavior with your brother." She patted his cheek gently. "I think we must see that Kieran is no longer welcome here either, eh? Your mother has been very generous in her tolerance of his presence, but he will not change, and we cannot have a Catholic about influencing our children, my dear. After all, one day this will be your house. He would have to go then at any rate. Everything is going to be just fine, dearest. We shall have a perfect and happy life together."

He stared at her, astounded. He had not realized how strong-willed she was until this moment. Still, he suddenly realized he needed her strength. "Emily," he began, "I am so sorry."

She stopped his mouth with her slender fingers. "It is forgotten, William dearest. You were led on, and bewitched by a noblewoman of loose morals. It was before our marriage and, therefore, of no importance to me at all. While I do not generally approve of public displays of affection, I think it would help to put our guests at ease if you would kiss me on the lips, my dear. Then we will join the dancing." She held her pretty face up to him.

He kissed her tenderly, and in leisurely fashion. Emily was right, he thought. Fortune had indeed bewitched him. She was a wicked and libertine bitch, who probably had no more control over her lustful desires toward his brother than she had had over her quick tongue. "You are the perfect wife for me, Emily dear," he told her as their lips parted. "And you have said a great deal that makes sense to me. Kieran must indeed leave Mallow Court. He is every bit as wicked as that woman. I do not want him around the children we will have." Then, daringly, he kissed her again, and she blushed prettily. "Thank you for forgiving me, my dearest wife," he said, and then he led her out to join the dancers.

It was as if nothing at all had happened. Seeing the well reconciled bride and groom, the guests relaxed. The celebration continued on into the night. The bride and groom were put to bed with as much decorum as was possible. The guests departed. The servants cleared away the debris of the celebration. Lady Devers sought her bed with a rather large carafe of wine, while Sir Shane sat with his elder son over full whiskey tumblers in his library before a blazing peat fire.

"A successful day, Da," Kieran said to his parent.

"Aye," the older man answered. "No one was maimed or killed despite our William. 'Twas fortunate the duke of Glenkirk was unarmed, or he might have defended his stepdaughter's honor after your brother insulted her so gravely. She's got a cool head, that one," Sir Shane remarked. "I don't know of any young woman so affronted who would not have caused an even greater scene defending herself, or castigating your brother before everyone with the plain truth. She's a strong lass."

This was the perfect moment for it, and Kieran knew it. "We're being married on October fifth, Da," he said quietly. "I'd like you to come, but I'll understand if you don't. Willy isn't to know until he and Emily have returned from Dublin. You understand why."

Shane Devers nodded. "Aye, I do."

"You don't seem surprised," Kieran said.

"After seeing you two together today, I'm not, laddie," his father responded. "How did it happen? Did you want her from the start, Kieran? Was William correct in his accusations?"

"I honestly don't know, Da. Fortune and I met up the day you left for England, and I was just returning from the coast road. After that " He shrugged. "We fell in love."

"We can't tell your stepmother about this until after the fact," Shane Devers said. "There's going to be hell to pay when she learns you are to have Maguire's Ford and Erne Rock."

"But Da, we're not," Kieran said. "The estate really is going to the two younger Leslie sons. My stepmother can dream her dream of matching Willy's first daughter with one of those lads. Mayhap it will even come to pass. Fortune and I will go to England with the duke and duchess. Lord Baltimore is mounting an expedition to the New World in order to found a Catholic colony where all faiths may live together in peace, especially the Catholics. Fortune and I intend to join that expedition, and start over. We will not be anywhere in evidence where my brother, or my stepmother can see us, and be chafed."

Shane Devers said nothing for a long moment, but finally he spoke. "That it should come to this," he said sadly. "That my eldest son should be driven from his heritage, and the land of his birth." He slowly drank down the tumblerful of whiskey, and held the crystal out for more, tears running down his weathered face. "I saw the handwriting on the wall when I married Jane, but I didn't want to fight. I just wanted peace and comfort for us all. Now yer leaving us."

Kieran poured the amber liquid into his father's tumbler, and then set the decanter aside again. "Da, you know that I never felt truly at home here. I don't understand it, but there it is. Ulster is not where I belong. Fortune feels the same way. She has lived in England, in France, in Scotland. She is well loved by her family, and yet she, too, never felt comfortable anywhere. We are two like souls, drawn together in spite of ourselves. The New World beckons to us, Da. We must be together. We must go away from this old world."

"You're certain, laddie? This isn't just a compromise because you've fallen in love with Fortune Lindley?" Sir Shane looked directly at his son, seeking the truth.

Kieran smiled. "We're certain, Da."

"Then God bless you, laddie, and your lass too. I'll be at your wedding no matter your stepmother's outrage afterwards."

"Colleen will be there too," Kieran said softly.

The older man nodded his head. "This will be the first secret I ever kept from my Jane, laddie. I love you greatly to do so."

"Ah, Da," Kieran told his father, "in all the years since my mam died, the one certainty I've always believed in was your affection for me. I return it, sir, and thank you for your blessing upon Fortune and upon me."

"I tell you, laddie, I am grateful I have lived most of my life when I see how the world is changing about us," Shane Devers mourned.

"Changing with the world while holding fast to your ideals and ethics seems to be the only way to survive," Kieran said quietly.

"The young can change," his father replied fatalistically. "The old cannot, or do not want change."

Kieran chuckled. "You're not that old yet, Da," he said.

"I'm old enough to want peace in my house, and peace in the land," Sir Shane said. Then he downed his whiskey, and stood up. "I'm off to my bed now, laddie. I would suggest you not be around in the morning when your brother leaves with his bride for Dublin."

Kieran nodded. "I agree, Da. Perhaps I will ride over to Erne Rock tonight. There's a fine moon rising, and there's no rain. Tell Colleen I will see her on the fifth. Molly and the girls will be there too." He chuckled. "All your black sheep, Da."

His father laughed. "Black sheep are far more interesting than the docile white ones," he noted, and then left the library.

Kieran sat for several more minutes before the peat fire; then he arose, and set his crystal tumbler on the silver tray by his chair. Going out into the empty antechamber of the house he looked up the staircase. His father would be in his own bedchamber now. His stepmother would have been lulled into sleep with wine. William would have, by now, it was hoped, breached Emily Anne's virginity. He would do little more, Kieran suspected, and smiled to himself. He wondered if there was any depth or passion to his pretty sister-in-law, or his brother. No matter, he thought, leaving the house, and going to the stables where he saddled his horse.

Riding out he thought his wedding night with Fortune would be more interesting and active than his brother's. Willy, however, would do his duty, and provide Mallow Court with children for the next generation. They would be more English than Irish though, Kieran realized, and sighed sadly. There were some changes he didn't like either, he realized.

The ride was uneventful, although he did spot the shifting shadows of several local poachers. They, however, recognized his horse, and ignored him as he passed by. He rode down the main street of Maguire's Ford, passing two cottages where he knew he would be more than welcome. His horse clopped across the little drawbridge of Erne Rock, and into the courtyard. A sleepy stable lad came to take his mount, leading it away as Kieran Devers mounted the staircase, and entered the castle.

He found his future father-in-law awaiting him in the hall.

"I thought you'd come tonight," the duke said.

"I've told my da I am to wed Fortune," Kieran replied.

"And?"

"He'll be at the wedding, and gave us his blessing," the younger man replied. "My stepmother is planning to match a granddaughter with one of your lads."

James Leslie laughed aloud. "She doesna gie up, does she? Well, Leslie men, nae matched in the cradle, tend to wait to wed. She could hae her wish in the long run. I want nae feud between our families, Kieran. 'Tis yer brother who is the difficulty. 'Twill be up to yer da and his wife to keep William in line. I'll nae hae my lass insulted by him again. 'Twas fortunate I was unarmed this day, or the bride would hae been a widow before she was deflowered."

"I suggested the same thing to my brother Willy," Kieran said.

The duke nodded. "Yer a good man, Kieran Devers. I'll be proud to call ye my son. I only regret that yer stubborn nature will take Fortune from her family, but if she's content to go wi ye, then we must be content also."

"Were not your family once Catholics, my lord?" Kieran asked.

"Aye," James Leslie replied. "But times change, laddie, and what good does it do to argue over semantics in the matter of religion? Faith is what counts, Kieran. Our good Lord Christ once said that in his father's house were many mansions. Surely one road alone canna lead to all those mansions. But while I will nae condemn ye for the manner in which ye worship, there are those who will, and laws to punish ye if ye do nae conform. I dinna agree with such laws, but I will follow them until they are changed. When we are in England ye must obey the king's law for all our sakes. Yer nae the stuff martyrs are made of, laddie; and I'll nae hae my family endangered by yer rebellion. Is that understood, Kieran Devers? If ye want my help, ye must play my game by my rules. Ye do understand that, don't ye?"

"Aye, my lord, I do. I will do whatever I must to see that Fortune and I can make a good life together. I swear it!" he said.

"Good," James Leslie said, well pleased. He thought the lad would behave himself if importuned. "Now, I see nae reason for yer returning to Mallow Court other than to obtain yer belongings. Can ye find the room which ye shared wi yer brother, and which was yers the last time ye visited wi us?"

"I can, my lord," Kieran replied with a smile.

"Then welcome to Erne Rock, laddie, and welcome to this family of ours. Ye hae nae idea what ye've let yerself in for, Kieran," the duke chuckled. "Oh, try not to let Fortune seduce ye before the wedding. She's ripe for trouble, but then I suppose a day, or two will nae matter." Then James Leslie laughed for his about-to-be son-in-law actually blushed. "Go to bed, laddie," the duke said. "I'd be a fool if I didn't know the women in my household well, and yet they sometimes surprise even me."

Kieran bowed to the older man, and hurried from the hall and up the stairs to the guest chamber where he had twice stayed in the past. The hall was chill with late September. The torches lighting the passageway flickered eerily. Entering the chamber he closed the door behind him, and then turning caught his breath with surprise.

"I knew you would come tonight," Fortune said softly. She was lying naked upon his bed, her red-gold hair her only adornment.

"So you mean to seduce me, do you?" he said in equally soft tones, walking across the small room to stand over her.

"Aye," she replied. "You want to be seduced, don't you?" Reaching up she drew him down upon the bed.

"You are the boldest virgin I have ever known," he told her.

"I didn't know you knew any virgins," Fortune responded with a wicked grin. "Kieran, you know I'm mad for you, and I know that you love me. In less than a week we will be man and wife. Why must we wait until then to enjoy each other?" Her lips were dangerously close to his, temptingly moist, and half-parted.

I'll never be a saint, he thought, as he kissed her slowly, deeply, his mouth working against hers. His head spun with the nearness of her. The perfumed scent from her body surrounded him. "One taste, sweetheart, and then no more until our wedding night," he said sternly. "I'll not have you coming to the altar looking too sated and well satisfied. Do you think that's a secret you could keep, my bold innocent?" His hand swept down the curve of her body slowly, sliding around to fondle the cheek of her bottom.

Being touched so suggestively was entirely different than she had anticipated, Fortune considered. It had seemed to her the right thing to do when she had decided to await him in his bedchamber. Now she wasn't certain she was ready for such intimacy. When he pushed her back upon the pillows her heart began to hammer wildly. Fascinated she watched as his fingers trailed lightly over her silken flesh. It was utterly delicious, but now she wondered if she gave herself so freely to him before they were married whether he would marry her at all. His big hands were lightly holding her shoulders as he bent his dark head and began to kiss her breasts with tiny, feathery kisses that set her all a-shiver. His tongue laved her nipples gently, and they grew taut in response. Fortune clenched and unclenched her fingers nervously. This had been a mistake. She had to tell him to stop right now. She whimpered nervously as a hand brushed over her belly, tensing as it rested itself, palm down, upon her Venus mont.

Kieran could feel Fortune trembling with both her fear and her rising desire. He half sat, removing his doublet and his shirt. Her eyes widened at the sight of his smooth, broad chest. Now he leaned forward again to press his bare flesh against her bare breasts. His tongue teased her ear, and he murmured hotly, "Do you like that, my sweet Fortune? Ahh, lambkin, you are so soft and warm against me."

Itwas wonderful! Fortune sighed, and boldly put her arms about him. She could not for the life of her, however, speak. The moment was far too intense. She loved him. They were together as lovers should be. Shyly she let her palms smooth down his back. Then suddenly she stiffened. He had pressed his length against her, and she could feel the hard ridge within his britches pushing into her naked flesh.

"I can't!" Fortune gasped.

He immediately sat up. "It took you long enough to decide it, you damnable little tease," he growled at her, taking her hand and putting it against what to her eyes seemed an inordinately large bulge. When she sought to pull her hand away he held it firm. "Your touch will soothe it," he told her. "It's either that, or…"

"How did you know?" she demanded, rubbing him gently.

"Because I am experienced, sweetheart," he told her, "and while you may be a passionate creature, you're no wanton, Fortune."

"But I don't want to be a virgin any longer!" she wailed.

"You won't be in a few days," he told her.

"Are you being soothed?" she inquired, her hand caressing him, and realizing that she was becoming curious again.

"Aye," he grinned at her.

"Well, I could use some comfort too, Kieran Devers!" Fortune told him. "Isn't there a way to pleasure me without spoiling our wedding night? There must be something youcan do."

His eyes twinkled. "How brave are you, Fortune?"

"I don't know," she told him.

"Lie still and trust me, lambkin," he said softly. He turned onto his side, and one hand reached out to touch her Venus mont again. He began caressing it with teasing fingers in a provocative manner.

Fortune closed her eyes, half-afraid, but determined to learn exactly what he was about. His touch began to engender ripples of excitement within her. She squirmed slightly, unable to help herself, but forcing herself to concentrate on the sensations he was loosing. A single finger began to stroke at the slit between her nether lips. It pushed between the tender folds of pink flesh, and Fortune tensed.

"It's all right, sweetheart," he promised her. "Trust me."

Fortune made herself relax, but then she suddenly gasped as he touched her in what was apparently the most sensitive spot on her entire body. "Kieran!" she managed to gasp.

"It's called your love button," he told her. "Touched in just the right way, it can give you extraordinary pleasure." His ringer flicked back and forth over the swollen nub of flesh. "Do you find it pleasurable, Fortune?"

"Ohhh, yes!" It was wonderful. Why hadn't he introduced her to this delight before? A frisson of enjoyment washed over her. This was heavenly. She murmured softly as the pleasure broke over her like a wave, and then gasped once again as the digit, only recently teasing at her, suddenly penetrated her. "Ohhhh!" The finger began to move back and forth within her. "Ohhh! Oh! Oh! Yesss!"

He bent and kissed her just as she peaked. His tongue found hers, stroking it fervently. The kiss deepened, and he thought he might explode with his own desire for her. He would not take her until she was his wife, but dear heaven, it would be difficult!

"I'm not afraid anymore," Fortune said, pulling her head away, from his. "I don't want to wait, Kieran. Please!"

He withdrew his finger from her wet sheath. "No, lambkin, not until we are properly wed will I properly bed you." He kissed her gently, avoiding the disappointed look in her blue-green eyes.

Fortune rolled away, putting her back to him. "I hate you!" she muttered. "I don't think I want to marry you at all, Kieran Devers!"

He looked at her delicious little rump, and unable to help himself fondled it. "Having tasted your charms, lambkin, I don't intend letting you get away now," he told her. "In just a few more days you and I will be man and wife, and then, my darling, I will satisfy all your naughty little desires, and even some you don't know about yet." He gave the tempting rump a little smack.

Fortune rolled back onto her back again, glaring up at him. "I suppose you want me to go back to my own chamber now," she grumbled.

"I think it might be a good idea. Try not to awaken Rois. She'll be very shocked, I fear. You understand why I'm doing this, don't you, Fortune?"

She shook her head in the negative. "Why?"

" 'Tis an old custom to hang the bloody sheet from the wedding bed out the following morning for all the neighbors to see that the bride was indeed pure. Tomorrow at Mallow Court Lady Jane will proudly display the soiled linen that lay beneath Willy and his bride. 'Tis not a custom she likes, but she knows it is expected, and gossip would surely ensue if that bloody sheet didn't fly. I want no one, especially my foolish brother, saying that you were not as pure as the vaunted Emily Anne on your wedding day. 1 don't want to have to fight my brother, because if I fight him, I will kill him. And I will be forced to it if he ever slanders you again, Fortune."

Reaching up she drew his head down to her breasts. "I don't want Willy's death on my conscience either," she said. "I would never allow you to be put in such a position, Kieran. But, if your little brother slanders me again, I will kill him myself, and my conscience be damned!"

Startled by her tone he sat up, and looked at her. He could see she was most serious.

"I'm an excellent swordswoman," Fortune explained.

Kieran Devers laughed aloud. "You'll never bore me, lambkin," he said. "Now, put something on that luscious body of yours, and go back to your own chamber. You did wear something, didn't you?"

With a mischievous grin Fortune arose from the bed, and walking across the bedchamber opened the door, closing it behind her as she disappeared out into the darkened hallway.

"Jesu!" he swore, and then he laughed all the harder.

Chapter 10

“Stand still, m'lady," Rois pleaded with her mistress as she k3 brushed Fortune's long red-gold hair.

"I don't see why I must wear my hair all long and flowing," Fortune grumbled. "Emily Anne certainly didn't when she married Will."

"The English don't follow proper customs," Rois sniffed.

"I'm partly English," Fortune reminded her maidservant.

"That may be," Rois replied quickly, "but you were raised by a Scots father, and he knows what's right as does your mam. Now stand quiet for a moment longer while I get these last tangles out."

Fortune remained silent now, letting her eyes wander to the glass to gaze at her reflection. It was her wedding day. Her garb couldn't have been more fashionable than if she were being married in London at the court. While low, square necklines were still the mode in Ireland, her neckline extended low on the shoulder which Fortune found far more elegant. The gown was a rich golden brown velvet with a creamy draped lace collar. Her sleeves were divided by gold ribbons into two paned puffs, the upper sleeve being decorated with topaz-colored paste buttons that rivaled in quality the semiprecious stones after which they were fashioned. The cuffs of her sleeves were double ruffles of lace, and a gold silk galant tied at the side encircled her waist. The underskirts showed through the opening of the gown, a spiral motif of gold thread on a creamy silk taffeta. The skirt fell in simple folds with its fullness towards the back. Fortune's stockings were golden-colored silk, and her shoes were decorated with pearls. In her ears she wore pear-shaped pearls that seemed to have a gold tint, and matched the long strand about her neck that fell onto the bosom of her gown.

"There!" Rois's voice broke into her thoughts. "You surely have the most beautiful hair, m'lady. It seems to have a life of its very own. Are you excited?" Rois's bright eyes danced with her own anticipation of the wonderful day to come. "He's a handsome devil, Master Kieran, and"-she lowered her voice-"the lasses who know say he's a grand lover. All fire and yet tender too. How have you been so patient, m'lady?"

Fortune laughed weakly. "It hasn't been easy," she told her servant. "I think I've wanted to lie with him since the first Moment I saw him even if I couldn't admit it to myself." She sighed lustily.

Rois giggled. "You'll gain your heart's desire tonight, m'lady, and come the morrow your mam will fly the bedsheet proudly for all to see." She sniffed audibly. "We're all so happy for you! You came to Ulster to find your love, and you did! I'll surely miss you when you're gone back to England, m'lady," Rois told her mistress.

Surprised, Fortune turned to look at her servant. "But I want you to come with me," she said. "I couldn't do without you, Rois."

"I cannot leave my Kevin," the girl answered.

"Then the two of you must be wed, and he shall come too," Fortune said. "There will be far more opportunity for you both with us in the New World than there is here in Ireland, Rois. Your Kevin is good with the horses, and it is said the part of the Americas to which we are going is a fine place for horses. I intend taking a goodly number of the beasts with us. Kevin shall have charge of them. Isn't that better than waiting around for Rory Maguire to grow too old? I doubt he ever will," she chuckled.

Rois's pretty face was thoughtful. To be able to marry her sweetheart sooner than later was an enticement to be sure. She wasn't certain she was brave enough to travel all the way to the New World, but if Kevin was by her side she believed her courage would quicken. "I'd have to ask Kevin," she said slowly. " 'Tis a fine offer, m'lady."

The door to the bedchamber opened, and Jasmine entered. "Let me see how you look," she said. "Ahhh." Her turquoise eyes filled with sentimental tears. "You are beautiful, poppet," the duchess of Glenkirk told her youngest daughter. She sat down heavily upon the bed. "I do not know where the years have gone," she lamented almost to herself. "It seems like only yesterday you were born here at Erne Rock. Rowan would be very proud of you, Fortune. I know it in my heart."

Fortune half bent, and embraced her mother, her own eyes damp. "I am so happy," she said softly.

The duchess patted her daughter, and then said, "Rois, go and tell them down in the hall that we will come shortly. You remain, child. There is no need for you to come back upstairs again."

"Yes, my lady," Rois said, curtsying, then closing the door behind her as she departed. She was no fool, and wondered what it was the duchess wanted to impart privately to her daughter. They had already spoken on a wife's marital duties, Rois knew.

"Why did you send Rois away?" Fortune asked.

"Because what I have to say is for you alone," her mother replied. "For over a month now Rohana has, each morning, been bringing you a cup of what she has called her strengthening posset. The liquid you have drunk has nothing to do with strength, Fortune. It is a recipe, given to your great-grandmother, Skye O'Malley, by her sister, Eibhlin, the physician nun. It is to prevent the conception of children. I did not want you going to the altar today with a secret in your belly."

Fortune blushed beet red, her fair white skin growing mottled with her embarrassment "We didn't…" she began.

Jasmine laughed. "I know," she said. "He is a very stubborn young man, isn't he? And honorable as well. Still, a wee bit of precaution didn't hurt," she told her daughter. "Now you are to marry Kieran Devers. I know you will both want children, Fortune, but if you will accept my advice, do not have them until you have left Ireland far behind. I do not trust the Deverses, for Sir Shane, poor man, desires peace at any price. William still believes himself in love with you which makes him a dangerous enemy despite his marriage. Lady Jane will yet covet Maguire's Ford despite the fact I have given it to my two youngest sons. I wrote to your brother, the duke of Lundy, a month ago to speak to the king regarding Maguire's Ford, and to have him confirm Adam and Duncan Leslie's rights to it.

"Only yesterday I received a missive from him saying the king had agreed, and that the new patent was being drawn up, but it will probably not be here before the spring. Until such time as I can publicly display that document, I believe the Deverses, mother and son, will use our lack of legal proof as an excuse to harry us, and cause difficulty because of your marriage to the Catholic Kieran. We must protect Maguire's Ford, and all its people, both Protestant and Catholic, from the fanatics, Fortune. Your father was murdered by one such, and they have not changed in the years since. Fanatics never change. I should send you and Kieran to England now, but I am selfish. I want you by my side a bit longer. When you depart for the New World, it is unlikely we shall ever meet again, my daughter. Besides, the autumnal winds have begun to blow from the north, and crossing to England or Scotland would be dangerous now," she reasoned.

"I would stay with you as long as I can, Mama," Fortune replied, "and I agree with you that now is not a good time for me to have a child. Kieran, of course, shall not know. I suspect Papa never did, and 'tis better that way, isn't it?" She smiled mischievously at her mother.

Jasmine nodded. "You were ever my practical child," she said fondly with a small smile. She hugged Fortune warmly. Then she arose. "Let us go downstairs, poppet. Father Cullen is waiting to marry you in private before your most public marriage ceremony, which is to be performed by the Reverend Steen. Rohana will continue to bring you your posset each morning, and when the time comes for you to leave us, she will give you the recipe, and the ingredients. You must decide if Rois should eventually know, or not."

"Why did you cease taking the potion, Mama?" Fortune asked.

Jasmine placed her palms over her large belly, and smiled. "I thought I was past babies growing in my womb," she said with a chuckle. "My Jemmie and I have enjoyed a generous and bountiful bedsport for two years now without any restraints. Bride Murphy tells me, however, that this can happen to a woman at my time of life. I shall be more careful in the future, I promise you. I had forgotten how hard it is to carry a child the nearer one gets to its birthing. This last sibling of yours is an active creature."

Mother and daughter descended the narrow stairs to the main floor of the castle. There in a small room off the hall Fortune Mary Lindley and Kieran Sean Devers were married in the rites of the Holy Mother Church. Father Cullen then absolved Kieran of the sin he was about to commit by being publicly married again, this time by the very Protestant Samuel Steen, in the little stone church that served the village's non-Catholic population, fast becoming the majority in Maguire's Ford. All the Catholics who would be attending the ceremony had been previously absolved, and Cullen Butler, his priestly vestments put aside, joined his cousin, Jasmine, and her family, for the happy occasion, dressed in a very fashionable black velvet suit.

Fortune walked through the village on her stepfather's arm. Her mother followed in a pony cart along with the priest; Rory Maguire, and Bride Duffy, in her best gown, strode proudly along behind their godchild. The church was filled to overflowing. Sir Shane, his daughter, Lady Colleen Kelly and her husband were in a front pew. Behind him sat Molly Fitzgerald, and her two daughters, Maeve and Aine. If any thought it odd, those thoughts were kept to themselves.

The bride was led up the aisle by the duke. One slender hand rested upon his arm. In the other she carried a small bouquet of creamy, late roses tied with golden ribbons. The Reverend Samuel Steen smiled upon the young couple. There was, after all these years, hope for Kieran Devers. His bride, schooled properly by her parents, would lead him safely into the right church at long last. He would be saved from the wicked and sinful ways of the papists. Love could indeed move mountains. Inspired by this happy turn of events, his rich voice intoned the words of the Anglican marriage rite, the elegant language rising to fill the church. Well-schooled, the bridegroom spoke his part in a calm, clear voice. Even the beautiful bride's voice was heard quite distinctly throughout the church.

Finally they were pronounced man and wife. Kieran Devers took his wife into his strong arms, and kissed her heartily. The church erupted into cheers. Samuel Steen smiled, well pleased by today's turn of events as he watched the happy couple hurry back down the aisle, followed by the duke and duchess, Sir Shane, Lady Colleen, and the others, even that wanton Fitzgerald woman, who despite her licentious behavior seemed to have raised two decent daughters, for all they were Catholics.

The day had been unusually fair, and the sun shone brightly upon the newlyweds. The village had been invited to the wedding feast in the hall. Archery butts were set up in the castle courtyard as well as bowls. In a small field outside on the lake, a group of young men began a rugged game of wind ball, using the inflated bladder of a sheep for their ball.

In the hall tables and benches had been set up below the high board which sat upon a raised dais. The smell of roasting beef and lamb filled the hall. Platters of salmon, trout, ducks, and geese were passed. There were fresh trenchers of bread at every place as well as polished wooden spoons. Game pies, steaming hot and rich with winey gravy, were offered. Roasted capons stuffed with fruit, and broiled rabbit were set out. There were bowls of carrots, peas, and braised lettuces. Sweet butter and fine cheeses were on all the tables. Those at the high board drank rich wine from Archambault. The other guests were well pleased with the casks of brown October ale and cider.

The old bard who had come into Erne Rock's hall some months prior had remained. His days of wandering were over, and he now had a permanent home. He entertained the guests with his songs and tales of an Ireland past that had been filled with giants, fairies, glorious deeds of honor, and great battles. He played upon his well-worn harp, and when he tired, a piper took up a tune. Soon all were well fed, and many pleasantly drunk. Toast after toast was raised to the happy couple. The tables were pushed back against the walls, the piper joined by musicians who played upon flute, cornet, and drums; and the dancing began. Because the guests were mostly country folk, the dances were those most familiar to them: the rounder, the jig, and the somewhat slow and melancholy dump. Many of the women were eager to dance with the bridegroom, but the bride did not lack for partners.

The sun set early, it being October. The fires in the hall burned high. The bride and her groom were suddenly gone. The guests, well-fed and filled with good ale, slowly staggered out, thanking the duke and his wife for a fine time. The family sat by the fire talking together. Lady Colleen had not seen her half-sisters in many years. Now she regretted having been put in the difficult position of having to choose between them and her stepmother. These two younger women were her blood kin, and that had meant something once in Ireland.

"It's too dark now for you to return home," the duke noted to Sir Shane. "You'll stay the night, of course."

Sir Shane nodded. "Aye. Jane will not fret as I've stayed away before, and she thinks Colleen gone home to Dublin with Hugh, but my son-in-law is every bit the rebel Colleen is, aren't you, Hugh?"

Hugh Kelly grinned cheerfully. "Aye, Da," he agreed. "Nonetheless, we'll be on the road to Dublin tomorrow, and 'twill be awhile before we're back. I can only imagine how put out Lady Jane will be when she learns of this rather unique gathering to celebrate the marriage between Kieran and Fortune." He chuckled. "You'll be taking the brunt of her anger, I fear, Da."

"My eldest son is entitled to his happiness too," Shane Devers said quietly. "For expediency's sake I became a Protestant, and for expediency's sake I disinherited my eldest son; but I never disowned him, nor would I deny him his happiness. Jane has gained for her son what she sought. There is no more." He chuckled. "And, James Leslie, my lad doesn't come to your family a pauper. I have arranged for him to have now what would have been his upon my death one day. It has been sent to my goldsmith, Michael Kira, in Dublin. He has had it sent to his Kira cousins in London. Do you know of them?"

"Aye," the duke replied with a smile. "The Kiras have been our bankers for well over a century."

"Well, then, my lad will have his own monies," Shane Devers said. " 'Tis not a great deal, of course, but neither my wife or younger son will be able to deny him what is now his, and I believe they might have done so. Jane has a strict sense of ethics that does not extend to Catholics, I fear." He chuckled again. "She'll not know what I've done until after my death, but I'll not be here then to be scourged by her scolding tongue." He looked at his daughter and son-in-law. "You've heard none of this," he told them sternly.

Colleen threw up her hands. "Indeed I haven't," she said. "I shall be in trouble enough with Mama for months to come for having attended this wedding, but I wouldn't have missed it for the world." She arose from her place by the fire. "I think Hugh and I had best seek our beds as we are leaving early."

"Adali," Jasmine called. "Show Sir Hugh and Lady Colleen to their chamber." She smiled at them. "I am so glad you were with us for I know how much it meant to Fortune. Thank you."

The Kellys departed the hall, and Shane Devers looked to his longtime mistress. "I've provided for our lasses too," he told her. "All know I've never denied them."

"I'm sending them to the New World with Kieran," Molly told him. "No matter our relationship, they are still considered bastards in Lisnaskea. How can they find respectable husbands with such a stain upon them? They say in this new colony being founded, their Catholic faith will not be counted against them. In such a faraway place, with Kieran as their guardian, their birth may be concealed, and my lasses will be able to find good husbands, Shane. 'Tis what I want for them."

"When they go to England they will have their portion," he promised her.

Jasmine saw the devotion and love that the two had for each other. How sad, she thought, that Shane Devers could not have married Molly Fitzgerald instead of his English-born Jane, but then it was Jane Devers's wealth that had saved Mallow Court. She rose from her place, feigning a yawn. "Adali will show you to your rooms," she said. "I am exhausted, and will retire now. I will see you in the morning."

The hall emptied now and only a few servants were left to clear the last bits of debris from the wedding feast. No one noticed Rory Maguire seated in the shadows by the fire, a wolfhound's head upon his knee. Staring into the flames the Irishman considered how fortunate he had been to learn that Fortune was his daughter, and to see her happily married this day. That no one else but the priest and Adali knew was comforting in that they, too, were forced to bear his burden.

She had been such a beautiful bride, the golden brown velvet of her gown bringing out the gold in her red hair. He sighed. Only a few more months, and she would be gone from him forever. Gone from Maguire's Ford, which should have been hers, not just through her mother, but through her blood tie to the Maguires themselves. Gone to a new world across the vast ocean; a place he couldn't even imagine. Then Rory Maguire did something he hadn't done in years. He prayed from his heart. Prayed that his daughter would be happy and content for the rest of her days.

Happy. She had never been happier in her entire life, Fortune thought. In the midst of the dancing Kieran had taken her hand, and they had slipped away from the hall, running wordlessly up the stairs to her chamber, stealing into the room, and locking the door behind them. He had put the key on the window ledge with a great show of ceremony.

Fortune laughed softly. "Dare I ask you if you know how to help a lady remove her gown?" she said.

Kieran grinned, and turning her about began to unlace her bodice even while Fortune undid the tapes holding her skirts up. In short order she stood in her chemise and petticoats. Pulling the garments up she held out a slender leg to him. Kneeling he slid the silk rossetted garter off, and then rolled the gold silk stocking down the shapely limb, and over her foot, kissing her kneecap as he did so. She giggled. He repeated the procedure on her other leg, but then he surprised her for his hands glided smoothly beneath her skirts, clasping her buttocks in a firm grip as he drew her body forward, his face pressing itself against her belly, rubbing insinuatingly.

Fortune could feel the heat through the fabric of her undergarments. She could acutely sense the longing he felt. Her hands touched his dark head, and gently caressed it. His hair was thick, and silky to her touch. He looked up at her, and the passion she saw in his deep blue eyes took her breath away. Instinctively she loosed her petticoats, letting them slide down, drawing her chemise over her head, and dropping it. He released his grip upon her long enough to allow the silk to fall away; then he grasped her once again, but this time he bent his head slightly, his lips touching her plump Venus mont.

Her head spun, and her fingers tightened in his hair. She couldn't speak for a long moment for her throat was so tight. Her heart beat wildly against her chest as a burst of heat washed over her.

"Fortune! Do you mean to tear the hair from my head?" she heard him say in a strangled voice.

She looked down and saw that she was gripping him fiercely. "Ohh!" Her fingers loosed their hold on him.

His blue eyes danced now with amusement. "You have a strong grip, wife," he told her. Then he stood up.

"I like it better when you kneel at my feet," Fortune replied pertly, the delicious shock of his intimate kiss receding.

"You are utterly charming without your clothes," he told her.

" 'Tis time you had yours off, sir," she replied wickedly. Then her fingers began to undo his doublet, casting it aside in a heap with her wedding gown and petticoats. She loosened the ties on his shirt, her hands glossing beneath the fabric to press against his chest. Pushing the shirt from his shoulders so that it fell to his hips, she bent her fiery head and began to kiss the warm flesh with tiny, feathery kisses. Unable to restrain herself she let her tongue smooth over his skin.

Kieran gritted his teeth. She had the manners of a courtesan, and yet he knew she wasn't a wanton. "I'm going to remove my breeches," he warned her. When she didn't answer him, but instead kept on kissing and licking at him, he loosed and then lowered the garment in question.

Fortune's head shot up. "You aren't wearing any drawers!" she squeaked. Her eyes were riveted on his manhood as his shirt slid by it to the floor. She had brothers, and was not surprised by his possession of a manhood, or even its location. It was the size of it. She stared, fascinated, a bit frightened, yet enthralled. Then she spoke. "It's wonderful. Why don't you wear drawers?" Her hand was itching to reach out and touch him.

"They're a waste of time, and material," he said, intrigued by her reaction. Then he pulled her to him. She melted into his body, feeling the hard length of him against her thigh. His fingers brushed over her mouth. He saw the innocent desire rising in her eyes. He wished she weren't a virgin for he wanted nothing more than to plunge himself into her sweetness right now.

"Hurry!" she whispered into his ear.

"You're not ready yet," he told her. "Don't you think I want to take you right now, Fortune? But I won't hurt you. I want this first coupling between us to be perfect. I have waited a lifetime for you!" His mouth came down fiercely on hers, kissing her deeply, taking her breath away as he plundered her lips, kissing and nibbling upon them until she was gasping. His tongue found hers, stroking it sensuously. He could feel the little nipples of her breasts hardening, and pushing against his chest. Lifting her into his arms, he stepped from the puddle of velvet and silk that was his breeches and shirt. Walking across the room he laid her gently upon the bed.

Looking up at him she held out her arms. He smiled, and lay next to her, taking her hand in his, and kissing first the palm, and then each finger. "You are the most beautiful girl I have ever known," he told her quietly. "And you are the only girl I have ever loved."

"In practical terms you are the most implausible man I could have married," Fortune replied softly, "but I love you, Kieran, and I have never loved any man. Not even an infatuation, my darling. I want to please you, but I have absolutely no real idea of how to do so. Mama would tell me nothing except the mere rudiments for she says, as did my sister, that passion between two people who love each other is wonderful, and indescribable."

He smiled into her eyes, and Fortune was suddenly filled with an incredible sense of well-being, knowing that she was loved. "Just be quiet, lambkin, and let me adore you in my own fashion. There is nothing to fear from me, Fortune." Then he kissed her lips again, but briefly, his mouth brushing over the pure white column of her throat, nestling into the tiny hollow beneath her ear. He nibbled upon her lobe.

"Do you mean to devour me then?" she teased.

"In very tiny bits that will last forever," he replied. His lips then found the soft hollow of her throat. He could feel her pulse throbbing excitedly beneath his mouth. He rested there a moment; then raising his dark head again he laid it upon her chest, listening to her heart which beat a tattoo beneath his ear.

Fortune caressed his head once again with her fingertips. She hadn't known what to expect, and while this was lovely, it really wasn't very exciting. Still Mama and India seemed to enjoy love-making. Was there something wrong with her? Then Kieran raised his head, and began to kiss her breasts. The sharp intake of her own breath was very audible, and almost painful. She lay helpless as he cradled her in the curve of an arm. Then his big hand began to fondle her tenderly, but firmly. His fingers lightly crushed the supple flesh, leaving brief marks she could see in the shadows of the firelight. A frisson of sensation ran down her spine when he pinched a nipple, and a small "Oh!" of surprise escaped her lips.

He rolled onto his back, drawing her atop him. She felt her cheeks flaming with the exquisite intimacy as their naked bodies touched from shoulder to toes. His hands caressed the length of her, brushing over her suddenly sensitive flesh. Then those hands fastened themselves about her narrow waist, and lifted her up so that her breasts hung over his face. Raising his head just slightly he licked at her nipples, and a little moan slipped from her lips, to be followed by a gasp as his mouth closed over a nipple, and he suckled upon it. Now this was definitely more exciting, Fortune thought, and then she gave herself up to the delights he seemed to be engendering within her by his actions. She sighed deeply as he transferred his mouth to her other nipple.

He was rolling them again. She found herself upon her back once more. He began to stroke her breasts and belly. Waves of heat again coursed through her body. There was a distinct tingling in that forbidden spot between her legs. Unable to help herself she squirmed slightly. He smiled knowingly, putting his hand upon her Venus mont, and pressing down. A bolt of sensation shot through her. A single finger began to run up and down the shadowed gash between her nether lips. She could feel the moisture beginning to ooze from between those fleshy folds as his finger glided back and forth.

"You will be ready soon, sweetheart," he murmured against her mouth. He was as hard as granite now, his male member throbbing with excitement and anticipation.

"Do what you did before," Fortune begged him. "Please!"

"Little wanton," he laughed, and then he pushed his finger between her nether lips to find her love button.

Fortune gasped with pleasure as he attained his goal. This was what she had wanted. Not the caressing, but the excitement of her own lust. "Ohhh, yes!" she cried to him. "Don't stop, Kieran! Don't stop!"

He had no intention of stopping. He played with the sentient nub of flesh, exciting it, rousing it, making her squirm with her own rising passions. Her lust boiled over once, but he did not cease the sweet torture until she was whimpering with another burst of delight. It was then he growled into her ear, "Open yourself for me, Fortune!"

"Not yet," she pleaded, wanting more.

"Now!" his voice said harshly as he forced a knee between her thighs, levering them open. "Now, you honied little bitch, before I explode with my desire for you!" Reaching down he positioned himself, and then with two fingers he pinched her love button hard, sending Fortune into a paroxysm of pleasure. At that moment he plunged deep into her eager body, feeling her maidenhead explode with the force of his fierce thrust, hearing her astonished intake of breath.

"Ahhhh!" she gasped. His initial entry had been painful, but now the pain was quickly gone. She became awakened to his possession of her. Her first reaction was to be frightened, but then she was acutely aware of how he filled her. It was so natural. So perfect. She sighed deeply, her arms wrapping themselves about him.

"Look at me," he commanded her.

She opened her eyes and stared into his which were so filled with his love and his passion that she was near to weeping. "I love you, Fortune," he told her once again. "I love you!" Then he began to move within her. With each stroke of his love lance she became more and more conscious of a new pleasure that was rising within her, reaching up to claim her very soul. Her gaze locked itself on his until the intensity of her emotions was so great that her eyes closed of their own volition, and for the first time in her life Fortune soared among the stars.

He drove deeper and deeper into the sweetness of her. Her fingers dug strongly into the flesh of his muscled shoulders. "Please! Please!" she said huskily, and he understood the delights she was experiencing because he was savoring those same delights as their bodies, one now, peaked together in a fierce firestorm of satisfied passion.

"Kieran! Ahh, 'tis sweet, my darling! Sweet!" Fortune cried as she was swept up in a maelstrom, and then hurtled down into a pool of warm darkness.

His hunger burst, flooding her secret garden with his juices as he collapsed upon her lush body. He could scarce catch his breath, but he quickly realized his weight on her was much too much, and rolled from her. He lay gasping, feeling the moisture from his exertions oozing from every pore of his body. As his heart slowed he heard it. A soft weeping. Stricken he turned toward her. "Fortune? What is it, sweetheart? Why do you weep? Have I hurt you?" He was a beast! he thought. So wrapped up in his own pleasure he hadn't even considered her. He gathered her into his arms. "What is it, lambkin? Tell me!"

"I am so happy," she wailed, and wept all over his smooth chest. "I have never been happier in all my life, Kieran!" she sobbed. "You were so worth waiting for, my love. I didn't think love would ever find me. When I met your brother, and knew almost at once he wasn't the one, and thought I might have to take him because it was expected…" A fresh flow of tears poured forth from her blue-green eyes.

He wanted to laugh at her innocent confession. He wanted to shout with joy at it. Instead he held her tightly. "I didn't think love would find me either, Fortune, but then I saw you, and knew I could not let Willy have you. I would have stolen you away in the manner of my Celtic ancestors if you had chosen him. You are mine! You always were, and you always will be. Now, cease your weeping, my love, and kiss me," he told her, turning her to face him.

Their lips met in an almost desperate embrace. Then drawing away from him she said candidly, "Can we have each other again tonight?"

He nodded. "Aye, but let me rest awhile, and you also, my darling. I have much more to show you, and to teach you, Fortune. I hope you will not be disappointed."

"I want to know how to pleasure you," she said. Then she climbed from their bed, and padded across the bedchamber to where a silver ewer had been set next to a small pile of soft cloths. Bringing them back to the bedside she set them down, and first washed herself, then bathed his manhood carefully. "Mama calls these love cloths. She says it is advisable to bathe after each encounter with passion because then we are ready for more."

He had never heard of such a thing, but it seemed quite sensible to him, and he certainly had no objection to the procedure. "I like it," he said. "Will you always care for me so tenderly, Fortune?" He reached up, and fondled her breast, rubbing the nipple with the pad of his thumb.

"Aye," she said, carefully putting the basin and cloths aside, then climbing back into their bed atop him. His two hands began to caress her two small round breasts. Fortune clasped him between her two milky thighs as she would her gelding. "I can ride you, sir, even as I do Thunder. Will you prove as lusty a mount?" she teased him, almost purring as he squeezed her breasts. She arched away from him, and his hands glided down her torso, sliding around beneath her bottom to fondle it suggestively. "Ohh!" she squealed, and wiggled herself against his outspread palms.

He chuckled, and looked up at her, his eyes twinkling. "So, you're not afraid of my lust, my beautiful wife." His strong fingers kneaded her flesh. He could feel his love lance hardening with each of her very provocative movements. She had wondered if they could make love again tonight. He now wondered if he could stop. He had never known such desire for a woman as he had for Fortune. Usually his lust was easily satisfied with one good tumble, but not with his young bride.

She could feel the throbbing of him, and raising herself above his manhood she slowly lowered herself onto it, a gusty sigh escaping her as she couched his lance entirely. He groaned, and pulling her forward so he might kiss her again began to move rhythmically within her. Their lips tasted each other. Their hearts beat frantically. "Oh, God!" Fortune cried desperately as he drove once again with unrelenting insistence until the stars were exploding within her head, behind her eyes, and in her very heart.

"Fortune, my love!" he cried out as his desire peaked once more, his arms tightening about her as she yielded herself to him again.

And afterwards as they lay together, fingers entwined, he insisted that she sleep for a time. "You are so fierce a lover, my darling," he told her, "but you must rest, and so must I."

"Yes, sir, my lord husband," Fortune replied sweetly, sated, and replete with her contentment. "But can we please do it again when we awake? Kieran? Why are you laughing? Have I said something amusing?"

He somehow managed to restrain his mirth. "Are all the women in your family this passionate, Fortune?"

"Isn't passion with your husband a good thing?" Her look was honestly questioning.

"You will never hear me complain, my love," he told her, "but this thought suddenly comes to mind. I don't have to worry about my little brother killing me when he learns I have married you, Fortune. You will probably kill me with your wickedly delicious lustful nature before much longer. Willy doesn't know what a narrow escape he had." And he laughed again.

"Villain!" she scolded him. "And you have yet to answer my question. Can we make love again after we have rested?"

"Aye," he said, and then, "I wonder if I shall live to see the morning, you delightful wanton."

Fortune leaned over him, and ran her tongue along his lips before kissing him quickly. "Now that you have shown me the delights of passion, my love, I intend keeping you alive," she told him.

"Keeping you content will be a lifetime occupation," he replied, pulling her against him so that she could hear the steady beat of his heart.

"You will have to work very hard," she told him.

"Oh, madame, I will," he responded. "You may be certain that I will."

^{Chapter 11}

“What do you mean Kieran has married Fortune Lindley?" Jane Devers stared at her husband uncomprehendingly.

"They were wed yesterday by the Reverend Steen at Maguire's Ford's church," her husband replied. "I was there, and witnessed the ceremony."

"You allowed this thing?" She could feel her anger beginning to rise. "You let that Celtic bastard of yours marry the greatest heiress in all of Fermanagh? How could you?" Her fair skin was mottled with her ire, and she was practically gasping.

"How could I prevent it?" he asked her quietly. "The duke of Glenkirk and his wife were content with the match. And do not ever again refer to my eldest son as a bastard, Jane." His look was hard.

"What else is he?" she shrieked. "Your Catholic marriage was illegal. That is the king's law! Your children by that creature you called a first wife were not legitimate, and yet I looked the other way, raising them as if they were my own. When you recognized William as your legitimate heir, I thought we were of one mind, Shane."

" 'Twas you, my dear, who said unless Kieran became a Protestant I must disinherit him if Mallow Court was to be protected, and remain in the Devers family," he replied. "Are you now telling me that if Kieran had complied, and became a Protestant, you would have claimed he was illegitimate because my first marriage to Mary Maguire was celebrated in the Catholic Church?"

"Yes!" she told him bluntly. "Yes, I would have! We did not marry for love, Shane. You married me for my inheritance, and I married you for Mallow Court. Did you really think I should let Kieran have it after my William was born? And if I had not borne you a son, but only a daughter, I should have wanted it for Bessie. Mallow Court does not belong to you, Shane. My father bought it with his gold, and I sealed the bargain when I let you grunt and sweat over my body in order to give you a daughter and a son. In the eyes of the law they are your only legitimate heirs! Do not ever forget it!"

"I am not such a fool that I believe ours a love match, Jane," he said, "but I did think we had an affection for one another after two children, and all these many years. I am saddened to learn I was wrong."

"You Irish are such romantics," she sneered. "Marriage, like anything else, is a practical business, Shane. Now, let us discuss this disaster that has come upon us. Kieran cannot be allowed to have Erne Rock, and Maguire's Ford. It would give the local Catholics who persist in remaining here too great an advantage."

"Kieran and Fortune will not be remaining in Ulster, Jane. They are not to have Maguire's Ford. You have already been told that. The estate is to be divided between the duke's two youngest sons, Adam and Duncan Leslie, who are already in residence at the castle. The duke, his wife, Fortune, and Kieran will be leaving next spring after the duchess has had her child, and it is safe for them to travel."

"That is what they tell you," Jane Devers said venomously. "I am not so great a fool that I do not realize what Kieran has done. He quite deliberately set out to entice the Lindley wench so that William could not have her. William suspected it all along. Why else would Kieran have married that girl but for her vast estate? What else could she possibly have to recommend her? Kieran is an Irishman and to him land is important. He planned to gain a larger and richer holding than his younger brother. That is why he was so willing to give up Mallow Court. Ahh, you Irish are a wickedly devious lot, but Kieran will not succeed, I promise you, Shane! The law will not allow a treasonous Catholic to have such a prize."

"Jane, do not meddle! I forbid you to do so else you bring disaster on my house. Kieran and his wife are not to have Maguire's Ford. The Leslies of Glenkirk are no fools to throw away a rich holding like that on a Catholic son-in-law. They have a friend in King Charles, and a certain small influence at court. The duchess's son is the king's nephew. If they wanted Maguire's Ford and Erne Rock for their daughter and Kieran, they would have the king's protection no matter the law, but they do not. They are wise enough to know the difficulty it would cause, and wish no harm to their people. The two sons who will divide the holding are Protestants. You cannot take Maguire's Ford from the Leslies of Glenkirk, Jane. You have no grounds on which to base any accusations. Let it be, and consider how we are to tell William when he and Emily Anne return from their wedding trip in a few weeks."

She paled. "Ahh, my son! What will he think of this turn of events? Poor William!"

"Poor William?" her husband said almost mockingly. "Why would you feel sorry for him, Jane? He is the heir to all I have. He has married a young girl who genuinely loves him, and will one day bring him all her father has, which is considerable. Why would you feel sorry for him, Jane? Because he retains a foolish passion that was never returned for a girl who saw nothing of value, or to love, in him? He had best get over his childish lust, for that is all it ever was. And he had best not covet his brother's wife." Then he looked hard at his own spouse "And you will not spoil William and Emily Anne's wedding trip by sending a message to him in Dublin. Let them have these few weeks together to find some happiness before you begin to infect them with your bitterness, my dear.

"Kieran has wed Fortune in the rites of the Anglican Church, the king's church. There is nothing you can do about it, Jane. The match is legal, approved of by the Leslies, and the bloody bedsheet flew this morning over Erne Rock Castle in proof of the consummation of the marriage. Kieran has never done you any harm, Jane. Like William, he is entitled to his happiness. You will not interfere." His look was stern.

"Your Catholic son allowed himself to be wed in the Protestant Church?" she jeered at him. "Then the girl is no more than a whore to him, for his marriage could only be sanctified in the foul rites of the Roman Church." Her eyes narrowed. "Unless, of course, they were first married by that priest the duchess claims as her kin. Were they, Shane? Did your precious son and his whore flout the king's law first, then make a mockery of our true church?" She glared at him.

"If there was another ceremony, Jane, I was not aware of it, nor was I present at any such ceremony," he told her. No, he hadn't been present. Bride Murphy and Rory Maguire had been the witnesses. He had already been seated in Maguire's Ford's little stone Protestant church with Colleen, Hugh, Molly, and their daughters. God help him when Jane learned of that, and she would eventually. "The Leslies of Glenkirk are Protestant, Jane. It is natural their daughter, brought up in England's faith, would be married by Reverend Steen. And pray, my dear, do not call my daughter-in-law a whore."

Frustrated, and angered beyond all reason, Jane Devers lost her calm demeanor and vaunted control. Her fingers closed about the wine decanter, and then she flung it at him. "Ihate you!" she screamed.

Shane Devers ducked the missile and burst out laughing. "Why, my dear Jane, 'tis the most passion I have ever seen you show in all our years of marriage. It quite becomes you."

Open-mouthed, she stared at him, her pale blue eyes almost bulging from her head. Then with a cry of despair Jane Devers fled her husband's library. She was appalled by the situation; appalled by her inability to manage it; appalled by her loss of control. She began to weep, but after a moment she ceased. She needed to know more about this wedding. Hurrying to her apartments she called to her maid, Susanna.

"See if one of the household servants has kin in Maguire's Ford," she said "My stepson married Lady Lindley yesterday, and I want to know everything there is to know about the wedding."

"Yes, m'lady," Susanna said, showing no emotion at all. Her ladyship did not like any show of feelings, but Susanna was very surprised by her mistress's news. "The undercook has family in Maguire's Ford, m'lady. Shall I speak to her?"

"Yes," Jane Devers replied. "Tell her there is a silver piece in it for her if she is forthcoming."

"Yes, m'lady." Susanna curtsied, and hurried off.

Several days later Jane Devers had learned all she needed to know about her stepson's wedding. It had been a happy occasion, and the duke had invited all in the village to celebrate it with his family. Learning this made her even happier William had not contracted an alliance with Fortune Lindley. That the duke could associate himself and his family with those bog trotters was disgusting. The Leslies might be wealthy, but they were obviously not people of real quality. How could they be when the duchess had no shame in the mongrel she had borne a dead prince?

More interesting, however, was the knowledge that her husband's mistress had been at the festivities with her two bastards. And that they had all spent the night at Erne Rock. While Shane knew it not, she had seen those two young hussies in Lisnaskea on several occasions. And she had made it quite clear to the Reverend Mr. Dundas that no respectable family should take either of those two woods colts to be a wife for their sons. They were baseborn. They were Catholics. But that Shane should have consorted with them publicly at Kieran's wedding was an insult she would not forget. He would pay for his misbehavior. Kieran would pay for his treachery as well.

She hardly saw her husband at all now. They had had separate bedchambers for years. They only met over the dinner table, except that Shane was away in the evening more often than not of late. Probably with his blowsy whore and her two brats. Consequently there was little exchange between them anymore. She didn't care. William would be home soon with Emily Anne, and then they would decide what was to be done about Kieran and the estate at Maguire's Ford. No matter that Shane said Kieran was not to have it. She didn't believe him. Why wouldn't the duchess give the lands given her by her late husband to the child born of that marriage? Surely she would. She wouldn't give it to sons born of another husband. Jasmine Leslie would use her influence with King Charles to give Maguire's Ford to her daughter and Kieran. Bringing her two youngest sons from Scotland was but a ruse. Well, it wouldn't work, and Kieran Devers wasn't going to have the chance to lord it over her son!

Blissfully unaware of Jane Devers, Kieran and Fortune spent the days following their marriage making love and riding out together. Their passion for each other was so great that they could scarcely wait to leave the hall each evening. Finally Jasmine told them to not even bother coming into the hall, but to have food sent to their bedchamber to eat when they realized another hunger other than the one they had for each other's bodies.

"Mama!" Fortune blushed, embarrassed, but Kieran just laughed.

"I thank you, madame, for your understanding," he said with a rakish grin, and a wink.

Both the duke and Rory Maguire chuckled at his reply, and Father Cullen hid a smile.

"The quiet from Lisnaskea is a wee bit deafening," the duke noted.

"I heard that Lady Jane and her good husband had quite a row over the marriage here," Rory noted. "The undercook at Mallow Court was given a silver piece to obtain all the information she could from her kin here. Now they say Sir Shane and his wife do not speak to each other except when they cannot avoid it. It should get a bit more interesting when young Willy comes home with his bride."

"Surely he won't make a scene," Fortune said.

"You turned him away, and married his brother, lass," was the answer. "Kieran can tell you, young Willy has never been one to easily let go of something he wanted."

"We'll talk, my brother and I," Kieran said.

Maguire raised a sandy eyebrow. "If you can get within shouting range of him, Kieran Devers, for he'll be out for blood unless that simple lass he has married has been able to turn his heart."

"Do you think he's dangerous?" Fortune asked her husband later that evening as they lay abed. They were naked, and seated, he against the pillows, she against his chest. His big hands played with her sweet round breasts, teasing them lightly.

"I don't know," he answered her, one hand moving to push her hair aside so he might kiss the soft nape of her neck. "I've never seen him driven so far as he was with you." He nipped at her, then soothed away the sting with his wet tongue.

She took his other hand from her breast, and mouthed the fingers, finally taking one finger into her mouth and sucking on it seductively. Her tongue swirled about the finger in an almost thoughtful motion, and then releasing it she said, "Does his wife have the ability to rule him as his mother did? Perhaps we should try to make our peace through Emily Anne."

"I am not certain it will be possible for Emily Anne loves Willy with all her heart, and she is yet very young. She will say and do what she believes will please him. Nay, I think there is little chance of a reconciliation between me and my family."

"Your father will not desert you," Fortune reminded him.

"Nay, he won't, but neither will he do anything else. He must live with my stepmother and my siblings long after we have gone."

"Than we shall ignore them all," Fortune said. "I see no other way. In six months' time we shall be gone, and with the winter coming, I see little chance of your stepmother causing difficulty."

He turned her about so he might kiss her, but did not answer her. His bride did not know Jane Devers as he did. Even now her troublesome mind would be twisting and turning in an effort to find an excuse to make mischief of some sort for the Leslies of Glenkirk, and to justify that wicked behavior as right, based upon her religious beliefs. Not that the Catholics weren't as bad; for they were. How they could all excuse their viciousness toward one another, and still claim God favored them alone defied logic, Kieran thought.

Toward the end of October Maeve Fitzgerald rode over from Lisnaskea to tell her half-brother that William Devers and his bride were expected home that same day. "Da says to be on your guard as that woman he's wed to is surely plotting some deviltry."

"I had heard Da wasn't at Mallow Court a great deal now," her brother remarked.

"He's there enough," Maeve said sharply.

Kieran put an arm about his half-sister. "What is it, lass?"

Maeve sighed deeply. "I don't want to leave our mam, and yet she wants us to go with you in the spring, and the truth is that she is right. There is nothing here for us. We're being driven from our home by the likes of Jane Devers, and her Protestant ilk. And what will happen to Mam when we are gone?"

"Da will protect her," Kieran said in an effort to comfort his half-sister.

"And when Da is gone? Do you think your younger brother will respect the fact that Da built Mam her house, and gave her an income? He'll drive her from it, and send her from Lisnaskea, the only place she's ever known, and all because she's a Catholic. God help her!"

"We'll make a plan," Kieran promised her. "If that should ever happen, she will come to us in the New World, Maeve."

"I hate the Protestants!" Maeve declared. "They may hold sway here in Ulster now, but they'll all burn in the fiery pits of hell one day for their impiety and false religion. I'm glad for it!"

"My wife is a Protestant," Kieran reminded Maeve.

"Fortune is different, and at least she was once baptized a Catholic. With your help, Kieran, she'll return to the true church one day, especially when you have children," Maeve reasoned.

"Don't waste yourself in hating, little sister," he told her. Then he sent her back to Lisnaskea, and went to tell his in-laws that William Devers would shortly be home.

He came early the next day, riding through Maguire's Ford as if the devil himself was on his heels. He stormed into Erne Rock Castle, pushing past a startled servant. He found the family in the Great Hall, breaking their fast of the previous night. They did not see him until pointing a finger at Fortune he shouted at her, "Whore!"

Before James Leslie, Kieran, or the two younger Leslies might respond, Fortune was on her feet, coming down from the high board to stand in front of William Devers. She slapped him with all her might. "How dare you insult me?" she demanded of him. "Who do you think you are, William Devers, to come into my mother's house, and slander me? You have no rights over me, and you certainly never did!"

"You were to marry me!" he cried, taken aback by her fury. His mother and his wife had spent all the previous evening telling him what an affront Fortune Lindley's marriage to Kieran was. He had right on his side, damn it!

"There was no marriage contract between us, or our families, Master Devers. I came to Ireland to seek a husband, and you were the first candidate for my hand presented me. I refused you."

"So you might whore with my bastard brother!" he accused her. "All the time I courted you so tenderly, you were thinking of him!"

Fortune slapped him again to his surprise. "If you keep calling me foul names, and maligning my husband, Master Devers, I shall go to the local magistrate and register a complaint. Do not think that because Kieran is a Catholic I shall be ignored. I shall not. I am a Protestant, and my brother is the king's well-loved nephew. As for the king, his wife is a Catholic. Whose side in such a matter as this one do you think the king will favor, Master Devers? That of a very unimportant Irish landowner's son, or mine?"

"I loved you, Fortune." His voice was low.

"You were fascinated by me. What you loved, Will, whether you knew it or not, was Maguire's Ford, and this castle. Even as your mother had taught you," Fortune said with devastating effect.

"Kieran shall not have it," William Devers said, his voice now hard, his eyes filled with anger and hate. "My bastard half-brother shall not have Maguire's Ford and Erne Rock. I will not allow any Catholic to lord it over me, madame!"

"You know the disposition of this estate, Will," Fortune said. "It is to be equally divided between my brothers who even now sit at the high board, their daggers at the ready to slit your throat," she mocked. "Now, apologize to me, and to your brother, who is my husband. There is no reason for strife between us."

"Go to hell, you bitch!" he snarled, and turned to go.

At that moment Kieran Devers leapt from the high board, and dashed across the floor to beard his younger brother. Grasping him by his doublet he said fiercely, "I'll not kill you lest I have the sin of Cain upon me, Willy, and because I promised my wife I should not; but if you ever insult either of us again, little brother, I will forget my promises, and the consequences be damned. My father's marriage to my mother was a legitimate one even as his marriage to your mother is. If I were the bigot you are I should claim otherwise for is not the Holy Catholic Church the one true church? Some say it is so, Willy, although the Protestants would disagree. Like Fortune and her family I desire no animosity between us, but so help me God I shall beat you senseless if you ever come to Erne Rock again uninvited to cause trouble!" He loosed his hold on the younger man. "Now, get the hell out of here, Willy!" Spinning William Devers about he applied his boot to the seat of his antagonist's breeches, and pushed.

Stumbling, William Devers almost ran from the hall, but as he reached its entrance he turned, raising a fist to shake it at them. "You will be sorry for what you have done to me, Kieran! I'll see you dead, and that witch you've married who haunts my dreams with you!" Then he was gone.

"He's mad," Fortune declared. "There was never anything but a possibility between us. Now he is a married man as I am a married woman, and he can still not let it go."

"You were his first love, sweetheart," Kieran said. "In a strange way I cannot blame him. How could any man love you, and then be married to another, Fortune?"

Hearing his words Fortune smiled up at her husband. "I do love you so," she said softly.

At the high board James and Jasmine Leslie smiled fondly at the pair, but Adam Leslie and his brother, Duncan, rolled their eyes at each other, and snorted their derision.

Hearing them their sister turned about. "You'll be just as bad one day, my laddies," she told them.

"Never!" Adam swore. "We dinna like lassies.'"

"You will," chuckled his father, "and sooner, I fear, than later."

"And make a fool of myself like that William Devers? I dinna think so," Adam replied scathingly. Then he quickly apologized to his brother-in-law. "Yer pardon, Kieran. I know he's yer brother, but…"

Kieran smiled at the boy. "I take no offense, Adam Leslie, for I fear you are wiser than Willy."

"Poor William," Jasmine said sympathetically.

But William Devers didn't need the duchess of Glenkirk's sympathy. Filled with righteous anger he returned to Mallow Court quite determined to see that his brother and Fortune were punished for what he had decided were their offenses against him. He was encouraged in this pursuit by his mother and his wife, for like her mother-in-law, Emily Anne Devers had little tolerance for Catholics.

"They must be rooted out of Lisnaskea for good and all," she said to her husband. "Certainly your father can be made to see reason, William. These people are a danger to us all for they hate us."

"I will speak with him," William told her, but when he brought the subject up, Shane Devers was taken aback.

"What do you mean we must drive the Catholics from Lisnaskea?" he demanded of his son. "Are you mad? The peace between Protestant and Catholic is fragile enough as it is. And where are these people who have lived here in this place for centuries to go?"

"The Catholics put us all in peril, Da," William answered him. "Their popish ways can taint our children."

His father snorted with derision. He had just about had enough of his wife, his son, his daughter-in-law, and their bigotry. He had become a Protestant to gain Jane's hand, and her fortune, but he had never discriminated against his Catholic neighbors.

But a passing servant heard the argument between father and son. He gossiped to his fellow servant, whose sweetheart, a maidservant in the house, had overheard a similar conversation between Lady Devers and the young mistress. The rumors began to fly from Mallow Court into Lisnaskea. Neighbor began to look upon neighbor with suspicion even though only the day before they had been friends.

The priest in Lisnaskea, Father Brendan, began preaching against those who would come into Ulster with its traditions of greatness and put that heritage with its wonderful myths and legends and history to scorn, calling the Irish barbarians, and papists who needed to be taught better. The Protestant minister, the Reverend Mr. Dundas, began to sermonize that only the Protestant faith was the true faith, and any who stood against it must be either brought forcibly to the truth, or destroyed To worship other than in the proscribed manner was outright treason.

Then one evening as Shane Devers sat quietly with his mistress in her house, sipping his whiskey, the sound of cries reached their ears. Rising from his place by the hearth he went to the door, opened it, and looked out. To his shock he could see several fires burning in the village, and hear the shouts and cry of voices. "I had best go and see what is happening, Molly. Lock the door, and do not open it to any but me. I'll be back." He hurried off.

Molly Fitzgerald barred the door as she had been instructed, and called her daughters from their bedchamber, bringing them down into the parlor with Biddy, her servant. "There is some trouble in the village," she said. "Your da has gone to investigate."

" 'Tis been coming all week," Biddy muttered darkly.

"What have you heard?" her mistress asked.

"No more than you, but I can tell you that young William Devers has been going about stirring up the Protestants, telling them we're a danger to them, and if we were gone 'twould be heaven on earth in Lisnaskea. And there are those who would listen, mistress."

"Filthy dissenters! May they all burn in hell!" Maeve said angrily. "I wish I were a man so I might fight them for the true faith."

"Don't be a little fool," her mother said impatiently.

"This is William Devers's outrage at his brother marrying Lady Fortune. He covets Maguire's Ford."

"But Kieran isn't to have it," Aine, her youngpr daughter said. "Surely he knows that, Mam."

"He won't believe it, nor will his greedy mother until Kieran and Fortune are gone from Ulster," Molly said fatalistically.

The sound of shouting seemed to be drawing nearer as the four women huddled by the fireside. Without a word Biddy got up, and drew the draperies shut. She had seen the shadowed figures of men moving toward the house in the light from the fires, but she said nothing, instead going to the front door of the house, and setting the heavy oak bar across it. Then she went to the back of the house, and did the same with the door into the pantry. Molly watched her elderly servant silently, exchanging a questioning look with Biddy who but shook her grizzled head cautioningly.

The smell of burning began to seep through into the house, but Molly was not concerned for her own house was made of brick with a fine slate roof. The angry yelling was close now, and the mistress of the house wondered where Sir Shane had gotten to, and if he was all right. She looked to her two daughters seated by the fireplace, their arms protectively about each other. They were unusually silent, even the usually outspoken Maeve. Suddenly a thunderous pounding came upon the front door. Biddy slid back into the shadows of the room while Molly put a warning finger to her lips as she caught her daughters attention.

Then the glass in one of the windows was smashed violently, and unable to help themselves the women screamed in fright as the draperies were yanked aside, and a man climbed into the room. He glared at them, but said nothing, and going into the hallway unbarred the front door to allow a mob of howling men into the house. They crowded into the elegant parlor, and Molly recognized many of them as her neighbors. The girls were sobbing, terrified.

"How dare you break into my house!" Molly said angrily. "What is this all about? You, Robert Morgan, and you, James Curran! Why I recognize most of you. What is going on?"

The two men she named looked shamefaced, but remained where they were. The others shuffled their feet uncomfortably.

"The whore is bold, is she not?" William Devers moved forward from the crowd of men who stepped aside to let him come. "My father's Catholic whore thinks she can lord it over us all. Well, you cannot, whore, and you will not ever again." Raising the pistol he had concealed in his hand William Devers shot Molly Fitzgerald through the heart, killing her instantly.

With a shriek Maeve arose to cradle her mother's lifeless body. "You Protestant devil," she screamed at him. "How could you? I shall tell our Da what you have done, William Devers! I hope he kills you himself!" Sobbing she held Molly's body against her chest.

His face expressionless William raised his pistol once again and shot his half-sister through her head. Maeve's body jerked once, and then she fell over her mother's still form. Then his icy eyes turned to Aine who cowered in the corner near the fireplace. An unholy light lit William's face. Reaching out he pulled Aine up. "Now here's a pretty little wench, and every bit the whore her mother was, I'll wager. Let's take her upstairs, and have her entertain us. You'd like that, wouldn't you, wench?" Reaching out William ripped Aine's bodice open, and fondled her little breasts.

The girl looked at him with shocked blue eyes. "You're my brother," she said weakly. She was shaking all over.

William slapped Aine hard, and she cried out surprised. "You cannot claim kinship with me, wench. You're a common whore's brat, and, now, up the stairs with you! You'll ply your mother's trade this night before I kill you. What's one more dead Catholic bitch more or less. By morning Lisnaskea will be free of your kind." He dragged Aine from the parlor, turning to invite his companions along. "Come on, lads. She looks like a tasty morsel, and we'll all have at her."

Not all the men followed William. Most drifted from Molly Fitzgerald's house silently, not even daring to look at her body and that of young Maeve as they went. They had only wanted Lisnaskea to to be a wholly Protestant town. They hadn't wanted murder, and rape. Yet in the hour since Reverend Dundas had exorted them to follow William Devers, and cleanse Lisnaskea of the Catholics, they had seen death too many times to be able to cry their innocence any longer. They felt guilty, and their guilt made them only angrier at their Catholic neighbors. Then they heard a terrible screaming, peal after peal of pure terror crying out from the upper floor of Molly Fitzgerald's house. They heard unholy laughter, and the shouts of encouragement from those who had remained behind to violate the young girl. Many had daughters Aine's age. The men hurried off into the darkness to escape the sound.

Then a young lad ran from out of the darkness shouting, "The dirty Papists have fired the church, and locked Reverend Dundas and his family inside. Our women can't get the doors open!"

"Go on," Robert Morgan told his companions. "I'll fetch Master William, and the others."

And then Molly Fitzgerald's house was silent again. The door, hanging from its hinges, swung open. From her hiding place old Biddy crept forth, tears streaming down her worn face. Her old legs shaking she climbed the stairs, and sought Aine. She found the young girl, stripped naked, and spread open on her mother's bed. Her throat had been cut from ear to ear. Her blue eyes were open, and filled with utter terror. Her sweet little face was already showing signs of bruising, and her milky thighs were smeared with blood, evidence of her violation. Biddy gently closed Aine's sightless eyes, and drew a coverlet over her although she was certainly past all modesty now.

The old servant wiped her eyes once more with her apron, and then a look of grim determination crossed her face. Looking down on young Aine, whom she had helped to birth, Biddy crossed herself and said a prayer. Then she descended the elegant small staircase of the house, reentering the parlor. She prayed again over the bodies of her mistress and Maeve. Then she departed the house through the rear entry and went to the stables. Biddy was deathly afraid of horses, but she bravely saddled Aine's fat pony, heaving her wiry frame into the saddle and riding off, away from the town, and into the darkness.

She knew the way for she had spent her entire life in this region. She was not of Lisnaskea, but a Maguire's Ford woman. Slowly, carefully, she guided the pony as it picked its way through the darkness on the rocky path toward safety. The night was only just beginning to give way to the day when she finally made her way into the village of Maguire's Ford, and across the small drawbridge of Erne Rock Castle. She practically fell into the arms of the young gatekeeper.

"Fetch the Maguire," she wheezed at him, shaking the lad off. "I can stand. Get the Maguire! 'There's murder about!"

Rory Maguire came from his gatehouse, half-dressed, but struck by the gatekeeper's urgency. He recognized Biddy immediately.

She didn't wait for him to ask. "There's murder at Lisnaskea! My lord himself was with us last evening when it began. I don't know where he is now. William Devers shot my mistress, and young Maeve. They are dead. What he did to our wee Aine I am too ashamed to say. She is dead now too, for which I thank a merciful God."

"So it's finally come," Rory Maguire said, almost to himself. Then he took the old woman by the arm. "Come into the hall, Biddy. I must fetch the duke and his wife. You must tell them what happened."

"And what will they do, these Protestants, to avenge my poor mistress and her daughters?" Biddy demanded angrily. " 'Twas their kind who killed them, and God knows how many others in Lisnaskea!"

"Nay," he told her quietly as he led her into the castle. "Not all Protestants, like Catholics, are the same, Biddy. That is why I have been able to remain here all these years with our own folk. That is why Maguire's Ford is a place of peace. Lady Jasmine is a good woman who holds no prejudice against any faith. I will admit that in that she is rare, but it is she who possesses Maguire's Ford, and her will has ruled us peacefully for a long time. Remember, her own dear daughter, born here in this castle, is wed to Kieran Devers. She knew your mistress, and her children. She will be horrified by your tale."

They were in the hall now, and Rory sent a servant for the duchess and her husband. They came almost immediately, James Leslie helping his wife who was now very full with their child.

"What has happened?" Jasmine asked, sitting heavily.

"This is Biddy, Molly Fitzgerald's serving woman," Rory said. "I'll let her tell you her tale, my lady, but be warned. 'Tis a terrible one."

The Leslies listened with growing horror as the old lady spoke of the terror, the violence, the murder, and the rape that had occurred the previous evening in Lisnaskea. "I am ashamed that I hid, that I could not aid my mistress and those two sweet lasses I helped to raise," Biddy wept as she came to the end of her tale, "but I knew that someone had to remain alive to tell the world of William Devers's perfidy."

"You did exactly the right thing," Jasmine said, rising to embrace Biddy. "Without you we would never have known, but I am concerned for Sir Shane. You say he left the house when he heard the uproar begin, and you saw him not again? What could have happened to him?"

"He has probably been murdered by the English bitch's offspring," Kieran Devers said coming into the hall, for the same servant who had gone to fetch the Leslies had gone to find their son-in-law as well.

"Surely not!" Jasmine cried.

"William was never particularly patient when he wanted something badly," Kieran said. "If he would kill poor Molly, and our half-sisters, why not our father? My stepmother has now gotten almost everything she ever wanted. What use has she for Da now? She has his home, and his lands. The girls are gone. She has managed to drive me off, and married her son to the girl she wanted for a daughter-in-law. I'm quite certain it is she behind this trouble in Lisnaskea, but I want to know what happened to my father before I kill William Devers."

"There will be nae further killing," James Leslie said sternly "I'll nae hae Fortune the wife of a convicted felon, and convicted and hanged ye'll be, Kieran, if you kill yer brother, no matter what he's done."

"He'll go free then, my lord," Kieran replied. "No court in Ulster will accept the word of a Catholic, let alone a Catholic serving woman, against the word of a Protestant gentleman."

"Be patient, laddie. There are ways, and in time ye'll hae yer revenge, but for now we must find out if yer da is alive. We'll ride to Mallow Court this day, you and I."

"Nay, Jemmie," Jasmine cried. "I do not trust the Deverses now to allow you and Kieran to come and go in safety."

"Imust go," James said firmly. "If I dinna, darling Jasmine, the same evil that infected the people of Lisnaskea could infect the people of Maguire's Ford. Do you want that to happen?"

Jasmine Leslie pressed her lips together in frustration. She knew her husband was right, and yet she had suddenly been overcome by a sense of foreboding. It wasn't that she thought Jemmie or Kieran would be killed, for she didn't; but she could sense the wickedness in the air about them, and for the first time since Rowan Lindley had been killed here, she was uncomfortable at Erne Rock. She looked to Rory Maguire. "Will they be safe?" she asked him.

"Aye, but he can't take a large party with him, m'lady. That would be considered a harassment in this tense situation. A few of your own clansmen, my lord, as you would normally travel."

The duke of Glenkirk nodded in agreement.

"You must go with him," Jasmine said.

"He canna," James Leslie replied. "He's the Maguire no matter the fact you legally possess this land, darling Jasmine. 'Twould be thought a provocation for the Maguire to ride into Lisnaskea after such a massacre. I want Rory here in the event there is any attempt to start difficulties here as there. This sort of trouble is like a canker that grows, and becomes more poisonous wi every passing hour."

"What has happened?" Fortune came into the hall, her hair flying. "Rois says the Protestants have murdered all the Catholics in Lisnaskea. That they're coming here to kill us all!"

"Jesu!" Maguire swore. "It's started already. I had best get the rest of my clothes on, and calm the village before all hell breaks loose." He turned to Jasmine. "With your permission, of course, my lady." He bowed to her.

"Go," Jasmine said, "and you two also," she told her husband and her son-in-law. "Fortune, come with me, and I will tell you everything. Biddy, I'll want you to remain here in the castle with us for your own safety's sake. Adali will see you are fed, and a warm place is found for you to sleep. You must be exhausted after your ride."

"Thank ye, my lady," Biddy replied. Then she turned to Maguire. "You were right, laddie. All Protestants aren't bad," she said.

^{Chapter 12}

The duke of Glenkirk and his son-in-law rode into Mallow Court. Dismounting, they entered the house to be greeted by Lady Jane.

"How dare you enter this house after what your filthy Papist brethren did to my husband!" she screeched at her stepson.

The duke put a warning hand on Kieran, and said, "We have only just learned of the troubles in Lisnaskea last night, and came as quickly as we could to see if Sir Shane was all right, madame."

"He lies abed, barely alive," she snapped. "His whore tried to murder him, but William managed to save his father."

"Indeed," the duke remarked. "We should like to see Sir Shane, madame. You will understand that Kieran is deeply concerned for his father. We had heard a very different story of the happenings in Lisnaskea."

"My husband is too ill to be disturbed," Jane Devers said loftily. "Come back another time, my lord."

James Leslie looked about him. There was no one else in the hall, and he knew the Devers household had no men-at-arms. "Madame, as I have told you, 'tis another tale I have heard. We will see Sir Shane now, so that I may ascertain he is indeed alive. How dare you refuse my request! You will either take us to him, or I shall have my clansmen search the house until he is found," the duke told her half-angrily.

Jane Devers wanted nothing more than to send the two men before her packing, but the duke was a man of authority. She dared not, even if William had said his father was not to be disturbed. She had not seen her husband since their son had brought him home, and William held the key to Shane's bedchamber. "My son has locked his father in for his own safety," she told the duke. "I do not have the key to his room, my lord, and William is not here right now."

"Show me where Sir Shane is confined," the duke commanded her. "We will break the door down, madame. Such treatment of your husband is outrageous, and I am astounded that you would have allowed such a thing. You are mistress here, are you not?"

Flushed with irritation Jane Devers led the way to her husband's bedchamber. She was surprised that her stepson had been so silent in all of this. William had warned her that he would come tearing into Mallow Court with some wild tale, yet Kieran had said nothing. Still, his silence and his angry eyes made her more than aware of his fury. She stopped before her husband's rooms. "He is in there," she said.

Without a word Kieran Devers put his shoulder to the door, and after a minute or more, it sprang open. He and the duke hurried into the room. There they found Sir Shane Devers, bound hand and foot, a gag tied about his mouth, upon his bed. Swiftly they loosed the gag and his bonds, and helped him to sit up. There was a nasty bruise upon his temple, and a small crusting of blood at the back of his head.

"Da!" Kieran embraced his parent.

"He killed Molly!" Sir Shane said "He told me himself, the young devil. And my lasses too, God curse him!"

"We know," Kieran replied grimly. "Biddy hid herself, and afterward came to Erne Rock to tell us, Da."

"He tried to kill me too," Sir Shane declared, "and he might have done so had you not come to seek me out, my lord. I thank you."

"What are you saying?" Jane Devers quavered. "How can you accuse our boy of such a terrible act as patricide?"

"Your son, madame," Sir Shane said coldly, "coldly murdered the woman I love, along with our two daughters, his half-sisters. He attacked me, and then when he found I had not died so he might blame my death upon the hapless Catholics of Lisnaskea, he brought me home, trussed up like a Christmas goose, and told me quite plainly he intended killing me so he might have his inheritance sooner than later. He is a viper, your son, and I will drive him from my home as soon as I can."

"You have been injured, dearest," Jane Devers said, reaching out to touch the bruise on her husband's temple. "You have surely misunderstood our William. He would never harm you, Shane."

He pulled away from her hand. "Madame, I am not so injured that I could not understand your son when he boasted of how he had shot Molly Fitzgerald and our two daughters. Maeve was seventeen, and our wee Aine just fourteen, madame. They were to go with Kieran and his wife to England, and then the New World next year. We knew they had no future in Ulster. What harm did any of them ever do to William that he would murder them with such icy disdain? Innocent lasses, madame! I rue the day I ever wed you, and brought you into my house, Jane! I regret the son I fathered on your passionless body. He is a monster!"

"He is not!" she defended her son. "If he killed that woman he did it to protect my honor. That you would take a mistress was bad enough, but a Catholic mistress? And those two brats you fathered on her brought me nothing but shame, flaunting themselves about the village. I was pitied for your follies, and had it not been for the kindness of the Reverend Mr. Dundas, I should have been a laughingstock in Lisnaskea. Now poor James is dead along with his wife and children thanks to your bloody murdering Papists!"

"It was Dundas who encouraged the mayhem last night, and at your bidding using your son as a cat's paw, I have not a doubt," Kieran Devers said. "Willy is not that clever, madame, but he is certainly vicious enough given the proper encouragement. I imagine both you and his wife fostered his baser nature. What in the name of God did you hope to gain by your mischief?'^H

"I will have no Catholics in the vicinity tainting my children," William Devers said, suddenly entering the room. "My wife is with child, and it was past time these Papists were driven from our lands." His cold blue gaze swept them all. "Ah, Da, I see you are up now."

"You're no son of mine," Shane Devers replied angrily. "I want you gone from this house today!"

"What?" William mocked. "You would send me from my birthplace? And what of my little wife, ripening with your first grandchild, Da?"

"Take her with you, and this bitch who bore you as well," Shane Devers said furiously, his color now high with his choler. "I'll not have the man who shot my Molly and our girls in this house even one more night!" Shane Devers then hit his son a mighty blow that staggered him, and sent him to the floor.

Surprised, William struggled to his feet, aided by his mother. "I only shot your whore and her eldest brat," he said cruelly. "The other one, the littlest, I had on her back. How she struggled and screamed when I savaged her maidenhead. I meant to give her to my men to enjoy as well, but then came the word the church was afire with poor old Dundas in it. I cut her throat. I wonder if she was as lusty a fuck as her mother, your whore?" He smiled at his father.

Shane Devers stared hard at his younger son. "You raped your half-sister?" he said, horrified. "Aine was but a child."

"She had nice little tits," William replied. "Besides, I count her no kin of mine, Da. Surely your whore could not be certain which of her lovers fathered her children." He smiled again.

Shane Devers heard the mighty thundering of his heart in his ears. His temples throbbed fiercely. The world was red before his eyes, and then he felt a violent sharp pain slam inside of his head. With a cry he fell to the floor. He knew he was dying. His eyes desperately sought his eldest son. His breath was coming in shallow, short pants. He struggled to speak a final time. "Forgive me, Kieran," he rasped, and then he died with his last heroic effort.

There was a long silence, and then William Devers said, "Well, that is that, is it not? Get out of my house, Kieran, and do not come back ever again. Be warned. I have taken care of the Catholics in Lisnaskea. I shall come to Maguire's Ford next."

James Leslie caught the young man by his shirt front. "Ye be warned, William Devers, put one foot, ye or yer minions, on land belonging to my wife, and ye'll be driven off wi nae mercy. I canna prevent ye from causing trouble here, but ye'll cause nae difficulties in Maguire's Ford. Trust me, laddie, ye dinna want Jemmie Leslie for yer enemy. I hae only just hae word from my cousin, King Charles, that he hae approved the transfer of the properties belonging to my wife to my two sons, Adam and Duncan Leslie. Yer a fool if ye think ye can rob my lads of their lands. I'd happily use that as an excuse to kill ye for what ye did to Mistress Fitzgerald, her lasses, and yer own da. Yer responsible for the death of Shane Devers, Sir William. Try to place the blame on anyone else, and I'll see the world knows the truth. For yer brother's sake, for the sake of the Deverses' good name, I'll say nought for now. I will nae hold yer family responsible for the actions of one villain, for the Deverses hae always been an honorable family. Do ye understand me, Sir William?" He loosed his grip on his antagonist's shirt-front, pushing him away with a sound of disgust.

William Devers's cold eyes surveyed the duke, half-afraid. His glance flicked swiftly to his elder half-brother, but Kieran's face was grief-stricken with their father's death. He knelt by the body, tears streaming down his handsome face, his hand tenderly protective on his father's head. Let him mourn the old man, William thought. He's gone, and good riddance. I am now master of Mallow Court. The knowledge sent a frisson of pleasure down his spine, but then Kieran looked up at him. His gaze was filled with both anger and pity.

"Don't look at me like that!" William almost screamed.

"God help you, Willy," his elder sibling said wearily. "God help you. I'd not have this sin on my conscience for all the world."

"Get out!" Sir William Devers shouted at his half-brother. "Get out, you filthy papist bastard!"

Kieran Devers arose from their father's body and struck his brother a blow upon his elegant chin, knocking him to the floor. His stepmother screeched, and ran to her son.

"I'll have the law on you, Kieran Devers," she threatened.

"Oh, pray do, madame, and I shall tell them the truth of what happened last night in Lisnaskea. There are enough of your Protestants feeling burdened by their guilt who would gladly unload the onus of the horrors committed there on your son. Willy was never particularly popular for his arrogance would always overcome him when dealing with those good souls he considered his menials. The authorities may not believe the Catholics, although I suspect they would believe me, but they will certainly believe their own Protestant fellows. Remember, your precious son raped his fourteen-year-old half-sister before his companions, and then murdered her. 'Tis not a pretty picture, madame, especially as Aine Fitzgerald was known to be a decent lass. Many in the mob have daughters her age. Now, madame, I am going into your village to take the bodies of my half-sisters, and their mother, for burial. Should you, or that mongrel you bore my father attempt to stop me, I shall kill you. Is that quite understood, madame? Willy?" Kieran kicked his younger brother with his booted foot. "Do you understand me, laddie?"

Sir William Devers groaned weakly.

"Good!" Kieran said. Then he bowed to his stepmother. "Madame. I shall be at my father's funeral. If you try to prevent it, you will live to regret it." He turned and left the room, the sound of his footsteps echoing as he descended the staircase.

A sardonic smile touched James Leslie's lips. This was a side of his son-in-law he had hitherto not seen. Kieran Devers was tougher than he had thought which boded to the good, for it would not be an easy life in the New World. Reaching out he aided William Devers to rise. Then he, too, bowed first to the mother, and then the son. "Good day, madame, Sir William," he said, and departed them. He found his son-in-law outside awaiting him. "Do you think they will tell you when the funeral is to be, laddie?" he asked.

"They'll try to keep it from me, but I have allies in the house who will keep me informed," Kieran said stonily.

"I'll ride wi ye into Lisnaskea to fetch the bodies of yer sisters and Mistress Fitzgerald," the duke said.

"I'm grateful for the company, and the help," came the reply.

They came into the village, and were shocked by the ruin they saw. Houses burned to the ground, half-burned, the church totally destroyed. The smell of death was everywhere, and yet the people were already rallying to rebuild. The Catholic families who remained alive had been gathered together in a cattle pen. James Leslie was appalled, and insisted they be set free at once.

"What the hell did ye intend doing wi them?" he demanded angrily.

"Sir William says they're to be killed, my lord," Robert Morgan, the village blacksmith, said.

The duke looked into the pen which contained mostly women, children, and old men. "Open the damned gate, let them gather what belongings they own that may have escaped the carnage, and allow them to leave Lisnaskea unharmed. Are ye such fools that ye truly believe God has smiled on yer murder and violence?"

"But my lord, they are papists. God doesn't care about the papists," the smithy reasoned.

"And who was after telling ye that?" the duke said scornfully. "For God's sake, man, we worship the same God, albeit in different ways."

"Their God is an idol, my lord, and not our true God," came the reply. "Surely you understand that?"

James Leslie closed his eyes briefly. It did no good arguing with fools, he thought wearily. Would this kind of thing ever stop? His eyes snapped back open, cold and determined. "Free those poor souls at once!" he thundered. "I have far more authority than yer damned Sir Willy, and I'll fire what's left of this place if ye do not obey me at once!" Behind him his dozen clansmen glared with equal determination at the smithy, and the small group of men who had gathered about him.

The smithy considered defiance against this Scot, but then to his horror the duke spoke again, and his words were chilling.

"Would ye like to hae yer daughters suffer the same terrible fate as poor wee Aine Fitzgerald, man?"

"Open the pen and let them out," Robert Morgan said. "Let them take what is theirs, and leave Lisnaskea."

"And nae harassment," James Leslie cautioned the villagers. "These are women, and bairns, and the old ones. Ye lived in peace wi them for years until ye were infected by others wi prejudice. Ye shared happy times, and mourned together over yer dead. Ye birthed children, and danced at each other's weddings. Remember those times, and nae what happened last night." Then he turned to his own men, and ordered six of them to remain to oversee the freeing of the Catholic survivors while he, Kieran, and the others went to fetch the bodies of the Fitzgeralds.

They reached the lovely brick house and saw that its front door still hung open. Entering they were surprised to be greeted by Father Cullen Butler. The priest in Lisnaskea, he explained, had been murdered last night along with the Protestant cleric. It had been the death of Father Brendan that had enraged the Catholics to commit their own murders. Until that moment they had been too busy defending themselves but when their priest had been killed, they had erupted with fury.

"Someone had to come and pray over these poor women," Cullen Butler said quietly. "You won't be able to bury them here. The burial ground has been destroyed. And you cannot bury them at Maguire's Ford for their graves would be a terrible reminder of the hate between the Protestants and the Catholics. They will have to lie in some quiet place, unmarked, but safe," the priest said. "I will consecrate the ground myself, and say what needs to be said. Best your men do it, James Leslie, for then no one will ever know where Molly Fitzgerald and her daughters have been laid to rest. When Kieran is gone there will be none left to mourn them."

Kieran Devers looked at the two bodies in the parlor. The priest had untangled the two from their deathly embrace, and laid them out upon the floor. Molly's blue bodice was darkly stained with her blood. Maeve's wound, being in the back of her head, was not visible to her half-brother. "Where is Aine?" he asked the priest.

"Where William Devers left her," came the reply. "Biddy covered her before she left."

Without another word Kieran Devers climbed the staircase of the house, and entered the chamber where Aine Fitzgerald lay dead. Below they could hear of a sudden, the sobs of grief that wracked him. All knew that next to Colleen, Aine had been Kieran's favorite sister. Then they heard his footsteps descending the staircase, and he reentered the room, the young girl wrapped in the coverlet Biddy had thrown over her, cradled in his strong arms. "Willy must pay a price for this," Kieran Devers said quietly.

"God will judge him, and God alone," Cullen Butler said. "You have a wife now, laddie, and a bright future. Do not allow yourself to be trapped here in the past that is Ireland, Kieran Devers. Do not endanger your immortal soul for the sake of a moment's vengeance."

"You can ask me that even while looking upon the body of this innocent lass?" Kieran said brokenly. "He violated her. His own half-sister. She was barely out of her childhood, and as pure as a spring day. And then he murdered her. How can I forgive him any of it?"

"You must for the sake of your own soul," the priest counseled. "Aine, Maeve, and Mistress Fitzgerald are safe now in God's kingdom, for surely the manner of their deaths spared them the trial of Purgatory. Your half-brother has blackened his soul, and will answer for it, I promise you, Kieran Devers. Do not darken your own soul by preempting God's authority over us all. Vengeance is mine, saith the Lord."

"Let us bury them," Kieran said, still holding Aine.

"Commandeer a cart," the duke said to one of his men, and when the cart was drawn up outside the house the bodies were carefully laid out in it for transport to their burial site.

"Give me but a moment," Kieran said, going back into the house.

When he had emerged again they went on their way, moving back through Lisnaskea so the duke might ascertain the surviving Catholics had been freed, and were safely gone. They were, and the duke's men joined the funeral train. The Protestants of Lisnaskea lined the village's only street watching them go. Some were stony-faced, and grim, but a few wept. One fresh-faced young lad ran to the cart to look in, and seeing the women he said but one word, "Aine." Then he dashed away.

James Leslie stopped the procession, and looking sternly on the people there said with a sweep of his hand, "This is what your hate, and your intolerance hae brought you. I hope you can live wi it." Then he signaled his men and the cart to move on again. Behind them Molly Fitzgerald's brick house was completely engulfed in flames, for Kieran had set it afire, determined that those who had killed her would not have her house or her possessions.

They traveled until they were halfway to Maguire's Ford, and there, in an ash and oak wood, they dug one large grave, laying the mother and her two daughters side by side. The grave was filled in carefully, and then camouflaged carefully with a blanket of moss and dead leaves. The priest had consecrated the ground before the trio were laid to rest, and then he had spoken low, in his soft Latin, the words of the burial service. Kieran prayed with him, his handsome face grim. James Leslie wondered how much to heart his son-in-law had taken the priest's words on the matter of revenge. He would keep a hard eye on Kieran for he would not have his daughter widowed and unhappy. Ulster, he decided, was an impossible place. One murder led to another, and another. There seemed to be no room for compromise.

It was just past sunset when the duke and his party returned to Erne Rock Castle. Biddy dozed by the fire where Jasmine sat with her daughter.

Fortune jumped to her feet as they entered the hall. "Sir Shane? Is he all right? God's boots, Kieran, you are pale." She hurried to her husband, and put her arms about him.

"We have buried Molly and her girls," he said.

"Your father?"

"Dead. Willy killed him," Kieran responded. Jasmine gasped, shocked.

"He's a devil, that one," Biddy muttered, suddenly awake. "He'll roast in hell for his wickedness, and sooner than later, I'm thinking."

"We found Sir Shane a prisoner in his own home," the duke said to his wife and daughter. "We freed him, but then William came. His father told him he must leave Mallow Court, taking his wife and mother wi him. He was furious for William hae bragged to him about how he hae killed Mistress Fitzgerald and her lasses. William then told his father how young Aine had died, sparing him no vile detail. Sir Shane grew apoplectic, and fell to the floor. He died almost immediately thereafter," James Leslie told them.

Fortune burst into tears, and clung to her husband.

Jasmine's eyes were moist. Her hands went to her belly, and she said, "How terrible. Thank God Fortune did not marry that man. He is obviously mad."

Night had fallen outside the Great Hall's windows. Rory Maguire joined them, and he was obviously concerned. "There are hotheads among some of the Protestants here," he said. "The good Reverend and I have had all we could do to keep the peace this day. I think some of the younger men from Lisnaskea have infiltrated Maguire's Ford with their poison, and are trying to stir up our people against one another."

"Surely the Protestants cannot be so foolish as their brethren in Lisnaskea," Jasmine said. "We allowed them a refuge in this village when they were homeless, and the English were insisting they return to Holland after their ship, the Speedwell, sprang a leak in the Irish Sea. They are far more comfortable here than they would have been in the Plymouth Colony. We must keep the peace in Maguire's Ford! I will not allow intolerance to destroy my sons' inheritance!"

Rory looked at her, and at the daughter he could not acknowledge. This same prejudice that had caused the massacre and misery in Lisnaskea was responsible for sending Fortune and Kieran from Ulster. His old age would be as lonely as much of his life had been. He would never have the pleasure of watching his grandchildren grow up, even if they did not know who he really was to them. "The Catholics are just as bad, but I swear to you that I will keep the peace here, my lady Jasmine," he promised her fiercely.

"We will keep it together, Rory," she told him. "We won't allow anyone to destroy what we've done, what you've done all these years. Cullen, you'll speak to your people again?"

"Aye, Cousin, I will," the priest said.

For the next few days an almost eerie calm surrounded them. The duchess of Glenkirk had proclaimed her will personally in each church at Maguire's Ford. "If you cannot live in peace with your neighbors as you always have," she told the people, "then you must leave here. I will not have happen here what happened in Lisnaskea. Good people, both Protestant and Catholic died, and for what? We all worship the same God, my friends. Do you truly believe our God condones violence and murder of those who are different than we are? Does not the Bible preach love, and peace? Is not the fifth commandment, Thou shalt not kill? That commandment does not say thou shalt not kill except for…"

Sir Shane was buried without incident, Colleen Kelly and her husband standing like a buffer between Lady Jane, William, and Emily Anne; and Kieran, Fortune, and the Leslies. She had told her half-brother quite frankly that she would never forgive him for what he had done to their father, or to the Fitzgeralds. "You were always more one of them," Sir William sneered at her. "You are no longer welcome at Mallow Court, or your family either."

"You are beyond hope, William," she replied quietly.

The peace in Maguire's Ford held despite the rumors that were passed about daily, and despite the infiltrators from both faiths who sought to stir up trouble. Several survivors from Lisnaskea with family at Maguire's Ford had come to beg refuge of their kin, and were taken in which frightened some of the Protestants worried they might seek revenge upon any non-Catholic.

Kieran Devers spoke to Father Cullen, for he had the germ of an idea that he thought might solve part of the problem. "The duke tells me," he said, "that I will have an easier time of being accepted in Lord Calvert's expedition if I have my own vessel, and colonists who can help in building the colony when they settle upon a place. Since this is to be a colony for Catholics first and foremost, why should I not bring a shipload of good Irishmen and women with me?"

Fortune heard her husband's suggestion, and was in full agreement with him. "I have two ships of my own that ply the trade route," she told him. "There's a wonderful old, but quite sturdy vessel called the Cardiff Rose that brought Mama from India long ago. It should soon be returning from the East Indies run. Then I have a newer ship, the Highlander, in the Mediterranean. It will be returning to England come spring." She turned to her stepfather. "Could we not outfit both of these vessels, Papa, and sail them to the New World?"

"I should purchase my own ship," Kieran protested.

"Don't be foolish," his wife chided him. "We'll need the monies you have to outfit our ships. If it would make you feel better you may pay me a fee for leasing my ships."

"It's quite practical," the duke told his son-in-law, "and I know both the Cardiff Rose and the Highlander are well-maintained both above and below the water line. You cannot be certain of that if you buy a strange vessel, unless, of course, you have the ship dry docked for inspection before you purchase it, and it is doubtful its owner would allow you to do so because of the expense involved."

"And the Cardiff Rose has the most wonderful master cabin for us to travel in," she murmured at him, her eyes bright with her love.

James Leslie chuckled at his stepdaughter. How like her mother she was although she could not know it, he thought. "I am sorry to spoil your romantic dream, poppet," he said, "but it is unlikely many women will be allowed to go with Lord Calvert's expedition until it is decided where he will settle the colony, and housing is built."

"That's ridiculous!" Fortune said.

"Nonetheless that is the way it will probably be," the duke told her. "You have no choice, I fear."

"Then we shall not go," Fortune replied firmly.

"And where will you live then?" he asked her.

"We shall buy a house near Cadby, or Queen's Malvern," she said with what she thought was perfect logic, "or perhaps near Oxton so I may be near my sister, India."

"With your Irish Catholic husband?" the duke posed.

Fortune's face fell. "Oh dear," she said, suddenly realizing how foolish she must have sounded. "The Puritans in England are every bit as bad as the Protestants in Ulster where the Catholics are concerned, aren't they?" she reasoned aloud, not needing an answer to her own question. "We could go to France, or Spain," she suggested.

"Where you, my darling wife, would be every bit as discriminated against as I am in Protestant lands," he told her. "There is no help for it, Fortune. If we are to live together in peace we must go to the New World; and if Lord Calvert will have me, I may have to go alone until the colony is safe for women."

Before Fortune might protest further Adali came into the hall. "Father Cullen just sent word there is a large party of horsemen coming down upon the village from the direction of Lisnaskea, my lord. I thought, perhaps, that you would want to know. Your preparations are all in effect."

"What preparations?" Jasmine asked her husband.

"For the defense of both the village and the castle," her husband told her. "We canna allow that rabble from Lisnaskea to destroy Maguire's Ford as they did their own nest." He arose from his seat. "I must go and join the others."

"What others?" Jasmine demanded struggling to her own swollen feet. "I am coming with you, Jemmie. These lands are, after all, still mine, and I think it important that I am seen."

He wanted to argue with her, but he knew she was correct in her reasoning. Besides, he considered with a small chuckle, he would not dissuade her no matter what he said. "Come then, madame," he said.

"We're coming too," Fortune told them.

The duke of Glenkirk burst out laughing, but led the way without another word. They assembled in the square of Maguire's Ford with its tall stone Celtic cross at its center. The Reverend Mr. Steen, Father Cullen, and the town's leaders, both Protestant and Catholic, were awaiting them. About them the houses were shuttered and barred. Not even a dog, or a cat, wandered the street this day. Above them the skies were gray with the clouds of an impending autumnal storm, but on the western horizon a slash of blazing red and gold shone with the setting sun from beneath the clouds. Not a breeze stirred. Not a bird called. There was silence but for the faint hum of the mob which grew louder as it approached them.

Down the road into Maguire's Ford they came, led by William Devers upon a fine bay gelding. They carried torches, and the faces of the men behind Sir William were stone hard and without pity. Seeing the welcoming party ahead of them they stopped, and their master moved his mount slowly forward until he stood in front of the duke and his wife. He glared down at them.

"If you come in peace, Sir William," Jasmine said, "you are welcome here. If you do not come in peace, I would request you depart."

He pointedly ignored her, directing his speech to James Leslie instead. "Is it your custom, my lord, to allow a woman to speak for you?" he asked the duke insultingly.

James Leslie laughed mockingly at the young man. "Maguire's Ford and its castle belong to my wife, Sir William. I cannot speak for her any more than she would speak for me in matters pertaining to my possessions. Now, sir, my wife has asked you a question. Have the courtesy to answer it lest you betray your mother's base heritage."

William Devers flushed. He was being made a fool of before his own men, and he did not like it. He heard a faint snickering behind him, but did not turn about for he had too much pride. "We have come for your Catholics," he said. "Give them to us that we may cleanse Maguire's Ford of their foul popery, and we will go in peace."

"Get off of my lands, and take your rabble with you," the duchess of Glenkirk said in an even, cold voice. "Am I Pilate that I would betray innocent people into the hands of your intolerant mob?" She stepped forward so that his horse was forced to move back a pace. "How dare you come here and attempt to cause trouble? The Protestants and the Catholics have lived in peace at Maguire's Ford for years. The Catholics here took in the Protestants ten years ago when they had nowhere else to go. They built a church for them, and all have lived in equanimity ever since. How presumptuous you are, William Devers, to think that you have God's permission to come here and cause murder and chaos on this All Hallows' Eve. You are more the devil's disciple than you are God's, I believe. Go now before I set the wolfhounds on you, and your men!"

"Madame, I will have what I came for," he replied stubbornly. "Search the houses, and bring out the Catholics," he commanded.

Suddenly a flaming arrow arced into the darkening skies above the town, and the bells in both the churches began to peal furiously. The doors of the holy houses at either end of the village opened, and the population of Maguire's Ford streamed forth from their separate ends of the town, surrounding the Lisnaskea men. All were armed with something, from ancient blunderbusses to scythes to frying pans and iron pots.

"Our people will not allow you to turn them against one another," Jasmine told Sir William. "We all worship the same God."

"Hear me!" her opponent cried out from his vantage point upon the back of his mount. "How can you live in the same place as these dirty papists, men of Maguire's Ford? We have cleansed Lisnaskea of their kind, and now with your help we will do the same here! Join us!"

The Reverend Steen spoke for his people. "We will not join you, William Devers. Go home!"

"Have you joined the legions of the damned, Samuel Steen?" Sir William asked him.

The Protestant minister laughed aloud. "Do not presume to judge me or mine, William Devers. You have broken more than one of God's commandments. Thou shalt not kill! Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife, or lands! Honor thy father, and thy mother! You are no fit leader. You are a bully, and a bigot. Get you gone from here!"

William Devers suddenly kicked his horse, and the beast leapt forward, startled, knocking both Jasmine and the Reverend Mr. Steen to the road. A cry of outrage arose from the Maguire's Ford people, but then to everyone's surprise a single shot rang out. With an absolutely astounded look in his eye, Sir William tumbled forward from his horse and onto the ground.

"They've shot Sir William," the cry arose among the Lisnaskea men. "We must be avenged!"

"Nay, the Maguire's Ford men did not shoot him. I did," a voice from among the Lisnaskea mob said, and surprised, they parted to allow a young lad forward.

" 'Tis Bruce Morgan, the smith's son," came a faceless cry.

The Reverend Samuel Steen pulled himself to his feet while the duke helped his wife up. "Why, lad?" the Protestant cleric asked the youngster. "Why have you killed Sir William, Bruce Morgan?" Gently he took the ancient pistol from the lad, amazed it had fired at all let alone with such deadly accuracy.

"ForAine," came the devastating reply. "For Aine, and because of what he did to her. I heard it, but I could not believe it, and so I crept into the house while they were all trying to rescue those in the church. I saw what he did to my lass. We were to be wed one day, you see. I loved her."

"Do you think I'd let you marry some damned Catholic wench, a whore's fatherless offspring?" his father, the smithy, Robert Morgan said, pushing forward angrily. "And now look what you've done, you stupid boy! You've killed our leader. You're no son of mine any longer!"

"Sir William was an evil man, Da," Bruce Morgan replied, drawing himself up to his full height now, and they suddenly saw the boy was almost a man. "And do you think I would have let you stop me from marrying Aine? I never cared about her religion, Da. I cared about her!"

"Faugh!" his father snorted. "I'll hang you myself to take the shame of what's been done here off my name."

There was a faintly audible groan at their feet, and Reverend Steen cried out, "Sir William is not dead! He is injured, but alive."

Kieran Devers quietly reached out to touch young Morgan's shoulder while the others were distracted. "Go to the castle, laddie," he said. "I'll not see you hanged. Hurry before they remember you again. Sir William will not be generous in this matter. Go now!" He watched with a faint smile upon his lips as the lad did his bidding.

"Fetch something to use as a stretcher," the duchess of Glenkirk, finally on her feet again, said. "I'll not have this man in my home, but perhaps Reverend Steen you will see the physician is fetched, and you will shelter Sir William until he is fit to travel again." She looked into the mob before her, forcing herself to stand as tall as she might, but the pains wracking her were difficult to ignore. Still, Jasmine reasoned, just a moment more. "Men of Lisnaskea, are there any of you here who saw Bruce Morgan fire the shot that has injured Sir William? If not, for his father's sake keep silent, I beg of you. You will not see the lad again, and by the time Sir William and his family stop to consider who fired the shot, Bruce Morgan will be long gone from Ulster. He is but a boy, and he loved a young girl who was foully abused and then murdered by Sir William. You know in your hearts what he did to Aine Fitzgerald was an evil iniquity, and a sin as well. Do not compound his sin or the lad's with one of your own. Now go back to Lisnaskea. I will not permit you to wreak havoc in Maguire's Ford." She stood glaring at them until the men had the good grace to turn slowly about, and start making their way home, their torches lighting the darkened road before them as they went. Jasmine Leslie gasped loudly, and fell to her knees. "Yer bairn will be early, Jemmie," she said through gritted teeth.

"Mama!" Fortune ran to her mother's side.

James Leslie didn't bother to wait for help. Pushing his stepdaughter aside, he lifted his wife up in his arms and carried her through the village, across the drawbridge, and into the castle.

Seeing him enter the hall old Biddy called out, "Have you a birthing table, my lord?"

Rohana came running. "I will take care of my lady," she said. "I have been doing it since she was born."

"Let Biddy care for the bairn after it is born," Jasmine said so the old woman would not be offended by Rohana. "And she can help you now too, for she has had the experience." Then she groaned. "This child will wait for no one now it has decided to be born! It will not be like you, my Fortune, taking forever, and then having to be turned about so you could come properly. Ahhh! I can feel the child's head! It is coming now!"

James Leslie knew just what to do. He deposited his wife on the high board, and braced her shoulders so the other women might aid her. There was absolutely no time for niceties. Jasmine groaned with her labor. She had never had so quick a birthing, but she could quite distinctly feel the child's head pushing down. "Rohana?"

Her serving woman pushed Jasmine's skirts up, and peered between her mistress's legs. "You're correct, my lady, the head is coming. Push with the next pain. Ohh! 'Tis almost here. Gracious, I have never seen a baby born this quickly, my princess. Ohh!" Rohana caught the infant as it slid easily from its mother's body. The child began to howl almost immediately, waving its small arms protestingly at having been pushed so rudely from its dark and warm safe haven.

"What is it?" Jasmine demanded.

" 'Tis a lass!" James Leslie crowed, delighted. " 'Tis a fine, hot-tempered wee lassie!"

"Well, Jemmie, you wanted another daughter to spoil, and damn me if you haven't gone and gotten your way," his wife said with a chuckle.

Fortune had stood staring at her mother's very brief travail, and had actually seen her new half-sister born. She was fascinated, and asked her mother, "Do they all come so quickly, Mama?"

Jasmine laughed weakly. "Nay, poppet, they do not all come so swiftly. 'Twas my fall earlier, I believe, that brought my early labor on, although from the sound of her this child is strong."

"A fine lass," Biddy said, handing the cleaned and swaddled baby into her mother's arms. "A Samhein lassie!"

"What are we to call her?" James Leslie asked his wife.

Jasmine considered a long moment, and then she said, "Autumn, because she was born to me in the autumn of my life, in the autumn of the year." Then she saw the bowl of late roses on the sideboard. "Autumn Rose Leslie," Jasmine decided. "Our daughter's name will be Autumn Rose."