Maiden of Inverness by Arnette Lamb Read Free Book Online Page A

him. Prejudice had colored her thinking; now the truth shone clear. Revas’s influence could not extend to the church. She would seek refuge in the clergy. They would shelter her and appeal to the pope on her behalf. The new King Edward might be persuaded to endorse her cause for an annulment. It was said he had forbidden the clans to unite.
    Her fear ebbed and her heart soared.
    A scratching noise on the door interrupted her euphoria.
    â€œWho is it?”
    â€œâ€Šâ€™Tis Ana, my lady.”
    The informer. Meridene tried to summon dislike for the girl, but in her heart she knew that Ana had simply followed the dictates of her own father and Revas Macduff. With only a little imagination she could picture him cajoling the impressionable girl. Thirteen years ago, he had done the same to another child, a girl whose father had tried to kill her.
    Meridene opened the door.
    Her pretty features pulled into a worried frown, Ana stepped into the room. She wore a cloak of heavy black wool lined with the subtle tartan of the Sutherlands, a rich pattern of green, black, red, and white. Her fair hair was mussed, her skin chafed from the wind.
    â€œI suppose you hate me.”
    â€œI cannot hate a stranger, Ana, and that is what you are to me.”
    Her pert chin puckered with determination. “I only pretended because ’twas necessary.”
    The admission that she’d feigned a friendship saddened Meridene. She’d had few friends in her life, and her oldest and closest companions, Clare and Johanna Benison, had been taken from her—one by death, the other by marriage. Like Ana, the other wealthy heiresses at the abbey were all younger than Meridene and prone to seek her out as mentor rather than friend. “You’ve done your part, Ana.”
    She made a fist of her gloved hand. “I would give my life for Highland unity.”
    Meridene almost laughed. “You err in thinking I will do the same.”
    â€œBut you were born to it.”
    â€œWhile commendable, your enthusiasm ignites not one spark of loyalty in me. Quite the contrary; I envy you, for England is my home. So do not embarrass yourself by belaboring the point.”
    Ana touched the symbols on Meridene’s new cloak. “You have forgotten how important you are to us.”
    â€œTo us?”
    â€œAye, to the Highlanders. With you at his side, Revas will bring peace to all of the people above the line.”
    The Highland line. A demarcation uncharted on any map, yet etched deeply into the hearts of the Scots. Once her father had ruled the clans from the Frasers in the East to the Macleans in Inverness. Revas Macduff had expanded the territory to include this Sutherland woman and her kin in the Western Highlands.
    The extent of his domain was staggering. How much did he know about Meridene? “I confided in you, Ana. Did you tell him all of my secrets?”
    She stiffened with umbrage. “You’ll know the answer soon enough.”
    Would he give freely of himself to Meridene? Would he cherish her above all else, including Scotland? The obvious answer depressed her, and discussing her private hopes again with Ana served no purpose.
    In dismissal, she said, “You have discharged your duty with aplomb, Lady Ana. Fare you well, and God preserve your precious Highland line.”
    Like a dog after a flea, Ana refused to leave it alone. “Revas has worked for too long to bring accord to the clans. Why do you hate him so and disparage your own people? They’ve done you no harm.”
    No longer the biddable girl eager to follow in Meridene’s footsteps, Ana Sutherland was now a self-assured young woman bent on furthering a cause. Meridene didn’t care; she wanted no part of a people who poisoned their children, then discarded them like old cloaks. “You know precisely why I despise Scotland, and you repeated my every word to Revas Macduff.”
    Her eyes pleaded. “He has a goodly