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Jamie and William stood outside the main hall, dressed only in their undergarments, hopeful for a good laugh, ready to complete their bet punishment. The men had gathered at the long table, servants filling their pints and plates. “This is ridiculous, ye know? I pray tae God me ma doesnae see me in such a state.” Jamie laughed.
“Ye’ve done the deed, and now ye must take yer consequence.” William replied, and he pushed Jamie out into the hall. He followed behind.
Jamie attempted to act as though everything was normal. That was the rule. “Hello clan Kinnaird! Welcome lads!” But instead of the usual call in greeting, he received only blank faces before a burst of laughter lifted from the crowd.
William walked up to the table. “Aye? What is wrong with ye bunch of bastards? Have ye not seen men in naught but their underwear before?” That drew a new burst of laughter from the table.
Uncle Barra called out, “What is with this? Ye both draw pleasure from showing yer skin tae a bunch of men?” He laughed to himself at his cleverness.
“Nay, nay.” Jamie replied. He stood before the table his bare chest towering above their seated heads. “I desire to be a good laird, and good laird’s must stay true to their word, and take their punishment when its due. I made a bet with William Fraser,” he motioned to his fellow bare-chested friend. “And I lost, and he lost as well. So, we are fulfilling our punishment.” He bowed his head and made a sweeping motion with his hands to indicate that their appearance was the punishment.
“So, shall we begin?” He sat down at the front end of the table, and William found a place. The men agreed, ripples of laughter still sounding.
As Jamie sat, Donald stood, his tiny frame barely filling the space that Jamie’s presence had done. Donald began, “Dear cousin, ‘tis fortuitous that ye are dressed in such a way, for I have some momentous news.”
Over in the corridor connected to the hall, Fiona, Marianne, and Amelia were gathered. They had been gathered in the library but then heard raucous laughter and were all curious what it could be. Amelia thought,perhaps it was good for the clan after all?
Instead they found Jamie and William almost naked sitting at the meeting table, and Donald beginning a long speech.
“My boy…” Fiona tsked. “How could he be so indecent?” She shook her head, but Amelia knew she was not angry. Amelia was surprised to see his form so open to the world when she had seen it in such a private setting. She turned to Marianne, who had gasped at the sight of the men. Her hand was still over her mouth, but she was gazing at William. Amelia smiled at that, but then turned to listen to Donald’s speech.
“Aye? And what news is this?” Jamie questioned.
Donald produced two sets of documents and walked towards Jamie at the head of the table to hand them to him. He walked slowly to gain everyone’s attention as his practiced speech dripped from his lips. “Kinnaird clan, we have been led for a long time by the old James Kinnaird, and now the new James. Sadly, we have lost the elder, and now he has been replaced. My father was always known as the younger of the two twins and so did not inherit.” He placed the documents in front of Jamie, and Jamie looked down in confusion.
All eyes were on Donald as he made his way around the table. “My clansmen, Jamie has been working on a project that keeps the poor land tenants on their farms on Kinnaird land as well as produce an area for grazing to join in the wool industry. He plans to keep all intact as it was in the old Scottish way of life. But, we are now owned and controlled by England, and with Jamie’s plan, we will fall into penury.” A murmur of disapproval moved over the crowd. “We must follow their plans and work tae produce as much as we can tae gain income. Jamie was freed from the hand of the English after the battle due to his English heritage, and we must repay them for allowing us to keep this clan alive. If we remove all the poor land tenants from the area, keep the clansmen present to work as shepherds, and fill our land with sheep and grazing pastures, then our money will double, if not triple.” He paused before hitting his final blow.
“And, gentleman. There has been a lie in this family that has grown from greed and desire for power. Jamie has the documents before him and sees the discrepancy. It appears that he is not the true laird as his father’s birth records show. But, I have taken the records from the parish register, and they state that ‘tis I who am the true laird.”
Silence was the response to Donald’s speech. Men looked at one another, their mouths slightly open, not knowing what to say. Jamie’s voice, barely a whisper, cut into the silence, and it made everyone turn to him. “Where...where did ye get this? The birth records from the house?”
Donald sighed and smiled, so happy to inflict pain on his cousin after years of rivalry and jealousy. “My dear cousin, ‘twas that beautiful young woman who ye hold in such esteem.
At the side of the hallway, Amelia gasped, making her and the other women’s presence known. Everyone turned to look at the ladies who stepped out from the corridor. Amelia’s hands were on her chest, and her face was pale. Jamie’s eyes stayed locked on her as Donald continued.
“Yes, yes, she needed money, and so she signed a contract to assist me in this noble quest. You see, she was a lady back in London, a very wealthy woman of good family. But, her father gambled away her inheritance, and now she has nothing. She is quite destitute, and she squirrels away what money she can, hopeful to become a lady once more.” Donald stood, his hands folded in front of him, pleased with his performance.
Jamie stood and kept his eyes on Amelia, “Is this true?” His face was also pale, and his lips were turned down at the corners.
She replied with a trembling voice, “Yes, it is, but...Jamie!” At her answer, Jamie had pushed his chair and stomped out of the room, through the corridor on the other side. William had followed him.
Tears began to fall down Amelia’s cheeks, and she screamed out, “You are an evil man, Donald Kinnaird!” before she fled away back down the hallway to escape to her chamber.
