Days of Gold (Edilean 2)

“If she’s the Tabitha we heard about, she’s Miss Edilean’s farm manager,” Tam said. “She runs all the farms and she doesn’t take any guff off anyone.”

Angus’s mouth dropped open. “Edilean and Tabitha work together?”

“What did they fight about?” Shamus asked, his eyes alight at the thought.

“Diamonds,” Angus said, and looked back at Malcolm and Tam. “Edilean and Tabitha together. What a world this is! Tell me, is Edilean still living with Harriet Harcourt?”

“Oh, yes,” Tam said. “Harriet takes care of the money for all of the business.”

Angus narrowed his eyes at them. “How long have you three been in this country?”

“A while,” Malcolm said.

“Over three months,” Shamus said. “It took some time to find you. It wasn’t hard, mind you, but it took time. Did you know that we could turn you in for a thousand pounds?”

When Angus started to say something, Tam interrupted. “Don’t worry, James Harcourt is taken care of. His sister Harriet pays him to stay away from Miss Edilean.”

“She does what?”

“Pays him to stay away,” Shamus said loudly, as though Angus were deaf. “Gives him a remittance. It’s common enough.”

“Are you telling me that the lot of you have spent three months snooping into Edilean’s private affairs?”

Malcolm looked at Tam who looked at Shamus, then they all looked back at Angus. “Yes,” Malcolm said. “That’s just what we’ve been doing.”

“And what does Edilean know of this?”

“Nothing,” Tam said. “We were careful to stay out of her sight. And that wasn’t easy, as she runs around in her little carriage constantly. I remember one morning I was walking down the street and there she was. I was sure she’d recognize me, but she was having it out with some man about some fruit—she doesn’t like for it to be bruised—so she didn’t see me.”

The story was so like Edilean that it caused a pain in Angus’s chest. “Has she—? I mean, are there... ?”

“Men?” Shamus asked, then when the others glared at him, he threw up his hands. “What’s the problem with all of you? I think you should get on with it and tell him.”

“Tell me what?” Angus asked.

“We worked with a lawyer,” Malcolm said, and turned to Tam. “You tell him.”

“We thought that since Miss Edilean is so rich, what with the gold and the business, we might persuade her to give the McTern estate back to us. We don’t think she wants it. It means nothing to her.”

“You told me that, and I said that you won’t have any trouble. Edilean has a very generous nature. I’m sure she’ll give you the rotting old place even without the peppercorn. Don’t tell me you’re afraid to ask her.”

“It’s not that...” Tam said, looking at Malcolm.

Angus turned to Shamus. “Would you tell me what they can’t seem to get out?”

Shamus opened his mouth to speak, but Malcolm blurted out the truth. “You’re wanted for kidnapping her, so she has to swear before a judge that she ran off with you of her own free will. Once you’re cleared, she can give the place to you because you’re the laird, then you can give it to Tam, as he’s next in line.”

“I see,” Angus said. He sat still for a moment, then got up and walked to the back of the cave. Naps was asleep, but T.C. and Matt looked wide awake as they listened to what the Scotsmen were saying. Angus didn’t know how much they could understand, but from the looks on their faces, they were getting the gist of what was going on. Angus thought of the words kidnapping and wanted that were being bandied about.

He looked back at Malcolm. “You’re saying that you want me to go to Edilean and ask her to tell a judge that I didn’t kidnap her, and that she went with me of her own free will.”

“Exactly,” Malcolm said brightly. “She could give the place directly to Tam, but he’s not the laird. It has to go down the line, all in proper order.”

“And the problem with that is that I’m thought to be a criminal.”

“Lawler was the only one who had any right to want you dead,” Tam said.

“That’s because it was his niece and his gold that you stole,” Shamus said.