Outlander: The Standing Stones

Learning the Rules of the Game

My legs felt weak as I descended the ladder, and he had to catch me. "Make sure no one finds out, Jamie," I told him, "That's my one rule and it's unbreakable. Oh, rule number two is if I tell you I'm not in the mood, it means just that. I don't care for people trying to coax me if I don't want to."

I went back to the castle and coaxed Mrs. Fitz into preparing a bath for me. I'd given Lady MacKenzie some money and asked her to find some material for me so I could make both clothes and undergarments. Mrs. F informed me the seamstress would be coming tomorrow to take my measurements and determine what style of dresses I would prefer, along with everyday clothing.

This was good news. Lady MacKensie was kindness herself, at least where I was concerned. I was the widow of the son of a high ranking nobleman, and I think she enjoyed having someone close to her rank, if not higher, for company. The cobbler would be coming soon to make shoes for me, and I could give my poor Doc Martins a rest.

Mary brought me some clothes, then brushed out my hair. It was growing fast, and thick due to the pregnancy hormones. I was almost six months along now and the baby was becoming more active. I enjoyed the sense of safety I felt but feared to be too complacent. If English soldiers showed up here-which they might-could I use my Campbell name to help convince them to leave?

Therein lay the problem, I suspected that there was Jacobite activity going on clandestinely in the castle, maybe even with the laird's consent. And there was also the matter of Colin Campbell, I don't know how many here knew of my connection to him, but someone with less than honorable intentions might not think twice about alerting the English that the widow of George Campbell the second was hiding in Castle Leoch.

I left Mary and the servants to empty out the tub and began to walk through the castle. A fair-haired girl, much younger than me came up to me and introduced herself.

"Laoghaire," I repeated her name. "I'm sorry, I haven't been paying much attention, I've seen you before. I should have introduced myself."

"Oh, that's all right, Lady Campbell, I'm really no one special," she said, her smile uncertain, "when is your bairn due?"

"Oh, in four months, I should think. The first usually comes later, especially at the end of your pregnancy and you wish that the baby would hurry up because you are just plain tired of being pregnant."

This made her giggle, she really was a pretty girl. Maybe not a beauty, but cute and seemed very sweet.

"It's true," I said, "You'll find out when you have your own. And please, call me Irina, I'm not really Lady Campbell anymore, now that my husband is gone."

"Oh, I'm so sorry, it must be very hard for ye." Well, she looked sincere, but I was wondering if there was a reason for this conversation, or if she was trying to be polite.

"Yes, I do miss him, I miss him very much. I loved my husband very dearly, I doubt that I will re-marry for a very long time."

"Even though your bairn needs a father?" It was an honest question in light of the times.

"Well, I'm rich enough to be able to give my child a good life. I think I'm going to return to Belgium and stay for a while, then go back to Egypt."

I enjoyed the look of incredulity on her face. Clearly, she would not look beyond being a wife and mother, and she probably knew next to nothing about Egypt. There was a look on her face, though, that showed a curiosity to find out what it was about. Egypt seemed far away and exotic, something of a fairy tale for her, no doubt.

"I don't have my books anymore," I said, "But if you're really interested, we can talk sometime and I'll tell you about Egypt-the pyramids, the sphinx. I used to dream of them when I was your age."