Over the Highland Mountains

Chapter 17 • Celebration Feast

"Ye do no' have to share if ye feel uncomfortable..." Lily mumbled quietly, looking down from the anguish her words had caused in her husband. Her heart could not bear seeing him in pain.

"Nay, I believe ye should," Keeva demanded rather aggressively.

"Keeva," Lily reprimanded in a hushed tone.

"Nay," her bold friend stopped her and continued resolutely facing Alasdair, "If this Callum is the man behind the attacks and ye are his target, then ye owe an explanation to those whom ye have endangered. Lady Fiona here might a'ready ken, but my friend, who could basically be described as my sister, does no' and before anything else happens, we need to ken what is going on."

"Ye're right, Keeva," Alasdair's small voice beat Lily in responding to the loyal brunette's outburst. His eyes were cast down, but when he met Lily's gaze again, it was full of determination and sorrow, "The Sutherlands have been on good terms with us Mackenzies fer many years, ever since the days o' my grandfather. Callum and I grew up together and our bond was so strong we were like brothers. As we grew up and Callum became Laird o' Sutherland and then got married, our responsibilities made us busier than we would have hoped, but we made an agreement to visit each other's clan at least once a year. During their most recent visit, he and I had an argument," Alasdair scoffed, shaking his head, "I do no' even remember what it was about but it caused him to cut their visit short. Father, Mother, and I still accompanied them to the bridge that crosses a river near the Mackenzie-Ross border on the way to Sutherland as was our tradition. We had had some particularly bad weather the previous week and I do no' ken if it was that or if the bridge was just old, but we were half way when it gave way and half our travelling party fell into the river. All those who could swim jumped in to save those who couldn't. My father -" his voice broke a bit and Lily placed her hand on his under the table. He took a breath before trying again, "My father saved Dolag because she was the nearest to him at the time and then went back to find my mother, but the current was so strong he - he could no' help both her and himself above water, so... he chose her." Alasdair looked sadly, yet lovingly at Lady Fiona who, upon careful inspection, had tears forming in her unemotional eyes, "Neither Callum nor Kathleen could swim but Kathleen was among those who fell in. I went in search o' her, but when I found her, she had been underwater fer a long time and when I brought her to the shore, I saw she had hit her head and was already dead. Callum, he," Alasdair sighed, "He was beyond distraught, no' only had he lost his beloved wife, they were a love match, ye ken; no' only her but also the seven-month-old promise o' life growing within her womb. So blinded by sorrow and anger, he blamed me fer no' trying hard enough, he said something about the argument we had, as if something so petty could stop me from trying my hardest to save Kathleen's life. She was like a sister to me."

Everyone around the table had tears in their eyes by the time Alasdair finished his account, especially the man himself and Blake.

So this was the sorrow and guilt he carried on his shoulders around the events o' his father's death, the poor man!

"Were ye there?" Keeva asked Blake in a respectfully low tone.

He shook his head, eyes full of regret, "Nay, I was no' able to return from a business trip in time to attend due to the weather."

A silence ensued as everyone pondered on the past.

"Ye mentioned..." Keir began tentatively, arms crossed and one hand under his chin, "...that yer uncle started getting really bad after a month and a half after the accident."

"Aye, what o' it?"

"Wasn't Blair's death two months after, around the time their child would have been born?"