The Eyes of Love Read online

  Hamish was making himself at home in a way that she knew would upset the staff and certainly the Elders, if they knew about it.

  “Now listen, Hamish,” she insisted. “Just be sensible about this. His Lordship has said that he has no wish to see anyone and I am trying to help him. So go away and don’t make things more difficult than they are already.”

  Hamish came a little nearer to her.

  “What will you give me if I do what you ask?” he demanded. “A kiss?”

  Vara stiffened.

  “You are not to talk like that! You know that my father has forbidden you to come to our house.”

  “I do what I want to do,” Hamish boasted, “and I want to kiss you, Vara. I promise you, it is something you will very much enjoy.”

  “And I am quite sure it is something I will loathe,” Vara countered. “I order you now to go away – at once!”

  “What will you do if I don’t?” Hamish enquired. “Call the servants and have me thrown from a Tower? That would make a nice scandal and would certainly make the Earl even more unpopular than he is already.”

  Vara drew in her breath.

  “What do you – mean by – that?”

  “Everybody knows that he is blind and that he is sitting here in The Castle and hating the Clan and is totally fed up because he has to be in Scotland.”

  Hamish laughed and it was a very unpleasant sound.

  “You may think that he is interested in you, Vara, but I am told that he had the beauties of London eating out of his hand before he went to India. And you can take it from me, they are a jolly sight more interesting than any Scottish lassie.”

  “I am sure you are right,” Vara said, “and now will you please go. His Lordship will be back at any moment and, as you so rightly said, he has no wish for visitors.”

  She was hoping as she spoke that Hamish would move away.

  Instead he unexpectedly came swiftly towards her and put his arms around her.

  Vara gave a little scream and fought against him.

  But he was tall and strong.

  She thought in despair that however hard she might try, she would not be able to prevent him from kissing her.

  She struggled frantically.

  Then to her relief the door opened and at the sound of it Hamish released her.

  The Earl came into the room escorted by Dr. Adair and Donald.

  Vara put her hand to her breast, her heart beating violently.

  It was the doctor who demanded,

  “What is going on here?”

  “What is it? Who is in the room?” the Earl asked.

  “I, Hamish McDorn, am here,” Hamish replied, “and I am a relative of yours.”

  “A very distant relative,” Dr. Adair corrected, “and certainly not someone his Lordship would be proud to know. Go away, Hamish, and try to behave yourself, as you have not done since you left the cradle.”

  “I am not taking orders from you,” Hamish said truculently. “Nor from anyone else for that matter. I have a right, as every member of this Clan has, to speak to the Chieftain if I want to.”

  He reached out, took hold of the Earl’s hand and shook it.

  “I am delighted to meet you, Cousin Bruce,” he said, “and I hope you will allow me to have a chat with you sometime. I can assure you, you will find me more interesting than the majority of the Clan, who still behave as if they had just come out of the Ark!”

  He laughed and it was a high-pitched rather strange sound.

  The doctor gave Donald a meaningful look as if to tell him to turn Hamish out.

  Hamish, however, turned towards Vara.

  “Our tête-à-tête was interrupted, my dear Vara, but it is something that I will renew on another occasion. Take care of yourself.”

  He walked towards the door and then turned back to say to the Earl,

  “Goodbye, Cousin Bruce. Don’t forget me, for I shall be thinking of you and who knows it may prove advantageous to us both!”

  He walked out of the room and they could hear his footsteps going down the stairs.

  It was then the Earl asked in a bewildered tone,

  “Who is that man? What right has he to be here?”

  “None whatsoever!” Dr. Adair replied. “I think you would be wise, my Lord, to do what the majority of the Clan do and lock your doors against him. He behaves abominably, but by the skin of his teeth has always managed to evade being sent to prison for his misdeeds.”

  “I am surprised at all this,” the Earl exclaimed as Dr. Adair guided him towards his usual chair. He seated himself and said,

  “Thank you for coming to see me, doctor. You say that there may be an improvement in the next few weeks?”

  “We can only hope so, my Lord,” Dr. Adair replied.

  He turned towards Vara and said,

  “I should tell your father that Hamish is giving trouble again. He dealt with him the last time he behaved intolerably.”

  “I know,” Vara agreed, “but I don’t want trouble at the moment when there is so much to do here.”

  “That is true and I will now leave his Lordship in your very capable hands.”

  The doctor walked towards the door.

  As he closed it behind him, the Earl said,

  “Now, come and tell me what all this is about, Vara, and what that man was trying to do when we came into the room.”

  Vara gave a little sigh.

  She had no wish to discuss Hamish with the Earl or with anyone else for that matter.

  But she knew that the Earl was curious and there was nothing else she could do about it.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  Vara had been in the breakfast room for some minutes before Donald appeared.

  “Ah’m afraid to say that his Lordship’s goin’ to be a wee bit late this mornin’, miss,” he said. “He’s had a bad night.”

  “A bad night?” Vara echoed in surprise.

  She had very much enjoyed dinner last night with the Earl.

  The Piper had three new tunes to play and she had persuaded the Earl beforehand to congratulate him warmly and the young man had been delighted with his words of praise.

  They had then talked for a long time about a number of subjects that did not concern the Clan or even Scotland.

  When she had retired to bed, she had thought then that the Earl was becoming far more human.

  She was also sure that he was not as sensitive about his blindness as he had been when she arrived.

  Now, as she waited for Donald’s reply, she wondered what could have happened.

  “His Lordship rang for me at three o’clock,” Donald explained. “He was real sure that there was somebody in his room, but Ah found out ’twas only the rats scamperin’ aboot in the walls.”

  “Rats!” Vara exclaimed in horror. “Surely the rat catcher is here by now?”

  “He’s here, miss, to be sure. But there’s a great deal to be done.”

  “Well, you had better see that he attends to his Lordship’s rooms before he does anything else,” Vara said, “and mine after that. I loathe and detest rats. They frighten me!”

  “They were bad enough last year,” Donald said reflectively, “but no as bad as they are the noo.”

  Vara gave a little cry.

  “Oh, I had forgotten!” she said. “How stupid of me. The Minister told me that one of the reasons why he wanted me to come to The Castle was that Mr. Bryden and you were being woken in the middle of the night by his Lordship wanting something.”

  Donald nodded.

  “That be true, miss.”

  “Then I want you to put a bell outside my room,” Vara said. “I understand that they are the sort he can pull.”

  “They are,” Donald confirmed, “and one of the footmen has put a cord along to the room where Ah’m a-sleepin’, which is near to his Lordship. When he pulls the cord, the bell rings and wakes me.”

  “That is something I intend to prevent,” Vara said. “So please do as I say and hav
e a bell attached outside my room.”

  She smiled before she added,

  “I am sure I can persuade his Lordship that if he must waken someone it should be me. He cannot expect you or Mr. Bryden to be on duty both day and night.”

  “Let’s hope the rats dinna wake him again,” Donald said. “Ah’ll speak to the rat catcher noo. He’s doonstairs in the kitchens.”

  Vara gave a little sigh.

  She was well aware how large The Castle was and, if the rats were everywhere in the thick walls, it would be difficult to get rid of them.

  “There’s somethin’ more Ah think you ought to know,” Donald added.

  “What is it?” Vara asked, a little apprehensively.

  “’Tis Mister Hamish, miss. He’s makin’ trouble doon at the Harbour.”

  “What sort of trouble?” Vara asked sharply.

  “He’s bin tellin’ the young lads that his Lorrdship’s had most of his face blown away by cannonballs and he’s so ugly he looks like some animal and that’s the real reason why he’ll no let anybody see him.”

  “Just how can Hamish tell such lies?” Vara asked indignantly. “He saw his Lordship only yesterday and knows perfectly well that only his eyes are affected.”

  “Mister Hamish likes makin’ trouble, you ken, and, of course, he’s tellin’ lies to anyone who’ll listen to him and sayin’ his Lordship has not the right to be the Chieftain and they’d be better off to be rid of him.”

  “I will speak to my father about this,” Vara said.

  Then she had an idea.

  “Have you a carriage, Donald, with a hood that can be taken down?” she asked.

  Donald scratched his head.

  Then he replied,

  “Aye, there’s the one her Ladyship used to use. Ah think ’tis called a Victoria. It came up frae the South and she enjoyed ridin’ in it in the summer months with the hood doon.”

  “Then have it brought round at noon with the hood up. And send a groom immediately to my father’s house with a letter that I am now going to write to him.”

  “Will you be oot to luncheon, miss?” Donald asked.

  “I am going to take his Lordship to meet my father and mother,” Vara explained, “but don’t tell him so. I would rather do that myself.”

  Donald grinned.

  “Ah ken fine you’ll do it better than me, miss.”

  Vara jumped up and ran into the next room where there was a writing desk.

  Hastily she scribbled a short note to her father saying that she wanted to see him about something important and she was bringing the Earl with her for luncheon.

  Then she added,

  “He has to have everything cut up very small and he eats with a spoon.”

  She finished the letter and signed her name with a flourish.

  Addressing an envelope, she then put the letter inside and took it to where Donald was waiting.

  “Send a groom off with this at once,” she said, “and that will give them time to prepare something special for his Lordship.”

  “Ah’ll see to it, miss,” Donald promised and he went from the breakfast room.

  About five minutes later the Earl appeared with Donald guiding him and he sat down in his usual chair at the head of the table and said,

  “Good morning, Vara. I hope you had a good night.”

  “Thank you, I slept very peacefully, my Lord, but I understand that you were disturbed.”

  “I got to sleep again eventually,” the Earl admitted, “but I cannot stand rats.”

  “Nor can I,” Vara agreed.

  She did not say anything else, but her eyes twinkled.

  Donald gave the Earl his porridge and, without having to be reminded of her instructions, he stood to eat it.

  Then he sat down again and enjoyed a substantial breakfast.

  While he was doing so, he said,

  “I believe it is a fine day. What have you planned for me?”

  “I have a surprise for you,” Vara answered. “We are going for a drive behind two of the excellent horses that you have in your stables.”

  “Driving?” the Earl questioned.

  “I think you will enjoy it. But don’t ask any questions because, as I have said, it is to be a surprise.”

  The Earl laughed.

  “I think I am back in the nursery. That is just the sort of thing that my Nanny used to say to me.”

  “Mine did too,” Vara said, “but in such a pronounced Scottish accent that you would not have understood!”

  “Now you are being unkind,” the Earl said. “I am beginning to understand most of what Donald says and I even sometimes can comprehend the footman who lisps.”

  “I know,” Vara said with laughter in her voice. “You are a very able pupil and I am sure that you will win a prize at the end of the term.”

  “I shall now be wondering what it will be,” the Earl grinned.

  “That is what I will be doing too,” Vara said. “You have everything a man could want.”

  There was a little pause and she thought that the Earl was going to say, ‘except for my eyesight.’

  Instead he said,

  “I am interested in these stables you keep referring to and, of course, in The Castle itself. When you have time, I would like to make a tour of inspection.”

  “Yes, of course, you must do so,” Vara agreed, “but first I am sure that Mr. Bryden has some papers for you to approve. Then I will read you the newspapers so that you don’t feel marooned in the ‘back of beyond’, as you call it. And after that, we will go driving.”

  The Earl did not protest.

  When they left the breakfast room, Vara found as she had expected that Mr. Bryden was waiting with a large pile of paperwork.

  It was mostly concerned with matters to be undertaken on the estate.

  The most expensive item, however, was the Harbour that had been neglected for years.

  As she read out to the Earl how much it was going to cost, she could not help thinking of Hamish.

  She knew that there were a number of young men in the fishing village who had caused trouble before. The reason was that they had not enough to do.

  She thought that was another subject that her father might discuss with the Earl.

  When it was nearly twelve o’clock, she went to her bedroom to put on her hat.

  When she emerged, she was carrying a short coat over her arm. It was too warm to wear it, but she knew that a chill wind could suddenly come either from the moors or from the sea.

  But it would be good for the Earl to have some fresh Highland air.

  The sun was shining brightly as Donald guided him downstairs and into the carriage.

  Vara knew he was aware that the hood was closed and he sat back in the corner so as not to be seen through the windows.

  They drove down the drive and onto the road where there were a number of cottages and a few shops.

  As Vara had anticipated, there were people walking about who stared at the Victoria as it drove past.

  However she made no comment.

  Only when they were out of the village did she start to describe to the Earl the supreme beauty of the moors.

  Then they drove past a river and she told him how the salmon swam up it and jumped the falls at the end of a long straight stretch to reach the loch.

  She thought that the Earl seemed interested in her descriptions, but she was not sure.

  Then, after they were a little further on, the coachman, as she had told Donald to instruct him, brought the carriage to a standstill.

  “Why are we stopping?” the Earl asked.

  “We are now out on the moorlands and we are going to lower the hood of the carriage so that you can really appreciate the pure fresh air,” Vara replied.

  “You seem to think that there is something very special about Scottish air,” the Earl said a little cynically.

  “But naturally there is,” Vara declared. “It is good for your heart as well as your lungs an
d your brain will also appreciate that it helps to create a host of new ideas, which sooner or later you will want to put into operation.”

  “I think that you expect far too much of me,” the Earl said, “and you will undoubtedly be disappointed.”

  “That is something I am determined not to be,” Vara retorted.

  The footman, having lowered the hood, climbed back onto his seat and the horses started off again.

  “I now have a confession to make,” Vara said, “and I hope you will not be angry.”

  “Do you expect that I will be?” the Earl asked.

  Vara drew a deep breath.

  “I want you to discuss with my father what can be done about the layabouts in the fishing village. They make trouble because they have not enough to do. My father has said for years that some sort of work should be found for them and so I am taking you now to meet him.”

  There was silence.

  Then, as Vara waited apprehensively, the Earl replied,

  “I was told that your father is a very distinguished man. In what way?”

  Vara told herself with relief that she need no longer fear that he would refuse to meet anyone and she responded,

  “Papa commanded the Black Watch until he retired. He was then Knighted for his part in a number of campaigns in which he greatly distinguished himself.”

  “Then I would certainly like to meet him,” the Earl smiled.

  “You will, of course, realise that, as a McDorn, you would have been expected to join the Black Watch,” Vara informed him, “which is the most famous Highland Regiment of all.”

  “I had no idea that it was expected of me,” the Earl replied, “for the simple reason that at that time I never expected that I would become Chieftain of the McDorns. There were two lives between my father and the Earldom. I therefore concentrated on having what was the best in England.”

  “I have heard that,” Vara commented, “but I think you missed something by not being in the Black Watch. It was designated a Royal Regiment more than one hundred years ago and they wear a red plume in contrast to the white one worn by other Highland Regiments.”

  “Why are they allowed to do that?” the Earl enquired.

  Vara thought now that he was really interested.

  “It was authorised during the reign of King George Ill,” she said, “in recognition of a very daring exploit performed by the Black Watch during the French Revolutionary Wars.”