Ada laced up her gown and reached out to unlatch the door, Order her to go, and leave the rest to me.

As Ada approached the bed to trim the candles, Elizabeth sighed and sat up. Rob, how can you disturb me at such an hour? she asked reproachfully Adas come tae pack fer ye. We leave fer Edinburgh at dawn Ada shot him a withering glance and said, Lady Elizabeth is in need of peace and quiet after her terrible voyage I need a womans influence at court, he insisted Its high time Valentina took on some of these responsibilities, Ada suggested Im traveling wi Arran, Cassillis, and Archibald Campbell It would no be fittin fer an unwed lass Elizabeth felt a relapse coming on at mention of the company she would be expected to keep If I came along to look after Valentina, it would be quite proper, Ada said firmly.

Yes, Rob Valentina can go in my stead for once It will give me a chance to spend time with Beth I suppose I could manage, said Rob grudgingly Wheest, woman, ye always get yer ain road He followed Ada outside the door and whispered, Can I come up later?

Youll have to wait until Edinburgh, she said firmly, removing his hands from her breasts. I promised Archibald Kennedy a bit of a romp. Ill mollify him over the horses he lost. She winked.

He slapped her across the bottom, sighing with regret.

So long as yer doin this fer mekeep it in the clan, mind!

he admonished.

Ada blew him a kiss. He had nothing to worry about; even she would be hard pressed to tackle Archibald Campbell, Earl of Argyll.

Chapter 11.

Ramsay Douglas received the kings messenger with resignation. At the beginning of the month, when he and his men came on leave, he should have reported to James, but once they arrived back in Douglas, the hunting had been excellent and lambing time was upon themno small undertaking when you grazed ten thousand horned sheep. Too, other things had occupied him, the wild horses from the Highlands, the Gypsies, then the sport of the raids. Time was drawing close for the Border Wardens Court, when the Scots who patrolled the marches met with their English counterparts and disputes were discussed and resolved.

The king must wish to advise him regarding this formal, seasonal meeting, he decided. He may even wish to attend. James Stewart was a king who ruled his country with a stern eye and a strong hand. The kings law prevailed everywhere, except in the wildest borders and the remote Highlands.

As Ram gave his servants orders to pack his finest clothes for court, he told Gavin to pass the word to the rest of the Douglases and to the moss-troopers. He walked down to the meadow taking note of the scent of broom and the golden gorse. It was a far cry from the filthy vennels of Edinburgh, yet he was ready for a change.

He was an adaptable man who fit easily into any background, squeezing the most life had to give from his days and his nights. A curse fell from his lips as he saw a solitary Ruffian cropping the thick clover. Did ye have tae be such a savage brute she jumped the hedge tae get away from ye? He mounted the stallion and searched for over an hour for the lovely mare with a sinking feeling inside him. He was truly disappointed that he had lost her, for already he had been picturing the exquisite colts the pair would have produced.

Edinburgh was only thirty-five miles as the crow flies, but the rugged Pentlands stood between Douglas and Auld Reekie, as the capital was called. Ram Douglas with his full complement of forty moss-troopers rode in their leathers, armed to the teeth. They met with no trouble on their journey since any who encountered them gave them a wide berth.

They watered their horses in the reed beds of a loch, startling its mallards and wild geese, and then in the distance they saw the long, smoky skyline of Edinburgh. The city was walled, and they entered through the archway called the West Bow. They clattered past St. Giles, where The Maiden was set up at the Market Cross. It was a delicate piece of machinery, to be sure, with its great knife counterbalanced by a heavy weight, designed to chop off heads. It always seemed to give his men a raging thirst, for they could never get beyond the alehouse on the corner.

Inside, one of the patrons unfortunately was wearing a bright blue and red plaid that looked suspiciously like the Hamilton tartan. Two Douglas moss-troopers picked him up bodily, tankard and all, and flung him into the cobbled high street. Ram allowed them an hour before he called, To me! He showed no mercy for his man who had just lifted a barmaids skirts and laid her across the table. If he hadnt been able to get himself a piece of mutton in an hour, it was his own fault.

As they stepped outside the alehouse onto the long, busy street that stretched uphill to Castle Rock, there seemed to be a preponderance of Hamilton moss- troopers. Ram frowned, then his brow cleared. The king must have summoned Patrick Hamilton and his other border lords. Ram eyed his men, trying to keep the wolfs grin from his face. What do ye say, lads? Shall we cleanse the thoroughfare?

A cheer went up followed by cries of Way fer a Douglas!

Make way fer a Douglas! None hearing it could repress a shudder. It had been an ominous cry for three centuries. They fought and brawled their way to the very gates of Edinburgh Castle, surely the most bloodstained fortalice in the world. The Hamiltons gave almost as good as they got, so that by the time the high west gate, separating the castle from the city street, clanged shut behind the Douglases, there was not a moss-trooper of either clan who wasnt sporting a black eye, a bloody lip, or a busted hand. Needless to say, they were thoroughly enjoying their visit to the capital.

Bathed, shaved, and resplendent in skintight hose and velvet doublet, Ram Douglas joined the throng of ambassadors, diplomats, bishops, petitioners, and courtiers who daily sought audience with James Stewart. The king was handsome and athletic, though he was nearing forty. His dark auburn hair fell to his shoulders, and his hazel eyes, though warm and friendly, were exceedingly shrewd. He eschewed sitting upon his carved throne but preferred to mingle with his people, both here at court and outside in the streets of the city. He was much loved by his people. He could tend a sick man, apply a leech, play a practical joke, or couch a lance with his knights.

James spotted Ramsay Douglas immediately. His swarthiness set him apart from other men. James did not acknowledge his presence immediately, however, so that he could observe his behavior when he came face to face with Patrick Hamilton. James was mildly surprised when the two borderers ignored each other; then his mouth tightened as he saw Hamiltons swollen nose and the raw gash on Douglass cheekbone.

Apparently this wasnt their first encounter here. He had overlooked their feud, excusing their incompatible personalities. He decided he would put up with it no longer. He understood them only too well. War rather than peace was their normal condition. It was right and proper to be a fighter for just causes, but in times of peace they became rogue animals.

He dismissed everyone from the reception room except for his two border lords, and still they ignored each other. James smoothed his down-curving moustache thoughtfully. Lets sit down, he said, indicating padded chairs around a carved refectory table.

Ill stand, sire, Douglas replied.

Yell sit! the king said with authority.

Ram sat with his back toward Patrick Hamilton.

Wine? offered James, serving them with his own hands.

Hamilton shook his head, refusing to drink with Douglas.

James exploded. Goddamn it, I dont ask that ye love each other! Clan feuds are no a way of lifethey are an evil. An evil I intend tae eradicate!

Neither of his lords was cowed, but they were warned.

The king was noted for his quick bursts of temper that were soon over and served to clear the air He never held a grudge. Ye can vent yer spleen on the enemy, not each other. Ye are both indispensable tae me in the borders. The minute ye went on leave, a Scots warden was murdered by an English warden, he told Douglas.

Who? asked Ram, his dark brows drawing together.

Kerr, said the king, murdered by Heron of Ford.

Ram shook his head. The Kerrs and Herons have lived within spitting distance for decades with only the border between them. Theyve always been mortal enemiesit was bound tae happen. Ill hunt Heron down, sire.

The king slammed his fist on the table, making the wine goblets dance. Yell no hunt him down. It is clearly a case for the Border Wardens Court. Ye will attend and resolve this dispute.

When I patrol the borders, sire, there is little trouble because I dispense justice, not mercy, Douglas said fiercely.

Patrick Hamilton spoke up. Sire, when old Henry Tudor was King o England, we could expect redress occasionally. Thats all gone by the board now that the spoiled boy-king sits on the throne.

Ye dinna need tae paint me a picture o Tudors shortcomings. I married his sister. Theyre like two peas from the same worm-eaten pod. Both are shallow, greedy, vain, immature, petulant, and demanding. These are their virtues.

Ramsays mouth lifted in a rare smile.

Christs holy wounds, thought James Stewart, if I sent Black Ram Douglas to Whitehall, he would serve as such a dire warning to that overblown bairn Henry VIII, he might even die of fright.

Patrick Hamilton opened his mouth to speak, but James held up his hand. Well take it to the Border Court first.

He dismissed the subject and proceeded. Tonight we will have music and pipers, and tomorrow night there is a play for entertainment. See that ye keep yer swords sheathed and yer men under control.

Ramsay gave his moss-troopers leave to go abroad in the city, knowing that if Hamiltons men were housed at Edinburgh Castle, it would be the only way to avoid brawls and knifings. For a moment he envied them their adventure into the notorious windy city. It was dark as pitch in that labyrinth of vennels, or narrow passageways between tall timbered houses. They stank of damp and piss, cats and rotted rubbish. If you set a foot wrong after a rain, it squelched in filth up to the ankle, yet the alehouses were filled with song, good food, and merry company, the brothels and gambling houses were colorful and filled with laughter and good sport.

Ram entered the banqueting hall at Edinburgh Castle It was long, low and dark, with small slit windows set high in its rough-cast walls. Though the floor was flagged, it was uneven, and a deep runnel ran across it, intended as a urinal when it was built. So much smoke blew back down its chimneys, the ceiling had to be whitewashed between the beams every month. No expense had been spared to make it habitable. The walls were covered with Flanders tapestries, the floor with woven silk rugs from Damascus, the mantels with French velvet. The dining tables were laid with silver plates, cups and chalices, Venetian crystal bowls, and silver with ornate Celtic patterns. Dominating the room was a thirty-foot banner of the tressured Red Lion of Scotland on its field of gold.

Janet Kennedy appraised the swarthy Douglas, who wore black velvet, startlingly relieved by his crest, the Bleeding Heart of Douglas, embroidered in crimson.

She stepped intimately close to him and touched her finger to the raw gash upon his cheek. She was amused that he did not flinch. Thats what comes of having saber-sharp cheekbones. His shoulders were so broad, they looked padded, yet she knew otherwise. Shed seen him naked once, swimming in the sea at Tantallon, which belonged to Archibald Douglas, Earl of Angus.

She knew that his uncle preferred him to his own son and often lamented that the earldom would be passed to the wrong Douglas. She allowed herself the indulgence of imagining Ram naked. She could still remember the drops of salt water clinging to the dark pelt of his chest and groin. But it was something else about him that made her pulse accelerate and her breath catch in her throat. One glance told a woman he was dangerous Shed never tame him if she tried for a hundred years.

His pewter eyes made a woman feel she was inherently shallow and vain and that all her blandishing cajolery would get her a fuck and nothing more.

Hello, Janet, he said, his eyes boldly dipping into her decolletage to stare at her scarlet-painted nipples.

The king, who adored beautiful women and had a particular weakness for redheads, came up behind Ram and said, I thought I told ye tae keep yer sword sheathed. He then passed on to the dais table. For appearances he would dine with the queen, but after dinner he usually left the board to his heavy-drinking lords while he indulged vices more to his taste Janet laughed up at Ram They knew each other quite well, since she had been Archibald Douglass mistress for some years. She was indeed beautiful tonight, yet inexplicably it annoyed him that she reminded him of Valentina Kennedy.

Ive risen in the world since last we met, she said lightly.

Indeed? Tae go from a Douglas tae a Stewart is a step down, in my opinion.

Christ, youre still the most arrogant bastard in Scotland!

He brought her fingers to his lips. Yer silver tongue is no doubt what attracted a king. He bowed and passed on down the room. He turned the head of every woman in sight. He deliberately avoided the Countess of Surrey, who had come from England with Margaret Tudor. Lady Howard had six daughters at court, known as the queens sluts of honor, and she was never without that speculative look of a huntress. He had no patience for a woman who was obtuse enough to think a Douglas might take an English woman to wife. The Kennedys might have lowered their standards and even the royal Stewarts, but Douglas blood was the finest in Scotland, and theyd never taint it.

He could not, however, avoid Queen Margaret. She beckoned him the moment she spied his dark countenance. She had only four interests in the world: jewels, clothes, rich food, and sexnot necessarily in that order. She was in the market for lovers and no longer even paid lip-service to discretion since the king had made no secret of the fact that he would welcome a horning from any of his nobles kind enough to oblige.

Ramsay graciously accepted her invitation to partner her for dinner, and he caught the amused glance James bestowed upon him. She cast Douglas a babyish glance of helplessness so that he would pull out her chair. She spoke in a childish voice that might have been provocatively arousing in a young girl, but Margaret looked middle-aged and because she could not curb her appetite, her figure was dumpy She spoke of fashion, rudely pointing to the clothes of various women in the banqueting hall. She rabbited on, exhausting both the subject and those close by who were forced to listen. When she was finished with a subject, there was no further contribution to be made or detail added.

Rams eyes traveled about the hall, mentally noting the attractive women, most of whom had been mistress to the king at one time or another. Marion Boyd was the mother of the kings eldest illegimate son, Alexander.

Isobel Stewart, the kings own cousin, had borne him a daughter hed called Jean. He had other bastardsCatherine, James and Ram remembered a dark-haired baby girl that James and his beloved Margaret Drummond had made together. Margaret Drummond had been the great love of James Stewarts life. It was even rumored they had secretly wed. She had been exceedingly beautiful with her black hair and creamy, flawless skin. Ram wondered cynically how long it would have lasted if the girl hadnt been poisoned. It had supposedly left the king brokenhearted, yet he had managed to console himself with the aid of endless courtesans like Janet Kennedy.

Suddenly, Ram became aware of a hand upon his knee.

It trailed up his thigh slowly in blatant invitation. He looked down at Margaret in disbelief. He was tempted to let her reach her goal and learn the unflattering truth that he remained flaccid and unaroused, but he found the invasion so distasteful, his hand closed about her fingers and firmly lifted her hand until it lay in her own lap. Margaret looked up at him with hurt bewilderment He held her eyes with a scorching look of anger and pressed her hand to her womans hot center. He deliberately used her own fingers to rub her until her eyes became dilated and glazed, her mouth slack with need. Once she was fully aroused, he swiftly let go of her hand and resumed eating. Thirty seconds later Margaret was on her feet, begging to be excused. She would have to finish what the wicked Douglas had begun.

Ram moved over to sit beside James, with whom he had much more in common. The king was intelligent, curious, high-spirited, warm-hearted, and generous. He could discuss ships, trade, crafts, politics, or alchemy.

His latest passion was building up a creditable fleet in the royal shipyards along the River Clyde.

Ram, I wanted to talk to ye about mounting cannon on your mercantile vessels to convert them to warships.

My ships are already armed, sire.

The king raised his eyebrows. Without my authority?

Ram shrugged. Ive letters of marque against the Portuguese. My ships must be able tae defend themselves when I take my wool tae Flanders. Ive ten thousand sheep, ye ken.

So it is feasible tae convert mercantile ships? Over two- thirds of Scotlands vessels are the property of my subjects. We keep England, France, Flanders, and the Low Countries supplied with fish, wool, and hides. How many ships do ye have? asked the king.

I have only three vessels, sire. I could use more. One is here at Leith, the other two are anchored where the River Dee empties into Solway Firth.

Castle Douglas is on the Dee. Can ye sail clean up tae the castle?

Only with the smallest ship, sire, but we get close enough, Ram said. Angus has ships, of course.

Do his vessels bristle wi cannon? James challenged.

Yed best ask Angus.

By the Power, yer a canny bastard, James said with a grin. Though technically the kings authority was the highest in the land, if there was a power behind the throne, it was Archibald Douglas, Earl of Angus. If ever James was absent or disposed, Angus was acting Regent of Scotland, but where the king was loved, Angus was feared. I expect sometime tomorrow hell be returning from Stirling, James said, and was amused at the look that came into Rams face. Ye chafe under Archibalds authority. James laughed. I didnt think there was a man breathed who put fear into ye.

Ram grimaced. I dont fear himI fear myself and the injury I may do the bloody dictator one day.

The king shook his head with forbearance. Douglas men are all savages, yet I know that Archibald loves ye above every other Douglas, and only wants whats best for ye.

Or whats best for himnot always one and the same thing, sire, Ram pointed out. Though they were discussing the iron-fisted authority of the Earl of Angus, Ram did not make the fatal mistake of underestimating the king. There were times when he was easygoing and intimately friendly, but his word was law, and he would assert his authority if it meant hanging every last one of his hardened Scots lords.

The next day brought not only Archibald Douglas and his son, the Master of Douglas, with two hundred men at their back, but a veritable horde of disgruntled nobles, each vexed and querulous and all clashing one with another. The king received them en masse, saw his error immediately and brought the audience to a close, banishing them to the bowels of Edinburgh Castle until they could be summoned one at a time in strict pecking order.

This was enough to make them sink their teeth further into each others throats. When James summoned his admiral, James Hamilton, Earl of Arran, first, it immediately plunged Archibald Campbell, Earl of Argyll, into a black temper. He raged that though Arran was in charge of Scotlands navy, that merely amounted to one new flagship and a ragtag of dubious floating arks.

The king asked Arran about the seaworthiness of his new flagship, the Great Michael, then went on to tell him he intended to keep the shipyards busy building vessels from now on. The admiral eyed him, wondering if Rob Kennedy had been before him with his tale of the English attacking his ship. He kept his mouth shut about the incident and instead launched into a complaint about his cattle being raided James raised his eyebrows and assured him hed get back to him when he got to the bottom of it.

When Archibald Campbell rolled into the presence chamber, James knew better than to expect a courtier.

Only a trained ear could understand his thick Highland burr, and when he spat on the velvet carpet, James forced himself to remember the invaluable service this powerful earl had recently rendered in destroying the rebellious MacDonald, who had declared himself Lord of the Isles and become a traitorous law unto himself.

Im no best pleased yon whoreson Arran takes precedence oer me in yer favor, Jamie!

No such thing, Archibald. You are invaluable to me. Are you not Master of the Royal Household?

A tinpot empty title, Jamie, when stacked against Lord High Admiral, he said bluntly, and spat again.

James sighed. Argyll was a canny old bastard; land greedy to boot. The kings other nobles feared Argylls growing might, feared that before he was finished, hed have the whole of the western Highlands under his thumb. Still, it was the only way to keep rebellion down, so James knew he must keep Archibald Campbell loyal.

Governor, James said. Governor General of the Northwest. I think that would be in order.

The old chief grunted with satisfaction, was about to spit, saw the kings forbidding eye upon him, and changed his mind. Governor general, he beamed. Now thats summat like a royal post, he said with satisfaction.

Now then, Archibald, whats this complaint youve brought me?

Firkin Kennedys raided ma prize longhorns! Yer permission tae hang the bastards frae their ain trees?

The king wasnt amused. I thought your daughter was betrothed to Donal Kennedy. Im in favor of such a marriage bond.

The governor generals daughter wed tae a bloody Kennedy? he asked in outrage.

The king tried to hold his patience and failed. Its gone straight to your bloody head, Archibald. I can have it off you in a minute!

Ma haid or ma new office? asked Argyll, in a heavy attempt at humor.

Christ, not only do I have Kennedys and Hamiltons at each others throats, now I have Kennedys and Campbells! Settle yer differences, man! Yell sign a bond of marriage and a bond of friendship. And yell do it before ye leave.

Argyll eyed Jamie, saw he was adamant and would brook no refusal, so he immediately acquiesced. When the daughter of Argyll weds, it should be in the capital.

The Highlands are too far off fer Scotlands nobility, said the canny Scot.