The Beauty Bride (The Jewels of Kinfairlie) (5 page)

“I
shall choose in my own time and not before,” Madeline said mildly, then knew a
way to distract her sister. “Perhaps Nicholas Sinclair will be here,” she
added, her tone teasing.

Vivienne
tossed her hair at mention of her former suitor. “Him! He has not the coin for
this.”

Alexander
stood aside and gestured that Madeline and Vivienne should proceed him. He
seemed stiff, and uncommonly serious.

“Smile,
brother,” Madeline whispered to him as she passed. “You will never catch the
eye of a merry maid with so sour a countenance.”

“The
Laird of Kinfairlie must have need of an heir!” Vivienne teased with a laugh.

Alexander
only averted his gaze.

“He
never remains somber for long,” Vivienne said as they sat upon the bench.
“Look! There is Reginald Neville.”

Madeline
spared no more than a glance to the vain boy who imagined himself to be
besotted with her. As usual, his garb was not only very fine, but he labored
overhard to ensure that all noticed it. Even as he waved to her, he held his
cloak open with his other hand, the better that its embroidery might be
admired.

“I
have only rejected him a dozen times.” Madeline’s tone was wry. “There might
yet be hope for his suit.”

“What
a nightmare his wife’s life will be!”

“And
what will he do once he has exhausted the treasury he has inherited?”

“You
are always so practical, Madeline.” Vivienne edged closer, her voice dropping
to a conspiratorial whisper. “There is Gerald of York.” The elder sisters
exchanged a glance, for that somber and steady man’s endless tales put them
both to sleep without fail.

“His
bride will be well-rested, that much is beyond doubt.”

Vivienne
giggled. “Oh, you are too wicked.”

“Am
I? Alexander will turn his gaze upon you next, and demand that you wed soon.”

“Not
before you, surely?”

“Whyever
not? He seems determined to wed all of us in haste.”

Vivienne
nibbled her lip, her merry mood dispelled. “There is that Andrew, that ally of
our uncle.”

“He
is nigh as old as the Hawk of Inverfyre, as well.”

“Ancient!”
Vivienne agreed with horror. She jabbed her elbow into Madeline’s side. “You
might be widowed soon, if you wed him though.”

“That
is hardly an attribute one should seek in a spouse. And I will wed none of
them, at any rate.”

The
Red Douglas men and the Black Douglas men arrived and took to opposite sides of
the hall, all the better to glower at each other from a distance. Madeline knew
that Alexander preferred to ally with the Black Douglases, as their father had
done, but she could not bear the sight of Alan Douglas, their sole remaining
unwed guest. He was so fair as to be unnatural. He fairly leered at her, the
rogue, and she averted her gaze. Roger Douglas, on the other side of the hall,
as swarthy as his cousin was fair, found this amusing and granted her a courtly
bow.

Madeline
glanced away from both of them. Her heart leapt when she found the steady gaze
of a man in the corner fixed upon her. He was tall and tanned, quiet of manner
and heavily armed. His hair was dark, as were his eyes. He stood so motionless
that her eye could have easily danced past him.

But
now that she had looked, Madeline could not readily tear her gaze away. He was
the stranger from the bailey, she was certain of it.

And
he was watching her. Madeline’s mouth went dry.

His
hair looked damp, for it curled against his brow, as if he had ridden hard to
arrive here. He leaned against the wall, his garb so dark that she could not
tell where his cloak ended and the shadows began. His gaze darted over the
company at intervals, missing no detail and returning always to her. He stood
and watched the proceedings, his stillness making Madeline think of a predator
at hunt. The sole bright spot upon his garb was the red dragon rampant
emblazoned across the chest of his tabard.

She
felt his gaze upon her as surely as a touch and she knew her color rose.

“Look!”
Elizabeth said, suddenly between Madeline and Vivienne. “There is a little
person!”

“The
chamber is full of persons of all size,” Madeline said, glad of some diversion
to make her look away from the dark stranger.

“No,
a very small person.” Elizabeth dropped her voice. “Like a fairy, almost.”

Vivienne
shook her head. “Elizabeth, you are too fanciful. There are fairies only in old
tales.”

“There
is one in this chamber,” Elizabeth insisted with rare vigor. “It is sitting on
Madeline’s shoulder.”

Madeline
glanced from one shoulder to the other, both of which were devoid of fairies,
then smiled at her youngest sister. “Are you not becoming too old to believe in
such tales?” she asked.

“It
is there,” Elizabeth said hotly. “It is there, and it is giggling, though not
in a very nice way.”

The
elder sisters exchanged a glance. “What else is it doing?” Vivienne asked,
evidently intent upon humoring Elizabeth.

“It
is tying a ribbon.” Elizabeth glanced across the chamber, as if she truly did
see something that the others did not. “There is a golden ribbon, Madeline, one
all unfurled around you, though I do not remember that we put it upon your
kirtle.”

“We
did not,” Vivienne whispered, dropping her voice as their Uncle Tynan raised
his hand for silence. “Madeline does not like gold ribbons on her kirtle.”

Elizabeth
frowned. “It is twining the golden ribbon with a silver one,” she said, her
manner dreamy. “Spinning the two ribbons together so that they make a spiral, a
spiral that is gold on one side and silver on the other.”

“Ladies
and gentlemen, knights and dukes, duchesses and maidens,” Tynan began.

“A
silver ribbon?” Madeline asked softly.

Elizabeth
nodded and pointed across the chamber. “It comes from him.”

Madeline
followed her sister’s gesture and found her gaze locking with that of the man
in shadows again. Her heart thumped in a most uncommon fashion, though she knew
nothing of him.

“You
should not speak nonsense, Elizabeth,” she counseled quietly, then turned her
attention to her uncle. Elizabeth made a sound of disgust and Madeline’s heart
pounded with the conviction that the stranger watched her even as she turned
away.

“As
all of you are aware, the majority of the treasures will be auctioned on the
morrow,” Tynan said after he had extended greetings and introduced the family.
Rosamunde stood at his side, radiant in her rich garb. “You will have the
opportunity in the morning to examine such items as are of interest to you,
before the bidding begins at noon. Of course, there will be many more arrivals
in the morning.” The company stirred restlessly and the sisters exchanged a glance
of confusion. “You gentlemen have been specifically invited this night for a
special auction, an auction of the Jewel of Kinfairlie.”

“I
did not know there was a Jewel of Kinfairlie,” Vivienne whispered with a frown.

“Nor
did I.” Madeline looked at Alexander, who steadfastly ignored them both.

“I
thank you, uncle,” he said, clearly uncomfortable with the weight of the
company’s attention upon him. “As you all have doubtless ascertained, the Jewel
of Kinfairlie is flawless.”

“Where
is it?” Vivienne demanded and Madeline shrugged that she did not know. A few
men leered and she began to have a foul feeling in the pit of her belly.

How
could there be such a gem and the sisters know nothing of it?

Alexander
turned to face Madeline, and gestured toward her. “A beauty beyond compromise,
a character beyond complaint, a lineage impeccable, my sister Madeline will
grace the hall of whichever nobleman is so fortunate as to claim her hand this
night.”

Vivienne
gasped. Madeline felt the color drain from her face. The sisters clutched each
other’s hands.

Alexander
turned to the company, and Madeline suspected he could not hold her gaze any
longer. “I urge you gentlemen, selected with care and gathered this night, to
consider the merits of the Jewel of Kinfairlie and bid accordingly.”

“Surely
this is but one of his pranks,” Vivienne whispered.

Madeline
felt cold beyond cold, however. If this was a prank, it required the complicity
of many souls. If this was a mere jest, it was difficult to see how it would
not compromise Alexander’s repute with his neighbors.

But
it was beyond belief that he would truly auction her.

To
Madeline’s dismay, Reginald made the first bid with undisguised enthusiasm.

“Alexander!”
Madeline cried in horror.

But
her brother granted her a glance so cool as to chill her blood, then nodded to
the company that the bidding should continue. He stood so straight that
Madeline knew he would not rescind his words.

But
to sell her? Madeline’s gaze flicked over the company in terror. What if one of
these men actually bought her hand?

They
seemed intent upon trying to do so. Reginald countered every bid, raising the
price with such reckless abandon that his purse must be fat indeed.

The
bidding was heated, so heated that it was not long before Gerald of York bowed
to Madeline and stepped back into the assembly, flushed with his embarrassment
that he could not continue. Madeline sat like a woman struck to stone, shocked
at her brother’s deed.

Reginald
Neville bid again with gusto. Was there a man within this company who could
match Neville’s wealth? The older Andrew grimaced, bid again, then was swiftly
countered by Reginald.

He
glared at the boy and shook his head.

“Is
that the sum of it?” Reginald cried, clearing savoring this moment. He spun in
place, his embroidered cloak flaring out behind him. “Will none of you pay a
penny more for this fair prize of a bride?”

The
men shuffled their feet, but not a one raised his voice.

“Reginald
Neville,” Vivienne whispered, her tone incredulous. Her cold fingers gave Madeline’s
a tight squeeze of sympathy. Madeline still could not believe that this madness
was occurring.

“Last
chance to bid, gentlemen!” Alexander cried. “Or the Jewel will be wed to
Reginald Neville.”

Madeline
had to do something! She rose to her feet and every man turned to face her.
“This would be the moment in which you declare your jest to be what it is,
Alexander.” She spoke with a calm grace that did not come easily, for her heart
was racing.

“It
would have been,” Alexander said, “had this been a mere jest. I assure you that
it is not.”

Madeline’s
heart sank to her very toes, then anger flooded through her with new vigor. She
straightened, knowing her anger showed, and saw the dark stranger smile
slightly. There was something secretive and alluring about his smile, something
that made her pulse quicken and heat rise in her cheeks. “How dare you show me
such dishonor! You will not shame our family like this for no good reason!”

Alexander
met her gaze and she saw now the steel in his resolve. “I have good reason. You
had the choice to wed of your own volition and you refused to take it. Your own
caprice brings us to this deed.”

“I
asked only for time!”

“I
do not have it to grant.”

“This
is beyond belief! This is an outrage!”

“You
will learn to do as you must, just as I have learned to do as I must.”
Alexander lowered his voice. “It will not be so arduous a fate, Madeline, you
will see.”

But
Madeline was not reassured. She would be wed to the highest bidder, like a milk
cow on the Wednesday market. Worse, they all found it to be merry
entertainment.

Worse again, the highest bidder was Reginald Neville. Madeline could not decide
whether she would prefer to murder her brother or her ardent suitor.

She
swore with inelegant vigor, thinking it might dissuade Reginald, but the men in
the company only laughed. “You are all barbarians!” she cried.

“Oh,
I like a woman with spirit,” said Alan Douglas, fingering his coins. He offered
another bid which was swiftly countered by Reginald.

“No
marriage of merit will be wrought of this travesty!” Madeline declared, but not
a one of them heeded her. The bidding rose higher even as she stood, trembling
with anger. She could hear Vivienne praying softly beside her, for doubtless
Vivienne feared that she would face a similar scene soon.

Could
matters be worse?

* * *

Reginald
bid again, to Madeline’s dismay. She felt the weight of the stranger’s gaze
upon her and her very flesh seemed to prickle with that awareness.

No
matter who bid, Reginald countered every offer. He urged the price higher with
giddy abandon and as the company became slower to respond, he began to wink
boldly at Madeline.