Chapter 12: Out of Reach
Disclaimer: D. Gabaldon owns all rights to Outlander
Jamie held my hand as we sat together talking and staring into the fire. How did everything go so wrong in such a minute amount of time? It was bad enough that this string of unfortunate events befell me, but now, poor Jamie was steeped in the thick of it as well. He did nothing worthy of such an atrocity; his only sin lay in loving me.
Engrossed in conversation, Jamie suddenly put a finger to his lips, his palm facing outward to halt any further words coming from my mouth. "What is it?" I whispered.
"I hear a horse snortin' outside."
My heart began to pound. If Dougal discovered we were in here, it spelled doomsday for us both, since there was no way out, except for the way we came in. We held our breath, waiting for the inevitable. There was a rustle of branches being brushed aside, followed by footsteps. I jumped when a voice hissed, "Jamie … Are ye there, Lad."
He breathed a sigh of relief. "Dinna fash, Sassenach, it's only Murtagh."
Answering, Jamie said, "Aye. Are ye alone?"
His cousin poked his head into the mouth of the cave, smiling uncharacteristically. "Nay, I brought along my horse."
With a wag of his finger, Jamie retorted, "A verra wee joke, Murtagh. Verra wee."
Murtagh stepped inside, and nodded to us. "I suppose ye're wonderin' how I came to be here all by my lonesome. We split up is how. Dougal sent me on ahead to scour the area and search for ye. I kent as ye'd probably be holed op here.
"Weel, I canna stay long or Dougal will be gettin' a bit suspicious, ye ken. I'll report as I hadna seen ye on the road. Isna a lie, since ye're no on the road, aye.
"Oh." He threw a large leather bag at Jamie. "I brought ye and yer new wife some victuals, as I dinna suppose ye got any breakfast this fine mornin'? There's money in there as weel. Rupert and I tossed in the lot. Thought ye could use it."
"Thank ye, Murtagh, truly. And send my gratitude to Rupert also."
"Ye're my kin, and it'd be an affront to the memory o' yer dear mother if I didna give ye help when ye needed it. Think on it as a weddin' present. I congratulate ye, tho' it be late in comin'.
"Claire, I didna think the muckle-head would e'er get married what wi' a price on his head and all. But I see a brave lass in ye, and I expect ye'll make a right-fine wife for young Jamie."
He shuffled his feet nervously. "Now, there's somethin' I must warn ye 'bout. Dougal's no likely to stop tearin' the land apart lookin' for ye. I Expect ye'd best stay here t'night, then get on board a boat and leave Scotland alt'gether. I'd be missin' ye for certain, but I dinna look forward to yer stayin' and windin' op beneath a gravestone outside the kirk."
"I ken the sense o' it. My uncle is a stubborn man, and no likely to be dissuaded from an endeavor after settin' his mind to it.
Standing, Jamie offered Murtagh his flask. "Will ye drink once wi' me afore ye go?"
His cousin received the whiskey with pleasure, and downed a good swig.
In all seriousness, my Scotsman said, "If I dinna see ye again, slainte mhath."
"Do dheagh shlainte!" the man responded, then took another draught.
# # # # #
Takin' my cousin's advice into account, we spent the night in the confines of the cave; our honeymoon, no atall from what my imagination conjured op previously. Ne'erthelless, to my joy, Sassenach made nay a complaint or reproach, such was her staunch nature.
I placed a kiss opon her brow on arisin' in the morn. The provisions were all eaten, and so I ventured to capture a rabbit for breakfast.
Claire sat op while I pulled on my clothes. "Where are you going?"
With a smile for my bonny new bride, I told her, "I'm goin' huntin' for some game. The food that Murtagh gave us isna more."
"Be careful, I don't relish becoming a widow so soon after my nuptials."
"I can take heed for myself. And my uncle is long gone."
"Do you suppose that Dougal has abandoned the search?"
"Nay, but I expect as he's returned to Leoch, to refresh his supplies, so he can continue."
Sassenach canted one eyebrow. "Well, that's a small comfort. Come back soon, I'll be here waiting with bated breath."
"Aye. I imagine so."
The area was teemin' wi' wildlife, and I didna havta spend much time 'til I came across a good-sized hare. One shot fired, and he lay dead. Skinnin' and guttin' the animal near a stream, I then trotted back to our hideout wi' the rear legs grasped securely in my fist. I fashioned a spit and we ate the roasted rabbit afore travelin' on our way southeast to Inverness.
At Inverness, I chartered a boat, and we sailed down the Beauly Forth, riding betimes on horseback when the river turned to dry earth, then again to it's tributaries 'til we reached the Firth o' Lorne, and into the sea. In six day's time, we set foot on Ballycastle, Ireland.
I sold my father's ring there to a merchant for a good price, promisin' to redeem it when I could. A seed pearl necklace that belonged to my mother remained in my sporran, as I couldna part wi' it. I wished to bestow it on my Sassenach, dreamin' o' how it would look draped 'bout her throat.
Claire and I rode Donas to Dungannon, where I bought a wee parcel o' land with the money from the sale o' my ring, and that as Murtagh had given me. Along wi' the stead, I also purchased a few head o' cattle, two pigs, some tools, and staples and such for the kitchen.
The farm was green with grass and trees and a cottage, tho' a bit tumble-down. It could be made right by determination and hard work, I expected.
I surmised as there were a great many families o' Scotch-Irish here, and so I felt at home. I didna ken whether or no if Claire felt the same.
# # # # #
We had barely set foot on our new homestead, when Jamie was out gathering broom growing in an adjoining field. He was up on the roof repairing the thatch, pushing in the gads to secure the straw bundles. The man was a fiend, working until the sun set, and I had to call him down from the rickety ladder to come inside.
"Jamie, I'm sure you can stop now. You can finish tomorrow. It will wait."
"Nay, I'll no have the rain soakin' thru the roof, and landin' on mo nighean donn."
"I think I can manage. There are enough pots left in here to contain any drips that should slip through the cracks in the mat."
"All right, then. I'll just anchor two more, then let the rest stay 'til morn."
Before returning to the cottage, Jamie went to the woodshed and gathered some stout pieces of timber to lay beside the hearth.
After filling our stomachs, we sat on the rug before a roaring fire. He stared into the yellow-orange flames and sighed. "I'm sorry, Sassenach. This wasna my plan for our life t'gether. I was hopeful as we could live out our lives in peace and security at Lallybroch … ye bein' in fine clothes, with good food, and servants at yer beck and call. I dinna blame ye if ye're sorely disappointed in yer choice of a husband."
"What …? Jesus H. Roosevelt Christ! Do you suppose I up and married you out of some frivolous caprice? Or that I was just looking for a … a fling? No, Jamie. I'm not disappointed at all. I'm happy here in our own little house, leaky roof and all. You must understand that I love you for who you are, not what you can provide me with. I would've married you whether or not Dougal or Randall had forced my hand. You're the best thing that ever happened to me since I set foot in Scotland."
He turned to me, and said, as though uncomprehending, "Truly?"
"Yes, truly. Now take me to bed before I start screaming."
The following morning, I awoke to see Jamie already pulling on his boots. I walked to the decrepit vanity lining the wall, and sat down to brush out my hair. He came up behind me, and looped a strand of freshwater pearls about my throat.
I lifted the necklace to get a better look at them. "Oh, Jamie, they're lovely."
"I'm afeared as they're only Scotch pearls."
"They're still very beautiful. Thank you."
"Ye like them then?"
"Yes. Very much so."
"Good. They were my mother's and now they belong to the present Lady of Lallybroch, whether or no she's in exile."
Standing up, I pivoted to lock my arms around his waist. We hugged each other so tightly as to squeeze the very air from our lungs, but I didn't mind one iota. Jamie kissed me soundly and was out the door to water the pigs and cattle.
# # # # #
Wi' the taste o' my Claire's lips lingerin' on mine, I looked 'round the homestead. I didna see the place as a rundown, poorly maintained farm anamore, but as the beginning o' a future built from our love for each other. My bonny Sassenach marrit me for myself, James Alexander Malcolm MacKenzie Fraser. We were graced wi' nay a shillin' to our name, yet my heart was burstin' wi' joy. A king's ransom woulna make me any happier. I had the love o' a good woman, who willingly took her vows in the kirk and promised to stay wi' me, a poor Scotsman from the Highlands wi' a price on his curly, red head.
I walked down to the stream out back o' the house, and filled two wooden buckets with water, hauling them to the trough for the cows, hummin' all the way. It wasna a matter to me if I ne'er set foot on Lallybroch agin. This was my home.
# # # # #
As he left the room, I observed that the mirror reflected a contented woman standing barefoot in her shift, a string of pearls adorning her neck. I smiled, smug in the knowledge that no treasure on earth could compensate for the love that my Jamie shared with me. He crept into my heart that very first day and took up residence there. Frank now was but a fleeting shadow of my past. And Jamie—he was not just some lust-induced fling, but the truest of loves. His fears of my possible disappointment in him were grossly unfounded. While we were not by any means living in the lap of luxury, we were richer by far than all the inhabitants of Ireland. Slainte mhath!
The End
A/N: If any of you readers would like me to continue with Jamie and Claire, I need ideas. So far I have only one from top story. Send your plots my way! Also, I will be taking a couple of weeks off to work on an original story with Madmamabear.
