Chapter 39.

Tense as a drum, Troth clutched her father's Bible as she and Kyle walked down the lane that led to the home of James Montgomery, schoolteacher.

"That must be the place." Kyle indicated a well-kept, larger-than-average stone cottage with whitewashed walls and a cat snoozing beside the door. He glanced at her. "The worst will soon be over."

She nodded, her mouth too dry for speech. Kyle knocked on the iron-bound door. All too quickly it was opened by a tall man who said pleasantly, "Can I be helping you?"

Troth's breath caught in her throat. Dear G.o.ds, he looked like her father! The same height and long-boned face, the same thick, reddish brown hair, now heavily salted with gray. He was a few years younger than her father, she thought.

"You're James Montgomery, brother of the late Hugh Montgomery of Macao?"

The man's bushy brows arched. "Aye."

Kyle took Troth's arm and drew her forward. "Allow me to present your niece, Troth Montgomery, who has recently arrived in Britain."

Montgomery's long jaw dropped, and there was so much shock in his gray eyes that Troth would have bolted if Kyle hadn't had a firm grip on her elbow. Then he raised his voice to a schoolteacher's boom. "Mother, Jeannie -Hugh's Troth is here!"

Seizing her hand, he pulled her into the cottage. Within seconds, two women appeared from the next room, wiping floured hands on ap.r.o.ns. One was an attractive redhead of middle years who must be Montgomery's wife, and the other a tall, very erect old woman with snow-white hair.

As two dogs began to bark, the white-haired woman stepped up to Troth. She must have been close to eighty, but her gaze was keen. "My Hugh's daughter," she said wonderingly. Tears appeared in her eyes. "Ye look just like him, child."

Which was such a patently foolish statement that as the old woman hugged her, Troth began to cry. "I... I didn't know I had a grandmother," she said helplessly.

She had envisioned many possible scenes, from bitter rejection to grudging acknowledgment, but never once had she thought to receive such instant, wholehearted welcome. As her grandmother guided her to an oak settle where she could cry in comfort, she heard Kyle introduce himself as Maxwell, while her uncle introduced his wife, Jean, and his mother, Mairead. James ended by saying, "We thought you'd drowned in the shipwreck with Hugh. Where have you been all these years, la.s.s?"

"In Canton," Kyle replied, since Troth was less than coherent. "A Chinese merchant friend of her father's took her in after she was orphaned."

As Troth tried to pull herself together, one of the s.h.a.ggy dogs put its paws on her knees and thrust a wet nose against her cheek. Laughing and crying at the same time, she straightened and fumbled for a handkerchief. Kyle handed her his.

After blowing her nose and blotting her eyes, she said, "I'm sorry for making such a spectacle of myself, but I... I didn't know if I'd be welcome here."

"My son's only child not welcome?" Mairead said. "What gave ye such a daft notion?"

Troth said bluntly, "Because I'm half-Chinese, and my parents weren't properly married by Scottish standards."

"Your parents were wed by Scottish custom, and even if they hadn't been, you're still my brother's girl," James replied.

"My parents were married?" Troth said, startled.

"Aye," Mairead answered. "Hugh and Li-Yin pledged their troth in the old Scottish way, just the two of them before G.o.d." Tenderly she smoothed back her granddaughter's hair.

Fascinated, Troth said, "Would that kind of marriage be legal in Macao? "

" 'Twas good enough for him, and 'tis good enough for us," Jean said placidly. "Your parents never spoke of this?"

"No, and I never thought to ask about it." Troth had presumed that Li-Yin was a concubine, a legitimate status in China. Marriage had never occurred to her.

Now that she knew her parents had sworn vows, she could understand why the subject had never been mentioned. "In Macao, many Fan-qui had Chinese concubines and mixed-blood children, but for a European to have married his mistress would have caused great scandal. One man who did that was forced out of his trading company. My father must have decided it was more discreet to keep their vows private."

He had called Li-Yin "my lady," which Troth had always found courteous and romantic. Now that she thought about it, she recognized that her father's moral code wouldn't have permitted him to live in sin, so he'd married Li-Yin in the traditional way, telling only his family back home. There was no need for the European community in Macao to know that he'd scandalously made a wife of his mistress.

"I think it's time for a wee cup of tea." Jean, who'd been in the kitchen, emerged with a tray containing a plate of shortbread and a huge steaming teapot. "Too much drama puts an edge on the appet.i.te."

Nerves had kept Troth from eating earlier, so she welcomed the bracing tea and the heavenly shortbread, still warm from the oven. It was every bit as good as her father had said. When her appet.i.te was appeased, she surveyed the circle of newfound relatives. "Don't you have any doubts about whether I'm who I say I am? I've got my father's Bible, if you'd like to see it."

Mairead waved away the book. "Nae need. Ye do look like him, for all the Chinese blood. Ye have his ears, and something of the shape of his face, and there's just a look of him. Hugh knew how much I longed to see my granddaughter, so he wrote of ye often. He was that proud ye were so pretty and clever, and said that with two languages ye'd be a great boon to his business." She shook her head sadly. "I asked him to bring his family home for a visit, but he wouldna separate you from your mother, and he thought the trip would be hard on her."

He'd been right-her mother would have hated taking the long sea voyage to this strange northern land, though she would have done it to please Hugh. But her father would not have forced Li-Yin to do something she disliked. Refusal to coerce a woman was a good trait in a man, one that Kyle shared.

"Now that you're here, I can hand over your father's fortune, and it's glad I am to be free of it," James said. "Since his will left everything to you and we thought you drowned, the money came to the family."

"But how can there be any money?" Troth asked, startled. "At the time he died, my father was in debt. Surely Chenqua, the merchant who took me in, wouldn't have lied when he said I was penniless!"

"Likely Mr. Chenqua didn't know about Hugh's British account," James said. "He sent most of his profits to a bank in Edinburgh, keeping only enough in Macao to buy new trading stock. That's probably all your merchant friend knew about."

"That must have been the case," Kyle agreed. "Even if Chenqua had known there was money in Britain, he'd have a.s.sumed you were penniless because Chinese women can't inherit, can they?"

Troth accepted his explanation with relief. Of course it had been that way. It was impossible to imagine Chenqua as dishonest. He'd been a merchant for forty years, never using any contract more formal than his spoken word.

She studied the welcoming Montgomery faces again. How very different her life would have been if someone in the British trading community had thought to send her to her father's family. She would have been raised here, accepted and loved, even been a bit of an heiress. "How much did my father leave? "

"Some has been spent," James said. "But there's about ten thousand pounds left."

Troth's jaw dropped. Ten thousand pounds was a modest fortune- enough to keep her in comfort for the rest of her life if she was careful. Troth would never be poor-or powerless-again. Her voice full of wonder, she said, "You believed you were the legitimate heirs. Why didn't you spend more? Buy an estate or move to Edinburgh or London?"

Mairead looked surprised. "Why would we want to do a daft thing like that? Melrose is home, and we've all that we want here."

"Some of the money was used to send our two lads and a couple of your cousins to university," James added. "Our oldest, Jamie, is a doctor in Edinburgh, and our younger boy, named Hugh for his uncle, is studying there, too. He wants to come back here and teach. Our daughters were dowered with cottages of their own when they married, for 'tis a fine thing to own the roof over your head." A sobering thought struck him. "We'll pay you back, of course, though it will take a bit of time."

"Don't forget, we also used some of Hugh's money to build the new kitchen," Jean said, concern in her eyes. "We must do a proper accounting for Troth."

"Nonsense!" Troth said immediately. "My father would have wanted for his nephews to have an education, and for you to have a grand kitchen, I'm sure. And if he wouldn't have-well, I do."

Jean relaxed. "You're generous, la.s.s."

Troth grinned. "It's easy to be generous with money I never knew I had."

"What are your plans now? You'll be spending some time with us, I hope."

She glanced at Kyle. "We thought we'd visit Kyle's house in the Highlands, then spend some time in Edinburgh."

"But certainly a few days here first," Kyle said. "And you can return to Melrose after we visit Kinnockburn." "Good! We've time to hold a grand ceilidh to welcome our lost lamb home," Mairead said robustly.

Troth's brows drew together. "What is a 'kay-lee'?"

"A celebration with music and food and dancing," Jean explained. "We'll get Jamie and Hugh down from Edinburgh. They'll want to meet their long-lost cousin."

"We should invite Caleb Logan, Hugh's old partner," James suggested. "He's on a visit home and sent me a note to let me know. Most courteous of him. Do you remember him from your days in Macao, Troth?"

She'd known him in Canton, but she wasn't yet ready to discuss that part of her life. "My father mentioned Logan sometimes, but my mother and I never met Papa's business a.s.sociates." Except for Chenqua, who would sometimes visit Li-Yin and gravely present small gifts to Troth.

"A ceilidh it is then." Mairead glanced at her son and daughter-in-law. "Surely Troth should stay here while she's in Melrose. The attic room the girls used is a wee cozy place. Would ye like that?"

"I'd love it!" Troth exclaimed, her heart br.i.m.m.i.n.g with happiness.

Mairead made a shooing motion at her son and Kyle. "Then off with ye. James, go tell yer sisters the news. Jean and I need to talk to our la.s.s."

Troth looked at Kyle with such shining happiness that it made his heart ache. She had gazed at him like that in the beginning.

Guessing what Troth's grandmother had in mind, Kyle wasn't surprised when James paused to light a clay pipe outside in the lane, then said, "I don't believe you've mentioned your relationship to my niece, Mr. Maxwell. Are you betrothed?"

"We're friends." Kyle weighed what version of the truth would be best. "Like Troth, I'm half-Scot, so to help her leave China, I suggested we handfast. The legality is arguable, but the year and a day will be over soon, so she'll be free."

And when that happened, he suspected that she'd settle in Melrose forever, enfolded in the warmth of the family she'd always yearned for. He was happy for her-who could have seen her radiant face and not been glad?-but bleakly recognized that now that she had a family and a modest fortune, she no longer had any need for him.

Schoolmasters by their nature were very good at spotting lies and evasions. "There's a lot you're not saying, lad," James said shrewdly. "Are you intending to marry properly? You seem to be a good deal more than friends."

"She saved my life in China. I was presumed dead, and returned to England some months later than she. We're now trying to decide if we want to be really married."

"But you're willing to do the honorable thing?"

"I'm willing. She has doubts, justifiable ones." Responding to James's questioning gaze, Kyle added, "I'm no libertine, if that's what you're wondering, but it's Lord Maxwell, not Mr. Maxwell. I'm heir to the Earl of Wrexham, and Troth isn't sure she'd fit into my world. Or if she'd even want to try."

"She has her father's good sense, as well as his generosity. It's like a miracle to see her here." James puffed thoughtfully on his pipe. "If she decides to marry you, at least she doesna have to worry that you're after her fortune, since it was obviously as much a surprise to you as it was to her."

"A surprise, but a good one. No matter what happens, Troth has enough money to secure her future. I've no need for her inheritance, though. My own is larger than any sane man would want."

The older man looked at him shrewdly. "So you've learned that money is as much curse as blessing. That's why we did little with Hugh's legacy. I'd rather have my sons be doctors and teachers than dissolute fops." He waved his pipe at the next cottage. "My sister Annie's place. She has three daughters, so be prepared for screaming when I break the news. It's not every day one acquires a fascinating new cousin."

Nor was it every day that one lost a fascinating woman-but Kyle could feel it happening, inch by agonizing inch.

Chapter 40.

The Montgomerys put on a ceilidh to remember. It took place in the a.s.sembly room attached to the inn and featured mountains of food, rivers of drink, a gaggle of musicians, and what appeared to be half the population of Berwickshire.

As guest of honor, Troth was in constant demand for dancing and conversation. Kyle watched her from a quiet corner on the fringes of the celebration. This was her night, and she deserved to enjoy every minute of it. Face flushed and hair flying, she was beautiful. Wisely, she'd chosen one of her less elaborate gowns so she wouldn't be overdressed for the occasion, and with her athletic grace she'd picked up the exuberant, foot-stamping reels with no problem.

She looked as if she had been born for this place and these people. In fact, she had been. It had just taken her a long time to find her way home.

Since she'd moved from the inn to her grandmother's house, Kyle had seen less of her, and that always in company. He'd hoped for more from this courtship. But perhaps that was for the best. He was coming to terms with the bitter fact that he needed her while she really had no need for him.

Two middle-aged women who'd been crossing the hall came to a stop in front of him. One said, her gaze on Troth, "Seems a nice girl, but verra foreign-looking."

"The Montgomerys don't seem to mind," the other said. "Though I certainly wouldna want my son to marry her."

"Even though they say she's heir to a fine fortune?"

"Och, I'd be a terrible mother to stand in the way of my son's happiness," the other said mockingly.

Kyle was tempted to confront the two women, but neither Troth nor her family would welcome his creating a scene in the middle of the ceilidh, so he moved away. Though the Montgomerys had welcomed their prodigal granddaughter, some of the locals were more critical.

"Maxwell! Will ye have a wee dram with me?"

He turned to see Caleb Logan, the China trader down from Edinburgh, approaching with a bottle and a couple of small gla.s.ses. Though Kyle had run into him regularly in Canton, he hadn't realized that Logan had once been Hugh Montgomery's partner, or he would have done some quiet probing to learn more about what Troth's father had been like.

"Let's drink to Scotland, and the most unusual la.s.sie in the Borders!" Logan said jovially as he handed over a gla.s.s of clear amber whiskey.

"To Scotland and Troth Montgomery." Kyle tossed back the fierce spirits, glad he hadn't had much to drink so far this evening. Logan was one of the more successful traders in Canton, and typical of his breed: shrewd, pragmatic, and determined to make a fortune large enough to allow him to retire to Scotland in grand style. "Good to see you again. How was your voyage home from China?"

"Fine indeed. I traveled with a cargo of best Bohea tea, and sold it at a premium price." Logan swallowed his dram and poured another. "Hugh would be glad to know his daughter has come home to Scotland."

"When Montgomery died in the shipwreck, was there any thought of sending Troth back to his family?" Kyle asked curiously.

Logan shook his head. "Not that I know of. He kept her and her mother very private. Even I never saw her, though Hugh and I worked together daily when I first went out East. After Hugh drowned, Chenqua told me the girl was going to live with Chinese relations, which seemed reasonable enough. No point in uprooting the la.s.s and sending her halfway around the world if she had family nearby."

Chenqua had said Troth had Chinese relatives? That was strange. Li-Yin had come from the north, and had no communication with her family after she was sold as a concubine.

An uneasy thought struck him. Might Chenqua have told Logan that Troth had family so he could keep Troth's linguistic skills for his own use? Kyle disliked the idea that Chenqua might have turned Troth into a virtual slave for purely selfish reasons. Of course, from Chenqua's point of view, he might have been doing Troth a favor by offering a worthless mixed-blood girl-child a chance to be useful. "It must have been hard on your business when Montgomery and his ship went down."

"Aye, it took a lot of hard work, juggling of finances, and cooperation from Chenqua to stave off bankruptcy. By the next year, though, things were looking better, and I've done well enough since."

Remembering what Gavin had said, Kyle remarked, "In Canton, I heard hints of some kind of scandal about Montgomery. Why was that? "

Logan gave him a hard look. "There's no point in speaking ill of the dead."

"Did Montgomery do something that bad?"

Logan made a negative gesture with his gla.s.s. "Don't be thinking Hugh was a criminal. He was a d.a.m.ned good fellow in most ways. But... maybe a bit of a hypocrite."

Had Montgomery dealt in opium even as he preached against it? Or was there some other old scandal? Logan was right-there was no point in unearthing old tales, especially ones that might hurt Troth. He hoped she'd never heard any of the China traders disparaging her father. Changing the subject, he asked, "Do you have a family here in Scotland?"

"Aye. My wife went out with me to Macao at the beginning, but she hated the climate, and after we had a couple of bairns, she decided to come home for fear of the fever and illnesses there. That's why I come back regularly-to remind my family who their lord and master is." He chuckled. "Of course, when I'm here I miss my China girl, but there will be a fine welcome waiting when I return to Macao." His gaze rested on Troth. "There's something about Chinese women that European females can't match."

"Perhaps you should have brought your concubine along for your amus.e.m.e.nt," Kyle said dryly.

"I considered it, but all h.e.l.l would have broken loose. By the way, what's this I hear about you and Hugh's daughter? Some say you're married, some not."