face was flushed and her hands were clenched. 'You knew the king would be angry with you for not paying your taxes. Did you not think of the repercussions then?'
'Alice, will you please lower your voice? Shouting won't change this situation,'
Jamie said. 'We all know how forgetful Papa can be. Why, he probably just forgot to send in the tax money. Isn't that the way of it, Papa?'
'A bit of the way of it, my angel,' the baron hedged.
'Oh, my God. He spent the coins,' Alice said with a groan.
Jamie raised her hand for silence. 'Mary, finish this explanation before I start shouting.'
'You must understand, Jamie, how difficult it is for us to be reasonable in the face of this atrocity. I shall, however, endeavor to be strong, and explain it in full to you, for I can see how puzzled you are.'
Mary took her time straightening her shoulders. Jamie felt like shaking her, so thin had her patience worn. She knew it wouldn't do her cause any good, though, for Mary liked to drag out her comments, no matter what the circumstances.
'And?' Jamie prodded.
'As I understand this, a barbarian from the Highlands is coming here next week.
He's going to choose one of the three of us-Agnes, Alice, or me-to be his second wife. He killed his first wife, you see. You aren't included in this, Jamie.
Papa said we were the only ones named in the king's letter.'
'I'm certain he didn't kill his first wife,' Alice said. 'Cook says the woman killed herself.' Alice crossed herself.
Agnes shook her head. 'No. I believe the woman was murdered. Surely she wouldn't kill herself and spend eternity in hell, no matter how terrible her husband was to her.'
'Could she have died by accident, do you suppose?' Alice suggested.
'The Scots are known to be clumsy,' Mary said with a shrug of her shoulders.
'And you're known to believe every bit of gossip you hear,' Jamie interjected in a hard voice 'Explain what you mean by 'choosing,' Mary,' she added, trying to keep her expression from showing how horrified she was.
'Choose for his bride, of course. Haven't you been listening, Jamie? We have no say in the matter, and our own contracts for marriages are all set aside until the selection has been made.'
'We're to be paraded in front of the monster like horses,' Agnes whimpered.
'Oh, I almost forgot,' Mary rushed out. 'The Scottish king, Edgar, is also in favor of this marriage, Jamie. Papa said so.'
'So the lord might only be doing the bidding of his king and might not want the marriage either,' Alice said.
'Oh, Lord, I hadn't thought of that,' Agnes blurted out. 'If he doesn't want to be wed, he'll probably kill his bride before he even reaches his home, wherever in God's name that is.'
'Agnes, will you calm yourself? You're screaming again,' Jamie muttered. 'You're going to pull your hair out of your scalp if you keep tugging on it so. Besides, you cannot know if you speak truth or fancy about the circumstances of his first wife's death.'
'His name is Kincaid, Jamie, and he is a murderer. Papa said he beat his first wife to death,' Agnes advised.
'I said no such thing,' the baron shouted. 'I merely suggested-'
'Emmett told us he threw his bride over a cliff,' Mary interjected. She drummed her fingertips on the tabletop while she waited for Jamie's reaction.
'Emmett's only a groom and a lazy one at that,' Jamie returned. 'Why would you be listening to his stories?'
Jamie took a deep breath, hoping to calm her queasy stomach. Although she fought against it, her sisters' fear was becoming contagious. She could feel a shiver pass down her spine. She knew better than to voice her concern, though. Bedlam would erupt again.
Her trusting sisters were all staring at her with such hopeful, expectant looks on their faces. They'd just put the problem in her lap and now waited for her to come up with a solution.
Jamie didn't want to fail them. 'Papa? Is there some way you can placate our king? Can you still send the taxes to him, perhaps adding a bit more to soothe his temper?'
Baron Jamison shook his head. 'I'd have to collect the whole tax all over again.
You know as well as I that the serfs' backs are near to broken with their own troubles. The barley crop wasn't good, either. Nay, Jamie, I cannot demand again.'
Jamie nodded. She tried to hide her disappointment. She'd hoped there was still a little of the collection left, but her father's answer confirmed her fear that it was all gone.
'Emmett said Papa used up all the coins,' Mary whispered.
'Emmett is just like an old woman carrying tales,' Jamie countered.
'Aye,' their father agreed. 'He's always been one to taint the truth. Pay no attention to his rantings,' he added.
'Papa? Why was I excluded?' Jamie asked. 'Did the king forget you had four daughters?'
'No, no,' the baron rushed out. He hastily turned his gaze from his daughter to his goblet, for he feared his youngest would see the truth in his eyes. King Henry hadn't excluded Jamie. He'd used the word 'daughters' in his message.
Baron Jamison, knowing he'd never be able to get along without his youngest taking care of him, had made the decision himself to exclude her. He thought his plan was most cunning. 'The king named only Maudie's daughters,'. he announced.
'Well, that certainly doesn't make any sense to me,' Agnes remarked between sniffles.
'Perhaps it's because Jamie's the youngest,' Mary suggested. She shrugged, then added, 'Who can know what's in our king's mind? Just be thankful, Jamie, that you weren't included in his order. Why, if you were chosen you couldn't marry your Andrew.'
'That's the reason,' Agnes interjected. 'Baron Andrew is so powerful and well liked. He told us so. He must have swayed our king's mind. Everyone knows how smitten Andrew is with you, Jamie.'
'That could be the reason,' Jamie whispered. 'If Andrew is as powerful as he says he is.'
'I don't think Jamie really wants to marry Andrew,' Mary told the twins. 'You needn't frown at me, Jamie. I don't think you even like him very much.'
'Papa likes him,' Agnes said. She gave her father another glare before adding,
'I wager it's because Andrew has promised to live here so Jamie can continue to slave for-'
'Now, Agnes, please don't start that again,' Jamie begged.
'Why you think it's sinful of me to want to keep Jamie here after her marriage is beyond me,' the baron muttered.
'Everything seems to be beyond you,' Mary murmured.
'Watch what you say, young lady,' he returned. 'I'll not allow you to speak so disrespectful like in front of me.'
'I know the true reason,' Alice said, 'and I'm going to tell Jamie. Andrew paid Papa your dowry, sister, and he-'
'What say you?' Jamie shouted. She nearly leapt out of her chair. 'Alice, you're mistaken. Knights do not give a dowry. Papa, you didn't take any coins from Andrew, did you?'
Baron Jamison didn't answer his daughter. He seemed quite taken by the task of swirling his ale in his cup.
His silence was damning.
'Oh, God,' Mary whispered. 'Alice, do you realize what you're suggesting? If what you're telling us is true, then our father has all but sold Jamie to Baron Andrew.'
'Now, Mary, don't be getting Jamie riled up,' their papa advised.
'I didn't say he sold Jamie to Andrew,' Alice said.
'You did so,' Mary countered.
'I saw Andrew give Papa a cloth bag full of gold coins.'
Jamie's head was pounding. She was determined to get to the bottom of this coin exchange, no matter how
