Page 54 of A Temptress in Tartan

Lachlan tensed. He would rather admit guilt where there was none, than allow Swinton to touch either of the two young women.

Meg and Jane both recoiled at the threat, but Jane nodded as she continued, “Our employer threatened tae release us if we dinna lie so he might keep the coins the two men offered us.”

The innkeeper surged forward, breaking through the crowd in the gallery. “She does nae ken what she’s sayin’. She’s possessed by the Devil. M’laird Douglas has put her under a spell as well!”

The Lord Advocate’s gaze riveted on the innkeeper as he signaled his guards to remove the man from the chamber. The innkeeper kicked and howled the entire time as they dragged him forcefully from the room. When he was gone, the Lord Advocate returned his attention to the girls before him. “How much money was offered and by whom?”

Meg straightened with bravado, as though she no longer feared what her employers might do to her if she told the truth. “He paid the innkeeper and his wife ten merks, and offered another five fer our false testimony.”

“And the man? Is he here in this courtroom?”

Meg nodded, her gaze darting to the back of the chamber and to the Lord Advocate once more.

A commotion sounded at the back of the gallery. Lachlan turned to see Donald Ruthven heading for the door. He was stopped by two guards, who grabbed him by the arms and pulled him forward.

“Is this the man who paid for your false testimony?”

She nodded.

On the tribunal panel, Reid stood. “Lord Advocate, based on this new evidence that demonstrates quite explicitly that the charges against Lachlan Douglas are fabricated, may I petition the tribunal to dismiss all charges against the accused?”

Lachlan’s heart skidded to a hopeful stop as the room erupted in cacophony of sound.

“Nay!” the Lord Advocate shouted over the noise. He picked up a gavel and struck the table three times, silencing the chamber.

A heavy tension seemed to scream through the room, and Lachlan’s body tensed in response.

“I will hear testimony from Thomas Cockburn before anything is decided. Sit down, everyone, and let us resume our mission here.” He turned his attention to Donald Ruthven, who struggled against the iron grasp of the guards. “Did you pay the innkeeper and his wife and these young women for their testimony?”

“I did no such thing. They lie under bewitchment to this sorcerer!” His fiery gaze speared Lachlan.

The Lord Advocate pressed his lips into a thin line before continuing. “Do you admit to gathering the testimony against the accused?”

“I did gather testimony, as was my duty as a concerned citizen and God-fearing man. Our own King James has spread word throughout the land that all citizens are to be vigilant in finding and prosecuting anyone and everyone who is either using sorcery or supporting those who do.”

King James nodded curtly, but his jaw clenched. “My proclamations have stated as much; I will grant you that. But I will not have my purpose abused. Are you serious in your complaints against this man, or is this simply another stunt by the Ruthvens to seek revenge against an enemy?”

Donald Ruthven’s face hardened into a mask of freezing rage. “I have never been more serious, Your Grace. This man is evil. He is a sorcerer. You will learn as much if you talk with the fishermen who have testified against him.”

“Did you pay them as well?” the Lord Advocate asked.

“Nay,” Donald Ruthven replied with a wicked smile. “They were eager to tell me of all they had suffered at Lachlan Douglas’s demonic hand.”

Pandemonium erupted in the chamber while the Lord Advocate called sharply for silence. “We will continue with the witnesses to explore the charge of murder.” He turned to Donald Ruthven. “You, sir, return to your place and cease these outbursts. Do you understand?”

“Aye,” Donald Ruthven said with contempt in his voice.

“Thomas Cockburn, come forward.” As Thomas strode to the witness box, the Wenham girls hurried to a new place in the gallery away from the innkeeper’s wife at the back of the chamber.

Thomas stood tall and erect, looking far more confident than he had after his fishing vessel capsized in the Firth of Forth. The Lord Advocate picked up the papers from the desk and read aloud: “Lachlan Douglas, it is stated by witnesses that while aboard The Golden Rose, you caused the sea to churn, using your sorcery skills, and that ultimately you were responsible for the sinking of the fishing vessel occupied by Thomas Cockburn, Dillon Kemp, and others in this chamber, with the exception of Dillon Kemp who is deceased. When the men were subsequently rescued by the sailors aboard The Golden Rose, it is said that you forced them to journey on to Aberlady where you transformed yourself into your familiar, a black cat, and came forward to curse them all on their return journey to Kirkcaldy.” He set the paper down and fixed Lachlan with a hard stare. “What say you to these claims against you?”

“None of that is the truth.”

“Then enlighten us, please,” the Lord Advocate insisted.

Lachlan nodded, relieved to finally have a chance to tell his side of the story. “Elizabeth and I boarded The Golden Rose from Kirkcaldy in order to escape Donald Ruthven and his men who had been following us since Falkland Palace.”

The accusation against the Ruthvens caused another outbreak of conversation, which in turn caused the Lord Advocate to call for order.