The Strength of a High and Noble Hill (An Outlander Story)

Chapter 48: Putting a Reluctant Ring on it

A loud noise, as if a hand hitting skin, echoes as they reach the stables and a voice sounding rather like Wylie's yelling, "You bitch!"

Da barges into the stable. Brian and John arrive just in time to see a manure-covered Wylie being held against the stable wall by Da who's also holding a knife against Wylie's privates. 

"Jamie, no!" Mama cries.

"She offered me a drink and almost begged me to take it right away! This woman is a despicable succubus!" Wylie accuses.

Brian tries to lunge at him but John grasps his shoulder stopping him.

"How dare ye?" Da sneers furiously.

"Stop! Are you really going to kill someone at your aunt's wedding? It's not worth it."

Mama's words cause Da to hesitate. He grasps Wylie by his clothes tightly one more time, leaning in. "If I see ye near my wife again, I will kill ye." Da threatens, with every intention of keeping that vow. "Yer understand?!"

Wylie doesn't answer, too frozen in fear to speak before eventually nodding. Da pushes him against the wall, releasing him, then throws him his walking stick as a signal to get out. Then, trying to preserve what remains of his dignity, Wylie fixes his wig and saunters out the door, not giving Brian and John a glance, with manure on his back.

"I'm going to go make sure he doesn't make a further fool of himself and spread lies," John whispers to Brian.

"Of course, thank you," Brian replies. John nods and follows after Wylie.

Brian walks further into the stables where Mama is now being held in Da's embrace. "Are you okay?" He asks her.

Mama gives him a smile, her hand cupping his cheek. "Yes, I am. You don't need to worry about me."

"I always worry about you." Brian retorts.

"I can fight my own battles. Wylie wasn't a hard man to fight off." Mama's grin is wider now and Brian lets out a soft laugh at that.

Brian frowns when he then notices a mark on her neck that he swears he hadn't noticed earlier. "What's that?" He bends over and touches Mama's neck with his hand. Brian brings his hand back and stares at what appears to be... a mole?

Brian lets out an exclamation of disgust and Mama winces in embarrassment.

Da angrily turns away and takes a hundred steps, trying to calm down before rounding on them. "Wha' in the name of Christ, wha' were ye thinkin', Sassenach? Spendin' time alone wi' a man like 'im? I'll leave you alone for a little while and—"

"He knows Stephen Bonnet." Mama interrupts him. Silence.

Brian's mind begins to short-circuit. What, no– she can't—

"Wha'? He told ye this?" Da questions.

"Wait, wait. 'Knows,' like present tense? Stephen Bonnet is dead. How can he know him?" Brian frantically asks.

Da and Mama look at each other, and then Da says, "We didna want ye tell ye until it was absolutely necessary. And it appears it now is."

"Tell me what? He's dead, right? He blew up in the jail." Brian asks, desperately hoping what they're saying isn't true. That the man who hurt his sister isn't still out there.

"We dinna ken how, but he survived. He's been livin' in Wilmington this whole time."

The room starts spinning around Brian and the nausea is building. "What? What do you mean? No. He... he's dead. He couldn't have... he's... he's alive?"