Letters from the Highlands

Prologue

My hands trembled as I held a letter in my hand, a courier standing in front of me. My fingers wrapped around the crimson wax seal, being extra careful so as not to rip the paper. I haven't thought about my uncle for many years. He always lived far away alone, as distant physically as he was in blood. But there in my hands stood a letter of inheritance that I didn't think I quite understood.

The courier cleared his throat, "Your uncle left explicit instructions regarding his estate. It is to go to you in its entirety."

My eyebrow raised in confusion, "Why me? Uncle James and I haven't talked in over a decade."

The courier smiled, "Your uncle was quite clear. The entire estate in the Highland's is yours."

I glanced down at the letter again, finally getting it out of the envelope. I glanced around the narrow streets of London, and I smelled the city air. My entire world has titled in a few sentences.

"You mean... I am to take over the entire estate?" I was expecting him to laugh, as if this was all some dumb prank from one of my well-off cousins, but he didn't laugh.

"Indeed, Miss Barlow. The manor, the land, the tenants, it is all yours," the courier slung his bag over his shoulder, the letters inside jostling around, "Have a great day!"

Before I could say anything else, he started walking down the stone streets. The new obligation hung in the air, the weight pressing down on my shoulders. She barely knew this man - her uncle - a shadow from my childhood. Yet, he someone decided that I, a woman of limited knowledge of estates or rural life, was the one to inherit his world.

A nervous laugh escaped my lips, a loud short chuckle. I took a deep breath as I weighed my options. An estate like this would set me up for life and get me away from any engagement my parents would try to force me into. Then I stopped and pondered the estate I had only ever seen in paintings; this wasn't some trinket to be passed along, this was a legacy.

I looked down at the letter one last time, the words burning into my mind. This unknown future was daunting, but maybe the Highlands had something more to offer than London.

"I will need to make arrangements," I said to myself as I closed the door to my families home.