To Love A Myth - Book 1: Mr. Higgs and the Maid🎩✔️

15

A week went by and Higgs we well enough to be taken back to his own manor to be cared for by Merida and less frequent visits from Lucus. He was still in a significant amount of pain but he didn't need as much laudanum anymore and Merida was skilled enough to be able to change his bandages herself and put the salve on his legs and stomach.

There was a knock on the door and Merida got up from reading over the newspaper (making sure there wasn't any gossip still about Higgs and the party) to go to the door. She opened it and frowned, leaning on the doorjamb.
"Ye have a lot of nerve showing yer face here. What do ye want?"
Elizabeth rocked on her feet, looking very uncomfortable.
"I just... I wanted to make sure he was alright. I mean..."
"Ye have no right to e'en step ye wee foot on this property. I have a mind to shoot ye."
Elizabeth winced at the threat but wrung her hands even harder.
"I... I just... I'm so sorry. Truly I am. I just... I didn't set Higgs up, I promise!"
She suddenly burst into tears and Merida floundered, unable to take the frailties of the English women. She had learned early on in her rough childhood running across the Highlands with her brothers that crying was a luxury and you do it when you are not in danger. In essence, she learned not to cry hardly at all. So when the whimsical and usually faint of heart English ladies went into their hysterics, Merida was quite un-useful.
"Uh... um... could ye not do that? I dinnae have enough medication to keep ye and Mr. Higgs calm."
"I'm sorry. It's just..."
"I ken ye just, ye just. Come inside before someone thinks I've said something mean to ye."
Merida led Elizabeth inside and took her to the kitchen. She put on a kettle on and waited for the water to boil. Elizabeth wiped her eyes with a handkerchief Merida didn't even know she had.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to cry like that. I know you're so protective of him. Like a guard dog."
"I'm going to take that yer hysterics have ye brain in a muckle." Merida said flatly. "And it's not that I'm protective of him; yer fiancé almost killed him over a wee dance that ye set up."
"I know, I know. Patrick is... he's a different sort of guy."
"I ken how ye couldnae tell. Murderers and psychos come in normal clothing."
Elizabeth frowned. "Patrick isn't a killer. He was drunk and when he's like that he can be one of two ways: very blasé or very..."
"Murderous."
Elizabeth sighed as Merida scooped some tea leaves into the diffuser and poured the hot water over it.
"It doesnae matter what excuse ye try and use, yer fiancé almost killed my employer and scared him half to damned death. He was happy... he was so happy to go to that party and be with everyone and yer fiancé ruined him. He reduced Mr. Higgs to a child crying out to his Da, bleeding like some sort of victim and it was because ye told him he could dance with ye. If ye kenned about him then why did ye let Mr. Higgs dance with ye?"
Elizabeth poured cream into her tea and stirred it slowly.
"I wanted to dance with Higgs. I've known him for a long time but we've never been very in touch. I was so happy to see him out and about and so since Patrick was drunk, I figured I'd finally have a chance to dance with him and I thought that Patrick wasn't going to care. I mean he told me to go find someone to dance with so I thought he didn't mind."
"Ye obviously dinnae ken yer fiancé very well." Merida said with a lift of her eyebrow.
"It's becoming clearer the more I try to explain..." Elizabeth mumbled.
"Why dinnae ye leave that blighter behind and find yerself a new lad?"
"Oh, I couldn't!"
"Why? Ye just cannae handle being below a certain class?"
"It's not that..."
"Seems like it to me... Either way, why are ye here?"
"I actually wanted to see if Higgs was... was accepting any visitors."
Merida frowned. "No. I dinnae ken so... at least not from ye."
Elizabeth ran her finger on her cup. "I... I see..."
"I have a feeling that seeing ye would only bring back memories that he doesnae need full reminding of. He's already having a hard enough time sleeping as is, seeing the cause of his strife would be a bit like putting salt into an open wound."
"I guess you're right. I shouldn't have thought that I could smooth it over with him."
"I dinnae say ye couldnae smooth it over with him, I just ken that it would be too soon as of now. Maybe when he's fully recovered."
"Right..."
"I'll let him know ye dropped by though."
"Of course... You're a good woman, Merida. I knew it as soon as I met you. I knew you would be a wonderful person for Higgs."
"So I've been told."