Inverseen, Scotland Highlands, Summer, 1856
The wind was blowing through her curly golden hair as she looked over the cliff to the crashing waves which brought in the tide. Her small cat – Tabby mewled softly as she held on to her tightly. The girl loved to feel the sea water smell wafting over her face through the air as she stood in this special place of hers. She imagined of the land across the sea, where her mamma was born – England. England was where her mamma had grown into a fine young lady, where her mamma had met and fallen in love with her papa on his trip to London, where her mamma and papa had eloped from to get married in Gretna Green. She wished she could find a love like that – all consuming and all pervading. She wished she could see that land of her mamma.
Her mother, Elena MacVaughan may have been the wife of a Scottish laird – William MacVaughan but she was also the only daughter of Lord William Fairfax, Earl of Billmore. Although they had eloped and got married in Scotland, later on the Earl had accepted the marriage on the birth of their first child – Rebecca. Four years later, a year after the birth of their second child – Raphael, Elena’s father Lord Fairfax had died and her brother Brighton Fairfax became the next Earl of Billmore. Brighton was a good person but he rarely spoke of his feelings and remained staid and serious to one and all.
Becca, as Rebecca MacVaughan was called by one and all, knew little of her grandfather except memories of an old man with a grey moustache and wrinkles around his eyes who was all smiles for her. She had gone to England just once and that was at the birth of her brother when she was three. She hardly remembered the land or the people around. Her mamma too had died two years ago, leaving herself, her six year old younger brother and her papa alone in this world. Lady Elena MacVaughan had suffered from a fever and never could recover. The thoughts of never seeing her mamma again brought fresh tears to her eyes even though two summers had passed.
“Becca,” boomed the voice of her father, “where are you lass?”
Her father knew she would be in this spot, and yet he insisted on asking her about her whereabouts. She thought that he did not like to think of the land across the sea which reminded him so much of his lovely Elena. But papa hardly talked about his feelings with her.
She sighed and jumped off from her favourite spot to get down and to her papa. She also let Tabby down who went rushing towards their house. The cat wouldn’t stay still at a place, thought Becca with a sigh.
“I am here, Papa”, said Becca as she looked up at the tall Scotsman. At thirty eight William MacVaughan was still in his prime with broad shoulders and a tapering waist. He had wavy blonde hair which hung to his shoulders and a gruff appearance. There were shades of brown in his golden beard and moustache. At six foot two inches he looked like a veritable giant to Becca.
Laird MacVaughan looked down at his eleven-year old daughter who was a splitting image of her mother, even at this young age. Her curly blonde hair lay well below her shoulders in complete disarray. Her green eyes looked up at her papa with all the love in her heart. She had a dimple in her right cheek which enhanced her looks as she grinned up at her papa. The laird thought that one day his daughter will grow up to break a lot of hearts. Even today she had his heart wound around her little finger.
“What are you doing so far from the hearth, child?” asked William as he lifted Becca in his arms.
“I was looking at the big, big sea, Papa.” William stared at her with a frown as she added, “And trying to look at the land where mamma grew up.”
“Come, lassie. It is time to go home. Raphael is waiting for us at home. He gets lonely.” William said as he turned to go to his home with his daughters in his arms. But he was also thinking about the land where her mamma grew up.
His daughter was growing up; she needed to learn the ways of a lady to make her into the woman he knew she could become. But he was a lonely widower with a large clan to look after. There were more troubles he had to look after than becoming a mother to her as well. Besides he knew nothing about it. He had started becoming a softer person for his Elena. But now he was as lost as his children without her.
With a heavy heart he decided that it was time to send her to the land of her dreams – the land of his lovely Elena so that she could be brought up in her maternal uncle’s house amongst her cousins and under the guidance of his doting wife, Lady Mary Fairfax, the current countess of Billmore.
Lady Mary was a childhood friend of his Elena and was a sweet and docile lady. She was the sister of Elena’s heart and was as shattered as him on the news of Elena’s death. She was the only one from the family who had travelled up to fight the tough weather of Scotland to be present at Elena’s funeral. She was the one to hold the two kids Elena left behind, as William grieved his beloved wife’s death. She was the one who sent the two scared kids to sleep as they were at a loss in the absence of their mother. She was the one who wept her eyes out as she left the two kids behind with a still grieving but slightly stable William. And she was the one who wrote steady letters at regular intervals enquiring about the children and William. And she was the one who berated William for not writing as often. Yes, he would send Becca to Lady Fairfax and she would look after her and turn her into the lady he knew his daughter would become one day.
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