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"It will be a great affair, surely!" put in one of the younger men, the son of the first speaker, by his reseer, in slow, for, then!"

The two older hter at the joke, but their sonsa herring, was it slapped wet against their cheeks," said the bonnetedhis head "Born here, the two of them"

"And where was your home in Scotland, sir?" The man jerked, surprised at the question, put in clear-voiced Gaelic He stared at Brianna for a ed as he answered her

"Skye," he said softly "Skeabost, near the foot of the Cuillins I arandsires But my sons were born here"

He spoke quietly, but there was a tone in his voice that quelled the hilarity in the younger h a damp blanket had been thrown over them The man in the slouch hat looked at Brianna with interest

"And were you born in Scotland, a nighean?"

She shook her head her on her shoulders

"I was," said Roger, answering a look of inquiry "In Kyle of Lochalsh"

"Ah," said MacLeod, satisfaction spreading itself across his weathered features "It is so, then, that you know all the songs of the Highlands and the Isles?"

"Not all," said Roger, s "But many--and I will learnslowly "Do that, Singer--and teach thehted on Brianna, and a faint s to h they will never see it"

One of the youngerof fish, which he presented to Brianna

"For you," he said "A gift for your wedding"

Roger could see one corner of her htly--with humor or incipient hysteria? he wondered--but she stretched out a hand and took the dripping string with grave dignity She picked up the edge of her cloak with one hand, and swept the," she said, in her slow, strangely accented Gaelic I have no words to say to you but thanks

The young men went pink, and the older hean," said MacLeod "Let your husband teach you, then--and teach the Gaidhlig to your sons May you have antly to her, bare toes squelching in theand healthy!" chimed in his co shyly "Many sons to you, e to look at Brianna They stood in silence, a foot or two apart, as thecurious looks behind therass where they stood, ar was still in Roger’s chest, but noas different He wanted to touch her, to apologize again, but he thought that would only s worse

In the end, she moved first She came to him and laid her head on his chest, the coolness of her wet hair brushing the wound in his throat Her brsts were huge, hard as rocks against his chest, pushing against hi him away

"I need Jemmy," she said softly "I need ht between apology and anger He had not realized howto someone else--not his, but Bonnet’s

"I need him, too," he whispered at last, and kissed her briefly on the forehead before taking her hand to cross the ain The h shouts and murmurs, scraps of speech and music drifted down, like echoes from Oly, and brief gliProverbs and o ceremonies dampened for Brianna’s sake It wouldn’t be St James’s with rice and white satin, but it could at least be dry

I rubbedpliers; Mr Goodwin’s broken tooth had been ed to get it out, roots and all, sending him aith a small bottle of rahisky, and instructions to swish it round hiswas optional

I stretched, feeling the pocket underchink Mr Goodwin had indeed paid cash; I wondered whether it was enough for an astrolabe, and what on earth Jah, by a sh behindmildly quizzical

"Oh!" I said "Ah--can I help you, Lieutenant?"

"Weel, that’s as ht smile "Farquard Campbell said his slaves are convinced that ye can raise the dead, so it reat trial to your skills as a surgeon?"