O'Reilly's Bastaird

"What exactly do I have to do?"

"Cleaning, cooking, laundry and what ever is necessary to keep the house running properly."

"I don't know him. He is a Scotsman. I don't want to be in the house alone with him."

Gavin, who had been sitting quietly, realized what Sarah was attempting and why. He was glad that she was able to do what he could not do, and wanted it to be successful. He reached down to his right ankle, remove something, and quickly placed it on the table in front of Clara.

"What is this?"

"This is my sgian dubh. It is sacred. It was given to me by my grandfather. It is my most valued possession."

"It is an knife!"

"No, it is more than that, much more. You will keep in on you at all times. If at anytime you feel threaten in any manner, it will be there to protect you. With the sgian dubh you will be invincible. You will fear nothing."

It was an odd smile that she gave him. As if what he said was a bit humorous. For some reason, she could relate to it, even though it was a bit preposterous.

"It sure looks like a knife."

Gavin just smiled as she put in on her lap.

"Okay. I will give it a try. I just have one more question. Why me? There are a lot of girls around that are far more qualified than I am."

Gavin was at a loss for words. Sarah finally looked at him. "Gavin, say something."

"You were different than the others. You looked liked good breeding stock."

Clara sat with her mouth hanging open and Sarah started to giggle. Gavin quickly got out of his chair and left the room, kicking himself for blurting out such a stupid thing.

He went to the stables, saddled one of the horses and spent the rest of the morning riding. He found his bride. Now all he had to do was win her.

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Clara started her new position the first day of the next week. Gavin continued to take his meals in the kitchen, but avoided any conversations that were not necessary to the managing of the household. Sarah found the whole situation to be humorous, and Gavin became a bit agitated at her constant snickering, but he said nothing.

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Mike Rooney had a hard time understanding why they could no longer grow potatoes. Lumpers were the main crop on every Irish farm and homestead. He felt strongly enough about it that he actually confronted Gavin with a fierce determination. Who the hell was this Scott to come here and tell Irishmen what they could grow and not grow. He tried his best, but in the end he still lost. No potatoes would be grown on the Manor, either in the main farm areas or in the individual tenant garden patches. Gavin could offer no logical reason for insisting on it. If he told Rooney the real reason, he would have been considered to be daft.

The main fields were planted with parsnips, rutabaga, turnips and cabbage. Other side crops were carrots, beets, and sweet potatoes. Winter squash were planted along with the corn. Special emphasis was put on seed harvesting for next years crop.

Gavin also had Rooney expand the orchard operation. It was a long term project, but one that he felt had to be started as soon as possible.

Sarah and Clara were making weekly trips to Kenmare. They was no shortage of money, so Sarah insisted that Clara get a complete new set of clothes. It was not gaudy, fashionable frocks, but well made, good quality garments designed to last and look good. Clara did insist on what colors she would get, and seemed to stick with green, brown and grays, instead of red, yellow, or blues.

The rest of the shopping was for household supplies and necessities. Clara quickly became a competent and shrewd shopper. The trips also allowed her to become proficient in handling the pony cart.

Things did not go as well for the new laird. O'Reilly volunteered to escort Gavin to the Whistle Pig so that he could become acquainted with some of the locals. Lucus Quinn was a near by pig farmer who had his eye on Clara O'Reilly long before Gavin's arrival. Even though Clara had rejected every advance he ever made, he still persisted in his efforts. As long as Lucus felt Clara was his, no other man in the area would even think of pursuing her. He was furious when he learned that the new laird had moved Clara into the manor house; mad enough to confront Gavin and vent his rage. Unfortunately for him, he had never heard of the Glasgow Kiss. Lucus quietly left the pub holding his bleeding nose. He never confronted Gavin again.

On their next trip to the pig, Gavin got to meet one of the local want-to-be boxers. He tried his best to avoid any confrontation, but it was not to be. He felt the direct approach was the best, how ever he took several good hits to the head before he could reach the man. Gavin simply put him in a head lock and walked him into the side of the bar. The fight was over, but he had to endure a tongue lashing from his house keeper as she tended to his facial bruises. She scolded him like a little kid, but he found it a bit humorous that she even cared.

It was three weeks later when word came to the manor that two brothers from Killarney were on the way to challenge the notorious Scotsman. Gavin had no desire to confront a pair of antagonists, but felt obligated to at least face them. A time was set for the meeting, and a good size crowd had gathered at the pig by the time he arrived.

They appeared to be twins, and from their dress, Scottish. They were not that tall, but extremely stocky. The crowd was silent, both inside and outside the pub. Gavin sat quietly nursing his ale as they stripped their outer garments off in preparation. If he could take out one of them quickly, he might have a chance.

The two of them stood in the middle of the room with cocky grins on their faces.

As Gavin rose from his chair, he decided to bait them a bit.

"What names would you like on your grave stones? It would nice to know this ahead of time." Gavin tried to say this without smirking, but it was difficult.

"Fraser. I am Conan and this is Ian. We know your given name to be Gavin. What surname do you go by?"

"Erskine."

The two brothers paused for a moment and had a short hushed discussion.

"You aren't by chance from Aberdeenshire are you?"

"That I am. Why does that interest you?"

"By chance, are you related to Angus Erskine?"

"My father. Again I ask, why is that important?"

The crowd stood in wonderment as the brothers began dressing again. Conan and Ian walked up to Gavin, nodded their heads in acknowledgment, and shook his hand.

"Laird Erskine. It is a pleasure to meet you. If at any time you need assistance, my brother and I are at your call. We apologize for the misunderstanding today." They left without another word.

Gavin did not get an explanation for what occurred, but he had no further trouble in the pub or elsewhere. The word rapidly spread, that you do not mess with the laird. Life was good.

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Although Gavin was still learning how to manage the laird, Clara soon had the house running smoothly on her own. Sarah was always available to assist her if the need arose.

The biggest problem the new laird was faced with was the books and ledgers. Records had to be kept. Bills had to be paid. Receivables had to be collected. After a full day working the estate, Gavin dreaded having to end the day sweating over the books. To ease the angst, he started have a pint of mead before starting the books. Gradually the amount of mead needed increased to the point that Clara would find him fast asleep before the accounting was finished.

He did not want to admit it, but he appreciated it when Clara offered to help him. She turned out to be quite a good bookkeeper. They were soon functioning as a team. The more that Clara worked with the ledgers, the more she learned about the operation of the laird. After mastering the accounting, she moved on to handling the banking and insurance. The last part of the operation was the contracts and other business agreements.

Shortly thereafter, Clara took it upon herself to hire a young local girl to help with the house work. Clara still took care of the cooking, but not the laundry or house keeping. In the evenings, there was now time for Gavin and her to sit and relax. He would tell her all about what was going on with the laird and she would update him on all of the other matters.

Every thing was good except....

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It was a miserable fall day. Gavin came into the back of the manor for some lunch, dripping wet. As soon as he saw her, he knew that Clara was in a foul mood. Brigid, the housekeeper, had been given the day off. The kitchen table was still the usual place for meals. She set a large bowl of colcannon in front of him with a mug of hot apple cider. Although they were no longer growing potatoes, they still served them on occasions. One of Gavin's favorites was the colcannon.

Gavin looked up from his meal and noticed that Clara was standing across from him with her hands on her hips.

"What?" He muttered.

"When is it going to start?"

"When is what going to start? Can you be a bit more specific woman?"

"When you picked me to come to the manor house, you said that I was selected because I looked like good breeding stock."

Gavin gave a small cough. "Yes, I did. It was a bit uncouth of me, and I have regretted it ever since. It was insulting and you did not deserve the ridicule. I am truly sorry."

"Does that mean that you are going back on your word?"

"What word? What the hell are you babbling about?"

"The breeding, damn it! You brought me here for the breeding. When is it going to start? It has been a year now. Isn't it about time?"

Gavin came around the table, grabbed her by the arm and led her out the door. They did not stop for coats or foul weather gear. The rain had slowed to a light drizzle. He marched her down the manor lane to the public road and then towards Lissyclearig. It wasn't long until both of them were soaking wet. He walked fast and she found herself at times stumbling to keep up. Ten minutes later, they were in the parsonage, and twenty minutes after that they were man and wife.

On the way back to the manor, Gavin had a hard time keeping up with his new bride. Brigid found them the next morning, still in bed.

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Clara did prove to be a good breeder. She was pregnant with her third child when the calamity came; An Drochshaol.

It was hard to imagine that the loss of one plant could cause so much misery. People had become dependent on potatoes for substance and livelihood. The Erskine Manor was in far better shape than most others because they had prepared for it, even though they were not sure what it was going to be. Although they were in good condition, Gavin and his tenants were careful not to gloat or call attention to their fortune.

With Rooney's expertise they were able to put a large amount of root crops and corn up for storage. Men who actually had jobs found things difficult, because food was not always available to buy. Gavin had Wylie Hogan and his sons,start converting the mud tenant houses to standard wood constructed cottages. They were able to hire local craftsmen who were willing to work in exchange for food. They build four more new houses. Meg O'Reilly had married a furrier and was anxious to move into one of the new cottages.

Rooney was able to hire men to expand the orchard and turpentine operations on the same terms.

As the famine stretched on, Gavin was trading food to have men built stone walls around all of the fields. He didn't really need them, but he did not want to just give the food away. It was appreciated more if it was worked for.

With Gavin's blessing Rooney distributed garden seeds to as many of the local residents as he could. As a result the impact of the famine in the immediate area seemed to diminish. They offered corn to anyone who wanted it, but the takers were few.

After four years, the local workers started to return to what ever they were doing before hand. Things went back to normal at the laird.

The biggest problem Gavin had at the moment, was five little kids running around the manor and a frenzied wife. They now had a full time housekeeper and cook, but things were still a bit hectic.

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"Gavin, I will be gone most of the day. Brigid will be taking care of the children. I should be home by supper time."

"It doesn't take that long to get to Kenmare. What is going on?"

"I am not going to Kenmare. I am going to Moll's Gap."

"I would prefer to go with you. Let me make a few arrangements."

"No. I can do this myself. I would prefer to do this myself."

He knew by now, not to argue with her.

"Be careful. I love you."

It was only about eight kilometers from the manor to Moll's Gap, but it was uphill all the way. A bit of a struggle for the little pit pony. Coming home would be easier.

The public house, or shebeen, did not have a good reputation. Clara tied her cart up out front and walked in the front door as if she owned the place. There were no women inside and the men all seemed to be a bit uncouth.

"I am looking for Mary O'Reilly." The bar keep paused for a moment before answering.

"Mary is out back hanging laundry. What do you want her for?"

"My business." Clara walked toward a side door that looked as if it went to the rear of the bar.

The woman hanging the laundry looked gaunt and unhealthy. She turned toward Clara and immediately smiled. "Clara. Look at you. You look wonderful."

They hugged for a few moments and then both of them started wiping away the tears. "Why are you here? Is something wrong?"

"Yes mamma. Something is wrong and I need you."

Clara spent the next five minutes explaining the problem to her mother. She looked at her in amazement.

"Five kids. What kind of man did you marry?"

"He is a Scotsman, mamma. Through and through."

"I need a minute to pack my things. I'll meet you downstairs."

There were only about eight men inside, but they all seemed to be waiting for her to come back. It appears that one of them had been bragging to the others that he was going to be sharing the charms of the new lady. As the man approached her, she looked to the bar keep for assistance. He just smiled and turned away.

He was a big brute. Not as big as Gavin, but still quite large. The first mistake he made was grabbing her shoulder. She shrugged it off and turned to face him.

"Maybe you would like to meet my husband?" She posed it as a question.

"I don't think so." He laughed as he grabbed both of her shoulders.

They didn't even see her move. The sgian dubh was swift and sharp. The slice under his left arm was only about six inches long, but was bleeding furiously. It took a moment for him to realize what happened. As he backed away the streaming blood splattered across Clara's dress as well as his own shirt. The amount of blood made the cut seem far more ominous than it really was. There was no noise or uproar. Everything got deadly silent in the whole room.

"Are you sure you don't want to meet my husband?" Clara was speaking to the wounded man, but was scanning the whole room when she said it.

The man was trying to contain the bleeding when one of the other men quietly walked up to him and whispered something in his ear. He paused for a moment and started to back away toward the door.

"I am sorry My Lady, for any misinterpretation of my intentions. I'll take my leave now." A second later he was gone.

Clara looked around the room again, wondering what the other man had said to him, and why he called her My Lady.

Just then Mary appeared carrying a small bag. "What the hell happened here, and where did all that blood come from?"

Clara just smiled and looked around. There was a great deal of blood across the room. She was amazed because she just gave him a little prick.

She looked over at the bar keep. "My pony needs some water."

The barkeep did not ignore her this time. The pony was quickly serviced.

QQQQQ

Mary was quickly accepted into the household. Now that she had some time away from the children, Clara was able to put her full efforts toward running the laird. Gavin had compete control over the daily activities, but hated the book work. They worked together as a team and prospered.

It was the first day of the fall season. Since the family had grown, they were now taking meals together in the dining room. Gavin always presided at the head of the table. Tonight he was missing. Although Clara was a bit concerned, she did not let it show. He came home about about an hour after the meal was finished and he was not in a pleasant mood.

Clara had Mary take the children into the den.

"Was there some sort of problem today that kept you?" She tried to phase the question so that it would not appear to be a confrontation.

"No. Everything is fine. I was not here most of the day."

She placed a plate in front of him, trying to figure out what to say next. She wanted to know, but did not want to aggravate him further.

"Is there anything that I can help with?"

He slowly shook his head. She stood quietly as he finished his meal, and washed it down with a tankard of cider.

"You lied to Me!" She was not expecting that.

"I have never lied to you and I never will. What the hell are you chattering about?" Her feet were firmly set and arms akimbo.

"You did not tell me what happened on your trip to Moll's Gap."

"I picked up my mother and brought her home with me."

"And you are still being untruthful about it. They was more to that trip wasn't there?"

"I never lied to you."

"No. I guess you didn't, but you did not tell me the whole story did you?"

"That is not lying!"

"As far as I am concerned it is."

Clara stood silent. She was unsure how to reply without annoying him any more.

"I stopped in at the pig today. It seems that one of the men that was at Moll's Gap on the day of your visit had stopped in. He was entertaining the whole pub with the story of the Red Lady who wreaked bloody havoc. From his recounting of the event it was easy for everyone to determine who that lady was. He described you perfectly, as well as your mother. He was proud of the fact that he watered your pony for you."

She stood silent for a few moments. "I regret that I didn't mention it. I didn't think it was that important and I didn't want you to get upset."

"According to him, there was so much blood that they are calling you the Red Lady. One of them even knew that you were my wife; the lady of the manor."

"I am sorry. I only cut him once and it was a small cut. I guess he was a bleeder. It looked a lot worse that it really was. He must not have been hurt too bad. He left on his own accord."

"Dare I ask what prompted you to do it?"

"He made advances. I told him that you would not approve and he just laughed at me and continued. When he laid his hands on me for the second time, I decided to let the sgian dubh speak for me, and for you. You told me that it would protect me, and it did."

"Weren't you afraid?"

"No! You were with me. I had the sgian dubh."

Gavin took his wife in his arms and held her tight. "Don't ever do anything like that again. I could not stand losing you. You are my whole life. I need you and the children need you."

As they walked out of the room, he had one more question. "Was there really that much blood?"

Clara laughed. "Yes. I guess that is why they call me the Red Lady."

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The manor flourished and everyone prospered. Their three daughters married well and left home. One to America, one to London, and the youngest married a Fraser and moved to Killarney. Their eldest son, Robert, moved to Aberdeenshire and took over the family laird when Angus died. The youngest son, Ryan, was designated to become the new monarch of the home laird. Gavin and Clara had done a good job.