"Previously..." "She hexed Jamie and turned him away from me." "She put an ill wish under my bed and then tried to seduce my husband!" "Sire, this woman is a liar and a witch!" "But La Dame Blanche is a white witch, and I practice white magic." "And with French money, we will unite the clans, and I will lead you all to the gates of London and to glory." "The Prince is a canny, slippery man, yet can fool good men to believe he is God's chosen one." "We've thwarted him all we can, and we find ourselves staring into the abyss awaiting us at the bottom of Culloden Moor." "Bring me home... to Scotland." "Aye." "Scotland." "_" "We returned to heal in the peace of the Scottish Highlands." "Jamie's sister, Jenny, and her husband, Ian, had had another baby while we were in Paris." "Their welcome and the daily routines of Lallybroch worked like a tonic on our battered souls." "We hoped we had done enough to stop the war." "We began planning our future, but as a very prescient Scot once observed, the best laid schemes of mice and men." "Claire, Claire!" "They're ready!" "Look how big they are." "They're giant!" "Oh, my goodness, Rabbie." "So they are." " Can we eat them tonight?" " Oh, I don't see why not." "Come on, let's go ask Mrs. Crook." "A grand potato, if ever I saw one." "Ye've never seen one." "Not in Fraser land." "Not till now." "Ye were right telling' us to plant them, Claire." "'Tis a fine crop." "I dinna see how ye'd ever grind them for parritch." "I dinna believe ye grind them, Mrs. Crook." "Och, aye?" "What do ye do with 'em, then?" "You boil them." " Eat them with salt." " Aye." " Butter is good, too." " Or roast them." "Or you can mash them with milk." "Oh, I dinna ken you could cook, Sassenach." "I'm not sure I can cook, but I can certainly boil a potato." "Mm, then we shall have a feast." " Ye did well." "Wipe yer feet and take off yer filthy boots before ye tramp all over this rug." "Come along, lads." "You can help me scrub them clean." "I ran into Hector on the way up." "Got the post from him, eh?" "Oh, Jamie, here's one for you." "Louise." "It's the bill for the seed." "And one from Aunt Jocasta." "Good, we haven't heard from her in months." "Now, did ye get the ploughshare fixed?" "Smitty says it's broken straight through." "Canna be re-forged." "We'll have to hand-till until we can get a new one." "I canna believe I've become a farmer." "Oh, three French novels and a book of poetry from Paris." "Which one shall we read tonight?" "And what is it?" ""Dear cousin, so pleased." ""Words cannot express my admiration for your boldness" ""and courage." "My prayers are with you"" " Stuart Crest." " Aye." "It declares a Stuart's divine right to the throne of Britain, supported by the chieftains of the Highland clans, signed by those pledging loyalty to Charles Stuart." "MacKinnon, Oliphant, MacDonald of Glencoe." "James Alexander Malcolm MacKenzie Fraser." "Jesus bloody Christ, he's forged your signature." "Aye, he has." "Charles has landed in Scotland and is gathering his army." "This was published, distributed." "The names on this are traitors to the crown." "Jamie." "It's all coming to pass, isn't it?" "Jacobite rising, Culloden, the Clearances..." "The destruction of all of this." "So it would seem." "We could go to Ireland... or the colonies." "What of Ian and Jenny?" "My nieces, nephews, our cousins?" "We can bring them with us." "All of them?" "What of our tenants?" "Leave them to the--the mercy of the British butchers if the Culloden is lost?" " Your name on that document brands you as a traitor to the British." "And you will be hung as one if they catch you." "We can't stay." "We know what will happen if the Jacobites lose the war." "But... but what if they win?" "They don't." "It's the verdict of history." "Have you given up trying to change the future, then, Sassenach?" "Well, after Paris, haven't you?" "Aye, Paris was bitter disappointment." "But you can change the future." "You've proven that." "Thomas Baxter lives because of you." "Paris was spared an outbreak of smallpox because of you." "And Louise de Rohan will bear Charles Stuart's bairn because of you." "You want to fight for Prince Charles?" "Fight... for our family..." "And for Scotland." "Canna see any other way." "Can you?" "Not one that we could live with." "They say the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result." "Well, I do not ken who they are, Sassenach... but I'll wager... they have never traveled through time." "So, with Daniel Wallace and Duncan MacLennan, ye should have 30 able-bodied men from Lallybroch." "Good." "Murtagh, I'll need ye to bring the men to Kingussie." "Claire and I will meet you there in two weeks, and we'll go together to join the prince at Crieff." "As ye say." "And where will we be during these two weeks?" "Uh, Prince Charles has dispatched me to enlist men and support from our kinsman," "Lord Simon Fraser of Lovat." "Ye're going to see Lord Lovat?" "Ask him to do ye a favor?" "Ask him to help preserve his country... and restore the rightful king to the throne." "He does have a history of supporting the Jacobites, ye ken." "Oh, aye, and the British and anyone else that will help him line his pockets and claim the title Chief of Clan Fraser of Lovat." "A position he is entitled to and has held for over 20 years." "You're defending the old buzzard, now?" "Father must be birling in his grave." " Who is Lord Lovat?" " Our grandsire." "Who we've laid eyes on but once in our lives, when he came to visit just after our mother died." "Father threw him out before he could cross the threshold." "Why?" "He tried to have our mother kidnapped and taken to the Monach Isles in order to prevent our father from marrying her." "There was some bad blood between Lovat and the MacKenzies." "A situation I assume Prince Charles is unaware of?" "'Tis not only degrading for ye to crawl to that man and ask him for help." "'Tis a fool's errand." "The old fox does nothing that's not in his best interest and never without a price." "No." "No, what would be foolish, Janet, would to let pride stand in the way of doing whatever I can to save Lallybroch, Scotland, and everything that we hold dear." "We'll leave for Beaufort Castle first thing tomorrow." "I havena been completely honest with ye about my family, Sassenach." " What do you mean?" " My father..." "He was a bastard." "Acknowledged by his father, Lord Lovat, but a bastard nonetheless." "And your grandmother?" "Lord Lovat's kitchen maid." "She raised my father at Beaufort Castle." "I should've told ye before we wed." "I'm sorry." "It was cowardly of me." "Jamie, you must know your father's parentage makes no difference to me." "Hm." "Well... it should." "It doesn't." " Let's go to bed." " Aye." "The bairn couldna sleep, and neither could Jamie." "He thought they could keep each other company for a bit while Ian and I slept." "And he's trying to get back on my good side." "Did it work?" "It's a start." "Ye can talk to a wee one in a way you canna talk to anyone else." "Ye can pour out yer heart to them without choosing your words or holding anything back at all." "And that's a comfort to the soul." "It's the way we talk to them before they're born." "Ye know." "Yes." "I know." "The man has to wait until the child's born, and then they hold their bairn and feel all the things that might be and all the things that might never be... and weep, not knowing which ones will come to pass." " Take care of your Fraser." " Aye." "And you yours." "Take this." "It brought Ian back to me from France." "Ye gave Ian a token when we went to France, and no' me?" "And him not even your betrothed at the time." "Don't make me regret giving it to ye now." "If ye don't come back, brother, I'll never forgive ye." "Never is a very long time." "I know." "Jes where do ye think ye're going?" "Well, with Milord." "Ye're too young to fight, laddie." "Ye'll bide here wi' us." "You can help Rabbie in the stables till Milord returns." "But I belong with you." "Is that not what you told me, Milady, that I will always have a home with you?" "Yes, of course." " But sometimes it's" " He's right." "His place is no' here without us... nor in France on his own." "Bring him with ye, Murtagh, when ye come with the men." "Aye." "If I havena killed him first." "Dinna fash, Claire." "We'll keep him well away from the battle." "The outcome is in yer hands, laddie." "A good soldier must learn to obey his commanding officer..." "As well as his general." "Take care of each other... and watch out for my grandsire." "I will." "Bye, Jenny." "During our ride to Beaufort Castle," "Jamie filled me in on what he knew of his grandfather." "Over the last 50 years," "Lord Simon Fraser of Lovat had been alternately loyal to both the exiled King James and the monarchs sitting on the British throne." "His personal life was equally infamous." "Aside from numerous extramarital dalliances," "Lord Lovat had had three wives, two of them acquired by nefarious means." "Lord Lovat will be with you shortly." "I do wish we'd had a chance to freshen up a bit before meeting your grandfather." "Dinna fash, Sassenach." "You look bonny, though ye do have a few teasel heads in your hair." "Leave 'em." "They suit her." "Colum." "I arrived this morning, myself." "I saw ye enter the courtyard from the window." "What are ye doing here?" "Well, I'm here to discuss a response to the rebellion with Lord Lovat, as I assume you are." "War-- it makes for strange bedfellows." "I'm pleased to see that ye're well." "You'll have to excuse me if I find that hard to believe." "The witch trial, Colum." "Ye seem to be implying that I, uh," "I had something to do with your involvement in that." "It is my impression that ye were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time." "Yes, I was." "Thanks to a message from your kitchen maid, Laoghaire, who just happened to know the exact time and place of the arrest." "A gross overstepping of her place, for which I had her beaten." "I would've thrown her out of Leoch, but her grandmother, Mrs. Fitz, persuaded me she could keep the girl in check." "Is Dougal with ye?" "No." "It became clear that it was best for the clan that my brother remain at his own estate." "Surely Dougal would be the one leading clan MacKenzie in fighting for King James?" "I'd forgotten what a curious mind you have, lass." "So the rumor is true." "The grandson of Lord Simon Fraser of Lovat has bound himself to a Sassenach." "But I suppose ye are yer father's son, after all." "Who's to expect the boy to have more sense choosing a wife than did the bastard who made him?" "At least I had no need to take a wife by means of rape or trickery." "No' as serious as yer father." "Good." "Enough breath wasted on a woman." "Leave us." "It's time to talk politics with my grandson and my rival." "While Jamie's meeting dragged on," "I took the opportunity to look over the place Lord Lovat called home." "Mistress Fraser?" "I've been looking for ye since I heard you were here." "Laoghaire." "Did the laird not tell ye I was with him?" " No." " My grandmother sent me along to wash his laundry and help wherever I'm needed." "I wanted to find ye, though, because..." "I need to tell you I am changed." "And I am sorry beyond measure for the horrible wrong" "I did to ye." "My grandmother has made me see I canna be right with God until I make amends for the pain my evil actions have caused." "I believe it is God brought us together here so I could do so." "God?" "You speak of God?" "How often have I thought about what I would do whenever I saw you again?" "I have fantasized all manner of violent acts that I would subject you to." "To all of them... ending with lighting the pyre beneath your feet and dancing on your ashes as you promised to dance on mine." "I don't hate you, Laoghaire." "I pity you." "The dark places you must've inhabited in the hopes of getting something that you'll never have." "As for getting right with God, you'll just have to find another way... 'cause I can't help you." "Maybe God did bring us together." "Ah, somehow, I--I feel lighter." "Ye're more forgiving than I am, Sassenach." "I wouldna give that brazen besom the time of day." "Perhaps." "So will I be allowed to join you at dinner tonight?" "Oh, aye." "Aye, my grandsire's no' opposed to a bit of decoration at the dinner table..." "As long as that decoration doesna speak." "Aye." "Just like that." "Now, come along." "Every man here knows that to most British, all Highlanders, no matter their allegiance, we're all the same... savage dogs better put down than let live." "And after three uprisings, the British Army will be motivated to put us down for good." "To save our clans, our country, our very way of life, we must band together under the true king, King James." "Fight... and we must win." "We're very fortunate to have among us such a close confidant of the prince." "Isn't that so, Lovat?" "We're lucky to have somebody to give us an inside view of this holy rebellion." "Aye, but I dinna know how holy it is." "So can you tell us, then, nephew, how much support have the French agreed to give?" "The French have already supported us, Colum, by engaging the British Army in Flanders, reducing the troops remaining here at home." "The prince is certain the French will want to press the advantage, send men and artillery to support the Jacobites." "Oh, so--so the French have not yet committed to Prince Charles?" "Always an unreliable ally, the French." "We will welcome the French support when it comes, but we dinna need it." "The Jacobite army is already 1,000 men strong in Crieff..." "MacDonalds, Camerons," "Stewarts, and Grants, and more joining every day... while the majority of the British Army remains on the continent licking their wounds." "I have heard the British have offered 30,000 pounds for the capture of Prince Charles." "Meaning what?" "Meaning the British see Prince Charles as a real threat." "Ye'll join us then, cousin?" "Perhaps the British know, as the rest of us do, how many cullions there are amongst the Campbells and the Camerons-- men who would sell their own grandmothers for half that amount." "Aye." " Well, I" " For 30,000 pounds, the British could end this rebellion before it even starts-- a fair sight less than it would cost them to wage a war." "I hadn't considered that." "Then sit down, ye mealy-mouthed wee smout, and dinna speak again until ye have considered what ye're about to say." "Bring us more wine... my lovely, and a glass of milk for my boy." "Enough war talk tonight." "You know, I got the impression that Colum was trying to use you to convince Lord Lovat not to join the rebellion." "Aye." "The first Jacobite rebellions failed, and Colum will never support another." "He wants Lovat's clan to stay neutral with the MacKenzies, knowing that the smaller clans will follow, and the rebellion will collapse before it ever gets started." "Well, why doesn't Colum just speak to him directly?" "Because my grandsire doesna trust my uncle." "Using me is a much more effective strategy." "I need to speak to Lovat on my own, without Colum leading me to make his arguments for him." "It's a pity young Simon is such a spineless creature." "I believe he could influence his father's decision if he took a strong stance for our side." "The man has nothing but contempt for the poor boy." "Ah, he's just trying to toughen him up, make him a viable successor to lead Clan Fraser of Lovat." "My grandsire had the perfect opportunity to say no to us tonight, but he didn't." "Perhaps Jenny was right." "He wants something in exchange." "Do ye think ye can toy with me?" "Ye're keeping something from me, ye old hag, and I'm no' havin' it." "Are you all right?" "Here, let me help you." "Oh, thank you, Mistress." " I'm Claire." " Maisri." "Lord Lovat's seer." "Wait." "I'll wager yer father painted a black portrait of my character." "He said very little about ye." "He chose that MacKenzie whore..." "And I'll ask ye to keep a civil tongue when you speak of my mother!" "Over me, his father, twice." "First when I told him not to marry her" "And yer kidnapping attempt failed." "Second time, she was dead and buried." "I was willing to forgive him, make him my successor, despite the fact he was a bastard." "And he chose her memory and that place..." " Lallybroch." " Over me." "Is it true?" "What?" "That you've no' pledged yer fealty to Colum MacKenzie?" "That's what ye're after, is it?" "My fealty to you in exchange for sending aid to Prince Charles?" "To be honest, I'm more interested in what goes with it." "What need have ye of Lallybroch?" "The tenants' rents would probably make no difference to a place like this." "What I do with that damnable place would be no concern of yers." "I'm yer grandsire and head of your clan, after all." "I demand my due." "If I wouldna give my pledge to Colum, who I know to be kin, then what sort of fool would I be to give it to an old twister that may or may not share my blood?" "You made free with yer housemaids." "Perhaps others did, too." "Oh, Christ, laddie." "Implying yer grandmother's a whore to keep what you want?" "Oh, ye're my kin, all right." "Would that my son had half yer mettle..." "I'll give ye the same pledge I gave Colum." "My help and goodwill, my obedience to yer word, so long as my feet rest on Lovat soil." "Did ye no' hear me?" "It's yer father's precious estate I'm after." "If ye'll no' give me Lallybroch in exchange for men for Prince Charles, how about this?" "Lallybroch for yer wife's honor." "Go ahead." "Try to ravish my wife." "And after she's done with ye," "I'll send in the maid to sweep up yer remains." "Not I, lad, though I've taken my pleasure with worse." "Your grandmother comes to mind." "But there are many men in Beaufort Castle who'd be of a mind to put your..." "Sassenach wench to the only use she's good for." "Ye canna guard her night and day." "No." "I needn't worry..." "Grandsire." "My wife's a rare woman... ye ken." "A wise woman." "La Dame Blanche... the White Lady." "The Sassenach?" "A witch?" "Aye, it's true." "The man that takes her in unholy embrace will have his privates blasted, like a frostbitten apple." "And his soul..." "Will... burn... forever in hell." "Like that." "My grandsire has a great respect for the supernatural, no' for anything else, but ye should take care the next few days if I'm no' here." "Well, he didn't seem that frightened of that poor woman when he tossed her out into the corridor." "Ah, Maisri's but a seer." "She's not a white lady, like my wife." "But she did know something she wasna telling him." "Your grandfather really is a brute, isn't he?" "Aye." "A brute that may soon own my ancestral home." "You can't be seriously thinking about giving him what he wants?" "Well, the prince will hardly put much stock in my abilities to lead men or wage war if I'm not even able to persuade my own grandsire to support our cause." "Well, what about young Simon?" "What if we persuade him to-- to stand up to his father, declare his support for the rebellion?" "Aye." "Aye, then Lovat may send his men if only to protect his heir, but after that scene last night... it'll take more time than we have to give the boy the confidence he needs to truly defy his father." "Perhaps it depends on what we use to boost his confidence." "Is that Jamie's shirt?" "I've done nothing to it." "Didn't mean to imply that you had." "I have changed, ye ken." "I have repented and asked God's forgiveness, and it was working." "I thought he brought you both here to help me, but it was to test me." "In the great hall, Jamie didn't even see me." "'Twas like I didna exist." "If ye willna avenge yerself, ye must leave me be." "Perhaps I could find my way to forgive you." " But Jamie..." " Hail Mary, full of grace." "Jamie will never love you, Laoghaire." "But there might be a way to earn his forgiveness... for him to think of you without rancor." "And why would you want him to do that?" "Because we need Lord Lovat to send his men and weapons to fight for Prince Charles, and we believe he might do this if young Simon stood up to him and took Jamie's side." "And what is that to do with me?" "Young Simon is infatuated with you." "You could use that to help persuade him." "Oh, no." "I'll not sink further into the pit of depravity." "I'll not give up my maidenhead for you!" "No one is asking you to give up anything." "Besides, it's not for me." "It's for Jamie." "A woman has more to offer a man than her body." "When a man is in love, he craves his beloved's approval." "He wishes to please her for-- and to look heroic in her eyes." "And if I do whatever it is ye have in mind, ye'll speak to Jamie on my behalf?" "Yes." "I canna tell you how I know, but I do." "You must believe me." "The only way to survive... is to fight and win." "And we need the weapons and men to do so." "Remaining neutral will be seen as treason by whatever side wins." "Ye know?" "Ye just know?" "Ye sound like a madman!" "History guides my course in this matter." "History!" "Not wild beliefs and wishful thinking." "The other risings-- they failed because there was no outside support, and that support does not exist now." "If we do not send men to fight, this rebellion will-- will melt away." "And when that happens, we will be left alone... as we were in the past." "Lord Lovat..." "He would see that, too, if only the vengeful prize of Lallybroch was not dangling in front of his eyes." "And he would agree to neutrality." "Jamie, ye were always headstrong, but ye were never reckless with the lives of others." "For yer sake, and for the sake of all you hold dear, do not make this bargain with that man." "Do not trade your home for a war ye canna win." "Will ye promise me that?" "I promise you, Uncle." "I promise you..." "I will do what I must to save those things you and I hold most dear." "So nice of you to volunteer to show me the chapel," "Master Lovat." "I believe it was yer idea." "It's so peaceful here." "Do you plan to do much when you become laird?" "I've no' given it much thought." "My father's still a vigorous man." "Hmm." "Some have speculated he's immortal." "And as ye may have noticed, he doesn't have much respect for me." "My husband confided in me that his father sometimes exposed him to public scorn, to make him a better leader of men." "Oh, Laoghaire." "I hope we're not disturbing you." "Oh, no, Milady." "Just collecting some mushrooms for the cook." "I'd like a few private moments in the chapel." "Do you mind waiting here for me?" "Oh, well, if Mistress Laoghaire wouldn't prefer her solitude..." "Oh, no, I'd welcome the company." "It's a dreich day." "Aye." "Do you like mushrooms?" "Not much, no." "I like poetry." "So do I." ""Though hurricanes rise, and rise every wind," ""they'll ne'er make a tempest like that in my mind." ""Though loudest of thunder on louder waves roar," ""that's naething like leaving my love on the shore." " To leave thee..."" " Perhaps you'd like to sit down on the tree." "Maisri." "It's Claire Fraser." "We met in the corridor." "Lord Lovat's tenants do not like someone like me in the house of God." "This is the only place where my mind goes quiet." "I don't know why." "They say you are a White Lady." "Yes, they do say that." "What brings you into a church, then?" "It was cold outside." "I'm glad to see that you're doing all right." "Lord Lovat was so rough with you the other day." "His Lordship is not an easy master." "He asks what I see and beats me when I tell him things that displease him." "Does it always come to pass... the things that you see?" "Mostly, aye, although sometimes an action can change things." "When I still lived in the village," "I saw Lachlan Gibbons' daughter's man wrapped in seaweed, and the eels stirring beneath his shirt." "I told Lachlan what I'd seen, and he went straight away and stove a hole in the boy's boat." "Lord, there was a stramash, a right to-do." "But when the great storm came the next week, three men were drowned, and that boy was safe at home, still mending his boat." "What did you see... right before Lord Lovat threw you out?" "I promise, I won't tell him that you told me." "He was standing there before the fire in his study, but it was daylight." "A man stood behind him, still as a tree, his face covered in black." "And across His Lordship's face, there fell the shadow of an ax." "But if you told him, he could change his behavior, perhaps change the outcome." "Aye." "Or he might just kill the messenger." "Mistress Claire, where are ye?" "Mistress Claire?" "I'll be right there." "Oh." "Where is young Simon?" "He ran off like a feart wee mouse." " What did you do?" " Everything ye said." "I flattered him." "I told him how much I admired a man who made decisions, who thought for himself." "I gave him a keek down the front of my dress, I" "I told you it wasn't about sex." "No wonder he ran off." "Well, other than reciting verse, he wasna doing much to hold up his end of the conversation." "I tried!" " Jamie?" " Aye." "Oh, I thought I'd find you in here." "More and more these days," "I think I'd prefer to be a beast." "No luck with Colum, then?" "No." " And you, with young Simon?" " No." "I did find out what Maisri wouldn't tell Lord Lovat, though." "Aye?" "She saw his death at the hands of an executioner." "A traitor's death." "I dinna suppose she mentioned if the executioner was in the employ of King George or King James?" "No, I'm afraid not." "I promised Colum" "I'd do what I had to to save the Highlanders." "So I must." "Jamie, it's too much." "Let's just go to Prince Charles with the men from Lallybroch." "I canna go to the prince a failure." "It seems I canna get the men from Lovat without giving him my land." "So, unless yer planning on declaring yerself a visitor from the future and describing what will happen if we dinna fight and win, then I dinna see I have much choice." "I have had my secretary prepare a neutrality pact between the Frasers of Lovat and the MacKenzies of Leoch." "I have also had him prepare a deed of sasine for Lallybroch estate... assigning the property to me." "Sign it, and ye'll have yer men for King James." "Don't sign it, and I'll agree to neutrality with MacKenzie here." "Which will it be?" "Ye'll let this boy decide the fate of Clan Lovat?" "He's not even yer recognized heir." "I have made this decision." "The boy is but an obstacle in my way." "What will it be, obstacle?" "Dinna be a fool, Jamie." "I do this to ensure the future of my family and people." " What are ye staring at?" " Claire?" "No!" "It's another vision." " Claire." " Leave her be." "Do no' give me orders about my own wife!" "Claire!" "Claire, Claire." " What did she see?" " Jamie!" "What did ye see, witch?" " Stay back!" " Oh, Lovat." "Can you not see this for the pretense that it is?" "Pretense?" "You know that she was tried as a witch by those that dinna understand the difference between black magic and the power of the old ones." "What did she see?" "You don't need to answer him, Claire." "She will if she wants to walk out of this room." "No, it's all right, Jamie." "I saw you..." "Standing in bright sunlight." "There was a man behind you." "He was wearing a black hood, shadow of an ax across your face!" "Whose man?" "Whose executioner?" "King James or King George?" "I-I don't remember." "The ground... was covered in white roses." "The symbol of the Jacobites!" " No, no." "Witch!" "I'll cut out yer tongue!" "Stop!" "How dare you thwart me, boy." "You and MacKenzie are fearful old men." "And you're wrong." "My cousin is right." "It's our duty to stand up for our country and our kinsmen." "I will fight for King James." "I will fight to change the White Lady's vision..." "Even if ye will not." "The Frasers of Lovat... will stand with the MacKenzies of Leoch." "We will remain neutral in the war." "I wish ye luck, my boy." "Come, MacKenzie, let's drink to our newly formed alliance." "I'm ready." "Ye did well, young Simon." "I'm proud to be yer kinsman." "And I'll be proud to fight by yer side." "I'll wait for ye outside the gate." "Aye." "So we go to the prince empty-handed." "But at least we were able to save Lallybroch." "Aye." "Go back to yer home and yer family." "I told you, Uncle-- I canna do that." "Can you not convince him to listen to reason and go home?" "You've known him longer than I have." "What do you think?" "I think it's a blessing that his mother didn't live to see what a reckless fool she spawned." "Give me your hand." "We must away as well, Claire." "I need to be in Kingussie by the end of the week." "Wait." "Before we go, there's something that I need you to do for me." "Aye." "Say thank you to Laoghaire." "Thank you?" "For what?" "Not trying to have you arrested in the last few days?" "Please." "Do it for me." "I'll explain it all later." "Aye." "I, uh..." "I'm told to thank ye." "For what, I dinna ken, but... thank you, Laoghaire." "I hope one day I can also earn yer forgiveness, Jamie." "And yer love." "Let's go." "Who are they?" "My father's men." "Hup, come on." "Go." "Go on." "Come." "Don't sit there gaping at me, ye glaiket sumph!" "Go see to yer men!" "Turning that one into a soldier will be a greater feat than beating the British." "What vision do ye have for me now, White Lady?" "I don't understand." "Now it will seem my grandsire has sent his heir to fight." "The Stuarts will credit Lovat with supporting King James, should they win." "They canna execute me for treason." "But what about the neutrality agreement?" "I trust old Colum MacKenzie is right." "And that will protect me if the British should win." "What will you say about your son fighting for the Jacobites?" "He's his own man, that one." "Ye saw it yourself last night." "Persuaded others to follow." "I thank ye, White Lady." "I couldna have got it all without ye." "Ye didna get Lallybroch." "Not yet." "Aye." "Come on." "Please... tell me I'm nothing like him, Sassenach." "I'm afraid I have seen a similarly devious turn of mind." "I might have to rethink our agreement not to lie to one another." "As we put distance between ourselves and Jamie's loathsome grandfather, my heart lightened." "We had Lovat's men now." "Jamie would have the prince's favor and at least the opportunity..." "These are my men, my clan." "I ken what these men will face." "And I know how to prepare them for it." "Takes more than courage to lead an army." "It takes a well-trained soldier." " If they have the discipline..." " Fire!" "fight together then by God we will win." ""Je suis prest.""