But although she was allowed to see her son frequently, Margaret greatly desired to take part in his upbringing. David commiserated with her.
“They’ll always suspect Your Grace of trying to take him away from Scotland, down to your brother’s Court,” he told her. “You tried once, and they think you’ll try again.”
Margaret agreed; and she thought: Aye and I would, given the opportunity.
One day when Margaret arrived at the Castle, she was met at the outer gate by the Abbot of Holyrood.
“Your Grace,” he cried, “you must not enter the Castle.”
“Why not?” she demanded.
“A child belonging to one of the attendants has the botch.”
“The botch!” Margaret cried in horror, visualizing the beautiful skin of her son covered in unsightly boils and swellings. “Not… James?”
“Nay, Your Grace, as soon as it was discovered that there was a case of botch in the Castle he was taken at once to Craigmillar Castle where he is now under the guardianship of Lord Erskine.”
Margaret turned to her companions.
“We are going at once to Craigmillar,” she said.
Lord Erskine made no attempt to prevent the Queen from visiting James at Craigmillar, which was only three miles from Edinburgh. It was strongly fortified but by no means the fortress that the Castle was. As she rode toward it and studied the lofty square keep, Margaret could not help thinking that it would be easier to bring James out of Craigmillar than out of Edinburgh Castle.
James was delighted with the move, as he was growing tired of living so long in David’s Tower at the Castle; and Lord Erskine was a lenient guardian.
If only, thought Margaret, Angus were not so strange. If only his aims were the same as mine!
There was no one to whom she could talk of her desires except David Lindsay; and when she hinted to him that she would like to have her son completely in her care, he was horrified at what an attempt to abduct him might mean.
“Your Grace,” he said, “if you took the child away from his guardians and carried him into England, many a lord would declare the time had come to dethrone James and crown Albany King.”
Margaret pondered this. It might be so. And although she was ready to forgo the right to rule, for the sake of having her family about her, she could not allow James’s future to be jeopardized.
She was suspected of plotting to carry him off, and when certain members of the Council heard how frequently she was permitted to enter Craigmillar Castle, they declared it was time James was brought back to Edinburgh.
No sooner was the city pronounced free of the botch than James was hurried back to his old quarters.
This was not the way, reasoned Margaret. While she visited James she would be watched and every movement she made would be suspect. She had once tried to abduct him and carry him to England, and they were expecting her to do the same again.
She decided then to leave Edinburgh and go to her Castle of Newark in Ettrick Forest and there quietly plan her next move.
She believed that, with Angus to help her, she could regain the Regency and the right to be the guardian of her own child.
She wanted to confide in Angus but something in herself prevented her from doing this. Since she had been back in Scotland their life together had been very uneasy. He made excuses to absent himself from her for long periods. He had his estates to look after, he told her; and he was constantly engaged in the work of the Council.
She realized that he had grown up during the year she had been away. He had made a niche for himself in the affairs of Scotland, and was quite clearly recognized to be a figure of importance. Arran’s hatred of him was enough to show that, if nothing else.
She must be reasonable. They must work together, for then they would have a good chance of success.
An event occurred which gave her an idea that she might put an important post in the way of Angus. That should please him and show him that he could lose nothing by confiding in and working with his wife.
The post of Warden of the Marches had been bestowed on his good friend the Sieur de la Bastie by Albany before leaving for France; a reward to a friend who had rendered him good service more than once.
Albany — and de la Bastie — could have had little knowledge of the wild Bordermen; otherwise the former might have thought twice before offering such a gift, and the latter before accepting it.
Lord Home and his brother William had mortally offended Albany and, although he had forgiven them again and again, at length he had decided to do so no more, and had ordered them to be executed. It was thus that the post of Warden of the Marches had fallen vacant.
Home was a turncoat, a wild and arrogant man; but he was a Borderer and, although the Border barons fought each other, they did not care to see one whom they considered a foreigner pass the death sentence on one of their kind. Moreover the Home clan considered it a duty to avenge their leader. Thus when de la Bastie went to the Border to carry out his duties he was set upon and murdered.
This meant that the post of Deputy Governor which had been de la Bastie’s was vacant.
Why should not Angus fill it? Margaret asked herself. Then, with Angus as Deputy Governor, it would not be difficult for her to regain her old influence, for her husband would surely support her.
She laid this suggestion before the Parliament.
They would not consider it for a moment.
Disconsolate and lonely — Angus was away, engaged on one of his numerous duties — Margaret brooded on the estate to which she was reduced. She was too impulsive where her emotions were involved. She knew this but she could not restrain herself. How could she sit alone at Newark, brooding on the fact that she was not allowed to direct the upbringing of her own son; that when she — the Queen — suggested a post should be bestowed, she was ignored?
As always at such times she found pleasure in making wild plans.
James was the center of these plans.
He was back in Edinburgh Castle and it was going to be difficult to get him out of that fortress, but she was not one to consider impossible that which was difficult.
Then she remembered that one of her husband’s brothers, George Douglas, was the Warden of the Castle.
Now the days had some meaning. George Douglas was eager to serve his Queen and sister-in-law.
He wrote to her. Yes, as Warden he had a certain power within the Castle. He had access of course to David’s Tower, and could give her news from time to time of the King. He implied that he knew it was more than news she wanted; and he was ready to help give her that too.
“Dear George Douglas!” she murmured.
She was determined to be careful. She would take no one into her confidence, and was rather glad that Angus was away because it would have been difficult to keep this secret from him.
She might do what she had intended to do before she went into England. That had been a good enough plan. If only Lord Home had been able to divert the attention of the guards he would have rescued the two princes.
Then, she thought angrily, I should have had two sons today, for I am sure my little Alexander would not have died if he had been with his mother.
It was pleasant there at Newark, making plans, waiting for the secret messenger from George Douglas, assuring herself that she could not be unlucky this time.
Perhaps they could substitute another child for James. It would not be discovered until they were away… almost at the Border. Henry would be eager to welcome his dear sister and her little son who was so like himself. Perhaps James would marry the little Princess Mary; then Henry could be relied on to send an army to Scotland, subdue her enemies and place James securely on the throne, there to rule, when he was of an age to do so, with Mary beside him; but in the meantime his mother would be the Regent of Scotland and the guardian of her son.