“I understand, Father Caleb,” Donal said. “But I appreciate your saying that. It’s good to hear a vote of confidence from someone outside the castle.”
“It’s unfortunate that we don’t have more concrete evidence of the Kelpies’ existence,” Helen said thoughtfully. Ideally, what she’d want would be a photograph — but of course, that wasn’t exactly an option in the sixteenth century. How on Earth did anyone solve crimes? With great difficulty, she supposed. “Perhaps a tooth, or a piece of mane, or something?”
“Or a whole Kelpie,” Anna suggested, her eyes gleaming. “Why don’t we go hunting? Some iron arrows, a dozen men with torches…”
“I wouldn’t risk antagonizing the herd just to prove that it exists,” Donal said with a sigh, glancing sideways at his wife. “Though I’ll admit, the idea of a hunting trip is very appealing to me. But from what Maggie’s said about the Monster’s report, there are too many of them to risk the safety of our men.”
“Well, if anything changes, let me know,” Father Caleb said. “Oh — that was a concern a few of the farmers raised. It seems some livestock have been going missing — cattle here and there, a couple of sheep. It’s been the case for a few weeks, and usually a farmer wouldn’t pay much heed to one or two animals going astray, but — well, one found bloodstains.”
Helen’s heart sank. That sounded uncomfortably familiar.
Donal was nodding grimly. “It seems in the absence of human victims to prey on, the Kelpies have been taking livestock.”
“Indeed,” Father Caleb said. “What should I advise the farmers to do? Some have been speaking of posting guards around the clock with torches —”
“Definitely not,” Donal barked, the alarm clear on his face. “That would be all but inviting the Kelpies to eat them. I’d strongly advise a curfew — get everyone safe indoors by nightfall, and don’t leave home until after dawn. And as for the animals…” He sighed. “Until we can get these creatures under control, I’d advise moving them to higher ground. As far from the shore of the Loch as possible. It seems these creatures have some connection to the water — it’s likely they are unwilling to travel too far from it.”
Father Caleb was nodding. “In terms of the patterns of the animal losses, that would make sense. I’ll advise the farmers to favor fields that lie further inland.”
“Thank you, Father Caleb. For all you’re doing, and all you’ve done.”
It was a pleasant evening, and Helen found herself thinking much more affectionately toward the priest as they parted ways. But she could tell from the drawn look on Niall’s face as he carried the sleepy Eamon down the stairs towards their quarters that he was worried — very worried — about the impact these creatures were having on the village. The people were safe — for now.
But it was only a matter of time until that changed.
Chapter 34
When she rose in the morning, she was surprised to find Niall sitting at the dining table, lost in thought. It was unlike him to still be in the house at this hour, and she tilted her head, a little concerned as she padded over to join him. He gave her a distracted smile as she sat down, which reassured her a little that nothing was drastically wrong… but still, the look on his face worried her.
“Why aren’t you on the docks?”
“I’ve been out,” he shrugged. “I’m back in for now. Trying to think of something we could try with these Kelpies.”
“Niall — we’re doing everything we can,” she said softly. She’d suspected this was what he was worrying about — he’d been withdrawn since the night before, clearly worrying about the villagers and what the priest had said. “There have been no more deaths since we took action — Donal said it himself, the Kelpies are wary of iron and fire and steering clear of the guards —”
“Aye, but for how long?” Niall said abruptly. “All we’re doing is… keeping them at bay. It’s only a matter of time until they find a way around our guard… someone will get careless. And then we’ll lose another man. Or maybe not — maybe the guards will stay vigilant — in which case the Kelpies will take to picking off unwary travelers who don’t know that this area is under attack. Or they’ll eat all the villagers’ livestock and leave them to starve when winter comes. Or they’ll get hungry, and desperate, and bolder, and start attacking houses.” He rubbed his head with his hands, the frustration in him a palpable presence. “I just… everything we’re doing is great, but it’s not a solution.”
“I know.” Helen sighed, her own mind ticking over what he’d said. He was right — they couldn’t just accept that there was a herd of flesh-eating horses living in the forest now. “Everyone’s safe for now, but we need a next step.”
“And I don’t know what that is… short of rounding up all the guards and going on a hunting trip,” he said, rolling his eyes. “It would help, of course, for the villagers to believe in the threat…”
“Don’t worry about that right now,” Helen said firmly. “Let’s both of us put our heads together and figure out what the next step is, okay? I’m having lunch with the women — maybe we can figure something out between us.”
“Ah, the meeting of the wise women,” Niall said, his eyes twinkling with a smile that she found incredibly reassuring. It felt strange, seeing the usually stoic Niall so close to despair — but at the same time, she was grateful and touched that he felt safe showing her that vulnerable side of himself. “The five of you will save us all.”
“I hope so,” she said with a grin. “Maybe we should get Eamon and Gwyneth onto it. They make quite the dynamic duo.”
“Aye, he’d go hunting Kelpies given half a chance, the little terror,” Niall sighed. “Speaking of — Eamon?”
There was an ominous silence from the boy’s bedroom. Niall frowned. “I could have sworn he came in with me…”
They both turned toward the front door — and to Helen’s dismay, it was ajar. Niall scowled, his face thunderous. “It’s past dawn,” Helen said quickly, not wanting him to panic. “Even if he’s gone wandering —”
“That’s not the point,” Niall growled. “The point is that he’s not supposed to wander off by himself. The one thing I ask of him —”
“I’ll find him, okay?” Helen said quickly, rising to her feet and half-running to the door. “I’m taking him today anyway, I’ll just — find him and we’ll head off together, alright?”
Thankfully, she didn’t have to go far. Eamon was on the docks, squatting by a bucket of fish and prodding at their slimy silver bodies with an expression of fascinated disgust on his bright little face. Helen sighed with relief. Even though the sun was up, she’d felt a habitual twinge of worry deep in her belly at the idea of Eamon wandering off down the shore by himself. Something about what Niall had said about the idea of the Kelpies getting hungry enough to break their established patterns of hunting… but Eamon was safe and sound.
“Don’t we have breakfast plans?” she asked, her hands on her hips. Eamon came running happily up to her, a smile on his face, and she scooped him up, marveling at how easy it felt to carry the boy now. Niall was standing by the front door, an exasperated look on his face, though he was clearly relieved to see Eamon safe and sound. Before he could tell Eamon off for wandering, Helen carried him away, off toward the castle for breakfast.
They spent a fun morning together before it was time to go and meet the women for lunch. Gwyneth was there, all smiles when she saw her new favorite playmate, and Anna and Helen watched their charges toddle off together to play under a table nearby with grins on their faces.
“Niall thinks they’re going to take over the castle,” Helen said.
Anna scoffed. “They’ve taken over the castle already.”
Nancy, Kay and Elena were there too, already seated with bowls of soup and fresh, crusty bread rolls in front of them. And to Helen’s delight, Maeve joined them, too, appearing with a radiant smile and her long hair in a beautiful braid down her back.
“Maeve! I
feel like I haven’t seen you since I was ill,” Helen said, smiling as she rose to embrace the woman.
Maeve laughed. “Aye, I’ve been busy helping Blair to keep this place running. With the guard doubled she’s struggling with manpower.”
“Good thing she’s got womanpower to make up the difference,” Anna said with a grin.
Maeve inclined her head gracefully, a wicked sparkle in her eye. “Oh, yes. Much more efficient, some would say.”
“I’ve been down to the village,” Nancy said, a bright look on her face. “I’ve been worried about the Monster, and that nasty group of fishermen who wanted to hunt her down because they thought she was the one causing the disappearances…”
“Did you find anything out?” Helen asked, leaning forward. She caught Elena’s amused eye and lifted her hands defensively. “I’m just worried about the Monster. And us, too,” she added with a frown. “The Monster getting hurt seems like a recipe for disaster…”
“It definitely is. She does a lot to keep us safe,” Nancy said with a frown. “I asked around, but it seems like people are calming down a little. With the disappearances stopping, I think people are starting to remember that the Sept is here to keep them safe.” She sighed heavily. “It sucks that we have to remind them of that every few months. You’d think they’d just figure it out and remember.”
“Aye, it’s always been that way,” Maeve said softly. “Part of the nature of the good work the Sept does is that it’s not fully understood by the villagers. For every threat that they witness or experience loss from, a dozen are stopped before they even reach the shore. But they are unable to understand that… or unwilling to accept it.”
“It’s frustrating,” Anna said with a shrug. “But it’s our job to protect them.” Helen was reminded, as Anna spoke, that the woman had been in the military. “Regardless of whether or not they understand or appreciate what we’re doing. It’s not the kind of work you get into for praise.”
“That’s true,” Nancy said with a sigh. “Still, it’d be nice to get some praise. Just a little bit, you know?”
Elena laughed. “I notice that the soldier, the cop, and the investigator at the table are used to thankless work.”
Helen grinned. “I suppose so. Though I definitely got more thanks as a PI than I ever did as an FBI analyst.”
“That makes sense. Nobody understands what the FBI gets up to.” Anna’s eyes gleamed as a thought occurred to her. “Hey! I bet you’re not bound by laws of secrecy anymore, given that the FBI won’t even be founded for another few hundred years. You could tell us state secrets.”
“Are aliens real?” Nancy leaned in, her eyes as big as saucers. “You can tell us.”
Helen laughed. It was the number one question she got from civilians when they learned she’d used to work for the FBI. “I think aliens were a few hundred levels above my security clearance,” she said, shaking her head. “That being said… weren’t all five of us technically abducted by intelligent beings from another world?”
“Holy shit, you’re right,” Kay broke in, her eyes wide. “If only we could get word back to the future.”
Helen hesitated, reminded by that of a question she’d been ruminating on. “Speaking of the future,” she said hesitantly. “There’s… there’s definitely no way back, right?”
A somber cast came over the faces around her. It was Anna who finally answered. “Definitely not, babe. I’m sorry.”
Helen thought about that for a moment. “It’s okay,” she said, surprising even herself. “Honestly — I’ve been avoiding thinking about it, because I was worried I’d break down, but… I’m actually really happy here. I mean, there’s stuff I miss, but overall…” She sighed. “I mean, I wasn’t that close to my family… I had no friends, no social life to speak of… I know more people here than I ever did back home in West Virginia. And honestly, I think if the Sidhe appeared to me in a dream with an interdimensional plane ticket home, I wouldn’t take it.”
All the women were beaming at her, but it was Maeve who reached out to squeeze her hand. “That’s wonderful to hear, Helen,” she said softly, her face glowing with warmth. “We’re delighted to have you here, and ever happier that you’re happy.”
“It’s nice to have friends,” Kay said, a sly note in her voice. “I see you and Niall have been getting on famously…”
She couldn’t hide the blush on her face. Kay grinned, leaning in, and though the other women looked away, Helen could tell they were also keenly interested in this subject. “We’re good friends,” she said carefully, biting her lip. Should she confide in these women? Why not? They were her friends, weren’t they? Might they have some valuable advice to share when it came to romance? They were all married to gorgeous Scottish men — maybe they could help her with this particular problem…
“You want to be more than that, though,” Kay suggested, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively as she leaned forward.
Helen took a deep breath, bracing herself. “I — yeah, I do,” she admitted. “I really, really do.”
Chapter 35
Kay almost exploded, a high-pitched sound ripping its way out of her as she reached over to seize Helen’s hands. “I knew it!” she caroled, her eyes aglow. “I knew you liked him! I bet he likes you, too. I’ve seen the way he looks at you. It was meant to be,” she added, peering around the table at the other women in search of support. “Right? He rescued her from the Loch! It’s basically fate!”
“It’s complicated,” Helen said in a rush, her face burning — but God, it felt good to talk about this stuff out loud, to finally admit to herself and her friends that she had feelings for Niall. Serious feelings. The kinds of feelings that kept her up at night. “I mean, he has a child, for a start. That’s a whole — thing.”
“Yeah, but Eamon adores you,” Anna pointed out. “I’ve known that little firecracker for a long time, and I’ve never seen him take to someone the way he’s taken to you. And even in the last few months, I’ve seen him calm down a lot. I think you’re a good influence on him.”
But Elena was tilting her head, a curious look in her eyes. “Are you okay with that? Being with someone with a child… that makes you a de facto parent. Is that something you want? Something you ever wanted?”
“Honestly, I never thought about it back home. Married to my job,” she admitted with a shrug. “But… when I think about it… yeah, I think I do want that. I adore Eamon,” she said, smiling a little as she glanced over to the table where he and Gwyneth were still playing. “He’s a handful and no mistake, but… something about watching him learn, watching him grow, watching him get smarter and stronger every single day… it’s wonderful.”
“It is,” Maeve said softly, smiling. “Motherhood is a wonderful gift.”
“I can’t be his mother, “she said softly, frowning. “His mother’s gone.”
“No, but you can be something to him,” Anna said gently. “I knew Erin — she was a wonderful woman. Kind, caring… qualities you have, too.”
“I just don’t want either of them to think of me as a replacement for her. I’m — I can’t be that.”
“Of course not. That wouldn’t be fair to anyone — least of all you,” Anna said briskly. “But if you care about Niall, and you care about his son… I don’t see why you couldn’t be together.”
Her heart picked up at the very idea, and she grinned widely, ducking her head. Kay was still holding her hands, and the woman squeezed them tightly. “Talk to him. Tell him how you feel. What have you got to lose?”
A lot, she thought dazedly. A friendship I value, for a start. But… hadn’t he kissed me? Hadn’t he given me long, meaningful looks late at night? There was something between them, that was for sure. She just had to be brave enough to reach for it.
The thought preoccupied her for the rest of the day. She and Eamon spent it on the shore of the Loch — she figured that they may as well use daylight hours to wander about in Eamon’s favorite place, give
n that he was still so resentful about not being able to wander at night. He ran in and out of the water, frightening in his tirelessness, laughing and shouting as the waves splashed at him. Then, they spent some time building a model of the castle out of sand. Eamon was surprisingly patient with the process — she’d expected him to want to kick over anything they built, given his impulsive personality, but he surprised her with a care and dedication to the delicate work of sandcastle building. Was what Anna had said true? Was he really beginning to calm down a little — and did that have something to do with her own influence? She’d never thought of herself as a caretaker, as any kind of mother… but it seemed that she was doing something right with Eamon. Maybe there was some truth to the old adage that a woman’s touch was important…
But her mind kept returning to the subject of Niall. It kept distracting her all afternoon, all evening through dinner, and even when she headed to bed, she could feel her mind chewing on the subject. The thought of him kept making her mind race, her heartbeat pick up and start pounding in her chest, the blood rushing to her cheeks as she flushed at the thought of him, his lips on hers, the heat of his body…
She definitely wasn’t going to get to sleep, she realized as she lay in bed, staring unhappily at the ceiling. That was unfortunate — she’d wanted to get up bright and early the next day, but that wasn’t going to happen if she was sleep deprived. Maybe she could use the time to do some thinking about the Kelpies, about something they could do to get rid of them? She’d been thinking about whether they could set snares or traps for the creature — bait them with raw meat, or perhaps even with livestock, if the villagers could be persuaded to lend them a sheep or two… but she didn’t know much about snares or traps. Surely the hunters in the village might? But they weren’t exactly on good terms with them…
Needed By The Highlander: A Scottish Time Travel Romance (Highlander Forever Book 5) Page 21
