Forgiven

by Fall, Carly

  Adela’s cheeks turned a deeper shade of red as she thanked him. She took a long drink of her coffee, her gaze meeting Liam’s for a brief second, and then she studied her empty plate.

  Liam chewed on a strip of bacon and stared at Gunnar, wondering where all the respect and flattery for Adela was coming from. Was it his time as an angel and dealing with other angels, or was it something that he practiced while alive? Liam couldn’t see women in Gunnar’s time getting much respect, so he asked.

  Gunnar patted his mouth and laid his napkin on his lap. Liam noted the perfect manners and wondered if another one of his assumptions of Vikings being total barbarians had been shot to hell. He had visions of men holding turkey legs, ripping them apart with their teeth, as women scurried about like scattering cockroaches to serve their men.

  “Women in my time did have rights, but obviously not as many as today,” Gunnar said. “As long as they weren’t slaves, or ‘thralls,’ as we called them, they enjoyed basic rights such as inheriting property, and getting their dowry returned to them if the marriage failed. I realize today that women have many, many more rights, and for me, it was at first hard to understand, but overall, I agree with it.”

  Adela took a long sip of coffee, obviously engrossed by what Gunnar was saying, and it irritated Liam enough to make him squirm in his seat. “Even though your time period was much earlier than mine,” Adela said, “it seems that women in your era had it better than women in mine. As I remember, we were expelled from town meetings as well as making decisions in the church, even though we were heavily involved. Our lives were controlled by men.”

  “As I recall, you were put to death by hanging? For witchcraft?”

  Adela nodded and launched into her story of the men coming to her home, taking her to jail, and the ridiculous tests they did to verify if she was a witch or not. Gunnar listened intently, his brow creased in concentration.

  The way these two were getting along sent Liam into an uncomfortable place. Sure he wanted peace in the house, but he didn’t want Adela and Gunnar to form any type of bond. He liked Adela’s attention on him, and frankly, he was the only one who should be bringing a blush to Adela’s face.

  After another moment of listening to them, Liam stood abruptly. “Let’s go. Everyone go get their coats. We’re leaving.”

  He heard the irritation in his voice and fought to calm it.

  “May I finish my meal?” Gunnar asked, as he brushed his napkin against his lips again.

  Liam’s frustration grew. He thought the Vikings were a bunch of vicious animals, and this big Nordic bastard had better table manners than he did. “Hurry up! And what’s with the manners, Gunnar? Trying to impress Adela?” Jeez, he sounded childish.

  Gunnar looked surprised, glanced over at Adela, and then back at him. “No, Liam. I guess I’ve just poked a hole in another one of the Viking myths. We were a very clean, very neat people. Personal hygiene and grooming were very important to us, and we bathed at least once a week. Table manners were terribly important. Granted, I’ve adopted different behaviors that I’ve seen over my centuries on Earth serving as an Angel of Death, but again, we were tidy people.”

  As Adela nodded her approval, Liam’s annoyance grew, and he still didn’t understand what the hell they needed Gunnar around for. Everything had been going just fine. He wanted to get this assignment over with, prove they didn’t need help, and get Gunnar the hell out of here. “Hurry up, and let’s go.”

  Chapter 12

  Liam felt like a third wheel as he walked behind Gunnar and Adela on the way to the neighbors’ home. The snow had finally stopped about an hour ago and the flat-gray clouds hid the sun. As they crossed the short distance between houses, he half-listened to Adela and Gunnar compare what was the norm of different things within their time periods.

  The damn snow was at least three feet deep and his legs got colder with each step.

  When they arrived at the house, Gunnar knocked on the front door while Adela stood at his side. Liam was forced to stand behind them or he would be crotch-deep in shoveled snowdrifts.

  A woman in her late thirties, or possibly her early forties, answered the door. Her short, black hair framed her pale face. Her blue eyes were sad and little crinkles formed at their edges when she smiled. “Hello,” she said to Adela. “I was going to come see you today.”

  “Hello,” Gunnar said, putting his arm over Adela’s shoulders. “My name is Gunnar, and this is my wife, Adela. Bringing up the rear is our friend, Liam. We wanted to come by and introduce ourselves since we’re going to be neighbors for the next few days.”

  “I’m Jackie,” the woman said, shaking Gunnar and Adela’s hands. “Please, come in.”

  She smiled as Liam passed, and Liam hoped that he gave her something that looked like a grin, but inside he was seething. What was Gunnar doing pretending that Adela was his wife? Although Liam knew it was stupid, it bothered him that the big Viking had done that.

  They were led into a small living room with a blue sofa, two matching wingchairs, and beige carpets. The fire roared in the fireplace and Liam took it all in, looking for family pictures, but not seeing any.

  “Can I get you all anything to drink?” Jackie asked.

  “Nothing for me,” Liam growled, taking a wing chair and noticing that Gunnar had sat down next to Adela on the couch.

  “I’m fine as well,” Adela said, and Gunnar shook his head.

  “I was going to come see you to apologize for Jonathan’s behavior yesterday,” Jackie said to Adela as she sat in the other wing chair.

  “Yes, well . . . “ Adela trailed off, obviously uncertain of what to say.

  “I hope he didn’t upset you.”

  Liam sat back in his chair and studied Jackie. The woman looked exhausted and worried, and Liam wondered if the behavior Jonathan had exhibited yesterday was normal. Could they expect to be yelled at again the next time they saw him? “Is that behavior typical for him?” he asked.

  Jackie didn’t say anything, just twisted her hands in her lap.

  “We just wanted to know if we can expect another encounter like that,” Liam prodded.

  “Yes,” Gunnar agreed. “It was quite upsetting for Adela.”

  Jackie glanced at Liam, and then at Gunnar. Her gaze settled on Adela. “The behavior is normal now, but it hasn’t always been that way,” she said, her tone low and pleading, as if she was begging for them to understand.

  “What happened to change him?” Adela asked.

  Jackie took a deep breath. “Jonathan was in Iraq and suffered a traumatic brain injury when an IED went off as he was patrolling, and it caused different behavioral issues.”

  Adela gasped. “I’m so sorry to hear that!”

  Jackie looked down at her hands. “Yes, he’s been home two years and it’s been difficult. When you saw him yesterday, he was in the middle of one of his episodes. He can get highly agitated for no reason and sometimes suffers from paranoia.”

  “That must be very difficult,” Liam said, and he felt for the woman. As he recalled his relationship with Annie, often times living with someone required copious amounts of patience. No matter how fiercely he loved Annie, he remembered her getting on his nerves, and he on hers. Sometimes, stupid fights erupted about towels left on the floor, bills, uncut lawns . . . and then to have your loved one suffer with an uncontrollable ailment, that would be very challenging.

  Jackie gave him the saddest smile he’d ever seen. “It is hard, but I’m just glad he’s alive.”

  As Liam studied her, he questioned where the problem was with this couple. Jackie seemed very committed to her husband, and he wondered if Adela had made a mistake in thinking these were the people they were supposed to help. But then again, perhaps the problem was on Jonathan’s end.

  “So, I just wanted to apologize for his outburst yesterday, Adela,” Jackie said.

  “It’s fine,” Adela said, smiling at the woman. “It caught me a little off guard and it was a l
ittle frightening, but now I understand. Thank you for explaining.”

  Liam decided it was time to meet Jonathan so they could get a read on him.

  “Is Jonathan around?” Liam asked. “I’d like to meet him and thank him for his service and sacrifice.”

  Jackie shook her head. “No, after his episode yesterday, he left.”

  “Is that unusual? Is he safe?” Liam asked, leaning forward and putting his elbows on his knees.

  “No, it’s not unusual, and he’s fine. I’m not sure where he goes, but when he’s disappeared in the past, he’s come back more calm and focused. He says the time away helps him.”

  “That’s good, then,” Adela said.

  “When do you think he’ll be back?” Liam asked.

  “I don’t know. It could be today, it could be a few days. I just have to wait and see.”

  There was a beat of silence before Jackie changed the subject and asked why they were in Tahoe.

  Just as Liam was about to answer, Gunnar launched into a story of how he and Adela loved the snow and skiing, and Liam was just tagging along. “I think we’ll be staying another few days,” Gunnar said, putting his arm around Adela.

  Liam eyed them, his anger ticking up a notch. They actually did look like a happy couple sitting cozily on the couch, both grinning as though they were thrilled just to be near each other. Gunnar touching Adela felt so wrong to Liam on so many different levels. He’d just met her, for God’s sake. Maybe Gunnar was one of those touchy-feely people. That was fine, but Liam wished he would get touchy-feely on someone else besides Adela.

  He half-listened as Adela and Gunnar questioned Jackie about the area and whether she was a full-time resident.

  “I am. We used to live in Carson City, but when Jonathan came home, he wanted to move up here. I love the beauty of Lake Tahoe and Jonathan says the forest and the lake calm him. The winters are a little chilly for me, but whatever it takes to make Jonathan happy, I’ll do it.”

  They talked a little bit more about the storm and when it was supposed to clear.

  “I saw on the news this morning that they are expecting another band of snowstorms, so there’s definitely more on the way,” Jackie said.

  Great. Fucking fantastic. Like there wasn’t enough snow to shovel at this very second. Liam certainly didn’t need to see any more.

  As they said their goodbyes and trudged home, it began to snow again. It appeared that Jackie was not only correct about the weather, but was very much in love with her husband. If Jackie and Jonathan were the people they were supposed to help, the issue had to be with Jonathan. If he wasn’t feeling the love for Jackie, what if it had something to do with his brain injury? And if so, how did they go about fixing that?

  “I’m thinking of shaving my beard off,” Gunnar said, stepping inside the house. “Would you be so kind as to help me, Adela?”

  “Of course,” Adela answered, slipping out of her parka. “We can do it in the kitchen. Liam, can we borrow your shaving cream?”

  Liam simply nodded, unable to form any words. He realized the emotion he was feeling was jealousy. The old, ugly green monster was alive and well within him, and he didn’t like it, and frankly, he had no right to it. He had no claim on Adela, but seeing her spend time with Gunnar, and watching him touch her, just grated on his nerves worse than nails on a chalkboard.

  As Adela and Gunnar walked down the hall to fetch his shaving cream, Liam went back outside and grabbed the shovel, hoping to work out his aggression and feelings while shoveling the snow.

  Chapter 13

  Adela leaned over Gunnar and rubbed the soft, white shaving cream along his chin. It smelled icy and cool and reminded her of the cold weather outside. He sat at the kitchen table with a blue towel wrapped around his shoulders while she lathered his face.

  “I used to help my husband shave,” she murmured as she dabbed a little more shaving cream on his chin. “Of course, during that time we had straight razors.”

  “I didn’t know you were married. Tell me about it,” Gunnar urged.

  Adela nodded and met his glacial blue gaze. “Yes. I was married at age fourteen and we lived as a married couple for five years. His name was Edward Bonner.”

  “Did you have any children?”

  She shook her head. “No. I lost two pregnancies. My husband was taken from me through illness. I believe it would be considered the flu in today’s world.”

  Gunnar nodded. “My family was slaughtered.”

  “Oh, my!” Adela exclaimed, feeling awful for the big man. She had been prepared when her husband died, as she had watched him fall ill and become sicker with each day. She would not have been ready for his death if he had been murdered. “I’m sorry to hear that Gunnar. What happened?”

  Taking the razor, she started by his ear and brought the blade downward as he explained what happened to his family.

  “That’s terrible, Gunnar,” Adela murmured.

  “Yes. Yes, it was.”

  They were silent as she continued to rid Gunnar of his beard. She didn’t question him further on the loss of his family as she figured if he wanted to tell her more about it, he would.

  The silence seemed to bring a bit of tension between them. It was different from when she and Liam shared quiet moments, and she felt the need to talk.

  “Why are you getting rid of it?” she asked after a few moments.

  “My beard?”

  “Yes.”

  Gunnar shrugged. “We all wore beards back in my time and I decided that if I’m going to be a human again—even if it’s for a little while—I’d like to experience a shaved face for the first time since I was a child.”

  Adela glanced out at the back deck. Liam shoveled the snow so forcefully, he looked as though he was trying to dig his way to the center of the earth.

  She sighed and turned back to Gunnar.

  Liam had been so cranky since Gunnar’s arrival and Adela didn’t understand why. Gunnar was polite, funny, and wanted to help them succeed in their assignment. Perhaps Liam wasn’t feeling well, or maybe he just didn’t like Gunnar. That really didn’t make any sense as they had seemed friendly enough in their past interactions. She didn’t know what was going on with Liam, but perhaps she would ask him at another time. At the present, she really didn’t want have anything to do with him as his mood was so vile. Gunnar provided her with a nice distraction. It was pleasant to be around someone who was as lost in this world as she was. Even though there was a three hundred year span between when they’d each lived, both time periods were archaic by today’s standards, and both of them understood and appreciated it.

  She brought the razor down Gunnar’s face, concentrating so she wouldn’t cut him. Under his beard was a very strong jawline, and for a second she allowed herself a little fantasy of shaving Liam.

  The sliding glass door to the deck slammed shut, causing Adela to jump. Thankfully, she didn’t knick Gunnar. Liam kicked off his boots by the door, threw his jacket over the back of the couch, and came into the kitchen. His cheeks were rosy, his breathing labored. He wore a black long-sleeved turtleneck, and Adela’s cheeks burned as she admired the way it hugged his chest. She quickly looked away and dipped the razor into the bowl of water to rinse it.

  Liam went to the refrigerator and pulled out a beer. Adela tried to keep her eyes averted from him, but she recognized the familiar sound of the bottle cap popping off. She glanced over at him and was surprised by the way he stared at her as he leaned against the counter drinking the beer. His mood seemed to have gone from vile to perfectly loathsome.

  “What’s the matter, Liam?” she asked, now concerned. Typically, Liam was good-natured, but he seemed so irritated and angry, it was completely out of character for him.

  “I hate shoveling snow,” Liam growled.

  Adela studied his face. Could shoveling snow truly make someone so miserable?

  “And I’m not doing it anymore. You’re a big guy, Gunnar, you can take over.”
<
br />   “Of course, Liam. I’m sorry I didn’t volunteer to help,” Gunnar said.

  “I don’t need help shoveling, Gunnar. I’m done with it. You do it from now on until this damn snow stops or we get this fucking assignment completed.”

  Gunnar stared at Liam for a moment, then said, “Of course. But if I may make a suggestion, perhaps it would be best to watch your language in mixed company, Liam.”

  Adela was about to tell Gunnar that she was used to the language, but then Liam met her gaze. For a split second, she saw something else besides anger in his green eyes. It was a flash of something, something that looked like pain, but she couldn’t be sure as it left as quickly as it had come.

  Liam opened the refrigerator and grabbed three more beers and headed for the hallway that led to the bedrooms. “You’re both on your own for lunch as well,” he grumbled. The door to his bedroom slammed shut.

  Adela stared at the hallway for a moment, and then turned back to Gunnar. “Do you know what’s gotten into him?”

  Gunnar shook his head, his brow creased. “I have no idea.”

  Chapter 14

  There was a soft tap on Liam’s door, he stopped his pacing, and drank the rest of his beer in one long gulp. He didn’t feel like talking to anyone, and had actually been thinking about leaving the cabin for a while and finding a bar or restaurant to go to. The jealousy within him was eating him alive. He wanted to kill Gunnar and scream at Adela to quit interacting with him.

  It was so damn childish, he felt as if he were in high school again.

  He ignored the knock and opened another beer.

  The light tapping sounded again, and this time it was accompanied by a soft voice. “Liam?”

  Hell. He really didn’t want to see Adela right now, but he had the door open before he knew what he was doing.

  She stood there, her gorgeous hair tucked behind her ears, her brown eyes concerned. He longed to touch her, to hold her, but he was resolved in his determination to keep his hands off of her.

  “May I come in?” she asked.