Sins of the Heart

by Hoss, Sarah

  A means to an end.

  “What do you think?” She turned to stare at him. “It’s remarkable, isn’t it?”

  Malcolm walked over to the shield and stood. It looked so out of place hanging on her wall. It didn’t belong here. It didn’t belong anywhere but in his family’s castle in Scotland. Just like his wife didn’t belong anywhere other than in his arms.

  He brought his hand to his forehead and closed his eyes. He had to focus. He couldn’t afford to let his mind wander now. What was it about being here that kept his wife’s memory at the forefront of his thoughts? He had a mission. Get the shield back and then get his revenge.

  A light touch on his arm brought him back.

  “Are you okay, Grant?”

  “Grant?” Realization slammed into him. “Yes, I’m sorry. I have new contacts and I don’t think they fit well.” He rubbed his forehead as if he had a headache.

  “I’m sorry. Would you like some aspirin?”

  “Aye, that would be great. Thank you.” Abigail turned to leave, and he stopped her. “Thanks for being so kind.”

  She smiled and it lit up her whole face. His heart ached at having to hurt her.

  “You are most welcome. Now, let me go get you that aspirin and we can go.”

  As soon as she left the room, Malcolm squared his shoulders and made a call. “It’s done. The house will be empty in 20 minutes. I’ll give you two hours.” Snapping his phone shut, he left the room in search of Abigail.

  Chapter 10

  Grant stepped out of the airport terminal into the waiting area and stretched his back after the long flight from Scotland to America. His muscles ached from having to sit for so long in the cramped seat. He searched the lobby for information. Glancing to his left, he saw an employee standing at the gate.

  “I wonder if you could point me in the direction of the car rental store.” He flashed the lady one of his best smiles. She blushed and smiled back.

  “Of course, Sir.” She pointed to the right. “You need to go to those escalators over there and go down to the next floor. Once you step off the escalators, continue straight ahead. It’s at the very end of the airport on the left.”

  “I thank you.”

  “My pleasure.”

  He grabbed his bag and walked briskly to the baggage claim to gather his suitcase. Anticipation ran through him. He couldn’t help it. He was close, so close.

  Sitting in the rental car, he checked his watch. Too early to call home. A six-hour difference would put it at 2:34 a.m. in Scotland. First things first, he needed to get to his hotel room and get some sleep. Tomorrow, he would find Abigail and hopefully, the missing shield.

  Thoughts of Abigail ran through his mind, and he smiled, his blood warming a little at the thought of finally meeting her. For months he had been communicating with her through a computer and only spoken to her once on the telephone. The sound of her voice was like the warm sun on a cool day, pleasing and soft.

  He’d put off having a relationship for a long time. The search for the shield had been a personal mission. Besides, the last relationship he had with Margo had been a disaster. In her, he had seen a future and all she saw in him was a castle. He’d loved her, though, and had tried to see past her faults until he couldn’t any longer. The night he broke off their relationship flashed in his mind and he flinched. Too much wine, too much arguing, too much of everything until her car crashed. Then it was simply too much blood and too much heartache. He’d had a front-row view of the whole thing from the street as she had driven away from him. Turning on the radio, he searched until he found the right station. Something, anything to take his mind in a new direction. Margo was the last thing he wanted to think about. The problem was, as much as he liked Abigail and wanted to get to know her better, he wasn’t sure if she had something to do with the shield being stolen. And as much as he hated himself for thinking ill of her, he had to be prepared for anything. At this point, if he couldn’t trust his own cousin, who could he trust?

  First things first, he would find his hotel in Louisville and grab a bite to eat. Anything other than food from the plane. Then tomorrow, he’d drive on into Stanton and meet Abigail. In less than 12 hours, all of this could be over. Hopefully . . .

  Chapter 11

  The glass on the counter rocked back and forth before tipping over, rolling to the edge of the counter and crashing to the floor. Malcolm slammed his fist on the counter again.

  “What the hell do you mean you couldn’t get into the house?” His fist opened and closed, pulsing with the racing heartbeat in his chest. Time was running out. Time he couldn’t afford to lose and these jackasses were incompetent. That shield needed to be in his possession now. He had a lot more sells until he had the money he needed.

  “I don’t want to hear any of your excuses. Get that shield today. Do whatever you have to, but get me that shield.”

  “You want us to kill her, Malcolm?” the voice on the other line asked, sounding more than a little concerned.

  Malcolm squeezed his fist shut and placed it on his forehead as she closed his eyes. “You know my answer to that.” Hitting the off button on his cell phone, he laid it down on the counter. Shaking his head, he picked up the other glass sitting near his hand and threw it across the room. The glass hit the wall and shattered. This had to end today. He needed to get out of this state and soon. Abigail knew Grant and had said he was coming here. Without knowing when his cousin was arriving, every day Malcolm spent in this godforsaken town was trouble for him. If he was to get caught now, the consequences were dire.

  “I can never let that happen.”

  Chapter 12

  The bell above the door rang as he stepped inside, causing Grant to peer up at it for a moment before searching the inside of the store for Abigail. His heart raced, as he realized how close he was to two important things, Abigail and the shield.

  Walking toward the back of the store, he found her behind the counter in her office. Through the large window with blue curtains, he saw her sitting at her desk talking on the telephone. Her computer sat in front of her and she pointed to something on the screen.

  A woman came out from the right of the store and smiled at him. He guessed her age to be in the 50’s. Her hair was a deep brown and when she turned sideways to lay something near the copier, he could see that her hair hung in one thick braid that ended just past her bottom. Beautiful.

  “Hi. Grant, is it? It’s nice to see you again.”

  He stared at her in confusion. Her nametag read Susan.

  “Hi, Susan. I’m here to see Miss Crenshaw.”

  The woman glanced behind her at the office then turned her attention back to him. “Sure, I’ll let her know you’re here.”

  How was it she knew who he was? Had Abigail mentioned him, shown this woman his picture? He waited while she went to get Abigail. He opened and closed his fists at his sides then quickly put them in his pockets. He was a grown man, Chief to the MacFie clan and here he was nervous about meeting a woman. He smiled at the silliness of it all.

  Through the window, he could see the woman talking to Abigail, pointing to him. Abigail peered up from her computer and smiled. Hanging up the phone, she jogged out of her office and approached him. The picture didn’t do her justice. She was gorgeous. Her hair was all one length, blond, and hit just past her shoulders. She had one side pulled back and her hair lay in large curls that bounced as she walked toward him. Her eyes were as green as he remembered from the picture. She wasn’t as skinny as the other woman and he liked that. He always thought women should have a little meat on their bones. Her outfit was casual yet appropriate for business. She didn’t appear to be someone who spent way too much time on her appearance and he was glad. She had a natural beauty and there was no need for more.

  She extended her hand as she g
ot closer to him.

  “Grant, I’m so excited to see you here today.”

  He took her hand and held it for a moment. Her grip was firm and friendly. “Abigail. It’s good to see you.”

  “What are you doing in town?”

  “I wondered if you were hungry. I’m starved, and I thought we could talk a while.” He wanted to get to know her before the Highland games on Friday and hopefully get an invitation to her home to see the shield.

  “I am.” She turned to speak to the other woman. “Susan, do you mind if I go to lunch early?”

  Susan was dusting some items over near the far wall. “No, you go ahead. I brought my lunch today.”

  “Thank you.” She turned back to him. “Let me go get my purse. Since you bought supper last night, I’m getting lunch today.”

  Grant watched her walk back to her office, which was a good thing, otherwise she would have seen the look of surprise and confusion etched on his face. She’d said they’d had supper together. Last night. His mind raced with questions but came up with only one possible answer. Malcolm. He and Malcolm had always resembled each other with their fathers being twins. That meant that Malcolm was here and he was going to try and get the shield from her. He shook his head. Not this time. He was too close. He would get Malcolm and the shield and find out once and for all why his cousin had stolen it in the first place.

  Questions was, how could he do all of this and not hurt Abigail? He liked her and wanted to get to know her better. They had a lot of things in common. She was all he had thought of on the flight from Scotland. Thoughts of her came more often than the thoughts of the shield. That’s when he knew he had to get to know her better.

  If she found out she was in the middle of some bizarre family feud, she might think he had been deceiving her this whole time. That was not going to happen. Somehow, he had to get his shield and answers and involve Abigail as little as possible. As she approached him again, he smiled. But how?

  Chapter 13

  As they walked down the street in deep conversation, they approached an alley. Abigail glanced down at her hand when Grant suddenly grabbed it and led her into the alley. Pushing her up against the wall, he placed his hands on each side of her face and kissed her, deeply, passionately. Abigail sighed and grabbed hold of his shirtsleeves on his biceps and kissed him back for all that she was worth. The prickly bricks dug into her back but she didn’t care. All that mattered was this kiss. She’d wanted him to kiss her after they had supper last night. He said her name, and she melted.

  “Abigail?”

  She stumbled when he tugged on her sleeve. How embarrassing. He’d been carrying a conversation and all the while, she’d been daydreaming about him kissing her.

  “Yes?” She placed her purse strap back up on her shoulder.

  “I think I lost you there for a moment.”

  “Yah, I was just thinking about something is all. Work, no big deal.” Her cheeks felt like they were on fire and she hoped that he hadn’t noticed.

  “Oh well, if you must get back then please do so. I didn’t mean to take up so much of your time.”

  She hoped she hadn’t offended him. “Grant, no, it’s okay, really. It’s the privilege of being the owner, right?” She slipped an arm through his. “Let’s go back to the house and talk. Susan knows where to find me if she needs me.”

  Abigail placed the key in the lock, turning it as she laughed at a joke he told. Grant could listen to her laugh all day long. Stepping into the kitchen, he shut the door behind him. His eyes scoured the room. He had to pay attention and make it look as if he had been here before.

  They spoke for a bit about the upcoming Highland games. She seemed so excited to be going with him and he was glad. She grabbed two water bottles out of the fridge, and placed one on the counter in front of him. For a moment, there was silence as they stared at one another. He took a step toward her, and his heart raced. Should he kiss her? That thought had plagued him almost since the beginning of their conversation. The scent of her perfume he didn’t recognize tickled his nose and he took a breath. She smelled good and silently told himself to find out the name of it.

  The closer he came, the more of him she seemed to take in. He watched as her eyes darted around, studying. Had she noticed the small cowlick at the right temple in his dark-brown hair?

  “I’m going to kiss you, Starshine.”

  “Mmm-hmmm.”

  She closed her eyes as his lips touched hers, then he closed his, too. Her lips were soft, and she melted a little into their touch. His hand came to rest on the back of her head and his head tilted as the kiss became a little more promising.

  A glass crashed nearby, and they jerked back.

  “That scared me.” She placed her hand over her heart and laughed. “I bet it’s my stinking cat. That better not have been my grandmother’s crystal bowl.”

  As she started toward the living room, he grabbed her arm. “You stay here, and I’ll check it out.”

  She nodded, and he walked into the other room. He froze when he saw two men holding the shield as they lowered it from its place on the wall.

  “What the hell are you doing?” he asked, and as he stepped out into the room, he saw from the corner of his eyes a flash of movement before something hit him in the back of his head. He fell to his knees and his hand went instinctively to the wound. His vision swayed from black and white spots and he tried hard to focus on the actions in the room. Someone screamed, and he was sure it was Abigail. Trying to stand, he wobbled but gained his footing.

  Two men and a woman were in the room. One of the gentlemen passed the shield off to the woman while the other man held Abigail. His hand was over her mouth and his other arm around her waist and she was struggling.

  “Let her go.”

  The man to his left approached and stood in front of him. He recognized his face but couldn’t remember his name. Grant ducked as the man took a swing at him. Bringing his fist up, he punched the man in the gut causing him to double over. It only took the other guy a moment to recover and he rammed his shoulder into Grant’s waist. The two of them tripped over the coffee table, landing half on the couch and rolling off onto the floor, shoving the coffee table over. He heard a muffled scream and chanced a glance at Abigail.

  That was his first mistake.

  Chapter 14

  Grant lay stiff on his side. His head throbbed and his stomach ached. He kept his eyes closed to get his bearings as he remembered what had happened. The shield. Someone was trying to steal it. Abigail. Where was she? He had to find her. In one swift move, he opened his eyes and sat up.

  “Mother Fuc—” He stopped short as his gaze fell on her.

  Abigail was across the room from him. His world started to fall into place. He and Abigail were in what appeared to be a cheap motel room. He sat up and scooted toward the edge of the bed. His hands were tied.

  “Sorry.”

  He worked his hands, trying to free them as he studied her. She sat tied to a chair. A purple bandana was tied around her head as a gag.

  “How long have I been out?”

  She shrugged.

  “Minutes?”

  She shook her head no.

  The knot on his wrists was tied well. He could feel the rope burning his skin as he twisted his hands trying to break free.

  “Hours?”

  She nodded. He had to get to her and make sure she was all right. He was so stupid. In his selfish quest to get the shield back, he never once thought about anyone else being harmed. His only thought was the shield. He should have planned better. Finally, the rope loosened and he freed his hands.

  They ached, and he rubbed his wrists as he jumped off the bed and ran over to her. Removing the gag, he went to work on her ties.

  “Are you okay?�
� He paused for just a moment to look her in the eyes.

  “Nothing a little aspirin won’t cure.”

  She glanced away, and he wondered at her coolness. He reached up and touched her chin to get her to look at him. She jerked her head away.

  “Don’t touch me.”

  He finished with the ropes at her hands and busied himself with the ones at her ankles.

  “What’s wrong, Starshine?”

  “You!” Anger laced her voice. “I overheard them talking in the van and then outside our door.” She shook her head as if she was in denial.