“You better come back to the house,” she said. “Your brother’s here.” She held the phone away from her ear so his shout didn’t deafen her and Quinn laughed when he heard it. “I doubt you’ll find it so amusing when he gets here,” she said glumly.
Quinn sobered, “Aye, I’m certain I willna have a reason to laugh again for a verra long time.”
Chapter 13
Lizzie helped get Quinn onto a big, soft bed and sat on a chair next to it, unnerved by the two women. She wasn’t used to modern life anymore. Downstairs had been a jumble of people talking over one another, with whiplash fast changes from serious to joking.
She hated leaving Oliver alone, but couldn’t stand the easy banter that Quinn shared with Piper. She struggled to get her jealousy under control. She’d never felt such conflicting emotions and blamed Quinn’s stubbornness for all of it. If only he’d stayed put, safe in the castle of old, she and Oliver could be well on their way to returning by now.
She took a breath and studied the room. It was a mish-mash of new and old furniture, with ornate gold framed portraits lining the wall above the fireplace. They reminded her of the miniatures and she got up to show them to Piper, explaining the dire predicament of the past castle inhabitants.
She still couldn’t wrap her mind around the fact that they were in the same place, but more than two hundred years separated them. She might be standing on the same floor as Bella right now, and she felt like she should be able to close her eyes and reach out her hand to her. It was like sudden turbulence on a plane, and she wasn’t quite sure if everything was all right or if things were only going to get worse.
The way Piper gazed hungrily at the tiny portraits made her realize with a start that they were her relatives, her ancestors. Quinn had even worried that if something happened to one of them, her own existence might be compromised.
“We’ll be able to get you all the medicine and whatever else you need.” Piper took her elbow and led her farther away from Quinn. “Do you need to contact anyone, Miss Burnet?”
“Oh, please call me Lizzie,” she begged, unable to handle propriety for one more second. She looked longingly at Piper’s jeans and sweater and felt suffocated in her dress. Instead of being relieved to be back, she felt lost and confused, not sure how to act in this time anymore. “I— no, not yet. I need to think first. I don’t know how to explain it all.”
“Yes, four months is a long time to be gone without a trace,” Piper agreed sympathetically.
“Four months?” Lizzie cried. “But I was in the eighteenth century for more than a year.” She returned to her chair, unable to stand. Quinn looked at her questioningly and she shook her head. “How do you know about me, or how long I’ve been gone?”
The tall redhead, Evie, held up her phone. “Catie told us your name and we looked you up,” she said. Lizzie breathed out the lungful of air she held, and laughed at herself for thinking anything sinister was going on. “Here, see, people are still searching for you. Your fiance made a video begging for your return.”
Truly, something must have happened to change things. Four months gone? A fiance?
“Fiance?” Quinn asked, sitting up. His brows came together and he cast a hard stare in her direction, but she couldn’t meet his eye. Not yet, when she barely understood what was happening herself.
She pressed her knuckles into her eye sockets until she saw brightly colored sparkles. When she opened her eyes and blinked to clear her vision, unfortunately everything remained the same. Piper, Evie and Quinn all stared at her expectantly, accusingly.
“Four months,” she repeated. “How can that be?” Did it make a difference? Would it make it easier for her to get back into her old life? She shook her head. She didn’t want her old life back, she wanted to return with Quinn.
Evie handed her the phone, which was queued up to play a short video. “Yes, that happened with Piper, but the opposite. She was gone from this time for over eight months but only in the past for a few days.” Before Lizzie could open her mouth to demand how that was possible, Evie said, “It’s unpredictable. None of us understand it.”
“It has to be the spell,” Lizzie said, so flustered she forgot the phone in her hand.
She glanced down and saw the headline above the video. Heartfelt Plea - Return My Love to Me. She saw Trent’s face frozen behind a bank of microphones and she clicked the play button, feeling sick.
A maudlin love ballad soared in the background as Trent looked straight into the camera and told her kidnappers how brilliant and wonderful she was, and how beloved she was by so many. He actually wiped away a tear, paused with his head down before taking a bracing inhale, then begged the camera for her safe and speedy return. Her friend Andie put her arm around him and helped him off the podium, as he was too overwhelmed with emotion to get down by himself, and the video ended.
Evie sniffled and wiped her eyes. “Sorry,” she said. “I’m pregnant. I cried at a cat food commercial last night.”
Lizzie looked up, feeling cold all over, too scared to face Quinn. More than anything, she wanted to be reunited with Trent so she could smash his stupid face in. “Bloody hell,” she said. “I can’t believe that twat.”
“Wait, what?” Evie asked.
“He’s been working tirelessly for your return,” Piper said. “One article said he puts up posters every week.”
Evie scrolled through her phone for another article. “Look, here’s a shrine near your flat.”
“Oh, how horrifying.” Lizzie caught a glimpse of Quinn’s stormy look, and put her face in her hands. What was Trent up to? They’d been on the verge of breaking up when she got sent back.
“He’s been on the news at least six times since you disappeared. He refuses to believe you’re dead,” Evie continued.
Lizzie wanted to stuff a sock in her clueless mouth. With every word, Quinn looked angrier and more hurt. “Quinn, it isn’t …” she trailed off when he pointedly looked away.
She didn’t want to embarrass him. Maybe he didn’t want these women to know about their relationship. If they had a relationship. Lizzie hadn’t believed she could ever regret leaving the eighteenth century, but at this moment it seemed like a warm, safe haven compared to the turmoil she faced now.
She did think Trent had to have been distressed by her disappearance, maybe even traumatized by it, but the way he acted in that video was beyond comprehension. He used to get annoyed when she asked a question during his favorite television program, for God’s sake.
She wished they would leave her and Quinn alone until the doctor arrived, but Piper continued to tut over him, fluffing his pillow and asking questions about Bella and Pietro.
“I can’t believe they have three children,” she said, her smile sliding off her face. “I hope they’re all right.” She wrung her hands.
“The situation isna good,” Quinn said. “As soon as my arm is properly bandaged, I shall take the medicine and return.”
Lizzie wanted to interject, find a way to make him include her in that statement, but she felt outnumbered by the people who clearly belonged. Her chest clenched with the pain of rejection and her cheeks felt hot from being ignored. She caught Evie looking at her pityingly and she wanted to scream.
Thankfully, another giant Scot burst through the bedroom door. It had to be Lachlan, a dark, wicked version of Quinn. He was a little taller and a lot scarier, but their faces were practically the same, save the lines of outrage that were etched on Lachlan’s.
Quinn lay back against the pillows and closed his eyes, ready to be berated. Lizzie wanted to stand up and hit the big brute in the chest for some of the things he said. Foolish, unreliable, doltish, feeble-minded— the names grated on her heart and she wanted to shield Quinn with her body as his brother slung his word arrows.
“Ye just had to do it, aye? Ye just had to come here,” Lachlan shouted.
Couldn’t he see that Quinn was injured? She couldn’t stand it anymore and stood up. “A
ye, he did have to do it,” she bellowed at him, surprised at the strength of her voice. It had been a long time since she’d had to play to the cheap seats and she thought they might have heard her downstairs. “He had a responsibility to his sister, which he takes very seriously. He risked his life to get here, only to find she’s been here for days, frolicking about with a new boyfriend. I would think if anyone was to blame, it would be you, for not sending Catie home straight away— save Quinn from getting shot. It might have saved us all some trouble, actually.”
The silence that followed her impassioned speech was interrupted by Evie’s nervous giggle. She shook her head apologetically and flew from the room. Lizzie wondered if she was a coward, or wise. Quinn sat up during her monologue, and now his mouth hung open. She thought she saw a glimmer of a smile before he dropped his face into his hands.
“And who are ye?” Lachlan asked, looking from her to Quinn and finally noticing his bandage. “Ye we were shot, lad?”
He lowered his hands and gave Lizzie a long look she couldn’t decipher before turning to his brother. “Aye, and it hurts like bloody hellfire.”
“The bullet cracked the bone,” she piped in quickly.
“Dear God, Lizzie, stop defending me, will ye?” he begged, then turned to Lachlan. “This is Miss Elizabeth Burnet, who was in our employ as Catie’s chaperone.”
She flinched a little at being introduced that way, but what else could he say? What was she to him? Lachlan gave her a sideways once over and she stared him down, completely unafraid of him. Quinn didn’t deserve the verbal bashing he’d been given and she geared up to defend him some more if need be. Piper stepped close to her side and took her arm.
“Let’s give them a bit of time alone,” she suggested. “I’ll send up Dr. Stone as soon as he arrives.” As she led Lizzie from the room, she poked Lachlan hard in the ribs as she passed. “Be nice,” she said.
Back in the kitchen, Oliver was being plied with pastries and tea, and Catie was still nowhere to be seen. Mellie looked up at their arrival and loaded more food onto a tray.
“I’ve just spoken to Catie,” the girl said. Lizzie thought she was the housekeeper or something, but she acted like a good friend of Piper’s as well. It was a strange setup to be sure. “She’s not coming back until the shouting stops.”
“Oh, there won’t be any shouting,” Piper said breezily. Her words were instantly proven wrong by loud swearing from above. “Sweet mercy, they’re going to collapse the ceiling,” she said, looking up nervously.
Lizzie sat down and gratefully accepted a grilled cheese sandwich. Evie asked what went on after she fled, but Lizzie was too busy chewing the delicious food to answer.
“Sorry, but cowards don’t get to hear what went on after they ran like a scared mouse,” Piper said. Then she shrugged and caved. “It wasn’t that bad. I think they were waiting for us to leave to really get going with the insults. Makes me glad to be an only child.”
“Hear, hear,” Lizzie agreed.
“Amen,” Evie said with a vigorous nod. She patted her stomach. “Poor Mags.”
Sam told them they were wrong, that having siblings was a blessing. “No one loves you more, or will hit you harder than your sibling,” he said.
“You mean metaphorically, right?” Evie asked, still patting her belly. “Like, hit you with the truth?”
“Aye, there’s that, but I’ve broken my brother’s nose, and my sister went after me with a cricket bat once.”
“My brother knocked me off my horse at a full gallop,” Oliver piped up, looking pleased when everyone gasped.
Mellie seemed to think that was both heroic and hilarious and sat across from him with a beaming smile. The casual camaraderie and warmth made Lizzie feel even lonelier. Though everyone was being kind to her, they were clearly waiting to see how Quinn acted, taking their cues from him. If he decided she was out, they would be on his side. Family stuck together. Her eyes burned with fatigue and longing, wishing she could be part of something so lovely. Trent’s empty play-acting at loving her seemed gross compared to all the real love she was surrounded by.
Dr. Stone arrived, harried and fast moving, like a large hamster with a medical kit. Mellie popped up to assist, wrinkling her nose at Oliver as if it were all a lark to stitch up a gunshot wound.
Lizzie berated herself for not being happy to be home at last. She was minutes away from a hot shower, modern clothes, and her old friend Andie at least would be honestly delighted she was alive. But she only felt a hollow emptiness that the grilled cheese unfortunately would not fill.
***
When the women left, Quinn felt he could better explain things to Lachlan. He didn’t want to expose Lizzie’s betrayal, because he forgave her. It was water under the bridge and didn’t seem worth rehashing. And he didn’t want to swear too much in front of them. He still felt the need to be his best around Lizzie, and Piper had always taken up for him, so he didn’t want to give her reason to be disappointed. As soon as they left the room, he and his brother scowled at each other for several long moments before Lachlan started in again on how foolish he was.
And he just couldn’t take it anymore. He had done the best he could, in fact he had done everything he was supposed to do. Their wee demon of a sister simply could not be contained, and he was beginning to think they needed to stop trying. If she didn’t want to marry an English lord, they needed to bugger that plan. Her inheritance could rot for all he cared, or she cared, so why should Lachlan care? Let the money go to the church or whatever the contingency plan her mother had set it up to do.
Catie was as smart as anyone he’d ever known, so why not let her make a decision or two for herself? And why was Lachlan trying to manage things from hundreds of years in the future anyway? He’d made his choice, his proverbial bed, and now he had to bloody well lie in it.
Quinn paused to get a breath after forcing all his thoughts out in a loud, obscenity laden heap, and Lachlan held up his hand.
“Verra well,” he said, his eyes wide with amazement. “Ye’ve given me much to think about. Dinna over exert yourself before the physician has a chance to fix ye.” Lachlan pulled up a chair and sat down next to the bed, and Quinn thought they might actually have a conversation. Like two adults. “I apologize for calling ye so many thoughtless names, lad.”
Quinn nearly choked, not sure he heard correctly. “This time and Piper have changed ye, Lach,” he said. “I thought ye’d at least hit me in the face after all that.”
Lachlan grumbled, clearly uncomfortable with his newfound sensitivity. “It’s good to be on your guard,” he said. “I may yet.”
He then asked for news from their own time. Quinn’s time, as Lachlan was clearly at home in this one. He recalled what Lizzie had said, that people end up where they’re supposed to. He’d thought it hogwash at the time, but wasn’t so sure anymore.
“One of Bella’s children is ill?” he asked, standing up in his panic, as if he could do something about it immediately. Quinn waited for him to sit back down before continuing.
“Aye, and the illness is spreading. We need to return with all due haste. Ye dinna know which of the children Piper’s line is descended from?”
Lachlan shook his head, his eyes tortured. “No, they’re verra bad record keepers. I used to think it was solely to plague me when I, ah, messed things up the first time.” He frowned. “Bloody Glens.”
Quinn nodded in agreement. There really wasn’t much more to say about the clan that had been making their family miserable for as long as either of them could remember. Quinn smirked. “And ye’re about to marry one, truly this time.”
“Aye, but she is much diluted. Speaking of matters of the heart,” Lachlan cleared his throat. “What is between ye and Miss Burnet?”
“Ah, Lizzie,” he sighed, closing his eyes and bringing her face to his mind’s eye. How could he admit to Lachlan what a fool he’d been over her, when he was treating him like an equal at last. “Certainly Catie
has filled your ears with the tale.”
“She said ye had a dalliance,” Lachlan said. He looked like he might burst a vein in his effort to remain nonjudgmental.
“Aye, that’s what it was.”
“Was?” Lachlan prodded.
“She’s back in her own time and shall want to remain. I of course, must return. And I believe she has someone in this time who she’ll reunite with.”
Lachlan looked more uncomfortable than he’d ever seen him, and he laughed in spite of the bitter words he uttered. If Lachlan tried to comfort him like a mother hen, he was going to take a swing at him.
“Go gather up the supplies I shall need to take back with me, and write any letters ye want delivered to Pietro and Bella. As soon as my arm is wrapped up again properly, I will leave.”
“Aye. As much as I’d like ye to stay ...” Lachlan looked like he actually missed him.
It tugged at his heart. He wouldn’t have minded staying, to visit and have a bit longer with Lizzie. He wanted a larger store of memories to take back with him.
“I fear too greatly for wee Callum,” Quinn said.
The reality of possibly losing Piper made Lachlan jump to his feet, clenching his fists against the invisible foe. “I shall ready what ye need. Catie willna be pleased to leave in such a hurry. I was hoping to ease her into it and avoid the storm.”
“Ye never learned the trick to weathering her tantrums,” Quinn said. “Ye must just face them head on and be pummeled.”
“In this, ye are indeed braver than me.” Lachlan squeezed his good shoulder and left.
Chapter 14
Piper’s head pounded and a strange halo surrounded everything in the kitchen. She blinked several times to no avail and sat down to wait for Lachlan to come downstairs. Lizzie huddled over her mug of tea, miserable and tired looking. Piper felt she should say something encouraging, but couldn’t think of a single thing. And furthermore didn’t feel encouraging.
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