Catch Me: Time After Time

by Reese Rivers

  Determined to have the answers I need, I vault from the saddle and throw the reins to a groom before striding into the manor. When I reach the bedchamber she’s locked in, I’m relieved for a moment to not hear sounds of distress coming through the door but I do hear male voices so I throw open the door to make sure she’s not weaving her magic against my mates.

  She’s standing beside the bed with the wolves close by and when she spins my way and laughs I feel my jaw clench and my hands form into fists. She is still defiant and unafraid and I glare as I slowly look her up and down. She’s wearing the same strange clothing as the day before but I see that she’s cleaned the blood from her skin. The sun shining through the window lights up her hair and I grind my teeth against reacting to the beauty of all the shades of gold and red blending in a wild curly mane. The witch is tousled like she just spent a night of pleasure with a lover. The thought has me glaring at the wolves but they both look at her like they want to throw her onto the bed and have their way with her so I know they haven’t yet. I want my answers and her to be gone before that happens. Looking back at her, I open my mouth to make my demand but she throws both hands up palms facing me before I speak. I wait for the blast of magical power to hit me but all I get is her laughing words.

  “Wait! Before you break out the thumbscrews and torture rack, can I get a minute to wake up? I need to, uh, some privacy please, and also, have toothbrushes been invented yet? If not, how about a cup of coffee? Do you guys know what coffee is?”

  Cade jumps in before I have a chance to remind her that she is our prisoner and that she doesn’t get to make demands.

  “Bas and Luca drink that foul brew, yes. You’ll be wanting to have a morning wash, then. We will leave you and I’ll have a servant bring you hot water to freshen up with.” He meets my annoyed gaze and nods toward the door with a firm look. “I’m sure Sebastian’s questions can wait. We can discuss everything he wants to know while we break our fast in the morning room. You can meet us there, Eden. Once you are ready, a servant will guide you to us.”

  The sweet smile of gratitude the witch sends him has my thumb wanting to rub against her lips so instead, I turn and leave the room with a scowl. Finn must have information to share with me if he’s accommodating her in such a way. I lead the way to the morning room where a buffet of breakfast dishes has been assembled and take my seat at the head of the table as Luca joins us, waiting for the attendant to pour me a cup of the thick Turkish coffee I have imported.

  Where Luca and I do not need to eat or drink to thrive, the wolves have ravenous appetites and over the hundred-plus years they have been with us, we have developed a routine to dine together whenever possible. It also helps keep the servants from speculating too much about our nature.

  “Well, what have you learned about the witch, then?” I ask the wolves over my cup as I savor the thick, rich brew.

  Cade laughs. “You aren’t going to like it, Bas. You have your mind set on her being a threat but she’s not.”

  “Surely you both haven’t succumbed to her charms so quickly?” I scoff. “I will admit that she’s exceptionally beautiful but that hardly means that she’s an innocent.”

  Finn holds up the witch’s magic device. “No, not innocent but not the threat you want her to be. We’ve learned that she’s no maid but a woman of twenty-nine. She showed us how to use this device and from what we can tell, there’s no danger from it. There are pictures as she calls them, like the paintings on the walls here that show the future she lives in. Bas, if the lass was a witch with magical powers, wouldn’t she have tried to use them to leave by now or tried to do us harm?”

  I shrug one shoulder. “There is a game afoot. I’m sure of it. She wants to be here for some plot or plan we have yet to determine.”

  “Show them, cousin,” Cade instructs with an angry expression I have rarely seen on his good-natured face. “Show them the damage done to her as well. No witch with powers would allow that to happen. No matter what fighting skills they have.”

  My interest is piqued by his words but I’m still wary of the device that flares to life with a swipe of Finn’s thumb. He brings it over and takes the chair beside me with Luca on the other side leaning over to see. He shows us the pictures of a great city with buildings that defy gravity soaring into the sky. All the buildings glow with light that cannot possibly come from torches or oil lamps alone. In other images, people smile dressed in strange costumes and clothing and still others with horseless carriages filling perfectly straight streets. I have traveled extensively throughout my existence and have never seen such wonders.

  I see Finn’s fingers clench and turn white from the pressure of holding the device before he swipes to the next image. It takes me a moment to process what I’m seeing but the red hair tells me it’s the beaten bloody witch. Luca makes a choked noise at the sight and I slam my fist against the table in rage. I’ve seen many a damaged woman in all my years and I’m well aware of how despicable men can be to women but seeing the abuse of the witch in such a vivid image makes my blood boil to the point I can’t stand the thought of any more harm coming to the woman who I’ve only known for less than a day. I quickly swipe the offending image away and study each new image as they appear as Finn defends the witch.

  “Don’t you think Eden would have used magic to stop such injuries to herself if she had any? Or at least used it to heal herself? She’s not a witch, Bas, and these pictures make a good case for her telling the truth about where or rather when, she’s from.”

  I consider his words as I flip through image after image that shows a world I can hardly believe until the next swipe is something different. Sound comes blaring out of the device as the image starts to move, causing me to flinch back. A group of people gather around the witch and another woman that looks like a younger version of her. There’s a large cake with script written on it and tiny blazing candles stuck into it. The crowd around them sings out a song about a happy birthday as the two women beam at each other with so much love I can feel it where my heart use to feel such things. When the song ends, the younger woman blows the candles out to cheers and throws her arms around the witch gushing, “I love you, Eden! You are the best sister a girl could ever have!”

  “Shut it off!”

  The four of us look up in surprise to see the witch standing in the doorway with a look of heartbreaking devastation on her too pale face that quickly shifts to fury. She runs towards us and I’m so surprised by her actions that I let her yank the device from my hand. She glances down at the moving image and just freezes as the fury melts away to be replaced with an expression of deep grief and loss. A quick swipe silences the noise coming from the moving image and then she clutches it against her chest and squeezes her eye closed whispering,

  “Hope. I miss you so much, Hope.”

  I see the single tear trickle down her perfect cheek and feel my stomach clench at the pain radiating off her. I know this isn’t a simple loss from being separated from a loved one. This is the agony of death. The woman, Hope, was the witch’s sister and I know without a doubt that she is dead. The four of us stay silent as we wait for her next reaction and we are all relieved when she opens her eyes and swipes at her tear before making her next demand in a curt tone.

  “Coffee! You said there’s coffee?”

  Cade is quick to guide her to a chair and pours her a cup of the Turkish brew. He stands back as she takes her first sip but starts when she chokes out a cough with her eyes going wide in surprise.

  “What is it, lass, uh, Eden? What can I get for you?” he asks in concern as he pats her back gently.

  “Good lord! That’s like the strongest espresso I’ve ever tasted!” She blinks a few times, considers her cup, and then gently sets it back on its saucer. “Would it be possible to get some hot water, cream and sugar?”

  Completely smitten with the witch, Cade calls out to one of the attendants standing against the wall in French to get her what she wants before settli
ng into the chair beside her. He starts piling food on the plate in front of her, urging her to eat but her green eyes are glaring my way.

  “So are we done with invading my privacy because I’ve had about all I can take with the trip down memory lane today?” She spits in my direction.

  The woman bounces from emotion to emotion so fast it makes my head ache. Most females that I’ve encountered would be crumbling, weeping messes from the situation she’s in - not to mention the painful memories we’ve forced on her this day. The fact that she’s sitting there glaring at me instead makes me want to either admire her strength or chalk it all up to an act on her part. Only time will give me the answer. I pick up the device she’s set down beside her plate and tap it softly so as to not bring it back to life.

  “I’ve seen the images and they do point to you being from a more advanced place than here but magic would be the simpler explanation. That, I have witnessed with my own eyes. Traveling back in time, well, it’s hard to believe. The timing of your appearance is suspect as well. A mere human would also not have reacted the way you did when you found out our…abilities. A witch on the other hand would accept it in a similar way or would have already known of our existence. There isn’t a way for you to prove either, witch.”

  She groans and rubs between her eyes. I can see the depth of her weariness and feel a pang that I’ve had a part in it but I need answers before I can decide where to go from here. Her hand drops from her eyes to reveal the frustration in them.

  “Stop calling me witch! My name is Eden. E-D-E-N, Eden.” She spells it out like I’m a simpleton or a child before glancing around at the servants stationed against the walls of the room. “You, yourself said they burn witches at the stake here so I can only assume you are trying to get me killed by calling me that over and over again. If you want me dead so badly then just go ahead and do it already. Honestly, I could use the rest and peace at this point.”

  Eden

  The look on Mc Icy’s face at me telling him to go ahead and kill me already would be almost comical if I wasn’t so tired and sad. Hearing Hope’s voice out of the blue like that has knocked me for a loop and I feel the darkness closing in again after fighting so long to get back into the twilight I’ve been living in. Even after almost two years, the grief is still so raw and deep that it takes my breath away. Sebastian holds his reply when a servant, I’m going to have to learn some names if I’m here for a while, brings a tray with the items I asked for. I’m desperate for a cup of coffee that is palatable to a mere human so I go to work filling the new cup with half of the thick coffee and half with hot water to cut the strength and then add the coarse sugar and thick cream until it looks and tastes closer to the brew I’m used to. I ignore the curious looks from the four men but stop the servant from taking away the first cup of energizer strength coffee that is now only half-filled and go about fixing it in the same way. I’m positive I will need at least two cups to get through the rest of this breakfast.

  I hum as I savor the coffee just how I like it and finally wave my hand towards Sebastian that he can continue causing his curious expression to settle back into his customary glare.

  Cade leans over the table and sniffs at the freshly doctored coffee in the second cup before asking, “Does it taste better that way?”

  When I smile a satisfied smile and nod his eyes linger on my lips before picking the cup up.

  “May I?” he says.

  I nod again and my smile grows when his reaction is surprised pleasure.

  “Well, now, that’s a mite better, isn’t it? I quite fancy coffee this way.”

  He hands the cup across the table to Finn to try and his cousin has the same reaction before they both turn scowls towards Luca and Sebastian like the two men had been hiding it from them.

  Seeing Sebastian close to losing his patience, I get us back on track. “Anyways, I truly don’t know how I got here or how to get home. Like I told Cade and Finn earlier, I have no interest in a plot against your King or any of your business for that matter. I’m no threat to you all. At best, I’m a nuisance. I would leave here and never darken your door again if I had any idea on where to go or any money to get me there. So it’s up to you to decide what to do with me. I guess what I’m saying is, I’m at your mercy, my Lord. Do with me as you please.”

  I meant that last part sarcastically but the heat and red tinge in his eyes tell me he’s taken it literally and I try hard not to squirm in my seat when all the ideas of how he can use me come to mind with the way he’s looking at me.

  Luca speaks for the first time since I came into the room, interrupting the sexual stare-down going on.

  “For now, I think it’s best for all if you stay with us while we see if we can come up with some answers to your dilemma. Sending you out into a foreign country and time would be akin to sending a sheep out to deal with a wolf pack.” He slides his chair back from the table and gets to his feet. “You will need supplies that a house filled with men does not have on hand. Bas, we will need to go to court and have some gowns and other garments either made or purchased for her. She will be our guest and we cannot have her wearing the same clothing day in and day out. Who knows how long she will be with us until we find a way for her to return to her home. Do you wish to accompany me? We can speak to Pierre and see if there has been any reaction to the latest failed plot while we are there.”

  Sebastian doesn’t reply but stands from the table instead never taking his eyes off of me. He comes around and stops next to my chair and surprises me when he holds my phone out to me. “I apologize for us invading your privacy and stirring up painful memories.”

  He glares at Cade and Finn. “See that she doesn’t leave the estate. She might not be a threat to us but others are. Until we can learn more of her situation, she must remain unseen.”

  When he and Luca leave the room it’s like all the air is sucked out with them and I slump in my seat clutching my phone to my chest. I’m relieved that the whole witch business is passed for now but I still have no idea how I’m going to get home or why I’m here in the first place. With no answers in sight, I shake off the dark thoughts and dive into the food growing cold on my plate happy that there’s no dried fish in sight. After we finish eating the guys take me to the library where I happily spend a few hours combing through the shelves. I climb the ladder and have fun rolling it back and forth along the stacks. There are thousands of books to run my fingers over as I search the shelves for anything I might recognize. In the end, I laugh at myself when I realize that even the books I would call classics haven’t been written yet.

  Finally choosing a small book of poetry, I curl up onto a cushioned window seat with my robe tucked around my legs and open the book to get lost in the beauty of poetry for a few hours. Right away I know that’s not going to happen with the extreme amount of thees and thous filling the poems. Sighing, I close the book and just rest it in my lap and stare out at the gorgeous gardens and fountains that I can see outside the window.

  From what I’ve seen of it, France is a beautiful country. I guess if I had to get stuck in a foreign country it’s not a bad location. Not real happy about the timeframe but I try and make myself feel better by thinking about how it could have been so much worse. I could have landed in the middle of one of the world wars or even worse, 2020. There’s just so much I don’t know about this timeframe and how the whole time travel deal works. Aunt Adera showed up in our lives now and again so clearly there’s a way to get back but I have no idea how. She must have known how to control it but without a user’s manual I might end up stuck here. If that’s the case then I’m going to have to find a way to make a life here for myself. I can’t just assume that the four men who have taken me on will want to support me until I die. The warm sun beaming onto me through the window has me drifting off to sleep as I try and think of a way to make a living and a life in this time.

  I wake with my head pressed against the window and can tell that I’ve slept away ma
ny hours of the day as the sun is no longer in sight. It seems like I’ve done a lot of sleeping since I landed here, especially considering how little I would sleep at home. Anxiety and nightmares have turned me into an insomniac since the attack but for some reason, I have no problem dozing off during the day here. I stretch my legs out and arch my back to try and loosen the stiffness from sleeping in one curled-up position for so long before swinging my legs over the side of the window seat and push to my feet. I only make it a few feet before I flinch in surprise when I spot Luca leaning against a bookshelf watching me from the shadows.

  “Um, hi? I guess I fell asleep there for a bit.” I say tentatively. He’s been kind to me so far but no matter how sexy he is with his sad watchful eyes and sweet good looks, I don’t lose sight of the fact that he’s a vampire and I’m probably at the top of his food pyramid. So far I haven’t felt any fear by being around these supernatural men, probably because of the shock and wonder of their existence but I don’t kid myself that they aren’t incredibly dangerous figures. Life isn’t like a romance novel and if they choose to turn on me for whatever reason, I’m a goner. He pushes away from the shelf and steps towards me out of the shadow.

  “You looked so peaceful. I was just enjoying the sight. Have you been in here all day?”

  I look down at the book in my hands trying to remember where I got it so I can put it back as I nod. He takes it from my hands and reads the title with a wry, half-smile.

  “Rather pretentious poetry, I found. I will be sure to recommend better for you to read.” He sets the book on one of the small tables that dot the room. “A servant will shelve it when they next come in to dust. Would you care for a stroll in the gardens before retiring to dress for supper?”

  Hell yes, I would! I’m used to being much more physically active at home so a walk sounds fantastic. When he sees the happy expression on my face, he holds out his arm in the direction to go with a slight bow in the most old-fashioned but charming way.