“What’s going on?”
“Besides Gypsy being a magical boat?” He laughed. “After last night you do remember me, don’t you, Gertrude?”
I stared at him, thoughts and feelings crowding into my brain like missing puzzle pieces. I remembered the man at the tiller so many years ago, the reason for my reaction to seeing the name of his boat. Why hadn’t I recognized who he was earlier? “I wasn’t sure. It was so long ago.” Sadness rose up, my heart broken by this man who left me on the shore of a foreign country and never returned. “Why did you leave me?”
“It wasn’t our time.”
“How can that be? We loved each other. I thought about you for years, wondering if I’d dreamed the entire thing. Think how much time we’ve lost.”
“There is no such thing as lost time. I love you and together we will find the child I’ve come to think of as my own.”
I shook my head. “Rifak belongs to the man whose spell I was under for so long. Adair is his grandmother.”
“Rifak is our child, Gertrude, as surely as if we made him together. I was there at his birth and without my help neither one of you would be alive.”
He reached for me, but I stepped away, not wanting to waste any more time. “Maybe so but Brandubh is his real father. He won’t want to give him up.”
Kafir let out a long sigh and then moved toward the door. “It’s time to go ashore and find my friends. If I remember correctly the village is about a mile from here.”
We left Gypsy in the lagoon and rowed to shore in silence, pulling the pram up on the sand.
“Tell me about the boy’s father,” Kafir asked, as we walked toward the wooded area above the beach.
I saw him in my mind’s eye, black priest’s robes billowing around him, dark eyes flashing--a towering man in his early sixties who exuded power. I had met him before I came to Scotland and then searched him out in that place called the Otherworld. “He was a priest, a very powerful person. I thought we were in love…”
“You do realize that all of that happened hundreds of years ago.”
“But I still don’t get how I ended up in the future. My life is still in that other timeline, isn’t it?”
“You came across a rift in time. The only way back is on Gypsy.”
“You’re part of that other time too; you brought me to America on your boat.”
“No. It was only serendipity that brought us together that day in Turkey. We were meant to meet. I had expected to see you again sooner than this.”
I pondered his words, my mind spinning. “Is this your time?”
Kafir nodded.
“So in my time you aren’t even born, is that right?”
“If it wasn’t for Gypsy we would never have met.”
“But that seems preposterous—what are the chances of you being in that precise time and place and finding me?” That horrible day rushed back—running away from my Gypsy family only to be raped and nearly killed by a truck full of drunken men. What a fool I was. If Kafir hadn’t found me…
“All I can say is that Gypsy brought us together.”
“If it was so important for us to meet I still don’t understand your behavior.”
“Don’t you see? I couldn’t stay in that timeline. My only job was to find you and bring you to America. We had to meet in the future. So here we are,” he finished, grabbing my hand.
I pulled away in irritation. “You should have told me all of this earlier.”
Kafir pressed his lips together. “I wasn’t absolutely sure until Gyspy manifested this room. You’re the only woman she’s done this for.”
“All your other girlfriends had to put up with the small cabin?” I laughed and turned away, all my anger from the past rising up. I had literally spent years wondering what had happened to him.
Kafir grabbed my arm. “Sarcasm doesn’t become you, Gertrude. I didn’t want to assume things until I knew for certain. We’ve both changed in many ways.”
I turned to stare into his anger-filled eyes. “I’m sorry. It’s just the wrong time with Rifak gone and everything that’s happening. And I asked you after the first time we sailed together—do you remember that? You didn’t answer me.”
“I kissed you, didn’t I? I thought that might jog your memory. And I almost said something, but…”
“I don’t remember your name.”
“That’s because my real name is Bran.”
“Bran, that’s it.” When I looked at him I saw the younger man, remembering how desperately I loved him. I wanted to trust him, but replaying what he’d done in the past made me realize that his current behavior wasn’t that much different. He’d disappeared on at least two different occasions. I was vulnerable with no special powers in this world of sorcerers, satyrs, and Norse gods and goddesses. Without my psychic gifts I was merely a woman who had lost her only child struggling to maintain a sense of myself.
“I prefer Kafir now.”
I nodded, turning to more practical matters. “And how did Adair end up in this future time?”
“Your energy signature led her here like a trail of breadcrumbs.”
Trail of breadcrumbs like Hansel and Gretel. The witch. A memory surfaced from when I was with Brandubh in the Otherworld. Adair was with us, her eyes watching me, bright with secret knowledge. She knew about the baby before I did. “I hope we find them.”
“Gypsy brought us here for a reason. When we reach the village we’ll question my friends.”
The Otherworld-2010
Harold rode to where several druids stood, dismounting to let Argyll graze. “What’s the story?”
“Adair has been spotted in her old house in the settlement. The women are terrified.”
“So what now?”
“We’ve contacted Morrighan as well as Cernunnos. That should be enough but we’re heading there to make sure no one gets hurt.” The druid turned to his companion, speaking Gaelic for a moment before turning back to Harold. “We could use Kenneth’s help,” the druid continued, his gaze going to the sword hanging off Argyll’s saddle.
“I’d be happy to come along with you. It’s been a while since I’ve had a good cause to leave home.”
Chapter Eleven
Far Isle-2451
An acrid smell wafted toward us on the breeze, a plume of gray smoke lifting into the sky. Kafir stopped, his hand going up to signal quiet. “Something’s happened,” he said in a low voice. “I’m going to skirt around and find out what’s going on. You stay here.” He pointed under the trees. “If you hear anything, hide.”
He headed away at a crouch, his hand on his knife. My nerves were already on edge and with this new development my resolve slipped away. Why had I ever agreed to this? It was crazy to think I could wrest Rifak away from a sorceress. And if Brandubh were here he would claim the right to keep him. NO! I told myself, trying hard to think positively: the smoke was only the remnants of a bonfire--it was only a burn to clear a patch of forest--Kafir’s friends were fine and would know where to find the sorceress. Without thinking I followed Kafir’s trail.
It didn’t take long for me to realize that my positive thoughts were wrong. In front of me an entire village had been burned to the ground. I heard weeping and headed toward the sound. When I got to the source, Kafir was kneeling on the ground, his arms around a distraught woman. He looked up, his eyes full of emotion. “Gertrude, this is Ella.”
“Ella…your Ella?” I asked stupidly.
He nodded, helping the woman stand. She was covered in soot, her eyes red and puffy from crying. Honey colored hair lay in tangles around her oval face, full lips cut and bleeding. When she glanced my way I noticed the cornflower blue of her wide eyes, the burgeoning belly pressing against her long muslin skirt. By the look of it she was seven or eight months pregnant. She didn’t speak, leaning into Kafir for support as he helped her forward. “We’ll find them,” Kafir muttered. He was talking about his sons. Everything blurred together in my mind as Kafir made
a fire, settling Ella in front of it, a person I had never expected to meet.
“What happened?” I finally asked after several long moments. Kafir stood, giving Ella a loving glance before heading toward me. When I moved away from him he stopped, confusion passing over his features before answering. “Adair and her son set fire to the place.”
“But why?”
Ella gazed at me. “’Tis what they do,” she said in an accent I couldn’t place. “I suppose they want us out of here for some reason.”
“Where is your husband?” I asked, sitting on the ground next to her.
“I know not. The last I saw of Dughall was when they came with their torches and their dogs. Most were killed since this was done in the wee hours before dawn. We were all in our beds.” Her eyes filled with tears.
“I’m so sorry, Ella. She has my son,” I confided.
“Aye. Bran said.” Ella glanced up, her eyes wide. “He goes by Kafir now, I had forgotten.”
She didn’t look my way after that, seeming lost in her own thoughts. Kafir had gone off to search the village, returning a short time later with a defeated expression.
“I don’t want to upset you any further,” he began, gazing toward Ella, “but the villagers are all dead. I would imagine a few escaped, but not many. There was no sign of Clary or Bran, but they’ve probably grown so much I wouldn’t recognize them.”
Ella glanced toward Kafir, trying to smile. “This is true. They have grown into strapping lads. What of Dughall?”
“I saw no sign of him in any of the houses, Ella. I had thought you moved on to Glantsgo. And Hreidmar…he intimated you were dead.”
“Ah, the king.” Ella stared into the distance, her hand going to her belly. “He would like me to be dead since I was able to avoid his advances. He may be spreading some face-saving rumors. As far as Glantsgo, we were there for a while, but with the new one on the way I hoped to bring her into the world in a safer place among friends and family.” When Ella began to cry, Kafir moved by her side, kneeling to comfort her. “We’ll find our boys and Dughall,” he said, his arms tight around her. She buried her face in his chest.
I watched them in silence and then got up quietly, moving away from the fire. I tried not to be jealous but somehow my fear fueled it. How could Kafir focus on Rifak when his own sons were missing? I knew that Ella must be devastated without Dughall and her sons, especially with all her friends burned up in the fire. I shivered as the horrible scene flashed through my mind—I could hear screaming, the terrified cries of children, the smell of smoke stung my nostrils. I coughed and choked, hearing a terrible hissing as though the wind was alive, and then it was gone, my mind a blank. I had just been witness to what transpired in this village—my psychic powers had returned and what they had shown me was not an image I wanted in my mind. Of course after such a devastating situation Ella would rely on the father of her children. I shook my head to clear the vision, thinking of what I could say to her that might be encouraging. Kafir’s first priority would be his sons. And with that realization I knew I was on my own.
***
I woke sometime later, my entire body stiff with cold. It was dark now and no moon shone through the thick branches above me. When I left the fire hours earlier I had thought to take some time to make a plan. But instead I’d fallen asleep. I wondered why Kafir hadn’t come to find me. I crept back toward the fire, skirting through the trees to peek out toward the little camp he’d made. Ella lay on her side, her head comfortably nestled on Kafir’s shoulder, his arm protectively across her body. A wave of jealousy went through my body, anger rising like bile.
I moved backward and then turned and ran, not stopping until I reached the shore. I rowed out to Gypsy, securing the painter to the stern before climbing on board. Below decks the large cabin was still there, and I fell facedown onto the bed, hiccupping sobs bubbling out of me.
***
“Rifak!” I reached toward my baby, but he wasn’t where I’d left him.
“Wake up, you’re dreaming!”
I opened my eyes to see Kafir staring down at me. His chest was bare, a dry shirt in his hands. He had to swim to the boat. I turned away from him, scooting sideways on the bed before sitting up.
“What ails you?”
“What do you think?” I swung my legs to the floor, reaching for my sweater.
“I have no idea.”
“I…I’m…” Before I could say anything else tears were streaming down my face. “You have to help Ella now. I can’t count on you.”
“Ella has been through a terrible trauma, Gertrude. Dughall is missing as well as my sons. How would you expect me to react?”
“I understand all that, but did you need to curl up with her last night?”
Kafir opened his mouth in surprise. “It was a cold night and she was distraught—shaking. I would have been happy to have you there as well, but you’ve seemed distant.”
“What? Lying on the other side of you while you cuddled with Ella?” I laughed but it came out more like a cough. “All my thoughts have been on Rifak and finding him. It wasn’t the right time for…”
“I know and accept this. But don’t try and make me feel guilty over caring for the woman who bore me two sons.” He pulled the loose woven shirt over his head.
“You still love her.”
Kafir grabbed my shoulders, turning me to face him. “I love her but I am not in love with her. I was there when my sons were born—not an event to be taken lightly, as you well know. The births were not easy. And now they’re missing. If you can stop all this I have something to tell you that might be of interest.”
I let out a ragged sigh, wiping the last of my tears away “I’m sorry, Kafir, but I’m just so upset about everything. I know Ella needs you. I don’t blame her. I’m…I just feel so alone.” When Kafir put his hand gently on my shoulder I took the opportunity to press against him, his warmth a comfort in my overly emotional state.
“I’ve discovered where they are.”
I pulled out of the circle of his arm to look up at him. “When you say ‘they’, are you referring to your sons or Adair and Rifak?”
Kafir pressed his lips together and shook his head, running his fingers through his wet hair. “I’m talking about the sorceress. But I also know where my sons have gone; Ella reminded me of the place we took them to play when they were younger. We camped in a section of Helike, one of the buried cities I mentioned.”
I saw them together—Kafir older than when I knew him, but still young, his arm looped around a beautiful and very pregnant Ella. I could have done without my clairvoyance at this point, a burning sensation moving inside the pit of my stomach. “And Dughall?”
“He may be with them but I have a hard time imagining the man leaving a pregnant wife to fend for herself. According to Ella the sorceress has made her home in another ruin further to the south.”
“How does Ella know this?”
Kafir struggled with his emotions, anger moving across his features. “Damn it, woman! Ella’s village was just destroyed. I would assume she had some idea of where the attackers came from.”
He sighed and then lowered himself to the bed, his head going into his hands. “I know a man who lives in these woods. Gunnar is well versed in magic and an expert archer. Do you have any interest in coming along?”
“Of course I do.”
“Well then, gather your things together.”
After Kafir changed into dry pants and I stuffed what I needed into my pack, we rowed to shore. We left the boat and headed north. “It shouldn’t take us more than an hour or two to reach Gunnar’s house.” Kafir turned toward the trees that formed a wall along the upper edge of the protected beach.
“What about Ella?”
“She’s gone to the ruins.”
“Alone?”
“I left her in the capable hands of Faden, an old friend who managed to escape the fire. My plan is to meet up with them.”
“So w
hat we’re doing right now has nothing to do with finding my son.”
Kafir stopped and turned toward me, his eyes narrowed. “God’s breath, woman. You are the most exasperating and stubborn person I’ve ever known. Listen carefully. We will gather Gunnar and go south to the ruins to find Rifak. After that we will head to the mountains to meet up with Ella and my boys. Is that clear enough for you?”
“You make it sound like a simple errand. We’re about to go up against a sorceress and I have no idea the extent of her powers. Do you?”
“Did I mention that Gunnar is a druid?”
“No, you left that part out. I hope he has a lot of magic up his sleeve, because without something potent I don’t see how we can…”
Kafir put his hand on my arm, his eyebrows pulled together in a frown of annoyance. “The spiritual realm is strong in these woods and ruins, energy left behind by centuries of adepts. It’s why Gunnar chooses to live here. He was born way before the collapse of this civilization. I would say he has a bit of magic ‘up his sleeve’ as you put it.”
“So Gunnar is, what, over four-hundred years old?”
“Give or take.”
“So this energy you’re talking about—is it good or bad?”
“Energy is rarely one or the other but can be harnessed for either one, so try and keep your negative thoughts at bay.”
I felt chastised by this, but I managed to keep my mouth shut. He was right to say it—my fear had me acting like a spoiled child, my mood made worse by the twisting trails that required holding up my heavy skirt to keep it from snagging on brambles. Next time I would borrow a pair of pants from Kafir. “Ella knew you as Bran too. When did you change your name?”
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