“Does the arrangement suit ye?”
Callum gave his approval and continued to hash things out with everyone else in the room.
At Morna’s mention of their return home, I noticed Jerry stiffen in his seat next to me. Once the room began to hum with the noise of many separate conversations, I turned to ask him about it.
“Is everything all right?”
“No, but I canna discuss it with ye here. Once Morna leaves with the others, come and find me.”
Jerry stood and silently slipped from the room.
“Please promise me that ye will be careful, Callum. Ye doona know how much I care for ye. When all is over, ye will come and see me, aye?”
Callum held Morna close to him, squeezing the old witch tightly enough that her toes lifted off the ground.
“Aye, Morna, I do think I know, for I care for ye just as much. I shall see ye soon. Ye must be glad to be going home, aye? Ye threw a mighty fit when we wouldna let ye do so after Jerry’s attack.”
Morna blushed slightly, and Callum thought it the first time he’d ever seen her do so.
“I am ready to sleep in my own bed, but I am not glad for the circumstances that have me leaving here today.”
He released his grip on her, gave her a quick kiss on the cheek, and reached for the car door to open it for her. Rather than climb inside, Morna grabbed his arm and pulled him away from the car.
“Hold on just a moment. There’s something I wish to tell ye before I go.”
He moved to lace her arm with his own, escorting her away from the crowd as she clearly wished him to.
“What is it, Morna?”
“I want to thank ye. Not only for remaining kind to me in the midst of some verra bad behavior on my part, but also for being one of the few lads I’ve ever known to not do exactly what I told ye to.”
Callum frowned, trying to think on what the witch could mean. His mind was too filled with Laird Allen, with the Conalls, with trying to figure out all he didn’t understand to remember what Morna referred to.
“What do ye mean by that? Are ye pointing to a specific instance?”
“Aye, verra specific indeed. Do ye not remember when I asked ye to search for Grier? Ye told me ye wouldna do so unless ye had cause. I thought Jerry’s heart attack was plenty cause enough, and still ye denied my request.”
In truth, he never stopped his search for the witch. Morna didn’t know that the dance had been a failed trap to catch her. She didn’t know that he had a man searching day and night for her since the morning after Jerry’s heart attack. Callum knew it was best she didn’t know because nothing had been found.
“And ye are happy about that? It surprises me to hear ye say so. I thought ye were still rather sour about all of it.”
The old witch shrugged and reached with her free hand to pat his arm.
“I would’ve thought so too, but I find I’m quite pleased that ye dinna do as I asked. It seems that Grier has given up on whatever it was she wanted with Jerry and me. I couldna be more glad for it. ’Tis only here that she could reach us. My departure today means it has come to an end.”
At least one set of problems had reached a resolution. He was no longer concerned with his search for Grier either. There were much more pressing matters at hand.
“I am glad for it, as well. Though, I still protest that she is not as bad as ye remember her to be. She helped me the day of the fire. Whether ye wish to believe it or not, I believe she saved Jerry’s life on the day of his attack, as well.”
Callum knew Jerry had tried to make Morna see sense on the matter, but she refused to believe anything but the worst of Grier despite his pleas. Callum expected the same reaction. Instead she squeezed his arm a little more tightly as she spoke.
“’Tis true that I’m not sure I know anymore. As much as I’ve held on to the hatred I have of her now, there was a time that I loved her verra much. I admit that I thought Jerry’s defense of her was born out of his trusting nature. Perhaps this time it was only because he was right. Either way, I am at peace not knowing.”
Believing her to be finished, Callum slowly led them back toward the car.
“Peace is all I wish for all of us, Morna. I pray that it finds us soon.”
She turned to hug him one last time in farewell.
“Oh, I do too, lad. I do too.”
CHAPTER 33
Fatigue descended quickly upon everyone at the castle after Morna left with the McMillan men. Even Cooper, known for his insomnia, laid down for a nap. I did as well, only remembering as my eyes were nearly closed that Jerry asked me to find him.
I could sleep later. As concerned as Jerry appeared earlier, I didn’t wish to keep him waiting. I stood and did a few lengthy stretches for energy and crossed the hall to his room.
He didn’t answer at my first knock, and I wondered if perhaps he was napping as well. When no response came the second time, I opened the door to look inside. The room was empty.
My first thought was that perhaps he went to look for me instead. While I thought it odd that he wouldn’t check my room first, I made my way down to the kitchen to look for him there. All I found was a pile of dirty dishes awaiting my attention.
They would just have to wait longer, for now my curiosity—as well as my concern—was at an all-time high. Where could he have wandered off?
I looked everywhere that I could without disturbing sleeping babies or moms and eventually decided to look for him outside. It didn’t take me long to approach the stairwell and, much to my surprise, I found him sitting on a step halfway down.
“Jerry,” I called out to him as I approached. He turned around casually as if nothing were odd about his location.
“Ach, Sydney. There ye are, lass. I thought perhaps ye forgot my request that ye seek me out.”
“I’ll admit I forgot for a moment, but I thought you meant in your room or something. What are you doing out here?”
He stood and took one more step down the staircase.
“I am simply doing precisely what I told ye I would do. Today is the day I was meant to trick Morna into traveling through. Grier waits for us on the other side. While Morna canna go, I must.”
My heart suddenly felt like it jumped into my throat at his answer.
“No way. Get your ass back up here, Jerry, or I will drag you up these stairs myself. You can’t be serious? Surely you know with everything that happened that you have to forget about this right now. You can come back another time and try to heal the bad blood between them.”
He shook his head at me and took another step downward.
“No, Sydney. I broke a promise to Grier once before. I’ll not do it again. I only asked ye to find me so ye could stand from this side and wait for me so that if anything goes wrong, ye can call for help. I will do this regardless of yer thoughts on the matter. Will ye wait and watch for me or not? I willna be long.”
I took two steps down into the stairwell myself then stopped when I saw that he meant to run through if I approached him.
“Jerry, wait. Just think about this for a minute. No one is through there. Callum and Orick won’t be back through until tonight. At least wait until then.”
He held up a hand to stop me from taking another step forward.
“No. I canna wait, for I willna make Grier wait. I’ll ask ye one last time. Then I go either way. Will ye wait and watch for me?”
I groaned and gripped my forehead to push away the sudden pounding pain. I didn’t think I could take any more stress today. Clearly though, there was no fighting him on this. If he was going, I could at least be here to escort him out when he returned.
“Fine. You have ten minutes. If you’re not back by then, I’m getting Callum.”
He picked up one foot as he twisted to look over his shoulder at me, but his words were cut short as he tripped over the next step and began to tumble downward. Everything slowed down as he fell, but I couldn’t reach him in time.
Jerry p
icked up speed as he rolled. Even as he reached the bottom, he continued to skid until he hit the wall, disappearing before my eyes.
I screamed and closed my eyes in painful surrender of what I knew I must do.
Most likely, Jerry was injured. What if Grier hadn’t kept her word to him? What if no one was on the other side?
I couldn’t leave him there bleeding and alone. Callum would have to forgive me.
I took the steps down two at a time and vanished into dust.
CHAPTER 34
1650
“Jerry, are you okay? You are a stupid, stupid fool. I told you this was a terrible idea. Give me your hand so I can help you out of here and back to our own time. There’s no one around to stitch you up here.”
I couldn’t see him, and his lack of response worried me greatly. The stairwell was completely dark, and I hadn’t the slightest idea why. I supposed it probably had some sort of door, but the entire time I’d known about it, I’d never seen it closed.
I called out to him once more, only to have a hand latch on to my mouth to silence me.
“Can ye not tell that we closed the door for a reason? Jerry is bleeding, but there is not time for me to do anything for it now. Ye surely have drawn their attention to us. Laird Allen’s men are sieging the castle.”
She released her grip on me. While I knew it wiser for me to stay quiet, I couldn’t stand there and say nothing. Terror and confusion gripped at me, and it took every bit of strength I had not to panic.
“Jerry, get up. We have to go back through.”
The stranger’s arm—which I assumed belonged to Grier—shot out and yanked me backward toward the steps.
“There’s no time. They’re already here. I see them.”
That instant, the door to the stairwell swung open and light streamed in. I struggled to adjust to the quick onset of light as bellowing voices hollered down at us.
“Down here, sir. There are people hiding.”
The man stepped away, and I hurried to pull Jerry up so we could run back through. Grier blocked our way.
“Can ye not see? They’ve seen us all. If we go through the portal now, they will follow us through. Is that what ye want?”
In my panic, that thought hadn’t occurred to me. All I could think of was how desperately we needed to get away. I knew Callum would never recover if anything happened to either Jerry or me. The guilt and grief would eat him alive.
“Can you close it? Let us run through and then close it before Laird Allen’s men have a chance to go through. We can’t let them take us.”
She shook her head. The calm on her face did nothing to soothe me. She looked as if all of it were pointless.
“I canna close it from that side. They will take us, and we must allow them to do so lest we wish to end up murdered this day.”
For the second time in a matter of moments, everything around me seemed to slow, making every thought calm and clear.
“Can’t you use magic to stop them?”
“I’m powerful, but no. I canna take down two dozen men. Listen to me. When they take us, they canna know I’m a witch. It willna end well for me, and I’ll be no help to either of ye if they do.”
I knew she was right. If Laird Allen learned of Grier’s powers, he would either force her to use them for his will or kill her outright.
I thought of Jerry’s fall down the stairs. While I couldn’t see him, I knew his wounds must be significant for he said nothing as Grier and I spoke. Someone would have to carry him up the stairs. By doing so, they risked traveling forward as well. I knew by watching others, only the smallest part of you had to touch the back wall for it to pull you forward.
“Grier, can you close the portal from this side? We need to be certain they can’t get through.”
She didn’t answer right away. When she did, her voice was small and surprisingly unsure. “I doona know.”
“Do you have time to try?”
“I doona. They’re coming now. If I do so, they’ll see me.”
They might see her, but she must try. Otherwise, we risked the lives of so many others.
“I’ll run up and distract them. Try and close it.”
I ran up the stairs and busted through the door while screaming like a banshee. It took a moment for my eyes to adjust to the sudden sunlight. When they did, all I could see was six giant men hurdling toward me.
As they pulled at my arms and began to drag me away, I swung and kicked my legs in every possible direction. I would be bruised and bloodied and very possibly dead, but at least Grier now had a few more moments to close the portal, hopefully keeping everyone at the Cagair of the twenty-first century safe from harm.
CHAPTER 35
Present Day
“Sydney, I doona wish to disturb ye, but Orick and I are headed through, Adwen as well this time. I doona think we will be returning—not until we’ve answers, and all of this with Laird Allen has reached its end. I wanted to tell ye goodbye.”
It wasn’t like Sydney to rest so late in the afternoon, but everyone was more tired than usual today, and Callum knew there was good reason for it. Her room was dark. He walked quietly before flipping on the small lamp next to her bedside so he could wake her gently.
The covers were crinkled, the indentation of her body still present, but she was no longer on the bed. Callum glanced at the clock in the corner of the room. She would be deep in dinner preparations now. He stood and made his way to bid her farewell there.
When he reached the kitchen, the only one inside was Anne.
“Hey, are you guys about to head back?”
“Aye. Do ye know where Sydney is, Anne? I wish to tell her goodbye before we leave. It may be some weeks before we return. She was not in her bedchamber.”
Anne pursed her lips in a way that sent a shudder down his spine.
“I…I was just about to ask you about her. I wondered if maybe she was sick or something because she is usually already in the kitchen by now. I was about to attempt to start on something myself. You haven’t seen her?”
“No. Not in some time.”
Callum turned to the sound of descending footsteps behind him. “Cooper, what brings ye into the kitchen. Are ye hungry? I bet Anne could find ye something.”
“No, I’m not hungry. I came here looking for you, Callum. I’ve got a really funny feeling about something. Sydney comes and gets me every day to help Jerry workout, and this was supposed to be our very last one before he returned home, but she never came and got me. I waited an hour. Now I can’t find Jerry, either. I’ve looked everywhere for both of them, and I can’t find them anywhere.”
The fear he struggled to keep at bay every moment rose up inside him.
“Are ye certain, lad? Is there any place in the castle that ye have not looked?”
Cooper shook his head, his eyes wide and serious.
“No. I looked everywhere in the castle. The only place I haven’t been is outside, but Jerry never goes out there so I thought it would be a waste.”
Callum allowed himself a deep, calming breath at Cooper’s words. Surely if he hadn’t checked outside, then outside was where he would find them.
“Cooper, ye stay here and help Anne begin dinner. I’ll go and look for them outside. I’ll be certain to let them know ye are not pleased with them when I find them.”
“Yeah, you tell them that because I am not pleased at all.”
Callum hurried from the kitchen, eager to find them so his worry would subside. Rather than opening the main door to find Jerry and Sydney, Adwen stood in the doorway.
“Callum, I was just coming for ye. Ye best come. Something has happened.”
He could feel the blood drain from his face at Adwen’s words. How much more could happen? How much more could they possibly bear?
“What? Tell me now.”
Adwen turned and waved for him to follow.
“The portal. It…it doesna seem to be working.”
Callum traveled thr
ough only a matter of hours ago. He was only in the twenty-first century now to see Morna and the McMillan men off.
“Ye’re wrong. I used it not long ago. How could it stop working?”
“I doona know, but I swear to ye, it’s shut. I dinna feel comfortable with all of us being on this side, even if it was for such a brief time. I thought I would go ahead and watch for messengers until ye and Orick arrived. Callum, ’tis nothing at the bottom but a stone wall.”
His heart pounded in his chest as he hurried down the all-too-familiar steps. Adwen must be mistaken. If he wasn’t, something was very wrong.
He stopped at the bottom step and cautiously reached out his fingers. The wall ahead of him was solid for the first time.
Callum turned and ran up the stairs as quickly as he descended them. “Go and tell everyone to search for Sydney and Jerry. Now.”
Adwen turned from him, and Callum ran for the castle behind him, shouting to Orick, who was just exiting his cottage, to do the same.
The entire castle spent the better part of an hour searching for them. When every last corner was searched, Callum collapsed on the castle’s front steps, allowing his anger to take him as Adwen, Orick, and Anne watched on.
“Damn her. She told me she wouldna do it. She swore to me, and she did it anyway. I’ll not have her near me again. I’ll not share my heart with a liar and a fool. I doona understand what she’s done or why, but she and Jerry traveled through the portal, and now ’tis closed for the rest of us.”
He continued to lament, screaming and cursing, using his anger as a way to keep his worry from consuming him. He didn’t stop until Anne stepped in front of him and reached up to grab both sides of his face tightly between her hands.
“All right. I let you have a good five minutes of that, but it is time to grow the hell up. You’re right. You don’t know why she and Jerry went back, but Sydney is no idiot. If she did so, she had reason to, and you know it. I know you’re frightened, but this temper tantrum will do you no good. You don’t have time for it. Laird Allen could be headed for Cagair now. What if he finds them there?”
Love Beyond Belief (Book 7 of Morna’s Legacy Series) Page 16
