“I can hear someone singing.” She turned to Daisy. “Who is that?”
“Go and see,” Daisy said.
“Wait, isn’t that my time up there? If I go through, will I ever be able to come back?”
“Until the door closes. As long as it stays open you can return.” Daisy smiled, looking as if she knew something Natalie didn’t.
“If I can’t get back,” Natalie said, taking Wallace’s outstretched hand. “I just want you to know-”
“I know,” he replied. “And I’m not going anywhere.”
Natalie felt herself being drawn through the door. Her feet moved her even though she wasn’t ready. She walked through and up the stairs, feeling a strong wind hit her even though her hair didn’t move.
Was this how it felt to return to her own time. She moved toward the sound of singing, pushing open the door into the living room she left what felt like a lifetime ago. It was the same but different.
“Is this the butterfly effect?” she asked herself, running her hands over a poster on the wall. It was a picture of a boyband, their smoldering faces staring back at her as she frowned at them. Who put that up?
“What was that?” a voice said behind Natalie. She turned to find herself looking at a ten year old girl that bore a striking resemblance to her. “Mom? Are you talking to my poster again. You know they’re not going to marry you, right?”
“Mom?” Natalie echoed, not sure she wasn’t seeing things. “Who’s your mom?”
“You are, silly. Are you feeling all right?”
All of a sudden, Natalie couldn’t breathe. She gasped for air, the girl running over and taking her arm.
“Are you okay, Mom? Here, come and sit down for a minute.”
Feeling faint, she sank into the nearest chair, fighting for a breath like she was drowning, history washing over her in waves that threatened to knock her out. She looked up in a daze at the girl standing over her, all doubt leaving her, mind replaced by shock. She reached up, touching her cheek. “Tanya? Is that you?”
The girl smiled a cheeky smile. “That’s right. Well done, you’ve remembered your daughter’s name. Is this what happens when you don’t get enough sleep because if it is, I’m sending you back to bed right now.”
“You’re my daughter.”
“And you’re my mother.”
Natalie leaped up as if zapped by electricity, throwing her arms around Tanya. “I can’t believe you’re alive.”
“I won’t be for long,” came the muffled response. “Unless you let me breathe.”
Reluctantly, she loosened her grip, kissing Tanya on the forehead. “You’re really alive.”
“Did you think I might have died while you were in the dungeon?”
“How did you know I was in the dungeon?”
“Because you went down there to find out what the noise was. Was it a rat?”
“No, it wasn’t a rat.”
“What was it then?”
“I think you should come and see.”
Tanya shook her head. “There’s something up with you. I think you should sit down. Let me make you a coffee.”
“I…you can’t be alive. You died.”
“I died? What are you talking about?”
Natalie shook her head. “The butterfly effect,” she said to herself. “Never mind. Come on, there’s someone I want you to meet.”
“In the dungeon?”
Natalie nodded enthusiastically. “Exactly.”
“I’m not moving until you tell me what’s going on. You’re acting weird.”
“All right, I’ll tell you but when I do, you have to promise you’ll believe me.”
“I can’t do that. What if you tell me you met an alien down there and he’s going to turn me into a giant space cat with antlers?”
Natalie grinned. “You really are my daughter. Now listen.”
She told her a short version of what had happened to her since she went back in time, omitting the part where Tanya was supposed to be dead. She didn’t want to freak her out too much. The rest of the story was weird enough.
When she was done, Tanya looked at her with a strange expression on her face, halfway between humoring her and anger at such a nonsensical story.
“You want me to believe that? You went back in time and fell in love with a Scottish highlander? I mean, I know you want me to have a new dad and everything but making up a story like that? Why?”
“I’m not making it up. It’s true.”
“Then I guess if I go down into the dungeon, I’ll go through your magic portal and step out in the Middle Ages, right? Blackbeard and Braveheart and Bonny Prince Charlie?”
“You’re kind of getting your time periods mixed up but basically, yeah.”
“I’m kidding. You think I don’t know about the Middle Ages with a mother who wrote two bestsellers about it all? I know more about the thirteenth century than I do about this one thanks to you. Right, come on then.”
“Come on then what?”
“Let’s get this over with.”
“I swear I’m telling the truth.”
“Then let me make you a deal. If we go down there and there’s no one, you let me walk on the battlements, agreed.”
“I haven’t let you before?”
“Too dangerous,” Tanya said in a decent imitation of her mother’s voice.
“And if he is there like I say?”
“Then we move to the thirteenth century and both get to live happily ever after.”
“Really? You’d do that?”
“What has the twenty-first century got for me apart from school bullies and too much homework? Let’s do this.”
Tanya was already out the door and heading down the stairs by the time Natalie was able to move. Her legs felt like Jell-O.
She could hardly believe this was real. Part of her was sure she was about to wake up with a huge headache from a blow to the skull. Fate could not be this kind. It just couldn’t.
She tried to run, having to grab onto the wall as a wave of dizziness washed over her. When it went, she felt okay at last, taking the stairs two at a time and catching up with Tanya at the bottom.
“There’s no one in there,” Tanya said, turning to look at her from the doorway. “To think I almost believed you.”
“Walk inside.”
“Why? There’s no one there.”
“Come on, we’ll do it together.” She slipped her hand into her daughter’s, took a deep breath, and then walked through the door.
Out of the shadows, figures began to emerge, figures she knew very well.
“Who’s this?” Tanya asked, gripping her mother’s hand tighter. “Where did they come from?”
“This is the captain,” Natalie said. “This is Daisy and Jock and this right here is the man I was telling you about.”
“You’re real,” Tanya said, prodding Wallace in the chest. “I can’t believe it, you’re actually real.”
Wallace looked down at her for a long time before glancing up at Natalie. “Who is this?” he asked, looking as if he already knew the answer.
“This is my daughter, Tanya,” she replied with a grin. “And she needs to stop prodding you.”
“Any chance we can do the introductions somewhere that doesn’t smell quite so bad?” Tanya asked, wrinkling her nostrils. “Come on, upstairs everyone.” She waved her arms and they willingly let her herd them up the stairs. Last out of the cell, she pulled the door closed.
Natalie heard it shut and almost said something but then decided not to. It was done. They were in the past. Except it wasn’t the past anymore. In the blink of an eye, it had become the present. It had become their time.
Upstairs, they headed into the great hall, sitting together along one of the trestle tables that lined the wall. The conversation began to flow as Tanya talked to everyone at once.
Natalie found herself sitting between Daisy and Wallace who was patiently answering a never-ending barrage of questions fro
m Tanya.
Daisy smiled. “She looks like you.”
“Did you do this?” Natalie asked. “Did you bring her back to life?”
“You put far too much faith in my magic. I had nothing to do with this.”
“But you knew she was up there.”
“I guessed, that was all.”
“You guessed? How did you guess?”
Daisy just smiled. “Some questions are better left unanswered.”
“What about this question? Will she be safe here? Is the barefoot man gone for good?”
“Yes but his mother is still out there somewhere and so are two more keys she might be very glad to get her hands on. You must be vigilant. Any talk of keys, you let me know.”
“Of course.”
The captain’s voice carried over to them. “Of course I have a ship. Do you think I’d be called the captain if I didn’t have a ship?”
“I don’t believe you,” Tanya replied.
“I’ll take you to it,” the captain said. “Right now.”
Tanya turned to look at Natalie. “Can I go, Mom?”
“Not just yet. Not until we’re sure it’s safe out there.”
“What about the battlements? Can I go see them?”
Daisy stood up. “I’ll take her. Come on captain, let’s give her the guided tour.”
“We’ll come too,” Jock said, taking Daisy’s hand. “We have some catching up of our own to do.”
Tanya ran over to the door, beckoning furiously. “Keep up, slowcoaches.”
Natalie watched them go before turning to look at Wallace.
A flicker of a smile was playing across his lips. “You have a daughter,” he said. “Why did you not mention her?”
“Remember what I said about the butterfly effect?”
“Aye.”
“She…she died when she was eight months old. Only, she didn’t. Because she’s alive.” Her voice fell to a whisper. “She’s alive.”
“She’s beautiful,” Wallace said, leaning over and taking Natalie’s face in his hands. “And so are you.”
“Wallace, I-”
“I love you,” he said, kissing her a second later. It was a kiss powerful enough to send her heart thumping out the top of her head and into ceiling above.
Her fingertips tingled, her stomach doing cartwheels as they embraced. She ran her hands around his back and together they remained like that for a long time.
Finally he pulled away and she felt a deep sense of loss, her lips still tingling with faint echoes of what had just happened.
When she opened her eyes, he was looking at her intensely. “You were about to say something?”
“It doesn’t matter.”
They kissed again and this time was even more powerful than the last. “I love you,” she muttered between embraces. “I love you Wallace MacGregor.”
Up on the battlements Tanya peered out at the countryside beyond the castle, a wide grin glued to her face.
“What do you think?” Daisy asked. “You like it?”
“I think it’s the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen. I’m going to love it here.”
“You want to live here?” Jock asked. “In this castle?”
“If I’m allowed.”
“If you like this, wait until you see MacGregor Castle.”
“Is that where you’re from?”
“Aye.”
She pointed past them. “Can I go up that tower?”
“I can’t see why not.”
Tanya ran ahead, not noticing the captain was looking out at the countryside. “That’s Scarlett,” he said suddenly, staring into the distance as a figure approached. “If you’ll excuse me.” He was off running before anyone could stop him.
Tanya climbed the stairs of the tower, coming out on top, marveling at the sensation of being in the highest point of the castle.
She looked out and saw the captain running across the grass toward someone in the distance. They embraced and she wondered if all the highlands would be like this, filled with happy couples. Daisy and Jock were standing hand in hand down on the battlements, waving up at her as she waved back.
In the great hall Natalie and Wallace were hand in hand too, saying nothing. They were too busy kissing.
Tanya felt something under her feet. It made the tower wobble ever so slightly. “What was that?” she called down to Cam and Rachel. “It felt like an earthquake.”
They looked up in surprise. “We felt nothing.”
Tanya waited for it to happen again but the tower remained still. She shook her head. She must have imagined it.
Heading back downstairs, she went looking for her mom. She was hungry. Time to find out what kind of a food they had to offer in MacCallister Castle.
Outside the light began to fade. Inside the fires were lit and soon a group of people were eating together in the great hall, all of them laughing and joking as the night slowly drew in.
The smoke drifted up from the fire into wisps that curled and moved lazily through the air.
“What do we do now?” the captain asked, his arm around Scarlett’s shoulder. “We can’t all stay here, can we?”
“We will travel to MacGregor Castle and reunite our clan,” Jock said, some of the old authority back in his voice.
“And we will remain here,” Wallace added. “If you’re happy to stay of course.”
Tanya nodded, squeezing her mother’s hand. “I couldn’t be more happy.”
“What about you two?” Wallace asked. “Want to stay here?”
The captain shook his head. “Get involved in all the politics of uniting the MacGregors and the MacCallisters, ending the decade long feud and bringing peace to the highlands? I can’t think of anything more dull. I’m going to fix my ship and head out to sea. Go find some adventure.”
“Are you now?” Scarlett said, mock scowling at him. “And what if I don’t want to go off with you?”
“Then I guess I’ll have to start a farm.”
“You, milking cows? I’d like to see that.”
“I could milk cows.”
“When have you ever even see a cow?”
“I’m looking at one right now.”
“You pig!”
She shoved him so hard he fell off his seat and landed on the floor. The room echoed with laughter, the sound mingling with the snaps and crackles of the fire as the sun disappeared from sight outside the castle. The day was almost over.
Tanya’s laughter turned into a loud yawn. She slumped forward in her seat, trying hard to keep her eyes open.
“Come on,” Natalie said, getting to her feet. “Let’s find you a bed.”
“I’m not tired.”
“Yes, you are.”
“All right, I am but you’re not the boss of me.”
“Yes, I am.”
“All right you are but I get to choose my bedroom.”
“Fine.”
With the entire castle to choose from, Tanya picked a bedchamber up on the third floor of the keep. It overlooked the courtyard and she peered out at the darkness for a moment before turning to face her mother. “I’m glad we’re here,” she said, yawning and stretching her arms out.
“Me too,” Natalie replied. “Now here’s a nightdress. Get changed and I’ll be back in a minute.”
By the time she returned Tanya was already asleep. She rejoined Wallace in the great hall. “All good,” she said.
“I am now,” he said, taking her in his arms and holding her close, kissing her softly so many times she lost count. “Because I have you.”
Epilogue
Wallace could see the castle from where he stood. It was a beacon of freedom in tense times. The news of the MacCallister and MacGregor alliance had spread rapidly.
For some clans it was good news, a sign that the violence that had plagued them was over. For others, the news brought consternation. What if the alliance meant a stronger joint army? What if that army decided it wanted to invade their t
erritory?
Up and down the highlands the sound of the forges rang out during all the hours of daylight. Dark times were returning and they didn’t need the barefoot man to bring them. Clans could create darkness just as easily among themselves.
Wallace was nervous. Not because of the potential for war that might spread like wildfire across the hills and glens of his lands. He could handle war. As his father had told him during the last conference, the MacGregor Clan had survived many wars in its time. They would survive one more.
The risk of chaos didn’t scare him. What scared him was that Natalie hadn’t shown up yet.
“Relax,” the captain said, slapping him on the back. “She’ll be here.”
“What if she changes her mind?”
The captain laughed. “She’s spent six months preparing for this moment with my wife’s help and you think she might change her mind? Have you seen the way she looks at you? She loves you, Wallace, you’ve got nothing to worry about.”
He nodded. He was a tough highlander. He didn’t get nervous. Still, he might have breathed a sigh of relief when her horse finally appeared over the horizon. It slowly made its way down the hillside, followed by her helpers, Scarlett at the front of them all.
“Told you she’d be here,” the captain said, punching his shoulder. “Now I better go get ready. Where’s Tanya?”
“Here,” a voice called out behind them.
Wallace turned and looked up in time to see Tanya swinging from the weathervane. “Get down from there,” he called out. “This is a sacred building.”
“Only inside is consecrated,” she replied, sticking her tongue out. “Besides, I wanted to see Mom first. Doesn’t she look beautiful?”
“She’ll look furious if she sees you up there in your new dress.”
Tanya swung out into the open air, catching onto the scaffolding and then lowering herself rung to rung until she was on the grass.
By the time Natalie reached the church, her fiancé and her daughter were standing formally together as if nothing had happened.
“Look at my family,” Natalie said. “Who would have guessed one of you was on the roof a few moments ago?”
“You saw?” Tanya at least had the good grace to sound guilty.
The Key to Her Past: A Highlander Time Travel Romance (Clan MacGregor Book 4) Page 12
