Highland Tales Series Box Set

by Rory B. Byrne

  Following Phoebe’s disappearance, Simon had a series of tasks to complete to ensure his necessary placement at the facility. He wiped the data from the camera servers facing the chamber. He cleaned up the teacup sharps. He went as far as he dared into the room to retrieve the glasses case that fell from Phoebe’s jacket. Wherever she went, it was without her reading glasses.

  The rest was a matter of convincing his boss, the owner of Equinox Technologies, that what happened to Phoebe Biel was a miraculous episode. Brian was a stickler for security. The cameras missing the event caused Brian much stress. Simon convinced Brian that, with his help, they could duplicate it. Simon understood Brian’s demands for secrecy. They needed to convince everyone else that Phoebe left Scotland by her own volition. It was Simon’s idea to pick an obscure Scandinavian town for Phoebe’s relocation, and Brian handled the business with the police. That was a time when money solved a lot of problems for small-town police departments.

  Ancient Bloodline

  Simon woke from a light doze when he felt someone tugging on his right arm. It startled him because it was a sudden jerk, as if they needed to get his attention desperately. He opened his eyes to an empty private room and no arm.

  Simon reached over his chest with his left hand and touched the tender area at his right shoulder. The arm, the one that woke him from sleep, wasn’t there anymore. That arm went the way of Harper Biel. She went the way of her mother, into the void, beyond anything humanity understood. Simon feared that place. First it took Phoebe, the only woman he’d ever loved. Then it claimed her daughter. Simon felt as if his arm beckoned him to join it. Somehow it made it through the portal where mother and child slipped through. Simon felt as if he was on the verge of something profound.

  “How are you feeling?”

  Her voice was soft, like the wings of an osprey. Karen was the night nurse who seemed to know whenever Simon woke from bad dreams. She arrived with concern on her beautiful face. There wasn’t anything timid about Karen. She was a product of Scottish nobility. Unapologetic with the changing of the bandages and caring for the wound.

  Now in charge of Simon’s rehabilitation, Karen wasn’t someone who made Simon feel insignificant. Somehow, through the conversations over the weeks and the constant attention, Karen made Simon feel something he hadn’t in a very long time. Simon felt like someone appreciated him.

  “I feel a little stiff.”

  Karen nodded. She was pretty in an earthy way. Her features reminded Simon of a woman who had time to tend to her complexion. And time enough for her patients. Karen had eyes that sometimes looked pale gold or gold-green, depending on the available light. She had an oblong face that separated her eyes, elongated her narrow nose, and separated her full lips. Karen had a beautiful mouth that Simon liked looking at when she spoke. He knew it was something she noticed about him. She didn’t seem to mind.

  “I can work that shoulder for you later after your visitor.”

  “Brian is here?”

  “He’s on a call in the hallway.”

  Simon moved to sit up. He had to learn new ways to make his body balance again. The simple act of grabbing a bed rail to haul his upper body took more work because he only had one arm to do it. Karen waited beside his bed, watching him. He had to do it himself, at least try, before she aided him.

  When Brian MacIomhair arrived at Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Shieldhall to check on Simon Hinton’s progress, it was a special event. Before the accident that severed Simon’s arm, the CEO of Equinox Technologies barely spoke to Simon. He was another face among the many who worked for the private company. Simon’s skills in linguistics and Scottish history made him an essential employee in the beginning. But that was eight years ago, the last time they had a recorded event. Simon witnessed the incident while the cameras facing the fairy stone caught nothing. Now the new incident claimed another life along with Simon’s right arm.

  There was worry on Brian’s face, etched deep along his forehead. He had things to say, Simon could see that, but Brian put on a face that suggested he wanted privacy with Simon.

  “How are you holding up?” Brian asked. He tucked away the smartphone. He gave Karen a small, humorless smile. “Nurse, I need to speak with Mr. Hinton.”

  “Of course, Mr. MacIomhair,” Karen said. She removed the redressing equipment from the bed tray and left the private room.

  “We need you back at the site,” Brian said.

  “Has anything happened?”

  “No, nothing,” Brian said. He began to pace next to the bed. “This is maddening. I can’t recreate what happened. I’ve got the police wanting to search the interior of the facility.”

  “You should let them. Show them there’s nothing to see.”

  “We can’t do that,” Brian snapped. He lowered his voice to a hiss. “We’re still holding the girl. She’s been nothing but a bother. This is worse by the day, Hinton. What the hell happened in there?”

  “I sent the reports.”

  “They don’t make sense. You were inside the circle with the girl. Then she vanished and took your arm with her.”

  “That is correct.”

  “Why not the other girl, why didn’t she go, too? Or you, for that matter?” Brian asked. “We’ve managed to capture some of the events from her mobile camera. It shows the confrontation between you and the American girl.”

  “Not just any American girl, Brian. That was Harper Biel.”

  “I am aware of that; don’t you think I know that?” He had to take a breath to keep his voice from projecting too much. “We can’t allow the police into the facility, Hinton. We still have Miller. We’re at a loss. I can’t let her go because she knows too much. Everyone will know it if she gets away.”

  “What are the alternatives?”

  “At this point, whatever we do, we’re guilty. This is all because that girl went looking for her mother, now we’re in the worst financial dilemma my company has ever experienced.”

  “I’ve considered the correlation between the two events,” Simon said. “I believe it has to do with the bloodline. Phoebe and Harper Biel are from a local family, born and raised Highlanders. The Weatherspoons are a long bloodline. The connection between them, that’s the key.”

  Brian listened but didn’t appear to hear Simon. “This has nothing to do with a bloodline.”

  “Brian, why is it so hard for you to accept there is something more than science going on here? You bought a slice of land because you believe, like everyone else, there’s a doorway under the mound. We found the fairy stones. I’ve deciphered much of the script. But I think the truth isn’t in the stones, it’s in the bloodline. You have Phoebe. She came here because she had a family here.”

  “She came because I offered her more money than she earned as an instructor.”

  “When you open your mind to other possibilities, you need to consider that the only time it ever happened again, it had to with another Weatherspoon near the site. I looked at the histories, Brian. I know the Weatherspoons lived in the area for more generations than many of the clans. I’ve found business transactions from the family dating back to 1496. They paid in gold for the property. It was a direct transaction to the king. They owned the land and buried the fairy stone. They’ve lived in the area ever since.”

  “Why bury the mound? That doesn’t make sense.”

  “Why stay in the area to protect it?” Simon asked rhetorically. “It’s to do with something in their connection to the land. You’re focused on the portal; you do not doubt it’s there. We’ve witnessed it open on two occasions.”

  “You saw it, Hinton. Only you, and now this American girl saw it, too. She’s going to talk, and the longer we keep her, the worse it is for all of us.” Simon stopped pacing. He gripped the bed rail. “You must come back. You must come back immediately. We can get you nurses, around-the-clock care. I
need you back on site.”

  “Who’s there now?” Simon asked.

  “I have Cole Fraser’s team monitoring the site.”

  “I see.”

  Simon’s history with the mercenary began and ended with the disappearance of Phoebe Biel. The man didn’t believe the report. He said he saw through Simon. Brian needed someone to carry out the fabricated relocation of the woman, and it had to look legitimate. Fraser was a man who had no scruples, and Brian didn’t get his hands dirty. Money bought secrets and loyalty. In the case of Amy Miller, the American girl locked up at the facility, Fraser was a man who wasn’t afraid to make the girl disappear permanently, if need be.

  “I’ll make all the accommodations. We can get you the best physicians and physical therapists. I see the way you look at that nurse.”

  “Karen’s not a nurse. She’s a clinician. She works overnight here.”

  “You can have her, Hinton. I need you back at the site. I’m willing to discuss your theory about women. Just get back there.” Brian removed the mobile from his pocket and scanned the text messages. He returned a few messages. “We can’t manage any longer. We’re at an end with the girl.”

  “What will you do with her?”

  “Don’t you see? Once we get that portal open, no one’s going to care about that American girl. We’ll have access to anything we want. If our predictions are correct, we’re talking about an entirely different time. That means we have control over an entire planet.”

  “I don’t think it’s that simple,” Simon said. “I’ll talk to Karen. If she agrees, I can leave within the next few days.”

  “Fine, that works fine. I’m heading back to Eskdale in the morning. I expect to see you and that girl by the end of the week.” Brian went to the door.

  “How can you be so confident Karen will drop everything to come north?”

  “There’s something you don’t understand, Hinton. I’m offering people a place in a whole new world. Who doesn’t want to be a part of something incredible?” He looked at Simon. “Money means a lot to people, Hinton. I know you don’t care about it. But sometimes it’s all you need to motivate people to move mountains.”

  “What about the American girl?”

  “We’ll deal with that when the time comes. I brought in Fraser and his team because he’s not afraid to roll up his sleeves. After we open the portal, it won’t matter. We’ll own the gateway; people will pay millions to go through.”

  “Is this all about the money?”

  Brian shook his head. “That’s the trouble with you, Simon. No matter what, it’s always about the money.” He left the private room, a room Equinox Technologies paid for so Simon could heal and return to work.

  It had been a week and a half. Simon wanted to return to the site. He felt balanced on a double-edged sword. He feared the fairy stones. He feared the influence. But the other side of him, the side that understood Brian’s vision, that side wanted to pass through the portal.

  Simon knew, even if Brian didn’t believe it, that there was a connection to the Weatherspoons and the fairy mound. He had to go back for Phoebe. If she was waiting on the other side, perhaps the time away helped her see Simon meant no harm. Yet, now her daughter shared the woman’s fate, she’d passed through the portal. Somewhere on the other side, there was a mother and daughter reunion after eight years. Simon felt a pang of jealousy at the thought.

  Sometime following Brian’s departure, Karen returned to the suite. She had a look of refined determination.

  “I’ve been approached to be your keeper in Eskdale. Are you aware of that?”

  “Yes, Brian needs me back to work. He believes if I have someone monitoring my progress, I will mend faster.”

  Karen’s eyebrows rose in agreement. “I believe he’s right. With the right movement and proper working conditions, you will do very well. You said it yourself. You don’t need two hands to do your job, just the head on your shoulders.” She smirked. “Let’s hope you get to keep that for the foreseeable future.”

  “Are you considering the offer?”

  “Mr. MacIomhair makes it difficult to say no. He’s putting in a call to my superiors. I will know within the day or next.”

  “I appreciate your company.” Simon felt Karen’s hands tugging at the bandage over the shoulder wound. Her fingers ran along the gauze. She was close to Simon. He saw the flecks of color in her amber eyes.

  “I think it will be good for you to go back to work. I don’t expect you will need me very long.”

  At that sudden statement, Simon felt a thread of sadness.

  The Father’s Shadow

  Alice sat on the edge of her bed in the small room of the Weatherspoon Guesthouse. She pressed the smartphone to her ear and listened to Chief Inspector Westland give a long, one-sided conversation about Alice’s inability to find the missing girls.

  “I understand, Sir.” It was the most Alice had gotten to say in the last four minutes. “I am well aware of my duties. I believe all our answers are within the property.”

  “You have to understand, MacIomhair and Equinox Technologies brings a lot of business to the area. Before he purchased the property and sunk money into the place, the town practically dried up.”

  “That doesn’t excuse them of deliberately barring our access to find the missing Americans.”

  “The girls aren’t anywhere near Inverness or Eskdale, we’ve got police looking in Edinburgh and London.”

  “Don’t you think if the girls went that far south, someone would see them on CCTV cameras? It doesn’t explain why Harper left her passport in her room. They are here, Sir. All I ask is the warrant to search the property. We’ve delayed long enough. I think if Brian MacIomhair cared about the area, if he cared for the people of Eskdale, he’d at least allow us to search the grounds of the facility.”

  “He allowed officers access to the property—”

  “Not all of the property,” Alice interrupted. “It’s the warehouse we want to search. Since the accident that took one of their workers, MacIomhair brought in added security. I’ve seen the vehicles in town, Sir. Something happened the night Harper Biel and Amy Miller disappeared. It is no coincidence that one of the workers at Equinox Technologies lost an arm the same day two girls go missing. Allow me to have the search warrant. All we want is closure up here so we can help these people understand their law enforcement officers did all they could to find the girls.”

  She heard Westland sigh over the phone. It was something that made Alice feel like she’d won the argument. Making a case for public scrutiny had a way of moving the man more than her beliefs or intuition.

  “I’ll see if we can get the warrant. It will have to wait until Monday. You have until then to make use of your officers. Barring anything else happening, with or without that warrant, we close the case. You will return to your duties in Edinburgh.”

  “I understand, Sir.” It got old repeating herself.

  Yet, Westland believed in order and diligence from his officers. Alice knew he was a member of the old guard. In Westland’s youth, women in uniform had no business out in the field. They remained fixtures of the precincts, glorified office personnel with uniforms, answering phones, fetching coffee and tea. Alice deserved her appointment as an inspector. She put in her hours and the testing. She earned her degrees, and anywhere else in the world, she’d have that respect she deserved. Under Westland, though, it was different. He was a man from a generation of separating men and women based on physical strengths, not their overall capabilities.

  “I believe whatever happened to their man, Simon Hinton, is in direct relationship to the missing Americans.”

  “I’ve heard it before, Lemont. Prepare to close your case, whatever happens. MacIomhair will fight a warrant tooth and nail.”

  “As I understand it, Sir, the man won’t know we obtained the war
rant until we’re knocking on the front door. If he has something to hide, he can talk to his solicitors at that time.”

  “Monday, Lemont, not a day longer,” he said and ended the call.

  Alice stood up and sighed. She dropped the phone on the bed and looked at the time. It was a little after ten at night. Another useless day had gone by, and they were heading into Thursday. Rain saturated the countryside. If they wanted to do more overland searching, any clues would have washed away in the rainstorm.

  Alice crept from the bedroom and made her way downstairs. It was an attempt to wander through the old house noiselessly. But years of settling caused floorboard to groan and the wooden stairs to creak. By the time Alice reached the ground floor, she knew it was impossible to get around without people noticing.

  There were orange embers in the fireplace and a small light on in the kitchen. She heard someone else shuffling around. Alice wanted bottled water, something available to all guests from the standalone refrigerator. Her presence in the Guesthouse was much appreciated, given the Weatherspoons were relations to Harper Biel. Alice knew about her mother’s disappearance eight years ago. It was too close to be a coincidence.

  No one brought it up, but it was on everyone’s minds.

  “Tea, dear?” The older woman asked. It wasn’t so much a question as a way of steering Alice to sit down at the small round table off the kitchen.

  Alice sat at the table where a saucer and teacup gently clicked on the table before her. With arthritic knuckles, the old woman slowly poured tea into the cup. The tea strainer inside the kettle rattled.

  “Thank you,” Alice said. It was barely above a whisper.

  She watched as the crumpled pack of filterless cigarettes slid into the front pocket of the old woman’s house smock.