Magnus’s brow drew down. “Why would ye?”
“Why did I do anything between the ages of sixteen and twenty-two? Because I was a dumbass. A not thinking dumbass. I don’t know. It was the stupidest thing in the world. But at the time—”
“Twas Braden’s idea?”
“Yeah, it’s like a power thing, now that I think about it. It’s like ‘look what I can make my girlfriend do.’”
“So twas tae show other people?”
“I didn’t think so at the time, though in retrospect I should have made him destroy it, but I didn’t and I never thought about it again. It definitely wasn’t for him to watch, it’s just weird.”
I checked his face, concern and concentration, trying to understand what I was telling him.
I continued, “Recently he was breaking up with his girlfriend and she was spiteful so she went into his videos and photos and released a bunch of them.”
“Explain what ye mean by this?”
“Remember those cat videos we watched? Like that. People watching tv can watch this video of me.” I decided to spill the rest of it. “And the worst part, it was on the news. That means my name is connected to the video and from the sound of it, from Lady Mairead appearing on our doorstep, my personal details will be released because of it. My past has caught up to me and now it’s put us both in danger.”
“Twas this what ye learned of last night at the reception?”
“Yes. Tyler told me, he saw it on the news.”
He stared out at the horizon as he asked, “Did he watch the video of ye, Kaitlyn?”
“No, I don’t — he said he didn’t, but the truth is, everyone can watch it and I just, I’m so freaking ashamed. Telling you, I don’t know how you can even look at me right now, I’m such an embarrassing wife.”
He winced. “By my accounts ye misplaced your trust, but ye canna hold yourself tae blame for the actions of a scoundrel.”
“Really? You’re not furious? Ashamed of me? Embarrassed?”
“Nae, for what purpose, tae hold ye tae account for his wrongs?”
“Wow, I thought you would be totally upset by this information.”
He shrugged. “Tae me, tis all just shiftin’ light and colors, ye tell me ye are in there, but ye also told me just two nights ago, that there arna real people inside the tv. Isna that what ye said?”
“True, real people aren’t inside the television, but—”
“And ye are here in front of me, flesh and blood, nae there in a bed with another man. I daena ken what those lights mean but they arna real, we shouldna worry on them much.”
“And you aren’t mad that it’s exposed us to being found by Lady Mairead?”
“We are found, mo reul-iuil, because the future has been lookin’ for us. Twould have happened soon enough. My ribs are healed. Lady Mairead has been bargained with, Samuel is comin’ next. We have tae rescue Quentin and then we will do what comes after.”
“None of this is what I thought you’d say.”
“I am tryin’ nae tae be a barbarian. I want tae kill him, but ye winna let me. Will ye?”
I shook my head. “You’d go to prison. Or me.”
“Aye. I daena like the sound of that, so instead I am bein’ reasonable on it.”
I dropped my head back on the chair and let out a long breath in relief. “I feel so much better now that you know. But I’m still embarrassed. I’m naked for the whole world to see.”
“I think when Braden loved ye he wanted the video tae keep ye close. You are verra beautiful, Kaitlyn. When I am away from ye, I am verra glad tae have a photo. I canna forget ye, but a photo helps tae keep ye clear in my eyes, as it is in my heart.”
I smiled. “Thank you, I don’t think it’s quite the same, but thank you for telling me I’m beautiful. That goes a long way this morning when I’m all overwhelmed.”
“You are also a terrible arse.”
I went incredulous. “A what? What the hell does that...?”
His face screwed up. “I daena ken if I said it right, it means ye are good, by speakin’ the opposite. Ye ken it, you and Hayley say it often tae each other?”
“A terrible arse — you mean a bad ass?” I giggled.
“Tis nae the same?”
“Nope, but that’s cool. You meant bad ass and I’ll take it. I’m a beautiful terrible arse. I’ve been called far worse.”
Magnus kissed the back of my hand as he yawned. “I need tae sleep.”
“Me too, can we cuddle through it?”
“Aye.”
Chapter 20
We woke up groggy past lunch time, discussed the matter, decided that we would leave tomorrow, but today we would go downtown to a restaurant to eat. I couldn’t remember the last time we ate out together, so I was pretty psyched. It was a blustery fall day, so I pulled out the fall day clothes: a pair of jeans that were curvy on me, a long sleeve shirt with a scoop neck for cleavage. A jacket and a scarf in a tartan plaid. It was Magnus’s and fun when I wrapped it around my neck to see how his eyes lit up. “I like ye in the tartan, Kaitlyn, it reminds me of my past home.”
“It reminds me of your past home too. And we’ll be back there tomorrow.”
Jim met us in the garage. “Hold up Magnus, there’s a car outside. It’s parked. A rental.”
Magnus said, “Stay here, Kaitlyn.”
Jim drew his weapon and they both left me standing quietly, heart-racing, in the garage. A minute later I heard my maiden name, “I’m here to see Katie Sheffield, she...”
I peeked out of the door.
Braden was standing in my front yard.
“Braden, what the fuck are you doing here?” I crossed the driveway.
“Katie?”
The most common question I had been asking, “How did you find me?”
Jim stepped in between us, Magnus stepped to my side.
“I called your parents and told them I needed to speak to you.” He stepped toward me and Jim stepped between us. “Who the hell are these guys?”
Magnus said, “I am her husband, and you are?”
“I’m Braden, I was her fiancé—”
I said, “Key word: was, and not that it’s any business of yours, but this is my husband Magnus Campbell. This is our security guard.”
“Oh. A security guard? For what?”
“To keep assholes like you off my property.” I looked at Magnus. “My parents told him. Great. This means our address is out.”
Magnus said, “Aye.”
I asked Braden, “What do you want?”
“To talk to you.”
“You flew to Florida and drove to Amelia Island to talk to me? You must be fucking desperate. You could have begged my phone number out of my parents and let me hang up on you and it would have saved you a lot of effort. I remember how much you hated effort. I’ve got nothing to say to you. And frankly I don’t have time, Magnus and I have to deal with something right now, that’s urgent — or wait. Are you here to apologize? Because I’ll listen to an apology but absolutely nothing else. My guess is an apology will take five seconds. Go.”
“I am sorry, but—”
“Great, thanks. See ya.” I grabbed Magnus by the elbow and pulled him toward the garage asking, “From this moment they could come right?”
Braden followed us still talking. “I just need five minutes, I — you heard about the videos?” His eyes cut to Magnus. “Maybe we can talk somewhere alone?”
Magnus said, “She daena want tae talk tae ye alone.”
I nodded. “Magnus can hear anything you want to say. And yes, we know about the videos. I said it before and it’s totally true, you’re an asshole. I can’t believe you let her have them.”
“I didn’t know she had them. I didn't even know I had them still. Look hear me out, okay? She found them and I guess was holding onto them for this — I just wanted you to know, remember Ulysses Lovell? We met him at VidCon?”
“Yeah, I guess?”
“
He’s doing a story about me — he’s working with YummyBabe. He’s asking a lot of questions and really being an ass—”
“Whoa, that's rich coming from you, the king of assholes.”
Braden looked uncomfortable the way Magnus and Jim were glaring at him.
I said, “Just to get you out of my driveway, what is your point?”
“I was going to ask you not to file a lawsuit and to, you know, say nice things.”
“Not? That’s classic. I’m filing a lawsuit so big that it will threaten to bring down the entire porny-YouTube industry. Better hold on tight.”
“But I didn’t do anything, maybe just—”
“It was your camera. Your idea. Your video that has existed in the cloud for three years. And guess what? It was your terrible choice in a girlfriend. And now because you don’t treat anyone around you with respect and dignity, your payback that the lawsuit is getting bigger the more you talk to me. How did she find the video?”
“She was looking for it...”
“So it was also your flapping jaw that told her it existed.” I gestured at Magnus. “My husband has taken this news in stride, luckily for you he isn’t that concerned about the implications, but you’re seriously delusional if you think I won’t use all the lawyers I can afford to come at you for suffering and damages.”
He said to Magnus, “Sorry man, about the trouble.”
Magnus grunted, a noise that came from his chest. His arms crossed, he glared at Braden.
Jim glanced in the front seat of the rental car. He leaned in through the open window and pulled up an iPhone.
“Katie, this is recording.”
“What is, his phone? His fucking phone?” I turned to Braden. “Your phone is recording?”
He shook his head. “I was on Instagram Live while I was waiting to talk to you, I guess I forgot to turn it off.
Jim said, “Looks like a location marker too.”
“Did you use my name, Braden, were you talking about me?”
“I was talking about coming to see you, yeah.”
I looked at Magnus, wide-eyed.
He said, “We will need tae go today then.”
“Great Braden, now I’m suing your children and your children’s children. You suck.” I yanked the phone from Jim’s hand and threw it on the ground and stomped on it. It made a very satisfying cracking noise. I ground my heel into the top of it. “We’re done here. Don’t ever come to me with your petty YouTube troubles or your fake pleas for ratings help, as far as I’m concerned we don’t know each other anymore. We never have. Get off my property.”
“Fine, but if you wanted a court case, I’ll give you one.”
“For what? Name one thing you can sue me over?”
“You broke my phone. That’s part of my livelihood.”
I shoved him in the chest toward his car. “You shut up. You stole my livelihood from me. And I freaking left and moved to Florida and now I have my happy ending and you get the hell away from it; you’re ruining it!” I all but forced him into his car.
He climbed into the driver’s seat, started the car, and rolled down the window, “You know what, you deserved it. You’re a cold-hearted bitch—”
Magnus grabbed the door handle and yanked it open. His voice was deep and guttural. “Get out of the car.”
“No.”
Magnus’s face was terrifying, dark and angry. “You heard me. Ye get out of the car and we will discuss—”
Braden looked terrified. “Hell no.” He spun out of our driveway, slamming his car door as he drove, spinning up a spray of sand, and sliding a bit as he turned onto the main road headed south.
Magnus watched him leave, shaking his head. “Why canna nae kill him?”
I stood beside him. “Because it’s illegal.”
“Tis hard tae understand when he deserves it.”
“Well, I doubt he’ll bother us anymore, but man, it really bothers me that Braden is the one who leaked our exact location.”
“We are fully found, Kaitlyn, tis time tae go.”
Chapter 21
Magnus tugged my bodice down my arms to my waist. We tucked in all the layers of my long underwear. I gathered my hair to the side while Magnus tightened the laces one after another and tied them. He rested his hands on my waist and pressed his lips to the back of my neck.
“How come as soon as I finish tyin’ your lacings I want tae take them off again?”
I wrapped my arm around his head and held him embracing me from behind. His arms around. I loved this position. Wrapped, pressed. His strength was a shield around me, enveloping and protecting. His voice near my ear, his breaths, now sure and healthy, warm and deep, filling the air around me. The scent of him on me. I pressed back and nestled to his chest. He kissed my ear and ran his hands up and down my tight bodice. This position was protection and desire, both, wrapped.
“Can we stay here, like this?”
His arms wrapped tighter around. A hug that warmed me. We held it for a long time. It was very much like a parting embrace, though we weren’t, but what we were doing was so full of uncertainty that we held each other like a goodbye anyway.
His voice rumbled up from his heart. “I want ye tae ken, mo reul-iuil, that I love ye beyond what I have the words tae say. I canna describe the depths of it, but I need ye tae ken that I will live my life tryin’ tae speak tae ye on it.”
I pressed against him. “Then I will spend my whole life listening.”
“Aye, I thank ye for it.”
Finally we pulled away.
Magnus strapped a knife to my leg.
And he finished dressing, quietly, methodically. It was how I knew he was scared.
* * *
We drove through McDonald’s for three combo meals, one for me, two for Magnus, and we, with the ac blasting, were headed south to a few acres of unused land outside of Gainesville, where we had hidden the vessels.
* * *
I needed to call Zach and tell him we were gone.
“Hey, how’s the honeymoon?”
“Good, except, um, Katie, hate to tell you this but I heard about a video—”
“Oh god, don’t watch it!”
“I didn’t. But what are we—”
“Magnus and I are leaving, we’re headed to Gainesville right now to get the vessels. I don’t think you can go back to the house. We have to move again.”
“Tell Magnus I said hi.”
“His eyes are closed I think he’s sleeping.”
Magnus said, “I am nae sleepin’, but ye are hurtlin’ the car down the highway and tis too fast.”
“It’s not too fast Magnus, I’m only going 65.” To Zach I said, “I need you to hire me a lawyer, I mean besides the one I already have, he’s a family lawyer, I need a not family-friendly lawyer, a mean ass lawyer, one that will sue the hell out of Braden and restore my good name.”
“Good, Okay.”
“Plus you have to move the whole house again.”
“Fuck Katie, seriously?”
“Yeah, I’m really sorry about it.”
“I mean we just got settled. It’s our honeymoon. This danger bullshit is getting really old.” I heard him huff through the phone and Emma asked in the background, “What’s happening?”
I said, “I’m so so sorry.”
“I know you are, it’s just — I’d like some peace, you know? Sorry, I know you know, you want it too. This is just hard.”
“I know. I agree. I’m dumping a lot in your lap and—”
“It’s not that it’s too much work. I don’t mind the work, hell, I want to be useful. But can’t we all have a home for once?”
I sounded like Magnus when I answered, “We’re going to do everything in our power to get to that. I promise.”
“Yeah, I know. I just needed to vent.” He blew out some air. “Where should we go?”
I looked over at Magnus, “Where should they move to?”
“It needs be somewhere desol
ate and quiet, without so many storms.”
Zach said, “Look, I’m sorry, don’t worry about it. We’ll figure something out. I’ll call Hayley, we’ll brainstorm again. I’ve got this.”
“We’ll try to get back in one week — with Quentin.”
“In time for Christmas, sounds great.”
Zach hung up.
I looked over at Magnus.
“Zach is upset about having to move.”
“I daena blame him.”
“Yeah, me neither.”
None of this was optimal, but though we had been planning, ready to go, aware that it was coming, it was still shocking that here we were — found. Suddenly we had to go. Right now.
* * *
An hour into the ride, Magnus asleep, an Ed Sheeran song came on the radio. I cranked it up, because I was bored and sang, loudly. Magnus opened one eye. I turned and sang dramatically, directly to him, emoting, wailing. He smiled and watched me for a moment.
“What is this then?”
“This is one of the songs Emma snuck onto the playlist last night, I danced to it with Hayley, sing with me. Listen to the words. It’s talking about weddings and love and how beautiful she is...” I tapped on the dashboard during the music, then pointed at him when the chorus started. I sang and Magnus sang some of the words, watching me for cues to them. The song wound down. I tapped Spotify and Bluetooth on my phone and pulled it up again. “Again!”
We both started singing, I was belting out, Magnus a beat behind for the words. “Okay, chorus again, do this with your hands.” I reached out and pulled the air and clutched it to my chest while I got all emotional to the song and then looked over as Magnus grinned watching me.
I smiled, “You sing it to me.” He sang the chorus, deep baritone and vibrating sexy yum.
“Whoa, that was... awesome. I really like your singing voice. You can do that anytime.”
“Thank ye, I like singin’ on how beautiful ye were on our wedding day.”
I blushed. “That seems like a long time ago.”
“Twas only yesterday when I watched ye walk down the aisle, tis still fresh in my eye and my heart.” Then he joked, “The song was almost as good as the songs back home.” He began to sing. “I heard the liltin’, at the yowe-milking, the lassies a-lilting afore the dawn o' day; but now they are moaning on ilka green loanin’, the Flowers of the Forest are a' wede away.”
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