HIDDEN IN TIME

by Longley, Barbara

  Respect? More like fear of retaliation. “Um, thanks, but no.”

  “Ye’d be better off with me. I’ll take the very best care of ye and our son, and ye’ll never want for aught.”

  “Does anyone in these valleys lack anything they need to survive? Do you have homeless people here?” He made her skin crawl. “I can’t shake the feeling you’re more interested in beating Brian than you are in courting me. What is it with you two?”

  “I cannot deny the two of us have never cared much for each other. When ye get to know me better, ye will come to understand why.”

  “Not my problem.” Turning back toward the direction she’d come from, Grayce started walking. Aiden grabbed her arm, and a flood of adrenaline hit her system. She tensed and jerked her arm from his grasp. “Don’t touch me.”

  “Ye don’t understand how important I am, but ye will.”

  “You’re wasting your time.” She gave him her back and strode away.

  “Ah, but ’twill be a great pleasure to convince ye otherwise.”

  “I’d prefer that you leave me alone,” she shouted. “I am not interested. Get it? Not. Interested.”

  “Once ye realize I am by far the better choice, ye will be. Those of us who are worthy of notice are the kind of men who welcome a challenge,” he called out to her retreating back.

  Yuck. She shook her head and continued on. Her heart still beating wildly, and an impending premonition of menace gripped her. She knew better than to ignore the feeling. Pulling out her phone, she switched it back on and strode around the cliffs away from Aiden.

  She spent the next hour searching for a signal. The nail she’d torn when she came through throbbed painfully as she climbed down from the ledge she’d been on. Missing a foot hold, she lost her grip and dropped the last four feet, coming to a bone-jarring halt on her butt. “Ouch.” More bruises, and all for nothing.

  No matter where she walked, or how high she climbed, she still couldn’t get a signal. “Damn, damn, damn.” If nothing else, her encounter with Aiden emphasized her need to have that talk with Brian, and she might as well include his parents in the conversation. She owed them the truth of her situation, such as it was.

  The sense of impending doom grew heavier as she walked back to the cottage, and for the first time ever, she regretted the loss of her visions.

  Brian awoke, rolled to his back and stretched his aching muscles. Another part of him ached as well and would until he won his lady’s heart and made her his. Groaning, he stared at the ceiling above him. He had no desire to leave the comfort of his bed just yet. Nor was he eager to relinquish the delicious remnants of the dream he’d been having about himself and a certain blue-haired beauty. He lingered, contemplating Grayce’s wrong-headed notion her arrival had been a cosmic mistake.

  Judging by the sunlight coming through his window, he’d slept well past dawn, which meant his da had taken care of their livestock by himself. He’d have to make it up to him once the tournament came to an end. Hunger and the need to relieve himself finally forced him to climb out of bed. He could fix himself something to eat, but he knew his ma would have enough prepared to feed him, his da, Grayce and a few neighbors should any stop by. Besides, he wished to see Grayce.

  He stirred the banked fire in his hearth, added a square of peat and set the kettle of water he always kept on hand over the flames before heading outside to visit the privy. When he returned, he washed quickly with the tepid water, dressed and headed out the door to the path leading to his parents’ cottage.

  The day was bright and sunny now, but dark clouds were gathering in the northwest, and the breeze came from that direction. The air carried the promise of rain. The tournament site would be muddy if the rain reached them before noon, making everyone’s footing perilous.

  Who would he face first in today’s test of skill? Aiden? He’d be glad to have that bit of unpleasantness over with at the start. He knocked on the back door and entered to the mouthwatering scent of eggs and leftover lamb from last night’s supper. “Good morn,” he said. “Mind if I join ye for breakfast?”

  His ma crossed the room and patted his cheek. “When have we ever minded? You are always welcome to join us for a meal. Toast, butter and jam are on the table. Help yourself. I’ll fix you a plate.”

  “Where is Grayce?” Brian took his customary place at the table and drew the basket of toast toward him. Then he poured himself a mug of tea.

  “She’s off to see if she can get a signal on her mobile phone.”

  He grunted. None of the devices women brought with them worked once they were here. Grayce would be sorely disappointed. “Did she eat before she set off on her fruitless quest?” If not, he’d gladly pack a meal and set out to find her.

  “She did.” His mother set a plate of food in front of him. “Eat, Brian. You’ll need your strength for later today.”

  He nodded and dug in. “Ma, what does cosmic mean?” he asked between mouthfuls.

  “Cosmic refers to the universe separate from Earth.” She waved her hand above her head. “Out there in the stars. Remember how I explained our sun is also a star and how vast the universe is that surrounds our tiny planet?”

  “Aye. I can still recite all the planets in our solar system by heart.” He sighed and shook his head. “Grayce believes her being here is a cosmic mistake.”

  “All of us feel that way when we first come here. I remember thinking this couldn’t be happening, not to me.” She made a clucking sound. “Give her time to adjust.”

  “Any advice ye can give me on how to go about winning her heart would be most appreciated.”

  “Just be yourself.”

  “Hmm.” He frowned. “I was hoping for something a wee bit more specific.”

  “Right now, she’s fighting the attraction, and who can blame her? Grayce hasn’t been here long enough to come to grips with her fate. She’s still convinced she’ll find a way home, but dearest, her heart shines in her eyes when she stares at you.”

  “She stares at me?” A pleasurable warmth spread through him.

  “When your attention is elsewhere, yes.”

  He couldn’t suppress the grin breaking free. Just then, Grayce burst through their door, nodded at his ma, took one look at him and scowled.

  “You have to stop provoking Aiden,” Grayce bit out, a wild look about her.

  The warm tingle disappeared, replaced with cold rage. “Did he touch ye?” His hands fisted.

  “Yes.”

  A red haze clouded his vision, and he shot up to his feet. “I’ll kill him,” Brian growled.

  Grayce gasped. “No. No, no, no, not like that. He grabbed my arm to stop me from walking away from him. That’s all.” She came to stand beside him. “He’s jealous of you, and I’m in the middle of your animosity toward each other. If you keep taunting and prodding him, he is going to do something stupid. I want you to stop.”

  She began pacing. “Remember last night when I told you there were things you need to know about me?”

  “Aye?”

  She raked her fingers through her hair, looking from him to his mother and back again.

  “Milk’s in the springhouse, Brianna,” Sloan called from the back door.

  “Good.” Grayce huffed out a breath. “I’m glad you’re here. We need to talk.”

  Alarm began to replace the rage Brian had been feeling. What could she possibly have to tell them that had her so anxious?

  “Can this telling be done whilst I eat my breakfast?” his da asked.

  “Of course,” she said.

  “I’ve already filled a plate for you.” Brianna set Sloan’s breakfast on the table and took her customary place.

  “Okay, here goes.” Grayce came to stand at the head of the table. “I have a trace of fae DNA, and because of that, I have certain … gifts. I’m an empath, and I have visions of things that will happen in the future, or I used to. Fáelán, my brother-in-law, is a third-century Fiann who trained and served under
Fionn MacCumhaill. Fáelán has a daughter with the Tuatha dé Danann princess Morrigan.”

  She gave them the essentials of her sister Regan’s epic misadventures with the fae, and then she described the gifts her sisters and mother possessed. She buried her face in her hands. “I know I’m doing a piss-poor job of explaining a very complicated issue, but I’m sure you get the gist of what I’m trying to tell you.”

  She straightened and squared her shoulders. “Now do you see why I keep saying I will not be here for long? I have a half-fae relation who is devoted to her father, who happens to be devoted to my older sister. Fáelán and my sister will insist that Boann step in to help. Boann views all of us as her kin, and she will come for me. The only fly in that ointment is that Boann’s grandsire happens to be King Lir Beneath the Sea, and—”

  “Boann?” Brian could hardly take in all she’d revealed. “DNA?”

  “DNA means I have fae blood.” Grayce nodded. “Boann is Fáelán’s half-fae daughter.”

  “Fáelán? Would he be the son of Breck? The same Breck who was also a Fiann and later the head chieftain to our entire clan whilst MacCumhaill commanded the Fianna?” his da asked, his tone awestruck.

  “The very same,” Grayce told him. “At first I thought my coming here was a huge cosmic mistake, but now I can’t help but think I’ve been sent here for a reason.” She glanced at each of them, and her gaze lingered when it came to him. “I have no idea what that reason might be, and that’s scary. It’s never good when shit like this happens to me.”

  She rubbed her forehead, her hand trembling. Her fear cut through Brian. His protective instincts flared. He stood up and went to her. Risk be damned, he drew her into the shelter of his arms. “We’ll work this out together, mo a ghra. Ye’ve naught to fear. Ye are not alone, and I vow to stop taunting Aiden. Will that ease your worry?”

  “Yes, that would help,” Grayce mumbled against his shoulder.

  Her warm breath tickled the bare skin at his throat, sending need cascading through him. By the goddess, having her in his arms only convinced him even more they were meant to be together. Certainty settled into the very marrow of his bones. He would fix everything and eliminate any threat or obstacle in his way. She was his to protect.

  “We must seek Ceann Carraig’s counsel on the matter. He’ll know what to make of all this,” Sloan offered. “Tales of those of our clan who were Fenians are oft told, and we’ve all heard of the mighty Breck and his legendary son, Fáelán. As I recall, the younger Fiann disappeared and was never seen again.”

  “My sister rescued him from a curse. King Lir granted Fáelán a boon after he defeated the Fae king’s favorite warrior in a contest. Fáelán asked the king to send him to the twenty-first century so he could marry my sister.”

  “Astonishing,” Brianna murmured.

  Sloan had finished eating his breakfast while Grayce told her tale, and he too rose from the table. “Now we know what became of the lad, and ’tis a wonder. Cursed by Morrigan and then sent through time, was he?”

  “That’s right, and all because Fáelán refused to become Morrigan’s consort after she’d tricked him into climbing into bed with her. She had disguised herself as an ordinary human.”

  “Sloan, you and Brian take Grayce to the druid’s grove. I’ll stay here. I have friends coming by soon, and I don’t want them to find our cottage empty,” Brianna said as she cleared the dishes and brought them to the buckets. “If I’m not here, that might cause alarm, or at the very least, gossip.”

  “If they find Grayce absent as well, ’twill likely cause even more talk. ’Twould be best if Grayce remained here as well, love,” Sloan said. “Brian and I shall speak with the head druid.” He glanced at Grayce. “Do ye trust us to see to this on your behalf?”

  “Yes. Thank you.”

  “Let us be off then, lad.” Sloan headed for the door.

  Reluctant to let her go, Brian kissed Grayce’s forehead and placed his hands on her shoulders. “All will be well. Ye’ll see.”

  She shook her head, and gazed up at him, her lovely face clouded with worry. “You don’t know that.”

  “Nay, but I shall do all within my power to make it so.”

  “I wish you wouldn’t say things like that.” She blinked rapidly, and her eyes shone bright with unshed tears. “Go. Sloan is waiting.”

  He kissed her forehead again and left her to his mother’s care. He and his father set out upon the trail leading them beyond their village to the grove where the druids made their homes. “What do ye make of Grayce’s tale?”

  His da peered at the dark clouds heading their way. “No telling what to make of her connections to the fae. Could be naught but coincidence that brought her to us.”

  Brian’s brow rose. “Do ye believe so?”

  “Nay, but far be it from me to understand more than what meets the eye. I’m a simple man and wish to keep it so.”

  He and his da walked on in silence, and he puzzled over all that had happened in the span of a few days. Never before in their long history had more than one woman entered their land when one of their clan passed away. Grayce’s appearance at a time when the magic protecting their valleys was waning, her ties to the fae, all of it had to mean something.

  Soon he found himself at the sacred spring at the center of the druid’s grove. All the doors of their ancient dwellings opened into the central green. Vegetable gardens flourished between the cottages, and beyond the ring of homes, a carefully tended orchard of fruit trees grew, surrounded by raspberry, blackberry and gooseberry bushes.

  “Brian, Sloan, welcome. ’Tis good to see ye both.” Nevan, the acolyte charged with tending ceremonial fires waved as he hurried toward them. What brings ye to the grove?” he asked, his gaze piercing.

  “We seek counsel with your great-grandda,” Brian told him.

  “I’ll see if he can spare ye a moment.” Nevan gestured toward a bench. “If ye don’t mind, wait here. He’s been cloistered with the other druids, the elders, and chieftains since dawn.”

  “Aye, we’ll wait.” Brian widened his stance and crossed his arms in front of him. Too much restless energy coursed through him. He couldn’t sit.

  “Whilst ye wait, partake of the blessed waters of the spring.”

  “We will, lad. We will. Be off now.” Sloan walked to the stone-ringed spring. A wooden ladle hung from a post. His da helped himself to a drink, refilled the ladle and brought it back to him. “Couldn’t hurt, laddie.”

  Brian accepted the ladle and drank the ice-cold water. “Almost as good as our spring water.”

  “Aye, but this one’s been blessed.” His da winked. “Who couldn’t use a bit of blessing?”

  “Fáilte romhaibh, Sloan, Brian,” Ceann Carraig called as he approached, a smile creasing the corners of his sharp eyes.

  The old druid leaned more heavily upon his staff today, as if the weight of his worries for their clan’s future pressed in upon his shoulders. Brian strode to the spring and replaced the ladle, returning to meet Ceann Carraig.

  His da stood to greet the priest. “Ceann Carraig, we would not have taken ye from the council if we did not have something of import to discuss,” he said, bowing briefly.

  “Think nothing of it.” The druid sat on the bench and gestured for him and his da to join him. “What troubles ye?”

  His da once again took a seat. “Brian, ’tis up to ye to relate what we’ve learned this morn.”

  “Right.” He remained standing. “Grayce MacCarthy has fae blood.” He shared all that Grayce had told them about her abilities and her relations. The druid did not seem the least bit surprised by the news. “DNA, she calls it,” he said, finishing the tale. “What do ye make of her claims? Do ye believe Grayce was sent here for a purpose?”

  “Hmm.” Ceann Carraig tugged at his beard, his expression inscrutable. “Everything under the sun happens for a purpose, laddie. Have I not drilled that into ye since ye were a boyo?”

  “Aye, but�
��”

  “I did sense there might be more to Grayce than met the eye, but that is true of everyone, is it not?” He shrugged. “Whatever her purpose, it changes naught. Mayhap her ties to the fae will aid us in some way, but ’tis more likely they will not.”

  Rubbing the back of his neck, Brian did his best to stifle his rising frustration, lest he say something he might regret. He couldn’t bear the thought of Grayce’s fae relation snatching her away from him. He needed to marry her sooner rather than later. Not even the fae would dare separate a man from his wife. The bonds of marriage were sacred, sanctioned by the goddess herself. All would be well if only he could convince Grayce to choose him as soon as may be.

  “Unclench your jaw, MacSloan.” The old druid peered at him. “Fretting will do ye no good, nor will it affect the outcome.” He rose from the bench. “Focus upon the tournament and trust the rest to fate and to the goddess.”

  “Easier said than done,” Brian muttered under his breath.

  “Will ye share our news with the council then?” his da asked as he too stood from the bench.

  “I think not.” Ceann Carraig arched a brow. “We do not want knowledge of Grayce’s origins falling into the wrong hands.”

  Good point. Aiden and his wicked mother must never learn of Grayce’s fae heritage, for that would only strengthen Aiden’s determination to steal her away from him. “Grayce’s safety is of the utmost importance. I vow to protect her with my life if need be.”

  One side of the druid’s mouth quirked up. “Then I’ve no doubt she’s in the very best of hands. I leave her protection to ye, Brian MacSloan.”

  Relief weakened his knees. Ceann Carraig had said Grayce was in the best of hands, and those hands were his. The druid had voiced his approval of their match, and the sole right of protecting Grayce had been granted to him and no other.

  “May the goddess bless ye and yours,” Ceann Carraig bowed his head slightly. “I must return to the council.”

  “And to ye and yours,” Brian said in return. He pondered the conversation as the druid made his way back to wherever it was the council was meeting.