Timeless Mist

by Terisa Wilcox

  Kris left the room, her heart and soul dejected and heavy. Where would she go now? What would happen to her if Iain didn't believe her? She made her way up to the roof and stood there, arms folded around herself. The pain of Iain's rejection was so sharp and cut so deep that she didn't even have the strength to cry.

  She watched silently as Iain strode out of the keep and met up with Raibert. He glanced up once, and looked at her. This was it, it was over. Kris knew it. She'd blown it. Her only chance at love, at real true love, the kind she'd only ever read about, and she'd blown it.

  Iain was a hard man, fair, but hard. She wasn't sure he could live with knowing he was married to a hated Campbell. And what if the rest of the clan found out? They would probably lose all respect for Iain. Then what would happen to her? She couldn't and wouldn't do that to him. If anything happened to him because of her, because of her last name, she'd never be able to live with it. But what could she do about it now?

  Kris looked to her left. The view was breathtaking, but nothing could soothe her at this moment. She needed a walk. She needed to think and put things back into perspective. She also needed a plan. If Iain turned her away, or turned her out, she would need too somehow survive.

  The thought crossed her mind to go speak with Sorcha, to let her know what had happened and what was going on. But she couldn't deal with that just now. After she calmed down some, maybe. But not now.

  She would take a walk. Maybe to that ridge again. It might help to soothe her frazzled nerves enough to think more clearly.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Kris glanced up at the brilliant blue sky as she walked along the wooded path. She had no particular destination in mind when she left the castle; she just needed to get out for a walk and clear her head. After her fight with Iain, she needed time to think.

  She looked down when something caught the corner of her eye. Gold? Out here in the middle of the woods?

  She stooped and brushed away the brambles covering whatever it was, then stopped and gasped, sitting down on the ground with a thump.

  The watch.

  She reached for it slowly, unsure as to whether or not she was imagining it.

  Her hand closed around the cold metal and sent shock waves through her body. After all this time, after all she'd been through, could this be a way to return to her own time? And did she even want to return to her own time?

  Holding the watch by its chain she again studied it's intricate design. It definitely looked like the same one. There was only one way to know for sure. She brought it closer and rubbed her thumb over the lion's crown, searching for that one protruding point that had opened the hidden back.

  Gentle pressure with her fingernail did the trick. The back popped open and immediately the same hauntingly familiar melody began to play. Kris could see the tiny scratches on the inside, and knew, without a doubt, it was the same watch.

  This could then return her home. Maybe. She just had to figure out how the timepiece worked. She was positive it had been that, along with the inscription on it, that had sent her whirling through time in the first place.

  A noise to her left made her look up. A cottage stood in a small clearing in the woods. An old woman was bent over retrieving pieces of wood.

  Kris hurried over to her. "Here, let me help you with that."

  "Ahh thank ye, lass. 'Tis difficult work for an old woman."

  "You don't have anyone to help you?"

  "Laird Iain comes by e'erday to lend me his assistance, as does Raibert. But they are away just now, arenae they?" She looked at Kris, "Ye are the laird's new lady."

  "I suppose I am."

  The woman led Kris inside and showed her where to deposit the wood.

  Kris straightened and looked around the tiny cottage. It was more spacious than it looked from the outside. The large room she stood in was a kitchen with a small table and two stools set by it. It held a large cook stove, as well as pots and kettles. Herbs hung from the ceiling in one corner of the room drying.

  "You must be the healer, Morag. Lady Sorcha has told me about you. She's very impressed by your healing abilities."

  "Aye lass." The old woman stirred whatever was in the kettle on the fire then added a few more pieces of wood to the fire.

  The old woman straightened. Kris looked at her a moment and felt her jaw slide down. "It's you!"

  The woman continued to look at Kris, a serene expression on her face.

  "I've seen you before. In the future. I mean in my time." She shook her head, baffled. "You were at the faire in Rannoch!"

  The woman nodded slowly.

  "You sold me this watch." Kris held up the chain in her clenched fist.

  The woman sighed. "Aye, lass, 'twas I who sold ye the watch."

  "Why?" Kris whispered, reaching for one of the stools and sinking slowly onto it.

  "Ahh, lass, 'tis my punishment, ye see."

  "Your punishment? You take me away from my family, my life, fling me back through time and it's your punishment?" Kris shook her head. "I don't understand this at all."

  The old woman retrieved a jug from beside her hearth and sat across from Kris. Pouring what looked like wine into two goblets, she handed one to Kris.

  Kris drank deeply, belatedly hoping there was nothing in the wine that would do something else crazy to her.

  "The wine isnae tainted, lass."

  Kris smiled weakly.

  "Will ye hear my tale?"

  Kris nodded, unable to speak for the lump in her throat. Could Morag send her home?

  "Once, a long time ago, I was a verra bonny lass. I was also verra vain about my beauty, boasted of it quite vociferously. My twin sister and I fell in love with the same lad. We began a competition of sorts, to see who could win the love of this young lad. My sister won him." Morag sighed deeply. "On their wedding day, I was heartbroken. I thought I could have any male I set out to get, but Aidan was truly in love wi' my sister. 'Twas a devastating blow to me. On their wedding night, I tricked my sister into leaving and took her place. Ye see, we are twins, so I dinnae think Aidan would be able to tell the difference." She lowered her head a moment.

  "He knew the moment he kissed me that I was nae the fair Aeval whom he'd wed. When my sister returned and learned of my deception, she was furious. When she was finished ranting, she sent me away until she could decide on my punishment."

  "You were banished?"

  "Aye. When she decided my punishment, I was sent here." She gazed into the fire a moment before continuing with her tale. "First, she turned me into the old woman ye see before ye and sent me away from her court. As further punishment, I was to find seven lads and lasses and unite them with their true mates. I willnae be allowed back to Aeval's court until I accomplish this task and learn what the meaning of true love is."

  "Am," Kris took a deep breath and blew it out, "am I the first one you've done this too then?"

  "Nay, lass, there ha'e been others."

  "So what happens if you fail? I mean what will happen to you if it doesn't work right?"

  Morag shrugged, "I ha'e nay had that happen yet, but if it does, then I move on to the next. I cannae return to court until I ha'e met the requirements and accomplished the task set before me.

  Kris sat quietly for a moment, digesting what Morag had told her.

  "Just who is this Aeval anyway?"

  Morag took a deep breath, "She is the faery queen."

  "Oh." Kris was surprised she didn't feel shocked at this revelation, but with everything she'd been through over the past couple of months, it was no wonder. "Your name isn't really Morag, is it?"

  "Nay, lass. I am Aoife, twin sister of the faery queen."

  Kris nodded. "So why did you choose me? I have a life and a family to take care of. I had a life I was happy with. I was busy, and it was a full life." At Morag's skeptical look, Kris grew defensive, "so it wasn't always happy. But it was my life."

  Morag took a deep breath. "When I saw ye at the faire, ye loo
ked so lonely. I know ye have a family and ye love them all well, but what of yourself lass? Ye've ne'er had the one thing yer heart truly yearns for--a love that will last through all time."

  "I didn't need it. I'd learned to live without it. I can still be happy without it." Kris shook her head, not understanding any of this.

  "Search yer heart, lass. 'Tis what it wants, what it needs above all else."

  Kris sighed softly, unable to continue to deny it. Morag was right. She'd always dreamed of finding love, a true and lasting love. She'd tried very hard to make it work with David for just that reason. She hadn't wanted to give up. But she had. When she'd broken it off with him, she'd given up on that dream, convinced it was just an impossible wish—until now.

  "So tell me, Kristianna Campbell, have ye found yer love?" Morag peered closely at her, waiting for an answer.

  Kris stood and walked to the window, peering out into the dusk. "I thought I had." She whispered at last. "Now," she turned and looked at Morag, "now I'm not so sure. I love him well enough, but…" she shrugged and forcibly swallowed the very large lump in her throat, "I not sure he can ever return that love."

  "Dinnae sell the laird short, lassie. He is a hard mon, aye, and more so because he has had to be. Ye ha'e brought him a long way in softening."

  Kris shook her head. "But this is too big for him to come to terms with. Not only did I lie to him, but I lied about who I really am. I'm a Campbell, he's a MacGregor. I don't think it's at all workable." She sighed as a tear escaped.

  "Love can o'ercome many things."

  "Not this. A bird may love a fish, but where would they live? I love a medieval laird, one who's most hated enemy are the Campbell's, though not without good reason. Not to mention the fact that he is a good deal older than me." She shook her head, sadness nearly overwhelming her. She knew what she had to do, the question was could she do it? And if she did, could she live with it afterwards?

  She looked at the watch still gripped in her fist and came to a decision.

  "I love him." She closed her eyes and took a firmer grip on the watch. "And because I love him so much, I have to let him go." Her voice was barely above a whisper. "I…" She stopped, took a deep, fortifying breath and pushed the words out of her mouth, "I want to go home."

  Morag shook her head, "so be it then, lassie."

  The next thing Kris knew, the floor beneath her seemed to give way. She was floating, or flying through the air, the sense of inertia making her want to vomit, while the pain in her head nearly split it in two. So intense were the forces battering her from all sides, that she gave into the blackness closing in around her.

  * * *

  The bright sun shining through the window woke Kris. Her head pounded and her mouth tasted disgusting. She kept her eyes closed, willing the spinning to stop. A memory tugged at the edges of her mind.

  She lay still, her eyes shut tight, and tried to calm her pounding heart and labored breathing.

  Voices. She heard voices from somewhere as if from a long distance off. Then, with a suddenness that staggered her, her memories flooded back.

  Iain.

  She sat up with a start and groaned as the pain in her head nearly laid her flat again. Forcing herself to remain still she kept her eyes closed until her head stopped pounding and she thought she might be able to move a bit without throwing up.

  She opened her eyes slowly, wondering what she would find when she did so. Would she be home? Would she still be in her and Iain's room?

  The room looked familiar. Very familiar. She blinked several times to clear her vision and continued to sit still on the side of the bed. A very comfortable bed, she noted. Glancing around, she took in every detail of where she found herself. A tapestry hung on the wall next to a door. No chest found itself beneath the window, and no wardrobe stood anywhere in the room.

  Morag had done it, it seemed.

  Kris started as the voices from the hallway grew louder just before they halted altogether and a head poked itself around the door.

  Hailey looked at Kris, a wide grin splitting her face. She rushed to Kris' side and embraced her in a fierce hug.

  "Oh, honey, we've been so worried about you. How do you feel?"

  Kris returned her friends hug then began to weep. She was home. That meant that Iain was long dead. That thought brought forth more tears.

  Hailey hugged her, rocking gently and making soothing noises.

  "Shh. It's all right. We found you, you're safe now."

  Kris shook her head, wondering if anything would ever be all right ever again. Finally, after what seemed an eternity, her tears ceased. She let Hailey help settle her back into bed and tuck her in.

  "I'll just go get you some broth and a couple of aspirin. Will you be okay for a minute or two?"

  Kris nodded, but said nothing.

  Hailey left after another long glance at her friend. Making her way down to the Laird's solar, she let herself in.

  "She's finally awake," she announced to those waiting there.

  Lucas jumped from his chair and headed for the door, his siblings following behind. Hailey stopped him with a hand on his arm.

  "Give her a few minutes before you go rushing in there. She needs quiet and rest. I just wanted to let you all know that she's awake now. I'm going to get her some broth and some aspirin. That goose-egg she's sporting has got to be causing her an enormous headache."

  Lucas agreed, "I can only imagine. But the doc said she'd be fine. I'm just relieved she's finally awake."

  Hailey smiled at him, "me too." She released her hold on him, "go see her if you like, but don't cause a ruckus and try to be quiet."

  Lucas nodded and continued on his way to see his sister. He had a lot of questions for Kris, but right now just wanted to see her, to make sure she was okay.

  A light rap on her door made Kris open her eyes. At least the pain in her head was a bit more bearable.

  "Come in," she rasped. Then gasped as Lucas, Aleksa, Keith and Tristan marched in. "What are you all doing here?"

  Lucas rolled his eyes, "and just where else do ya think we'd be with you gone missing for over three months?"

  "What?" She started, sitting up and putting her hand to her head again. She looked at Lucas then the others who all nodded.

  "Thr…three months? I've been gone for three months?"

  They all nodded again.

  Lucas hugged her tightly, "we've been beside ourselves with worry about you, sis. Where in the hell have you been?"

  "Lucas." Hailey came into the room holding a tray, "there'll time enough later to grill her. Right now, she needs some food and rest."

  Kris shook her head. Three months. "I'll explain everything to you all later. I promise. But I think right now, Hailey is right. I…I need some time."

  "Fine," Lucas growled, "but be assured, little sister, I will have my questions answered. Make no mistake about that."

  "I promise, Lucas. I will tell you everything."

  Lucas nodded, gave her another hug and left. The others did the same, all except Hailey and Aleksa.

  "We've been so worried about you, Krissy." Aleksa began to cry.

  Kris held out her arms and Aleksa immediately went into them. Kris rocked her sister, trying to calm her down.

  "It's okay, Leks. I'm home now, and I'm fine." She grimaced as another pain shot through her head, "or at least I will be once I get rid of this headache." She smiled at her sister, who wiped her eyes and attempted her own smile.

  "I'm so glad you're home."

  Kris accepted the aspirin from Hailey with a grateful look. She popped them in her mouth and swallowed, then closed her eyes and put her head back for a few minutes.

  "Just give me five minutes to let these pills do a little something about the pain and then I'll explain things to you and Hailey as best I can."

  * * *

  Several hours later, Kris looked at both the girls who sat wide-eyed, their mouths practically resting on their chests, in stun
ned disbelief. She knew it, could see it written all over their faces. Well, what had she expected? She was sure she wouldn't have believed such a wild tale either.

  "But…" Aleksa started, then shut her mouth with a snap.

  "I don't know what to say, Kris." Hailey finally spoke up. "You know your brothers are never going to believe this."

  "I know. But I swear to both of you, it's the truth."

  "It's just all so unbelievable." Aleksa said. "I mean, we've all read those romances about time travel and such, but…"

  "Uh huh," Kris agreed, "I know, but we never, ever, in our wildest imaginations, believed anything like that could really happen."

  Aleksa nodded in agreement.

  "I've never known you to tell a falsehood, Kris." Hailey said. "I for one am willing to take this for fact. If you say it happened, then I believe you."

  Kris reached for her friend's hand, "thanks, Hailey." She looked at her sister. "What about you, kiddo?"

  "I have to agree with Hailey." She smiled, a little wobbly, but still a smile, "I just can't believe you gave up on him though, Krissy. What were you thinking? Don't you think there would have been any kind of chance at all for you two?"

  Kris shook her head, tears welling in her eyes again. She wiped the away in frustration.

  "I don't think so, Leks. If you could have been there, seen the look on his face when he realized that not only had I lied to him, but I was a Campbell." She shuddered as she remembered the look of hatred and near revulsion on Iain's face. "It doesn't mean I'll stop loving him. Or that I'll ever forget him. It's gonna take me awhile to get over this one."

  She stopped and swallowed over the lump in her throat, "but my leaving had to be. It never would have worked between us. With all the Campbell's had done to that clan, he couldn't have gotten past it. It was asking too much of him. I know that. It will be hard, but I'll learn to live with it and eventually, I'll move on." She wished she felt as assured as she sounded.

  Hailey and Aleksa looked at each other, but said nothing more.

  "Now, the first thing I want to do is get out of this bed and find some jeans. You have no idea what it's like to walk around in a long dress day in and day out. Those things can get annoying." She forced a smile and light note into her voice.