Adventures in Time

by Annie Seaton

  But they had one last night.

  Dougal watched he without speaking, his eyes grave and wary. She lifted her hand and placed it against the rough stubble on his cheek. He held her gaze and turned his lips into her palm. Warmth shot through her skin and she pressed against his hard body. With a muffled groan he dropped his head and captured her lips with his. The need that rose in her was ripe and so huge it overwhelmed her. She wanted no more than to fall into it and wished suddenly they could just be two people who could stand and kiss in the moonlight while the shadows grew long and deep.

  “Just one night,” she murmured against his lips.

  “Need me as I need you, Sofia.” His breath was warm as it mingled with hers.

  She couldn’t deny him as he deepened the kiss and she closed her eyes losing herself in her feelings as the moment spun around them. He pulled back and looked at her for a long moment.

  “Come to bed with me,” he said softly as the shadows played across his face. Turning to the stairs, she held her hand out for him to follow and led him to the small solar where she had spent the past six weeks.

  He sat upon the soft feather bed and she placed her fingers on his lips.

  “No words,” she murmured stepping back into the moonlight. The rough wool dress fell to the floor and she reached up and unbound her braids. Her hair fell to her waist as she turned to him. His breath was warm on her skin and she pulled his head closer and rested her forehead on his hair as his tongue flicked at the tips of her breasts.

  He pulled her to the bed and quickly shed his breeches and shirt. He rolled on top of her, capturing her mouth with his and she clung tightly to his bare shoulders, kneading her fingers into the tight muscles of his broad back. His skin was wondrously smooth and hot and she opened to him.

  DAWN LIGHT SPILLED across the bed thought the open casements. Sofia lay on her back staring up at the timber beams high above them. Next to her, Dougal breathed slow and even. A night of passion lay behind them and she stretched remembering the feel of him against her and inside her. She caught her breath on a muffled sob and a solitary tear ran down her cheek as she looked at him trying to imprint his face on her mind.

  He lay sprawled on his back, only partially covered with the sheet and his chest rose and fell with each breath as he slept. It would be dangerous, he had spoken of what would come today and she was fearful. A small white scar, just faintly visible sat above his top lip. Her eyes lingered on his strong face and she traced the raised skin with a light touch.

  This life was not for her and she could take no joy in the feelings she had for this man. She had to return to Vienna and continue in her quest, despite her doubts; there was a laboratory to rebuild and staff to care for. It was time to return to her own life and she would get there however she could. The bed moved beside her and she smiled as Dougal’s hand tangled in her hair and pulled her down to him.

  Chapter 14

  The next time Sofia woke the room was full of flickering sunlight and Dougal was gone. He had kissed her farewell and promised to return within two days and she’d drifted back to sleep. Dressing with nervous haste, she reached for a warmer dress as the scurrying of the clouds across the sun warned of a chill wind. Today, she vowed she would find a way off the island and be gone when Dougal returned.

  After she had breakfasted with Mary, she headed out for a walk. Breasting the slope of the hill furthest from the castle, she paused as a small flock of bleating ewes crossed beneath her. Shading her eyes with her hand, she looked down at the small shingly beach below. The tide was low and the entrance to a cave was exposed. A cairn of rocks was piled at the entrance and it appeared there had been a rock fall which explained why she had not noticed it before. Setting off down the cliff path, small pebbles slipped underfoot and rolled down the path ahead of her, disturbing the birds nesting in the cliff. They rose high above her squawking and complaining as she disturbed their morning slumber.

  Reaching the bottom of the path, she held her dress above her ankles and jumped the last few feet onto the wet sand. A small cave had been exposed by the rock fall and Sofia stepped inside and waited for her eyes to become accustomed to the dark. Rotting wooden boxes and small kegs covered in glistening seaweed littered the floor. The cave was under the high tide mark and water had filled it just a few short hours ago. She shivered—it would be very easy to get caught here by the waves. Hesitantly she stepped further into the cave and to her delight, her gaze fixed on a small wooden boat. Hurrying over, she ran her hands along the sides—it was intact and the oars were still fixed in the rowlocks. If she could drag it to the water, it was but a short distance to the mainland, even less with the tide out.

  She recognized the old boat for what is was and for a fleeting moment wondered if Dougal was involved in smuggling. Many stories of smuggling on the Cornish coast had graced the dinner table when she’d lived with Indigo and Zane. Now in, she knew he despaired in his role of sheriff of ever defeating the smugglers

  Sofia had no money and no other clothes and there were none of her possessions to retrieve. For a brief moment, she considered bidding Mary farewell, but she shook her head. The wind would come up even more as the day got later and it would be too rough to row the short mile to the mainland. She would worry about what she would do once she got there. Of immediate concern was the manner in which she would pull the boat out of the cave and down to the sea. The shoreline was pitted with rock pools and the beach was a mix of shingle and sand.

  Sofia stepped from the cave and searched the shore line for the clearest route to the water. She raised her hand and shaded her eyes from the morning sun glinting off the narrow channel of water between the small island and the mainland. The beach circled around the bay in a deep horseshoe shape and piles of fallen rocks covered the sand. The shingle at the south end of the beach was clearer and Sofia tied her skirt up into a loose knot and set to work. It took than a half hour later of tugging and pushing before she grunted with satisfaction when the bow of the small boat reached the low tide mark. She took off her shoes and put them in the boat as small waves washed around her bare feet. Allowing the boat to float for a few minutes in the chilly water, she checked it was intact and free of leaks before she gave it one huge shove and clambered into it. Using one oar, she pushed at the shingly bottom and the boat scraped and floated in the deeper water. The wash of the outgoing tide pulled it into the channel and Sofia dipped both oars into the firth and started to row.

  A shrill cry from the shore caught her attention and she turned her head swiftly, half expecting to see Mary on the beach calling her back She breathed a sigh of relief as the kittiwakes circled above the cliff returning to their nests on the side of the cliff.

  It took only ten minutes of gentle rowing before she reached the mainland and euphoria swept over her. Putting one oar aside she pushed to the right to turn the boat to the rocky shoreline but the euphoria disappeared as a rogue wave caught the boat and spun it around. Sofia fought to control the direction of the boat as the current picked it up and carried it toward the rocks ahead. The front of the small boat slammed into the jagged edge of a large black rock close to the shore.

  Sofia screamed as the boat tipped to the side and she slid into the icy water. She grabbed the rock with both hands and scrabbled to find a foothold in the shingle in the knee- deep water. Once her feet were firmly in the shingle, she turned and held the boat steady beside her. Pulling it behind her, she made her way to the shore as she looked back at the Isle of Rothmore and a pang of regret settled in her chest.

  A cloud passed over the sun and the castle where she’d spent the last few weeks stood dark and shadowed. A sense of foreboding overwhelmed her and she prayed Dougal and Edward were safe.

  After safely stowing the boat behind a large rock above the high water mark, she squeezed the water from her skirts and put on her shoes. For a few moments she sat in the sun trying to get warm, but when her body began to shake from the cold, she decided movement would war
m her more quickly. She climbed to the top of the low cliff cresting the edge of the beach and looked to the east.

  DOUGAL PLACED THE ASTROLABERORS safely in its bag and stowed it in the bag slung around his neck. They had arrived on the edge of the small town of Kilmarnock in the year of 1861 and were expected at Castle Dean at sunrise. Now he stood at the window of the small inn staring out into the rain-drenched dark. A sudden squall had swept in from the sea as they had arrived and most were still abed. Not only was the weather keeping them inside; the innkeeper informed Dougal word of the uprising had run through the town like wildfire and the townspeople would turn a blind eye

  They had tolerated the Knights Templar in Castle Dean for many years and would be pleased to see the Castle empty, he said. If all went to plan, the uprising of the local knights would forever banish the Council of Five and disband the order. Dougal fingered the sharp dirk tucked into the waistband of this kilt hoping fervently the rising would not result in bloodshed. But he knew the Council would resist.

  With all their might.

  His thoughts turned to Sofia. Using the Astrolaberors to navigate through time had never bothered him before, but today uneasiness settled in his bones; leaving her in a previous time worried him. He shook it off— it was the anticipation of the quest they were about to complete after the passion of the night he had spent with her causing this feeling of impending doom.

  Nothing to do with Sofia.

  He ran his fingers over the black jewel he carried next to his heart. Edward followed Dougal from the inn and they walked through the woods toward Castle Dean. The woods were alive with the morning rustling of wildlife and the trills of birds anticipating the sunrise.

  The sudden scream was shrill and disturbed the peace of the woods. Edward ran ahead of Dougal heading for the Castle, drawing their knives as they ran. Jumping the small stone wall which formed the western boundary of the grounds, they encountered a group of men milling around the side of the castle.

  Dougal recognized each of them as local knights. A cheer went up as they saw Edward and they ran forward and lifted him onto their shoulders. Dougal hung back in the shadows of the castle wall and waited.

  “They are gone, my Lord.” One of the older knights, a wealthy landowner from Cumnock known to Dougal, slapped Edward enthusiastically on the back.

  “The Castle is deserted and the servant advises they have sought retreat in St Mary's Chapel Lodge in Edinburgh. They left in the middle of the night.”

  The men cheered as Edward turned to Dougal with a huge grin in his face.

  “Aye, breakfast, man, and then you can go home to your woman.” Edward laughed and winked at Dougal.

  SOFIA KEPT TO THE EDGE of the road from Troon. Her feet were cold and her wet skirts flapped about her ankles. If any traffic passed by, she would shelter in the forest and remain unseen. Until she was sure Dougal and Edward had disposed of those threatening her in Kilmarnock, she would look out for her safety. The further she walked from the coast, the deeper the sadness settled in her chest. The physical ache of yearning for Dougal had grown as her journey continued and she chastised herself. It was one she would have to live with. He had no place in her life and she certainly couldn’t live in that cold lump of stone. Once she was back in her own world, she would forget all about him.

  She would.

  Trying to control the shaking on her limbs from the cold devouring her body, she concentrated on her immediate problem. Her main worry was to find a way to get home...or first to Indigo in Cornwall. She would beg lodgings here for a day or two and get a message to Indigo to send Mr. Grimoult to collect her in the airship.

  If only, she had the necklace. It would be so easy.

  The distress Indigo must have endured for the past six weeks was unthinkable. Sofia put her sister’s grief from her mind; there was nothing to be gained by dwelling on it.

  As long as the boys were safe.

  Dougal had assured her repeatedly they had come to no harm and Mr. Grimoult would have seen them safely back to their parents. Once she was home, she would make amends, but never would she trust herself to look after the children again.

  Not until they were grown up anyway.

  Distant voices and clanging from a blacksmith’s forge brought a smile to her face. Not only did Dougal reside in a cold and draughty lump of stone, he lived in a country where technology was not welcomed. Queen Victoria’s reign had seen the resurgence of technology in England, Wales and Cornwall but the stodgy Scottish parliament refused to accept any of the steam-powered machinery seen as essential in the rest of the country.

  Sofia crept along quietly, not wanting to draw undue attention to herself until absolutely necessary. The watery sun was high in the sky; she had been on the road for a considerable time and her wet feet and skirts were made worse by the chill wind blowing at her back. A small bridge crossed the river that wound its way from Kilmarnock to the Firth—the path through the forest had taken her close to the water as she had walked and she had stopped to take a drink. Now she walked cautiously across the bridge and her attention was caught by the noise of a small fair ahead. Her stomach growled as the aroma of roasting chestnuts assailed her nostrils.

  No matter, she had no coin.

  Sofia stood shivering behind a large oak tree and observed the crowd milling on the green to ensure all was safe. Patting her braided hear and straightening her wet skirts as best she could, she joined the throng

  Wandering past the vendors selling a variety of foods and wares, she observed the odd dress of the women. Compared to the fashion of Vienna and the continent, their dress was very old fashioned and plain. Excited chatter surrounded her as she pushed unnoticed through the crowd.

  “Her majesty has arrived in Edinburgh!” The shrill voice of a stout woman called across the crowd. “They say the crowds in Edinburgh are huge and most of the town duly turned out to greet her and Prince Albert.”

  Sofia turned slowly.

  Who was she talking about? Queen Victoria has been dead for three months. She shook her head in confusion?

  What new Queen was this?

  Perhaps the Princess Royal had taken over the throne on the death of Victoria, her mother, but Sofia knew that to be high unlikely as Princess Victoria had married Prince Frederick William of Prussia three years ago. Sofia and Indigo had followed their love match with interest as the royal couple had first met at the Great Exhibition at Crystal Palace in 1851 and Indigo swore to this day, the Princess Royal had purchased some of her cosmecuticals.

  Sofia pushed through the crowd holding her wet skirts high to avoid the mud trampled on each side of the path.

  “May I trouble you, madam?” she asked quietly with her head bowed. “Who is visiting Edinburgh?”

  “Why the Queen and her Prince of course.” The woman looked at her with interest. “It has been the talk of the country since the trip was planned. They disembarked at Leith only yesterday.”

  Sofia raised her head slowly. “Her Royal Highness, the Princess Frederick?”

  The woman was no longer listening. The crowds parted and a hush fell over the assembly as a group of six men walked though the fair. Sofia shrank into the crowd, and hurried to step behind a tented stall.

  Merde.

  The men wore the cross of the Knights Templar on their tunic.

  They were still here, so it seemed Dougal and Edward had been unsuccessful.

  Oh, God. Let them be unhurt.

  The stout woman followed her behind the tent and held out a bag of chestnuts.

  “You are a trifle pale, my sweet. Would you like to try one of my chestnuts?” She gestured to the tent.”I have the best stall at the market.”

  “Please tell me, is it the Princess Royal in Edinburgh?”

  The woman walked over to where Sofia was leaning against the stone wall at the edge of the grassed area, and reached out to Sofia’s forehead. “Have you had a wee bit too much sun, lovey?” Her voice was concerned. “Although it’s no
ught been a hot day? And you are shivering.”

  “Please?” Sofia’s voice was rising and heads turned. “Who is in Edinburgh.” The foreboding in her chest was making in difficult to breathe.

  “It is our Queen Victoria and her beloved Prince Albert, of course,” replied the woman. “They are touring Scotland.”

  “But... but she’d dead?” Sofia’s voice rose even further. “She was poisoned in May.”

  “Methinks you are not feeling too bonny, lassie.” The woman came closer and put her large hand beneath Sofia’s elbow.”Come and sit in my tent for a rest and I will get you some ale.”

  Sofia’s head was spinning and she was no longer listening to the kind woman.

  What was happening to her?

  Where was she— or of greater importance—when was she?

  She reached out and grasped the woman’s arm and spoke urgently. “What is the date...please?”

  “It is the first of September,” was the slow reply.

  “In what year?”

  “Why in the year of our Lord, eighteen forty two.”

  The last thought in Sofia’s mind before the world went black was that if it was eighteen forty-two, she was only ten years old

  Not only had the murdering bastard faked her death, he had taken her back in time.

  DOUGAL SHARED A MEAL with Edward and the knights despite his anxiety to return to the island ...and Sofia. The Council had moved to the sanctuary of Edinburgh and the danger was gone...for the present. It was time to tell Sofia of the details of her kidnap and the use of the Astrolaberors to navigate her to the past. It was imperative she understood; it had been the only way he could ensure her absolute safety but he had a feeling it would take some sweet talk to convince her of this.

  He set forth in the midmorning and guided his horse westward to the coast under a watery sun. Thoughts flitted through his mind as the horse followed the deserted path and a warmth filled him as he thought back to the night they had shared.