Everything In Its Time

by Dee Davis

"Oh, my. You look far too sweet a girl to be dealing with criminal types."

  Elaine smiled at the comment. It was not the first time she had heard it, and she took it, as she always did, as a compliment. "I'm a lot tougher than I look."

  Mrs. Abernathy handed Elaine a registration card to fill out. "You said your father's from Inverness? Do you have other family there?"

  "Not that I know of, although I do have an aunt who lives near Inverbrough. It's my understanding that at one time it was the site of a Clan Macqueen holding."

  Mrs. Abernathy paused for a moment, her lips pursed in thought. "Yes, I believe you're right. Corybrough, it was called. I think there was a connection between the Corybrough Macqueens and the Mackintoshes who originally owned Duncreag. But that was before it changed hands."

  "And your family owns the tower house now?"

  "Yes, it's been in our family for just over five hundred years. But listen to me running on. I'm sure you're tired. Why don't you step into the parlor and I'll bring you a cup of tea."

  "Thanks, but I'm really anxious to see Jeff and Katherine."

  "Of course, of course. Why don't you leave your bags here and I'll have Jamie bring them up for you later."

  Elaine nodded gratefully.

  "I haven't seen Katherine today, but I saw Jeffrey in the second-floor parlor not half an hour ago. Just take those stairs to the great hall. Walk all the way through toward the gift shop and you'll see another set of stairs. The parlor is just off the first landing. Do you think you can find it? I'd be more than happy to show you."

  "No, no, I'll be fine. I'm sure I can find my way. Could I have my room key, do you think?"

  "Oh, goodness, I don't know where my head is today, to many things happening at once, I suppose. My mind isn't what it used to be, you know." She rummaged in a cubby behind her for the key. Elaine sincerely doubted that Mrs. Abernathy's mind was anything but razor sharp.

  "Here you are. It's on the third floor, next to Jeffrey's. I'm sure he'll show you where it is, if indeed you need any help."

  Elaine took the key and stuck it in the pocket of her jeans.

  "Dinner is at half seven. I'm sure I'll see you then. Welcome to Duncreag." With that, Mrs. Abernathy was gone, in a flurry of activity.

  As Elaine stood alone in the lobby, a quote from The Wizard of Oz popped into her head. "People come and go so quickly here." Laughing to herself, she turned to the small hallway which Mrs. Abernathy had promised her would lead her to the stairs.

  She set off, softly chanting, "Follow the Yellow Brick Road, Follow the Yellow Brick Road...."

  *****

  Jeff stood at the parlor window watching the shadows from the low-lying clouds scuttle across the garden below. The roses were blooming, their aged canes heavy with intertwined peach and pink flowers. There was a small stone bench under a rose-covered arbor. Some white variety that made the little arch look as though it was covered with late spring snow.

  Jeff glanced at his watch. Two-thirty. Surely Elaine would be here soon. Together they would decide what to do about Katherine.

  "Jeff?"

  Elaine. He turned and with a sigh, pulled her into his arms in a great bear hug of relief. "Thank God you're here."

  Elaine pushed away, laughing. "If I'd known the greeting I'd get I would have taken an earlier flight." She looked into his face, and all hint of laughter died. "What is it? What's wrong?"

  Jeff took her hands and led her to a chintz-covered sofa. They sat facing one another, hands still linked together. "Katherine is gone."

  Elaine cocked her head to one side. "Gone? What do you mean?"

  "Just what I said. She's nowhere to be found. I've looked everywhere. Elaine, she's just vanished."

  Elaine frowned and pulled her hands away, worry knitting her brow. "Jeff, she can't have just vanished. Let's take this a step at a time. When did you last see her?"

  Jeff ran a hand through his hair. "Last night. We were in here. We talked and I fell asleep in the middle as usual and Katherine sent me to bed. We agreed to meet for breakfast at ten this morning."

  "Right. So then what happened?"

  "I went downstairs to her room to meet her this morning and she wasn't there. I was a few minutes late, so I decided to go on to breakfast. I figured she'd be there or that she'd gone for a walk. But, she never showed up. So after breakfast, I started looking everywhere for her."

  "Have you told the Abernathys she's missing yet?"

  Jeff let out a groan. "No."

  "Why in the world not?"

  "I kept thinking I'd find her and we'd have a good laugh over what a worry wart I was. And then, well, I guess I let all of Katherine's talk get to me."

  Elaine's brows shot up. "What talk?"

  Jeff shifted restlessly, finally getting up and walking over to the window. He stood in silence, trying to gather his thoughts. She was going to think he was crazy.

  Elaine repeated her question. "Jeff, what talk?"

  He turned to face her. "How much has Katherine told you about her dreams?"

  Elaine looked puzzled by the change in subject. "Um, everything, I guess. She told me about the first dream when we were in grad school. And I know she's had others since. But you don't think her disappearance has anything to do with her dreams, do you?"

  "To be honest, I don't know what I think. She had another dream while she was here."

  "And Iain was in it?"

  He raised an eyebrow at the name. "Yeah. She says she saved the guy. Evidently there was someone sneaking up on him and Katherine saw it and willed herself to appear or something like that. She maintains that he saw her and she was able to warn him about the guy trying to kill him."

  "She actually communicated with him?"

  "So she says. Look, the point is Katherine believes that she and this Iain character are linked somehow and that that's why she keeps having the dreams."

  Elaine interrupted. "And she believes the key to this link is Duncreag."

  "Got it in one. You're not a lawyer for nothing."

  Elaine smiled, then sobered. "But I still don't see what all this has to do with her being missing."

  "Well, I'm not exactly sure myself, but when Katherine got back from Scotland, she still had the dreams, but they weren't very clear."

  Elaine's eyes widened. "Because neither of them was at Duncreag."

  "Right, at least that's what she believes."

  "Oh my God, then five nights ago when she dreamed she could hear them talking ..."

  Jeff finished her sentence. "... Iain was at Duncreag."

  Elaine took a deep breath, a frown creasing her forehead. "Okay, so then Katherine arrives here at Duncreag and has another dream. Where was Iain when this attack took place?"

  "In the woods somewhere, not at Duncreag."

  "So what happened eight years ago happened because they were here at the same time?"

  "Yeah. Katherine thinks that some sort of cosmic doorway exists between Iain's time and ours." Jeff gave her an apologetic look. "I know it sounds far-fetched."

  Again Elaine cut him off with a wave of her hand. "If that's true—and I admit it's a big if—then it would follow that when they are both at Duncreag, the door would be wide open."

  "And she could go to Iain again."

  Elaine's eyes narrowed in thought. "Wait a minute. When Katherine went before, she was only there for a night. She woke up the next morning alone and very much in the twentieth century."

  Jeff crossed the room and flopped back onto the sofa. "She has an answer for that, too. She says that she chose to leave Iain. She was embarrassed about what they had done. So she left and went back to what she thought was her own room."

  "In effect, then, she came back through the door to her own time."

  "Yeah. And left Duncreag the very next day, thereby giving up any other opportunity she might have had to return to Iain."

  Elaine leaned forward, her body tense. "You think that's what happened to her, don't you? You think she
found the door again."

  Jeff nodded miserably.

  "That's why you haven't told the Abernathys."

  "What do I tell them? I seem to have misplaced my sister. I think she may have gone to visit her boyfriend in the Middle Ages.' They'd laugh me out of the room."

  "Maybe, maybe not. Look, Jeff, we're in the middle of the Scottish Highlands. People here still believe in things beyond scientific explanation."

  Jeff reached out and brushed a wayward strand of copper-colored hair away from Elaine's face. "What do you believe?" He held his breath almost afraid to hear her answer.

  Elaine covered Jeff's hand with hers. "Truly? I believe that anything is possible, Jeff. There are so many things out there that we can't understand. I think that it's arrogant to pretend that we have all the answers."

  Jeff felt the panic building inside him again at the thought of his sister trapped in another time. He stood up, feeling a need to move. He walked over to a fading tapestry hanging on the wall and touched it, feeling the frail aging threads. Turning back to Elaine, he clenched his fists in frustration. "We're talking like we actually believe Katherine found a doorway leading back in time."

  "Yes, we are."

  Jeff felt a shiver run down his spine. "So you're accepting that she may actually have found her way back to Iain, and that even now, she could be standing in this very room, in another century with a man who has been dead for five hundred years?" His voice rose as something between dread and panic gripped him with icy claws.

  "Yes, I guess I am, at least for now. What about you?"

  Jeff groaned. "I don't know. Rationally, I'm having a little trouble believing any of this is possible. But my gut tells me it's the truth. You should have seen Katherine's face when she told me about this stuff. I may not believe it, but she does. And my sister's no slouch in the brain department."

  Elaine massaged her temples as she nodded her agreement. "So where does that leave us? Did Katherine say anything to you about her plans after finding the door?"

  Jeff sat down again, taking her hands in his. "Yes."

  "And?"

  "She told me that if she could get to Iain again, she intended to stay with him." He spoke softly, his voice edged with pain, his stomach in knots.

  Tears welled in Elaine's eyes. "Then we might never see her again?"

  Jeff felt his own eyes fill with tears. He suddenly couldn't find the right words. Numbly, he nodded, pulling her into his arms, seeking to comfort and be comforted.

  Chapter 12

  "SO YOU'RE IN charge of everyone who lives here? Isn't that an overwhelming responsibility?" Katherine sat on the bed, her arms loosely draped around her knees. She watched as Iain fastened his belt and adjusted his plaid. "Aye, 'tis a great responsibility, but also a great honor. Duncreag is my home, and these are my people. Are there no clans in your time?"

  Katherine thought for a moment. "Well, there are families, and I suppose there are some that could reasonably be called clans. But most people aren't part of one, and certainly not bound to a Laird."

  "Aye, but you're no' from Scotland. Surely, even in your time, there are still clans in the Highlands." He bent to tie the lacings on his boots.

  "Yeah, but they're not the same. There is no need for protection, and people are more transitory, which means families are often spread out all over the place. I'm sure there are Lairdships, still, but I'd imagine they're purely symbolic."

  "Humph." Iain straightened. "I canna say I would no' be interested in seeing this time of yours, but I dinna think I'd want to live there."

  Katherine laughed. "Well, then I suppose you can begin to understand how I feel."

  Iain crossed to the bed in two paces. He grabbed Katherine by the shoulders, his eyes fierce as they bored into hers. "What are you saying, lass?"

  Katherine raised a gentle hand to his face, attempting to erase his frown. "Only that this is all strange to me and will be even more so when I leave this room." He released her shoulders.

  "Then, you're no' wishing you could return?"

  She leaned into him, kissing him full on the lips. "No."

  His arms circled her slender body, pulling her closer. "Good. Because I've no intention of letting you go anywhere."

  He shifted then, pushing her back into the blankets, his big body covering hers.

  "Iain Mackintosh, 'tis time you were up and about," a voice boomed through the closed door.

  Iain sat up with a groan. " 'Tis Ranald. I'd best let him in. He's no' likely to go away. And we dinna want him rousing the entire household."

  "But Iain, I can't..." Katherine blushed and waved a hand over her current state of undress.

  "Iain. I know you're in there." The door rattled.

  "Patience, I'm coming."

  Iain threw a smile at Katherine over his shoulder as he hurriedly rummaged through a trunk by the bed. "Here, this will have to do. Cover yourself quickly, woman. I'll no' be sharing you with the likes of Ranald." Iain shot her a half-amused, half-serious look as he waited for her to don his shirt.

  Katherine pulled on the huge shirt, and with a smile for Iain, scrambled to sit in the straight chair at the end of the bed. Crossing her legs, she tried to look calmer than she felt. She was grateful that Iain was so large— the shirt hung well below her knees, and seated in the chair, it draped to cover even her legs. By twentieth-century standards she was decent. By fifteenth-century standards she was probably pushing the envelope, but this was hardly an ordinary situation.

  Iain pushed back the bar and swung open the heavy door.

  "God's blood, man, what are you doing in here? You'd think you had a wench ..." Ranald burst into the chamber, then froze at the sight of Katherine. His cheeks darkened with what looked suspiciously like a blush. Katherine smiled and casually waved a hand. "Hi."

  Ranald stood with his mouth open, looking first at Katherine, then Iain, and then Katherine again. Iain grinned at Katherine. "You've flummoxed him. I dinna know that I've ever seen Ranald without words." Iain clapped Ranald on the back. "Come, cousin, I want you to meet my lady."

  Still slack-jawed, Ranald allowed Iain to pull him forward. "Katherine, this seemingly dull-witted man is my cousin, Ranald Macqueen." Ranald managed to close his mouth, but just barely. Iain gave Katherine a wink and then turned to his cousin, obviously enjoying himself immensely. "Ranald, may I present Katherine St. Claire."

  Ranald swallowed convulsively, his eyes glued to Katherine. "The fairy?"

  Katherine bubbled with helpless laughter. Hopping up from the chair, she executed a somewhat less than perfect pirouette, ending with an exaggerated curtsy. "At your service."

  Ranald sat on the bed with a thump. Iain closed the door. The three of them stared at each other in silence broken only by Katherine's occasional bursts of laughter.

  Finally, looking somewhat chagrined, Ranald pulled himself together. "You're no' fey."

  She shook her head. "No, mere mortal, I'm afraid. Touch me, if you like. I'm real."

  Ranald reached out a hand, only to find it being pulled roughly back.

  "Here now, you'll no' be touching Katherine without my leave. Take my word on it: She's definitely flesh and blood."

  The look Iain leveled at Katherine made her legs turn to jelly and her face burn. She sank back into the chair, grateful for its support.

  Ranald, his wits sufficiently recovered, looked at the two of them. "I think 'tis time you both quit having sport with me and explain yourselves." He eyed Katherine, hands braced on his knees. "I'd hazard a guess that you're the lass Iain has spoken of. The one I thought didna exist."

  "I am." Feeling the need for hard evidence, she removed the chain from her neck and carefully handed the cairngorm to Ranald. He studied the small stone intently and then, with a look at Iain's earring, handed it back.

  "Well, since you dinna seem to have arrived with pixie dust, can I ask how you did come to be here?"

  Katherine replaced her necklace and looked to Iain for supp
ort. "It's kind of hard to believe."

  Iain crossed his arms over his chest and shrugged. "I think 'tis best we tell him straight out."

  "Tell me what?"

  "Katherine is from the future."

  Ranald's mouth threatened to fall open again. "Sweet Mother of God." He crossed himself. "The future."

  *****

  "Remember, you're the daughter of my aunt Isobel's dearest friend. Your father has holdings in France and you grew up there."

  Katherine nervously fingered the linen of her sleeve and tried to concentrate on what Iain was saying. She couldn't decide if it was comforting or alarming that he appeared to be as nervous as she was. He paced back and forth in front of a narrow window, his brows drawn together in fierce concentration. Only Ranald appeared at ease, sitting on a bench in front of a table piled with ledgers of some kind.

  "Katherine, are you listening?"

  She swallowed her butterflies and smiled at Iain. "Of course. I'm from France."

  "Aye, that ought to explain why your Gaelic is less than perfect. 'Tis a blessing you speak French."

  Well, at least in theory she did. Katherine blew out a breath. Learning to read Norman French for her dissertation was a far cry from speaking it with any fluency. But she'd had modern French in college, and between the two she ought to be able to pass muster with anyone but a native. And fortunately, according to Iain, there were none at Duncreag.

  Ranald took up the tale, his voice sounding like a Scottish version of Ichabod Crane. "You've been staying at Moy visiting Isobel. It was there that you met Iain and me. Iain asked you to come and visit Duncreag."

  Katherine interrupted, ready to stop the lessons and get on with the show. "I decided to come and was attacked on the way here. I managed to escape, but my guards were all killed or dispersed. My trunks were lost. I found my way here late last night. I spent the night in your guest room ..."

  Iain shook his head. "Chamber."

  She suddenly had great sympathy for Eliza Doolittle. "Right, chamber, and you were kind enough to loan me some of your mother's things until mine are found. Which of course they can't be." Her voice rose a little with the enormity of it all.