Love Beyond Belief (Book 7 of Morna’s Legacy Series)

by Bethany Claire

  I could see all of it now. I could see it because I experienced it firsthand. While my grandmother allowed work to rule her life, I refused to do so. Mr. Abbiati would be shocked if I landed another job—he had no idea I was even looking—but I knew he could see how run down I’d become even if he chose to ignore it for the sake of his business.

  I let out a frustrated sigh as I rounded the last corner of my run. The breath caught uncomfortably in my chest, sending me into a fit of coughing that told me I had no real business cooking for anyone today. Still, I knew that I would. There was no one to help me, and lots of locals would be mighty upset if I closed without notice. I stopped running just outside the restaurant door then hurried to find my key so that I could go inside for a glass of water to soothe my cough.

  “You sound terrible.”

  I gasped and started at the voice. In my three years of running the restaurant, I’d never encountered another soul while out on my runs. Mr. Abbiati spoke in Italian, just as everyone did here, but I unthinkingly answered him in English, gripping my chest as I caught my breath and bent to pick up the keys I’d dropped.

  “Oh, you scared me.” I caught my mistake and continued in Italian. “What are you doing up this early, Mr. Abbiati?”

  Mr. Abbiati often stopped in during the day to check in on me and visit over a cup of coffee, but never this early in the day.

  “I’m always up this early, but it’s not often that I’m out of the house until after the sun is up. I don’t ever sleep, really. I was reading by my window and saw you run by. I thought Francesca and I would meet you at the end of your run for an early morning coffee. I need to talk to you.”

  I glanced down at Francesca, taking notice of the leashed cat for the first time. Perhaps many cats are accustomed to being walked around on a leash, but the only one I’d ever seen was Francesca, a cat so dog-like that she never failed to put a smile on my face. Mr. Abbiati never went anywhere without her.

  “Of course, come on in. I’ll get us some coffee and Francesca some milk. Do you mind visiting with me while I look over my emails? I need to track my latest seafood order.”

  He nodded and followed me inside, sitting quietly down at the small table inside the kitchen where I often rested in between meal rushes. It didn’t take long to brew the coffee. After preparing it just the way Mr. Abbiati liked, I squeezed his shoulder and sat down beside him, opening up my laptop to check on the order. He spoke almost immediately.

  “I’m worried about you, Sydney. I have been for some time.”

  “Oh?” In truth, I was only sort of listening to him. While tracking my order, another email at the top of my inbox captured my attention completely. Nearly six months had passed since I submitted an application for the job, and I’d long since let the dream of it go. To see a response from Cagair Castle in Scotland after all of this time astonished me completely.

  “Yes. You’ve aged far more in three years than any young woman as healthy as you should. You’re already far too invested in this place. If you don’t intervene on behalf of your own sanity soon, you will lose yourself to it. I care too much for you to allow that to happen.”

  “Uh-huh.” Now I definitely wasn’t listening, for the first sentence in the message had my heart beating so fast I might as well still be running. This was it. The change I needed. It didn’t matter to me that the job wasn’t officially mine. A shot at it was all I needed to give me the confidence to make the choice I pondered for so long.

  “Sydney, are you listening to me?”

  Taking a breath to slow my pulse and build my courage, I closed my computer and looked over at him.

  “No. I’m sorry. I wasn’t. I just got some news that I need to share with you. What were you saying?”

  I could see that I frustrated him. He crossed his arms in a way meant to show me just how unhappy he was before he continued.

  “It doesn’t matter. You’re fired, Sydney.”

  “I’m quitting, Mr. Abbiati.”

  We both spoke at the exact same time, leaving us both to say what in unison at the other’s last words. I pointed at him, then leaned back in my chair and crossed my arms to mimic his stance.

  “You first. You’re firing me? Why?”

  “Well I guess I’m not if you’re quitting. Though I must say I’m glad to hear it. I didn’t want to fire you, but I was ready to do it.”

  I still couldn’t understand. “Again. Why?”

  “Your grandmother, Sydney. I loved her for more than forty years, and I know she loved me as much as she was capable. I’d have married her if she would have let me. But alas, she could never pull herself away from this place long enough to build a life for herself. I don’t want that to happen to you. I know she wouldn’t want it for you, either.”

  “Neither do I.” I didn’t know what else to say to him. I imagined we were both very much in shock that we were on the same page. It rarely happened.

  “You’re far braver than she was. Leaving this job proves that. Your grandmother knew everyone, but she knew no one. She knew names and faces of countless people but understood too little of herself to know the heart or mind of any other. It’s an empty life to live that way, and it brings nothing but pain to those who love a person who has lost their own self to something that doesn’t matter. Not to say that hard work doesn’t matter, it does, but only if you know who and what you’re working for. Working for work’s sake gets you nowhere. That is precisely how Elizabetta spent her life.”

  Tears sprang up in my eyes. I couldn’t tell if they were due to relief or the sad remembrance of my grandmother’s life.

  He didn’t wait for me to respond. “So. Tell me about this new job.”

  “Well, it’s not actually mine yet, but it will be after I show them how great I am. It’s in Scotland.”

  “Scotland, huh? Well, at least you won’t be torturing the rest of us with your awful Italian anymore.”

  I shook my head at him and continued. My Italian was perfect, and everyone in the village knew it.

  “Yes, it’s at a castle that was very recently renovated. They’re turning it into a luxury resort. It’s a bit strange, though. I applied so long ago, and I just got the response this morning.”

  He threw back the rest of his coffee and reached to pour himself more before speaking.

  “What did it say?”

  “Just that if I wanted to come to the castle for a test run, they would interview me and make a decision on my employment then. Don’t worry, though, I won’t leave until I find my replacement.”

  I hoped such a task wouldn’t take long. If I could, I would’ve left on the spot.

  CHAPTER 3

  Cagair Castle

  Present Day

  Daily sessions with Morna were a painful necessity to his healing. Both he and baby Nora came to the witch’s temporary bedchamber at the castle each night to be treated for their damaged lungs and the burn that ran hideously down his thigh. Morna’s magic helped and slowly, day by day, things were getting easier for the two of them.

  He always enjoyed holding the little girl, and he found that Jane handed her over a little more easily now that she knew the babe was hers forever. She was a happy child despite her tragic start to life. He laughed as she pulled gently on his earlobes as he bounced her on his side and hobbled along toward Morna’s room. Callum knocked but didn’t bother waiting for a response before entering. He knew she’d be expecting them the same as always.

  “Good evening, Morna. How is me favorite witch?”

  She smiled at him, but it was an uneasy smile, and he immediately regretted his joke. For a moment, he forgot Morna’s uneasiness about what he witnessed at Cagair the night of the fire.

  “I’m yer only witch. Now bring the babe here. I want to kiss her cheeks.”

  “Aye, that ye are.” He handed Nora over to her then moved to gather the herbs and potions that Morna used on them nightly.

  “She seems in a verra good mood today, does she not, Ca
llum? Do ye think she knows that she’s staying with Jane, and the thought pleases her?”

  He wondered the same thing himself. While always pleasant, Nora seemed especially glowing today.

  “If anything, I think she can see that Jane is no longer so stressed about giving her up, and Jane’s happiness makes her happy, as well. What of ye, Morna? Ye look as if Jane’s worry has transferred over to ye.”

  “Aye, I believe it has. I’m worried about Jerry. There’s something else that pulls on my mind, as well.”

  Last he’d seen Jerry, the old man seemed fine.

  “What’s happened to him? Is he all right?”

  “Aye, for now. It’s his heart. He’s not cared for it the way he should, and it’s dangerously close to being a real problem for him. I can see it, but he willna let me work on him with magic. ’Tis a promise I made him long ago.”

  “Why? He has to know that if ye are worried, there’s reason for him to allow ye to do whatever ye will with yer powers.”

  “Aye, he should, but he’s a stubborn bastard.”

  “Would ye like me to talk to him? I doona know if he will listen, but I can try.”

  Morna reached for his arm and pulled him fully inside, shutting the door.

  “Aye, but first let’s get on with the babe’s treatment before she loses her smile.”

  Callum helped balance the little girl on the small table so that Morna could rub the soothing oils on her back—she’d grown so used to it she rarely even fussed.

  “How many more times do ye think she needs this?”

  Morna shrugged and leaned in to listen to Nora’s breathing.

  “Not many more. Maybe another week. She’s healing nicely. Ye have as well. Callum, can I ask ye something?”

  “Of course.” It was unlike Morna to ask permission for anything. Her hesitation made him curious.

  “The witch ye saw on the day of the fire…I know ’twas many months ago now, but do ye remember anything of the way she looked? Could ye describe her to me at all?”

  He remembered well. Even as he lost consciousness from the pain in his leg and the smoke in his lungs, she stood out to him like the sun on a cloudless day. If not for her, he knew much more would have been lost of his beloved castle.

  “Aye. She was tall, as tall as many men, and quite thin. She had both hands extended toward the sky, and her nails were pointed and sharp. Her hair was grayed with just a few streaks of black still remaining. She was old, mayhap the oldest looking person I’ve ever seen.”

  He didn’t miss how Morna swallowed hard before she spoke. Callum had never seen such worry or fear in her eyes.

  “Aye. She would be old, far older than anyone has business to be.”

  “Do you know her? Why would ye not have mentioned this before?” Callum had searched for the witch twice since the fire, and each time he came up empty.

  “I’m sorry, Callum. I dinna want it to be true. The thought frightened me. I dinna want ye to find her. Though deep down, I knew it must have been. I’ve felt her here at Cagair this time. Her presence was never palpable until now. I thought her dead until ye told me yerself what happened at the fire.”

  “Who is she? What does she mean to ye?”

  “If I tell ye, ye must keep it to yerself. Not a soul knows it, save me and Jerry.”

  He swore his secrecy and picked baby Nora up to bounce her as Morna spoke.

  “Her name is Grier. The last time Jerry and I saw her, I was eighteen years old.”

  “Do ye mean…ye canna mean that Jerry has been to yer time—the time ye were born in, not just this one?” He couldn’t imagine it. As uncomfortable as Jerry was around magic, he couldn’t imagine him traveling through time.

  “Aye, but ’twas not his choice to do so. He doesna speak of it so doona ask him about it.”

  “Ye seem frightened of her. Did she harm ye or Jerry?”

  “No, she did me no harm but only because I left her before she could. But, aye, I am frightened of her. She’s not been at Cagair for ages, but her power over the portal here remained. It’s why I thought she was dead. It’s changed now. Not only because of what she did with the fire. Normally, I doona have power here. Now I do.”

  Oftentimes, Morna made the habit of speaking of her powers and magic as if everyone else knew what she meant. Most of them never did.

  “I doona understand. What kept ye from having yer powers before?”

  Morna motioned for him to sit down on the workbench himself so that she could take to healing his leg.

  “When a witch dies, we can root our powers to one place or even over a person if we so choose. It means that even after our death, whatever spells we cast there remain, and whatever our realm, it canna be touched by another with power. What I dinna know was that one can leave their power in a place, even if they are not dead, and then come back to claim it another time.”

  “So that is what this Grier has done?”

  “Aye. She’s reclaimed her power. I know because her realm is no longer protected, allowing me to perform magic here as well. Though she’s kept the portal open even after returning. I doona think it bodes well for any of us.”

  “What ill will would she have toward any of us? If she wished to cause us harm, why would she have stopped the fire that day?”

  “Callum, Cagair was Grier’s home. Technically, no matter yer claim, I suppose it still is in her mind. She would want to protect it. If she’s back, it’s for me.”

  He would have to continue the search for this witch. He had enough threats facing his loved ones with Macaslan’s wrath still lingering. He couldn’t allow anyone else the opportunity to hurt those near him ever again.

  “What does she want with ye? If it’s to hurt ye, I’ll find and kill her, I swear it.”

  “No, I doona want ye near her. She willna hurt me. Nor do I think she’d truly hurt anyone else. She will wish to speak to me, though, and I doona know just what she’ll do to get me to go back. I canna go back, Callum. Not ever. Ye canna know how painful it is for me to even think of it.”

  Nora started to cry and, with Morna finished treating his leg, Callum handed the baby over to her so she could rock the babe. He hoped the motion would soothe Morna’s nerves as well as the babe’s.

  “Then doona go back. Ignore the witch. If she’s harmless, let her do her worst to interfere with things. We’re all fairly used to the unexpected by now. Is it possible she would come forward?”

  Morna shook her head in response to him.

  “No. I doona think that she would. But Callum, ye best take back what ye just said. If ye doona think she listens in even now, ye are a fool. She’s a tricky bitch if I’ve ever known one. Doona tempt her to mess with yer life. If ye do, ye can be sure she’ll take ye up on the challenge.”

  “Morna, so much has happened these last months. The last thing I’m worried about is a witch as harmless as ye are. I’d rather her do what she wishes with me than anyone else.”

  When Morna spoke again, her tone was harsh, her words cool.

  “I dinna ever say she was harmless, lad. Ye are the one that said that. I simply meant I doona think she would kill anyone outright. There’s a fair difference between harmless and a murderer, would ye not say? Ye’d do good to remember it.”

  CHAPTER 4

  Italy

  Within a week, Mr. Abbiati lined up three web interviews for the two of us, and they were all excellent candidates. In the end, Mr. Abbiati chose an eager but rather serious student a few years younger than myself named Mark. He spoke Italian as fluently as I did and seemed to have the sort of temperament we both believed would mesh well with the locals.

  My favorite thing about my replacement was that he was as eager to take over the job as I was to leave it and would arrive tomorrow for a quick afternoon training session with me. Then I would be free.

  I slipped away in the late afternoon to draw up his employment papers. It didn’t take me long and, just as I was about to shut off the computer
, a familiar and friendly face popped up on my computer screen—my little sister Liv. It was only then that I realized I’d yet to tell my family the big news. By my calculations, she should still be in school. Not that it mattered to me, I would never dream of chiding her for calling me.

  I smiled as I clicked the green Accept button, eager to see her smiling little face.

  “Hey, Liv. I miss you.” And I did. Every day. She’d be nine in a month, and I hated that I missed so much of her life during the past three years. Hopefully, once I landed the job in Scotland, the work schedule wouldn’t be as strenuous, and I would be able to travel back home to see her more often.

  “I miss you, too. Whatcha doing? I’m surprised you answered.”

  Truthfully, I was surprised, too. Not that I would deny her call if I saw it, but her timing couldn’t have been more perfect. She’d caught me during the five minutes out of the entire day that I could have seen her call.

  “Me too, a little. I just sat down for a few minutes. I’ll have to check on some things that are cooking soon.”

  “Yeah, I knew you’d be busy, but I had a dentist appointment this morning and got to miss school!”

  Liv’s smile always made my heart squeeze in a way that made me want to jump on the first plane back home. She’d been the happiest surprise that my parents and I ever received. I only wished that I hadn’t already moved out of my parent’s home when she arrived.

  “Well that’s nice, but I’ve never seen anybody so excited to go to the dentist.”

  She blew air through her lips in dismissal. “I don’t know why people don’t like the dentist. It’s fun. I’m going to have to go back to school in just a few minutes, but Mom said I could call you real fast and say hi.”