Part 2 (1/2)
”I, er, needed to go to the castle,” she said, looking at the inn and not wanting to leave the car. ”Is there still a castle around here?”
He chuckled. ”Aye, it's twenty or thirty minutes from here, but it willna be open at this hour. Ye'll need to visit it tomorrow. The inn there will have information about the tours.”
”Please sir, that's where I need to go. My brother lives there.” After she paid him, she wouldn't have any money left to get a room for the night. Twenty or thirty minutes in these impossibly fast cars would be hours on foot.
His amused chuckle turned into an annoyed frown. He held his hand over the back seat for his fare. ”No one lives at that old castle,” he said. ”It's a tourist spot. Unless your brother's the night watchman, he willna be up there at this hour. I suggest ye check into a room and call him.”
Catie didn't want to be shoved out of the car, so handed him his money and got out before he could grumble about the lack of a tip. She only had four pounds left, and knew from buying food on the train that wouldn't get her much. Certainly not a room for the night. She would have loved to call Lachlan as the driver suggested, but she didn't know how.
There was a bench between two potted trees by the inn's entrance and she sat down, pulling out her map to see if she stood a chance of walking to the castle. Alone. In the dark night of a strange and scary time.
Before she could work up her Ferguson warrior fierceness, a woman in a knee length dress stuck her head out. ”Are ye all right, miss? Are ye needing to check in?” She came over and stood in front of Catie, and looking up at her from her sad perch, Catie could see she was a kind looking, motherly type. ”Come inside, la.s.s,” she urged, looking back at the door with worry. ”I've got a load of historical re-enactors in the bar and need to keep an eye on their shenanigans.”
”I dinna have enough money for a room, and the driver wouldna take me to my brother.”
”Who's your brother, love?” She patted Catie's shoulder and took a step back toward the door.
”Lachlan Ferguson,” she said.
The woman's face lifted with astonishment before falling into bewilderment. ”Did he know ye were coming?” she asked.
Catie sighed with relief. This lady acted as if she knew who Lachlan was, which could only be a good thing. ”No, it's a surprise visit.”
”Ah, bad luck, that,” she said, whipping around at a large cheer and then a crash from the inn. ”b.l.o.o.d.y historians,” she muttered. ”I'll send my son out for ye,” she promised before she flew back inside.
Catie wasn't sure what to make of her new information. It seemed Lachlan at least existed in this time, but what was bad luck? Before she had time to think about it, a lanky lad around her age, maybe a couple years older, came out, looked around, and then smiled when he saw her. He came forward at an alarming pace and stopped close to the bench.
When she looked into the lad's grinning face, she felt something she never felt before, almost like she'd missed a step and landed with a jolt, causing her heart to pound a little harder for a second. He had a rugged, outdoorsy look to him, very broad in the shoulders, with s.h.a.ggy ginger hair and freckles smattered across his straight nose and strong cheekbones. Even in the dim light she could see his eyes were spring gra.s.s green, and friendly.
He wore the dark blue trousers everyone seemed to wear and a black s.h.i.+rt, like the one she wore, simple and boxy, and it stretched against his chest. Catie felt her cheeks go hot and she couldn't imagine what her hair must look like after the long day.
”Lachlan's your brother, then?” he asked, tilting his head to study her.
She didn't look anything like her brothers, and she hoped he didn't think she was lying. She blushed harder when she thought he might find her lacking if he did believe her. Being plain while having two gorgeous siblings was like being a dusty brown moth amongst b.u.t.terflies.
”I thought he lived at the castle, but the driver said no one lives up there,” she said. ”And then he left.”
”He's an idiot, then.” He held out his hand. ”I'm Shane. My brothers and I work up there.”
She took his hand and he pumped it up and down before letting it drop. ”Ye do? So Lachlan does live there?”
”Aye, and aye. With Miss Sinclair, my boss. Wait a tick and I'll drive ye up there right now.”
”Oh, I couldna put ye out,” she said automatically, wanting to kick herself after the words were out.
Shane shook his head and held up a finger. ”One second.”
A few minutes later he pulled around in his car, much smaller than the taxi, and a bit messy inside. When she got in, he reached down by her feet and chucked a crumpled bag into the backseat, his hand brus.h.i.+ng her leg. When he leaned across her she noticed his hair smelled lovely, like nothing she'd ever smelled before. She was glad it was dark, because she inexplicably blushed again.
”Sorry, that's my slob brothers always eating in the car. I've two brothers, Danny who's younger, and Thomas, who's older.” He studied her some more and she felt awkward and uncomfortable, wanting to make conversation, but not knowing where to begin. She closed her eyes and tried to imagine she was in a drawing room and this wasn't strange at all.
”Ah, that's nice. I'm the youngest. I haven't seen Lachlan in some time.”
”Ye do know they're on vacation, right?” he asked. Her eyes flew open and she swung her head to look at him. He smiled sympathetically. ”Rotten timing for a surprise.”
”He's not there now?” she asked.
”They're on some island. I forget which. Be back in a few days or a week.” He didn't seem concerned about it one way or another.
”But what will I do until they return?” she asked.
”Mel's there,” he said. ”She'll get you sorted.”
Before she could decide what this meant, they were pulling into a long winding drive. Everything went so fast in this time. The mammoth castle loomed against the dark night, looking dreary and forbidding. She never saw it in her own time, but had heard plenty of stories about the terrible Glens.
He maneuvered the car down a side track, past a vegetable garden and up an incline, finally pulling into a large open area at the back. One lone light shone at the door, and all the windows were dark.
”I dinna want to be any trouble,” she said.
He grinned cheekily. ”Too late for that. Come on.” He bounded from the car and ran up to a ground floor window, jumping up and hitting the pane with his hand. ”Oi, Mellie, wake up,” he said, jumping up and tapping it again. ”Open up, I've got something for ye.”
What was he doing, was he mad? Catie stopped following him and slunk back to the car. This was all so inappropriate, but as Shane looked over at her with his confident smile, she laughed at his exuberance, slapping her hand over her mouth. Was she mad as well?
A light flicked on behind the shuttered window, and then another closer to the door a moment later. The door flew open and a tall, willowy girl stepped out, her wavy brown hair tumbling around her shoulders and tangling in the collar of her dressing gown.
”This had better be good, Shane Brodie,” she said menacingly. ”If you're trying to bonk some unsuspecting la.s.s in the barn, you needn't wake me to do it.”
He jogged back to where Catie huddled by the car and took her hand, pulling her into the light. She smiled nervously at Mellie, who gave her a cursory glance before turning back to Shane, hand on her hip.
”This is Catie,” he said, pus.h.i.+ng her forward a little more. ”Catie Ferguson, Lachlan's sister, up for a surprise visit.”
Mellie gripped the door frame and gave Catie her full attention. ”No b.l.o.o.d.y way,” she breathed, eyes wide. ”You'd better come inside.”
It was clear straight away that Mellie knew she was from another time, with the way she gave her meaningful looks and tried to get Shane to leave. He seemed happy where he was, and it took Mellie pus.h.i.+ng him out the door after he drank a gla.s.s of cider and ate a sandwich she hurriedly threw together, to get him to go.
”Thank ye for bringing me here,” Catie said, stepping outside with him. ”It was verra nice meeting ye.” She was sorry to see him leave, even though it was scandalous that he'd stayed at all.
”I'll see ye tomorrow,” he said, tilting his head down the hill toward the barn. ”I work here, remember?”
She hadn't remembered, but was delighted to get to see him again. ”What do ye do?” she asked.
”I help take care of the animals. Do ye like goats?” he asked. ”We've just got them, and they're quite small yet. And we've got a few sheep left, though sheep are unlucky around here. There's a pig now as well, but Danny deals with her, as she hates the sight of me for some reason.”
”I love goats,” she said, wanting to tell him how she followed the goatherds around at her aunt's farm. Mellie cleared her throat loudly behind her and she felt terribly rude and forward, and all sorts of wrong things.
Shane grinned at her, completely unaware of all her transgressions. ”See ye tomorrow, then.”
Mellie pulled her back inside. ”Just no,” she said. ”Shane's a bit of a letch, best leave him be. Now, tell me everything.”