Part 12 (2/2)
He turned at that, clearing his throat loudly. ”A little privacy in the castle, please!”
His words were followed by laughter--and an exit.
On the landing, Bruce set Toni down perfunctorily and turned, immediately retracing his steps. Their guests were out the doors. Kevin remained in the hall.
”There's still food in the kitchen?” Bruce asked.
”Yes, certainly. And we can whip up anything you want, really quickly,” Kevin a.s.sured him.
”Great, I'm starving. Get the group together when the buses are gone. We'll discuss the morning, and where we go from here.”
Toni bit back her sense of extreme aggravation and followed him down the stairs to the kitchen. The ”great laird” was apparently not in the mood for something as simple as scones, and quite capable of taking care of himself. He headed straight for the refrigerator, grabbing all kinds of sandwich makings, while the others jumped around to wash lettuce and slice tomatoes. The circ.u.mstances were very bad, Toni admitted, but she hated the fact that they were so obliged to Bruce MacNiall.
”So, Bruce, what do you think?” Gina asked anxiously.
”I think that you went through a lot of work, and that it looks like your papers--license, permits--are in order. And now the insurance has been dealt with....” He shrugged.
”If you have to leave again, I swear, we will be so good to this place!” Ryan said. ”And you won't have to stable Shaunessy anywhere else. You know that I'd just about lie down and die for that horse.”
”So?” Gina persisted.
Toni was surprised when Bruce stared at her. He seemed reflective and worried.
”We began a conversation on the stairs. Women have been killed.” He directed his gaze upon Thayer. ”You must have known about it.”
Thayer made a choking sound. ”Well, yes, but...” He lifted his hands. ”Sadly, these things happen often enough. People don't stop living because of it. We've had much worse situations, every country has. I never saw it as something that really concerned our efforts here.”
Bruce shook his head, looking downward for a minute.
Gina said, ”Bruce, people in the village don't seem to be concerned.. .for their own safety, I mean.”
”No, I guess they don't,” he murmured.
Ryan cleared his throat. ”Terrible things have happened in almost every major city, and naturally, they can happen in the countryside, as well. Please...we'd never let ourselves be victimized.” He winced, realizing that they had been victimized. ”Gina and Toni are too smart to set themselves up for a dangerous situation. We're always together.”
”The women have disappeared from the big cities,” Thayer reminded quietly.
Bruce looked hard at Thayer. ”So they have.”
”Please! We're adults, and we're less naive than before,” Toni added. ”We'll be careful. Please, give us a chance?”
They were all staring at the man. Again he shrugged. ”Let me say a tentative yes, we can give it a go. For the next few weeks, at least. There are problems that will arise. Aye, there's the fact that your 'guests' are usually from far away, and I don't know how the local population is going to take to this. The story Toni invented is too d.a.m.ned close to truth. There are those who think that I have an ancestor out there, running around in the forest, possibly capable of doing ill will. There are the other, very real problems--the situation at present. But we'll see. First thing Monday, we will go to the courthouse. I'll prove my owners.h.i.+p, and we'll get Jonathan going on finding out just who is behind the scam that took you people in.”
”We would gratefully appreciate it!” Gina said.
He shrugged. ”I do admit, you've done a lot for the place.”
”Thank you,” Thayer said, looking at him curiously. ”I don't mean to be rude, but.. .but when we got here, the place didn't look very.. .lived in,” he murmured.
Bruce looked at Thayer. ”You are from Glasgow, right?”
”Aye, that I am.”
”As the crow flies, not so far,” Bruce said.
”Not so far, yet Glasgow is a world unto itself. Edinburgh, too, as a matter of fact. It may be a wee country, Laird MacNiall, but we both know that it's still very regional.”
Bruce nodded. ”Regional, aye. I'm just surprised that you didn't know that there was a real Bruce MacNiall.”
Thayer grinned ruefully. ”Maybe I owe you an apology then. But, I'm sorry to admit, I've never been to more than half my country. I made it to the Orkney Islands last year for the first time, though I've never been to the Isle of Skye.”
”I see,” Bruce murmured.
”Hey, I've never been to California,” Kevin said.
”And I've never been to--Utah,” David offered.
”Who can cover a whole country?” Ryan asked cheerfully.
”Ah,” Bruce murmured. ”It's just that news regarding the killings certainly reached the major newspapers. Murder may be something that happens everywhere, but in Scotland, such crimes do bear note.”
Thayer appeared a bit tense, as if he'd been accused of lying.
”I knew about the murders. Everyone has seen something about them in the paper,” Thayer said, looking confused.
”But you didn't notice any specific references?”
”I don't know what you're talking about,” Thayer said.
”References to the area?” Toni asked.
Bruce ignored her. ”Thayer?”
”I swear, if there was mention regarding this place in the newspapers or on the telly, I didn't see it,” Thayer said. ”I live and work in Glasgow, and as you must know, with our size and certain factors, we do have our own crime rate.”
”I'm aware of the city. I've actually been there,” Bruce said.
Toni was oddly uncomfortable, feeling, as Thayer apparently did, that he was somehow under attack. ”In the old U.S. A., most farm boys have been to the big city. Doesn't mean all the city folk have made it out to the farm,” she said lightly.
Bruce's eyes shot to hers. ”I see. So we're yokels out here, are we, Toni?”
”It's small, that's all I'm saying,” she told him with exasperation.
”Perhaps we should talk about this in the morning,” Gina said softly. ”Tempers seem to be rising a bit.”
”My temper isn't rising,” Toni said, staring at Bruce. ”If s just that Thayer is my cousin, and I understand completely how he might not have heard of the great and almighty Bruce MacNiall.”
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