“Wussey,” Helen told her ex-boss.
She dripped the blood in a small circle around them, hoping it was enough to move them in time without standing the touch of either man. When she was done, she nodded to Simon who lit the ring. She grasped Simon
’s hand and started to chant.
Malcolm shifted from foot to foot with nervous energy.
“In the day and in this hour, I ask the Ancients for this power.” The familiar shift in the air and heat from the rising fire ring started to ground out her voice. Instead of lifting her voice high, she kept it low so only she and Simon could hear. “Let’s go back to the United States,” she lowered her voice even more. “Back to nineteen seventy eight. If the Ancient’s will it so, take us now and let us go.”
The year specified was before Simon or Helen had been born. A time when Philip and Malcolm were only kids.
Helen glanced over to Philip, who watched the swirling vortex surround them. Malcolm was pulling a knife out of his pants, a smug smile on his face.
Weightlessness surrounded them, knocking the other men back. Helen held onto Simon
’s side, her eyes never leaving her enemy.
A rush of air emptied from the circle, forcing Philip and Malcolm to the ground.
Everything stopped. Malcolm scrambled to his feet but before he made it far, he grabbed his gut and doubled over. The knife in his hand dropped.
“What the fuck did you do?”
Philip never made it off the ground. He grasped his head and his eyes shed tears of blood.
“I took you b-back,” she stammered, unbelieving of what she saw.
Helen lifted her eyes from the dying men. It was dark, the distant sound of traffic pointed to a road being nearby.
“The canyon,” Simon suggested. The same canyon they
’d been in before.
Philip rolled onto his back screaming in pain. His cries penetrated the night. Hair fell from his head in chunks and skin receded from his nails.
“You bitch,” he managed before words were no longer possible.
Before her eyes, Philip
’s skin stretched and folded in on itself. The stench of burned skin singed her nose. Both men writhed in place until they couldn’t move. She buried her face into Simon’s shoulder, unable to watch any more.
When the noise stopped, Helen blinked and noticed a small pile of soot. Within seconds, a wind came from the north and blew the ashes of both men all over the cold, desert floor.
The intensity of the day, the month, shook inside her as she trembled in Simon’s arms.
He stroked her hair, whispering calming words in her ear. “We
’re okay.”
“I know.”
“He’ll never hurt you again.”
“I know.”
“How did you know they’d die?”
“I didn
’t. Not really.” She pulled away and glanced at the ground where the two men had lain only moments before. “Your mom told me about Elise, the Ancient who came to you after Grainna died. She said not to use the stones to go back to a time where you lived before.”
Simon nodded. “She didn
’t say we’d die if we do.”
“Your mom said it would be painful for any of us to be in the same time with our younger, or older selves. I thought if we could shift Philip and Malcolm back to a time when they lived, we could disarm them, bring them to justice.” The memory of Philip
’s melting flesh swam in her head.
She shivered. “I didn
’t know they’d die.”
Drawing her in his arms again, he said. “It wasn
’t your fault. You didn’t kill them. Mayhap the Ancients decided to serve justice to their old souls, and leave their child souls alone. They’d be children now, if we truly are in nineteen seventy eight.”
The patch of desert was dark, hardly a moon lit the night.
“What do you think happened to Malcolm’s stone, the one he used to travel back to your time?”
“If Malcolm lived in my time for thirty years, he arrived long before the small stones evolved from the larger ones. They didn
’t exist. The fact that you and Amber have stones stayed with you during travel, proves you’re the only ones who should possess these stones during your lives. Cian’s disappeared, proving he isn’t meant to travel in time at will.”
“Are you sure?”
“No.” Simon laughed. “I know only what I’ve seen.” His gaze traveled back to the tiny specks of ash on the ground.
“It
’s over,” Helen whispered.
Simon ran his hand over her hair, kissed the top of her head. “It
’s over.”
Now they could get on with their lives.
Chapter Thirty
Helen transferred a few of the MacCoinnich’s at a time to take them home. On her final trip back, to retrieve Simon and Cian, Ian and Lora asked that she take them with her to say goodbye to Amber.
It was all happening so fast. Helen hardly had time for goodbyes herself. Lizzy embraced her and reminded her they were but a thought away if she ever needed them. But living in the sixteenth century simply wasn
’t a sacrifice Helen could make. Besides, Mrs. Dawson needed her. Amber needed a friend and mentor. Her place was in her time, not in Simon’s.
The two of them didn
’t speak, the inevitable parting brought tears to her eyes every time she thought about it.
With the majority of MacCoinnich
’s safely deposited in the Keep, Helen took Ian and Lora back.
When the vortex cleared, Lora noticed Amber first. The two ran toward each other and embraced.
“God’s blood I’ve worried about you.”
Lora pulled away from her daughter, glanced down her body and back up. “These clothes suit you.”
“They feel strange,” Amber admitted.
“They won
’t forever.”
“Are you sure? Must I stay?” It was the only time Helen heard Amber come close to a complaint about her fate.
“Aye, lass. Your happiness will be found here.”
Amber stared at the ground.
“You must be Laird and Lady MacCoinnich. I’m Mrs. Dawson.” Mrs. Dawson walked down the back steps and interrupted them.
“I
’m sorry, Mrs. Dawson, I should have introduced you,” Helen said.
“You
’ve had a lot on your mind, m’dear. Don’t fret. Please, let’s come in out of the cold. You don’t have to rush back, do you?”
Ian glanced up at the home and over to his daughter. “A few minutes.”
“Good, good. Come in.”
They walked through the back door of the house. Ian
’s head snapped back and forth. “Cian, show me this fortress. Tell me what it lacks.”
Instead of going with them, Simon stood by Helen
’s side, his hand on the small of her back guiding her to the sofa where he sat beside her. Ian and Cian disappeared around the corner.
“I don
’t think anyone has ever called my home a fortress.” Mrs. Dawson chuckled.
“And never will again I
’m sure.”
“Can I get you anything?”
Lora’s eyes scanned the room and marveled at the modern delights. “Thank you but no. Helen tells me that you’ve welcomed our daughter into your home as if she were your kin.”
Mrs. Dawson patted Lora
’s hand. “I wasn’t blessed with my own children but always prayed for them. Seems God has given them to me a little late. First Helen, now Amber. Though I know they aren’t mine, they are welcome to all I have and any protection I can give.”
Lora grasped the older woman
’s hand. “I cannot measure my gratitude.”
“It
’s my pleasure.”
Helen glanced at Simon who watched the two women talk, the expression on his face unreadable.
Ian stepped back into the room. “The structure is strong. Bound to withstand Finlay’s earthquakes.”
“It
’s been through a share of those. Mr. Dawson insisted on an earthquake retrofit in seventy-one. We had a bomb shelter placed in the basement in the sixties.” Mrs. Dawson went on.
“I didn
’t know you had a basement,” Helen said. She’d never seen it before.
“Couple of secret rooms, too. Those panic rooms were popular about twenty years ago.”
Helen glanced around, wondering where such a room could possibly be.
“It isn
’t in here, dear. I’ll show you. Might as well let you know about Mr. Dawson’s gun collection while we’re in there.”
“Mrs. Dawson, I had no idea.”
“I loved my husband but he was a bit paranoid at times. Guess that happens when you serve in a war or two, which he did. Then we had the arms race, the Cold War. We all thought we’d be nuked then.”
Lora
’s eyes lit up.
“Don
’t you worry. That’s all behind us now. Our economy is going to pot quickly but we’ll be okay.”
“Are you sure Amber won
’t be a hardship?”
“Please. How much can one girl eat? We
’ll be fine. Mr. Dawson left me quite comfortable.” Mrs. Dawson smiled into the thoughts of her late husband.
Ian removed a pouch from the satchel around his waist and handed it to Mrs. Dawson. “This should help.”
Mrs. Dawson waved him off but he placed it in her hand with a final word. “’Tis yours. She is our youngest daughter.”
Without looking in the bag, Mrs. Dawson set it on the table. “She
’s safe here.”
“Aye, that we already know,” Lora told her.
Ian glanced at his wife. “We need to go.”
Lora nodded and stood.
Their goodbyes were brief. Amber’s tears misted as she embraced her brother, Simon, and her parents. “I love you all.”
For one final trip back, Helen shifted time. Either she was getting better at it, or the Ancients were showing pity on her for her efforts. This final time felt easier somehow. Less taxing.
Ian gifted Helen with a rare smile and thanked her for all she’d done. Lora hugged and kissed both her cheeks. “God’s speed, lass.” She really didn’t have a clue what that meant, but everyone tended to say it as if it was a blessing so Helen smiled and thanked Lora for the sentiment.
The children said their goodbyes and went to their rooms, their grandparents leading the way. Tara and Duncan said goodbye next, then Myra and Todd. When only Fin and Lizzy were left in the room, Helen said a tearful goodbye for the last time.
Simon couldn
’t keep his hands to himself. He kept Helen close, never more than a foot or two away. She was so good at shifting time that he worried she’d disappear in the blink of an eye.
They hadn
’t had a moment alone since they’d returned after Philip’s and Malcolm’s demise. Their time together was running out.
Helen faced his parents, tears in her eyes. “Thank you for everything,” she told them.
“We’ve shown you nothing.”
“That
’s not true. You’ve raised a wonderful son.” Her eyes rested on his, glistening with tears. “Without him I’d have died that first day.”
Simon saw his mother
’s solemn expression as she looked at him.
“Simon is a man who makes his own choices, forges his own life,” Fin added. There was pain behind his father
’s gaze.
“Yeah well, where I
’m from when someone doesn’t have decent parents, they end up being all kinds of nasty.”
Lizzy laughed at that, and some of the rising tension left the somber mood in the room.
“And you’re the one who told me to trust in my gift, believe in it. You helped me believe in myself, Lizzy. For that I’ll always be grateful.”
“There
’s no reason for all these tears. You can come visit. If there is one person in the universe who can, it’s you.”
Helen glanced around the room, her eyes shifting to the floor. “Yeah, I guess.” She swiped at the tears on her cheeks and turned to Simon. “I need to go.”
Pain rippled through him as he stared into her swollen eyes. He could do this. Life was about sacrifices and about making the right decisions for the many and not the few.
His mom and Fin stepped back but didn
’t leave the room.
Simon pulled Helen close, his heart thick in his chest. “I love you, lass.”
She sobbed into his chest. “I love you, too.”
The words were music to his soul, making everything else around him fade. “We don
’t need to be apart.”
Helen kissed him, stopping his words. He forgot his parents, the room they stood in, and simply felt the desperation behind her kiss. When she pulled away, she forced a fake smile to her lips. “I can
’t stay here, Simon. And I love you too much to ask you to leave. Your family needs you.”