Authors: Nina Bangs
“Get her off! Get her off!” He hopped up and down, doing an Irish jig in fast forward, but the Old One was locked into position.
Ally looked around desperately. “Do something!” It was a generic order, aimed at anyone brave enough to interfere with the Old One and her prey.
Brian rocked back on his heels, his arms crossed over his impressive chest. He grinned.
“The Old One gets upset when someone suggests I shouldn't go home. She's very attached to home. Has a lot invested there.”
Ally stared at him. What the heck was he talking about? And what kind of person would stand by while his pet savaged a complete stranger? Okay, so the cat wasn't of mountain lion proportions, but she sure enough made up for it in enthusiasm. One thing was clear, Brian wasn't going to help poor Mr. McDermott.
Frantically, Ally turned toward her great-aunt. Katy jumped up and down like a jackrabbit on too much caffeine. “Grab her by the scruff of her neck!”
Mr. McDermott chose to ignore Katy's advice. He opted for more hopping with occasional wild kicks thrown in for variety.
“Get her off me!” Mr. McDermott's shouts escalated to bellows.
Ally glanced around. “Someone help . . .” Uh-oh. No one else left. Only . . . her.
Ally gulped. She was not a cat person, didn't have the communication skills necessary to reason with an outraged kitty. But someone had to help Mr. McDermott. She'd learned she was capable of a lot of unexpected things once she got over trying to be all things wonderful to Dave-the-Dork. She could do this.
Not allowing herself time to think about consequences, she stepped forward, reached down, then . . . Where the heck was the cat's neck? The
Old One looked like a giant multicolored beach ball with a fur coat.
Aiming for the end where the angry growls were coming from, Ally reached in.
The Old One freed a paw long enough to swipe at the person who dared to interfere with her God-given right to chew the ankle of Sean McDermott.
“Ouch!” Ally yanked her hand back at the same time someone lifted her off her feet and set her aside.
“I'll take care of her.” Brian sounded grim as he reached down and pulled the Old One off McDermott.
Ally waited breathlessly for the ensuing cries of pain. Brian would be ripped to shreds.
Instead, he cradled the Old One in his arms while she discussed the situation in a barrage of growls, hisses, and yowls. But she
didn't
try to scratch him.
Ally blinked. “Boy, you must be great with animals. I could've sworn she was ready to tear strips off anyone who touched her.”
Brian looked up, his dark gaze capturing her, holding her. “She's female.”
As if that explained everything. Ally sank into those green eyes, recognized the sensual knowledge, the truth of his two words, and was suddenly afraid of something she didn't understand. She rubbed her hands up and down her arms, trying to dispel the sudden rash of goose bumps.
“You'll be hearing from my lawyer about this.”
McDermott's voice was shrill with anger as he bent down to examine the teeth marks in his ankle.
“Who'd believe it? That cat scared the brogue right out of you.” Katy stared at the Old One, new respect in her gaze.
“Ye'll be hearing from me solicitor, ye misbegotten spawn of Satan.” His voice was slightly less shrill.
Brian shook his head. “Don't know if that's wise. Isn't there a league rule about interfering with another team's players?”
Funny, Brian was answering him, but Ally could swear McDermott was talking to the cat. Stranger still, McDermott seemed to understand Brian's answer. She had to be imagining it. The stinging in her hand made her forget Mc-Dermott. She held it up and grimaced at the bloody scratches.
“Let me have a look at your hand.” Brian's voice was low, concerned. He shifted his cat to one arm where she settled in with mumbled cat curses aimed at the rapidly departing Sean McDermott. “Maybe you need to calm down, Boss. The Cosmic Network would love to get hold of a story like this. You know what they'd make of it: Team Owners in Cat Fight Over Player. Not real dignified.”
For a moment, Ally thought he was talking to her. Then she realized he was talking . . . to the cat? Nah. The pain in her hand was making her woozy.
Thoughts of the Old One disappeared as Brian held her hand and examined it. His palm cupped hers, his fingers resting against her wrist, and she was sure he could feel the drumbeat of her pulse as surely as she felt the rough warmth of his fingertips.
“I have something that'll take care of this.” His voice suggested he had something to take care of almost anything. “Come up to my shelter while I get it.” He slid his fingers around her wrist, his thumb rubbing a circular pattern of persuasion over the spot where her blood pounded a frantic warning. He started to lead her up the hill toward the castle ruins. The Old One glared at her over the top of his arm.
She dug her heels in, bringing him to a halt. “I have first aid stuff in the wagon. I can take care of it.”
Katy trotted to her side. “Afraid you'll have to go with him. Used the last of the antiseptic on the horse. Figured we'd be going into Liscannor to get some supplies anyway.”
“On the horse?” No. Going with Brian Byrne to his shelter was
not
an option. Why? She just
knew
. And if he'd stop touching her, she could think of another reason.
“You need to get something on those scratches. Cats carry germs.” Katy was determined.
The Old One made a noise that sounded strangely like a chuckle. Ally shook her head to clear her mind.
“You go on, Ally, and I'll tag along behind.”
Katy demonstrated how well she could tag along behind by forging on ahead. “I need to take a look at the far side of the castle. Thought I saw a white deer there yesterday morning. Strange color for a deer.”
Ally frowned. She didn't like to have decisions made for her. God knows she'd let that happen enough during her doomed marriage. “I still think I can take care of these scratches here. Why should I hike all the way up the hill?”
Brian didn't release her, and she could feel his thumb smoothing the inside of her wrist as she guessed he usually smoothed away any female resistance. Well, she was one woman who had a whole lot of resistance to him or any man.
“The Old One traveled a long way to get here. Who knows what germs she's carrying that could infect those scratches.”
“Traveled a long way. Right.” There was something wrong here, just out of reach. “I thought Philadelphia was known for the Liberty Bell and cheese steaks, not exotic diseases.”
Something else niggled at her. Something about his cat. “How did you get your cat into Ireland? Isn't there a quarantine?” He was doing the thumb-rubbing thing again, trying to distract her. It wasn't working. Not much anyway.
He smiled at her, and she recognized the expression for what it was, a diversionary tactic.
“I strapped her around my waist, put on a big Hawaiian shirt, and walked on through.”
“Give me a break. That's ridiculous. Didn't they
ask you any questions? What did you tell them?” Surprised, Ally realized she was walking up the hill toward the keep with him. And her capitulation had nothing to do with his thumb action. It was her godawful O'Neill curiosity.
“Told them I was pregnant.” He shrugged.
That should have been funny, but she wasn't laughing. He wasn't going to answer her question seriously. She pulled at her wrist, and he released her. They walked in silence until she couldn't stand it anymore. “So, I still don't know much about you except that you're from Philadelphia. Thanks to Katy, you know more than I ever wanted you to know about me.” It embarrassed her to realize how much this stranger
did
know about her. “Were you born in Philadelphia? What're you interested in? Tell me something.”
He stared at her, and she had the uncomfortable feeling he was trying to decide what to tell her.
“I don't know where I was born. If I ever meet my parents I'll make sure to ask.” His words were blunt, his lips drawn into a don't-care line. No self-pity.
Ally had enough pity for both of them. “Sorry. I won't pry anymore.” Her parents might have fought their lives away, but at least they were there for her.
“It happened. I got over it. I survived.”
The bitterness in his voice betrayed him. He hadn't gotten over it. But Ally wouldn't call him on it.
“What am I interested in? Kids. I like to help kids.”
He paused while she digested what he'd said. “And I'd like to build something, maybe a house.”
Brian shrugged, and she sensed the embarrassment behind his admission.
Ally smiled. She might not approve of his desire for a woman who'd please him, but she liked his other goals. She relaxed a little.
He stopped in front of a strange-looking tent tucked behind a corner of the keep. “Wait out here while I get something for those scratches. Won't take a minute.”
“Brian. Your cat is running away.” Katy's voice wafted to them from the far side of the keep.
“Coran's tail!”
Coran's tail? Ally had heard some colorful curses in her life, but Coran's tail was not one of them.
Brian exhaled sharply. “Look, I've got to get her. Don't leave. I'll be right back.” Turning, he broke into a run.
Ally watched him until he was out of sight. He sure was attached to that cat. Of course, that made him a perfectly nice person, didn't it? A man who liked kids and animals couldn't be anything but admirable. Then why did she still have a feeling of unease?
Ally studied his shelter. Talk about state-of-the-art camping equipment. It looked like a square tent, but she didn't recognize the material.
She glanced at her scratches. They were really stinging. Maybe she could slip inside and find his first-aid box. It shouldn't be hard to locate, and surely he wouldn't mind her taking care of the scratches herself. He hadn't said she couldn't go into the tent.
Ally pulled back the flap and stepped inside. Everything looked pretty normal. There was a fancy sleeping bag in the corner and a small box he'd piled some things on.
She walked to the box and glanced at the things scattered on top of it. No first-aid kit. Probably inside the box. She'd just move everything off the box and . . .
A small black object caught her attention. It looked like a remote, but there was no TV, so that was out. Not a cell phone. What was it? She picked it up to examine it, turning it over to see if there was a place to put batteries.
Her thoughts were only half on the object she was examining. She wanted Brian to come back and take care of her scratches. Her stomach was starting to remind her she hadn't eaten breakfast. When she got back to the wagon she'd grab something to hold her until they reached Liscannor.
The object started to slip from her grasp, and she instinctively tightened her grip, pressing several of the buttons. Without warning, the object vibrated violently at the same time the ground beneath her shook.
Ohmigod, an earthquake! Katy was out there.
She dropped the object, then stopped dead. Earthquake? Ireland didn't have earthquakes. But something had shaken the ground. She had to find Katy and Brian.
Brian stared down the narrow winding path that led to the main road, watching helplessly as the Old One trotted out of sight. He wouldn't catch her now, but he knew where she was going. She'd search out Cap and there'd be another battle. He hoped she didn't try to change into her true shape. Earth wasn't ready for the Old One in her real form. Wouldn't be ready for another few hundred years.
He turned to Katy. “Where's the nearest town?” Cap would be staying somewhere close.
“Liscannor. You must've come through it on your way here. Think she'll head for town?” Katy turned to peer at him.
Brian nodded. “You mentioned that you and Ally were going there to buy supplies. Mind if I tag along?”
“No problem. Glad to have a man along.” Katy frowned. “Even if Ally isn't. Ever since her husband ran off with that woman, Erica, she hasn't had a real positive attitude toward men.”
“Ally.” He'd left her standing by his shelter. “I've got to get back to her and take care of those scratches.”
Katy nodded, but she didn't pay attention as he strode back toward her grandniece. Something
at the edge of a small group of trees held her attention.
Brian was halfway back when he felt the ground shake. He closed his eyes. Kick him if he ever left home again.
Someone had activated the Constructor. One guess who that someone was. He broke into a run.
As he rounded the corner of the keep, he skidded to a stop. Ally stood outside his shelter staring wide-eyed at the Ultimate-Universe McDonald's she'd created.
Okay, this wasn't so bad. It still had the golden arches. She'd recognize those. Familiar was good. Maybe the free-floating planets drifting around the arches weren't familiar, but at least they didn't look threatening.
She turned shocked eyes toward him. “What happened? What is this?”
“Congratulations. You just built yourself a McDonald's.” His vacation was finished, but it had been pretty crappy up to this point anyway. Problem was, he didn't know if he could get a stag to pick him up on such short notice. And this was all Ally's fault. “Anyone ever tell you not to play with things that aren't yours?”
She stared blankly at him, then returned her gaze to the McDonald's. “I accidentally pressed a couple of buttons and this happened. What is it? Why is it here?”
“You were thinking of food when you pressed the buttons. The Constructor always aims to
please.” No use holding anything back now. Might as well tell her the whole thing, then get the hell out of 2002. “Wait a minute.” He slipped into his shelter, scooped up the Constructor and the cell-growth cream, then went out to where Ally was still staring at the building.