One Summerhill Day (The Summerhill Series Book 1) (19 page)

Chapter Twenty-Nine

The lad grew serious and stopped eating for a moment.

“I have two things to do. One is to deliver a message to you.” He stood and walked over to stand in front of her, clasping his hands behind his back. “And I must do this proper or I will get in trouble.” He waited to make sure he had her attention, then turned quite serious. “My laird sent me to tell you the souls need you.”

“What?”

“My sire was afraid you might jump into the lake. Brodie said I have to convince you not to jump. You can’t because the souls need you.”

She stared at him, processing his words. Whatever task this lad had been given, he took it very seriously. “And how would you do that?”

“Were you going to jump?”

“No, the water would be too cold, and the ice is quite thick right now. Did you think I planned to take my own life?”

“You can no’ jump. My laird said you have a lot of work to do on this plane. He was afraid. You have had too many troubles lately. It wasn’t supposed to happen like this. You have to promise me before I can go back.”

Caitlyn nodded, deciding to play along. Perhaps she was dreaming, and her little visitor was her subconscious way of helping her to deal with her troubles. Besides, what could it hurt to find out what work she had to do?

“And what work is it I have to do?” Her heart sped up at the thought. Right now, she had no idea what to do, so she’d be happy for any guidance, even if it came in the form of a dream.

“Pedi…ped..Pedia… Och, he made me say it many times and I still forgot.” He scratched his head and stared at the floor. “Just a moment. Let me think of it.”

“Pediatrics?”

“Aye, ‘tis it. Pediatrics.”

“Well, you must have remembered wrong, because I’m terrible with little ones.”

“Nay, ‘tis right. Working with bairns and weans. ‘Tis your calling.”

“My calling? And what is a bairn?”

“A bairn is a little one, a babe. Do you not know? This is the land of the Scots, is it not?”

Caitlyn stood abruptly from the table and walked over to stare out over her lake. Okay, this little guy was a bit too much. Pediatrics? The land of the Scots? She pinched herself, but nothing changed. The sharp burst of pain told her it wasn’t a dream, at least not a traditional one.

She glanced at the innocent face of the lad in front of her, his jaw moving up and down as he chewed another bite of his sandwich.

After he swallowed, he tipped his head at her. “Do you not like me? I’m a wee one, and I like you.”

Her face scrunched up at all the thoughts raging through her mind, all brought on by this strange boy she had never met before. Pediatrics? Could she do it? She did need a change. But such a large one?

“And the other thing, Loki? You said you had two things to do.”

“You’ll see. I cannot leave until he finds us. He’s coming, don’t worry.”

“Who is coming?”

“Growley, my dog.” Loki finished his sandwich and ran over to the couch. “I’m tired. I need a wee nap before I go back.” He flounced on the couch, the towel still wrapped around him, and pulled the throw off the back of her couch. He smiled when he saw it. “Och, the Ramsay plaid. At least I am sure I made it to the right place.”

“The what?”

“The Ramsay plaid. This plaid is the blue and greens of the Ramsays. You are a Ramsay, are you not?”

“No, I’m not.”

“You must be close to a Ramsay then. Or you’ll marry one. Otherwise I would not be here. We only guard the Grants and the Ramsays.” He cuddled onto the couch in his towel and covered himself with the plaid throw.

Caitlyn didn’t approve of his last comment. Even if Ryan Ramsay came here on bended knee, she would never marry him. She didn’t even want to see him again. The last thing she needed in her life was another man that would cheat on her. Thank goodness she had found out now.

Caitlyn headed down the hall and moved the boy’s clothes into the dryer, then cleaned up the table, all the while unable to tear her thoughts from the suggestion she should become a pediatric nurse.

She turned on the television with the remote, but dialed down the sound. An ad for the Children’s hospital near Rochester popped up. Dozens of small faces flashed across the screen: bald children, sleeping babies, teary-eyed families, and children with no energy left to fight. Tears threatened to spill down her cheeks, so she swiped at them.

At the end, a lone girl of about five sat up in her bed and said, “Please, come help me. You’ll love working here.”

Caitlyn shut the TV off and crept over to the couch, staring at the young boy asleep in a towel. The throw blanket had fallen off, so she picked it up off the floor and tucked it around Loki. He turned his head, smiled and fell back asleep. She found a spot to curl up at the end of the couch and cried herself to sleep, the vision of a child’s haunted gaze foremost in her mind.

***

Ryan knocked on his grandfather’s front door the next day.

“It’s open.”

Ryan walked in the front door and headed into the kitchen where his gramps spent most of his time. His father was already there, and he was leaning against the countertop with his arms crossed.

“Are you going to tell us what you discussed with Erin?” his dad asked. “I wanted to ask you last night, but not in front of Mallory.”

Gramps said, “Spill the beans, son. Are you feeling better about her or not?”

“She came to tell me she’s marrying someone else, the father of her son.”

Both men stared at him in shock, so he filled them in with the details.

Gramps said, “Better sit down, Three. I think you need it.”

Ryan and his father both took a seat at the kitchen table.

Gramps said, “Holy crap.”

His dad said, “Holy shit. Who knew?”

“Good,” Gramps said. “Now tell me what happened with that Scottish girl. You know she’s the one for you. Your dad told me you got in a little trouble with her, but buy her some flowers and she’ll forgive you. She’ll probably chew your ass a bit, but it’ll be worth the effort.” He chuckled. “Your grandmother sure chewed my ass a time or two.”

“Did you deserve it?” Ryan’s dad asked with a crooked smile.

Gramps grinned from ear to ear. “Aye, I did. Hellfire, she was a bonny lass when she was spitting fire. Go after that wee lassie and marry her, Ryan. I’d say it’s your fate.”

“I can’t go just yet, Gramps.”

“Why not?”

“Because I need to find out what Chad had been trying to tell me. I thought he wanted me to take care of his wife and baby, but that can’t be it. He already knew Sammy wasn’t his.”

“So what’s that have to do with marrying the lassie?”

“I have to settle this in my mind. I still have nightmares and I’m tired of it. I need to find out why.”

His dad asked, “How are you going to do that? You’ve been trying to remember since you came back.”

“I guess I’ll go to my therapist and let her hypnotize me, see what comes out. I can’t go back to Cait yet, it wouldn’t be right. Not before I settle my demons.”

“Well then, get yourself fixed, young man. You’ve got a life to live. I think Erin’s message is for you to stop spending all your time on a memory. Time to live in the present.”

Ryan just stared at his grandfather. Leave it to him to put everything in such simple yet elegant terms.

***

Lynn Palermo paced in her tiny apartment. That foolish cop had disrupted her plans by arriving in Philadelphia just as she was preparing to head to Summerhill. It had taken her a while to figure things out, but she was happy with the adjustments she’d made.

She had planted the idea of William Jenkins as the stalker, and the cop seemed to have bought it. Maybe it wasn’t the best plan, but it was the only one she’d been able to come up with on the spot.

Then she’d needed to send Will to Florida to throw the police off her tail. Hopefully, they would leave her alone now. And if she backed off—and had William do the same—the police would inevitably get lax. New problems would arise, better uses of their time.

And that’s when she would go for the kill, so to say, when they least expected it. She had to admit she was pretty smart.

Chapter Thirty

Caitlyn awoke to a loud barking and sat up on the couch, brushing the sleep from her eyes. The barking came from the outside, near the lake. Loki jerked up right after she did, then ran to the sliding glass doors facing the lake. The kid moved way too fast for her in the morning.

“Growley! There he is.” He fumbled with the door and tried to open it, but he couldn’t figure it out.

“Missy angel, we have to let him in. He’s the other thing I have to do here.” His eyes widened as he beckoned her to help him with the clasp on the unfamiliar door.

Caitlyn rushed over to the door, panicking at the thought of Loki letting any animal inside. “Wait, Loki. We can’t just let a strange animal in the house.” She glanced at him, secretly glad that he was still there. It made her hope she hadn’t completely taken leave of her senses.

“But we have to. He’s my dog and Torrian’s, and he brought someone for you.”

A huge deerhound had appeared outside the glass door, just like the one she had seen in the median. He stood there with his tongue hanging out and his tail wagging, waiting patiently. He seemed harmless enough, so she opened the door just a little. The enormous dog burst through the door and licked Loki’s face until he fell on the floor giggling.

When the big dog finally settled, Loki hugged Growley before he stood and held his hand out to her. Then he looked down at himself in the towel and said, “Och, my clothes. I need my plaid and my sword.”

Caitlyn traipsed down the hall with an awful thought in her mind. When she returned with Loki’s clothing, she asked, “Loki, does you being young mean you died young?”

“Nay,” he shook his head while he wrapped his red tartan around himself. “I can be as old as I want when I come. Papa said everyone loved me when I was just a laddie, so he said I had the best chance to convince you to try children’s nursing. I’m just a soul now. But here, I am cute. Do you no’ think so?” He grinned at her while he dressed. When he finished, he turned to his big friend, “Show us, Growley.”

Growley led them down the deck to a lump on the grass at the base of the steps. He nuzzled the brown lump and a small head lifted before falling back down. Growley trotted over to Caitlyn and nuzzled her hand.

She sighed, then crept over and sat on the steps, reaching for the animal. A thin dog with his ribs clearly protruding stared up at her with glassy eyes.

“Oh, Loki. What’s wrong with him?”

“Her. Someone beat her and left her outside to die. Look at her bones, she hasn’t eaten in a verra long time.” Loki held his fist up to the heavens. “I’d like to find the surly pig-nut who did this.” A moment later he hung his head. “Sorry, Da. I’ll be nicer.”

Caitlyn cradled the small dog on her lap and rubbed her head to calm her.

“She’s still a pup, missy angel. She’s only half a summer.”

Caitlyn turned her head to Loki. “What? Half a summer?”

“She’s not a full year yet. She’s just a bairn.” Loki stared up at the sky. “Aye, my laird. I’m coming.” He turned to Caitlyn and said, “Bye, missy angel. I have to go back now. Thanks for the banana.” He gave her a quick hug, then scampered off toward the beach. “Come on, Growley.” The dog nuzzled Caitlyn’s hand, then licked the pup before he lumbered off after Loki.

Caitlyn shouted, “Wait, Loki. I don’t know what to do with her. Help me.”

“Let me ask Aunt Brenna. She’s a healer, you know.” He halted and stared at the sky as if he were listening carefully to someone. After a few moments, he brought his gaze back to hers. “Aunt Brenna says to boil the chicken you just bought along with plain rice, just a wee bit, every two hours, until she gets stronger. She’ll be fine.”

Loki turned away and continued to run toward the lake with Growley.

“Wait, Loki. What’s her name?”

Loki spun around to look at her, grinning. “Her name is Lucky. Do you know why?”

Caitlyn shook her head.

“Because that was my name, Lucky Loki, before I found my sire and my mama. And she has found a new mama just like I did.” He whirled around again and yelled over his shoulder, “Bye, missy angel. My laird is hollering for me.”

“But I don’t know what to do with a dog.” She tilted her head back and shouted to the sky as if someone in the heavens might be listening to her, as well.

“Aye, you do.” Loki stopped and stared at the sky again. “Trust your heart. ‘Tis what my mama says.”

He ran toward the water and as soon as his feet hit the ice, he disappeared, taking the Scottish Deerhound with him.

Caitlyn was alone with a sick animal. What was she to do? She stared at the brown clump of fur in her lap and said, “Come, Lucky, I guess I need to get you where it’s warm.” She nestled the dog in her arm and carried her inside. She found an old blanket and placed it next to the couch, settling Lucky on top of it. “I’ll go see if I can rustle up something for you to eat. Chicken and rice, hmmm.”

The dog hardly moved when she walked over to her cupboards. She opened the fridge door, and there sat the chicken breasts she had just purchased. How had Loki known about that? Her brow furrowed, but then she decided the whole episode was much more than she could work through right now. She had something to do first.

As the food boiled on the stove, Caitlyn sat down next to the pup and petted her head. “You poor thing. How could anyone be so cruel to an animal?” She noticed Lucky winced when she petted one side of her, so that must have been where she was hit. One eye looked swollen as well. After she stroked the animal for a while, Lucky seemed to fall asleep, so she took her hand away and folded her hands in her lap, leaning over so she could look at the animal. A moment later, Lucky picked her head up and rested her chin on Caitlyn’s foot, wiggling a little before finding just the right spot and closing her eyes again. “Awww. You are so sweet, Lucky.”

Once the food was cooked, she waited for it to cool, then put it in a small bowl. Caitlyn worried the dog might vomit, so she picked Lucky up and settled onto the kitchen floor with the dog on her lap. She fed her with her fingers, offering her water intermittently. It took a while, but she ate almost a quarter of a cup. Lucky fell asleep, so Caitlyn moved her back to her blanket by the couch.

Lying down on the couch next to her new friend, she kept a hand on Lucky’s back. The wee pup needed her, but maybe not as much as she needed the pup.

***

The next day, Caitlyn drove to the Children’s Hospital in Rochester. Mallory had stopped over since she didn’t have to work that day, and they had discussed the possibilities for her future. Her friend was a little surprised to hear she’d settled on pediatrics, but she offered her full support. Neither of them said a word about Ryan.

Mallory had instantly fallen in love with Lucky. Not willing to share the strange story of how she had come to find the pup, Caitlyn just said she’d found her in her front yard. Lucky was growing stronger every hour, and had actually gone to the bathroom outside. There hadn’t been any accidents yet, but Caitlyn decided to play it safe and left her in a big box she had saved after moving. She put the dog’s blanket in the box and a bowl of water and promised to be back before dinner time.

The drive was a little over thirty minutes, but it felt like an easy distance. There was a new Pediatric Hospital on the east side of Rochester, so she was excited about the prospect of working in a brand new facility.

After touring the different units, she decided to try the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit first. They had a good program for new nurses in the unit, and she liked the idea of working where she was needed most. Though she still struggled with the idea of changing her focus so completely—particularly since it was on the suggestion of a wee Scottish lad—something felt right about it. When she thought about how dependent little Lucky was on her, she had a different feeling about it than she had in the past. Her brain couldn’t believe she was thinking about doing this, but in her heart, she knew it was a good move.

Maybe her new life hadn’t been destroyed as utterly as she’d believed it to be. She still had her beautiful house, new friends, and now there was the possibility of embarking on a new career. Yes, her relationship hadn’t worked out, but maybe it was a good idea to date a few more men before choosing one for a serious relationship. She had never dated too much in Buffalo or at Niagara University.

Mallory had tried to talk her into returning to the local hospital, but Caitlyn wanted to get completely away from it. That ad she’d seen on TV after Loki had mentioned the idea of pediatric nursing to her had seemed like a sign.

She was offered a position, and would start the following week. There would be another round of orientation, but she would need it for pediatrics. Plus, any new facility took some adjusting, and she would take the time and not rush it.

On the way home, she stopped at a pet store and purchased a real bed for Lucky along with some dog food for pups with sensitive stomachs. After wandering down the different aisles, she found herself totally immersed in the dog toy section. She selected three toys she hoped would be appropriate for Lucky.

Her next step was a veterinarian in Summerhill. She wanted to make sure she was doing all she could for Lucky, so she made an appointment for the next day.

When she finally arrived home with all her purchases, she crept through the door quietly so as not to wake Lucky. Any nurse knew how important sleep was to someone who was healing from a sickness or injury. As soon as she closed the door, a pair of eyes popped out over the side of the box, and a thumping noise echoed through the house.

“Awww…. Are you happy to see me?” Caitlyn peered over the side of the box and saw Lucky’s tail beating against the cardboard. She smiled and lifted the pup out, nuzzling her before she took her outside to see if she had to pee. As soon as Caitlyn set her down on the winter grass, Lucky squatted and did her business. Then she scampered over to a tree and sniffed it before returning to Caitlyn, her tail wagging. “You feel better, don’t you?”

Caitlyn stared up at the moving clouds, wondering if Loki was watching her from up there.
Crazy
, she thought, shaking her head. She still hadn’t been able to reason through everything. She scooped Lucky up and took her back inside to feed her again, then set out the dog’s new bed and toys.

If not for Lucky, Caitlyn would have been able to convince herself that Loki and Growley had both come to her in a dream. But then she would have no answer for the puppy in front of her, who’d just picked up a stuffed squirrel in her mouth and shaken it from side to side, her tail wagging.

Where had the dog come from?