Chapter 23 #2
She looked at Callan, her eyes huge as she read the translation.
“It tells of goods, servants, and men being sent to a Bainford Castle, where Lord Bainford and his wife, Chloe Merriweather Gregory, Lady Bainford resided. The items in question sent by several prominent families of the time and overseen on the journey by a close friend.”
She let out a gasp. “Callan, look.”
Daisy pointed at the words as she read. “Thomas Merriweather Wilton. Lord Blackford and his wife, Lucy Merriweather Brandon, Lady Blackford. Lord Falconburg and his wife, Melinda Merriweather Rivers, Lady Falconburg. Lord Ravenskirk and his wife, Charlotte Merriweather Thornton, Lady Ravenskirk. Everything you said is true. You really are from the past.” Daisy reverently handed the document back to Drake.
Mildred met her eyes. “I know. It’s a lot to take in.”
Mildred told them about Karen and the baby she had named Chloe. How she’d taken Karen in, adopted her and given them a home.
“Chloe Penelope Merriweather. She told us when she was two years old that she was going to meet her aunts.”
Mildred took Drake’s hand in hers as she told the tale.
“We were so worried something was wrong with her until we figured out she was babbling on about time travel. Later, when she was grown, she told us she was going to England to visit the stone circles, that she was certain she could go back in time. We were so grateful to find out she made it and was okay.”
The tears started again. Millie pulled a tissue from her sleeve and blew her nose.
“Thomas was the man my sister was in love with. She sent him back to his own time, and somehow he found Chloe and made sure she got to her aunts. My sister passed away soon after Lucy traveled.”
Callan needed to know.
“How did your sister send him back?”
Beside him, he felt Daisy flinch.
But she shook her head. “I don’t know, other than there was a terrible storm.”
“It may be different for each of us.” Drake cleared his throat. “I was in many storms and nothing ever happened.” He shuddered. “The fates must have decided that I belonged here. You may not be able to go back.”
They talked a while longer, about the past, how different things were. At last, Drake stood.
“Let us go for a walk on the beach before it rains. I find I need to stretch my legs.”
He nodded to Callan. “I hear dogs outside. Are they yours?”
“Aye. We left them water and leashed them next to our camper.”
Mildred stood as well, talking to Daisy. “Why don’t we sit outside and enjoy the breeze before it rains?”
His lass stood, an uncertain look on her face as she looked at him. Then something shifted, and she gave him a brief nod before turning back to Mildred.
“That sounds nice.”
Callan checked on Brodie and Frankie, telling Drake how he’d come to have the wee dog.
“You must stay here.” He told the dogs as he and Drake walked through the black gate to the wooden walkway that led to the sand and the water. They paused at the last step, both removing their shoes.
For a while they simply walked along the water’s edge, occasionally sharing bits about their lives before, things they missed, and the things they loved about this time. Drake told him about losing his memory and only finding Millie many years later.
Some time later, Drake cleared his throat. “It isn’t any of my concern, but it seems you and your woman are having some difficulties.”
“Aye.” Callan tied his hair back as he told Drake what had happened between them. How Daisy did not believe him when he gave his word.
“Many modern women are unused to the weight our word carries. From what you have told me, she’s been hurt before and given how her parents neglected her, you have to look at things as if you were her.
” Drake said as he told Callan about Karen and Millie, and how he had almost lost Millie.
They talked until Callan was worn out, emotions flooding through him.
“Mayhap ye are right. I will speak to her, tell her I am sorry and will try to be patient. But she must try as well.”
“Fair enough. In time, she will come to the realization that you’re not going to leave her.”
They used the outdoor faucet to wash off their feet as they crossed the boardwalk back to the house.
Daisy and Millie were gone. Drake pointed to the women walking along the beach, stopping now and then to pick up a shell.
Drake led him upstairs to his office. He picked up a beautifully crafted dagger from a display case. The blade was exquisitely preserved, its handle intricately designed. He turned to Callan, the dagger in hand.
“I’ve had this for quite some time,” Drake began, his voice tinged with nostalgia. “It’s from the late 1300s, a bit after your time, but I’d like you to have it as my thanks for coming to find us, putting Millie’s mind at ease about Lucy.”
Callan, taken aback by the gesture, slowly reached out to take the dagger. His fingers traced the patterns on the handle, feeling the weight of history in his hands. “Drake, I dinna ken what to say. This is... it’s an incredible gift.”
Drake smiled, a look of understanding in his eyes. “I know it will be in good hands with you.”
Callan held the dagger. “I’m honored, truly.”
Daisy walked with Millie along the beach, enjoying the breeze and the smell of the ocean.
Mildred, with a lifetime of experiences etched into her kind eyes, turned her full attention to Daisy who broke down in tears, telling her the entire story, or as she and Zara liked to say, spilling the tea.
“It was like everything had been picture perfect, but the problem with pictures is they only capture a moment in time, not the full story. I know I have work to do, to work on my trust and abandonment issues.”
She wiped her eyes. “My heart knows he won’t abandon me, that he is true to his word, but my head isn’t quite there yet. I love Callan more than anything in this world. I can’t bear to lose him.”
“That man loves you just as much as you love him. It’s all over his face.
” Millie patted her back. “The fear of abandonment is real, but you have to keep telling it to go away, that Callan is a good man who would sacrifice his own life to keep you safe. He’s shown you his heart.
Don’t let your fear blind you to what you could have together. ”
She shaded her eyes, looking up at the house. “I almost lost Drake because of my own issues. I do know what you’re going through, but if we could figure things out, I have no doubt you two can as well.”