Chapter 3
T he lack of electricity was a problem, but not an insurmountable one. Bethany had planned to wait a few weeks anyway, so there would be plenty of time to get an electrician in. But with every bump and rustle in the night, her heart pounded harder. She could barely sleep from fear that Lucan lurked just outside, that he had already found them. By the time she’d made some breakfast tea and fed Matthew the last of their snacks, her mind was almost made up. It would be lovely to stay here in this cottage, ignoring the rest of the world, but Lucan could find them at any moment. What if he remembered the name of the village? Anyone around here could tell him which house Bethany had inherited. There was no more time to waste. She started up the car and plugged her equipment in there, letting it charge while she made her final preparations. It wouldn’t need a lot of electricity, just a spark. Most of the power came from elsewhere.
After all her sneaking and stealing, it was hard to believe that today was the day. She should probably feel more regret at leaving the time of her birth, but there was nothing left for her here and now. Nothing except Matthew, and he would be coming with her.
“We’re going to have a day out today,” she told Matthew brightly. “How do you fancy visiting an ancient hill fort?”
“Will there be pirates?” Matthew asked with interest. Bethany laughed. That was his latest fascination.
“No, not pirates,” she said. “But it might still be fun.”
“Let’s go,” Matthew said, giving her a heart-melting smile.
While he visited the toilet (and, hopefully, flushed it with a bucket of water and washed his hands with antibacterial gel), Bethany packed. They couldn’t take everything, not where they were going, but she packed a few favourite items, and some necessary survival kit. If anything went wrong, things might get dangerous - more dangerous than her secret self-defence classes could handle. She needed to be prepared. Matches, a knife, a solar-powered torch, water purification tablets. This stash had taken over a year to build up, but it was worth it. Any single item here might just save her life. Finally, she slipped gold bracelets onto her wrist, and a heavy gold necklace around her neck. If she lost her backpack on the journey, she would need some kind of portable wealth. She’d stolen these from her mother, and didn’t feel the slightest bit bad about it.
With all her possessions in a large backpack and her time travel equipment in a sturdy tote, Bethany loaded up the car and fetched Matthew. As she strapped him into the car seat, she wondered if this was the last time she would ever do this. So much was about to change.
They parked the car close to the hill and set off. Matthew eyed Bethany’s backpack as they began the climb, but thankfully he did not say anything. He seemed far too captivated by the rolling grassy hillocks and swathes of long grass. Bethany laughed as she watched him run and jump about. He needed to act like a child more often.
“I used to visit here when I was your age,” Bethany said. “My grandmother brought me every summer.”
Matthew nodded in acknowledgement and they walked on a little further.
“The sea used to come all the way up to the base of the hill, once upon a time,” Bethany said. “People could sail ships from here all the way to Ireland.”
“Was it like that when you were little?” Matthew asked, his eyes wide.
Bethany laughed. “No, I’m not that old,” she said. “This was hundreds of years ago.”
Funnily enough, she had asked her grandmother exactly the same question, twenty years ago. She smiled at the memory, but Matthew had already bounded off, clambering over rocks. He seemed more awake and alive than he’d ever been at home. Perhaps Bethany wasn’t the only one stifled by Lucan.
As they approached the summit of the hill fort, Bethany looked about for her destination. And there it was - a flat, nondescript rock.
“Over here, Matthew,” Bethany called. He scampered over and she bent down to show him the rock’s secrets.
“Do you see these scratches?” she asked. He nodded. “They’re actually ancient writing,” she explained.
Matthew’s eyes didn’t exactly light up, but he looked interested. “What does it say?” he asked.
Bethany grimaced. Should have seen that one coming. “No one actually knows,” she admitted. “But look at this little boar here. Isn’t he lovely? ”
Matthew peered down at the boar carving, although his interest already seemed to be waning.
“And here,” Bethany said, reaching out one hand to trace the edge of a life-sized footprint, carved into the rock. Her fingers trembled slightly, and she was afraid to actually touch the carving. “This has been here since before Scotland existed, when this was the capital of a kingdom called Dal Riada. The kings used to put their feet in this footprint as part of the ceremony to make them king.”
“I know,” Matthew said, looking more closely. “Daddy told me about it.”
For a second, Bethany was horrified. Did Lucan know about her plan? But she shook off the fear. Lucan managed a time travel project to ancient Scotland. It was his area of speciality - why would it be strange for him to mention a few things to his son? The Dunadd footprint was hardly a secret. People wrote about it all the time. It was just coincidence that Matthew already knew about it.
“Let’s sit here for a while,” she said, trying to inject some cheer into her voice. It sounded forced, but Matthew seemed happy enough. As they sat side by side on the rock, Bethany fumbled around in her tote bag, trying to set up her equipment as inconspicuously as possible. Every time she noticed a missing piece, her heart leaped to her throat. But it was all here, down to every last detail. She had been meticulous in her planning.
“It’s starting to get cold, Matthew,” Bethany said. “Why don’t you wear this?”
She pulled a wool tunic, carefully handmade from an old dress, out of her backpack. Matthew wrinkled his nose at it, but he did as he was told and pulled the garment on over his t-shirt and jeans. Bethany forced a smile, although her heart was pounding so hard she thought she might faint.
“Look, I’ve got one too,” she said, and pulled a floor-length dress from her bag. It pulled on easily over her sweatshirt and yoga pants, and she’d even thought to bring a belt for it. The outfit as a whole was bulky and uncomfortable, but hopefully it would allow them to escape attention, at least until they could find something better.
And then there was no more to prepare. It was time to leave.
Bethany pressed the button to begin. She reached out to grip Matthew’s hand tightly. He looked up at her questioningly, but she focused on her other hand, which held the power cord. Barely able to breathe, she reached out and touched the cord to the footprint.
The world began to change.
Ghostly shapes of buildings and people flashed and vanished all around her, speeding past like cars on a highway. The sea swept up beside them, then receded, then rose again like the fastest and highest of tides. Ghostly faces danced in the air all around them - and then one man, large and fierce, appeared right beside them. Bethany stumbled backwards with a gasp. Still holding Matthew’s hand, she lost her footing even as the man vanished. The two of them tumbled down the hill, hitting stones and rocks as they went.
Bethany landed hard, Matthew thudding against her. She lay on her back, blinking up at the sky, as the last of the flickering changes died away. Matthew began to sob quietly. Bethany wrapped her arms around him and pulled herself up to a sitting position. She’d lost the machine as they fell. Unless she could find it again, they were stuck here for good.
But all thoughts of the future fell away as she looked up at Dunadd. Her jaw dropped open. Matthew gasped, his tears already forgotten. A true hill fort rose up before them, wrapped around with tall wooden ramparts. Plumes of smoke drifted from its many layers, and Bethany could hear the faint noise even from here.
She turned around and gasped yet again. The land behind them, marshy just a few moments ago, had been swallowed by the sea. She and Matthew sat beside a small sandy beach, only a few dozen feet from the lapping waves.
“Bethany!” someone called behind her. Or, at least, that was what it sounded like.
She turned instinctively, staggering to her feet - and found herself staring at a group of stern-looking warriors. They rode straight towards her, still calling what sounded like her name.