Chapter 25
Had Duncan’s phone always been that shrill?
Bex thought as the sound tore through the quiet of the room.
It was as if it was demanding their attention, wanting them to know that right now, it was the most important thing in the world and they had to pay attention to it.
Even Ruby was sitting up, her head resting on the top of the bed, like she was waiting to hear the outcome.
Yet for a moment, all the group could do was look at it.
‘You need to answer,’ Bex said quietly.
Duncan nodded, but although he still had the phone in his hand, he made no attempt to use it. Another sharp ring ripped through the silence of the room. Half a second later, he thrust it at Bex.
‘You answer,’ he said.
‘What?’
‘I cannae do it. I need you to.’
‘Are you sure?’
He nodded.
Bex swallowed the oversized lump that filled her throat, trying to stem the way her pulse was crashing in her chest. Who knew that answering a phone could be even more nerve-racking than a potentially deadly collision with a deer in your parents’ rental car?
As she continued staring at the device, she was half-tempted to tell Duncan that he should do it.
It was his future they were about to learn about, not hers, but then hadn’t they, only moments before, told each other that this was it?
That they were still in love with each other and determined to make this work?
That meant being there for each other no matter what, and that started now.
Her hand trembled as she clicked the answer button.
‘Hi, Gordon,’ she said, her voice tight.
Her greeting was responded to with nothing but silence.
‘Rebecca?’ he said after a moment. ‘I’m sorry, I thought I called someone else.’
‘Duncan. Yes, I know. He’s here with me. He asked me to answer the phone for him.’
‘Oh, okay.’
She could almost see the way Gordon was rubbing at the bridge of his nose as he pondered this unexpected outcome. ‘Well, I kinda need to speak to him.’
‘Sure.’ She lowered the phone from her ear and held it out to Duncan, who immediately shook his head.
‘I cannae,’ he mouthed at her. Her pulse quickened further still. He wasn’t going to take it. So where did that leave them?
‘I’m going to put you on speakerphone now, Gordon,’ Bex said, her eyes on Duncan to ensure he agreed. ‘If that’s okay?’
The butterflies in Bex’s stomach intensified as Duncan nodded. A heartbeat later, her fingers were fumbling to tap the speaker icon.
‘As long as it’s okay with Duncan.’ Gordon’s reply came out for them all to hear. ‘As I’m sure you’re aware, I have personal information to disclose. I need to ensure he’s all right with that.’
‘Aye, it’s grand. Bex can listen. I want her to hear.’ It was the first thing Duncan had managed to say. Bex reached across and squeezed his knee as she flashed him a smile that she hoped told him what she wanted him to know. She was still here for him. No matter what.
‘Right, Duncan. Hello. Okay then.’ Gordon let out a breath that rattled through the speaker.
If Bex had to guess, he was almost as nervous as they were.
But was he nervous because Duncan was or wasn’t the heir, she wondered, recalling the words Duncan had said to her only a moment ago.
He hadn’t asked her if she was ready to find out if he was the heir to Highland Hall or if she was ready for him to become laird.
He had asked if she was ready to find out who his grandpa was.
That was what mattered to him; the family side of things, not the money or the title. And that was why she loved him so much.
‘Duncan, as you know, we took a swab from your cheek for DNA testing.’ Gordon’s voice took on a more formal and measured tone. ‘I also asked Kieron to do the same.’
‘I’m afraid he wasn’t too happy about that,’ Bex muttered, a small, nervous laugh escaping her.
‘No, not exactly,’ Gordon admitted with a grunt. ‘But I think he realised there was no choice. Both yours, Duncan, and Kieron’s DNA were taken via cheek swab. I also, er, secured what I assumed to be several samples of Fergus’s DNA too.’
‘What does that mean? Secured?’ Bex asked. ‘How did you do that?’
She felt guilty for delaying him getting to the point, but she needed to know the ins and outs of what had happened, for her own peace of mind if nothing else.
‘Well, I didnae want to take any risks, so I took a couple of hairs from the inside of that green flat cap o’ his. Was still hung up in the back of the house.’
Bex felt a pang of emotion at the mention of Fergus’s flat cap.
She remembered it vividly and how when she’d first seen Fergus wearing it, with his scruffy hair sticking out from underneath, surrounded by a pack of dogs, she’d thought he might be homeless.
Or a groundskeeper. Never had it crossed her mind that he was the laird and owner of the most beautiful home she’d ever known.
‘Aye, well, I took his wax jacket, an’ forensics found skin samples an’ a nail clippin’ in one of the pockets. And I maybe had a wee sneak upstairs on Burns Night an’ found a toothbrush in the bin in the old man’s bedroom.’
‘Wow, you really didn’t want to take any risks,’ Bex said, with an air of awe. Where Gordon stood on the matter legally, she wasn’t sure, but he was the lawyer, not her.
‘Well, good thing is they were all a match, ’cept a couple of dog hairs. So the court’ll be more than happy they’re Fergus’s.’
Bex exchanged a look with Duncan. He hadn’t said a word since saying he was okay with Bex listening in and, from the current greenish hue that had taken over his complexion, she wasn’t even sure he was able to.
Gordon cleared his throat. ‘Well, we had the lab process the cheek swabs first,’ he continued. ‘And they showed that the two individuals – Duncan and Kieron – share four hundred and twenty centimorgans of DNA.’
‘Which means?’
‘It means that they are related. First cousins once removed.’
Bex covered her mouth in shock. Duncan and Kieron were cousins.
Blood relations. In all her speculation, she hadn’t even thought about that factor.
But if that was the case, then she already knew what Gordon was about to say next.
There was only one way they could be related, but she needed to hear the words come from his lips.
‘Which means?’ she asked, her eyes still locked on Duncan’s, their hands squeezed so tightly together it was as if their pulses were hammering as one.
‘Means Duncan is Fergus’s grandchild,’ Gordon said. ‘Which makes him the rightful heir of Highland Hall and the new laird.’