Children of Time (The After Cilmeri Series Book Four) (34 page)

If Callum had thought the day couldn’t be improved upon, he was wrong. Thanks to a long-term (clandestine) relationship with a Scottish woman who now lived in Carlisle, Samuel spoke Gaelic. Because Callum did too, Samuel had been one of the few people with whom Callum could communicate in the first months he’d lived in Wales. Like English and French, Gaelic had changed between the thirteenth century and the twenty-first, but Callum had more easily navigated those changes, and Samuel had been willing to help.

Although Samuel was of Jewish descent, at six feet tall, with light brown hair and the body of a soldier, he could be mistaken for a run-of-the-mill Englishman. Very often, he meant to be. Until the death of Edmund of Lancaster, King Edward’s brother in whose company Samuel served before 1285, Samuel had denied his Jewish heritage and passed for an Englishman. In the new world David had created, such deception was no longer required. Not surprisingly, Samuel now served David instead of any English baron.

Samuel had lived his life on the outside looking in, pretending to fit in with Gentiles—and doing it so well that he’d never been found out. Despite the vast difference of time and culture between Callum and Samuel, Callum had found that he could relate to Samuel more than to any other medieval man and counted him as one of his few friends.

Callum strode over to Samuel and the two men clasped forearms. “Sir.” Samuel bowed his head slightly.

“Welcome,” Callum said.

“Thank you for coming, all of you,” David said.

“Thank you for inviting us, sire,” Samuel said, “but to what do I owe the honor of your invitation?”

“Earl Callum has agreed to join my delegation to Scotland.” David shot Callum a grin. “He is to be my eyes and ears. I want you to be his.”

Callum looked at David. “You’ve been planning this for a while, haven’t you? Why didn’t you tell me—?” He snapped his mouth shut as David tilted his head and gave him a questioning look. “Right.” Callum turned back to Samuel.

“It would be my pleasure to serve you, my lord,” Samuel said, and then paused, his eyes glancing towards David. “Did you say,
Earl
?”

David grinned. “Callum is the newly installed Earl of Shrewsbury.”

“A wise choice, my lord.” Samuel bowed, a smile twitching at the corner of his lips. “May I ask why you chose me for this journey?”

David narrowed his eyes. “Do you object to the post? You speak Gaelic and English, you’re loyal to me, and you’re good with a sword. Why not you?”

“You have other talents as well that make you particularly suited to the job,” Callum said.

“Such as what?” Samuel said, but then nodded as he caught on. “Oh yes. That would be lying.”

“It’s a useful skill, whether or not the leaders of our respective religions would agree,” Callum said.

David clapped a hand on each of their shoulders and shook once. “I, on the other hand, am very bad at it. Lili despairs of me because I turn red, stammer, and look down at my feet.”

“I’m not sure that’s such a bad thing,” Callum said.

“When would you have us leave, my lord?” Samuel said.

“Tomorrow,” David said. “Can you two work together?”

“Yes, my lord,” Samuel and Callum said in unison.

“Good.” David nodded at Samuel, indicating he was dismissed. With a final bow in the king’s direction, Samuel and his father went into the hall. Then David turned to Callum, switching to American English. “He’s a common soldier and can ask questions where you cannot. Between the two of you, I have a chance of getting at the truth.”

Callum sensed that David had mentally checked Scotland off of his list of things to do. Callum had seen him create the lists, scribbling on scraps of paper he carried around with him at all times. Without warning, he would pull one from an inner pocket to tick items off or add new ones. Callum didn’t know how David managed to keep so many balls in the air at once, even with two very efficient secretaries.

Meanwhile, Ieuan had fallen into a conversation in rapid Welsh with Lili. It would have proved too much for Callum, even if they had wanted to include him. Lili squeezed David’s hand and went off with her brother, following Samuel and Aaron. That left Callum alone with David and Bronwen, who had been watching the various exchanges with little Catrin on her hip.

Now, Bronwen came over to hug Callum. “I see you have a job. I’m glad.”

“You may note that it appears to be the worst one David could think of.” But Callum smiled as he said it.

“I’m standing right here,” David said. “I speak American too.” The three time travelers stood in a little circle. It was as if they’d created their own cone of silence in the center of the bailey while the activity of the castle went on around them.

Bronwen laughed and elbowed David. “Those jobs are the ones he gives to people he trusts the most. Besides, Scotland is a mess and getting more dangerous by the day. You could hardly do worse than King Edward did in the old world.”

“King Edward chose John Balliol to be king because he thought Balliol was weaker than Robert Bruce and could be manipulated,” David said. “Having never met either man, I can’t say which I prefer. Callum will just have to figure it out when he gets there.”

“I can’t believe I’m going to have to deal with
three
Robert Bruces,” Callum said. “How am I to keep them straight, much less keep track of everyone else who claims the throne?”

“Easy,” Bronwen said. “The one who’s claiming the throne now is Grampa Bruce, his son is Daddy Bruce, and the boy, the one who becomes
the
Robert the Bruce a few decades from now, is Baby Bruce.”

“Given that he’s fourteen years old,” David said, “I suspect he wouldn’t take kindly to that nickname. I believe they call him
Robbie.
”

“Whatever.” Bronwen patted Callum’s hand. “Just be grateful they’re not all named something unpronounceable like they would be if they were Welsh.”

David laughed. “More than anything, I’d like to avoid war. In the old world, King Edward died of dysentery while campaigning in Scotland. That isn’t going to be my fate. We’re going to figure this out without bloodshed.”

Bronwen bit her lip. “You’re more worried about this than I expected, David. Do you think it’s going to be dangerous for Callum?”

“I hope not,” David said.

“We’re talking about Scotland, right? We have no idea what’s going to happen,” Callum said. “And honestly, that’s a good thing. If it comes to a fight, I can handle myself.”

Bronwen turned on him. “What’s with you guys? You come to the Middle Ages and within six months, swinging a sword at an enemy’s head is the most fun you can think of.”

“Bronwen,” David said, “Callum didn’t mean anything—”

“Didn’t he?” Bronwen glared at David. She was one of three or four people on the planet who could get away with it.

“It’s okay, Bronwen.” Callum touched her arm with one finger and then moved it up to allow Catrin to wrap her whole hand around it. “I know soldiering. I asked for this job.”

“Callum has even learned to curse like a medieval man,” David said. “‘By St. Gwendolyn’s ear’, and ‘St. Kentigern’s bones’ are his new favorites. I’ve heard him myself.”

Bronwen tsked under her breath. “We haven’t lost any of us yet and I don’t want to start with you. Meg feels guilty enough as it is.” She abruptly kissed Callum’s cheek, and then David’s, and left, though not before Callum saw the tears in her eyes.

David looked after her for a long moment and then back at Callum. “Callum—”

“I spoke the truth,” Callum said. “When I first arrived here, your mother told me that I had come to the Middle Ages for a reason. I don’t know if this is it, or even what she meant, but as long as I’m here, I mean to make something of my life. I think I can make a difference—to you and to the people here.”

 “I knew I was right to choose you.” David stepped closer. “You don’t know my father well, but when I first came to Wales, he spoke to me of what it meant to be a man, to lead, and to rule. He talked to me of honor.”

Callum gazed into David’s eyes, thinking that this king knew far too much about too many things for a boy his age, and that despite Callum’s best efforts to see him with clear eyes, David had pulled him under his spell as he had everyone else.

“As did my father,” Callum said. “Honor is an easy word to throw around without a true understanding of its meaning.”

“And what does it mean to you?” David said.

“To do what is right, regardless of the personal cost,” Callum said.

“Most people live only for themselves and thus have no honor,” David said. “When a man thinks about feeding his physical wants and not his heart for too long, one day he wakes up with his soul as hollow as his stomach and a lot harder to fill. That’s not been your problem, however.”

“Do I have a problem?” Callum said, his palms sweating at how close David was to the truth of what was inside him.

“I wasn’t there—I don’t know what you went through—but my wish for you is that you can find something here, or someone, that can help you fill that hollow space your war carved out of you.”

“And you think I might find that in Scotland?” Callum said.

“I don’t know,” David said, “but it’s a place to start.”

As Callum watched King David join his wife and family in the hall, it occurred to him that he wasn’t the only one who’d come a long way since Chepstow.

______________________

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