Time Travel Romances Boxed Set (36 page)

“
Well, well, it does.
Usually.” Darian toyed with the print now back in his possession.
“Maybe it’s not as old as all that.” He eyed Aurelia speculatively.
“How could this be a crossbow?”

He was baiting her and Aurelia knew it, but
her temper was such that she responded anyhow. She plucked the
print from his hand. “Gutting from here to here, and here to here.
A revolving nut here, it’s held this way and fires like so.” She
squinted at the image. “There is the nut, fallen into the dirt
directly beside it.”

They all stared at her, but Aurelia returned
to her meal.

“
And Pictish?”

Aurelia fired a glance at him, daring him to
challenge her. “Dating from the arrival of the first Vikings.”

Darian smiled patronizingly. “Aurelia, the
Vikings took possession of the Orkney Islands in the eighth century
or so…”

“
And Hekod the Fifth
claimed Dunhelm, among the first to land in these islands. He
married a Pictish woman, the crossbow is from that time, therefore
the Picts used crossbows.” Aurelia ate her dinner with resolve, not
tasting a single bite of it.

“
Uh, well! You certainly
seem to know a lot about the period,” Darian
acknowledged.

Aurelia shot a glance at him. “You could say
that I have lived it.”

Marissa laughed nervously. “More silly
stories of prophecies for us, darling?”

“
Prophecies?” Darian looked
to Aurelia with open curiosity.

But it was Marissa who answered, her eyes
bright with malice. “Yes, Aurelia has this charming fantasy that
she actually is a Pictish princess. Baird found her in the well,
didn’t you, darling?”

“
That’s enough,” Baird said
tightly.

Marissa ignored him. “You know, Darian
darling, it was the cutest little story.” She laughed harshly
again. “But then, doesn’t every little girl dream of starring in
her own fairy tale? It’s so much easier than actually growing
up.”

An awkward silence settled around the
table.

Darian cleared his throat, apparently
uncertain whether to laugh or believe Marissa. Something flickered
in his gaze, though, that gave Aurelia an instinctive understanding
of Baird’s dislike of this man.

“
Well, then, perhaps you’d
like to help me excavate the site?” Darian leaned closer and smiled
charmingly. “I could use all the expertise I can get and if we’ve
got an extra fan of the Picts in the ranks, it would certainly
help.”

If Aurelia had not heard Baird go to
Marissa, she would never have agreed.

But agree she did.

“
I would delighted to help
you,” she said proudly.

Baird pushed to his feet, his features grim.
“Well, I’m going to bed.”

“
Need some company,
darling?” Marissa cooed.

Baird’s glance was lethal. “Don’t push your
luck,” he muttered, then stalked from the room.

*

Baird fought the dream tooth and nail, even
though it began similarly to the one he had of Julian.

But this dream seemed more determined than
the others, more purposeful in its invasion of his sleep. Baird had
the eerie sense that it was intent on showing him something he had
missed.

But that was illogical.

Baird stood in the doorway of the room where
the woman had given birth to that child. The furnishings were
slightly more worn than they had been before, but the room still
had a welcoming feel. A trio of candles burned on a table, filling
the shadows with their beeswax scent, and illuminating the proud
figure of the warrior standing before the window.

His hands were folded behind him, his back
to Baird as he stared out at the stars. It was the same man, with
the same heavy silver chain around his neck, though he looked older
and slightly smaller.

He turned at some minute sound and Baird saw
the passage of the years more clearly in his lined face. His
expression was grim.

“
Come in, son.” He heaved a
sigh and frowned, as Baird made sense of his words. “I have some
news to share that will not come easily.”

Baird must be in the point of view of the
son this man had claimed as his own. That would explain the passing
of time. He glanced down to himself and saw that he was tall and
dressed in a tunic and leggings similar to those of the king.

The old king pursed his lips. “There is no
sense in drawing this out. I have a missive this day from
Dunhelm.”

Baird’s heart skipped a beat.

“
Bard, son of Erc,
perpetuated a cruel ruse with marked success. He sent word to Hekod
that he would heal the rift between their families by wedding
Hekod’s daughter Aurelia. Hekod, in good faith, sent his son Thord
to negotiate the details.”

Baird’s mouth went dry, though which part of
him was dismayed, he could not have said. The image of his friend
at the harbor, the friend he knew to be Julian in the present day,
drew clear in his mind.

“
Has something gone
amiss?”

The king levelled a steady glance at him.
“It was a savage plot. Bard killed Thord and sent his head back to
Hekod with the dawn, along with a declaration of war.”

Dismay swept over Baird in a dizzying wave.
“No! Not Thord! He cannot be dead!” He could not have lost his
greatest friend.

The world could not be without Thord’s merry
laughter.

“
But he is dead, Bridei,
and naught can change that now.” The king’s tone was resolute. He
crossed the room and laid a heavy hand on Baird’s shoulder, his
gaze boring into Baird’s own.

“
Though I respect that you
would mourn, this is not the end of matters. There is little time
for such doings now. War has been declared. Hekod has not asked for
aid, but he will need of it. He has served me loyally all these
years and I will send an army to his aid.”

His grip tightened on Baird’s shoulder. “I
would have you lead the forces, Bridei. The presence of my only son
will show all the strength of my commitment to the defense of
Dunhelm.”

Baird straightened and felt an alien thrill
of pride course through him. His father trusted him to lead men
into battle. He was indeed a man. “Yes, Father.”

The older man nodded and his tone was grim.
“Perhaps you will be the one to strike the blow of vengeance for
Thord. Bard, son of Erc, deserves no less.”

Baird’s throat tightened with his own
resolve. “Yes, Father.”

“
Look at you.” The older
man smiled sadly. “I remember well enough my first battle and can
imagine your anticipation. Know that I trust you to do us
proud.”

“
Thank you,
Father.”

They gazed at each other for a moment, and
Baird was sure an echo of the warrior’s sadness gleamed in his own
eyes. Thord was dead.

“
Go, tell your mother the
news, but beware she may not take it well. You are her pride and
joy, and her only chick, after all.”

The king called to him when he would have
crossed the threshold, and Baird reluctantly turned back.

“
Look well upon the
daughter of Hekod,” his father said solemnly. “It was said once
that much ill could be avoided if I pledged you to her, but I was
loathe to commit you to anything when you were but a child. Perhaps
I erred in this, perhaps this might have ended differently, but
what is done is done.”

“
I do not understand,
Father.”

His father cleared his throat. “What I say
is this - if Aurelia takes your fancy and you hers, know that you
have my blessing in making a match.”

Aurelia
.

There she was again. In every dream, her
presence was tangible.

“
I shall do so, Father.” he
bowed slightly. “Thank you for your trust.”

The king shook his head solemnly. “You may
not thank me, my son, when you witness the foul deeds of which war
is wrought.”

The dream blurred and Baird had the sense of
time passing, of distance flying beneath his feet. He was on the
deck of a ship, the sails snapping overhead and the ropes groaning
with the tug of the wind. Excitement was high on the ship, every
man determined to strike a blow for justice, and Bridei no less
than the others.

The ship began to round a jut of land, every
eye on the horizon, and the open sea stretched behind them. Ahead
lay their destination, the battle that would prove Bridei’s
manhood, perhaps the bride he would make his own.

They pulled around the point and the crew
gasped as one at the sight. Baird’s heart dropped to his toes.

Dunhelm was burning.

He was too late.

*

Baird sat up and shivered. The acrid tang of
smoke lingered in his mouth as though the dream had been real. He
was chilled to the bone and gooseflesh rose all over his skin.

Failure hung on his heart like a lead weight
and Baird felt an urge to weep for what he had lost. He mourned for
Thord, even though he knew that Julian slept just a few doors
away.

No wonder Julian hated this place so much.
He had been Thord, the son of Hekod who had been ruthlessly
slaughtered by Bard.

But that didn’t completely explain Baird’s
sense of loss. He hated that as Bridei he had failed his father’s
weighty trust. He had not proven himself worthy of that man’s
powerful love.

And the knowledge tore him up.

Baird shoved a hand through his hair,
knowing he had never been so twisted around by something he
couldn’t see or control.

This couldn’t go on.

He rolled impatiently to his feet and paced
the length of the room. There had to be something he could do to
stop these dreams. Intuition came knocking in that moment and, for
once, Baird Beauforte was listening.

He would go to Inverness.

*

Aurelia’s eyes flew open, her breath came in
spurts and her fists clenched the linens. Dunhelm was burning! She
had seen her father’s beloved hall consumed in flames.

But it had only been the Dreaming.

Aurelia sat up and tried to shake off her
terror. It had been so real to her, so terrifying a glimpse of the
world she remembered with startling clarity.

Dunhelm had burned to the ground.

Twelve hundred years before. It was hard to
believe that it had all happened so long ago, or that she had slept
through all of it. Aurelia stared at the scar on her thumb.

It was hard to believe that her gift was
strong enough to summon such a powerful image.

Even knowing that she was responsible could
not slow the pounding of Aurelia’s own heart. She slid from the bed
and stood at the window, watching the moon. On the eve of the
morrow it would be full.

But would her Dreaming, even at the fullness
of its power, be enough to convince Baird of the truth? He had been
coming for her, coming to aid her sire. He had been Thord’s friend
Bridei, and there would have been none more fitting for Aurelia
than the High King’s own son.

Even in those days, Baird had been hailed as
the one for her.

An intense yearning burned in Aurelia’s
heart. They had been cheated of that time together, so many years
ago, and now, Baird’s own reservations held them apart. Aurelia bit
her lip and hoped fiercely that he had shared the dream again, that
he had been persuaded, that she had the ability to convince this
man to accept the reality of who she was.

Even though Aurelia knew the truth defied
every grain of common sense.

Unfortunately, Aurelia knew Baird Beauforte
valued common sense above all else. To believe in this, he would
have to believe in the urging of his own heart and Aurelia was
suddenly afraid that Baird had learned all too well not to listen
to his heart.

His mother in this life had served him
poorly indeed.

Suddenly cold, she folded her arms about
herself and watched the moon slide across the sky. Aurelia fought
the urge to go to Baird, not knowing what his response to that
would be, and impatiently waited for the dawn.

She had to convince him.

Somehow.

*

The sun was barely above the horizon when
Tex pointed out the distant sparkle of Inverness. Baird climbed
into the seat beside his pilot, his gaze intent on the town
ahead.

A cliff rose behind the town nestled at the
mouth of the Ness River and Baird scanned the details.

There. He picked out a desolate point and
knew without doubt that the high king’s fortress had stood
there.

But how could he know such a thing with such
certainty?

Baird couldn’t explain it and he didn’t
care. He had to go and stand right there and he had to do it
today.

“
Business, boss?” Tex
demanded cheerfully.

Baird nodded, not in the least bit
interested in conversation. They drew closer at an achingly slow
speed, to Baird’s mind, the Moray Firth a long vee of sparkling
silver below them. Finally, they wheeled around the sleepy town at
a dizzying angle, the path Tex took giving Baird a bird’s-eye view
of the harbor with the North Sea stretched out behind.

Baird swallowed. It was the same as his
dream.

He knew he had never been here before - he
and Julian had flown from Edinburgh on a small jet that had not
passed near Inverness. Tex had picked them up at Kirkwall.

At least, he had never been here in this
life before.

But if Baird knew Julian from the past, it
only made sense that he could know Inverness, as well. Inverness
was where his dream indicated that he had known Julian, after
all.

What if the dreams he had had at Dunhelm
were memories?

*

Marissa saw the uncertainty in Aurelia’s
eyes when that woman came down for breakfast and smiled to herself.
She hadn’t been able to seduce Baird while Aurelia was around,
which left an obvious solution to the problem.