Belmary House Book Two (21 page)

Another simple spell of his own devising kept her quiet and under his thumb, but it also had unpleasant side effects. The dear thing only had to ride it out a little longer now, though. Ashford had returned, he knew his whereabouts, and his fresh bait was right now making plans to hop on the hook and throw herself into the water.

As soon as he heard her dismiss the researcher whose cousin was with Ashford, he scurried back to his desk and pretended to be engrossed in a report. She opened the door without knocking and he waved her into a chair.

She really didn’t look well, green almost. It was odd, but he thought he might miss her a bit after she was gone. It occurred to him that he could stop the spells and free her at any time, but he only shook his head sadly. It was all for the greater good, after all. He’d get over it.

“They’re back,” she said dully. “Tilly said they used a portal in the Highlands.”

“Yes, I know it well,” he said. It wasn’t very good, but he supposed Ashford had got lucky.

“Oh?” she said. “It sounded like she was lying about it for some reason.”

“No, it’s real. I’ve used it myself.”

“She said it was a lot better than this one.”

Now, there was the lie, and Solomon was thrown by it. Why lie about that? And how could he use it to his advantage?

“Indeed,” he said slowly, looking at her completely lost expression.

She looked like a child who hadn’t been invited to a birthday party, and all her other friends were deciding what to wear. He looked down to hide his smile.

“If you have the proper schedule for it, it’s as good as Waterloo Station. You can hop into it any time as easily as boarding a train. I myself don’t have much information on that one, but Ashford’s used it many times before. He must know it like the back of his hand.”

“She said he just found out about it,” Emma told him, her outlook seeming even bleaker.

That was another odd lie, and Solomon knew he should dismiss her and take a moment to think about why Ashford was lying, but he was too eager to get out of Belmary House. Ashford was only a few hours away, waiting in a hotel room. Solomon couldn’t wait to see the shock on his face when he turned up instead of Emma.

“Are you certain you aren’t mistaken?” he asked innocently. “His own ancestors are from that village. He’s traveled through it many times, I’m sure.”

“But then why wouldn’t he use that one to get me home?” she asked in a tiny voice.

“Only Ashford knows the answer to that,” he said, shaking his head sadly. “I can’t fathom that man’s cruelty.”

He came around the desk and patted her hand. She didn’t look well at all, and he wondered if he should ease off on one of the spells. He needed her to make it to Castle on Hill at least.

“Dexter’s making the arrangements to go up there. Tilly’s his cousin, I don’t know if you knew that? We’ll probably leave right away. Was that right?” she asked, looking as if speaking the words caused her excruciating pain.

He decided it was better to have her desperate and kept the hexes in place. The further they got from the house, the less she’d hear the buzzing of its filthy magic. That would offer some relief.

“Yes, my dear, you did right. This will all be over soon, I promise.”

“You won’t let him hurt Dexter, will you? Or Tilly? You have to make sure he lets her go.”

“Of course,” he said, trying not to sound impatient.

She’d either be dead herself, or too far gone to know what happened to any of them, so he wasn’t worried about making promises he couldn’t keep. That was something he never worried about. No one ever lived long enough to find out he always lied.

“Then I can go home?” She blinked and wilted back into the chair.

He helped her up by her elbow, worried he’d have to carry her. He needed to get her out of the house as soon as possible so she could stay upright.

“You’ll be home before you know it,” he said. “Go get ready to leave. I’ll leave at once myself, and find a way to meet with you up there.”

She nodded and he pushed her out the door. Once out of his office, she seemed to perk up a little and he finally stopped watching her, feeling assured she’d make it to Scotland.

As soon as she was gone, he threw his candy bowl across the room in his rage. It didn’t break and he felt foolish, sitting in his chair and fuming about the new turn of events. Why had Ashford turned up in Scotland and not his own house? The block had been lifted for days. What was his plan? Did he have a plan, or was this bad luck? He wasn’t sure, and he hated not being sure. There didn’t seem to be anything he could do about it, except go to Scotland or miss his chance to face Ashford at last. He knew he was stronger than him, and it was only his slippery ability to evade him over the years that had kept Ashford alive. If this was his attempt to be clever, he’d pay dearly for it.

He stared at the walls of his office, of this house he despised. The fact that he didn’t get to lord it over Ashford rankled him more than he cared to admit, and made him realize he’d grown quite petty over the years. Well, it would all be over soon. He’d just have to be careful. The more he stared at his surroundings, the more he realized what he needed to do. If he dug deep enough in all the mire that had accumulated in his mind over the years, he was certain he could find a hex that would protect him while simultaneously bringing down Ashford and his cursed house.

He called his assistant, whose name he still didn’t know, and told him his travel plans. A half hour later, he was on his way to the airport to meet the man, who’d have his luggage and ticket ready.

The complicated spell he wove around himself and the house took a lot out of him and he closed his eyes as soon as his head hit the back of his first class seat on the plane, hoping the attendants wouldn’t try to wake him for wine or a meal. He was on edge and weak, but confident he had the upper hand, no matter what Ashford thought he had in store for him.

The formidable Piper Sinclair turned out to be barely five feet tall, dressed in an exquisitely tailored nineteen forties wool dress, her sleek cap of shiny black hair tucked behind her ears. When Evelyn led them through the kitchen entrance of the enormous and somewhat foreboding castle, Piper sat at a large wooden plank table, a toddler on one side of her and a squalling infant in her arms.

“Thank God,” she said in a sweet, sing songy voice, handing the infant over to Evelyn while the toddler tried to climb out of his high chair. “What took you so long?”

“Sit down, Magnus,” Evelyn said, sighing when he didn’t listen. She took the baby, who instantly stopped crying. “I found some interesting hitchhikers,” she said, waving at them behind her.

Ashford bowed, Liam smiled nervously, and Tilly had never been so embarrassed in her life when Piper looked up, carefully arranging her face into a welcoming smile as she stood to greet them.

With the baby tucked in the crook of her arm, Evelyn dragged Ashford forward. “Look at him,” she demanded. Ashford scowled. “Does he look anything like a certain someone I’ve been describing for more than a year?”

Piper squinted at him and clapped. “Is this the mysterious man?” she asked. “Are you all time travelers?”

Liam stepped forward and introduced them and they stood awkwardly for a minute while Evelyn brought a tray with tea and cold chicken on it, all while still juggling the baby.

“So, Liam and Tilly are from our time, or thereabouts, right?”

“I was born in the twentieth century, but have been traveling so long, I don’t really know when I belong,” he admitted.

“I went through Ashford’s house on accident,” Tilly said, sneaking a glance at him.

She didn’t think they needed to know the whole story since Evelyn’s opinion of him still seemed rather low.

“Like Lizzie,” Piper said delightedly. “My sister-in-law. Do you know her?”

“It’s not a social club,” Ashford said, and Piper and Evelyn gave him twin glares.

“You’re the one who brought Catie forward,” Piper said accusingly. “That’s my other sister-in-law,” she explained to her and Liam. “It all turned out all right, though, and she is a terrible brat so I can see how you might have been fooled.”

Tilly nodded as if she had any clue what was going on. The odd friendliness mixed with benign malice toward Ashford threw her, still not sure they could trust these folks. She accepted a cup of tea, looking at Ashford, who could only shrug, though he looked grateful to be absolved of any wrongdoing.

“I told you I didn’t imagine seeing him that one time,” Evelyn said, coming back with another plate loaded with cookies. She put the baby in a bassinet and joined them, finally allowing the toddler to crawl onto her lap. “These two are mine,” she explained needlessly. “Magnus, and Marigold’s the teeny tiny over there.”

“They’re lovely children,” Liam said fondly, with a hint of sadness in his smile.

“Did you bring them all the way up here just to prove you’re not nuts?” Piper asked.

“Partly,” she admitted, frowning as if she didn’t want to share the rest. “They need your help.”

“My help?” she asked, sounding both surprised and nervous.

“If you’ll forgive my bluntness,” Liam said. “We have to beg the use of your great powers.”

“My great powers?” she snorted. “My goodness, what kind of powers do you think I have?”

“It’s no use being coy, I can see how strong you are.” Liam waved his hand around her head. “Surely you can see it in me as well?”

“What’s he talking about?” Evelyn asked, looking at both of them, then at Tilly for answers.

Tilly shrugged, but saw that Liam was waiting for Piper to admit it, and wasn’t going to explain.

“Supposedly they can see some kind of aura? If there’s magic? I can’t see anything.”

“Is that true?” Evelyn asked incredulously. “Can you see it?”

Piper sighed and took a bite of cookie. “Yes, sort of. I guess so.”

“How come you never told me?”

“You know how much I hate this stuff,” Piper wailed. “I just try to pretend it’s not happening most of the time.”

“What does it look like? Do I have one?”

“It’s kind of like a halo, right, Liam?” He nodded, seeming pleased with this description. “You don’t have one, Evie, but Magnus does.” She looked aggrieved at admitting it.

Evelyn’s eyes widened and she flattened the little boy’s unruly brown locks as if trying to squash away any invisible halo.

“Oh, my poor baby. It’s barely visible, though, right? It’s probably left over from when that witch stole him.”

“It’s actually really strong. Sorry. I was going to tell you eventually, when he was older.”

Ashford cleared his throat and they glared at him some more. “I’m terribly sorry to interrupt, but do you know anything about the portal at the inn here? Has anyone ever come through it? A man named Solomon Wodge, perhaps?”

Piper and Evelyn looked at each other. “That name sounds familiar,” Evelyn said.

“Isn’t that the jerk who kidnapped Lizzie?” Piper asked.

“Your sister-in-law?” Tilly asked, trying to keep up.

“She’s lucky she’s still alive, if Wodge really had her,” Ashford said, causing Liam to put his face in his hands.

Piper turned to Liam. “He’s related to you?”

Liam spit out his story in as few words as possible, but even with the terse retelling, Evelyn wiped tears from her eyes at the end of it.

“We should help them,” she sniffed.

“We, is it?” Piper said, but turned to them with a much softer look in her eyes. “What is it you think I can do?”

Tilly looked at Ashford questioningly, wondering when they were going to get to the Povests. He shook his head slightly, giving her a ‘first things first’ look, but she could see he wasn’t happy.

“If we can use your land and get him to meet us here, I think between this place and our combined powers, we can keep him from attacking,” Liam said eagerly. “I’d be able to explain and … reason with him.”

Ashford rolled his eyes. Before Piper could answer, the back door opened and a giant, raven-haired man wearing a kilt came in. Her face transformed into a look of pure happiness at the sight of him and she hurried around to greet him. The little boy Magnus scrambled off his mother’s lap and ran to hug him around his shins, and he accepted both their embraces while looking curiously at the group gathered around the table.

Tilly was mesmerized for only a second by the man’s outrageously handsome face, so rugged and chiseled. She scooted closer to Ashford, intimidated by his great size.

“Does he have the halo thing?” she whispered to Liam, not wanting to be outnumbered. Liam shook his head, jumping up to introduce them all again.

It took another few minutes for everything to settle down. The big Scot turned out to be Piper’s husband, who was from a time well before Ashford’s. He went through the motions of being outraged that Ashford was the one who brought his sister forward, but he seemed to hold less of a grudge than the two women.

“I’ve known the wee minx her whole life,” he said. “She’s a terrible pain in the arse.” He clapped Ashford on the shoulder, making him crumple slightly under the pressure.