Pure Blood (Time Spirit Trilogy, #3) (6 page)

Chapter
Eight

St Augustine, Florida – 2011AD

Harrison slowed the Stingray and pulled to a
stop outside the rusting caravan.

“I can’t believe he’s happy to live in this
hole.”

Gemma giggled, opening her door and jumping
onto the spongy grass. She waited for him to join her before
approaching the door, knocking twice and letting herself in.

Harrison had been here a couple of times
since his return to existence. In spite of the grass growing around
the cracking tires, the creak of the stiff door and the disarray of
the interior, he found it a warm haven. Gabe’s personality filled
all the crevasses and the small space hummed with vibrancy.

He watched Gemma with a smile as she greeted
her father and wrapped him in a warm embrace. It was a far cry from
their first meeting. He had trusted Gabe from the outset and the
man had proved true.

“So, what brings you guys here? Heading down
south for the day and thought you’d pop in on your old man?”

Gemma shot him one of her magnificent smiles
and scooted into the booth seat. Harrison slid in beside her and
dropped his arm around her shoulders. It was so easy here. No
disapproving glares from parents or jealous whispers from various
school students. Gabe knew he and Gemma were meant to be together.
Being in his company was a refreshing change.

“Actually, we kind of came to see if you
could help us with something.”

Gabe’s eyes narrowed at the corners.

“You see,” Gemma continued, “Harrison’s mom
has a bit of a problem and it’s making her want to move again and
it’s really not what she needs.”

“Nice, cryptic beginning.”

“Thanks,” Gemma winked. “The point I’m trying
to make is… I think I can help her, but I need
your
help to
do it.”

Her head tipped forward and she looked up at
Gabe through her lashes.

Wrapping his fingers around his coffee mug,
he slumped back into his seat and took a sip.

Harrison could feel his muscles twittering
with agitation. Gabe was an expert at silent contemplation and he
had no qualms about making people suffer an age before getting an
answer.

“Who’s your mother? Tell me a little about
her.”

“Um.” Harrison cleared his throat and sat
forward. “Her name’s Helen Granger, well Chatsworth since marrying
Bryan, and she’s…”

“Wait a sec.” Gabe lowered his mug, his eyes
round with surprise. “Your mother is
Helena
Granger?”

“No, just Helen.” Harrison felt his brow
wrinkle.

“Well, if it’s the girl I’m thinking of, she
was Helena when I knew her.” Gabe’s face creased with a grin. “I
can’t believe you’re one of us. All this time my little girl
thought she was in love with a normal and here she is being drawn
straight into the arms of a time spirit.”

“How do you know she’s…I mean, you… you know
my mother?” His mouth went dry.

Gabe shrugged and nodded, then flicked a
finger between the two of them. “Your mothers knew each other in
college.”

Gemma lit the room with a smile then turned
its full beam on him. He grinned with her, delighted to see her
birthmark pulse to life.

“Were they friends?” Gemma’s voice was
high.

“They were like sisters.” Gabe’s smile faded.
“Until they found out they were both time spirits.”

“Then what happened?”

“Well, there are two camps with our people.
Those who travel for others and those who travel for themselves.”
He gave Harrison an uneasy smile. “Your mother and grandmother
traveled for themselves.”

Harrison sat straight. That couldn’t be
right. His mother wasn’t like that. He began to argue the
statement, but was cut off by Gabe’s continuing story.

“The fact they couldn’t agree on philosophies
destroyed their friendship. Lena was heart broken and then in the
last year of college Helena disappeared.”

“Disappeared?” Harrison’s voice was a
whisper.

“Yeah, we just assumed she had died across
the line, but maybe she didn’t.” Gabe’s eyes began to twinkle. “I’m
now guessing something pretty significant happened and she came
back a new woman.” Gabe’s eyes bore into Harrison. “You don’t have
any contact with your grandparents do you?”

Harrison shook his head. Bryan and his
extended family had always filled the holes so sufficiently that
Harrison had swallowed the vague excuse of his mother’s parents’
death easily. He felt his chest tighten as the full force of truth
built in his system. It wasn’t just his mother who was a time
spirit; he came from a line of them. Coyote Granger definitely
wasn’t one of them. The race must have entered his ancestry later
on down the line and then kept pretty quiet about it. He didn’t
have a clue as he was studying his family history last semester,
but he didn’t really have a reason to be looking for it. Now he was
desperate to hunt back and find out why his mother’s family had
believed in traveling for their own gain. He wanted to know exactly
why his mother was back in the 1800s in the first place. Meeting
Nathaniel had changed her severely, but why had she left him only
to return and never contact her family again? It must have been a
pretty lonely road she walked before meeting Bryan. Why hadn’t
she…?

“The thing is…” Gemma’s voice pulled him back
to the discussion. “Helen… Helena met someone and decided to stay.
That’s why she disappeared, but then she had to leave him and it’s
killing her. She can’t see how he could ever forgive her and she
can’t forgive herself. To make matters worse, he died several
months after she left and I think she’s holding herself responsible
for that and…”

“Lucia,” Gabe’s voice was tight as he uttered
his daughter’s real name.

“Yeah?”

“Why are you telling me this?”

Harrison squeezed her shoulder.

“Because I want to go back and stop his death
and maybe get him to write her a letter and then we can…”

“A letter?” Gabe sighed and pinched the
bridge of his nose. “A letter. You want to travel back to…?”

“1820.”

“1820.” Gabe closed his eyes and shook his
head. “1820 so some guy can write Helena a letter.”

“Uh-huh.” Gemma put on a brave smile.

Gabe’s stern gaze shot across to Harrison.
“Is this your idea?”

“No.” He raised his hands, two white flags of
innocence. “But I… my mom is really messed up and I can’t talk her
around. She won’t tell me anything. She won’t tell me why she left
him or why she was even there in the first place. She just…” His
shoulders slumped with a sigh. “I really think some form of
correspondence from Nathaniel would help her move on.”

“Please, we need your help.” Gemma grabbed
Gabe’s hand and squeezed.

“This is ridiculous.”

“But necessary.”

“No! No, you guys. Risking your life for this
is not necessary! You don’t even know how he died!”

“That’s what we’re going to find out. It’s
worth it.”

Gabe shook his head.

“It is, Gabe. She’s been suffering for nearly
two decades. If she needs a little help to move on, then I’m going
to give it to her any way I can. I know you both don’t want me
traveling back, but I’m the only one with the ability to do it and
I’m going.”

The air buzzed with her electric
determination.

“I’ve been trying to talk her out of it all
week and I’m getting nowhere.” Harrison sighed. “I’m admitting
defeat and coming to terms with the fact she’ll have a much better
chance of pulling this off if we help her.”

Gabe’s birthmark burned fiery red on his
collarbone and his question was uttered through gritted teeth. “Do
we have a deadline?”

“The moving van arrives on October
30
^th
. I need to do this and dig up the evidence before
then.”

Gabe sighed and pinched his nose again.

“And there’s no talking you out of this?”

She shook her head.

“Okay, you stubborn little…” He swallowed and
shot his daughter a dry look. “Let’s get to work.”

Harrison was sent to the library while Gabe
and Gemma worked on a few traveling exercises to get her back in
shape. By the time he had returned that afternoon, Gemma had
crossed the line three times and was looking exhilarated. He’d
never seen her like that before and it took him by surprise.

“When I’m not taking anyone with me, it’s
easy. I don’t feel drained at all,” she explained before giving him
a quick peck on the cheek.

“How did you go?”

“Only okay.” He leant against the hood of his
car as he rifled through his notes and shared some basic background
information on the Clayton family and what minimal information he
could find on Nathaniel.

“Most of it’s about Robert and Emilie.” He
folded the pages. “It’s kinda weird how little there is on
Nathaniel. It’s like the family wanted to hide something.”

“Maybe they were embarrassed that he was in
love with… a witch.”

Harrison frowned. He didn’t like his mother
being referred to in those terms, but was forced to recognize that
anyone slightly unusual in those days was easily branded.

“Sorry. I don’t really think your mother’s a
witch.”

“I know.” He slid his arm around her waist.
“There’s a strong chance you’re right. If the family history is
embarrassing then they don’t tend to make it known.”

“Maybe that’s why she left him. Too much
family pressure?” Gabe piped in.

“I’m still sticking to my baby theory.”

Harrison rolled his eyes, but couldn’t deny
the plausibility of it.

“Gemma thinks my mom left because she was
pregnant with me.”

“She’s probably right. People will give up
almost anything to give their children the best shot at a normal
life.”

Harrison studied Gabe’s face, knowing the
casually stated comment held much more meaning. He glanced at Gemma
who seemed to remain unaware of the depth of emotion emanating from
her father. Harrison decided to move on from the topic sensing now
was not the time to delve into it.

“So I’ll try look through my mom’s stuff
tomorrow and see if I can find out a little more. Knowing her, she
would have done some pretty thorough research.”

“We’re definitely going to need more than
what you’ve got before we can send this one back.” Gabe pointed to
his daughter then scratched the stubble on his chin. “Why don’t
Lucia and I meet here tomorrow to keep working on the travel thing
and you join us at lunchtime after you’ve gone through your
mother’s stuff.”

“Cool.” Harrison pushed up from his car and
walked around to open the door for Gemma. Once she was secured
inside the vehicle, he sauntered back to his door, stopping to slap
a firm hand on Gabe’s shoulder. “Thanks for your help.”

He wanted to say more, knowing this man
mirrored his feelings about Gemma’s travel, but he couldn’t form
the words.

“I’ll prepare her as best I can.” Gabe read
his mind. “Don’t worry, she’s capable of pulling it off. I guess
we’re just going to have to trust that.”

* * * *

Harrison’s mind was reeling as he pulled the
Corvette onto the grass verge. The Claytons were hiding something.
That was an understatement! Gemma was not going. It was as simple
as that.

Having spent the morning studying the file of
information he eventually found and stole from his mother’s office
the night before, he was determined that his girlfriend was staying
put. His mother would just have to deal with this in her own way.
He would just have to move for the rest of the year and commute
down on weekends. They would meet up again in college. A year was
not that long.

The idea made his belly surge with bile, but
what other choice did they have?

He slammed the door behind him as he walked
towards Gabe. At least he knew he would have his backing. Striding
up to the tree Gabe was resting against, he tried to calm his
boiling emotions, so that his voice would remain even.

“Where’s…?”

The air around them went still and a naked
version of his girlfriend suddenly stood before him. Her face was
radiant. His smile of admiration was cut short by a swift elbow jab
from Gabe. He reluctantly turned to study the bark of the pine
while he listened to Gemma’s comments on where she had been. His
lips quirked as he read through her vague explanation and
recaptured the afternoon she had gone to. He remembered it too and
felt his cheeks heat with color.

“You can turn around now,” Gabe’s voice was
droll.

He was so busy admiring the vivid image in
his head that he nearly forgot his horrifying news until he spotted
his girlfriend’s beautiful face. Her expression was melted
chocolate and he could have swum in its warmth all afternoon, which
is why she couldn’t go.

“I’ve changed my mind. You’re not going.”

“What?” The sweet chocolate hardened to a
bitter cocoa. He felt the loss keenly, but pressed on.

“I can’t let you go. It’s too risky.”

Gabe cut off Gemma’s outburst. “What do you
find?”

“He was accused of murder. That’s why he
disappeared… to escape the law.”

“That is so not true! Nathaniel Clayton would
not
kill anybody.”

Harrison silently pleaded for assistance, but
felt his spirits wither at the expression on Gabe’s face.

“If he was only accused, it doesn’t mean he
did it.”

“Thank you,” Gemma’s voice was pointed.
“Look, Harrison, I’ve met this man and I am telling you he is not
capable of doing something like that.”

“Gem, you spent less than thirty minutes with
the guy, you don’t know what he may have been driven to. What if he
somehow thought my mother was taken and he went after the person he
thought was responsible. What if he thinks it’s you… and tries to
hurt you!”

“Okay, now you’re just clutching at
straws.”