The House on the Shore (39 page)

Anna ignored the bait
.
“
Come on, it
’
s time for work.
”
She made a dash for the hotel, leaving
her friend
to follow.

“
You didn
’
t answer my question,
”
Morag said, as she hung up
her coat and put on her apron.

“
Do you want a coffee before we start, or should we get on with setting the tables for dinner,
”
Anna asked as
she filled the kettle.

Mora
g rested her hands on her hips.
“
Anna!
Now who
’
s being difficult?
”

The young woman in question couldn
’
t help but
laugh
.

“
Oh, Morag.
You should see your face.
You look just like my third-year school teacher when she admonished a recalcitrant pupil.
”

“Hmph!
I
’
m glad you think it
’
s funny.
”

“
I
’
m only teasing you.
Of course I like Luke.
If I didn
’
t, I
woul
d have made him leave after
the first
night
.
”
She
handed Morag
a mug of coffee.

“
Is that so?
”
Morag studied Anna over the rim of her mug.
“
Well
,
judging by the way the man was watching you last night
,
I
’
d say he
’
s more than a little in love with you.
What do you think about that?
”

“
I think you
’
re
crazy
.
”

“
Why do you say that?
”
Morag asked
.

“
Because we
’
ve both acknowledged the fact his presence here is only temporary.
”

“
What
’
s that got to do with it?
I tell you, that man is in love with you, and if I
’
m not mistaken, you love him too.
The question is
;
what are you going to do about it?
”

Anna sat down at the kitchen table and rested her chin on her hands.
“
Even if you
’
re right, what I can I do?
I can
’
t ask or tell him to stay
.
T
hat has to be his decision.
B
esides, he’s a foreigner.
This isn’t his country.”

Morag pulled o
ut the chair next to her friend
and
took
Anna’s
hands in hers
.

“
Being in love shouldn
’
t make you
so sad
.
You must tell him how you feel.
”

Anna started to speak, but Morag held up her hand to silence her.

“
I know you want to be swept off your feet, but the world isn
’
t like that anymore.
You have to fight for what you want.
And trust me; if you want Luke, then you
’
re going to have to tell him
before he climbs aboard that yacht o
f his and sails into the sunset.
”

“
I can
’
t, Morag.
H
e has a successful career on the other side of the Atlantic, not to mention
his
yacht and, by all accounts, a wonderful home.
All I have is a run-down croft, two dogs, and a decidedly unhealthy bank balance.
He
’
s going to want someone of equal social standing
.
N
ot me.
”
Her
eyes began to overflow.

Morag pressed a tissue into Anna’s hands.
“
You
’
re mistaken, and before much longer
,
Luke will prove he loves you
.
Y
ou
mark my words.
”

Anna laughed through her tears.
“
Another premonition, Morag?
”

“
Aye, lass.
Each one is
a little
more distinct than the last, but more worrying is the danger I see around you.
”

“
And are you going to tell me what this threat is?
”

“
I would if I could see it clearly, but I can
’
t.
I can only describe it as a dark shadow surrounding you.
Just be careful
,
that
’
s all I ask.
Now, if we don
’
t get a move on lass, we
’
ll have folk wanting to eat and the tables not even
set
.
”
She rose, picked up the pile of freshly laundered tablecloths
,
and went into the dining room.

Anna’s
stomach clench
ed
.
The fear in her friend
’
s eyes was real.
As usual, she was about to say the premonition was due to too much late-night TV, but something about Morag
’
s deme
anour made her stop this time.

Suddenly, there was a crash from the dining room.
Anna ran to find Morag on the floor, gasping, pale
,
an
d staring in terror at nothing.

“
Morag
!
A
re you all right?
Speak to me!
Morag?
Morag!
Answer me, for God’s sake!”

Anna wrapped her arms around her
trembling
friend.
Morag scream
ed and began
to cry.

“Oh, no, Anna.
No, no, no!”

Anna rocked Morag, shushing her as if trying to reassure a child.
“Quiet now, Morag.
It’s
okay
.
Everything’s
all right
.
I’m right here with you.
Can you talk to me?
What happened?”

“It was…it was…”
Morag looked far away.
Her mouth opened and closed rapidly, trying to
find the words, but none came.

A small blonde woman ran into the room.
“What happened?
Is she all right?
Should I go and get the doctor?”

Anna shook her head.
“Give us a moment, Katrina.
I’ve seen her do this before…a long time ago when we were young.
She should be all right in a minute.
You go back to the front desk.
If we need a doctor I
’ll come and let you know.”

Katrina gave h
er a sidelong look in disbelief
and left.
Anna held her breath and waited.

Suddenly, Morag coughed and rubbed her forehead.
She blinked.
“Anna, did I pass out?
I’m so sorry.
I’m embarrassed.”

“Embarrassed?
I thought you’d gone and died on me!”

Morag managed a wan smile.
“No, far from it
.
I h
ad such a headache this morning.
I didn’t bother with breakfast.
I only had a cup of tea.”

“Morag McInnes, whatever I am going to do with you?”

Morag grabbed the edge of the table and pulled herself unsteadily to her feet.
“You’ll put up with me as you always have.”

“You can’t go around fainting.
What will Lachlan do with you dead of starvation?
What will I do?
You’re the only real friend I have in this whole world.
I couldn’t bear i
t if anything happened to you.”

Morag smiled, crow lines crinkling around her eyes.
“I won’t die on you, I promise.”

“I int
end to hold you to that promise
.
And you’re all right now?”

“Of course I am, lass.
It was nothing really.
But if it’s all the same to you I’ll just sit here for a few
minutes
.”
Morag slumped onto a chair
an
d rested her head in her hands.

“You’re telling me the truth?”

“Have I ever lied to you, Anna?”

“You’re not
,
are you?”

Morag look
ed away.
“No, of course not.”

Anna instantly regretted the pain the partial question had caused.
“
I’m so sorry.
I didn’t mean…
At least let me get you a glass of water.”

“Don’t worry.
Really.”

“You can’t tell me not to worry.
What was it?”

“Stop pestering me!”
Morag rubbed her temples.

“I won’t,
not until you tell me.
”

“You won’t believe me.”

“I will—I swear it.”

Morag sighed.
“It was the Sight.”

“Not again, Morag.
”

“You asked me, lass, so I’m telling you.
It was dreadful.
This time it came in the form of fire.
The room vibrated with a low hum until I could no longer see…until I saw it.”

“Saw what?”

“Fire.
Searing fire.
The vision had me in its hold.
It tossed me in all directions, like some unstrung marionette.
The fire licked at my legs and arms.
I can’t describe the pain.”

“A seizure
, t
hat’s what it was
.
Y
ou need to see the doctor.
It’s a seizure!”

“No, it wasn’t, lass, and if you’ll listen to me, I’ll finish.
As quickly as the vision appeared, it vanished.
I wasn’t burned.
It wasn’t true fire, you see, not at all.
It represents something far more dangerous.”

“What could be more dangerous than fire?”

“Having your entire life burned away.
That’s the message, lass.
You’ve had your past destroyed for you, and if you’re not careful
,
very careful
,
your future will be taken from you as well.”

“So now you’re being cryptic,” Anna said.
“
You’re right
,
this was no seizure.
I’ve seen dementia patients.
They’re not this lucid.
You’ve had some sort of waking dream.”

“Call it that if you like,”
Morag
said
,
“but be careful.
Please.”
Unsteadily, she
picked up the linen she
ha
d dropped.
Anna bent down to help, and they spread a crisp white
cloth on
the nearest
table.

Anna didn’t want to admit it, but she was shaken by Morag’s fantasy.
She wasn’t convinced that her friend didn’t have some sort of physical ailment that triggered ‘the Sight’, but she knew that continuing to discuss what Morag had ‘seen’ wouldn’
t be helpful to either of them.

“By
the way,
” she said, deftly folding
a starched napkin into the shape of a fan.
“
I crossed paths with the new
factor
while I was walking the dogs this morning
.”