CHAPTER 6
I was exhausted. What a stressful day this had been. First there had been the long flight, the constant worries, and the
uncertainty of what waited for me on the other end. Then there was the emotional roller coaster. Payton and I had
quietly agreed that we would not get together again until we had talked everything out, until we had spoken about the
events that led up to us finding ourselves on a different continent. Meanwhile, I had taken a hot shower, put on my
nightgown, and wrapped myself in a big fluffy blanket.
I guess it was almost impossible to sufficiently heat this huge hall where all the castle dwellers of old had dined and
probably sometimes slept. But close to the fire, it was surprisingly warm and cozy. The brick wall and woodwork behind
the ginormous fireplace—which back in the old days might have been used to roast the occasional whole ox—were black
with the soot of years past. The logs on the fire crackled, and every now and then sparks flew up, hissing and popping
when a drop of resin exploded in the flame.
As stark and forbidding as the castle seemed from the outside, it was just as cold and sparse on the inside. The McLean
brothers had wasted little thought on furnishings or decoration. And, thanks to Vanora’s curse, almost three hundred
years without emotions had made them completely indifferent to their environment.
Nevertheless, the leather armchairs in front of the fireplace were extremely comfortable. Sean had made mince and
tatties for us. This traditional dish was absolutely delicious, even though the main ingredients were only humble ground
beef and potatoes.
A feeling of blissful comfort came over me just as Payton heaved a big sigh into our lovely after-dinner silence. I knew
what would come next: He wanted to get it over with and let me in on his deep, dark secret.
I was afraid to find out what was really going on. But it had to be important, because by now I knew that Payton would
never have left me without good reason.
Silently I listened to his account. He sat opposite me, holding my hand, and every now and then he caressed the back of
my hand with his thumb. I had no idea who that gentle touch was meant to reassure—him or me—but it certainly wasn’t
working on me.
This “talk” seemed like a bad dream. One where you know right away that it’s not real but you can’t seem to wake up
and escape back to reality. A dream that haunts you afterward with its vivid images—even in daylight. All I wanted was
to wake up from this nightmare. To open my eyes and realize that I was lying in my own bed in Milford, Delaware—where
everything was all right and Payton was right there beside me.
But I was still deep inside this dream as Payton ended his story and scrutinized my face for a reaction.
“I…I…,” I stammered, searching for the right words. What do you say when the person you love announces that he’s
going to die?
“I…Payton, I mean…I don’t understand. Die? You’re going to die? But how, I mean…and when?”
Bewildered, I stared at the strained faces in front of me.
“We don’t know. Sean couldn’t hear every word Nathaira said, but something is happening to me. Every day I feel worse
than the day before.”
“This can’t be true, Payton. You can’t die!” I howled.
“He won’t! Not if we can find a way to stop it,” Sean reassured me. “We came here for good reason. We hope to find a
solution in Nathaira’s papers. After all, we managed to break a curse once before. We won’t give up, I promise!”
Sean was right. We had to save Payton. And not only because I was the reason for Nathaira’s curse. We had to save him
because a world without Payton was lonely and lost, because my life without him wouldn’t be worth living. With newfound
resolve I jumped up.
“All right then, let’s go—let’s not waste any time. What can I do? Where do we start?”
With a smile, Payton pulled me into his armchair.
“Keep your cool, mo luaidh. We haven’t been idle. We’ve pored over a good number of her old books, searched every
last corner in her study, and brought here all the papers we thought might be relevant. As you can imagine, we did not
want to spend a moment longer than necessary in that awful Castle Galthair. Evil seems to lurk in every corner of that
place.”
Even Sean shuddered at the thought of it.
“Yeah, it was strange to walk into Castle Galthair even though we’ve spent so much more time there than here over the
past few years.”
To fight my unease, I tried to focus on what was essential.
“So? Did you find anything? What do we need to do?” I asked.
“I’m afraid it’s not as simple as you think,” Payton explained with a level voice. “There’s no old book that says,
‘In the event of a curse, kill ye a toad during a full moon, paint ye yourself with pig’s blood, and spin ye around
three times, and thus the curse shall be broken.’”
“Oh really, you don’t say!”
His cool composure infuriated me. How could he stay so calm? He was going to die. Didn’t he get that?
“Yeah, really.” He winked at me and stole a quick kiss before I could continue griping.
“Well, what are you hoping to find?” I asked.
Sean put another few logs on the fire and poked them with a fire iron.
“Oh, there are a good few notes. Many stories that we know as legends nowadays have some truth to them. Except, it’s
all about filtering out their truth content. Unfortunately, we don’t know where to look.”
Sean was in the shadows as he turned toward us, and the fire iron in his hands looked like a weapon.
Even though Sean was friendly and kind, even though his impish smile and natural charm made him a very handsome man—he
was the only one of the three brothers in whom I could see the wild and dangerous warrior he must have been at one time.
I’d noticed it the night Nathaira died. He was a merciless Scottish warrior ready to kill to protect himself and his
family. And even though there was no tangible opponent this time around, I knew that he would fight with all that he had
to save his brother.
That was why I loved him. He wouldn’t give up on Payton, and neither would I.
“We were hoping that maybe Roy Leary might give us a hint. He seems to possess a lot of the old wisdom. And he once
offered to help us,” Payton continued.
“That’s a good idea,” I agreed. “He knows all about Scotland’s myths and legends. I think he talked about having
ancestors on Fair Isle. If anybody knows anything, he does!”
We threw around strategies for quite some time. But as much as we tried to convince ourselves that all would end well,
we started losing hope. Desperation descended like a dark and sinister blanket, threatening to suffocate us all.
Finally, when none of us was able to come up with more viable ideas, Sean yawned and stretched.
“Kids, it’s time for bed. We’ve got a long day ahead of us, so we should all go and get some rest.”
And with that, he left us by the fire that had burned down to smoldering embers. His footsteps on the bare stone floors
faded away, and Payton gently pushed me from his lap without letting go of my hands.
“Come on,” he said, leading me out of the Great Hall, up the stairs, and into his bedroom.
It was cold up here, but the large, ebony bed with dark brown velvet curtains looked inviting. In fact, his bedroom
looked so much cozier than the hall. The bare stone walls were covered in old, green tapestries embroidered with
dramatic hunting scenes from right around the time when Payton, no longer a child, must have moved into this room.
Clearly, the clothes trunk, bookshelf by the door, and table with its artfully carved legs all stemmed from the same
era. The dark woods and heavy green and brown fabrics took me back in time.
Payton leaned against the door, patiently waiting for me to take it all in. I sat down on the bed, plopped over
backward, and felt warm and safe under the velvet canopy, just like the lady of the castle waiting for her husband—a
fierce Scottish Highlander, no less—on her wedding night. It was with this same excitement that I now awaited Payton.
This would be our second night together. I didn’t know how many nights we had left, and I didn’t want to waste a
single one of them.
“You coming? It’s cold here without you,” I said, crawling under the covers.
“Let me savor this moment for a little while.”
“What are you trying to savor? That I’m freezing my toes off?”
Payton batted his eyelashes. “No. I want to soak up this image of you, love of my life, lying here in my bed. To know
that, no matter what happens, no one can ever take this away from us. You have no idea how happy you make me, mo luaidh.
”
Tears welled up in my eyes, and I had trouble swallowing.
“You know how I could make you even happier? If you would bother to swing that cute Scottish butt of yours into bed!”
I tried to play down my overwhelming emotions by acting all cool and funny. And, although I was awfully cold, I folded
back the comforter and tapped the mattress beside me. A wide grin brightened Payton’s face, and he undressed with
breathtaking speed.
As he lay down beside me, he cursed when one of my ice-cold feet touched his lower leg.
“Good God, Sam! You’re freezing! Am I forever condemned to suffer in pain whenever I’m near you?” he called out in a
theatrical voice. I snickered, and he crawled on top of me, covering my shivering body entirely with his. I was no
longer cold. Certain parts of my body were on fire, in fact.
“Mmm, much better,” I purred while caressing his back. “Do you think we…?” I asked, embarrassed and suddenly at a
loss for words.
“Huh? If you think I’m going to pass up this opportunity, then you, my dear, are mistaken.”
And with that, he sealed my lips with a long, gentle kiss.