Page 14 of Cottage in the Mist (Time After Time #3)
“No.” Lily shook her head. “I’m the one that should apologize. I don’t even know if guests are allowed up here.”
The woman smiled, her eyes crinkling at the corners with the movement of her lips.
She was tall and curvy, her hair winking copper in the light from the doorway.
In full light of day she was probably a beauty.
But now, here in the moonlight, her expression was open and friendly.
“You must be Lily.” She crossed the parapet and held out her hand.
“I’m Elaine Macqueen. Or rather Elaine St. Claire.
I’m still getting used to that part.” Her smile widened.
“Congratulations,” Lily said, taking the other woman’s hand. Her grip was strong and sure. “Mrs. Abernathy said that you were only recently married.”
“Aye. And now with the honeymoon behind me, I’m a married lady.” Together they walked back to the edge of the rooftop, both of them looking out into the night.
“And the owner of Duncreag,” Lily said, her gaze sweeping the darkened panorama. “That must feel amazing.”
“Actually it’s a bit overwhelming,” Elaine admitted. “Which explains the midnight sojourn. Jeff doesn’t worry as much as I do. He sees the magnificence and ignores all the things that cry out for fixing.”
“I’d imagine a place like this isn’t easy to maintain.”
“No. And it’s even more overwhelming to think about paying for it.” Elaine sighed.
“Then why do it? I mean, you only just found out that your husband inherited, right? So you don’t have to keep the place.”
“Ah, but we do. It’s a family thing. And honestly, I can’t imagine being anywhere else. So we’ll manage. It’s not as if we’re totally destitute. I just worry about the details. Part and parcel of being an attorney, I guess.”
“Right. Mrs. Abernathy mentioned that, too. But will you be able to practice here?” Mrs. Abernathy had explained earlier that Jeff and Elaine were both Americans.
“Actually, it is possible. I have dual citizenship. My father was originally from Inverness.” Which explained the hint of an accent.
“I was born here before we moved to the States. So I still have my passport. All I’d have to do is pass the equivalent of the bar here.
But for now, I think I’ll just be concentrating on Duncreag. ”
“But doesn’t Mrs. Abernathy do that?” The question was out before Lily could stop herself. It really wasn’t her business but it did seem that Agnes Abernathy and her Jamie loved the place dearly.
“Of course.” Elaine smiled again. “I can’t imagine life here without her. Or Jamie either for that matter. They still handle the day-to-day things. And of course the hotel. But I’ll be dealing with restoration issues. And believe me, there are more than enough to keep me occupied.”
As if to echo the sentiment, a loose stone fell from the battlement onto the rocks below.
“Still, it’s stunning, isn’t it?” Lily said, her gaze moving back to the surrounding mountains.
“It is.” Elaine nodded. “And even more so when you think of all the people who’ve stood here before us. Same tower. Same magnificent view.” She shivered, wrapping her arms around her waist.
“Are you cold?” Lily queried.
“No. Only thinking about a friend I’ve lost. Being up here reminds me of her. She wasn’t fond of heights. But she loved it here.”
“She’s dead, then?” Lily sighed.
“Yes, I suppose she is. Although I still have trouble thinking about it that way. I miss her every day.”
It was an odd answer surely, but Lily understood the sentiment. “I know what you mean. I miss my parents, too.”
“Oh God, I’d forgotten.” Elaine reached for Lily’s hands. “I’m so sorry. Mrs. Abernathy told me your parents were lovely people. I shouldn’t have been talking about my own losses.”
“Nonsense,” Lily said, squeezing her fingers, feeling like she’d found a new friend.
“It was nice to share with someone. Grief is a funny thing. It isn’t quantifiable.
And people who haven’t suffered through it have no idea how to comfort those who have.
So it’s nice to know you truly understand.
Although of course I wish you didn’t have to. ”
They turned and looked out into the valley again, stars winking overhead.
“Was that the original gate?” Lily asked, pointing to the shadowed tumble of stone and the half arch that marked what she assumed had been the entrance to the tower in past times.
“Yes.” Elaine nodded. “Just beside the road. Although of course that didn’t exist at all when Duncreag was a fortress. In those days, I’m told, there was a pathway that wound up from the river to the tower through that crevice there.” She pointed. “You can just make it out in the moonlight.”
It was Lily’s turn to shiver. “And it was narrow. Only wide enough for horsemen to pass one in front of the other.”
“Yes.” Elaine tilted her head, her gaze on Lily now. “But how did you know that?”
“I must have read it somewhere.” She shrugged, her mind’s eye bringing forth a vision of riders making their way stealthily up the steep canyon. “But there were guards, surely. At the gate.”
“Aye. But Duncreag was part of the federation that was Clan Chattan and so it wasn’t threatened often. I expect the guards were only perfunctory unless there was an imminent threat.” Elaine paused, seeming to consider her words. “Mrs. Abernathy said that you mentioned Iain and Katherine.”
Lily blinked in surprise. “I, ah, don’t know where I heard the names. Maybe I read about them?”
“Maybe.” Elaine nodded. “But you’d have to be quite the scholar. I know they’re not mentioned in any of the brochures.”
“Still,” Lily said, scrambling for something to appease her new friend—something besides the truth, “I obviously heard of them somewhere or I wouldn’t have mistaken them for you and Jeff.
But honestly, I don’t know where. The innkeeper in Inverness was very talkative. Maybe he’s the one who mentioned them?”
Or maybe her imaginary lover had told her. But that didn’t seem the kind of information that would cement a new friendship.
Elaine studied her for a moment longer and then smiled. “Would you like to meet them? Katherine and Iain, I mean?”
Lily’s heart started to pound. If they were indeed real, then that meant that Bram…
“Follow me,” Elaine said, cutting into her tumbling thoughts. “I’ll show you.”