Page 24 of Utterly Dauntless (Return to Culloden Moor #3)

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

T he cell was chilly, poorly lit, and small as a nun's quarters. A narrow cot with a thin mattress sat against one wall, and a stainless-steel toilet occupied one corner, partially hidden by a low barrier that did little for privacy. And near the bars, a simple wood chair. But at least Aries had the space to herself.

She could imagine the plaster walls absorbing centuries of misery only to let it leak out during the night to steal hope from newcomers. She was in no hurry to find out, no hurry for the sun to set, but on the other hand, she needed two days to pass quickly.

The women in the neighboring cells were a rough lot. One kept making kissing noises at Grey whenever he walked past.

"Bello ragazzo," she would call. Pretty boy. "Come sit by me instead!"

Grey ignored them all, staying close to Aries' bars. He'd bribed the guards to let him stay and bribed them well. Besides a folding chair, they brought him an espresso, which he shared with her.

She couldn't complain about dinner. Fine, restaurant quality food went down easily...if you could ignore the ambiance.

“Let me guess, he said,” once he was seated. “Shug let it slip that I was heading south to put to bed some ghosts, and you put two and two together?”

Aries shook her head. “Never said a word. Wouldn’t tell me anything. None of them would. So don’t think for a minute that any of The 79 betrayed you.”

“Then why did ye come here? Or was it me ye were lookin’ for? Maybe this is just a place ye visit regularly?”

She smiled and shook her head. “I would have never come here again…without you. No, it was Loretta and Lorraine who told me where to find you, in their roundabout way. South and sand, and somewhere with memories for both of us. Nice and cryptic. But it couldn’t be anywhere else, could it? I just worried I’d be too late and you’d be gone.”

“Very nearly. But I suppose ye could have asked the sisters again.”

“No. They warned me to hurry or you’d be lost. I don’t know if that meant they wouldn’t be able to help, or they wouldn’t be willing a second time. I think they’re pretty fond of all you Highlanders, and they didn’t like ratting you out.”

“Auch, dinnae believe it. If those two fear love is on the line, I reckon they’ll bend any rule.”

The word love kind of lingered in Aries’ ears, but she didn’t pounce on it like she wanted to. There was a lot more she had to say before she could get around to that. So, she dove in head first.

"Grey, when I left you here, I wasn't thinking straight."

He sat back and stretched his long legs out in front of him as if he was settling in to hear a long story, which she supposed he was." And ye never thought to call later, about the bill?"

She shrugged helplessly. "I figured they'd charge you for it when you went to settle up for the suite."

"I was in no state to settle anythin’." His voice was carefully neutral. "The lads must have done when they came and collected me."

She winced. "I'm sorry."

"Maybe ye should save yer contrition for the judge. It’s a pity he won't see ye until Monday. I wouldnae dare try to bribe him or I'll end up behind bars as well."

She groaned. "Two nights in here. I'll go mad. And what if he won't see me on Monday?" She wrapped her arms around herself. "That officer wasn't very encouraging."

"Aye. I heard him. A judge with troubles at home." Grey's mouth twitched, and she knew a joke was coming. "But worse luck that ye look like the judge's wife. Maybe I can get them to let ye dye yer hair."

She rolled her eyes and got up to resume pacing for the hundredth time, looking for a distraction other than the sight of her mouth-watering ex, who might remain her ex if she couldn’t convince him she’d changed.

Happily, a guard appeared with two containers of pineapple gelato. He passed one through the bars and gave her a plastic spoon. "Mangiare," he said with a sympathetic smile. Eat.

She thanked him, and when he moved on to pass more to the other inmates, she lowered her voice. "Gelato? They're being awfully nice."

Grey's lips twisted into a guilty smile. "Maybe Italian prisons are just nicer than most."

The woman in the next cell called out to Grey again in a mix of Italian and English.

Aries glared in her direction. "I swear, if she doesn't shut up..."

"Jealous?" He laughed aloud for the first time in forever. It was music to her ears, but it lit up the rest of her too. She wanted to hear it again, and again, and again. But that would never happen if she screwed up now.

"You're enjoying this."

"Not entirely." He sobered. "But I have to admit, it's nice knowing exactly where ye are for once."

She couldn't argue with that. She'd done this to herself, after all. Running away had consequences, and not just emotional ones.

"I came to find you," she said quietly. "To finally explain."

"I'm not goin’ anywhere." He gestured at the cell. "And neither are ye."

So, between spoonfuls of cheerful icy bliss, she confessed everything just as she'd done with her gran. Then she explained how the woman had helped her view the prophecy differently, without a thick lens of guilt in the way.

"I even started seeing a therapist...in Inverness."

Grey's spoon paused, then lowered back to the container. "Did ye now?"

"Yes. I think it will be good for me." She leaned her head against the bars between them. "I'm done punishing myself for wanting to be happy."

For a long minute, he studied her eyes, her face. “Ye wish to be happy, then, do ye?”

She made sure he was looking her in the eye before she said, “I do.”

He set his gelato on the floor and leaned his head against hers, the contact no more than a couple of inches, but it was heaven.

"Every time you made me laugh, every time I felt joy, I was so sure I was dancing on my family’s graves..." The secrets came easier now that she'd already shared them.

"Aries—"

"Wait." She straightened to look him in the eye. "I know you can't trust me, and I can’t blame you. Maybe no one will ever trust me again. But if you'll take me back...I will try with every fiber of my being to make you not regret it. And maybe someday, you will be able to forgive me."

He sighed. "I forgave ye, love. Each time I saw yer face again, ye were forgiven. Now all that needs tendin' is for ye to forgive yerself."

"I'm working on it. It will be a lot easier to do, though, if you come home with me." Tears slipped down her cheeks. "I'm so sorry, Grey. Sorry for running, sorry for hurting you. Sorry for not trusting you enough with what was happening in my head."

"Ye're telling me now."

"Because I finally understand it myself. And because I love you. I never stopped loving you, I just couldn’t let you know it. It would be harder for you if you knew." She tightened her grip on his fingers." And as soon as I get out of here, I'll prove?—"

"Hush now." He pressed a kiss to her knuckles. Then, loudly and clearly, he said, "I reckon that will do." Then he stood and stretched.

She blinked the tears away so she could see him clearly. But he wasn't looking at her. He waved the guard back who had brought the gelato. The man grinned and bobbed his head, then set his hands on his hips as if waiting for orders.

Aries didn't understand. "What's going on?"

"Sorry, lass. I just cannae stand to sit here for two long days, especially when ye've made me so happy, aye? I'm fit to burstin’."

"So, you're going to go get comfortable at the hotel?" She shrugged. "Of course you should. After all, it wasn't you who ran out on a bill."

He handed his chair off to a second officer. "Ye're right there. I didnae run out on my bill, nor on yers."

His biggest fan in the next cell pointed at the container he'd set on the floor. He cheerfully scooped it up and handed it through the bars. The grin on his face proved he was relieved to be getting out, but she couldn't help but feel abandoned. Also, he'd wasted a lot of money on bribes if he didn't intend to stick around and cash in. And without him, she'd probably get mush for breakfast.

He nodded to the first man who then sorted through the keys attached to his belt. She watched in shock as he slipped one in the lock and opened the cell door. His grin matched Grey's, which meant they were in cahoots.

She lowered her voice. "You bribed them into letting me out?"

The men exchanged a look and Grey bit his lips together before ducking his head. "Truth be told, lass, I bribed them into puttin' ye in ."

"I don't understand."

"Give it a minute. Auch on second thought, I'll just explain, shall I? I told Shug I was headin’ south to put some ghosts to bed. I thought it would be obvious I’d come to the Alassio. Like ye said, it couldn’t be anywhere else, could it? I’d chased ye all over heaven and back again, but this was the only place we were ever together.

“The way Shug had taken on the job of yer protector, I thought for certain he’d let it slip. So I half-expected ye. In truth, I’d prayed ye’d come, and I made arrangements with these fine gentlemen accordingly. But no matter how it came about, it’s only important that ye came. And that I caught ye."

"You caught me?"

"Aye. And when we are tellin' the tale to our grandchildren for the fourth time, or the hundredth time, ye'll admit I'm a canny man."

"Grey Strachan, are you telling me I'm not under arrest?!"

"Aye, I am. And I'm sayin' welcome home, Aries. Welcome home."

He pulled her out of the cell and into his arms and kissed the pique right out of her. And all the while, the inmates and guards cheered as if a great race had been won. Which, Aries realized, it had.

"I have a hundred things more to say to ye, Aries Strachan. A thousand maybe. But they must be said in private."

THE END