Page 37 of The Last Kelpie

“Probably?” Áedán narrowed his eyes at me.

“I'm not sure how it works. You're actually my first assignment. But we will ask them together.”

“They waited all this time to check on me, and then they sent me a new member?”

I lifted my chin. “Julian was afraid you would bolt if you saw one of them. And I may be new, but I'm smart, capable, and I care about you. I will stand by you and confront them about this. And I swear I will do everything I can to save you.”

Áedán sighed. “You think they can help?”

“I think it would be foolish if we didn't use every resource we have available to us.”

He was quiet for another long moment. Then he nodded, just once. “All right. We'll go to the Velasca. But not tonight. Tonight I need to think.”

“Of course.”

He stood and collected our empty mugs. “You should stay here. It's late, and you're exhausted. The sofa is comfortable enough.”

I opened my mouth to protest, then realized he was right. I was exhausted. The water-breathing, the visions, the fear—all of it had drained me. So, instead, I said, “Thank you.”

Áedán brought me a blanket and a pillow. “Sleep well. We'll figure out what to do in the morning.”

I lay down on the sofa and pulled the blanket up to my chin. It smelled like Áedán. I watched him move around the cottage, banking the fire, turning out the oil lamps, doing the small domestic tasks that people do before bed.

“Áedán?” I said into the darkness.

“Yes?”

“The children. In the vision. They loved kelpies.”

He was quiet for a moment. “Yes, they did.”

“That's the truth that needs to be remembered.”

“Yes,” he said again, softer this time. “It is.”

I heard him walk toward the bedroom. Heard the door close softly. Then there was only the sound of my own breathing. I'd never realized how much noise people made. I was so used to all those little sounds that the silence unnerved me.

I lay awake for a long time, thinking about visions, strange spirals, and Áedán's hand in mine. I thought about breathing underwater and about the way he'd looked at me when I'd agreed to dive into the loch with him. He trusted me enough to go to the Velasca Estate with me. I couldn't let him down. Honestly, I was worried. The fact that Gran had worked for them had made me trust them, but I barely knew those people. They had better treat Áedán well, or I'd take him straight back to Scotland, and we'd struggle through this on our own.

The thought had me blinking. I hadn't known Áedán long either, but I was willing to give up my job for him.

Eventually, exhaustion pulled me under. I dreamed of children weaving flower crowns, horses rising from deep water, and two men walking side by side, shining with love.

Chapter Thirteen

The next morning, we left for the estate. Áedán drove. Maybe Áedán having a car shouldn't have surprised me, but it did. I couldn't imagine him driving around Scotland, much less to England. His car was a Land Rover that looked like it had survived multiple wars. But it was clean inside, and it ran well. He'd had it hidden in a shed at the back of the cottage.

“How long have you had this?” I asked as we pulled onto the main road.

“A while. It was a gift from Caelum.” He shifted gears smoothly. “He said I needed to stop stealing cars from tourists.”

I stared at him. “You stole cars?”

“I wanted to see the rest of Scotland, and driving looked fun.” He glanced at me, amused. “I always returned the cars. Though the first few werenae in the best shape. It took me a while to figure out the gears.”

“But you didn't even know how to use a checkout machine.”

“I went into town ten years ago, and that thing wasnae there.”