Brendan woke and sat up with a yawn. He climbed out of bed and stretched, wincing when he went too far. He straightened and felt around his side. The ointment and bandages seemed to have done their job, or started to. In the mirror above the dresser, he saw that the bruises, scratches, and swelling in his face were all gone.
He poked at the bandage on his shoulder, which was still a little tender. He rotated it and found he could move it with only a slight stiffness and pain. No doubt the elfin bandages had closed the bullet holes, but it would be more than a week before they fully healed the internal damage.
“These ribs are going to be a problem,” he said to his reflection.
He began to work out the stiffness in his muscles by gently stretching. He needed to find the limit to his range of motion. When he finished, he nodded. He wasn’t in too bad shape after all. He just had to be careful. The pain wasn’t the issue; he could push that aside. What he had to be mindful of was making the injuries worse. He couldn’t let that, or anything else, cause him to fail.
He’d given his word to Caitlin, and in the end, that was all he had. He pushed the thought of her aside and gave his reflection a dirty look. As he pulled a clean shirt from his bag, a leather box fell to the floor. He picked it up, and slowly he opened it to stare at the shining claddagh ring. It didn’t take him long to make the decision.
He closed the box and put it away, then looked out the window. The sunlight nearly blinded him, but he studied the trees, the clouds, and the sky. When the tears were about to break through, he chided himself, sucked in a breath, and turned to the nightstand.
The clock said 10:53. He knew the others would be up soon. It was time to get moving. He pulled clean clothes out of his bag, opened the door, and stepped into the hallway.
Caitlin woke with a start and sat up to find her head filled with lead. She hated sleeping pills, but at least she’d gotten some rest. Well, sleep anyway. As she rubbed her eyes, she heard something from the room next to hers—Brendan’s room.
Panic rose and her breathing became shallow. He’d promised not to go, right? Thinking back, she realized he’d never actually agreed to that, only not to say “no” about taking her. She pushed back the swelling fear, rolled out of bed, and stepped into the hallway.
The door to his room opened, and Brendan stepped out, wearing only his kilt. He saw her and flinched, nearly dropping the bundle of clothes he clutched in his hand.
“M’anam, cailín!” He said. “You scared the life out of me.”
“Sorry.” She saw his bloodshot eyes and knew he probably hadn’t gotten much sleep.
“I told you last night that I wasn’t going to leave without talking to you, didn’t I?”
“You did, that’s right. I just heard you moving around and, I don’t know.”
He pointed to the bathroom. “I understand, love, but the only place I’m going is to get me a shower.”
“I’m going with you.”
“What?”
Caitlin’s eyes went wide, and she felt herself turn bright red. “To get Fiona back, I mean.”
Brendan laughed, then sighed. “It’s going to be a violent and bloody event to get her. I can get her out. It isn’t going to be easy, even if I were on me own. With you there?” He shook his head.
“I know, but I just can’t sit and wait anymore. I can’t let everyone else do it for me. I have to do more than just wonder what’s happening,” she said. “They took her from me. They literally pulled her from my arms. I don’t even know why.”
“I know—”
“No,” she said. “I want my daughter back, that’s all. She’s everything to me.”
Brendan opened his mouth.
“Let me finish.”
Brendan nodded.
“I’m not ignorant.” She shook her head. “Well, okay, I am. All I have to go on are the stories Nana used to tell me, and they seem to have gotten at least as much wrong as they did right, but I understand the risk. I’m sorry it’ll make it harder for you.” She swallowed. “Do you have kids?”
He stiffened and looked away. “No.”
“I can’t explain it to you then, but I can help. Like I said, I’m a nurse—”
“Stop.” Brendan raised his free hand. “Just stop.”
“But—”
“Bloody hell, woman. You can come, all right.” He looked at the ground and shook his head. “I told you what lies ahead. If you want to go, I’m not going to stop you.”
“Thank you.” She felt, at long last, that she was taking an active role in this mess.
“Show’s over,” Brendan said over his shoulder. “Come on out. You might as well go and knock up Edward.”
Caitlin blinked and was about to ask what he meant, then she remembered the phrase from her visit to Ireland.
“Like sands in the hourglass,” Dante said as he stepped into the hallway.
“You won’t regret this,” Caitlin said to Brendan. When she looked at Dante, her mouth fell open. “You wake up looking like that?”
His eyes were bright and clear, his hair was perfect. She half expected to see a glint off his teeth and smell mint when he smiled.
Dante shrugged. “It’s a curse.”
“Can I take me fecking shower now?” Brendan asked. “It’s been weeks since I’ve had a proper one.”
“I could’ve done without hearing that,” Dante said. “Although, it does explain—”
Brendan smacked the back of Dante’s head, then disappeared into the bathroom, shutting the door behind him.
“I’ll wake Eddy,” Caitlin said.
“I’ll see about some food,” Dante said as he headed down the stairs. “I’m starving.”
Caitlin knocked. “Eddy, are you up?” When she heard no answer, she turned the knob and opened the door. She peeked around it and saw that his curtains were open and his form was lying buried beneath a heap of blankets. It felt strange seeing him like that, as if she was invading his privacy.
Well, she supposed, in point of fact, she was.
There wasn’t any way around it, so she reached out to wake him but stopped short. Guilt at drawing him into this caused her stomach to churn. But then he’d never willingly just stand by, not for anyone, much less someone he . . . Her eyes moved over his face, following the line of his jaw. Always right in front of her, and she’d never seen it. How much else had she missed, and missed out on?
Edward grunted and opened his eyes. He blinked a few times before his eyes focused on her. She felt her face flush, but when she saw the creases in his obviously ironed flannel pajamas, she just smiled.
“What time is it?” he asked.
“Almost eleven.”
He sat up and ran a hand through his mess of hair. “Did you get any sleep?”
She nodded and tried to figure out how to tell him that Brendan had agreed to take her with him.
“Good.” He yawned and looked at her. “What is it?”
She could feel his critical eyes on her, dissecting facial expressions and body language. “You know, sometimes it’s so aggravating, having a friend who can read people.” She let out a breath and sat on the edge of the bed. “I convinced Brendan to take me with him.”
“You did?” His expression flashed fear, but it melted away and he nodded. “Okay.”
“Okay?”
“I still don’t think it’s a good idea. Apart from the danger, you’ve got no idea what you’re getting into. I think you should let Brendan go alone. He knows what he’s doing, and he’s the expert in these things.”
“Wait, what?”
“Having said that . . .” He sighed. “I understand you wanting to go. I don’t like it, but I get it, and I’ll respect your choice.”
Caitlin was speechless.
“But I’m going, too.”
“What? No! I know you’d do it, and I love you to death for that, but you can’t.”
“Cait—”
She held up her hand and he stopped. “Eddy, I need you to stay here. In case—” She drew a breath. “In case something happens to me, I need you to take care of Fiona.”
“Nothing’s going to happen to you.” He leaned toward her. “If Brendan agreed to let you go, it’s because he believes he can protect you.”
“Just promise me.”
He looked at her for a long moment, then drew in a breath. “I can’t do that.”
She felt her stomach drop. “You have to, she doesn’t have—”
“No. I’m not giving you an out.” He smiled. “You’ll just have to make sure nothing happens so you can raise her yourself.”
It all made sense. His promise hadn’t come in the words she’d expected, but he’d agreed to take care of Fiona all the same and now he needed her to make a promise in return.
“Okay,” she said. “I will. And thank you.”
“I told you—”
“Not just for that, or for last night, or this morning, or whenever it was. Thank you for everything. I feel like you’ve been a much better friend to me than I’ve been to you.”
“Well, you’re wrong.”
Caitlin saw him looking at her lips. Her heart beat a little faster, and she knew her cheeks were turning pink. He started to lean toward her, but she turned her head at the last moment. Guilt tore at her heart when she realized what she’d done. When she looked back, Edward’s faltering smile made her heart crack.
She reached out a hand to take his. “Eddy, I’m sorry, I just—”
“No, I’m sorry.” He stood and stepped away.
She opened her mouth, desperate to explain it wasn’t him but the timing.
“I, uh, I just—” He turned away. “Look, I just.” He turned one way, then back before stopping and pointing to a door. “You go ahead and use my bathroom.” He started pulling clothes from his drawers. “It’ll give you more privacy. I’ll just use the spare one.”
“Eddy—”
“No, it’s—” He turned as if to say something, but he just shook his head and closed the door behind him.
Caitlin stood there in stunned silence with nothing but her own stupidity to keep her company. She put her face in her hands and sighed. “I don’t need this right now.”
She ran a hand through her tangle of hair. At this point, there was nothing to be done. This wasn’t the time to get into it. Right now, the only thing that mattered was Fiona and getting her back. This would just have to be added to the pile of crap she’d deal with later. So she did all she could do. She went into Edward’s bathroom to shower and, hopefully, wash away more than dirt, sweat, and dried tears.