After a long nap and a very long, hot shower, Jamie felt a little more human and hopeful. Her stomach rumbled angrily and she realized she hadn't eaten since the evening before. Thankfully, the hunt for the kitchen meant she could also explore her new accommodations.
The castle was medieval, well over seven hundred years old. The exterior was a formidable red sandstone but the interior was a labyrinth of ornate bedrooms and fancy drawing rooms. Some of the hallways were low and cold with stone tunnels that inevitably led to some sort of dungeon, she was sure. But a grand study overlooked the grounds and was full of warm wood paneling and cases and cases of books. The kitchens were on the lower level, and much more medieval than Jamie had anticipated. For a man of the Laird's obvious wealth, she was surprised to not find a high-tech, state-of-the-art kitchen with a talking fridge and farmhouse sink. Instead, huge pots stood in front of a massive brick hearth and a simple wooden table laden with ceramic bowls and plates. Jame was genuinely confused. Parts of the castle were right out of the Middles Ages but others were completely modern. At least a 20th-century version of modern. She had not seen any signs of a TV or computer, and she was afraid to ask for the Wi-Fi password since it probably didn't exist. And Laird Murdock had a way about him that seemed so… old. He didn't look older than thirty-five but his demeanor reminded her of those she had seen in black-and-white photos from the turn of the 20th-century. Distinguished, sophisticated, haughty. The man had servants for God's sake. Not as many as she would have expected for such a large home but enough to count. She greeted them as she came into the kitchen. Even they seemed out of place as if someone had plucked them out of Downton Abbey.
Catrina and Effie. They were older women, frumpy and a bit awkward but very kind. They fussed over Jamie like she was royalty and offered to make her anything her heart desired.
"Actually some coffee would be great," Jamie admitted as she took a seat at the table. "I slept terribly last night and never had any this morning."
"Right away, Miss," Catrina, the more talkative and bubbly one, chirped as she began boiling water over the hearth. Effie came out from the storage pantries and began to actually grind beans.
What in the world… "You guys do things very old-school here, huh?"
The blank looks on their faces told Jamie they had no clue what she had just asked.
She tried a different approach. "I don't know a lot of people who still make coffee this way. It's very… traditional."
Catrina nodded, understanding that statement much better. "Aye. We are a more traditional lot, especially the Laird."
Jamie tucked away that piece of information for later. "I've noticed. Why is that you think?"
Catrina and Effie were a little more skilled at hiding their secret glances but Jamie still caught the look that passed between the two women.
"The Laird is… a conservative man," Catrina supplied, busying herself with the now ground coffee. "He is slow to change."
Yes, Jamie was starting to see that more and more. "Is his family like that too?"
"Family, Miss?"
"Yeah, doesn't the Laird have some family here? Maybe a wife or children? Parents?"
Catrina hesitated. "No wife or children. I-I can't say where his parents are but I've never met them."
Odd. The castle looked like an ancestral home, especially for someone in the nobility, which meant it would have passed down through the generations from the Laird's parents. Maybe he was a weird cosplaying Highlander after all. Or maybe the women had just never met his parents. They could be recent employees.
"And how long have you two been here?"
Again, a look passed between the two women, and Jamie felt her spidey senses tingling. Her questions were poking at secrets. She was positive.
"Almost our entire lives," Catrina answered. "Could I make you some food to go with your coffee? We have some fresh bread we made yesterday and the butter should be ready by now."
"You made the butter?"
"Aye, Effie did." Effie nodded proudly.
She allowed them to artfully change the subject for now but Jamie reminded herself to ask more about the women's pasts later. Like everyone else in the town, they were hiding something.
Still, she was massively grateful for the two women and the incredible lunch they made her. And as long as she steered away from questions about history or the Laird, they were relatively chatty and helpful. They gave her lay of the land which included over three thousand acres. The castle was surrounded by gardens and pastures, a retired stable, and a greenhouse. Effie and Catrina lived in the servants' quarters on the property and some cottages still sat unused. Some of the villagers still worked the farms, but most lived and worked near the small town square which was also technically a part of the Laird's land. In fact, it seemed that the whole town belonged to Laird Murdock.
This was more than a celebrity-owned private island. In Jamie's view, this operated more like a feudal village.
As friendly as Catrina and Effie were though, Jamie knew she was not going to get more answers from them. She needed to go straight to the source.
____________________________________________________________________________
Kane wiped the sweat off his face as he finished his run, his heart hammering in his chest. He'd run five miles through the woods trying in vain to expend some of the energy that had built up after meeting Jamie Campbell. He gripped his knees and watched beads of moisture fall to the ground from his face and his chest. He hadn't run that hard in a while but he still felt keyed up, tense, and antsy. He had been since he'd met his new house guest.
The run hadn't accomplished anything. He still felt a stirring in his chest, a familiar pang of lust and desire that was beginning to gnaw at him. The lass was fiery. Intelligent and self-assured. She moved with the confidence of a woman who knew her value and expected to be treated a certain way. Not like royalty but with respect. Like him. Yet from what he could tell America had no royalty or nobility, and she dressed like most other women of her time. Nothing to indicate that she was of a higher station than him. No, it was her manner. She'd been educated, treated well, maybe even coddled. She was used to things working out her way, or at least working out in her favor. She was quick-thinking, eager to problem solve, and secure in her ability to do so. The men in her life had clearly treated her as an equal, and Kane could not help but feel a tad rattled by it.
What's worse was that she had the air of a woman familiar with lust. He saw no hint of a shy virgin completely ignorant of the ways of the flesh. When she'd looked at him, he could almost see her mind imaging the same things that he did. Of course, that only made his now almost constant cock-stand worse. Had she tasted passion? Oh aye, he was sure of it.
Suddenly he froze. His heart almost stopped as he realized the lass was coming this very way.
He stood like a statue as he watched her walk forward and pretend to ignore that he was very shirtless and very sweaty.
"Hi…" she greeted. A rosy blush lit her cheeks and he was rapt as her eyes traveled all over him. "I didn't mean to disturb you."
It took everything in his power not to adjust his shorts. "Er, no. I was just finishing a run."
He could see her bite her bottom lip as she gave a slow nod. "I see. I just had some lunch thanks to Catrina and Effie. I really appreciate you letting me stay here."
He merely nodded, unsure what to do with such gratitude.
Neither said anything as they walked toward an abandoned stable where he had left his shirt.
"This land is amazing," she remarked, and he could tell from the glint in her eyes that she was being genuine. "You own all of this?"
"Aye. It's been in the family a long time." Almost eight hundred years, to be exact.
"And it's just you?"
He had to be careful how much he divulged, especially since the lass was naturally inquisitive. But perhaps she was interested for purely selfish reasons too.
"Aye. My brother… died long ago, after my parents passed." Of course, that had been five centuries ago. Ian had fallen off his horse and sustained a terrible injury that had infected his entire leg. They had tried saving him by removing the leg, but they had been too late. His two younger sisters had died much earlier, one in childbirth and the other when they were all bairns. Kane was the only Murdock left.
"I'm so sorry," she whispered.
It had been so long that Kane had become numb to his grief. He could not even remember what his family looked like. But he nodded at Jamie all the same. It had been a lonely existence.
"And you never married?"
A humorless chuckle escaped his mouth. "Almost. We called off our engagement right before the wedding."
"Oh." He wasn't sure if that meant she was relieved or she was at a loss for what to say.
"And you never got close to marrying again?"
He could still remember the first time he had seen Sorcha after the curse. She had been so pleased with herself, smirking at him after his first transformation and the horrid morning after. He had woken in the barn covered in blood and gore, surrounded by animal carcasses. He had eaten his most beloved horse, some of the prized sheep. The damage he had caused… Thankfully, Sorcha had warned his parents and told them to go as far away as possible. The problem was they never came back.
Sorcha had remained. She still lived on the outskirts of Gealach Lán, old as dirt. She had not inflicted immortality on herself but she aged much more slowly. A hundred years was a decade for her. At seven hundred years old, she was still powerful. Despite his warnings, townsfolk still occasionally went to her for help. But he wanted nothing to do with her.
"No, I never came close again," he responded to Jamie. "Fate had other plans."
"She's cruel, isn't she? Fate."
He nodded. She was cruel. He should have married, had bairns, ruled over Gealach Lán, and then died an old man. Instead, he was cursed to this monstrous existence with no end in sight. And no redemption.
"Well… speaking of fate," she started somewhat shyly. "I was wondering if I could ask you a favor."
The word 'anything' came to his mind. "Aye."
"I saw you had quite the library in the castle and I was wondering if I could use it."
His hackles rose. "What for?"
"Well, if I'm stuck here I'd like to be able to still utilize some of my time. I'm sure that library is just full of primary and secondary documents that I could scour over. There's still a chance I could find Gealach Lán."
He had suspected as much. Unfortunately, the library was chock-full of documents having to do with Gealach Lán. "No, the library is forbidden."
The face she made was almost comical in its disbelief. "Forbidden? Like the Beast's west wing?"
What in the hell? "It's what you'd say… off-limits."
"Because?"
Now those hackles got prickly. He was not used to people, especially a woman, questioning his every decision. "I don't have to explain to you why a room in my home is unavailable, especially since you're my guest."
"Right."
He was a tad shocked. She was acquiescing that quickly?
"You're Big-Man-on-Campus so you don't have to explain yourself to anyone, especially little lowly me."
Apparently not.
"Lass, I don't know how you do things in America, but here we respect our hosts, particularly those who have so graciously offered up their homes for guests."
That comment did not seem to deescalate the situation, however. Her eyes sparkled with frustration and she took a deep breath.
"Well, excuse this ignorant American for asking a simple question. I didn't ask if I could hold a rave or sacrifice a goat. I asked if I could use your library. But apparently, that's verboten because this is the fucking weirdest town on the planet."
His eyes widened. He had never heard a woman say the word 'fuck' before. And what in the goddamn hell was a rave?
Kane had never met such a willfully stubborn, defiant woman in his life.
"If you disrespect my land again, I'll throw you out on your ass."
Kane had not meant to be so harsh but his blood was boiling over this beautiful but impossible woman. This woman who was hell-bent on uncovering the truth about Gealach Lán. Which meant she would also uncover the truth about him.
But his threat did not make her cower. Instead she hissed, "Why don't I make it easier on you then? I'll leave."
Turning her heel, she marched away from him.
"Goddammit," he sighed.
____________________________________________________________________________
Jamie was barreling through the woods that outlined the castle gardens, stomping her way over roots and leaves. Knocking branches out of her face and kicking dirt or bramble that threatened to block her path.
"Goddamn asshole. Fucking privileged prick, haughty dickwad, thinks he can just command me like I'm some peasant of his!"
Laird Murdock had stopped calling for her about half a mile back and she was glad that she did't have to hear his bellowing anymore. The man was a complete ass. Yes, he was gorgeous. And okay, she might have been a bit rude with her reply. Maybe he had a legitimate reason for not letting her use his library. But the way he had spoken to her… The fact that he had threatened to kick her out. The arrogance. She couldn't believe he would be so cruel. And after their conversation. She felt as if they had had a moment there, discussing the cruelty of fate. He had seemed more… warm. Approachable. As if he was opening up just a bit to give her glimpse. Despite her better judgment, God knows she wanted to see more.
But no. That hope had died with his absolute dickish reply. She was stuck in this godforsaken village through no fault of her own and he was going to kick her out? Just the audacity of it all made her furious and she angrily sloshed through a stream as she remembered how he had spoken to her. The fucking nerve…
Jamie was really regretting not just trying to find Gealach Lán but the entire study abroad. Hell, she was even questioning whether she should have pursued grad school. Since she was a little girl, she had loved learning. Loved studying and discovering new worlds through history. College had been a dream after the awkwardness of high school and she truly felt as if she had found her calling, her purpose in life. She was a gifted teacher, a great scholar, and all of her mentors had encouraged her to apply to grad school. Even her parents had been supportive. But grad school had turned out differently than she had expected. Inspiration was harder to come by. All of the professors that she had wanted to work with were on sabbatical or not taking on any students. The class offerings were dull and outside of her field. And on top of it all, she lived in a shitty apartment with weird roommates who were always trying to hit on her or steal her food. Her car was on its last leg, she had to work two jobs to pay rent, and she only had a year to finish her thesis or she would lose her scholarship. Taking this study abroad had been her last-ditch effort to make something of her Masters and instead of solving a historical mystery, she was lost with no way of getting back.
It was enough to make her want to cry, but she was determined to just keep walking. She had already gone a mile, she guessed. Only forty-nine more to go…
Besides, it was better this way. Yes, Laird Murdock was attractive. Chris Hemsworth-levels of attractive. And she had thought that there was more to him than just the brooding good looks. Perhaps there was a depth, a mystery behind the gruff exterior. Unfortunately, his response to her had dumped a cold shower on that interest.
The woods were becoming more tangled and the ground was sodden and muddy from the torrential rain which had ended not long before. She groaned with frustration when her foot suddenly sunk into a deeper spot, and she had to pull at her leg to release her foot from the wet mud.
"Perfect," she muttered to herself as she looked at her soaked, mud-covered left foot. Her gray tennis shoe was unrecognizable.
"Just what I needed."
Silently cursing Laird Murdock to herself, she attempted to put her left foot forward and walk as normally as possible. She had gotten several steps but her world was upended when the ground underneath her gave way and she went down in a tumble of dirt, leaves, and blackness. She had fallen into some sort of hole, maybe even an animal trap, although it was over twelve feet deep.
"Fuck," she moaned when she tried to right herself. She had fallen at a weird angle and she looked up at the gray sky and branches hanging over her. Her ankle was on fire and she hissed as she tried to move it. When she looked down, she could see it was broken.
Jamie leaned her head back against the dirt and tried to take a deep breath. Her head was throbbing, her hands were scraped, her ankle was killing her, and she was stuck in a hole probably over a mile from the castle. There was bad and then there was disaster. She had struck the latter.
"C'mon, think, Campbell." But as she looked up at the dirt walls that had closed her and her broken ankle in, she failed to see how she could get out of this one.
"What am I gonna do?"
Then she heard a long, loud howl in the distance.