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“Because you saddled up a long time ago,” Graham said as he slid the bowls onto the bar in front of us. “And we all followed you and trusted you because we knew you loved this town. But that doesn’t mean you get to turn your back now when things get a little too uncomfortable for you.”
“I have to say I admire your delivery,” Agnes said, stabbing her spoon into the soup with annoyance. “You do have your moments, Graham, I’ll give you that.”
“Just like I’ve been telling you for years, darling, I’ll wear you down eventually.”
“I think we’ve got a few years yet before that happens. Perhaps when I’m sixty and have given up all hope on men,” Agnes said. Graham let out a whoop of joy.
“Did you hear that, Lachlan? I think that’s the first time she’s ever agreed to have a date with me.”
“When I’m sixty. And not married,” Agnes said, annoyance in her voice.
“Nevertheless, there’s hope for me yet. If that’s the case, I think times are changing, don’t you, Lachlan?”
The silence drew out as both of my best friends waited for my direction. Looking down at my soup, I nodded.
“You can bring your papers by.”
CHAPTERSIX
Sophie
“Here you are then,” Hilda said, as she pushed open a door. Once she’d gotten a closer look at us, she had decreed that rest was more important than formal introductions over dinner and had ushered Matthew and me to a suite of apartments in the south tower. “There are two separate bedrooms in here on opposite sides of the lounge and a shared bathroom. I hope that suits?”
I gaped at the expansive lounge room with low-slung leather couches, massive decorative rugs tossed across the stone floor, and again those high ceilings with gorgeous moldings. A fireplace centered the room. “It’s an electric fireplace and should give you a nice cozy feel. Unfortunately, the chimney had some repair issues, so we fitted this with an electric option to still give you ambience. Maybe next year we can have enough money to repair the chimney,” Hilda said.
“Thank you, Hilda,” Matthew said. “This is perfect and exceedingly gracious of you. I understand we were a bit of a surprise showing up on your doorstep, and we appreciate you being kind enough to take us in.”
“Take you in? I would have put the red carpet out if I had known you were coming. I’m ecstatic that you’re finally here to restore the Order.” Hilda’s eyes danced with glee.
“What exactly needs…” I trailed off as Hilda interrupted me with a wave of her hand.
“Och, don’t bother with that tonight. You must be dead on your feet. Such a shame it takes so long for you to travel here from…where was it…California?”
“Yes, sunny California,” Matthew said with a wry smile as he glanced at the slender arched window where rain slapped against the glass.
“We’ll make sure to get you a proper jumper to keep you warm while you’re here. Right. That’s me off,” Hilda said, already retreating to the door. “I’ll just pop a tray outside your door with a few things just in case you get a bit peckish later.” With that, Hilda disappeared, leaving Matthew and me to look at each other like we’d just entered another world.
“Do you find it odd that they keep saying something about restoring order?” I pivoted, hands on my hips, taking in all of the interesting historical features of the room. Not only was I certain the rugs were at least one hundred years old, the walls were covered with oil paintings representing what I assumed to be various family members who had owned the castle through the years, as well as a few portraits depicting the loch.
“Toto, I don’t think we’re in Kansas anymore,” Matthew said as he studied one of the paintings.
Exhaustion snuck up on me, like a wave thundering over a calm beach, and I found myself frozen to the spot as all of the emotions from the last few days tumbled on top of each other, writhing in my gut. For someone who didn’t like change, losing my uncle, losing my job, losing my boyfriend, and changing countries was not only a lot to process but more than I’d ever had heaped on my plate at one time. I was so used to always having a plan of action and now I felt like a rudderless boat at the whims of the wind from the storm outside. A soft knock on the door sounded, and I could just make out Hilda’s voice calling through it about a tray. By the time Matthew had crossed the room and opened the door, she was gone. Picking up the tray, Matthew nudged the door closed and crossed to the couch.
“Why don’t you come snuggle in for a moment? Look…” Matthew pointed at the tray. “Not only did she put some whisky on here, but she also offered up some wine, which I know you would prefer. Why don’t we have a glass of wine and then after a good night’s sleep, we’ll deal with what comes tomorrow?”
I dropped onto the leather couch and pulled a tartan blanket onto my lap, the soft wool cocooning me. Matthew crossed the room to rummage in the cupboards of a small kitchenette that I hadn’t noticed because I’d been too busy looking at all of the artwork in the room. Already my brain was switching into work mode, and I was thinking of ways that I could advertise this place for tourists to come stay.
“It’s a serviceable little kitchen. Well-stocked for the space that it has, though I don’t think we’ll do much cooking up here as there’s no stove.” Matthew poured a glass of red wine and handed it to me.
“Do you think that’s because they’re afraid of fires?”
Matthew plopped down next to me and bent over to kick off his shoes.
“Traditionally in castles like this, the kitchen would have likely been on the lower floor where the servants could get to it easily and discreetly. There would have been easy entrances in and out, as well as a quick way to put out any fires. I mean, just look…if you were going to cook something in here? There’s no vent fan, there’s no anything for the cooking smells to escape. If you were making food that was particularly stinky, the smell could linger in the fabrics or even affect the artwork in here. I can see why they made the choice not to offer a true way to prepare food. It’s more of a hotel room, so to speak.” Matthew picked up his glass and tapped it lightly against mine.
“Cheers,” I said, automatically.
“Sláinte Mhath,” Matthew corrected, with a small smile, studying my face. “How are you doing? I have to admit I’ve seen you look better. It’s a lot, isn’t it?” Matthew gave me a sympathetic look and squeezed my knee.
