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She nodded. Liam grimaced. “Don’t even think about doing something stupid,” Liam slowly softened his grip. Ghost stumbled forward, coughing and rubbing his throat that had now turned red where Liam had squeezed the life out of him.
“No shit,” he sneered back with a gaze that flicked upward. His accent was without a doubt British.
“What do you want from our Isabella?” Dan crossed her arms, impatiently pacing in place. Ghost looked up at her, seemingly unperturbed, and didn't say a word. Liam lurched forward and swung his right-hand fist into his left palm, making an audible threatening sound.
“I must have given you the impression that you don’t have to answer us… Let me fix that.”
Ghost stumbled backward, almost falling into Isabella. “Wait,” she interrupted, holding her hand up. He gave her a thankful gaze. “Nobody will hurt you; I promise. But you will have to answer our questions."
"Let’s start with why you've been following her.” Dan snickered, growing more impatient by the second. Ghost stared at them for a moment, debating about the pros and cons of talking. “I can’t… Not while the others are here,” he finally said.
“Why not?” Isabella asked.
Ghost kept quiet again. Liam, on the other hand, was done playing games. He walked up to Ghost who jerked both his fists up to his face.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Liam rolled his eyes. He grabbed Ghost by one of his wrists and swung him around while twisting his arm onto his back, placing him into a police hold. Ghost didn’t dare to move a muscle as it would just cause pain. Liam reached into Ghost’s black jean pocket and pulled out a wallet.
“Not very wise bringing that,” he said sarcastically.
He flipped it open with his free hand to look at it while Isabella and Dan watched in anticipation. His eyes widened like an owl while his posture stiffened. A sudden rush of blood ran through his face in awe. He was so surprised that he let go of Ghost without even realizing it.
“What is it?” Isabella and Dan spoke in chorus, taking a step closer. Liam was at a loss for words along with an unfocused gaze that blinked faster and faster, like he was trying to wake himself up from slumber. Isabella managed to break him out from his daze. He wasn't even aware that he had handed the wallet to Isabella, whose mouth now also slackened to the floor, pressing her hand against her chest, fingers grasping on to the fabric of her clothes. She slowly looked up toward the man who stood in front of them, then quickly shifted her gaze back to the wallet she held in her slightly trembling hands.
“H-henry?" Isabella struggled to find her voice as she swallowed the lump that formed in her throat. "Your name Is Henry? Henry… Astley?" Isabella gasped as she just heard herself say her own name.
“The Duke of Aberdeen, at least according to Google.” Liam stared at his phone, shaking his head in confusion. Henry threw his head back in despair. “This is going so terribly wrong!” He spoke into the clear night sky, sounding desperate.
“Could somebody here help me out on this one? I hate being the stupid one in the group,” Dan interrupted, wrinkling her forehead.
“He is my, um, my… We… are related, apparently,” Isabella stuttered so hard that her legs almost gave in.
“You're related?” Dan stepped closer, analyzing him from head to toe with her big eyes under half broken glasses. “Yes. I can see that now." She turned toward Isabella with her brows perked up. "But how?”
“A rather distant relation, I’m afraid,” Henry finally joined in.
“He even sounds like you. A modern version of you,” Dan said, nodding confirmation of her own words.
Isabella was still in shock when Henry walked up to her to pull his wallet out of her hands. “If you don’t mind,” he said putting it back into his pocket. It was dead silent for the moment. The cold breeze of the night blew in their faces as they stood in front of the car's headlights, a fitting metaphor for the darkness that had shrouded them all for weeks, now gathered to find the light and the truth in all of this.
Everyone was deep in their own thoughts, until Dan broke the silence. “So, you are a noblewoman?”
Isabella shook her head. “I used to be, but I am of no importance any longer.”
“You must be joking!” Henry shouted in an odd voice while his fist shot into the air like he was an actor in some sort of drama. “Tell me you are joking!”
“About what?” she wrinkled her forehead, completely lost inside her thoughts. Henry studied her, with his chin held high, trying to see if she really meant what she’d just said. Then he put his hands to his hips like a teacher scolding a pupil. “So, you have no idea about the family’s oath. Absolutely none whatsoever?”
“The what?" Isabella stared at him with raised eyebrows and a slackened jaw.
“I guess it makes sense considering you've only been here for a month. Which by the wayisgetting rather very close.” Liam and Isabella exchanged looks but weren’t too surprised that he knew about her time travel. At this point it seemed more and more likely that Henry might even know more about all of this than any of them.
“Close to what?” Liam asked. Henry took in a deep breath, held it, and forced the air back out.
“Bloody hell. Things are going totally wrong here anyway.” He calmly walked over to Isabella and stopped right in front of her, catching her gaze. “Your brother. I was sent by your brother.”
Isabella lifted her hand to her mouth in a mixture of relief and confusion. "George? Is he here?” Henry shook his head and stared into the darkness. “No, not like that. After you disappeared in 1881, George dropped everything overnight and started looking for you. He was out of himself, obsessed with finding you. People thought his sorrow turned him mad. Maybe it really did, for a while.” She felt a sharp pain spread across her chest like someone had just stabbed her with a knife. Isabella pressed a hand to her breast as if to stop the blood from seeping through. She was right about her poor brother. His suffering. His pain. He would have never rested, turning the world inside out to find her.
“How terrible!” She grabbed Henry by the shoulders. “I have to return! Please help me!” Henry looked at her empathetically and pulled out an envelope with nothing written on it. “I think you should read this first.” He handed it to her. It looked clearly old with its yellowish stained color and almost rough texture. “It actually looked pretty decent for its age until I had to chase you down for the past four weeks. Hiding in bushes, wrestling…” He threw Dan and Liam quick sharp look, “…it made it age more in four weeks than it did in the hundred and forty years it’s been in the family’s possession.” Isabella felt her heart leaping from her chest as she frantically tore the envelope open and leaned it toward the headlight.
