The Sunstone Brooch : Time Travel Romance by Katherine Logan (comprehension books .TXT) 📗

did that sketch three years ago, my genealogy team uncovered rumors about an older brother named Andrew. The rumor is that Andrew left home under mysterious circumstances, was disinherited, and never heard from again. I just put the information in my rumor file.”

“Do ye think he could have joined the Illuminati?” Elliott asked.

“Who knows?” Meredith said.

“What’s the last sketch?” Austin asked.

“David saw only one woman in his vision. She carried a tall longbow made of yew and was aiming at a target he couldn’t see. He didn’t know who she was but thought she resembled JL.”

“I can confirm right now that I’ve never been to Jarlshof and never intend to go,” JL said.

“I don’t remember David mentioning any landmark that would identify the location as Jarlshof, and I feel confident that had he, I would have sketched it,” Sophia said.

“Whatever,” JL said.

Ensley shot a glance at Kenzie and mouthed, “The battle of the bitches. Bring it on.”

“We need all our oars in the water and pulling in the same direction,” David said. “It’s apparent that we’re going back for Tavis, and we must be very strategic. That means we have to be prepared and ready to fight.”

“Then we’ll wear black Battle Dress Uniforms with full-face balaclavas and night vision,” Connor said.

“That’s the only way to go,” Remy said. “But we’ll look like space aliens to the people there, and they could use Tavis as a hostage. I doan want him to come home with missing body parts or missing family members.”

“What do you want to wear, then? Kilts?” Matt asked. “They didn’t work out so well for the lads at Culloden.”

“There have been several statements using the pronoun—we. I want to be clear that only Remy and I are going. I’ll wear a kilt and the torc, and Remy can go as a space alien. But I’m not involving anyone else in this and risk David’s vision coming true,” Elliott said.

“My vision is already true,” David said. “The question is, how will our presence change the outcome?”

“We have to go armed to the teeth. A show of force with AK-47s,” Connor said.

Elliott glared at Connor. “What did I just say?”

“I don’t know,” Connor said. “I didn’t hear you say anything.”

“When do we leave?” Remy asked. “There’s another gig in Lexington I’d like to play before I go fight with twelfth-century Vikings.”

“David, prepare a battle plan for me. I don’t intend to use it, but I should be ready for the unexpected.”

“I’m going with you,” Ensley said.

“No, ye’re not.”

“I’m going, too,” Kenzie said.

“No, ye’re not.”

Kevin stood. “If the Frasers are going, that includes me.”

David stood. “The McBains are going, and that includes Kenzie, Robbie, and Henry.”

Daniel stood. “The Grants are going, and that includes Noah.”

Pete stood. “The Parrinos are going, and that includes Sophia and Churchill.”

Braham stood. “The McCabes are going, and that includes Lincoln.”

Jack stood. “The Mallorys are going, and that includes Patrick.”

Cullen stood. “One Montgomery is going.”

Remy stood. “One Benoit is going.”

Philippe stood. “One Baird is going.”

“Philippe, yer gout flareup prevents ye from going. I’m sorry. And Matt, ye’re needed here,” Elliott said.

Austin stood. “Ensley and I are going. If you’re keeping a scorecard, that’s one O’Grady and one MacAndrew Williams.”

Rick stood, and Elliott said, “Sit down, lad. Ye’ll not leave yer bride’s side right now.”

Pops stood, and Elliott said, “Sit down, Pops. Ye’re needed here.”

Then Elliott sat back in his chair, rubbing his forehead. After a moment, he said, “That makes eleven men, three women, and six second-gens. Catch the next flight out, lads, then gather yer plaids, body armor, and weapons. We’ll leave in a week.”

76

Mallory Plantation, VA—Ensley

One week later, Ensley stood in her suite’s walk-in closet staring into the mirror. She looked like a space alien. Since David was leading an untrained team, he ordered everyone to wear black Battle Dress Uniforms (BDUs), body armor, helmets, combat boots, and carry M4 carbine rifles.

Elliott, however, nixed the automatic rifles in favor of M18 SIG Sauers. They were confronting twelfth-century Vikings, not twenty-first-century enemy combatants.

Rick, Pete, and Connor had worked with each member of the MacKlenna voluntary corps, providing personalized instructions on wearing BDUs with armor and how to use night-vision goggles (NVGs). Target practice with the M18 turned competitive, and Robbie lost to Austin in the shooting contest when his final shot didn’t match his called shot.

Robbie took the loss well, and David immediately took his son to the target and gave him some constructive criticism. It was evident to Ensley, while watching their body language from a distance, that while Robbie was slightly taller than David, David was figuratively a head taller.

He was, she’d discovered, a man who stood out among all others, and she believed the rumor that he could perform miracles with one hand tied behind his back. After discovering David was claustrophobic yet functioned so well inside the cave, she decided the rumor had to be true.

How in the world did Kenzie live with a man like that?

I guess she sees warts that others don’t.

Ensley left the closet doing her best model strut for Austin, sitting at the desk working on a laptop. She cleared her throat, and his head shot up.

“Shit, Ens. You look sexy as hell.”

She managed a clumsy faux pirouette using both legs. “So do you. I feel like ripping off your ninja turtle suit and having my way with you.”

He held up his hands. “I surrender. But keep in mind, ripping off turtle suits goes both ways.”

“If I didn’t have to put this crap back on again, I’d consider it.” She looked over his shoulder. “What are you working on?”

“I’m watching the live cam of the inside of the cave, and David’s right about the light. There’s a pattern, but God knows what it is. Kenzie says she’s ruled out a connection to the solar system.”

“Meaning…it’s not like the moon controlling the tides.”

“Something like that. But it never comes on at the same time of day. So it remains unpredictable, at least to us.”

“Maybe