Page 10 of Her Scot of the Morrow
I pointed out the wolf to her. “I think Flame might know what comes next.”
“Ahh, Flame,” she said. “I heard about him. He helped Aspen, right? Storm sent him. He’s an Irish shifter that was born a wolf, so he won’t shift to his human half for a while and can’t communicate telepathically or otherwise? At least for now.”
“Aye,” I confirmed. “And he helped Hazel and Lucas just as much, so he can be trusted to help us. ‘Twas Flame who helped get the Viking blade to me.”
Flame greeted Willow as soon as she crouched, offering her one good lick on the cheek before he cocked his head toward the woodland, then brushed against my leg as he headed into the trees, looking back again, a clear sign we should follow.
“It’s as gorgeous as I remember,” Willow said as her tree faded like it tended to do, and she appreciated the almost mystical woodland caught in the sunset’s dwindling embers. “All of it.”
“Aye,” I agreed again because she was right. Not just that, but it also brought back memories, most of which were good, some of which were hard.
Especially the last one on a cliffside alcove not far from here.
Fortunately, Flame trotted off in a different direction, leading us away from the place where Willow had left me and headed along a small stream until, surprisingly enough, Aunt Chara appeared ahead.
Willow slowed and narrowed her eyes when Aunt Chara looked up from where she sat on a rock, seeming like she’d been waiting for us. “Is it me, or is she actually looking at us?Seeingus? Better yet, seeingme?”
Outside of me and likely the woodland animals, nobody else had ever been able to see Willow in the Morrow, so I understood her shock.
“Aye,” I replied when my aunt stood and smiled. “So it seems.”
I wasn’t entirely sure how I felt about that, either, given it might again be confirmation that the Morrow was weakening or perhaps vanishing altogether. I would want that if Willow were mine and we could be together, but that wasn’t the case.
So I,we, needed the Morrow to keep her safe until her dragon emerged.
Yet I realized as we moved closer, Aunt Chara’s aura emitted a soft golden glow, telling me we were still in the Morrow. Having been a time traveler herself, she married Uncle Marek, her fated mate, and learned she wasn’t just half dragon but possessed a dash of unicorn blood, so she was more powerfulthan most. So said the way her braided white hair seemed to put off its own light, and her golden eyes appeared to shine.
“’Tis good to see you, Sloan.” Chara smiled warmly and embraced me before turning her smile Willow’s way. “I’m Sloan’s aunt, Chara. ’Tis good to finally meet you, Willow.” Her knowing gaze went from me to Willow. “I wish it could have been far sooner.”
I could tell by Willow’s tentative smile and nod that she didn’t know what to make of this any more than I did, and it seemed Chara understood because she didn’t skip a beat and went on.
“As I suspect you’ve already noticed, things are changing within your Morrow,” she said. “I was the first to sense its presence after Sloan entered it to travel to the future, and with it came the certainty that you two have known each other for some time.”
“We have,” I confirmed softly, relieved someone finally knew, so the others might know too. “I tried to tell everyone years ago, but ‘twas always…difficult, and I cannae say why other than to assume ‘twas the magic of this place.”
“No doubt ‘twas.” Chara continued eyeing Willow kindly and held out her hand. “No need to remove your ring, but do you think I might look at it more closely?”
“Of course,” Willow said. “I don’t mind taking it off.”
“’Twould be preferable if you kept it on,” Chara said when Willow went to pull it off. “’Twas your mother’s ring, aye?”
“It was.” Willow held out her hand. “I found it after she passed away.”
“I’m so sorry for your loss,” Chara said gently. When she brushed her fingers over the ringthe gold in her eyes shone brighter. “’Ye undoubtedly inherited your inner witch from your mother, as this was her cherished talisman and it's as much a part of this place as your father’s magic was.” Her gaze flickeredfrom me back to Willow. “And ‘twas designed to bring you to your fated mate.”
“Without a doubt, ‘twas.” My voice turned rough with emotion because that was all the hope I needed. Despite my obligations, I continued speaking with my heart rather than my head. “And now that she’s here, the spell is lifting, aye? At last, truly bringing her back to me and Scotland for good?”
“It certainlyseemsthat way,” Chara said softly.
The slight emphasis she put on the word ‘seems’ troubled me, and I said so.
“What is it?” I frowned. “Why do I get the sense you don’t entirely believe that?”
“Maybe because you’re marrying someone else?” Willow reminded me dryly.
“Walk with me and let us talk before the willow tree comes for you again.” Chara urged us to join her along the stream, and we headed deeper into the woodland. “As to my tentativeness, I think ‘tis unwise to jump to conclusions until we better ken the dynamics of the Morrow because that ring belonged to a powerful witch with unique magic.”
The way she said it set me on edge. “That makes sense given the Morrow, aye? Not to mention how powerful Willow’s father, Malcolm Sutherland, was, or mayhap still is, assuming he’s alive.”
