Highland Shifter (MacCoinnich Time Travels #4)(23)
Author: Catherine Bybee

“And risk jumping in time by myself? I don’t think so.”

He didn’t want that either. “Does he live with anyone?”

“Not that I know of.”

“A housekeeper?”

Helen shrugged.

“Then we’ll go after dark.”

“Oh, man.” Helen rubbed her palms over her jean-clad thighs.

He could tell Helen was going to be a bundle of nerves until their task was done. Best to get her mind off their coming adventure. He held out a hand to her and stood. “Come.”

Her gaze slid from his hand to his face. “Where to?”

Simon wiggled his fingers, coaxing her. “’Tis been a long time since I’ve been in this century. I think I’d like a walk through the zoo and maybe a little Chinese food.”

“Chinese food? You’re thinking of food at a time like this?”

He laughed. “A body needs fuel no matter the time. C’mon.”

Relenting, Helen placed her small hand in his and allowed him to help her to her feet.

* * * *

The aroma drifting from the bag of takeout filled the interior of Helen’s car. He didn’t remember the food he liked, so he had Helen order for them. It was after two when they arrived at the zoo. Helen wouldn’t understand his desire for this trip, not until she understood the extent of his Druid gifts. For Simon, it was a long denied outing. His ability to understand an animal’s motivation and desire, to communicate with them, had come to him after he left this century. In Scotland, the domestic animals and an occasional wild fox or bird were his only animal friends. In a zoo, the possibilities were endless.

As a child, he remembered standing beside the ape exhibit wondering if the huge animals were as bored as they looked. Or were they constantly searching for an escape route, a way to free themselves from their pens?

Helen paid the admission and led the way. “My life is upside down, and I’m walking around the zoo.”

“What better place to clear your head?”

She rolled her eyes. “Chinese kind of sucks cold. We should eat before clearing our minds.”

They passed the paper containers back and forth. The bite of the spicy chicken made his eyes water but the flavor exploded on his tongue. “Amazing.”

“It’s pretty good,” she said while scooping a forkful of chow mien into her mouth.

“You’ve no idea how blessed you are.” He shook his head. “Spices are rare and expensive where I’m from.”

“You’re from here.”

“You know what I mean.”

“So, what do you eat?”

“Roasted meats, boiled vegetables…stew. What we can grow or hunt. Though there has been more trade from Europe in the past few years.”

Helen waved her fork at him. “You eat organic. Which isn’t a bad thing.”

“Organic?”

“It’s the buzz word of the new millennium. This is tasty.” She picked up the container and snagged another bite. “But it’s horrible for your body. MSG, saturated fats, concentrated sugars.”

Simon stared into his box, shrugged his shoulders, and took another bite. “I’m not at risk of dying from overindulging. Not in the short time I’ll be here.”

“Your confidence about finding a way home astounds me.”

A small child in a stroller waved at him from a few feet away. Simon winked and wiggled his fingers in the lad’s direction.

“We’ve already found the key. The rest is easy.”

In all reality, Simon was reasonably sure he could travel home at that very moment. However, leaving Helen wasn’t something he was ready to do. For the brief moment he held her in his arms, laid claim to her lips, something inside him stirred that he’d not felt before. The passion inside her was wound on a tight leash, and Simon wanted to be the one to unfurl it. He also had to consider Philip Lyons and his deception. Why had the man broken into Helen’s home? Why was he traveling half way around the world to “surprise” her? Simon had too many questions to leave this century now.

He watched, fascinated as Helen made silly faces at the child in the stroller. Her animated features made the child laugh and had his own laughter bubbling to the surface. Instead, he smiled. He had too many reasons to stay. At least for now.

“If the rest were easy, you’d be home already,” said Helen.

Simon didn’t counter her comment. Instead, he finished the remainder of the fried rice

“So why the zoo?” Helen asked as they were winding their way around the exhibits.

How much was she ready to hear? Simon inched closer and lowered his voice. “Every Druid has at least one special gift.”

“More than fire from your fingertips?”

“Aye, much more.”

They stopped in front of the snow leopard. The huge cat couldn’t be bothered to lift his head to see who walked by. It napped in the afternoon sun, ignoring everyone.

“What kind of gifts?”

“Gifts from nature. Organic, you might say.”

“So what? You can make plants grow?” She was laughing at him, obviously not believing a thing he said.

“That is my Aunt Tara’s gift.”

“Yeah, right!”

He shrugged. “She’s always complaining it isn’t explosive enough.”

“Explosive?”

If Helen couldn’t imagine Tara helping the soil warm with her fingers, than she couldn’t fathom his mother hovering above the ground, or his father causing said ground to shake.

“My grandfather…step-grandfather, has the ability to call rain and lightening with a mere thought.”

As Helen opened her mouth to protest, Simon continued. “My grandmother predicts the future. Sometimes, long before it happens, other times moments before it occurs.”

Helen’s smile started to fall, her steps slowed.

“My cousin, Cian, heals wounds with his hands. My cousin Amber feels the emotions of others. Her I worry about. She bears everyone’s sorrow and joy.”

Helen’s smile fell. Mayhap the words expelled from his mouth or the tone of them made her pause, but she did. She appeared to consider what he’d said.

“I’m told that our gifts are stronger than most. We believe it’s because we’ve been called upon to stop a great evil from destroying us…from destroying many.”

His thoughts drifted to his childhood, to the witch who kidnapped him. The one who taught him that the boogieman was alive and real, living inside an ancient woman with powers beyond imagination.