The Wellspring (Kaitlyn and the Highlander #12) - Diana Knightley Page 0,88
make a call.
Lady Mairead looked all around, “Rain? Rain! Och, Florida is a distressin’ place tae live, I daena ken why ye hae chosen it—”
Her eyes settled on Magnus’s face. “Why are ye in this condition? What has happened tae ye?” She shook her head sadly. “I hope ye taught whomever it was a lesson on it.”
“Nae, I escaped with m’life, the bairn were almost killed. Twas yer friend, Padraig. He inna happy ye hae stolen the Trailblazer from him.”
She scowled, “He has nae business interfering in yer kingdom. We will kill him. He will rue the day he messed with Magnus I, but…” Her voice trailed off as she looked around at the art, you could see her eyes darting here and there, cataloguing, checking, listing.
Magnus said, “We will get yer art under cover in a storage unit and then we will talk.”
She said, “All of this is priceless! It demands more than a storage unit!”
James asked, “Quentin, what about Chris Halburt over at the airport? He has an airplane hanger for the fancy cars, right? Should I give him a call?”
“Excellent plan, do that.”
Instead of a big talk with Lady Mairead, which was necessary but had to be put on hold, Magnus sat on the couch resting and eating ‘healthy’ snacks, while we spent the next three hours carting art through the sand. It had to be moved around the house out to the front driveway and loaded into the back of the rental trucks.
It took forever. Slogging through the sand was exhausting.
We slid the paintings in first, James and Fraoch carrying a Pollock into the truck, then Zach and Quentin carrying a Basquiat. I carried a Warhol and returned for a Picasso, passing Hayley who was carrying a Rothko. Lady Mairead trudged back and forth, her dress dragging in the sand, frantic and worried, second-guessing everything we did.
Beaty stood on the deck with the kids watching, while Archie and Ben buzzed around helping and then being bored.
The trucks were full. We would need to return again for two big sculptures, a bronze Rodin and a stone Michelangelo, but they were heavy, they would probably require a crane and they would be fine in the rain anyway, being made of metal and rock.
It was eerie seeing these important sculptures tilted, their bases half covered in sand out in our backyard. And one was a death trap, the Rodin was leaning precariously, so Magnus followed me down to the sand and we pushed and kicked it over onto its side.
Lady Mairead watching from the deck, completely ignoring Magnus’s part in it, said, “Daena hurt it, Kaitlyn, tis a great deal more important than ye are!”
Under my breath I said, “Said the grandmother to the mother of the prince and princess. Delusional much?”
Magnus chuckled. “Och, she is in rare form this day, but she is about tae hae a turn of events.” He stalked up to speak tae her, with me following.
Forty-nine - Kaitlyn
Everyone gathered in the living room. Lady Mairead, still wearing the long dramatic evening gown, asked, “Can it wait, Magnus? I need tae get some rest and decide where I am tae store the artworks and—”
“Our kingdom has war rainin’ down on it, a war ye hae wrought, our discussion canna wait!”
She said, “Och,” then, “Must I sit on the couch?” Magnus didn’t answer, so she sat primly on one end. The hem of her dress was covered in sand spurs.
Magnus sat down in the chair opposite and looked down at his hands. “I feel as if we are verra often in this position, ye will do somethin’ for which I hae tae address m’concerns. We sit across from each other. Ye will insult m’wife. Ye will evade direct questions. Ye will prevaricate when ye are needed tae do things tae assuage my concerns. I wish for that tae end…”
“Of course.” She glanced around at all of us. “Are these people necessary tae the conversation though? Tis between the king and his regent, am I tae confer in public?”
“Aye, they are necessary. I will nae ask them tae leave. I am nae tryin’ tae shame ye, but m’family deserves a true accounting of the danger we are in.”
Zach said, “Hearing you say it, I can’t fucking believe it — more danger than before? I didn’t think it could get more than before.”
“Aye, tis much more than afore.”
She sighed. “Don’t be overdramatic.”
Magnus’s eyes glinted and his brow raised, but he leveled his gaze and watched her.