Page 51 of Only a Breath Away

“Ye wouldna dare!”

“Try me. Ye arna takin’ the Bridge anywhere. Tis mine.”

Colonel Quentin stood by the door. Fraoch had risen tae his feet.

I said, “The Bridge opens tae my hand and tae Fraoch’s. Fraoch do ye give Lady Mairead permission tae take the Bridge?”

“Nae. She canna take it.” He leaned forward and closed the lid, the lock clicked intae place.

I asked, “Fraoch, do ye demand, as I do, that Lady Mairead reveals tae us what she kens about the Bridge?”

Lady Mairead narrowed her eyes, looking unafraid. “Ye wouldna dare. I keneverything. What ye ken, is one page. The book is mine, but even if ye steal it, ye will never know all I understand.”

I said, keepin’ the sword point still and true. “I hae been losin’ my grip on reality for a long time. There are memories comin’ that arna real. There is a history that I daena remember, and though we hae tried, we are unraveling our pasts. There are madmen loose in time and ye are primly sittin’ in our safe house as if ye daena hae a care in the world. Ye hae come from a party in Paris. Ye are in possession of instructions that ye are keepin’ from me and — ye are so sure of yerself. I am pushed tae the edge, I am pushed past m’edge. Kaitlyn is stuck in a long ago century. What are ye going tae do, test me? Ye are going tae see if I would prefer tae trust ye or live my life free of ye?”

She said, “This is all verra unnecessary, Magnus, ye daena need tae hold me at knife point.”

“I am nae holding ye at knifepoint, I am frozen in the verra second afore I run ye through with a sword. One moment. In that moment of action, will ye decide tae be helpful? Tae save yerself?”

My sword was still, unwavering. I was intense. I said, “I am keepin’ the Bridge, ye must instruct us tae use it tae rescue Kaitlyn.”

“Twould be much easier if I just did it m’self.”

“I am not going tae let ye take this machine away. Either ye tell us what it does, or ye will hae tae move aside, easiest for me will be for ye tae help us. I tell ye, I am in nae mood. Ye took the last frosty mug, I would hate for our descendants tae believe ye died for such a ridiculous reason.”

“Wouldna our descendants find fault with ye for killing yer own mother over a frosted mug? I daena think yer reputation would come out verra well from matricide.”

“I would be alive tae tell the story. How dost ye want it tae go?”

She raised her chin and looked down her nose. “I would prefer a story in which ye told all that yer mother was helpful tae ye in yer hold on power.”

“Exactly. My hold on power requires that I bring the timeline back in order. Right now. I canna take one more moment of uncertainty and Kaitlyn will nae survive much longer. She is m’focus right now. Ye are either a help tae me or ye are dead.”

“I daena see ye demanding all the other people in the room tae help or die.”

“I daena need tae threaten them tae be helpful. Ye are the only one who has proven that ye will only cooperate under threat of death. Ye want the machine so badly that ye are willin’ tae lie and cheat tae gain it. This is somethin’ ye might want tae work on with a… Madame Emma, what is the word?”

Emma had her eyes covered, she pulled them away from her face tae say, “A therapist?”

“Och aye, a therapist.”

Lady Mairead scoffed. “I daena need a therapist, I need a son who foroncewould stand down his brute force and show his mother some respect.”

With m’arm absolutely still I slowly shook m’head.

Lady Mairead huffed. “Fine, I will tell you all I know.”

I said, “Good, this is how twill go, I will lower m’weapon. In return ye will tell me all ye ken, and ye will conspire with us tae rescue Kaitlyn and fix this timeline. After, I will allow ye tae return tae yer parties and we winna speak of this again. Twill be nothing we remember. And when ye die a decrepit auld woman with a long line of descendants, I will tell them that ye were a wonderful mother and always a help tae her son and daughter-in-law.”

“I accept, though I find it verra rich that ye believe I will die first, ye canna truly believe it!”

I shrugged. “I am the one with m’blade pointed at yer chest, at this moment I think tis likely.”

She said, “Put it down, I agree tae the terms, I will share what I ken and ye will be less of an uncivilized brute who is driven tae threatening me over a frosted mug.”

I lowered m’sword. “Twas a verra braw looking mug.”

Chef Zach groaned. “I will fix this, more mugs are going into the freezer right now.” He strode intae the kitchen and we soon heard the sound of glassware, and the door to the freezer opening.

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