Page 6 of A Matter of Time
“And if we can’t?” The man merged his car onto the freeway, heading back towards the city.
“You’ll have to get rid of him.”
“Explainto me what you’re doing with that,” Richard said, pointing to the cell phone.
“It’s called ‘texting’. I’m sending and receiving messages from Angelina. With this phone, I not only can keep in touch with everyone I know, but I can access any information I might need. The answer to any question ye could think of, is right here in this phone.” Nick handed the phone to Richard so he could examined it more closely.
“I find that hard to believe.” Richard was turning the phone every which way. “How can something so small contain the answers to every question? It seems impossible.”
“Here, I’ll show ye.” Nick took the phone back and said, “Ye’ll enjoy this, Richard.” He pressed the button on the front of the phone and said, “Medieval martial arts.” A woman’s voice came from the phone and responded, “This is what I found on the web for medieval martial arts.”
“Who is that?” Richard was astounded. The shocked expression on his face must have been amusing to Nick, because he burst into laughter.
“Here, see what she found for me.” Nick handed the phone back to Richard who nodded seriously as he examined the phone.
“Will she answer any question?” he asked.
“Most of them. What will the weather be like tomorrow?” Nick asked as he retrieved the phone from Richard once again.
“The weather in San Francisco will be sunny, but cool, with temperatures in the high fifties.”
Richard couldn’t believe that the phone could talk. “What magic is this?”
“Nae magic. Modern technology,” Nick said.
“Modern what?” Richard was becoming more and more baffled with each passing moment.
“I’ll tell ye more about it tomorrow, Richard. Let me show ye to yer room.” Nick threw an arm over Richard’s shoulder, “I’m happy to see ye once again, my friend.”
“As am I,” Richard responded. He wondered how he was going to survive in this world he found himself in. There was much to learn and he’d better get used to it, because going back didn’t seem as if it were a possibility at this moment in time.
Chapter 4
Richard woketo the sound of clattering and banging coming from the other room. He stretched and yawned and for a brief moment forgot where he was. He sat up and much to his dismay, found he was still in San Francisco. Not a thing had changed during the night, although he’d hoped it would. Throwing the covers off, Richard stood to his full height and took a good look at his surroundings. The bedroom he’d spent the night in was beautifully furnished in a fashion he was unfamiliar with. There was a large, comfortable bed, covered with many different fabric types, end tables with electric lamps, and a dresser for clothing. He explored the one door he hadn’t opened last night and found it was a small room, filled with clothes and shoes. He walked inside and stared in disbelief at the huge amount of clothing the room contained.
“Richard,” Nick called from the doorway.
“Here,” Richard answered as he peeked out from the closet. “Who do all these clothes belong to?”
“The young man who had been living here. The one who went off to Scotland. I believe his name was Dylan,” Nick said thoughtfully. “If anything in there fits you, feel free to use it. It appears Dylan was about the same size as the two of us, so I’ve made use of this closet myself.”
“Hmmm…” Richard wondered if this Dylan was the same one as Maggie MacKinnon’s man. “Do you know anything about this Dylan?”
“Nae. He was gone when I arrived. Although I believe Angelina has a photo of him on her phone. Why do ye ask?” Nick was leaning against the doorjamb, dressed and ready for the day in modern garb similar to what he’d worn yesterday.
“I think I may know him. He was with me just before I was sent to this time.”
“’Tis possible, I suppose,” Nick said. “Why don’t ye get cleaned up… and put some clothes on for pity’s sake. My eyes are painin’ me.”
Richard was not at all embarrassed. He walked around in the nude in front of his men all the time and they did the same. “Perhaps that’s because you’ve never seen such a fine figure of a man before.”
“On the contrary, I have. Every time I look at meself in the mirror.” Nick laughed heartily at his own joke. “Are ye hungry? I’ll be making some breakfast if ye’d care to join me.”
“I would. Let me get dressed and I’ll be right there.”
Nick left the room and Richard rummaged through the clothes in the closet. He didn’t want to create a stir walking around in his own garb. Angelina had been intrigued by it, but obviously people of this time did not dress in that manner. He found a pair of blue pants similar to the ones Nick wore, and a white shirt. He tried them on and despite the fact that they were snugger than he was comfortable with, he was pleased that they seemed to fit. When he’d travelled to the future in Glendaloch, he had continued to wear his own clothing and no one seemed the least bothered by it, but he somehow knew it would be different here. Next he looked for shoes. He wasn’t sure he’d be successful, but upon trying on a pair of fine leather boots, he was happy to note that they fit quite comfortably. He took a quick look at himself in the mirrored doors, admiring himself, pleased with what he saw.
Entering the kitchen, Nick whistled at him and nodded his approval. “No one would ever know you weren’t from this time. You’ll fit right in.”
