Page 60 of Fatal Thrill
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The insideof the castle was dark enough they needed flashlights to see as everyone piledinside.
But a stormy day in Ireland didn’t bother the Gypsies. They were prepared. Oil lamps were lit that gave off a faint odor and masked the decay and mold of the abandoned castle. A battery-operated hot plate appeared to boil water for tea and a fire was set in the fireplace. Apparently, they kept the flue cleaned out for visits such asthis.
Colton stayed in the tower, watching for Percy. Jon sent Shelby to look at Miles’ discovery, but Jaya could see he was torn between wanting to go himself and needing to stay with her to ensure hersafety.
She understood the feeling. While she itched to see what or who lay in that grave, she also needed to stay here and find out what she could about herfamily.
With the fire going and the water ready for tea, chairs and stools were placed near the fireplace. The old man introduced those in the group, starting with the children. Three boys and two girls aging from three to sixteen, all of which belonged to two couples who appeared to be in their thirties and forties. The old man accepted a cup of tea that the woman named Kelli handed him. Kelli—the one who sold the tinctures in town Charlotte had told herabout.
“I’m Claude.” He motioned to the old woman in the wheelchair. “This isNeptune.”
Neptune? Even with her tangle of scarves, layers of bracelets, and the tattoos on her wrists, she hardly looked like a new ager or hippie. “Who is your family?” she asked in her slow, accentedspeech.
Kelli handed Jaya a cup of the brewed tea and Jaya thanked her. Rose hips, lavender, and mint teased her nose. Jaya took a sip and let the warmth spread down her throat and into herchest.
She glanced at Jon, seated next to her and he nodded his encouragement. “I’m Jaya Hotti O’Sullivan,” she said. “My grandmother was a Barlow before she married Henry O’Sullivan. His family ran a distillery not far from here. My dad, Sean, was born there but the business went bankrupt around the time my dad was three and Grandpa moved the family to America. My parents met when they were both twelve on the reservation. Mom was Osage. Dad used to tell the story about her bringing him a blanket. His dad sold moonshine to the natives on the reservation and that winter, Grandpa decided Dad was old enough to help so he took him along. My dad had outgrown his winter coat and there was no money to buy a new one. He didn’t have gloves or a hat, and he was out on the open rez during freezing temps, while grandpa drank and partied it up with some of his customers. Mom brought him a blanket she’d made herself and wrapped it around his shoulders. They married the day she turned eighteen. She read palms and tarot cards, but she was most known for her natural remedies. She sold them locally until the FDA shut her down and she ended up with early-onset Alzheimer’s. My dad…well, he mostly did whatever he could get away with, continuing the family business of selling moonshine and chasing lost treasure. I have a brother, too, and Dad managed to lure him into hunting for the lost O’Sullivan cross. That’s why I’m here. My brother is in trouble because of my dad and that damn cross. I need help finding him—them.”
As she spoke, she noticed the changes on the faces around her. Not on Neptune’s, but on Claude, Kelli, and the other adults. Even the older kids shot glances at their parents as if they held asecret.
“Do you know something about my dad?” Or was it about the cross? Maybe they, like so many others in these parts, knew the story and curse that went with it that had been gossiped about forcenturies.
Neptune played with her stack of bracelets, sipped her tea, and stared at the fire. The flames leaped in the large stone fireplace as outside, rain continued to pour down. No one answered Jaya, all suddenly looking this way and that, avoiding hereyes.
Seriously?
She opened her mouth to start pushing them, when Jon touched her arm. “We’re not here to interfere with Sean’s plans,” he said, “or anyone else’s for that matter. All we want is to find Finn. Some bad people have kidnapped him and mean to do him harm. Even if you can just get a message to Sean and let him know, we’d appreciateit.”
Claude screwed up his mouth like he’d sucked on a lemon and shot a questioning glance at Neptune. The old woman continued to stare at the flames. She took a deep breath and finally shifted her attention toJaya.
“Keanna had a powerful personality.” She lifted a finger, crooked with arthritis. “’Tis where you get it as well, Isuspect.”
“Keanna? My grandmother? You knewher?”
The gnarled finger pointed at Neptune’s chest. “Modeirfiúr.”
“Sorry.” Jaya looked at Charlotte. “I don’tunderstand.”
Charlotte smiled. “Keanna is her sister. Neptune must be your greataunt.”
Yes! A bubble of laughter rose in her chest. “You’re myfamily?”
Kelli smiled. Neptune sipped her tea. “Always determined, Keanna was. Courageous. Stubborn. Proud. All the Barlowtraits.”
Claude harrumphed, crossing his arms over his big belly. “Until she met Henry. That man was a rightgobshite.”
“You knew mygrandfather?”
Claude’s head bobbed reluctantly. “He changed her. Tempted her away from Neptune and thefamily.”
“You labeled her outcast,” Jaya said, suddenly feeling protective about her grandmother, even though Keanna had died long before Jaya was born. “Because she fell in love and wanted a life outside the Gypsyway.”
“Our parents…they depended on her,” Neptune said. Her eyes were glassy as they stared once more at the fire, as though she were seeing into the past. “I depended on her. Abandoned us, shedid.”
Kelli stepped forward, refreshing Neptune’s tea. “From what I understand, Keanna tended to resent authority and was…how should I put it?Impatient?”
“About what?” Jonasked.
