The Sunstone Brooch : Time Travel Romance Katherine Logan (no david read aloud TXT) 📖

“He didn’t want me there, but he did want information, so I told him about the cave Austin and JC found when they were teenagers.”

“Where is it?” David crossed his arms and stood with his feet slightly spread, his muscles bulging in his green MacCorp polo shirt. His dark brown eyes studied her intently, and for a split second, she wondered how Kenzie tamed a man like him.

“About a ten-minute walk from MacKlenna Farm.”

A look of surprise came over his face, changing quickly to a delighted smile. “I have a feeling this is a significant find. Go on.”

“They never told anyone.”

“That was a mistake.”

“In hindsight, Austin would agree with you. He took me there, and we explored a little bit, but we only had a penlight and couldn’t see much. But I found an Yggdrasil painted on the wall similar to JC’s birthmark and the sign Erik drew on my forehead. But what makes this find so significant is that we found Erik’s footprints coming and going from the cave to the cabin.”

“What cabin?” Kenzie asked.

“It’s several yards from the cave. All but the immediate area in front of the cabin is undeveloped and overgrown. Erik took JC to the cabin, and that’s where Elliott stayed with him. Austin said the cabin doesn’t exist in the twenty-first century.”

“I know the place,” David said. “The history of MacKlenna Farm mentions a fire burning down a cabin. Following the fire, the land surrounding it was allowed to return to its natural state, and every four or five years now, workers thin out the overgrowth. There’s a rumor that it’s haunted. Nobody wants the job, so the farm manager always gives it to the newest employees.”

“Haunted? Well, that’s one way to keep people away. If you give me flashlights and a camera, we’ll go back and take pictures.”

“I’ll do ye one better. I’ll go with ye,” David said. “This is too important not to go see it myself.”

“But you can see it without going back in time. I mean, JC and Austin found it about fifteen years ago. Surely it hasn’t changed much.”

“That’s probably true, but if Erik has been inside the cave, I want to see what he saw. We have all the equipment here that we’ll need to do a cave survey.”

“I missed all the fun when you guys found the cave with the Confederate treasure, so make room for me. I’m going, too,” Kenzie said.

“You think this cave has a treasure?” Ensley asked.

“We won’t know until we get in there and have a look around,” David said.

“Do you have a theory?” Ensley asked.

“Not yet. Do ye?”

“Well, since you asked… Austin and I think Erik used it to travel from the Badlands to Chicago to MacKlenna Farm and back to the Badlands.”

“But he had a brooch,” Kenzie said.

“We talked about that, too, but we decided they aren’t dependable enough. You can’t rely on a brooch to take you to an exact time. You could get within a few days or weeks, but when it’s imperative to move from one place to another in an hour or so and don’t have an airplane, you need another method.”

“Interesting theory, but I’m more inclined to believe Erik’s brooch has different properties that allow him to go anywhere at any time. But until we survey the cave, we won’t know if it has any significance,” David said.

Ensley looked at the clock on the wall, anxious to tell Austin what all had happened. “We should head back. The sooner we get started, the sooner we can put this adventure to bed.”

“I’ll pack up the equipment,” David said, heading toward the door. “Will ye find me something to wear?”

“Sure, babe,” Kenzie said.

When the door closed behind him, Kenzie said, “Quick. Tell me about you and Austin.”

“We just kissed and talked about going back to New York City when this is over. He said he could train in the city as easily as he can in Colorado.”

“I guess I’ll have to visit New York City for updates,” Kenzie said. “Come on. I’ve got to find something to wear.”

“I’ll check on Meredith and JC while you do that.”

Ensley returned to JC’s bedside to find Meredith holding his hand, tears streaming down her face. “He hasn’t moved. Not even an eyelash flutter.” Meredith snatched a tissue from the box and wiped her eyes.

Then as if summoned, JC slowly opened his eyes. “Hi, Mom. Hi, Ens. Where are we?”

“In the cleanroom at Mallory Plantation. How do you feel?” Meredith asked.

“Groggy. Where’s Dad?”

Meredith shot a glance at Ensley. “He just…stepped out. He’ll be back in a few minutes.”

“I hope he’s not too pissed.”

“Why would he be mad?” Meredith asked.

“Because I went back for Ensley without telling him.”

“Darling, don’t give it another thought.”

He yawned. “I won’t.” And then he fell asleep again.

Meredith sat there a minute or two with tears continuing to stream down her cheeks. “He doesn’t even remember fighting with Elliott.”

“That might be a good thing.”

Meredith threw the tissue in the trash and reached for another one. “Now that I’ve seen him, I can’t leave. Do you mind going back for the others?”

Ensley gasped. “Are you serious? You’d bail out on me and force me to face everyone else alone and confess what we did? No way. That’s not going to happen. And besides, we’ll only be gone for a few minutes. JC will still be asleep when we get back. And as Charlotte said, you need to have a conversation with Elliott before you can decide what to do about JC.”

Meredith lightly combed JC’s hair with her fingers. “You’re right, but we don’t have to go. Elliott has the other brooch.”

“I don’t care if he has a dozen. I don’t want the others to think we abandoned them. It might not matter to you, but it does to me. And David and Kenzie are coming with us.”

“He doesn’t trust us to travel alone.”

“I didn’t trust us traveling alone,” Ensley said, “but David and Kenzie want to visit the cave