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

“Oh, well…that’s probably better than illegally sprinkling ashes in the deceased’s favorite park or lake or ocean or someplace else. But the flags are beautiful,” Ensley said. “I wonder if anyone can hang them?”

“In Bhutan, people are allowed to hang prayer flags anywhere they like. And this is a place where they believe their prayers are most likely to be answered.”

The wind lifted Ensley’s hair, blowing it forward and covering her face. She smoothed it back into a low ponytail, twisted it, tucked the tail into the twist, creating a bun to hold her hair back.

“At least there’s a breeze. I guess it carries the prayers on the wind.”

“I wish the wind would blow us up to the top,” Elliott said.

Ensley smiled. “Is that humor I hear in your voice?”

“I still have some left.” They stood at the bottom of the steps. Talk about being intimidated by a bunch of rocks. He offered her his elbow. “Ready?” The numbness was worse now, but as annoying as it was, it wasn’t sharp pain like Ensley was experiencing. For her, each step came with a grunt or a hiss.

One last, brutal flight of steep steps hewn out of rock delivered them to the monastery, which was blanketed in low-hanging clouds, adding an aura of heaven to the place.

James Cullen and Paul were waiting at the entrance, drinking water with Meredith, Charlotte, and Austin. Austin leaned down and whispered something to Ensley, and she nodded, and then he looked at Elliott. Elliott assumed he was silently asking if he was okay, and Elliott somehow managed to muster a grin.

“Are you coming in for a tour?” James Cullen asked.

“Of course,” Meredith said.

Elliott glanced at Ensley, and she shook her head. “Ensley wants to rest, so I’ll stay with her.”

“I can stay,” Austin said.

“No, lad. Ye go with Meredith and Charlotte and take yer time.”

“Then, this is goodbye.” James Cullen kissed Elliott’s cheek.

Elliott wanted to hug him but knew he couldn’t, so he let his arms hang loosely at his side, crushing his soul that he couldn’t do what his heart demanded of him. He couldn’t feel his son’s bones and muscles and sinew. He could only feel his son’s pain sparking off him, pinging Elliott’s heart.

“If ye need anything, lad, send word, and I’ll see that ye get it.”

“Thanks, Dad. And thanks for making it up here. I know it was difficult.”

“I’d come up here every day if it would help ye.”

“I’m sorry for not coming to you when I discovered Ensley had disappeared.”

Elliott bit back tears. “If anyone should apologize, it’s me. I should never have given ye the impression that ye couldn’t talk to me about anything. I mean anything. I’m so proud of ye.”

“I was going to ask Mom, but there is one thing you can do for me. I have a Power of Attorney granting Kevin the authority to manage my estate.”

“I can do it for ye.”

“I know you can, and I don’t want to argue about it, but Kevin isn’t as conservative as you are with your investments. He’ll manage my portfolio more to my liking.”

“Ye’re right. He’s a good choice.” For a moment, James Cullen sounded almost like his old self, but his jittery hands and feet and the vacant look in his eyes told Elliott the truth. “Where’s the document?”

“In my desk drawer. I also want Kevin to call Becky in my office to be sure she has everything she needs to manage the business. Paul and I both left letters of resignation from the CIA on the bedroom desk on the plane. Give those to Kevin, too, and he can forward them to the appropriate people.”

That did it for Elliott, and a tear slid down his cheek. “Consider it done.”

James Cullen glanced away for a minute, then looked back again. “Then that’s it.”

Elliott cupped his son’s face and kissed his cheek. “I love ye, lad.”

“I love you, Dad.”

The lump in Elliott’s throat nearly cut off his air as James Cullen turned and walked away with Paul, but then he stopped and looked back at Ensley for a moment. Neither one of them said anything, and then James Cullen and Paul disappeared behind the gate.

Elliott’s heart was cracking, but for his son’s sake, and Meredith’s too, he found the composure to survive the moment without breaking down. Elliott reached for Meredith and pulled her into his arms.

“Take yer time,” he said.

Meredith kissed him. “We’ll be back in about an hour.”

Ensley and Elliott sat on a rock bench near the gate. He was so exhausted and emotional that he just buried his face in his hands.

Ensley put her arm around his shoulders. “JC is anxious about his future, but part of that anxiety is worrying about you. I assured him that I would have your back, so you better behave yourself.”

He looked up at her. “I didn’t see ye talking to him.”

“That’s because…” She shrugged. “Well… This sounds weird, but JC and I can communicate telepathically.”

“Ye can? He never mentioned it.”

“I think we always knew it, but it wasn’t until we were in the Badlands that it became more pronounced. It only works if we’re near each other. I mean, by now, he’s too far away.”

“Does he believe he’ll recover?”

“He doesn’t know what’s wrong with him. He knows something deadly happened that he can’t remember, and, honestly, he doesn’t want to. I just hope he can find his way back through prayer and meditation.”

Elliott straightened, put his arm around Ensley, and hugged her. “Erik must have had this all planned years ago. He knew I would lose my son for a while and brought me a daughter to fill the emptiness.”

She chuckled. “I don’t think you got the best end of the deal. I can be rather stubborn.”

He kissed her forehead. “I’m okay with that, lass. It means ye can get yerself up, dust yerself off, and keep moving forward. That’s all I can ask of my children.”

71

Mallory Plantation, VA—Ensley

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