“A well.”
Quinn smiled. “It is and it isn’t. It is a portal.”
“A portal?”
“There are many dotted across the Highlands. Places where the gap between times grows thin. Do you understand?”
“Not really.”
“Do you know why you came to the castle?”
“We were hungry.”
“No, it was more than that. You were meant to come. It was the first step toward something much bigger than you know. One day you’ll understand. One day you’ll meet someone who will retrieve the stone and save the clan. When they appear, you must do something for me Tavish. Can you swear you will do me one thing?”
“What is it?”
“It is vitally important she thinks it’s her decision.”
“Who? What are ye talking about?”
“Just promise me.”
“Ah promise.”
He wished he could remember what else Quinn had told him after that. He could only hope it came back to him when they made it to the island. Something important, something he’d long forgotten in the lonely years of exile.
“Clan Sinclair has a stone sacred to us all. The seat of the laird. The MacIntyres stole it a generation ago. At my trial they told me if I brought the stone back, I would prove my innocence.”
“So why not go get the stone?”
“Because the MacIntyres would recognize me from a mile off and I’d be dead before I even caught a glimpse of it. MacIntyre Castle is the best defended in the Highlands. Surrounded by mountains and with only one way in or out. It would need a stranger to get in there and retrieve it.”
“So. Don’t you want to try?”
“They know what ah look like. I wouldnae stand a chance.”
She stood up, an odd smile on her face as she rubbed the back of her neck. “They know what you look like but they don’t know what I look like.”
He didn’t let it show on his face but he was pleased. It had worked. Best of all, she’d thought it was her idea. He might be able to go back to the clan with a clean record at last, put all this behind him.
