Page 249 of The Defiant Curse

Elizabeth shook her head.

“I’m closer to going back than I was yesterday, and I’m hoping the next few weeks here, taking some needed time off will solve that issue for me.”

Gabby hoped her friend found peace. If there was a good place to do it, this was it.

“Well, I hope you are feeling better. You look better than you did yesterday.”

Honestly, Elizabeth actually did feel a great deal better. It was amazing what time, food, and sex could do to a person’s peace of mind. This place had helped her, and she’d never forget that.

“Yes, I am. I’ll admit something, and if you ever repeat it, I’m punching you, but I like it here. I see why you moved here to be with Finn. It’s a good place. I could live out my time here. There’s something in the air that makes it…cathartic. Maybe it’s Graham’s and Finn’s accents.”

Maybe.

Truthfully, Gabby happened to agree.

“When I came here, my heart healed. I hope yours does too. I’m sorry that your parents were dug up. That’s horrible, and while you pretend it didn’t hurt, I know it had to. There’s no way knowing you the way I do, that it didn’t hit that soft spot. If anything, Elizabeth, you have one.”

Oh, she did, and since Gabby nailed it, she didn’t lie.

“It wasn’t pleasant, but I suspected it from the start. The killer wasn’t that smart. He just had time to plan. Anyone can stay ahead of a chase if they have a head start.”

That was the truth.

As someone who also worked for the FBI, she had to agree with that.

“About the money,” Gabby began.

Elizabeth stopped her.

“Nope. I offered that money up to anyone who could help me find him. You did. That is not up for discussion. We have a better chance of talking about my sex life than me taking that money back.”

Gabby still felt bad.

“It’s kinda my job.”

Elizabeth wasn’t having it.

“You earned it. Buy a bigger house. Or if the money is the issue, and I say that, knowing how difficult it was to have money given to you, I can take it back and buy you a house with it instead. Either way, you’re getting something for the work you did. You found him for me, and that saved my children’s lives, along with the men’s and mine. Hey! I know. Do you like a castle?” she asked.

Gabby laughed.

“Uh, no. I’m good. On second thought, that would make Finn absolutely insane,” she joked.

Yeah, well, Elizabeth figured as much. God knew it made her batty when she first found out. Now, both she and Ethan had fallen in love with the place.

Callen and Chris had nailed this one. Elizabeth owed them an apology.

Period.

“I know how you think, Elizabeth. You’ve got something on your mind. Is it about this mystery?”

She nodded.

“Yes, actually, it is,” she said, as the men kept digging. “Here’s what I think. She was pregnant when she came here,” she said. “I’m willing to bet that Cathal was her lover, her betrothed, or whatever they called it back then. He gave her the heart necklace as a way to remember him.”

Gabby listened.

“So, when she showed up, she was with child, and her father didn’t know about it—or he did, and he didn’t care. He thought he could pass it off as Duncan’s. He likely didn’t know the man was gay at the time—and that might have been revealed later.”