“You’re the relic hunter. I’m just a bodyguard.”
“You’re more than that, and you know it. You’ve hunted plenty of treasure yourself. Where is he?”
“Probably avoiding us,” Jake said. “He doesn’t trust himself around you.”
“You don’t know that for sure.”
“I know that’s how I’d feel if I thought I had a monster trapped inside me and I’d accidentally knocked you down.”
“It wasn’t his fault. It was the ghosts playing tricks.”
“As you keep reminding me. But if he had changed into whatever he changes into, he could have killed us both.”
They found Nathan spying on a house near the entrance to the well. He was soaking wet, hiding in some trees. Kendall never would have spotted him, but Jake did.
“Decide to take a swim?” Jake asked.
Nathan turned around. He was shivering. “Why not?”
“You’re turning blue. You’re going to get sick,” Kendall said.
“Here you go, billionaire boy. How about some warm clothes? And I have power bars.” Jake tossed Nathan a set of sweats. “Money isn’t everything.”
Nathan took the sweats. “Thanks.”
“Sorry, I couldn’t find underwear.”
Nathan went to the restroom to change.
“Now you’re staring at the house,” Jake said. “What do you see?”
“I don’t know. There’s something intriguing about it.”
“You think it’s something inside, or someone?”
“I don’t know. There’s some kind of energy there.”
Nathan exited the restroom wearing his sweats. Kendall purposely didn’t look to see if he was wearing underwear. “I think that’s our ride,” Nathan said, pointing to a shuttle van waiting on the street.
“No limo?” Jake asked.
“Too noticeable,” Nathan said. “I’ll make sure it’s ours.” He jogged across the street to the waiting van. After a conversation with the driver, Nathan motioned to Kendall and Jake to follow. Nathan opened the door for Kendall. “I told Fergus to send something that wouldn’t draw attention. I don’t want anyone to know we’re here.”
“I agree,” Jake said. “I’m just surprised you thought of it.”
Kendall nodded to the driver and took the seat all the way in the back, leaving the men the middle row. Nathan got in next. His hair was still wet. The red-haired kid and his mom walked past as Jake got in. The kid looked over and made a pig face.
“I’m going to scare the shit out of that kid if he’s still here when we get back,” Jake said, getting in.
“Ignore him,” Kendall said. “All kids can be brats. I’m sure you were too. I bet you drove your mom crazy.”
He didn’t say anything.
“Where did you grow up?” Kendall asked.
“Here and there,” Jake said.
“Army brat?”
“Orphanage. Foster care.”
“Oh. I didn’t realize. What happened to your parents?”
“I don’t know.”
“You didn’t know them?”
“No.” His face was tight.
“But you have a grandmother,” Kendall said.
“She didn’t know about me until I was older.”
Kendall’s curiosity was ramped. How could his grandmother not know about him? But she saw the set of his jaw and knew he wouldn’t say more. Nathan was watching Jake with a thoughtful look on his face. Both Nathan and Jake had mysterious pasts. That was a bizarre coincidence. Both men had been there each time Marco mentioned Adam. Was it possible that Jake was the one Marco was referring to and not Nathan? She wouldn’t use her abilities to pry. Not yet. But she was determined to find out if one of them was Adam.
“What happened at the well?” she asked Nathan.
He shrugged. “Nothing. At least not yet. I don’t know what to expect.”
“If Kendall wasn’t here, I’d hit you and see if it worked,” Jake said.
“Jackass. Give me a power bar.”
Jake handed him a power bar and a bottle of water. “I borrowed them from the gift shop. We’ll have to reimburse them.” He glanced back at Kendall. “Are you cold? Your hair’s still wet.”
“I’m fine.”
“How’d your hair get wet?” Nathan asked.
Jake gave a short laugh. “You’re not the only one who went swimming. Kendall knocked both of us in the water.”
Nathan stopped eating. “You touched the water?” He angled his body toward her. “Did you sense anything?”
“It shocked me.”
“The water?”
She nodded. “There’s something powerful about the fountain, but I don’t know if it’s just because it’s so old or if there’s something else there.”
“There’s no way in hell the Fountain of Youth is going to be right out there in the open,” Jake said.
“He’s right,” Nathan said. “It doesn’t make sense.”
“Unless there’s another part to it,” Kendall said.
“What do you mean?” Nathan asked.
“Maybe you have to do something besides just drink from it.”
“Bloody hell, I dunked my whole body,” Nathan said, looking oddly vulnerable.
“I don’t know, but I need to go back and study the place,” Kendall said. “We only saw the fountain, not the actual well.”
“Take a towel next time,” Jake said.
Kendall thumped him on the head. “How’s Marco?”
“Fergus said he’s much better. They’re in Italy.”
“Marco is feeling well enough to travel?” Kendall asked.
Nathan nodded. “They wanted to come, but I said no. I don’t want them in danger.”
Jake pulled out the last two power bars and scowled.
“If you don’t like them, why didn’t you steal something else?” Kendall asked.
“They’re practical, nutritious, and easy to swipe.” He handed her one.
“No thanks. I’ll wait until we get to the hotel and have a filet mignon.” She leaned closer. “And maybe a cold beer or nice glass of wine.” She smiled sweetly when she heard his stomach growl and then leaned back in her seat. She turned to Nathan. “You look tired.”
“I am. The cave did something to me.”
“That goes for all of us,” Jake said. “I’d like to believe it was poor air quality, but I don’t think it was.”
“I think falling through the portal, or whatever that was, drained our energy.” And maybe she wasn’t the only one affected by that shadow she’d sensed. She would have to keep an eye on both of them.
“That cave isn’t normal. I don’t know how, but we lost a day in there,” Nathan said.
“Come again?” Jake said.
“It’s not Tuesday. It’s Wednesday,” Nathan said. “We lost time.”
After Kendall and Jake had absorbed the shock, Kendall told them what the woman in the shop had said about fairies stealing time.
“This whole place is strange,” Jake said. “Like the Protettori’s castle.”
“The castle and this place are obviously connected. Maybe the monks at Glastonbury Abbey weren’t really monks,” Kendall said.
CHAPTER TEN
FERGUS HAD MADE reservations for them at the nicest hotel in Glastonbury. Jake and Kendall were given adjoining rooms for security. Nathan’s room was on another floor.
The rooms were luxurious, but Kendall hardly paused to explore as she headed for the bedroom. She was going to take a bath as long and as hot as she could stand it. She thought about Nathan and Jake and the Fountain of Youth. She drifted off and woke up with her chin touching the water. She climbed out and dried off before putting on a plush robe and slippers provided by the hotel.