Nina’s heart skipped a beat. “A scabbard? An Excalibur scabbard? Oh my God. This is why Brian was scared to death that his grandfather would find out he took it.” Her mouth remained agape as her reminiscence replayed the dialogue between her and the child, the refusal to let her take pictures… and the clearest of all the memories — the strange glow that flickered on the scabbard when she shoved it. “Oh my God,” she kept whispering as she accelerated down the highway to get to Purdue’s house. She had to know what he had learned about the object before she went off on a tangent, but Nina was pretty sure that she was onto something.
An hour and a half later Nina’s car pulled up to the front façade of the grand old mansion where Charles waited with an umbrella.
“Welcome, Dr. Gould,” he smiled dryly.
“Am I underdressed, Charles?” she asked.
“Absolutely not, Madam,” he answered. “The dress for this evening is smart casual and may I say, you do look rather smart.”
Nina smiled and gave the butler a quick curtsy. “Why, thank you, my good man.”
“Nina!” she heard Purdue cry from inside the manor. “Delighted you could make it, my dear.”
Charles shook his head as he walked Nina up the stairs to the door, holding the umbrella over her head. With an excellent poker face, she mumbled through static lips, “Charles, what is he up to? He is up to something.”
In the same fashion, the butler answered Nina by also employing some effective ventriloquism. “He bought an old table, Madam. Apparently you are supposed to be wild with envy.”
“Ah,” she said. “Alright. A table. I am turning green already.”
Charles tried not to laugh and ushered the beautiful historian into the lobby where Purdue waited with two strangers. Instantly, her eye fell on the blue-eyed man in black who stood beside Purdue. In turn, he engaged her as well.
“Nina, my dear! I am elated you are here,” Purdue smiled, embracing Nina and kissing her cheek. He whispered, “I have something that is going to blow you away.”
She scoffed and winked. “If I had a quid for every time you said that before.”
Purdue returned her jest with an uncomfortable snicker and promptly changed the subject. “Dr. Nina Gould, please meet the people who are responsible to decking out my new dining hall in splendor. Ava and Bernard Somerset.”
‘Great. Of course he would be married,’ she thought, feeling the loss of what could have been. The thirty-five-year-old dark haired man looked like James Bond, and Nina could not keep her eyes off him, but learning that he and the breathtaking woman had the same last name, she made the obvious assumption. Nina shook hands with them both. Bernard was equally taken with Nina, especially her small, but buff, body.
‘It is going to be exceedingly hard to hurt her,’ Bernard lamented. He finally got to meet the renowned historian mentioned by Purdue, the one who knows the whereabouts of the scabbard from the Hall Hoard — and he was spellbound. This presented a conflict inside him, but he was part of something bigger than his own desires, and had to curb his appetite for the black-eyed beauty for now.
A kiss to Nina’s slender hand had her body reacting in favorable ways, but fortunately, that was only evident by the flush in her face. “It is an honor to meet you, Dr. Gould.”
“Call c-ca… call me Nina, please,” she stammered. Purdue raised an eyebrow at the sight. He knew her intimately and he knew what the red glow in her cheeks meant. Normally he would be insanely jealous, but tonight the fetching Ava held his attention and diverted it from the advances Bernard was making toward his beloved Nina.
“I believe you have been in Glasgow the past week,” Bernard started, but Purdue stepped in and waved at him from behind Nina. He gestured to the table, reminding Bernard about the reason Purdue had invited her. “But you can tell me about that once we get you a glass of wine?”
“She drinks single malt, actually,” a man corrected Bernard from the doorway.
“Sam!” Nina smiled warmly, as the rugged, dark journalist entered the lobby as if he owned it. Ava stopped breathing for a moment. Sam and Bernard locked eyes — and horns — immediately, as Sam approached. He kissed Nina a sliver too long for it to be platonic, and then set eyes on the woman with the silvery tresses. Ava felt her knees buckle as the wild haired stranger came to meet her. “Sam Cleave,” he smiled, deliberately smoldering to ward off the idiot in the cheap black jacket.
Suddenly, Purdue cleared his throat. He felt somewhat intimidated by all the competition here in his palace of grandeur. “Great to see you again, old boy,” he smiled at Sam as the two men greeted. This time, Purdue’s whisper was for Sam. “Dibs on Ava. Do not make me regret that I invited you,” he warned, nudging Sam playfully.
“Fair game,” Sam teased him. “What is it you wanted to show Nina to provoke her jealousy, then?” Sam asked loudly on purpose.
“Oh, Jesus, yes, let us just get to it already,” Nina groaned, while the others grinned at her. Purdue took her hand and led her to the renovated dining hall. The wall torches were lit and lent the perfect atmosphere to the medieval décor. Sam stepped aside for Ava and Bernard to follow Nina and Purdue. His deed was mistaken for chivalry, while all he wanted to do was to admire Ava’s distinct shape from behind. Nina gasped as she walked into the large room, and, as Purdue had anticipated, she went straight to the grand round table.
“Holy shit! This is at least two centuries old,” she marveled. Nina slowly rounded the table entirely. Like a blind woman reading Braille, she was running her fingers over the etchings and crude filing of the wood as if she was reading it, as if the table told her secrets. No words came from her lips as she went all the way around, but her eyes told deep tales as she savored the table. “My God, Purdue, it is simply beautiful.”
“Thank you, my dear,” he smiled happily.
She swayed her head to the side and said, “You can have it delivered by Monday. I shall be home.”
“Ha!” he uttered in surprise, while his guests chuckled at her response. “The only way you will get this table in your home is if you marry me and move in.”
She stared at Purdue. Ava stared at Purdue. Sam stared at Purdue. The host felt terribly awkward about his dead serious desire masquerading as a joke. Bernard did not like it one bit. If he was going to deliver this woman to Major Rian, he was certainly going to have her to himself first. He would not be challenged by Purdue or his financial thrall. Nina was his, until she would meet her fate.
20
Getting Acquainted
Throughout the front of the mansion, merriment prevailed as the group sat down around the enormous old table for a five course dinner and drinks. Lillian had prepared an Eastern menu, predominantly, that filled the house with a wonderful odor. Around Purdue’s Round Table, the conversations jumped around world affairs, football, weather and fashion, until Nina grew impatient with waiting.
During one of the especially long pauses in banter, she took her chance to bring up the subject of history. Not her brand of history, but historical artifacts. After all, she was in the company of experts.
“By the way, Purdue, did you have a look at the photo’s I sent you?” she asked nonchalantly, taking a sip of her whiskey. Purdue was seated right beside her, so she could have intended to ask him solely, but the others heard her question. Purdue’s face lit up, having forgotten about the images he had meant to ask Ava and Bernard about.
“Oh, my!” he chuckled. “Forgive me. I was meaning to delve a bit deeper into that and it completely slipped my mind.” He looked at Ava, sitting on his other arm. “Could you or your brother please enlighten us about the sheath I showed you?”