“As far as suspicion goes, I can always say I caught a ride part way to town with a miner or a mail coach and walked the rest of the way. That would explain my sudden appearance. Wasn’t there a respectable boarding house or a hotel in Garretsville in your era? I’m going to have to stay somewhere.”
She cast him a wry look. “Besides, why would you be more likely than anyone else to offer protection to a total stranger?” She lifted her device and began turning in a circle again.
“I’m a decent man who was raised right; that’s why. As you well know, not all those in Garretsville can say the same, and that includes Joe Biggs, the assayer. I don’t want him or the gang of three to have any knowledge of your presence in Garretsville.”
He placed his own hands on his hips and mimicked her tone, “Besides, don’t forget Alpin’s planted suggestion. You won’t be a total stranger to me. Charles and I will claim you’re his American cousin, and you’ll stay with us. I’ll include that in the letter.”
He scowled, but it did no good, because she kept her eyes on the wee box in her hands. “What is it you’re doing with that thing?” he asked.
“I’m taking a video of this spot. The next time we hike here, I’ll take pictures of landmarks along the way. I’ll bring my phone with me to the past, and I can use what I’ve recorded to help guide me.”
“Nothing you just said makes a bit of sense.”
“Here.” She held the device out to him. “See for yourself.”
“Nay.” He stared pointedly toward the horizon, away from her device. Seeing his campsite through her eyes—finding his dwelling place and everything familiar to him long gone—did not appeal to him in the least. If he’d had a gut, it would’ve crimped at the thought.
“Then you must trust that I know what I’m doing.”
“Meredith, I … Promise me you’ll find a way to arrive right here.” He pointed to the ground between them. “I cannot bear the thought that some harm might befall you.”
Her brow creased, and she studied him. “I’ll try, but I’m sure you realize why I can’t make that promise. Maybe while you write your letter, there might be a way for you to share images of your camp with me. That would help.”
“Perhaps.” He continued to glower. “Speaking of the letter, we should return to town.”
“You’re upset.”
“I am, and that’s a fact.”
“What exactly is upsetting you?” she asked, her expression turning to concern.
“First, I hadn’t considered the danger you’d be in when you leave your time and come to mine. It’s not about miscalculating the time and place either. It’s about being a woman alone in a relatively uncivilized mining town where you know no one. There are as many unscrupulous individuals in Garretsville as there are decent folk.”
He surveyed the camp that was as familiar to him as his own ghostly form. “Second, I had no idea that what I see here … “ His jaw clenched for a moment, and his throat tightened, or at least he experienced an impression of those physical sensations. The longer he knew Meredith, the harder it was to remember he was naught but a wraith. “The school, the assayer’s office, Keoghan’s … they still exist, aye? But now you tell me my camp does not. It’s a blow, yet another loss, and it will take time for me to adjust.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you.”
“You didn’t. The three men who stole everything from me are to blame.” He heaved a ghostly sigh. “Come, let us see about writing the letter, and I’ll share my memories with you if I’m able. If not, we’ll visit the goldmine. That might have more distinctive characteristics for you to fix in your mind, and it’s only over that rise.” He jutted his chin toward the slight hill to the east.
“All right.” She glanced at him, her expression sympathetic. “I wish I could hold your hand, Daniel. I wish I could offer some kind of comfort.”
“Meredith MacCarthy, you’ve no idea what meeting you has meant to me, and it’s certain I don’t own the words to express adequately what I’m feeling.”
So overcome by his churning emotions he couldn’t stay still, Daniel began to pace. “After nearly two hundred years, I have hope that this nightmare will soon come to an end, but that’s not what moves me the most. When I’m with you, I feel … alive.”
He came to stand before her, his gaze roaming over her face, committing to memory every beloved detail. “Do you have any idea what it was like for me that one day you went away? Desolate, that’s what, and you were only gone for a handful of hours.”
The sharp intake of her breath went straight through him, and his phantom heart took flight. Her eyes darkened, and her lips parted slightly. The telltale rise in temperature, along with the heightened color once again filling her cheeks would have set his blood to boiling … if he’d had any. “Ah, Meredith, you’ve no idea what knowing you has been like for me. You cannot imagine how your very presence affects me.”
She bit her lip and studied the ground beneath her feet. “You’d be surprised,” she whispered.
At her comment, the hope that he’d soon hold her in his arms flared to life. She’d as much as admitted she had feelings for him as well. Meredith began to walk toward the path to Garretsville, and he joined her. They went along in silence for several moments as his mind spun one fantasy after another, all involving the two of them together.
They’d be good as a couple. He somehow sensed they’d always be able to lean on each other when times were tough. He knew in his very soul neither his trust nor hers would be misplaced where the other was concerned. Aye, and he wanted her with a fierceness he
