“Add a few personal things only you and Charles would know,” Meredith suggested. “Those might be needed at this point in your letter. Not only for you, but for Charles.”
“Hmm. Good point.” He set aside the two pages he’d already filled and placed another sheet of vellum in front of him.
Meredith is a wise woman indeed, for she has suggested I add a few details from my life that only I would know in order to prove the veracity of this missive. I shall begin with an incident involving Charles, who will surely read this letter as well.
Charles, do you remember the time we stole that blackberry pie from Mrs. Delaney’s windowsill where it cooled? We were nine years old as I recall, and you stood upon my shoulders to reach the window. It was our reddish-purple lips and tongues that gave us away. Our parents sentenced us to a fortnight of backbreaking labor cutting peat for the elderly couple. To this day I still believe that pie was worth it. I’ve a love for sweets, and that’s a fact.
Meredith’s heart melted at the images passing through her mind of the two young boys with pie-stained faces, staring at their feet as their fathers lectured them about the consequences of stealing. Daniel had been adorable as a boy, and now she could see that his hair was a riot of reddish-gold ringlets.
Daniel paused again, seeming to ponder what to share next, and thinking about his home and family.
My favorite meal has always been my mam’s lamb pie, with its thick crust and delicious brown gravy. She always made that and a cake on my birthday. Each of us enjoyed our favorite meal and a cake on our birthdays, and luckily, her lamb pie was also my da’s favorite.
His nostalgia and deep love for his family coursed through her, and she saw each of his family members in her mind. He’d gotten his curls from his mother, who was a beautiful woman.
“You must swear not to reveal to anyone what I’m about to write, Meredith MacCarthy. Do you agree?”
“I agree.”
“Good.”
Until I turned twelve, I was afraid of the dark and believed there were creatures lurking beneath my bed, waiting for the chance to carry me off. Having to visit the privy in the dark was my worst nightmare, so I would not drink anything after teatime.
“That’s your big secret?” Meredith laughed. “For someone like me who actually sees the creatures hiding in closets and beneath beds, I can assure you, your fears were not unfounded.
“Aye?” He shuddered. “I would rather you hadn’t told me that. On to more mundane personal information,” he said before returning to the letter.
Also, I prefer to sleep on my left side, and I love the feel of cotton flannel against my skin. I prefer cotton flannel to linen or wool.
Meredith took in these additional personal tidbits, holding them close to her heart where she’d treasure them forever.
Nobody knows this next bit, not even my mam. When something was about to happen to someone I cared about, I’d get a strange feeling—a premonition I guess. I suspect I inherited a bit of the sight from my granny.
I’ve never told anyone until this moment, because I never knew from the feeling what would happen, only that something would. I had a premonition before my family fell ill. Knowing something bad was coming, knowing there was nothing I could do to stop it, was the worst thing I ever experienced.
I also had a premonition before Charles and I were robbed and murdered, but how was I to know exactly what was to befall us, when, or even where? It would’ve been better if I’d never possessed any kind of foresight. The subsequent feelings of helplessness, grief and frustration were unbearable.
“I’m sorry you went through that, Daniel. I also get those vague premonitions regarding people I care about,” Meredith told him.
“Aye? Well that’s something we have in common, and I swear to keep all your secrets if you’ll keep mine.”
“I swear.”
“This next bit is for Charles. Believe me when I tell you it is he who will need convincing the most,” he said before continuing. “He was born suspicious of the world and people around him, but he’s a good man. I trust him with my life.”
Charles, you and I have been best friends since we were both wee lads. Our parents were also good friends, and our families often spent time together. We lived in the same parish and attended the same school. Our friendship almost ended the year we both turned fourteen, and we fancied the same lassie. Remember Katherine Rose? Thank goodness she didn’t fancy either of us back, aye?
A few more paragraphs, and he ended the letter, exhorting himself to take the warning to heart, and to do what was needed to bring the felons to justice.
“Do you wish me to try and share memories of our mining camp, love?”
“Not necessary. As you wrote about the day you were murdered, I saw your cabin and the shed. Anyway, I’ve come up with a plan that I believe will be fail-safe.”
“Did you now?”
She nodded. “Tomorrow evening, after my shift, I’ll meet you at your camp. I’ll use one of the diamonds and concentrate on the very spot where I’m standing at that moment. If all goes well, that very spot is where I’ll step into your life.”
“Tomorrow evening you say?”
“Yes.”
“That’s grand, love. I cannot wait to meet you.”
“Daniel?”
“Aye?”
“We’re done with the letter.”
“That we are, and a fine letter it is, written in my very own hand and all.”
Several seconds went by as she waited for him to think himself out of her. He didn’t. “Daniel …”
“I know, I know. It’s just that it’s such a wondrous feeling being with you like this.”
“Out.”
“Fine.”
He left her, and she shook her arms
