But this was entirely different. This changed everything. The pain and confusion was etched in his eyes. Both of them knew this wasn’t her fault. This was something that neither of them had control over. Or did they?
Could she have done something to prevent this happening? Could she have done something to allow them to cling onto the hope of developing a relationship together?
She was so confused right now.
Panic started to grip her. She’d written that name on the card without a second thought. Her reactions had been automatic. She should have guessed wrongly. But it hadn’t even occurred to her at the time.
Pain started to spread across her chest. She was starting to feel woozy. The room was closing in around her. She couldn’t bear the look on Callan’s face. The look that said everything had just changed. His pain was too much for her to bear. And the ramifications made her feel as if everything was out of her control.
Her feet started to move. She started to push her way through the bodies. She had to get outside. She had to get some air.
Marion reached out to her on the way past but she didn’t even slow her steps. She couldn’t.
She pulled the main door open. The wind and rain howled around her but she didn’t even care. She just walked. And kept on walking.
Her shirt was soaked in seconds, her hair whipping around her face. But all she could think about was the air. It was what she needed.
Her legs carried her around to the front of the castle—the most exposed edge facing the sea. She leaned against the wall and tried to take some deep breaths.
The wind was working against her—almost sucking the air from her lungs as she tried to pull it in. She bent over, arms around her waist and counted to ten. One, two, three...
She lifted her head again. This time she felt the cold coursing through her. This time she looked at the castle she could inherit.
Tears started to pour down her cheeks. This was hers. This could be hers.
It was almost unbelievable. To go from a girl with only one known living relative, to a girl with a huge array of aunts, uncles and cousins, and the inheritor of a castle all in the space of a few weeks.
The castle loomed in front of her. Dominant. Intimidating. A whole world of problems.
But she didn’t feel like that about it. She looked at the sandy-coloured storm-battered building with its intricate-paned glass windows and drum towers.
She loved it.
She loved it with her whole heart.
But she loved something or someone else a whole lot more.
Genetically she might have a right to Annick Castle. But there were some things so much more important than genes.
‘Laurie!’ The shout came from her side.
Callan was running towards her, followed by Frank bundled up in a rainproof mac. Frank’s umbrella caught in the high winds, turning instantly inside out and making him spin around blindly.
Callan reached her, soaked and windswept by the battering rain. He put his hands on either side of her shoulders. ‘Laurie, are you okay? What happened? You ran out before we had a chance to talk.’
She shook her head. Would he notice her tears in amongst the torrent of rain?
Callan was shaking his head in wonder. An amazed smile appeared on his face. ‘How did you know? How did you know it was the butler? We’ve hardly been there this weekend.’ He was shouting now. She could hardly hear him above the roar of the waves below.
She lifted her hands. ‘Who else could it be? There were twelve of us. It couldn’t be any of us, Callan. That would have been unfair. It had to be you, Robin or John. And when the murder took place, you had your arm around me the whole time.’
The recognition dawned on his face. He’d obviously never given the whole weekend much thought. He’d been too wrapped up in the outcome. Too wrapped up in the fate of Annick Castle.
He grabbed her hand. Frank had reached him now and was starting to babble. She couldn’t hear a single word he was saying in the braying winds. ‘Come on,’ shouted Callan. ‘Let’s get inside.’
He pulled her towards a back door. It must have been a servants’ entrance and it took them along a back corridor until they reached somewhere she was much more familiar with. Much more comfortable with—the library.
Callan waited until Frank had joined them and locked the door behind them. Rain was dripping from every part of her. Callan lifted a throw from the back of one of the chairs and stood in front of her, gently rubbing her sodden hair and face.
Callan was so wrapped up in what he wanted to tell her he couldn’t contain himself. ‘I found medical files, Laurie. Files that were part of a drug trial seventy years ago. Angus was a participant. Everyone else died within six months. He must have thought he was going to die too, Laurie. That’s why he didn’t meet his kids—just provided for them financially.’
She hadn’t spoken. She hadn’t responded. And his voice tailed off to be replaced with a concerned expression on his face. There was a second of recognition. Recognition that she was long past the point of caring about Angus McLean.
‘Laurie? Isn’t this what you wanted? You’re the only relative here who has shown any real interest in Annick Castle.’ He hesitated. ‘I’ll need to go over the castle accounts with you, but some of the things you suggested might be part of the way forward for Annick Castle.’
Frank stepped forward. ‘I have to warn you I think there might be some legal challenges from some of the unhappy parties. There’s nothing we can do to prevent that. But no matter what their challenges, Angus’s will is rock solid. He made sure of that. It might just tie us up in court proceedings for some time.’ He rustled some papers. ‘Now, can we make some arrangements for your DNA test? It’s just a simple cheek swab, and I’d expect the results back relatively quickly.’
‘Stop.’ She lifted her hand. ‘Stop it. Both of you.’
Callan froze. He’d been mid-rub of her hair, which was still stubbornly dripping on the floor below. She shivered. The impact of the rain and wind was starting to affect her body’s reactions. Frank’s mouth was still open—poised mid-sentence.
‘I can’t do this.’
‘What?’ Both voices, in perfect unison.
Callan’s brow instantly wrinkled. ‘What do you mean you can’t do this? You are the perfect person to do this, Laurie.’
‘No. No, I’m not.’ She shook her head fiercely. ‘If I’d thought about this more carefully I would have put the wrong name on the card.’ Frank looked horrified, but she continued before he could say anything else. ‘I’m not the right person to look after Annick Castle. It doesn’t matter that I’m a relative of Angus McLean. It doesn’t matter at all.’
She walked over and picked up one of the photographs of Angus in his army uniform. ‘I didn’t know this man. I didn’t know this man at all.’ She pointed to herself. ‘And he didn’t know me. I didn’t matter to him. My father didn’t matter to him. I don’t care what his reasons were.’
Her brain felt as if it were scrambled. She didn’t feel rational. She didn’t feel in control.
‘Laurie, hold on. Let me show you what I found—’
‘No. Don’t, Callan. I don’t want to hear it. The fact is, I’m a lawyer. And I’m not even going to be that for much longer. But it doesn’t matter. What do I know about a place like this? I wouldn’t even know where to begin. It’s already starting to fall apart.’ She held out her hands. ‘This is a piece of history. This is something that should be protected and preserved. This is something that other people should enjoy.’
‘But you can do that, Laurie. You’ve already considered what could happen with Annick Castle. Let me tell you what I found.’
She felt herself start to sway. Her legs were turning to jelly underneath her and she slumped down into one of the nearby chairs.
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She took a few seconds, then lifted her head. ‘Frank, if you need to do a DNA test on me, then that’s fine. Do it. But I need you to do something else for me.’
‘What?’ Frank looked bewildered, as if the whole event were taking place in a parallel universe.
She loved Callan. She absolutely loved him. If she kept Annick Castle they would never have a chance. This would always be Callan’s home. And she would always be the person that had taken that away from him. And she loved him too much for that.
She’d seen the flash in his eyes back in the drawing room. She didn’t need him to spell it all out to her.
She wanted to believe that he really hadn’t meant to leave her this morning. But deep down she couldn’t entirely be sure.