Highland Protector (MacCoinnich Time Travels Book Five) Read Online Free PDF Page A

single
woman as you described. I’ve dug further back to see if there is any reference
to it.”
    Disappointment filled Kincaid’s
heart. If anyone could find out who the woman was, it would be Giles.
    Giles turned the pages in his book
and delivered a brief history lesson. “You see, back in the times you just
visited, tapestries were often used to record the people, the history. Only the
very rich and nobility could afford portraits. And we know our ancestors were
private people.”
    “Because they risked persecution.”
    “Some things don’t change. The
difference between then and now is that back when Druids were accused of
witchcraft, they faced being murdered, burned, or beheaded. The last few
hundred years we’ve been used as lab rats, held hostage and studied.” Giles
didn’t need to remind him of these facts. Kincaid understood why they lived
outside the normal population.
    “Are you suggesting the portrait I
saw was of a non-Druid woman?”
    “I suppose it’s possible, but I doubt
it.”
    Kincaid leaned against the center
table, crossed his arms over his chest. “There are very few unwed descendants
of the MacCoinnich’s through the generations leading up to the seventeen
hundreds. Maybe the woman died before she could marry?”
    “I thought of that.” Giles turned
another page, barely glancing over the book to capture Kincaid’s gaze. “Which
is why I’m searching for the life spans of the family. The problem is, we can’t
be sure the family members died young, or if they traveled to a different time.
We know the first time travelers were direct descendants of Ian and Lora. It’s
said that all their children traveled in time at one point. Duncan and Finlay
were the oldest, the first to move forward in time and back again.”
    Kincaid knew the story well. Duncan
and Finlay MacCoinnich had been instructed by the Ancient Ones to protect their
world by finding Grainna, the most powerful, greedy, evil Druid ever known and
stopping her from destroying every Druid and thousands of innocent lives. Most
of the missions Kincaid and his men undertook also protected the lineage of
this family. But none of them took them back to the time of Grainna, ever. It
was hypothesized their interference might change the outcome of that final
battle. They couldn’t risk that Grainna would become the victor, and not the MacCoinnich’s.
Travel to the late fifteen hundreds was off limits. Always.
    “I remember the stories, Giles. If
I’m not mistaken, the middle sister married a knight.”
    “Right. And there is some speculation
the youngest sister died in the final battle, though some reports state she
survived the battle, only to die later after a long illness.” Giles lifted the
book in his lap. “This book has references from the first families’
grandchildren. I’m searching to see if they document anything about their
direct aunts and uncles.”
    “What happened to the youngest
brother?”
    “It’s vague. But it could be because
the family clouded themselves in secrecy, or perhaps it could be he traveled
beyond their time. I’m hoping to find the answer here. If not, I’ll call the
Keep in the morning and request a link into their database.”
    Kincaid ran a hand over his face,
smoothed down the hair on his chin. “I can’t shake the feeling I saw that
painting for a reason.” And he couldn’t. During their dinner, he kept picturing
the woman, her eyes.
    The hair on his arms stood on end.
    “I’ll find out who she is, Kincaid.”
    He turned to leave Giles to his work.
“Oh, Giles…what were the names of the MacCoinnich daughters again?”
    “Myra was the oldest.” Kincaid
glanced over his shoulder to find Giles turning pages of the book. “Amber was
the youngest. The one we think died young.”
    Amber?
    The air in the room changed with the
mention of Amber’s name. Kincaid’s palms started to itch.
    He looked over at Giles whose
attention shifted from the book to the fireplace as it burst