Between Two Worlds (31 page)

“Sam?” Delaney’s eyes lit up. “The cabbie that drove me to the
bridge? He’s really a…a leprechaun? I thought you were joking about that
before.”

He looked hurt. “I wouldn’t joke about me heritage,” he said. “Samuel’s
a leprechaun, all right. Looks pretty good for three hundred years old, don’t
he?”

She was struck dumb, unable to speak.

“Anyway,” Donovan went on, “Samuel got drunk one night and stole
the O’Reilly clan’s money from the hidden pot of gold under the rainbow. When
he confessed, yer ancestor, Aislinn, cast a curse upon his head. She had the
power to do so, ye see. The O’Reilly women all have the second sight, but
Aislinn was the only one who could cast spells. She vowed that when Samuel died,
he’d spend eternity grantin’ wishes fer the O’Reilly clan, fer as long as there
was life on the planet. In this way, penance would be done, to make up for the
wrong he did the family. Ye see, when Samuel stole their gold, the O’Reillys
lost their land and their potato crop, and they became destitute. Aislinn took
away his cobblin’ hammer, too. Just to spite him.”

After a long hesitation in which Delaney was considering all he’d
said, she asked, “Where does Fiona come in? And you? And me?”

“I’m gettin’ to all that.” Donovan’s bushy brows wiggled. “This is
how it’s worked for hundreds of years now. One member of the McKinney clan
becomes the conduit through which a member of the O’Reilly clan requests his or
her wish. That is,
if
an O’Reilly has a wish they want granted.” Donovan
tapped his chest. “I became the conduit when me great uncle Sean McKinney
passed away over thirty years ago—God rest his soul.” Donovan made the sign of
the cross and went on. “Your great, great, great grandmother Fiona had a wish
she wanted granted by Samuel. It’d been a hundred twenty years since he’d
granted a wish. And let me tell ye, it took some coaxin’ for me to wake him
up.”

“So Fiona came to you?”

“Aye. We’d known each other fer years. Like the O’Reilly women
before her, Fiona had the second sight. She could see into the future. I was
with her on her deathbed. She told me her wish just moments before she died. I assured
her it would be granted, and I passed the wish on to Sam. He took over from
there.”

Delaney waited for more. Donovan tipped the mug of hot toddy to
his mouth and let it slide down his throat while watching her out of the corner
of his eye.

She mumbled aloud, “Leprechauns. A pot of gold. A rainbow. Second
sight and curses… So what was Fiona’s wish?” she finally asked.

Donovan sat his mug down with a
clunk
. He bent forward and
whispered in his thickest Celtic brogue, “Ye haven’t figured it out yet, lass?
Her wish was that you, her great, great, great granddaughter, would marry yer
one true love.”

After a delayed reaction, Delaney burst out laughing. “You can’t
be serious! You expect me to believe that farfetched story? Marry my true love?
Hmmph.”

Donovan frowned and then raised his voice, “I don’t see what’s so
funny, lass. I’ll have ye know it’s not an easy task moving people through
time. It takes a lot of organization. Especially when we’re dealin’ with a
hardheaded O’Reilly woman, such as yerself.” He was clearly annoyed. He stood
up and tromped around in circles, waving his arms in the air, muttering and
throwing a tantrum.

When she realized he
was
serious, Delaney stopped chuckling.
“Why are you acting like an elderly spoiled brat?”

Donovan stopped and apologized while wiping perspiration from his
brow. “Sorry, lass. We leprechauns are prone to fits of anger if things don’t
go our way.”

“
You
?” she squawked. “You’re a leprechaun, too?”

“Of course,” he answered with pride. “I’m a McKinney, ain’t I?”

She shook her head, still finding it all hard to comprehend.
“Okay, back to me. That was sweet of dear ‘ole grandma Fiona, but why did I
have to travel back in time to find true love? My entire life has been
disrupted because of this…this clan feud. And what has it gotten me? Where’s my
true love
?” She mocked those last two words.

Donovan rolled his eyes. “Is yer head as thick as molasses, girl?
Yer workin’ fer him.”

“Gabriel?” The name came out as a choked whisper.

“Aye. He’s yer soul mate, Delaney. Fiona saw the two of ye in a
dream, and Fiona’s dreams were never wrong.” Donovan patted her hand. “I can
see yer stunned, but I’m not sure why. Any fool, meself included, can see the
way the Doc looks at ye. He’s smitten, and I think ye are, too. Yer just afraid
to admit it and let it be.”

“Are you Dr. Phil now?” she said, not caring whether he understood
the modern reference.

He allowed her to stare into space for a few moments, letting the
news sink in, before interrupting her thoughts. “Ye said somethin’ about the
Brent boy. Ye mentioned it was a matter of life and death.”

“Yes!” Delaney snapped back to reality. “He could die unless I
take him home. We have medicine there that can save him.”

“Go on.”

“There’s a cure for that type of infection. It’s called  penicillin.
I want to take Fletcher back with me. It’ll save his life. You have to ask
Samuel to make the bridge reappear. That’ll work, won’t it? Isn’t the bridge
the way for me to get back home?”

“Aye. That’s the ticket all right.” Donovan rubbed his chin. “I
can understand yer predicament, but I don’t know if ‘ole Samuel will go along
with it.”

“Why wouldn’t he?” she blurted.

“Because Fiona’s wish hasn’t come true yet. Samuel likes all the
loose ends to be tied up.” Donovan thought a minute and an idea occurred to
him. “I suppose ye could always marry Doc Whitman, then I’m sure Samuel would
be pleased to make the bridge reappear. That’s the whole point anyway. For ye
to marry yer true love.”

“I can’t do that!” she exclaimed. “There’s no time.  Besides, how
do I know for sure that Gabriel’s my true love? Because Fiona saw it in a dream?”
She suddenly remembered Georgia’s vision of her and Gabriel tied together with
string and wondered…

“Let me think,” she said, racking her brains. “ I have it! Tell
Samuel I have a wish
I
want granted. Tell him! Right now!”

“I don’t understand,” Donovan replied.

“My mother was an O’Reilly. That makes me one. Samuel must grant
any wish that an O’Reilly requests. You just told me that was how it works.
Didn’t you?”

“Aye, I did.” He grinned from ear to ear.

“Then my wish is to take Fletcher with me to the year 2012 so he
can be cured of scarlet fever.”

“Good thinkin’, lass. It just might work.”

Delaney nodded, proud of her idea.

“Ye scoot now,” he told her, lifting her out of the chair by the
elbow. He pushed her toward the door. “I’ll call Samuel up, but it must be done
in private. Ye go back to the clinic and get little Fletcher ready to go. When
it starts to rain and the rainbow appears in the sky, go to the river. Ye must
be prepared to cross over soon after the rainbow appears.”

“All right. I hope Georgia will agree to this. I asked Gabriel to
tell her my secret.”

Donovan laid a hand on her arm. “What about Gabriel? Are ye gonna
leave him behind?”

Delaney didn’t hesitate with her answer. “For now. I’ll see him
again, won’t I? Can’t I come back sometime? That is, if I decide to?”

Donovan shook his head. “No, lass. There’s one chance, and one
chance only fer the wish to be granted. If it’s not granted, that wish is
retracted. You and Gabriel will both live out yer lives alone.”

“But why?” she cried. “Why does Gabriel have to be punished for my
choice to go back? I’m doing this for Fletcher!”

“Because Gabriel’s yer soul mate, lass. There’s no one else fer
him. There’s no one else fer you either. I’m sorry, but that’s the way it is.”

Sadness and disappointment caused her stomach to knot. “You mean
I’ll never see Gabriel again? Or Charlotte or Lucinda either?”

“I’m sorry. Is little Fletcher Brent worth yer losing the love of
yer life?”

“Yes,” she answered without thinking. She could survive without
love, but she wouldn’t let Georgia lose her son. Tears washed her eyes. “Thank
you, Donovan,” she said, rushing out the door.

“Lass!” he called as she hurried down the crumbling walk.

She turned.

“Do ye love the Doc?”

Her lip quivered. “Aye.”

Twenty-Three

When Delaney returned to the clinic, she quickly explained the entire
story to Gabriel and Georgia. His face grew pale and he left the room.

“I’m going with you,” Georgia said. Her sweet, southern jaw set
firm. “Charlotte’s been good to me, but Alan’s gone. I don’t have a reason to
stay here. This is a hard life for a woman with a child alone. Maybe Fletch and
I can start over in your world.”

“I know you’ll be happy there.” Delaney grabbed her hands, and she
hugged her new friend and told her to get Fletch ready to go. “We have to
hurry.”

As Georgia gathered up her son, Delaney went to Gabriel, who stood
in the parlor gazing out the window.

“Gabriel.” She touched his shoulder so he’d face her. “Come with
us,” she said. “It’ll be the chance of your lifetime. Imagine the things you’ll
learn! It’s a dream come true.”

“I can’t, Delaney.”

“Why?” Her stomach rolled like a wave, and her voice was thick
with emotion.

“This town needs me. I can’t abandon these people. Besides, I
don’t belong in your world.”

“Yes, you do, Gabriel! You belong where I am. We belong together.”
She surprised herself by the heartfelt confession. She waited for his response,
which came slowly.

“Oh, Delaney. You must know what you mean to me.” He pulled her
close and held her. Her eyes closed, and she wrapped her hands around his
waist. He sifted his fingers through her hair, and she felt all the breath rush
out of her. Her chest began to rise and fall as her heart pounded.

She heard it before she saw it—splotches of rain hitting the glass
windowpane. She pulled away from Gabriel, though it was not what she wanted to
do. “It’s starting to rain. We have to go. Please, Gabriel. Come with me.”

Georgia stepped into the parlor carrying Fletcher. “Delaney, it’s
raining.”

“Yes, I know.” She and Gabriel gazed into each other’s eyes for a
brief moment.

“Let me take him,” he told Georgia as he lifted the boy from her
arms. “We must hurry.”

Delaney’s face lit up, and she gave him a quick kiss on the lips.

They walked as fast as they could down the dirt road, over the
desert, and across the grassy patch. By the time the four of them reached the
Salt River, the rain was coming down in a slow, steady stream.

“Look!” Delaney cried, as she spied the umbrella Samuel had given
her that fateful day. It was lying in the grass. She picked it up, flipped it
open and handed it to Georgia, who held it over Gabriel’s head so that it
protected her son. The two of them forged ahead of Delaney.

She looked into the sky to see the promised rainbow. As her gaze traveled
from the top of the curve down, it fell upon He Who Fights Bravely and his
donkey. They were standing at what looked like the bottom of the rainbow watching
her. Sadly, she lifted a hand in a wave. The Indian lifted his hand and waved.
After a few seconds, he turned and the pair trotted off. 

She ran to catch up with the others. When she got to the river,
her breath hitched. Gabriel and Georgia were poised at the foot of the wrought
iron bridge. “It’s here!” Georgia shouted. “It’s really here! Just like you
said!” She handed Delaney the umbrella and took Fletcher from Gabriel’s arms.

The boy opened his eyes. “Bye, Doc,” he croaked.

“Goodbye, Fletcher. You’re going to grow into a fine young man.
It’s been my pleasure knowing you.” He ruffled the little blond boy’s head.
“Don’t forget what I taught you.”

“I won’t.”

Gabriel winked.

“Thank you, Dr. Whitman. For everything,” Georgia said, her face
shining bright with anticipation.

“There’ll be time to thank him once we get across,” Delaney said, nudging
Georgia onto the bridge.

Gabriel placed his hands on her shoulders. “No, Delaney. She
won’t, because I’m not going.”

Her jaw dropped. “But… I thought…”

“I can’t go with you,” he repeated. “I’m needed here. This is my
world.” He paused, but his eyes never left her face. “I’ll never forget you.
I’m proud of what you’re doing for this child. Promise me you won’t go back to
that advertising job when you get home. You should be helping people. That’s
your true calling.”

She could see Georgia out of the corner of her eye. The young
mother was a quarter of the way across the bridge, and the rain was falling
lighter.

“Delaney!” she called. “There’s someone at the other end of the
bridge! He’s waving me toward him. He’s calling for us to hurry!”

Delaney pivoted her head and saw the rainbow was starting to fade.