Scottish Stars Cross

Part 33

"Wake up Sorcha!" Ella's voice heralded her arrival mere seconds before she pounced on her sister.

"Umph." Sorcha glared sleepily at her sister before she rolled over and pulled the covers over her head. "Go and bug Zefora."

Ella crawled over and began bouncing on her knees next to Sorcha as she poked her in the ribs. "You need to wake up!"

"What are ye going on about?" Calleach asked sleepily from beside Sorcha.

Ella quit jumping and leaned against Sorcha. "Max, Jax, and Zax have done an amazing job. Eleanor just texted Bradley the figure that appeared in her dead husband's bank account."

Sorcha sat up almost hitting heads with Ella. Calleach had already thrown his covers aside and was busy pulling on a kilt. Ella eyed him curiously before she grinned impishly at Sorcha.

"Bradley has a cuter butt."

"Do not be talking about me cousin's butt in front of me!"

Ella and Sorcha looked at each other before they both broke out into a fit of giggles. Ella stuck her tongue out at Calleach before she scampered out of the room. She could be heard hollering down the hallway telling the others to get their lazy bums out of bed.

Sorcha held up her hand as if she was being sworn in as a witness. "I swear I'm not related to her."

Calleach chuckled dryly. "It's too late for that."

Sorcha hurriedly got dressed and headed to the kitchen. Her cousins were already there. Zarr, Zaranth, and Amaranth were busy yawning and waking up with coffee. Zefora was grumpily staring at Ella where she bounced excitedly from foot to foot. Beau, Bishop, and Barron walked in yawning with Bradley doggedly on their heels.

"Couldn't you have waited till a more decent hour Ella?" Zefora demanded crossly. "Some of us need our beauty sleep."

"Oh pooh." Ella flicked her fingers at her cousin. "You are only grumpy because you spent way too much time talking to that horse guy."

"His name's Jeremy and he's the stable master over at the MacGowen keep."

Calleach grunted. "He's a sharp one. Brilliant when it comes to horses and their needs."

Ella rolled her eyes and let out a huff of breath. "Whatever."

"Thank you Amaranth," Sorcha said kindly as her cousin handed her a cup of coffee with half a sugar cube and a dollop of cream. "You always make me the best coffee."

Zaranth snorted. "That's because you are a pain in the ass when it comes to your coffee. Amaranth learned how to make your coffee so you'd shut up."

Sorcha shrugged and smiled warmly at her cousin. "It worked didn't it."

"What did Eleanor saw?"

All eyes and ears focused on Ella and Bradley at Calleach's question. Ella looked up at Bradley. Bradley nodded before he pulled out his phone.

"Eleanor got a wire from the bank saying that some money had appeared in her account from an obscure account in Venezuela. Eleanor told the bank that she had discovered some papers of her late husband's stating that he had some money hidden around the world. They believed her."

Sorcha nodded. "It's makes sense. Remember how Eleanor said that her husband used to hide money all over and that she was still finding some of that hidden money."

"How much didn't the triplets get?" Calleach inquired.

Bradley looked down at his phone. "Are you ready for this?" He paused for dramatic effect before he disclosed the sum. "They managed to transfer over a hundred grand into Eleanor's banking account."

Whistles erupted around the kitchen. Bradley held up a hand for silence. "That's not all. Jax, Zax, and Max recruited a few of our more reclusive cousins who have dealings with the darker side of things. They set up shop on the black market and are busy siphoning $10,000 every two weeks from the Nelson clan without them even knowing about it."

Zefora frowned. "Won't they get caught?"

Bradley laughed. "No. These guys are good. They are the ones I go to when I have to deal with the black market. They will disappear once the Nelson's realize what's happening or when the money dries up. Either way, clan Nelson won't know what hit them."

Sorcha slid an arm around Calleach's waist and held him close. Calleach's arm snaked around her shoulder as he kissed her on the temple.

"That's the best news I've heard in a long time. Have you let the others know?"

"I wanted to tell you guys first. Once we're done here I'll let the news slip and it'll quickly travel through the grapevine."

"Will it be kept quiet?" Beau spoke up. "I mean your family is huge Calleach. That's a lot of mouths to keep shut."

Bradley and Calleach shared a look before Calleach responded to Beau's question. "Our family is very good at keeping secrets. We've had to be. Go into the library and read through the O'Brien family history. You'll see what I mean."

Sorcha finished her coffee and sat the mug down in the sink. "I for one am going to call Eleanor and see how she's holding up with the clandestine behavior that's going on. I should probably call Charles and Isolde as well."

The din from the kitchen died down as Sorcha made her way into one of the many studies that Cal had kept. Sorcha punched in Eleanor's number. As the phone rang, Sorcha studied one of the many pictures of deceased ancestors that lined this particular study. One particular picture looked remarkably like Calleach that if Srocha didn't know better she would have thought that Calleach had a brother.

"Hello Sorcha. I take it that Bradley has given you the news."

Sorcha grinned at the sound of Eleanor's voice. "He has. I wanted to make sure that you're holding up underneath all the subterfuge."

Eleanor laughed. "Deception is part of the game love."

"I know, but it still makes me feel a little guilty."

Understanding was thick in Eleanor's voice when she spoke. "Only the damned feel no guilt. We are only taking back what has been stolen."

"But do we really need to bankrupt the entire Nelson clan."

"Wouldn't they do the same to the O'Briens?"

"I guess when you put it that way."

"Let the men worry about all of this. All you need to do is worry about how you will broach the subject of marriage to Calleach."

Sorcha let out an aggravated sigh. "That's all I seem to worry about. I know that Calleach loves me, but I'm not sure if he's in love with me."

"Talk to me." Eleanor's voice soothed. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong Eleanor. It's just this whole thing with the O'Brien family fortune at stake."

"Get Calleach to fall in love with you."

"How do I do that?" Sorcha asked in desperation.

A grandmotherly laughed echoed over the phone. "That's easy. You find the little things that drive Calleach crazy. Find those triggers and press them. Make him chase after you. Don't be easy to catch."

"Have I been too easy?"

"No pet. Sometimes men need a little push towards the right direction. Most me are scared of making such a big decision. Marriage is a big commitment to make because you will spend the rest of your life with that particular person."

"Okay." Sorcha wasn't sure Eleanor was right. "Are you anywhere close to where Charles and Isolde are by chance?"