Chapter 29

"A wedding! How lovely!" Helen exclaimed happily as she poured each of them a steaming cup of tea.

Zach simply nodded before lifting his mug to his lips and stating, "You didn't tell Laura's family? You're more like your mother than you think."

Remington raised his eyebrows, lowered his mug and asked, "Zach, what do you mean by that?"

"Siobhan could be… impulsive… I guess you could call it. Always running off, half-cocked. And that temper of hers," Zach laughed. "Her father was usually the cause and when he set her off… I wouldn't want to be in the line of fire."

Laura glanced over at Remington and watched his cheek twitching. She remembered a few times where his temper got the better of him, as well. "I take it Siobhan and her father didn't get along much?" Laura asked as she sipped her tea.

"Keigan didn't get along with anyone once he started drinking. Siobhan knew better most of the time, but once in a while, she managed to push him too far. Poor girl would show up with bruises…" Zach stopped and shook his head, "No, no more. I shouldn't dwell on the past. What's done is done. It won't bring her back."

Immediately, the muscle began dancing wildly in Remington's cheek when Zach mentioned bruises, but he tamped his anger down. He took a deep breath and exhaled. "No, it won't. But I didn't come here to dwell on that. It would mean a lot to Laura and I if you both could be at the wedding next week," Remington said as he put his hand on Zach's arm.

Zach looked up and with a small smile nodded, "I wouldn't miss it. I wish I could have been there for Siobhan… when she left to go to England… came home pregnant with you…" Zach paused to sip his tea once again. "We would have done more if she just came to us. Instead, she went to Mara!" he spat angrily.

Laura looked at Helen with a weak smile and asked, "How long was Siobhan in England?"

Helen looked to the side, thinking, then replied "Almost two years I believe. She went searching for Eddie."

"Eddie? You mentioned him at brunch. Siobhan's brother?" Remington asked curiously.

"Half-brother. When Keigan lived in England long before Siobhan was born he had an affair with a woman there. Amelia something or other. My memory isn't so good these days. Anyway, they never married and after being there for a few years, Keigan came back angrier than I'd ever seen him. He took to drinking daily at that point and one summer this woman, Amelia, showed up with Eddie. She stayed at the castle as a matter of fact. Eddie couldn't have been more than 5 or 6 at the time," Zach scratched his head as he spoke. He leaned back in his chair and continued, "By that time, Keigan had taken up with Erin and had just started getting himself straightened out. He was working in a factory nearby, talking about getting married."

"So what happened?" Laura prodded over the rim of her mug.

"Not much really. Keigan and Erin got married pretty fast after that summer and Siobhan was born before winter's end. Erin worked as a housekeeper to help make ends meet. Keigan couldn't hold a job if he tried," Zach stopped and swallowed the last bit of his tea. "Eddie didn't come back for a few years until Siobhan was about five or six. She loved him from the start. They just clicked and she followed him around that whole summer and again the summer after that."

"Did she know who he was?" Laura asked, leaning forward onto her elbows, completely engrossed in his story.

Helen slipped her arm around Zach's shoulders and said, "She knew. She may not have understood everything, but she knew he was her half-brother. Erin explained it to her before he came one summer. I think she was a little jealous of Amelia, thought Keigan may have still been in love with her or something."

"Bah! Siobhan needed Eddie to protect her from Keigan. He was drinking worse, his bouts of anger getting the best of him. That's why she ran away to England. To find Eddie and finally get away from Keigan once and for all," Zach hissed angrily before he began coughing. He wheezed and gasped, trying to catch his breath.

Remington immediately jumped up and found a glass which he quickly filled with water. He carried the dripping glass back to Zach and pressed it into the old man's hand. "Thank you," he rasped as he drank the water slowly. When he regained his composure, he wiped his face with a handkerchief. "Damn," he swore.

"Zach, if this is too much, we don't have to-" Remington began but Zach held his hand up and stopped him, "Helen, get that photo album. You know the one I pulled out the other night. I think Remington should see what his uncle looked like."

Helen disappeared down a short hall and returned a few minutes later carrying a tattered photo album. She placed the worn book in front of Zach before she found her seat once more. Zach sighed heavily as he turned the first page. He pointed to one picture after another and described the family members in great detail.

It wasn't until he came to a picture of a very young Siobhan did his voice crack with emotions. Remington peered at the small image and asked, "May I?" Zach pushed the book in his direction where both Remington and Laura studied the face of the child before them. Remington fingered the image lightly before he turned the page. He found another image of Siobhan on a swing, laughing, her long dark hair streaming behind her. Smiling, he turned another page and then another, enthralled by the childhood pictures of his mother.

Laura studied his face and made comparisons with each image they found. He definitely had his mother's expressions, the crooked smile, hidden depression in his chin and from what Laura could see, her compassion. They came upon several images of Siobhan holding younger children, and in one case, comforting a crying child.

Several pages later, Eddie stopped them and pointed to one image. It was hard to see, the shadows distorting the black and white image slightly, "There, that's Eddie."

Laura squinted and tried to focus on the image, but even turning the book into better light she still couldn't determine his features well. "Is there another picture of Eddie perhaps," she asked lightly.

Zach waved his hand at the book and instructed, "Keep turning. There's another one."

Remington turned the next few pages slowly, scanning each face, waiting for Zach to stop him at any time. It was Laura's sharp inhale that stopped him. She grabbed his arm tightly as she whispered loudly, "Rem, The picture! The one we found. It's Eddie!"

"How can you be sure?" Remington scanned the page she was looking at and stopped. He looked up at Zach, twisted his jaw to the side and pointed to the black and white photo. "Zach, this young man here."

"That's Eddie all right. About the last time we saw him. Siobhan went to find him three years later after Keigan beat Erin nearly to death. She'd had enough and wanted Eddie to help her," Zach confirmed.

"Laura, do you know what this means?" Remington stared at Laura; his blue eyes wide in full understanding.

Laura covered his hand with hers and she nodded and stated, "Eddie is none other than the late Earl of Claridge."

To be continued in Holt Steele Forever...