Julian followed Jack into the croft. “It’s good to see you, Edwi,” Jimmy said. “You’ll be expecting an explanation.”

Julian sat down next to Jack and listened while Jimmy told him about the events of the last week. “So my name is Julian. It’s good to see you all. Where are Johnny and Jesse?”

“They’re with Fiona and her mum, Mairi at her house,” Jimmy said.

Angus glanced at him. “So, you’re the gardener. Mairi will get along well with you. She does a lot of gardening. She’ll need your help at Castle Athdara.”

Julian looked confused. He stood and shook Angus’s hand. “It’s good to meet you, Angus. I anxiously await my meeting with Mairi. This is all very interesting, but I should warn you there is something going on at the castle. I came through the time portal as the rest of you did. I was no sooner out of the castle when a horde of banshees went inside. I’ve never seen anything like it before. There seemed to be several different types, but they all had one thing in mind, getting into the castle.”

“What are Phelan and Drayton up to?” Jeffrey poured himself a cup of hot tea. “It worries me, Jimmy.”

“We’ll find out soon enough. You’re just in time, Julian. We’re going camping tomorrow morning with Fiona and her friends. We are going to relax and learn about putting up tents,” Jimmy said. “I suggest we all get to sleep, or at least attempt to sleep. Tomorrow will be physically tiring for us, I fear.”

Angus waited until they were sleeping and picked up the book written in Xilian. He sat in front of the fire, turning the pages. “I wish I could understand what this meant.” He ran his fingers over the symbols, tracing each one. It looks an awful lot like ancient Hebrew, yet I know it’s not.” He closed the book and held it and the other close to him. His eyes shut and he drifted off, dreaming of pine-scented campfires and roasting sausages.