Subj: Quentin in 1795, chapter 2
Date: 2/25/00 1:12:36 PM Central Standard Time
From: Beverly LaCroix
Distant Cousin and Joshua
"Who is this stranger, Jeremiah?" Joshua propounded to his younger brother.
"I do not know, Joshua. I told you Barnabas and I found him between here and Collinwood. He says his name is Quentin Collins. I do not know of a Quentin Collins, brother." Jeremiah said quietly.
"Nor do I, brother. And his clothes are very strange. " Joshua said visibly perturbed.
"Witch! That's what he is," Abigail said piously, as she entered the room.
"What in heaven's name are you talking about?" Joshua said angrily to his sister.
Quentin moaned as the throbbing in his head got worse, and when he heard the word "witch," he was frightened.
Joshua walked to the man's bedside, and looked at him as if he were a specimen under a microscope, and Quentin squirmed under his scrutiny. Deciding his best course would be to face the man, and not squirm, and he would have to ignore the pain in his head that was for sure. Quentin looked back at Joshua, and remembered what Barnabas had told him about his father, Quentin knew he was in for quite a battle, not physical, of course. But this battle would be one of logic, and not fisticuffs.
"And you are" -- Quentin said in a tone that befitted a master of Collinwood.
"I'll do the asking here, young man." Joshua shot back.
"So be it." Quentin replied, and made to turn to his side away from the accusing eyes of Barnabas' father. He looked so much like Edward, Quentin felt like a little boy again, a little boy who had gotten caught with his hand in the cookie jar. Thunder shattered his thoughts, as Joshua Collins gently touched him, and he turned back and looked at the man, and knew that resemblance was the only thing that he and Edward would ever have in common.
"I am Quentin Collins." Quentin said unwavering, and not blinking as his cobalt blue eyes gazed in the eyes of the man who had imprisoned his cousin for what he thought would be an eternity.
"I am Joshua Collins, master of the Collins Estate, and head of the family." Joshua said.
"I apologize, sir, for intruding on your family like this. I do not know what happened, I just know I ended up with a throbbing headache when your" -- Quentin was interrupted when Joshua said "Barnabas is my son. Jeremiah is my younger brother."
"I don't know how I got here, and what I'm doing here." Quentin said, deciding a small memory loss might help here, because he couldn't think of a plausible excuse for how he had ended up here, and the truth would get him burnt at the stake, that was a certainty.
"But you know your name, and you say it's Collins. If you are a member of the Collins family here, I do not know of you, sir. Do you remember from where you hail?" Joshua asked.
"France." Quentin replied without thinking.
"France. Now, that's interesting. I know we have relations in France, but they are very distant. You must be a distant cousin, Young Quentin. And surely André Duprés will know of you, and his sister the effected Countess Duprés will know if you are who you say you are. I'm sure nothing escapes that woman." Joshua mumbled.
He didn't see the terror on Quentin's face. He hadn't thought about the DuPrés family when he had replied he was from France. He was disturbed. He needed to find the staircase and get to 1840 and find Barnabas. Collinwood in 1971 was destroyed, and Gerard was in charge. Quentin felt the fear taking over him, and the anxiety as he remembered what had happened to Elizabeth, David and Hallie. They were all dead. Barnabas didn't change time, and he had needed to find him, and he had waited until the stairway had appeared. He hadn't figured the consequences of using it or ending up here. He had to find it. But -- he clutched his head in his hands as he remembered Quentin Charles Collins hadn't even been born yet, so how could there be a staircase. "Oh, no. No, no, no, no." Quentin was raving.
Joshua took his hands from his head, and said "Barnabas, get the doctor. Something is wrong with him."
Quentin felt the gentle hands of Joshua Collins, and was surprised. This wasn't the Joshua he had heard about, the uncaring, unfeeling. God, maybe this was all a nightmare, and he was truly insane like Julia and Barnabas said was going to happen to him.
Pain shot through his head, as he struggled to get up. Claustrophobia was taking over him, he needed to get out of here.