"Marcus," Uncle Alan began carefully, his expression turning grave. "I know you wish to remain here. And believe me, we would help you assimilate into this time just as we've done for others before."
Something tightened painfully in my chest at his tone alone.
"But I'm afraid it may not be possible."
"There must be another way," Marcus bit out immediately, his jaw tightening as he stared down at the spread of artifacts and copied documents laid across the dining table.
They were documents sent by Garrick.
Evidence. Proof.
Every impossible claim he had made, verified one by one through historical records, bloodlines, preserved accounts and timelines Uncle Alan had spent days cross-checking it all himself.
Pippa's hand slipped beneath the table to squeeze mine gently.
I managed a weak smile in return, even when my stomach was twisting itself into knots.
Around the table, Victoria and Dr. Madakwe continued sorting through the papers in uneasy silence, the tension thick enough to suffocate the room.
Uncle Alan finally removed his glasses with a tired sigh.
"Garrick is right, I'm afraid," he said quietly.
The words landed like a blade.
"There appears to be some kind of...balance tied to what happened that night in Britannia," Uncle Alan hesitated, like even he struggled to believe what he was saying. "Marcus surviving beyond his proper time seems to have disrupted something."
"And what exactly is this proposed remedy?" he asked coldly.
Uncle Alan looked toward me.
"If you want Garrick's family to leave the two of you alone, then it comes down to this," Uncle Alan said softly. "Either Elena binds herself to Garrick's bloodline...or Marcus returns to his own time."
The room fell silent.
Beside me, Marcus had gone completely still, his expression unreadable in a way that somehow frightened me more than anger ever could.
Then, from the other end of the table, Victoria let out a thoughtful hum.
"It's rather unfortunate," she mused, swirling the tea in her cup, "that we can't simply raise an army and kill them all."
We all stared at her.
"What?" she said with a shrug. "I'm merely speculating." Then she pointed lightly toward Marcus. "You know I'm right. That was rather the Roman way of solving problems, wasn't it?"
"If you want Garrick's family to leave you both alone, it's either Elena binds herself to Garrick's bloodline," he said softly, "or Marcus returns to his own time."
"It's quite sad now that we can't simply raise an army and kill them all," Victoria mused.
We all stared at her.
"What?" she shrugged. "I'm merely speculating. You know I'm right, Marcus. After all, that was the Roman way."
Pippa snorted into her drink. Even Dr.Madakwe pinched the bridge of his nose.
Marcus, however, looked genuinely contemplative for half a second.
"Victoria," Uncle Alan said tiredly.
"You know I'm right, Alan. I'm just saying, if a bloodline has been causing problems for nearly two thousand years, perhaps extermination should not be entirely dismissed."
"Please stop encouraging him," I muttered.
"I am not encouraged," Marcus said calmly.
That was somehow worse.
Pippa chuckled. "I think he's actually considering it."
Marcus frowned slightly. "In my defense, it is an efficient strategy.
"Absolutely not," I said immediately.
His gaze slid toward me then, softening almost imperceptibly.
"As you wish," he said quietly.
"Mass murder aside," Dr. Madakwe cut in dryly, leaning back in his chair with his arms crossed, "what if Elena and Marcus simply...married?"
I stiffened so suddenly I nearly knocked my coffee over, as the room went quiet again.
Slowly, my eyes lifted toward Marcus and immediately regretted it.
Because he was not dismissing the idea. Not even remotely startled. If anything, he looked deeply thoughtful.
"Are you seriously considering this?" she asked immediately, pointing at him.
Pippa choked on her drink.
"Oh my god," she wheezed. "He actually does."
Marcus frowned slightly, as though confused why everyone seemed so alarmed.
"In Rome, this would be the obvious solution," he said calmly.
"Marcus," I said weakly.
His gaze shifted to me at once, softening despite the unwavering determination still lingering underneath.
"You already share my bed," he said, as though that alone explained everything.
My entire face burst into flames.
"Oh god," I breathed, horrified, burying my face in my hands.
"What?" Marcus asked, genuinely perplexed now. "They are aware we are lovers, are they not?"
Pippa looked seconds away from collapsing from amusement, one hand clutching her stomach as she tried, and failed, to hold back her laughter.
Across from us, Victoria remained far quieter, though the sharp interest in her eyes as she studied the both of us somehow felt even worse.
Dr.Madakwe muttered something beneath his breath that sounded suspiciously like a prayer. Meanwhile, Uncle Alan had removed his glasses entirely, looking more bemused than alarmed now.
"I am never speaking again," I groaned into my hands.
Marcus, apparently mistaking my embarrassment for actual distress, shifted closer immediately. One hand settled against the small of my back, warm and protective.
"Do you dislike the idea?" he asked quietly.
The soft sincerity in his voice somehow made the entire situation infinitely worse.
I lowered my hands just enough to stare at him in disbelief. "That is not the issue."
"Then what it?"
"You cannot simply announce to the entire room that we've slept together."
Marcus frowned slightly, still deeply unconvinced. "Why not? it is true."
Pippa made a strangled noise somewhere beside me, covering her mouth to hide her laughter. "Oh, I adore him."
"Naturally, we would never suggest something that makes either of you uncomfortable," Uncle Alan said carefully. "But Samuel is right. It is something worth considering if Garrick's family truly believes the only way to break whatever curse hangs over them is for their heir to marry you."
"This is insane, Uncle Alan," I said, pushing back my chair so abruptly it scraped loudly against the floor. "Do you hear yourselves? Ancient curses? Bloodlines? Time travel?"
I let out a disbelieving laugh, dragging a hand through my hair. "This sounds like the plot of some absurd historical fantasy novel."
"And yet," Dr.Madakwe murmured quietly, "it exists."
The room fell silent again as we all turned toward him.
He rested his forearms against the table, expression calm but serious.
"There is a reason ancient people feared such things, Elena," he said. "Modern science explains much of our world, yes. But not everything." His gaze drifted briefly toward Marcus, before returning to me. "There are forces tied to history, belief, intention...things humanity has spent centuries dismissing simply because we cannot quantify them neatly."
I folded my arms tightly across my chest.
"So what?" I asked bitterly. "I'm suddenly some mystical bargaining chip because people from two thousand years ago made terrible decisions?"
"No," Marcus said immediately.
The force behind his voice startled me. His expression had hardened completely now, dark eyes fixed on the others around the table.
"She is not an object to be bartered over," he said coldly. "Nor will she be forced into marriage for the sake of some frightened family clinging to superstition."
Victoria arched a brow slightly. "Says the Roman who literally suggested marriage ten minutes ago."
Marcus looked genuinely offended. "This is entirely different."
Pippa snorted loudly into her drink again.
"What if I simply leave?" I asked suddenly. "I could move somewhere else. Another city, another country if I have to."
I looked between all of them desperately. "People disappear and start over all the time."
The amusement from moments ago vanished almost instantly.
Pippa slowly lowered her drink.
"Elena..." she began carefully.
"No, seriously," I pressed on. "If Garrick's family can't find me, then none of this matters, right?"
"It would matter," Uncle Alan said quietly.
I looked toward him.
"You are underestimating exactly how influential that family is," he continued. "The wealth alone they accumulated over generations would make it very difficult for you to simply vanish."
"And Garrick," Victoria added dryly, "does not exactly strike me as the sort to let things go."
A bitter laugh escaped me. "Well, I noticed that."
Dr. Madakwe sighed softly. "You would spend the rest of your life looking over your shoulder. Always moving, always hiding."
The weight of that settled heavily inside my chest.
Marcus's jaw tightened beside me.
"No," he said firmly. "You will not live like prey."
I swallowed hard at the quiet fury beneath his voice.
"Then what am I supposed to do?" I whispered helplessly.
"You let me protect you," he said simply.
"You keep talking about protecting me," I murmured weakly. "About marriage like it's some simply political agreement."
Marcus frowned at that. "It is not political to me."
Slowly, I turned to face him fully.
Whatever he saw in my expression must have shifted something inside him, because his own gaze softened in a way that somehow felt far more dangerous.
"Is the thought of marrying me truly so terrible, Elena?"