Chapter Eight:

~V~V~

Tenderly Morgan lay Samantha down upon the floor of the cave. Very gently, he removed her dress, his fingers trembling with anticipation. She melted into his arms as he lay her down and covered her with the strength of his body. As the crackling fire warmed their bodies of the chilled morning air, Samantha and Morgan once again made love. As the passion took them over, they held each other close in a lover's embrace.

"We did it," Samantha whispered. "We've defeated evil with love."

"I could not have done it with you, Samantha,' said Morgan before he kissed her.

Their kiss seemed to go on for an eternity. Neither of them heard when their privacy was suddenly invaded. Samantha looked up to see the face of her mother and her mother's elusive lover Quentin Collins. She stared at them in confusion, but then her eyes shot to the man standing close to them. Without being told, she knew that it was her father, Barnabas Collins.

The trio were staring down at the young lovers in a state of shock. "What in the world is going on here?" came Angelique's surprised gasp.

Barnabas and Quentin had been prepared to seize Morgan and rip him to shreds had they found Samantha in any sort of danger. When Samantha saw the look in their eyes, she was frightened. "Don't hurt Morgan!" she cried out. "The spirit of Brutus is gone. It took love to defeat the evil... and once Morgan discovered how much I love him, Brutus had no power over him."

Barnabas realized then that Morgan was now the young man he had come to know and love. He smiled as he watched Morgan caress Samantha's hair and pull her against him. "I love Samantha. I would never hurt her," he vowed. Very gently, Morgan wrapped a near-naked Samantha in his cloak. She blushed slightly as she covered her body which had been clad in only an ivory slip.

Barnabas, Quentin, and Angelique looked on as Samantha and Morgan's lips met in a soft kiss. "Ahhhh, young love," Quentin said. "All's well that ends well, I do suppose. Angelique, should we return to the future?"

Angelique was ready to return to the future... with the man who loved her. "Yes, I think we should," she agreed. "But what about you, Samantha?"

"I'm staying with Morgan," Samantha spoke as she looked over adoringly at the man whom she loved.

She then turned her gaze onto Barnabas. "And... I would like to get to know my father."

Barnabas reached out his hand to Samantha and she took it. Very carefully she rose to her feet to give her father a hug. "Welcome home, my darling ~ my dearest Samantha," Barnabas said to his little girl.

~V~V~

Samantha and Morgan returned to Collinwood, accompanied by Barnabas, Angelique, and Quentin. "You are safe!" Bramwell exclaimed as he gave his sister a fierce hug.

Samantha laughed and smiled as she returned her brother's embrace. "I was able to diffuse the spirit of Brutus Collins and Morgan is just fine now," she explained.

"How did you do that?" Bramwell asked as he looked at Morgan speculatively.

"Love defeated the curse. I am in love with Morgan... and he loves me," Samantha stated.

"But Morgan was in love with me!" Catherine gasped. She too was terribly confused.

"Ahhh yes, I was," Morgan spoke up. "But I realized that I can't have you; your heart belongs to Bramwell. I'm sure the two of you will be very happy together. You are going to be married, are you not?"

"We are," Bramwell answered. "We are expecting a child."

Samantha beamed as she gave Catherine a warm hug. "I'm so happy for you. I am going to be an aunt," she remarked with happiness.

"All's well that ends well, I guess," spoke Bramwell.

Once again, Bramwell looked at his cousin. "Are you sure you're alright?" he asked Morgan.

"Couldn't be better," said Morgan as he wrapped a loving arm around Samantha. "I have Samantha now. And she's all I need."

"Samantha ~ dear," Angelique spoke up. "I really must be going. I need to return to the future."

"Yes, Angelique and I will be going now," Quentin stated. "I'm glad you're alright."

"Thank you for coming to my rescue," Samantha said as she held Angelique tight. "I'm so glad I finally got to meet Quentin. You can come back again, you know..."

Angelique glanced over at Barnabas who was standing in the doorway. "I am not sure that Barnabas would like that... or his precious Josette," she remarked.

"You are welcome back at any time," Barnabas said. "As long as you don't cause any trouble. We've seen enough of it."

"That we have," agreed Angelique as she gave her daughter one last hug. She then took Quentin's hand so that the two of them could go upstairs and access the portal of time. "We must be going now. Take care, my dear Samantha."

"I will, Mother," Samantha promised.

After Quentin and Angelique had left, Barnabas too took his leave. He was awaiting the arrival of Josette.

The two young couples remained alone to discuss the future. "When's the wedding?" Morgan asked Bramwell.

"Very soon," Bramwell stated.

Morgan looked at his precious Samantha. "Do you think we should make it a double wedding?" he questioned.

"You mean...?" she asked as tears came to her eyes.

"Will you marry me, Samantha? I love you so much."

"I would be honored to become your wife, Morgan Collins," Samantha answered.

The End (All's Well that Ends Well)