by Kate Keir
It seemed that time had passed.
Tying to ignore Mara’s cryptic warning, I yawned widely as I kicked off my boots and stretched my toes out.
“No, no, no. Not a chance, Flor. You don’t get to sleep until Pen says so, I’m afraid.”
Finlay started to scour the bookshelves that lined almost one whole wall of my bedroom. Each shelf was so full it almost buckled under the weight.
“What are you looking for?” I hadn’t ever seen Finlay reading very much.
He kept searching. “Not really sure it matters too much. But, this will do.” He chose a book, pulling it off the shelf and flicking through the pages.
“Are you going to read to me to keep me awake?” I laughed.
He closed the book and gently threw it so it landed on the bed next to me. A startled Achilles hissed and dived off the bed, seeking sanctuary on the top of the wardrobe instead.
“Nope. You’re gonna read to me, Flor.” He settled himself down in a high-backed checked armchair I knew was really uncomfortable and gestured to me that I should begin.
I picked up the book he had thrown me and looked at the title. Nineteen Eighty-Four?
“Can we not read something a bit more cheerful?” I raised an eyebrow.
Finlay smiled impatiently. “You can choose the next one. For now, it’s George Orwell or nothing, Flor.”
Sighing, I opened the book and started to read aloud. I wondered if it was possible to actually die of sleep deprivation. I fiercely hoped there wouldn’t be enough time for a next book.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
As soon as Pen’s text came through to my phone, I put down the book and allowed myself to fall into a deep and dreamless sleep. Finlay insisted on staying with me, just in case the Draugur attacked Castle Dion, but he did permit himself a few hours of sleep in the hard-backed chair.
When I woke, Finlay had gone, and the light that streamed through my window was starting to glow with a rose-gold colour that told me I had slept until late afternoon. As long as they hadn’t been ambushed on the way, Pen, Freya, and Lyall would be home very soon.
I got out of bed and quickly showered and changed. I looked in the mirror as I plaited my long auburn hair and was surprised to see a woman who looked very different from the girl I had been just a few short months ago. Before all of this. Now my face was slightly slimmer, and my features were sharper. My green eyes were a little harder than they had been. With a start, I realised it was almost my birthday. In six days, I would be twenty.
A knock at the door pulled my attention away from my reflection. “Come in,” I called as I made my way from the bathroom to the bedroom.
Mara popped her head around the door. “They’re back.” She grinned.
I didn’t hesitate. I ran past Mara and down the stairs, two at a time. I flew over the threshold of the great hall and wrapped my arms around Pen.
“I’m so glad you’re safe.” I laughed.
“It’s very nice to be back.” Pen smiled.
Next, I gave Freya a hug. “Thank you for going to help them, Freya.”
She disengaged herself from the hug quickly, but she smiled at me.
Looking over Freya’s shoulder, I caught sight of him. He stood casually, talking to Artair in a quiet voice. He looked angry, but as his amber eyes met mine, he smiled and ran his hand through his dark hair. He really was smoking hot.
I hesitated for just a moment, unsure if I should go to him but wanting nothing more than to wrap my arms around him and inhale the clean scent of his skin.
Lyall didn’t give me a choice; instead, he gave Artair a quick nod and started to walk toward me with his arms open wide. In two quick steps, I was wrapped in his arms and he in mine.
“I was so worried about you,” I murmured.
“I’m back now, love.” He gently stroked my hair as he spoke.
“I have things I need to tell you.” I felt a pang of guilt for not telling him about my shifting success sooner.
“You wanna go for a walk outside before it gets dark?”
I nodded and we headed outside.
“If you finished the ritual, does that mean we can call on new Dion now?” I asked excitedly as we walked through the gardens.
“Yep, Pen nailed it. It’s official, when I die you can order in a replacement before I’m even cold,” he joked.
I punched his arm. “Don’t even. I’ve spent the last week terrified I was going to lose one of you.”
We had reached the edge of Loch Ness. Because of the setting sun, the view was epic. A blanket of red fire shimmered across the water and up and over the hills in every direction.
I suddenly felt shy as I said, “Um—so, I finally shifted.”
He grinned at me in genuine delight. “I knew you weren’t far off, love. Well done.”
“I became a wolf, Lyall.”
His mouth dropped open, and his eyes grew wide. “Seriously, Flora?”
I smiled and nodded.
I didn’t even see him move before he grabbed me around my waist and lifted me up into the air, spinning me around until I was dizzy. We both laughed out loud, and my heart soared.
Things were starting to work out for us. We had completed a ritual that was the first step toward defeating Sluag, all of my Dion had survived the trip, and Pen was working on keeping the freak out of my dreams and my head.
When Lyall finally put me back down, I smiled at him breathlessly. “So, maybe you can quit this keeping our distance crap, now you know I’m a wolf, huh?”
He didn’t answer me; instead, he wrapped one hand around the back of my head and leaned down to place his lips on mine. I was taken by complete surprise, and I forgot to close my eyes. This close, his amber eyes were so beautiful it made my heart hurt.
For a few seconds after he stopped kissing me, I felt lost. But he wrapped his fingers through mine and held on to my hand as he tugged me along beside him. We walked together along the side of the loch in silence for a few minutes.
“I probably shouldn’t have done that, Flora,” he admitted.
“It wasn’t like I told you to stop.” I smirked.
But then I thought about Finlay and the way he had protected me so fiercely when we were under the threat of the Draugur. I remembered the taste of his stolen kiss, and I was no less confused than I had been before I shifted. I felt equally drawn to both of my Dion, but for different reasons. Perhaps more so to Finlay because of our history together. Although my attraction to Lyall was so strong it felt as though there was an invisible cord that tied us together.
“Nothing’s any clearer for me, though, Lyall. I kissed Finlay.” I confessed.
“I’m not hugely surprised. I did leave you behind and tell you to try and make things right with him.”
“Then why did you kiss me just now? If you want me to be with Finlay, that makes no sense.” I was pouting and it annoyed me.
“Honestly, love. I truly believed that when you shifted, you’d be a white cat, just like him. Once I saw the colour of your fur then I accepted you were supposed to be bonded with Finlay. I knew you felt at least a bit of what I did, and so I thought I needed to take myself out of the equation. Give you time to work things out.”
I stopped walking. “And, now?”
“Well everything’s changed now, love. There is still every possibility that you and I are supposed to be bonded. I’m sure as hell not going to walk away and play the bigger man.”
I studied him for a moment. I found it hard to believe he would risk the possibility of me choosing the wrong Dion to bond with after everything he had done to persuade me to try and make things work with Finlay.
“I saw you talking to Artair earlier.” I said, changing my tactics.
“Yeah, we had a quick catch up.” His eyes darkened ever so slightly.
“And he told you what Finlay did to him?” I asked.
At first I thought he wouldn’t answer me. He stared intently out over the loch, concentrating on the dy
ing embers of sunlight.
“He’s volatile, Flora. He could have killed Artair.”
“But he didn’t. He stopped.”
He bit his lip. “I know you’re in love with him, but I’m worried that he could hurt you. Knowing what I know now, I’m not sure he is supposed to be your bonded Dion.”
“Well that’s pretty convenient for you isn’t it?” I was shouting now. “You sail back in, after abandoning me, and all of sudden claim to be the one. Finlay stayed with me. He kept me safe. Okay he screwed up, and he knows it. But where were you when the Draugur could have attacked castle Dion?”
He was angry now. “I could say I was on the west coast, bleeding for you, but you know what? I’m not that kind of guy. Finlay’s out of control, Flora. I think Sluag knows that the best way to get to you is through him.”
“Sluag has been trying to separate Finlay from us since I first came here, Lyall. Can you blame him for losing it? Imagine how you would feel if you were constantly accused of being a traitor.”
“I’d prefer it if you weren’t alone with him right now.” Lyall’s voice was calm.
“You don’t get to prefer what I do, Lyall. You left me and he was there for me. He never left my side last night. He came to my room and stayed with me until this morning.”
Too late I realised how that sounded. “We didn’t…” I trailed off.
“I’m not your keeper, love, and I don’t want to be.”
“This is exactly what Sluag wants. Us fighting between ourselves and not being able to trust each other.” My voice was calmer now.
“I don’t trust Finlay right now, Flora. Pen won’t either when I tell her what happened. You won’t spend time alone with him for now,” he snapped.
I started to argue but thought better of it. “I’m going inside.” I started back toward the castle.
“I’ll walk you back. I don’t want you alone outside right now.” Lyall fell into step next to me, but I refused to speak to him again. When we arrived back at the castle, I jogged up the stairs to my bedroom without a backward glance.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
I had five minutes to myself, sitting in the half dusk and wondering how the hell Lyall and I had managed to fight so badly within ten minutes of his return. It felt as though I couldn’t maintain any sort of relationship with any of my Dion these days, and it made me feel like an epic failure as a Soul Keeper.
Pen didn’t even bother to knock. Instead, she quietly opened the door and crossed through the gloom of my room before sitting on the bed next to me. She placed one of her hands over mine.
“Lyall told you, didn’t he?” I asked.
“He had to, Flora. Anything that can be a threat to you needs to be addressed.”
“I don’t understand how you, of all people, can see Finlay as a threat to me, Pen.” I tried to keep my voice respectful, but the frustration crept into my tone.
“I know he made good decisions, Flora. He chose to do almost exactly what I would have chosen if I were here.”
“So why does everyone want him lynched all of a sudden?” I growled.
“Finlay has unnatural strength. All of the Dion do. He could have done real harm to Artair. I appreciate we have a way to replace lost Dion now, but that doesn’t mean we can let them kill each other in temper.” She gave a weak smile at her attempt at humour.
“I feel as though all of this is my fault. You warned me Sluag would try and break us all apart, and he has. He’s winning, Pen, and I keep letting him do it.”
“I hate that he has access to you when you’re asleep, Flora. I aim to do whatever I can to fix that. But it isn’t your fault. You’re doing so well under the circumstances. You must remember to disbelieve any of the things he tells you.”
I snorted. “You need to tell that to Lyall. He’s the one who’s convinced Finlay will betray me.”
“He cares about you, Flora, and I share his concerns. Finlay has been acting very out of character lately and we shouldn’t ignore that.”
“Pen, you’ve known Finlay almost his whole life long. How the hell can you doubt him?” I whispered.
“I don’t, but I think the pressure from Sluag is getting to him.”
“It’s definitely getting to me,” I confessed.
She gave me a kind look. “Lyall isn’t trying to control what you do, sweetheart, he just wants you to keep your distance from Finlay for now, until we figure a few things out.”
“I don’t know if I can promise that, Pen.” I sighed. “Finlay needs me right now.”
Pen stood up. I could tell this was the part where she outright pulled rank on me and banned me from spending time alone with my best friend. Running the options through my head, I decided it was probably best to just agree with her and find a way to see Finlay secretly. More deception?
A hammering at the door stopped Pen before she even managed a word. We both looked toward the door, and I called out, “Come in.”
Freya stepped into the room, her eyes wide with worry. “Finlay and Lyall are fighting.”
Pen pushed past Freya and disappeared downstairs. I rolled my eyes. This wasn’t going to help Finlay’s cause. I followed an ashen-faced Freya out of my room and down to the great hall.
My ears started to pick up sounds that seriously unnerved me as we approached the hall. I could hear the crash of furniture breaking into a thousand pieces. There was snapping and snarling and the occasional yelp or hiss of pain.
I heard Pen say, “This must stop.”
Freya and I stepped into the great hall, and I gasped as I took in the carnage before me. The wooden chairs that once neatly lined the solid table had been thrown about the room as though a tornado had passed through. Many of them had been crushed into splintered heaps of kindling.
The heavy drapes that covered the windows had huge slashes running through the material, and I was dismayed to notice trails of blood spatter running across the table and along the stone of the walls and floor.
The hideous sounds of battle came from the far corner of the room, where a blur of black and white fur yelped and howled in unison. Lyall and Finlay had both changed into their animal shapes, and there seemed to be no holding back as they repeatedly tore chunks out of each other.
As I watched, the black wolf leapt at the white cat and latched its jaws around the furry throat. The cat howled in pain and wrapped its front paws around the wolf, clawing at the black back and opening up a series of massive wounds.
The cat suddenly sprang away from the wolf and turned back to face Lyall, hissing and snarling. The wolf shook himself, as though trying to right the missing tufts of fur that Finlay had ripped from his back.
Snarling and snapping as though he was totally feral, Lyall approached the spitting white form of Finlay. They both leapt toward each other at the same moment and crashed together in mid-air. They both fell back to the stone floor with a thud.
Finlay looked as though he was suffering much more than Lyall, but I rationalised it was probably because the blood showed up much better against the snow-white fur than it did against Lyall’s black coat.
Finlay was much larger than Lyall in shifter form, and he used his extra weight to his advantage now. He pinned Lyall down against the floor and swiped a massive white paw across Lyall’s face. The black wolf howled in pain and anger. Pushing up, he threw Finlay off balance and clamped his huge teeth down on Finlay’s foreleg. I heard a sickening crunch.
I began to step forward, unable to stand and watch any longer while they did this to each other. But Pen took control, her voice stopping me in my tracks.
“Enough!”
They stopped suddenly and turned two sets of animalistic eyes on us. It was as though they hadn’t even realised we had been watching them; they had been so intent on tearing each other to shreds.
Pen’s voice was low, but it shook with anger. “You are Dion, the sworn protectors of the Soul Keeper. I understand that we have all been through a lot in the last twenty-f
our hours. But you disgrace yourselves by behaving in his way.”
The wolf whimpered quietly and sat back on his haunches. The white cat hung his head and gently licked a bleeding paw, while staring at us with sorrowful blue eyes.
“I cannot believe I am to speak to you both in this way.” Pen shook her head angrily as she walked toward the now penitent animals. “Go to your rooms, clean your wounds, and consider the damage your behaviour has done to us.”
They both started to slink from the room. I noticed neither Finlay nor Lyall would meet my eyes. They turned back toward Pen as she continued speaking.
“I will not have a repeat of this tragic situation. If anything like this happens again, I will consider exiling both of you from Castle Dion.”
After they had slunk from sight, Pen turned to Freya. “Did you see how this happened?”
“Not entirely,” Freya admitted. “Lyall pulled Finlay up over what happened last night with Artair. They started to argue and then one of them changed. I don’t even remember who. Then they both shifted and just started ripping chunks out of each other.”
Pen nodded. “Freya, would you please go and check on them both? I know their wounds will have mostly healed by the time they change back. But if you could make sure they are both calm and keeping out of each other’s way, I would be grateful.”
“Of course, Pen.” Freya gave me a rueful smile and ducked out of the door.
Pen held her hand up wearily. “I know you are going to want to defend their actions, Flora. But even I am too tired to try and work out how we repair these cracks that keep appearing tonight.”
I closed my mouth. I hadn’t even realised I had been about to speak.
“Tomorrow, I will call a crisis meeting. We have to try and work these issues out, or it will all play out just the same as it did for Aiden and his Dion.”
“You wouldn’t really exile them, would you?” I blinked.
“Sometimes, I wonder.”
“Pen, I’m scared we can’t fix it.” I was still shaken by the fight.