by Donna Grant
Ramsey had risked his life in order to save Tara. Yet it was Tara’s unbalanced magic that had saved Ramsey after he conquered Declan.
The mansion was burned to the ground. Arran had been one of the ones who looked through the house to retrieve anything remotely magical. And all Declan’s books.
He looked at the mansion, and it seemed the year before had been nothing more than a dream. The house looked exactly the same, right down to the yellow rosebush on each of the front corners of the house.
“I’d thought it was over,” Camdyn said wearily as they stood hidden from the road and the house.
“We missed something,” Arran said. “We have to accept that, but that doesna mean we give up.”
Logan slapped Arran on the back, his smile tight. “My thoughts exactly.”
“How should we proceed?” Charon asked.
Broc squatted outside the ten-foot iron gate and peered through the thick hedges. “Jason kept quiet for a year. I suspect he’s building his magic.”
“As well as unbinding gods to make Warriors,” Hayden added.
Broc nodded, and turned his head to look at Arran. “It’s your woman in there.”
Arran wanted to tell him Ronnie wasn’t his. She had turned him away. He’d told her nothing but the truth, even when he feared how she’d react. And she hadn’t believed he wouldn’t steal from her.
“Arran?” Galen prodded.
He looked back at the imposing sight of the mansion. “Aye. Ronnie.”
“Do you have a plan?” Broc asked.
Arran grinned as he released his god. “Ah. I kill the bastard.”
“Sounds good to me,” Hayden said as his skin shifted to the red of his god.
Phelan moved to stand on Arran’s other side. “We each have powers that could aid us and give us an advantage.”
“Need I remind you what the Druids did to us at the dig site?” Ian asked.
Galen released a long breath. “This would be easier with the MacLeods. And Larena.”
It grew quiet as their thoughts turned to Larena. Arran didn’t know if she lived, but he’d seen Sonya and the other Druids do amazing things with their magic.
Logan had been all but dead after being riddled with the X90s, but Sonya had saved him. Surely she could save Larena, who had just one bullet in her.
“We can do this,” Arran said. He clenched his jaw as his gaze moved over the outside of the mansion. “We know the layout of the house. It’s obvious Jason hasna changed a thing.”
Camdyn gave a nod. “There’s just one way in and out of the dungeons. That’s probably where Ronnie is being kept.”
“So, underground.” Arran turned his head to Camdyn. “That shouldna be a problem for you.”
Camdyn’s smile grew the longer he stared at Arran. “I’m liking this plan already.”
“While Camdyn attacks from below, I’ll attack from above,” Broc said. His dark eyes clashed with Arran’s as he released his god. Indigo skin covered him, and massive, leathery indigo wings sprouted from his back.
Galen clicked his dark green claws together. “Attack from above and below. I take it we’re striking from the sides?”
“Hmm. This is going to be good,” Hayden said, and rubbed his hands together, fire surrounding his fingers before he extinguished it.
Arran looked at Logan and Hayden. “You two take the west side. Galen, you and Ian take the back. Charon and Malcolm can take the east side.”
“And where am I?” Phelan asked.
Arran glanced at the door of the mansion. “I want you with me. I’m going through the front.”
“Sounds like a suitable plan,” said a voice behind them.
They all spun around to find Lucan. He smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes as he stepped out of the shadows. Quinn gave a nod as he followed. And then they spotted Fallon.
Arran couldn’t believe the man before him. Fallon was a shell, his green eyes blazing with hatred and the necessity for vengeance.
Ramsey brought up the rear, his gaze locked on the Wallace mansion. “I’d hoped never to return.”
“All of us did,” Quinn said.
Arran couldn’t stop looking at Fallon. It was obvious by the stiff way he held himself and the muscle working in his jaw that Larena wasn’t doing well.
“I need to kill something,” Fallon stated flatly. “Tell me where you want me, Arran.”
The raw anguish in Fallon’s voice made Arran turn his gaze away from his leader. Larena wasn’t hurt. She was dead. The knowledge rippled through them like lightning.
“Nay,” Malcolm whispered from the back.
Fallon turned and looked at Larena’s cousin. A lone tear traced slowly down Fallon’s cheek. There were no words between them, but Fallon’s eyes said it all.
For the first time in months, Malcolm showed emotion.
And it was rage.
Arran almost felt sorry for the ones inside the mansion. Almost. Then he remembered Ronnie. Fallon had lost Larena. Arran knew he’d lost Ronnie as well, but it wouldn’t be to death.
“Lucan, can you get to the roof and aid Broc?” Arran asked.
One side of Lucan’s mouth tilted in a grin. “I’m looking forward to it.”
“I’ll go with Camdyn,” Quinn offered.
Arran nodded and looked to Ramsey and Fallon. “Ramsey, can you use your Druid magic again?”
“What’s your plan?” Ramsey asked, interest sparking in his silver eyes.
Arran glanced at the house and then to Fallon. “There are spells guarding the house. If you can lower them long enough for Fallon to teleport in and out, he can do all kinds of damage.”
“Consider it done,” Ramsey stated.
Arran had formed the plan on the drive to the mansion. He had the Warriors paired to use their powers to the fullest. But everything hinged on getting through the spells protecting the house.
Declan had used layer upon layer of spells. Would Jason do the same?
“Do we wait for the darkness?” Charon asked.
“Nay.” Arran wasn’t about to delay that long.
Fallon faced the mansion once more. “I agree.”
“There are cameras everywhere,” Ian said.
Arran shrugged. “Stay out of sight until it’s time to attack.”
“And the signal to attack?” Quinn asked.
Arran looked at Malcolm. “Lightning.”
Everyone split up then, going in teams as they surrounded the house. Camdyn found the best place in which to use his power of moving the earth so he could strike from below the house, and hopefully find Ronnie in the dungeons.
Arran, Phelan, Malcolm, Fallon, Ramsey, and Charon stayed where they were. Phelan had gone to make sure no one could enter or leave through the gates on the drive, and Charon was scouting the east side.
Fallon moved off away from them, letting everyone know he had no wish to talk. Ramsey was concentrating on the spells to see just how many Jason had put up.
Arran silently rejoiced. He’d always known having a Warrior that was part Druid would come in handy.
Malcolm was quiet as he kept his attention on the mansion. Arran found it difficult to wait. He had to give everyone time to reach their spots, and to be sure that Ramsey could get through the spells.
“How did you do it?” Arran asked Malcolm.
Malcolm blinked slowly, but didn’t look at him. “Do what?”
“Withstand the Druids’ magic at the dig site. I couldna move.”
“There is much that doesna affect a person when there is no feeling within them.”
Arran snorted. “There’s feeling within you, Malcolm. I saw it when you learned of Larena.”
Malcolm’s head jerked to him, his blue eyes flashing with fury and the scars on his face standing out more than usual. In an instant, he released his god, maroon coloring his skin and eyes. “I did everything for Larena, to keep her safe. I became what Deirdre wanted so Larena could have a happy life. I did … I had
to shut off my feelings or I’d never have survived.”
“You betrayed Deirdre and killed her. That should’ve set you free.”
Malcolm looked back at the house. “Should have doesna always equal what happens. I’m dead inside, Arran. The only thing that kept me connected to the MacLeods and all of you was Larena. She’s been taken.”
“So you’ll exact your revenge, then disappear.”
Malcolm’s silence was answer enough.
Arran couldn’t begrudge him. What had happened to Malcolm was wrong. From the first, when Deirdre’s Warriors had attacked him and left him for dead.
Sonya had saved Malcolm, but even then he hadn’t woken the same man. And then Deirdre had captured him and released his god, a god he didn’t know he had.
It was a secret Larena and Fallon had kept from Malcolm in the hopes that he could handle the knowledge one day. They never got the chance to tell him.
And once Malcolm was in Deirdre’s hands, he had become the one Warrior who did as she’d demanded without question. It was Malcolm, after all, who had taken Duncan’s head on Deirdre’s order.
Arran wasn’t sure if he were in Ian’s shoes, that he could forgive someone, even a friend such as Malcolm, for killing his twin.
Duncan, Ian, and Quinn had been all that kept Arran sane and in control of his god while stuck in Deirdre’s Pit deep in Cairn Toul Mountain.
They had fought together, watched each other’s backs, and escaped together. They were the first Warriors Arran had dared to trust.
That trust had led him down the road he was currently on, and he didn’t regret one minute of it.
His gaze slid to Charon as he walked up. There had been a time Arran wanted to kill Charon for things Deirdre had made him do. It took a while, but Arran finally saw that a man did what he had to do to survive.
“Are you all right?” Charon asked as he ran a finger along one of his horns.
Arran gave a small nod. “Did you take care of the gate?”
Charon chuckled and elbowed Ramsey in the ribs. “Oh, aye. No one is getting in or out, no matter how much magic they use.”
Ramsey cut Charon a nasty glare. “It looks as if Jason doesna use half the spells Declan did.”
“You should sound happier about that,” Phelan said as he joined them.
Ramsey sat back on his heels. “Unlike Deirdre and Declan, Jason has the house full of droughs. That’s more dangerous than all the spells.”
“How many droughs?” Fallon asked.
“I count seven, no’ including Jason, but there could be more. And then there’s Ronnie.”
Arran fisted his hands. “I feel her magic, but I can no’ locate her, because of the spells.”
“She could be anywhere in that massive house,” Charon said.
“Get me inside, and I’ll find her,” Arran vowed.
Fallon leaned his head back, and in an instant he had released his god. Black covered his skin, and onyx claws extended from his fingers. His eyes were black from corner to corner, and he lifted his upper lip to growl, revealing his fangs.
Arran had already called forth his god, but he smiled as the rest released theirs.
“It’s time for Jason Wallace to die,” Fallon said.
Arran rotated his shoulders as Charon and Malcolm took their positions.
The only one inside the Wallace mansion who was going to survive was Ronnie.
CHAPTER
THIRTY-EIGHT
Aisley leaned against the corner of Jason’s office, the one he showed visitors. Mindy was sitting on the edge of his dark cherry desk, running her fingers across Jason’s shoulders as he leaned back in his chair.
The office was covered in expensive layer paneling, and on the walls hung paintings she knew cost more than her car. Rugs of various sizes and colors were placed haphazardly on the floor.
There were two dark leather Chesterfield couches facing each other with a coffee table between them. Near one set of large windows sat two chairs.
Behind Jason’s desk were bookshelves stocked with first editions she would bet her soul he’d never read, much less opened.
He’d been on his mobile for a good ten minutes already. And with every minute that passed, his delight increased. Aisley knew whoever was on the other end of the phone couldn’t be good for the MacLeods.
“Are you sure?” Jason asked the caller.
Jason’s smile was that of a cat who’d just gotten into the cream, and it left Aisley cold. She knew that smile. It was the one he gave her when she’d begun the drough ceremony. The same one when she had given her blood and soul to the Devil.
“Perfect. She’s lonely, so you should get in easily,” Jason continued.
Aisley wondered who Jason was talking to, but more important, who were they talking about? Not that Aisley could do anything about it.
Knowing only makes it worse.
It was the truth, and even when she knew she was better off not knowing, she couldn’t help but find out. Just more sins heaped onto her black soul—a soul destined for the fieriest pits of Hell.
“So he’s no’ in his village now?”
Aisley looked down at her chipped nails when Mindy glanced her way. There was much Jason had going on that Aisley didn’t know about. He’d alluded to something the day before that would surprise everyone.
And knowing Jason, that could be anything.
“Keep at her then,” Jason said. “Do whatever it takes. She’s close to him, so we’ll get him one way or another.”
A few moments later and Jason ended the call. No one had moved in his office since he got there. Dale and another Warrior Aisley hadn’t bothered to get a name from stood on either side of the door as sentinels.
Two female droughs, sisters who Aisley couldn’t tolerate being near, sat in the overstuffed chairs by the window.
And on the sofa was none other than Dr. Ronnie Reid.
Aisley looked at her from beneath her lashes. Ronnie was pale, and though she tried to hide it, her hands shook. From pain or fear?
Though Aisley wished it were otherwise, Ronnie was right to be afraid of Jason. Aisley had been foolish for not realizing just how much magic her cousin wielded. Until it was too late.
Ronnie sat with her back straight and one leg crossed over the other. Her left arm was heavily bandaged, and she held it close to her body.
She had a wealth of wheat-colored hair that fell to her waist, though it was in desperate need of a good brushing to get the grass and debris out from when she’d fallen.
Aisley thought of the female Warrior she’d stopped Dale from killing. Why had she done that? If Jason discovered what she’d done, he’d torture her, making every second feel like an eternity.
Aisley thought it amazing that the female’s power was invisibility. There was something about the Warrior that Aisley couldn’t allow to be killed. She didn’t know what it was, but she didn’t want the female’s death on her conscience.
It brought a smile to her face, wondering if Jason knew that she had kept a Warrior alive. He had a little red book that listed the Warriors from MacLeod Castle and their powers, but was the list complete? Jason thought it was, but she wasn’t so sure.
Aisley hadn’t seen it, but if Jason knew there was a female Warrior and she had the power to turn invisible, he’d have alerted them.
She hated that the female had been shot. But at least Aisley gave the Warrior a chance, though it was a slim one. She’d had a choice once and made the wrong decision.
But like many things, that decision had altered the course of her life. She was on a course she couldn’t veer from, one that was destroying her a day at a time.
She turned her head and looked up to find Dale watching her. The hulking Warrior gave a nod that barely moved his shaved head, but it was enough for her to know he was watching over her.
Odd, for someone who had always relished her independence, she liked knowing Dale was there. A friend—somewhat—in the viper’s nest.
“So,” Jason said as he rose from his chair and walked around his desk to lean against the front of it. He crossed his ankles and stared at Ronnie. “Are you ready to begin?”
Ronnie’s brows rose. “Now?”
“No time like the present, my sweet archeologist.”
Jason’s sneer was cold and calculating, just as he was. It sent a shiver down Aisley’s spine.
“You don’t seem to understand how this works,” Ronnie said.
Jason placed his hands on the desk next to his hips. “Enlighten me.”
“I don’t hear the artifacts until I’m near them. So I can’t simply point west and say there’s something there while sitting here.”
Aisley liked Ronnie’s harsh tone, but it wouldn’t serve her well. Something Ronnie would learn soon enough. Right now Jason was being lenient because he needed her cooperation. If only Ronnie knew Jason didn’t have the leverage she thought he did.
“How close do you need to be?” Mindy demanded as she came to stand beside Jason.
“Within a few miles.”
Mindy rolled her eyes. “You’re a Druid, bitch. Use your magic.”
Aisley bit the inside of her mouth to keep from smiling when she saw Ronnie narrow her eyes on Mindy.
“If you think you can do better, why don’t you go find them?” Ronnie retorted icily. “Oh. Wait. That’s because you can’t.”
Aisley coughed to hide her laughter, but Mindy heard it just the same. Mindy pushed off the desk, her high heels clicking on the wood as she stormed over to Ronnie.
“I’d advise you not to mess with me,” Mindy stated.
Ronnie slowly stood until she was eye to eye with Mindy. “What are you going to do, tell your boyfriend?”
Mindy let out a rage-filled scream and jerked her hand back as she readied to strike. Aisley straightened the same time Jason lifted his hand. With that simple movement, he effectively halted anything Mindy tried to do.
Aisley’s hated enemy stood frozen, her hands clawing at her throat as Jason cut off her airflow. “It’s a good look for Mindy. I vote you leave her like that.”