Highland Shift (Highland Destiny: 1)

by LAURA HARNER

  Her backpack was filled with a few essentials like food and water, and she bundled it and the shotgun into her arms along with a light blanket and crossed the yard to the south end of the steading. If anyone were watching, she hoped the assumption would be she was carrying out a bundle of trash. Once inside the steading, she added the blanket to her provisions.

  Heading through the barn, Elena went to the north wing, carefully slipped behind the pile of boxes that still concealed the panels, and entered the chamber. It was the first time she’d been back in here since they’d packed up the books to send to the island. It made her heart ache. She lit the lantern and closed the doors. Picking up the keys from the table, she opened the doorway leading to the two chambers and entered the long passageway.

  She went first to the room on the right, keeping her gaze straight ahead. This room would always cause problems for her, she’d nearly lost her life in it. She took two of the dirks from the shelf, put them in her pack, and left quickly. Entering the other room, she made sure she had all of her supplies before she let the door shut behind her. Once the door shut, it would become invisible, only the MacGailtry could see it, and the only way out would be up the stairs, into the clearing.

  The vestibule looked just as she remembered, with stairs leading out. There was the door to the chamber where Worthington had held Elena and Faolan. Turning, she saw the door that led back to the farm. She could see it now! Whatever the magick was that had kept it concealed had died with Faolan. Or the magick now recognized Elena as a MacGailtry.

  Her hand trembled as she opened the door to the chamber where she and Faolan had been held. The memories came flooding back.

  “Love me, Faolan.”

  “Elena, you know I do.”

  “I am in you love, you have all of me.”

  “I doona’ think you understand, lass. We have mated for life now. I willna be leaving you, and you willna be leaving me.”

  Oh God, he’d left her in the most permanent way possible. Elena lay down on the tapestry where they first made love and cried for her lost life. Eventually, she pulled herself together, for Faolan, for herself. Worthington was not going to get the Gailtry farm. It was the last gift she could give to Faolan.

  She waited for the sun to go down before she left the chamber. She dressed in black, including a lightweight jacket, because it got cool out there after dark. After giving herself a good once over, she was sure she’d be nearly invisible against the night. She left her backpack in the vestibule and brought a bottle of water, the blanket, and her shotgun.

  Stepping into the clearing for the first time since she’d been there with Faolan she was startled by a sense of motion. She froze, pressed against the wall of the building, and waited. Nothing moved. Yet she couldn’t shake the feeling that something was different, just outside her peripheral vision. What was it?

  She skirted the clearing, shielding herself with magick, masking any signs of movement by staying to the trees, moving silently. Although she suspected that whoever might be coming for her would wait a little longer before coming out here, she knew her life depended on her stealth. She’d spent the last week establishing a pattern of going to the library for at least two hours after dinner. She wanted to make sure the killer would know where to look for her and when.

  Once ensconced in her hiding spot, Elena propped her rifle on the rock in front of her, ready for anything, prepared to wait. The leaves in the trees moved restlessly, the gentle breeze caressing her face. As the sounds of the night began to settle in, she fought the urge to think every noise was the killer. Eventually, she heard the sound she’d been waiting for… a car door. She was expecting no visitors, the only reason to hear a car out here tonight was if someone was coming with bad intentions.

  It took forever for him to get there. She could hear him moving carefully through the brush, coming from the east, just as she had predicted. He positioned himself into place, unzipped a long bag at his side, and removed two weapons, a rifle with a scope, and some kind of a smaller gun. He placed them by his side, fished out a cigarette and smoked while he waited. The light turned off in the kitchen, and then came on in her bedroom, and then the bathroom. It was bizarre to watch her house from out here, and she fought an urge to run to see if someone was really inside, despite knowing that the timers were working as planned. Twenty minutes later, the light in the library came on, and he picked up his rifle. She followed his lead and picked up her shotgun, aiming it straight at his back.

  A noise to his right caught his attention, and he swiftly picked up the smaller gun instead, and dug something out of his pocket. More noise to the right, then a low growl filled the night. Red? Lilly?

  “Where the fuck are you?” he said aloud, and Elena knew that voice— it was Liam. Another growl, coming from the other side this time. They were both here. Liam had the gun in one hand and picked his rifle up in the other. “I can kill the bitch before you can stop me,” he taunted.

  Something about that wasn’t right, Elena thought. A split second too late, Elena realized what it was. Liam had made it sound as though he was ready to pull the trigger and shoot Elena, but he wasn’t aiming at the library now. He had the small pistol in his hand. Red stalked slowly forward, close enough to jump if Liam started to raise his rifle. Liam’s hand rose swiftly. Pffft. Red went down on his side with a thud, a dart protruding from his chest. Liam dropped his rifle and stuck another dart on the end of the pistol and was ready when Lilly got there. Pffft. She was down too.

  “Stupid mutts,” Liam said with evident satisfaction. “Now if I miss with the rifle, she’ll still come out to save you.”

  He raised his rifle and took aim at Elena’s library silhouette; Elena raised her shotgun again and took aim at his back. She’d planned to wait until he’d taken the shot and then turned around, so she could see his face, but she hadn’t expected Red and Lilly. Dear God, let them be all right.

  She was afraid now; afraid he might kill one of them after he’d taken his shot at her, so that he’d only have to concern himself with one wolf. Liam wouldn’t know for sure Elena was dead until he went to the farmhouse and checked, and he wouldn’t want to risk leaving both of them here while he did that.

  Elena decided she would pull the trigger as soon as Liam did, and then she would call the local police to surrender. It would be up to them to decide whether to prosecute. She just needed to know that Red and Lilly were safe.

  Liam adjusted his rifle so it sat more securely on his shoulder. Elena took aim and held her breath. He fired. Without any hesitation and less than half a second later, Elena fired, too.

  Something was wrong. It all happened so quickly. Her finger pulled the trigger at the sound of his weapon firing, before she could process the sight of another large wolf leaping from the bushes, slamming into Liam.

  Liam’s screams mingled with the growls of the wolf, and then he was silent. The wolf ran, or rather limped away, whimpering deep in his throat.

  Another wolf! Where had Lilly and Red found him? Was he a relative of Faolan’s? At least some of her shotgun pellets would have hit him. Was he hurt badly? Before following him, Elena stopped briefly to check on Red and Lilly. They both appeared peacefully asleep. She pulled the darts from their fur and promised to return soon.

  Elena ran after the other wolf—she needed to help him. He’d taken off toward the clearing and she followed as fast as she could run. As she drew closer, she heard the gently trickling stream change until it sounded as though there was a roaring river just ahead. The wind began to whip, blowing leaves and debris, making it hard to see. Lightning streaked across the sky; it was centered over the clearing. Thunder rumbled. It looked like the quiet Scottish evening was turning into a sudden squall.

  This was magick, and Elena needed to see who was behind it. She raced to the clearing, following the trail of blood. She was running so fast, the changes to the clearing didn’t completely register. There were giant standing stones where before there’d only
been a circle of trees surrounding a grassy field, and the lightning was crackling between the stones. Like stone henge under an electrical storm.

  The wolf ran into the circle to the center of the stones. The storm strengthened around him. Elena’s breath was coming in gasps, the pain sharp in her side. She ran faster. Branches whipped across her face, her hair swirled with the leaves. She was running as fast as she could trying to catch him. Elena dove toward the center of the clearing, surrounded by the stones she’d never seen there before, and was sucked into a vortex of light.

  Chapter Forty-three

  Bright lights swirled all around Elena, flashing past her with lightning speed. Or maybe she was the lightning, splitting the air at the speed of light. She tried to scream, but her lungs felt compressed. Her limbs were being pulled apart, and she thought her head would be crushed. She was tossed from side to side, her head snapping, wind whipping her face. There was no up or down, no way to tell where she was headed.

  It was over in an instant. One minute she was hurtling though space, the next she was unceremoniously dumped on the ground and all signs of the storm were gone. She quickly shrouded herself with a projection, to be invisible to anyone looking her way, while she tried to figure this out. Looking around, she was astonished to see the castle she’d last stayed in months ago. With Faolan. She was on the island!

  She followed the wolf with her eyes as it made its way unsteadily toward the castle steps. The doors to the castle opened and Brigid rushed out to the wolf, just as it collapsed on the ground in front of the doorway.

  Brigid? Oh my God! Could that mean…. Her knees buckled, and she hit the ground. Her mind screamed Faolan’s name, and Brigid looked up sharply. Elena didn’t know if Brigid could see beyond her projection, but she felt the compulsion that Brigid sent her way. Come help Faolan.

  Dropping her projection, Elena ran for the castle toward her destiny. She was trying to keep from sobbing, her side had a stitch, and she couldn’t breathe. It was him.

  Elena wanted to scream at him, shake him, ask him how he could have done such a thing to her. How could he have let her mourn his death? Elena followed the trail of his blood, not knowing if his lie would become her truth.

  Brigid was reciting words over him. She didn’t look up as she said, “Elena, he must shift back, I canna do it for him. You must call to him, whisper in his ear, call his name, tell him to change, I will get Earnan. Doona’ let Faolan see you if you can help it.”

  Her words cut Elena to the quick, but she knelt next to him and softly crooned in his ear, “Faolan, you must change back. You must shift back now.”

  Elena wasn’t prepared when it happened. He rippled, like he was under water and she was looking down through the surface ripples trying to keep him in focus. One minute, wolf, the next minute, man. A very bloody man.

  Keeping Brigid’s words in mind, Elena stayed to the side, in case his eyes opened, while she tried to see where the worst of the bleeding was coming from. Tearing off her jacket, Elena stuffed it against the gaping hole in his lower rib cage. Oh God, she’d done this to him. He was alive, and now she might have killed him.

  Brigid returned with Earnan and Matt. Together, the men carried Faolan into the house, followed by Brigid, who directed them to carry him to his room. The housekeeping staff scurried in search of hot water and sheets. Elena stood watching the activity. Everyone focused on helping the injured man and Elena didn’t know her role.

  When Brigid got to the top of the stairs, she turned around and looked at Elena. Her gaze was so penetrating, it felt as if Brigid was looking into her soul, but she kept her shield around her heart.

  “Get up here and help. Now.”

  Brigid must have realized Elena had shot Faolan, and she would blame her if he died. Then a much more important thought slammed into Elena. Faolan was alive!

  When she’d left this castle all those months ago, she was Faolan’s wife, mother to his future child, daughter-in-law to Brigid. Twenty minutes ago, she was Faolan’s widow, and Brigid, Lilly, and Red were gone. Now they were all back, and she didn’t know where to put that knowledge. They had obviously known she was alive, that she'd lost her baby. What kind of monsters were they to leave her to grieve, to rip her heart out, believing the love of her life, her soul mate had left this life? They all let her think he was dead. Brigid, Red, Lilly. Faolan. All of them. She was hurt, furious.

  Put it away for now.

  Elena slowly followed Brigid up the stairs, her heart in her throat. Please be alive, Faolan. She went into his room. Our room, she thought with a stifled sob. Helping Brigid pull the covers down on the bed, Elena was struck by the scent of the sheets. They smelled like him, earthy and elemental, essential man. She experienced a memory of mornings wrapped in his arms. Loved and loving, igniting a fire in the heart she thought had died with him. She never thought to capture those feelings again.

  Brigid and Elena worked together to heal Faolan’s wounds; Brigid chanted and used potions, Elena cleaned and used warm water. Together they wrapped the wounds securely in bandages of torn sheets, although he wasn’t bleeding much anymore. Whether that was his wolfish healing powers at work or because he’d already lost so much blood, Elena didn’t know.

  “Brigi—”

  Brigid cut Elena off, “He’ll be alright for a few minutes. Go clean yourself up lass, then return straightaway. Hurry.”

  Elena couldn’t understand Brigid’s tone, and snapped back at her, “I don’t have anything to change into,” as if that were relevant.

  Brigid stood up to her full height, which was considerably taller than when she was the ancient shopkeeper. She looked at Elena then with the same piercing look she’d used outside. Elena deliberately lowered her defenses and let Brigid search her heart.

  “By the gods and goddesses, it was all a lie!” Brigid exclaimed. She rushed across the room and pulled Elena into her arms, crooning in Gaelic.

  Elena pulled away stiffly, not trying to see into Brigid, holding herself tightly together lest she lose her threadbare control.

  “Och, lassie, put your back down and change now. Your clothes are still here. Faolan never cleaned them out. I thought he was being maudlin, not getting rid of them, but he refused, said he wasna ready yet.”

  Brigid opened a drawer and handed Elena a pair of her own jeans, then reached into another drawer and grabbed a t-shirt. Without waiting for a response or providing any explanation, she shoved Elena toward the bathroom and returned to Faolan’s side. “Hurry, lass!”

  When Elena saw her reflection in the bathroom mirror, she understood Brigid’s desire to have her in clean clothes. She was covered in blood. Faolan’s blood. Washing herself quickly, she put on the clean clothes and tried to piece this all together. Too much had happened, too many truths were lies. What had Brigid meant when she’d said it had all been lies?

  Brigid was waiting when she came out of the bathroom. “Elena, forgive me. We have much to talk about, but not right now. Faolan needs you the way you needed him when you’d been lost in the chamber. Can you do it? Will you do it?”

  Looking at her strangely, Elena replied, “Of course, tell me what you need me to do.”

  “He has lost a lot of blood. We have stopped the bleeding, and he heals remarkably quickly. However, I fear he does not want to heal; that he willna come back unless he believes there is a reason. I can feel him giving up, even now. He is very nearly gone. You must bring him back, Elena.”

  “What do I do, tell me how,” Elena demanded, desperate to start before he gave up completely.

  “Lay next to him, lass. Let him feel you. I know you are untrained, but you must call to the sisterhood. They are deep within you, waiting for you to ask for their help. Feel his heartbeat and join yours to it. Use your voice inside his head and in his ears. Project your love, your healing light. Hurry, lass. Och, I doona’ know what it is with the two of you, but it worked once for you. Perhaps there is hope for him.”

  Elena climbed
on the bed and got under the covers with Faolan, jumped back out slipped off her jeans and then climbed back in again. She lay on her side, with her arm carefully draped over a part of his chest. She placed her hand over his heart and felt a very faint beat. Once, twice, and then nothing. His heart gave up the good fight, and he slipped into the void.

  Elena gave a howl, refusing to accept that he was really gone. “Help him, help me,” she beseeched, not knowing to whom she cried.

  She pressed her legs to his, skin to skin, “Faolan, you come back to me right now!” She felt the light of the sisterhood join hers, and peace filled her heart. Elena spoke quietly to Faolan, using both her voice and her heart to reach into his inner place, sending the white light that had joined them the first time they’d made love.

  “Come back to me, Faolan. Come back, my love. I need you. Your clan needs you. Come, Faolan, please come home.” Elena crooned to him in a singsong voice. Her hands stroked his arms and shoulders.

  She’d already mourned his death once, she couldn’t bear it if it happened again, if she was the cause of it a second time. She pushed away all the negative energy and focused on their love, on the time she’d known he’d been happy, and replayed her memories for him.

  Elena felt a small bump under her hand, impossibly faint. She pressed her chest hard against his back and concentrated on her own heartbeats, seeking to join his heartbeat to hers. There was another beat, stronger this time, then another, and another, until Faolan’s heartbeat joined hers and became stronger, a steady rhythm beneath her hand.

  Chapter Forty-four

  “Is there something else I should do? His heartbeat is steady now,” Elena looked up at Brigid, seeking further guidance.

  Brigid’s face was pale, and she was holding herself together every bit as tightly as Elena had been. “He stepped into the void, I felt him go.”