by Donna Grant
His contacts had come through with information on Eilish, but there was nothing about her mother. A dark-haired, dark-eyed man pictured as her father, a Patrick Flanagan, caught his attention, though.
Nikolai and Esther had been sure Donal Cleary was her sire. If that were the case, then Patrick had either stolen Eilish as a baby, or he’d been told to take her. Neither option was good because that meant there was much more to the Druid and her past than Ulrik first realized.
The only way to get to the truth was to go to the source. He looked at the clock, calculating the time difference in Boston. After hiding the desk with his magic, Ulrik touched his cuff and thought of Patrick Flanagan and Boston.
A heartbeat later, he stood outside a brownstone. Ulrik glanced around to see if anyone had noticed his sudden appearance, but most everyone had their faces buried in their electronics.
Just as Ulrik was about to walk up the steps to the door, he noticed a man bundled in a coat with short, dark hair, striding toward him. Eilish’s father—or kidnapper. The man spotted Ulrik and slowed to a halt.
“Patrick Flanagan?” Ulrik said. “I’m wondering if we could talk about Eilish.”
“Who are you?” the man demanded, his Irish accent still thick after so many years in America.
“A friend.”
Patrick raised a brow. “What’s a Scot doing here?”
“Trying to find answers.”
Patrick shook his head and sighed loudly. “She shouldn’t be there.”
“Why?”
“I keep hoping she’ll come home.”
“Why?” Ulrik asked again.
Patrick looked at him as if just remembering he was there. “I cannot tell you.”
“If Eilish is in danger, then you should go to her.”
“I can’t.”
Ulrik took a menacing step toward the mortal. His answer confirmed Ulrik’s suspicions about the Druid. “Explain it to me. Now.”
“Come inside,” Patrick said as he pulled keys from his pocket.
Ulrik followed the human inside the brownstone and to the back where the kitchen was. Despite it being early morning, the man opened a cabinet and took out a bottle of whisky. Patrick downed two shots before offering some to Ulrik.
“I’ll pass, and I’d rather you stay sober so you can talk.”
“There isn’t enough whisky in Boston to get me drunk,” Patrick mumbled. Then he shoved away the glass and blew out a breath. “Is Eilish well?”
“She’s thriving, actually.”
“She lied to me,” Patrick said. “I thought she was in Australia. I should’ve known she’d go to Ireland to look for Eireen.”
Ulrik folded his arms over his chest. “Her mother.”
“Aye.” His face suddenly pinched with worry. “Eilish hasn’t been in contact with the Duffys, has she?”
“I take it that’s Eireen’s surname. As far as I know, Eilish only knows her mother’s first name.”
Patrick put his face in his hand, his shoulders shaking. After a moment, he raised his tear-streaked face. “Eilish has magic, doesn’t she?”
“A lot of it, actually.”
“I looked for signs of it while she was growing up, but I saw nothing. And she so wanted to know about her mother. It was a mistake giving her Eireen’s finger rings. But a child should know their mum, right?”
This puzzle Ulrik was trying to decipher was becoming more and more complicated. “You should’ve told Eilish things about her mother when she asked. Refusing to talk about her only made Eilish more keen to figure things out.”
“I was trying to protect her.”
“From who?” Ulrik demanded.
Patrick ran his arm over his eyes to wipe away the tears and sniffed loudly. “From her family.”
“Why would she need to fear her family?”
“Because they want to kill her.”
Ulrik’s arms dropped to his sides. Of all the things Patrick could’ve said, Ulrik hadn’t expected that. The need to protect that swelled within Ulrik nearly matched his anger. “Perhaps you should start from the beginning.”
“If Eilish is using magic, they’ll find her. I can’t believe they haven’t done it already.”
“She wants to locate her mother, which means eventually, she’ll find them. So tell me what’s going on.”
Patrick cleared his throat and leaned back against the counter. “I was a friend of Eireen’s. We’d known each other since we were children. She would often come to my house to escape her family. They were so strict and cruel. It was during those times that Eireen showed me her magic. It was our secret, something we never discussed unless we were alone.”
Ulrik remained silent, waiting for him to continue.
“We kept in touch long after we finished school. She told me she’d fallen in love with a man named Donal Cleary while she was looking for other Druids. She also showed me how much her magic had grown. I was going to help her leave with Donal so they could get married.”
“Why was she keeping that from her family?” Ulrik asked.
Patrick lowered his chin to his chest for a moment. “That family was malicious. They kept Eireen bound to them in ways I can’t even figure out after all these years. And after Eireen and Donal became engaged, I thought we’d celebrate. I was happy that she’d found someone who understood and accepted who she was, and I thought she was finally going to get away.”
“You weren’t in love with her?”
Patrick looked askance at him “Eireen was like a sister to me.”
Ulrik inwardly shrugged. “Go on.”
“She rang me, and I could hear that she was crying. She said she thought her parents knew about her magic. Her sisters had begun asking a lot of questions, and Eireen had to lie at every turn. I told her to leave that day with Donal. She cried harder, and I knew there had to be more that she wasn’t telling me about her family. I never liked them. They were never unkind to me, but they weren’t exactly likable people either. They never allowed anyone into their house, and hated that I was friends with Eireen.”
Ulrik frowned. “Were you her only friend?”
“Aye. Up until she went looking for Druids. Those few months after she met Donal, she was the happiest I’d ever seen her.”
“So what happened?”
“I tried to get her to tell me why she feared her family. It was one of the few things she never spoke about. When she wouldn’t, I told her to at least tell Donal. She said she was going to the next day. But then her sisters followed her to the pub.”
Ulrik leaned back against the wall. “She told Donal she had one last promise to keep with her family. Do you know anything about that?”
“No,” he said with a shake of his head.
“Do you know Donal?”
“I never met him. Eireen told me everything about him, though.”
Ulrik narrowed his gaze on Patrick. “Donal never saw Eireen after that day, but I think you know exactly what happened.”
His face paled as his expression crumbled. “Aye, I do, but I wish to God I didn’t.”
“Tell me,” Ulrik demanded.
Patrick squeezed his eyes closed. “I’d been calling Eireen for nearly a week. It wasn’t like her to not respond or return my calls. I was about to go to Donal when she rang me. There was such fear in her voice. She told me she was hiding by the port. She wanted me to come to her and make sure I wasn’t watched or followed.
“It took me an hour to get to her once I realized I was being tailed by two different people. When I finally found her, I almost didn’t recognize her. Eireen was filthy. Her clothes were dirty and torn, and her feet were bare and bloody.”
“She escaped,” Ulrik deduced.
Patrick nodded, swallowing hard. “I got her food, which she scarfed down. When I tried to get her to come with me, she refused. She said her family would know I helped her. But I wasn’t going to leave her alone. Especially when she told me.…”
“Told you what
?” Ulrik pressed when Patrick’s voice trailed off.
“She was pregnant.” The man wiped a hand down his face. “I tried to talk her into contacting Donal, but she said if she did, her family would kill him. I spent the next few hours convincing her that I wasn’t going to leave her. If she wouldn’t call Donal, then I would help her. We went on the run after that.”
Ulrik pushed away from the wall. “Until she gave birth.”
“Aye. Unfortunately, her family was closing in on us by then.”
“Why did she fear them? She had magic.”
“And it was that magic they wanted. Eireen put the babe in my arms after naming her. She told me to take her far from Ireland and make sure Eilish never returned. When I snuck out the of the building, I heard someone bust in the front door and bellow for Eireen.”
CHAPTER NINETEEN
The Dragonwood on Dreagan
Where was the peace he used to find among the trees? How many times had Con walked the Dragonwood and found tranquility when his worries became too great? Why couldn’t achieve it now?
He looked up at the trees towering high above him. The snow was melting as spring beckoned, showing yet another passage of time. There was much that weighed upon his mind, but the heaviest at the moment was Ulrik.
Con wasn’t sure what to make of his old friend. He lowered his head and looked around him. The last time he’d seen Ulrik, he appeared visibly upset. There had also been a moment when Con thought Ulrik might tell him what bothered him, but it had passed quickly.
He wasn’t sure if he should be happy Ulrik hadn’t challenged him yet, or worried. Con was tired of waiting. More than that, he just wanted it over.
Ever since he’d banished Ulrik, he wondered at his decision. As the years went by, he told himself it had been the right thing to do. Over the last millennium, he’d begun to question himself again.
And now that Ulrik could apparently come and go on Dreagan as he pleased, it all seemed so silly. In having that information, Con had a decision to make. Did he continue to allow Ulrik to see his Silvers after so long of being without them? Or did Con make it so that Ulrik’s banishment cut him off from Dreagan unless he killed Con?
The carefree, fun-loving, always smiling Ulrik had died the day his woman did. But the Ulrik Con spoke with recently seemed different from the last year or so. Ulrik showed hints of his old self.
No longer did Con see the hatred that had blazed so clearly in Ulrik’s eyes when they fought in Edinburgh. That didn’t mean Ulrik wasn’t going to challenge him, however. The truth was, Ulrik was the most cunning individual Con had ever known.
Unfortunately, he wouldn’t be able to deal with Ulrik right away. The one he would like to focus his efforts on was Mikkel, but so far, the snake had been so elusive that even Ryder couldn’t locate him.
The sound of footsteps approaching had Con turning to look behind him. He spotted Vaughn walking his way. Each Dragon King had a specialty, and Vaughn’s was anything to do with the humans’ legal system.
“If you’re walking the Dragonwood, then your troubles must be weighing heavily,” Vaughn said as he reached him.
Con looked into Vaughn’s Persian blue eyes and shrugged. “I’ve seen you out here on plenty of occasions.”
“I might just like the trees,” he replied.
They grinned at each other then.
Vaughn’s faded quickly. “You doona have to carry it all, my friend.”
“It comes with the position.”
“Just in case, I’ve begun paperwork on all the various companies and shell corporations Ryder has discovered that Mikkel owns under all his aliases. If he tries to come at us legally, I’ll stop him.”
Con gave a nod of appreciation. “It would be just like Mikkel to try something so devious. He doesna just want to be a Dragon King. He wants my position.”
“We’d never follow him.”
“You’d have to.”
“We’re all ready to find that prick, but I didna come out here to talk about Mikkel. Isla has arrived.”
If the most powerful Druid from MacLeod Castle were at Dreagan, then it must be about the wooden dragon found on Fair Isle. “Did she say what she wanted?”
Vaughn shook his head as they turned and began the walk back to the manor. “She asked to speak with you and Rhi.”
“Rhi isna here.”
“I told Isla that. She wasna happy about it.”
Con flattened his lips. “Have you called for Rhi?”
“Aye. She’s no’ been seen.”
Con hoped that the Light Fae would be there by the time they got to the manor, but no sooner had he stepped inside the library than he realized Rhi wasn’t there. Vaughn gave a nod before he proceeded down to his office.
With a sigh, Con turned to those in the library. Isla was pacing the room, muttering to herself. Standing off to the side was the Warrior, Hayden, her husband, who wouldn’t take his worried gaze off her. Beside him was the leader of the Warriors, Fallon MacLeod.
As soon as Fallon spotted Con, he walked over. “Isla has been like this since she woke before dawn.”
Con watched the Druid for a moment. “What’s wrong?”
“She only said she needed to get here and see you and Rhi. She’s hasna said anything more. No’ even to Hayden.”
Which is why the tall, blond Warrior stood with such a concerned expression on his face.
Con gave a nod to Fallon. Then he said, “Rhi. I need you at Dreagan. Now.”
The Light Fae would hear his call. Normally, she’d appear almost immediately. If she didn’t, then something was wrong. Minutes ticked by with nothing. The longer Isla paced, the more troubled Hayden became.
“Rhi!” Con yelled.
There was a subtle shift in the air right before the Light Fae materialized in front of him. “What?” she asked irritably. “I was busy.”
He pointed behind her. Rhi’s silver eyes touched on Fallon before she turned around. As soon as she saw Isla, Rhi’s attitude changed from irritation to alarm. She immediately walked to the Druid.
Isla halted when she saw Rhi. “Something is happening.”
“What?” Rhi asked softly.
Con, Fallon, and Hayden all moved in closer to the duo.
Isla’s ice blue eyes looked at Hayden before they landed on Con. “The Ancients keep screaming Ulrik’s name.”
The Ancients were long-dead Druids who chose to speak to other Druids, but it was always done in riddles. They had been the ones to choose Isla as the conduit regarding the wooden dragon when it was found—before the Kings even knew what it was.
“Ulrik?” Rhi asked and swung her gaze to Con. “Does this mean it’s time for the battle?”
Isla shook her head of long, black hair, her ice blue eyes flashing. “They’re saying nothing more than his name over and over. Along with the incoherent screams as they did when the wooden dragon was found.” She swallowed and looked at each of them. “I can’t decipher what they’re trying to tell me, but their feelings are clear. They’re scared.”
“I’m sorry I didn’t come sooner,” Rhi said. She shoved her midnight locks over her shoulder. “I’ve been on the Isle of Skye with Corann.”
Con perked up, hoping that meant she’d discovered something. “And?”
“We’ve been looking through the records of the Skye Druids.”
It was the way she wouldn’t quite meet his gaze that worried Con. “Spit out whatever it is you doona want to say.”
Rhi glared at him before blowing out a breath. “Corann said that the Skye Druids were formed after the dragons were sent away. The original Druids saw the event. When they and other mortals tried to stand up for you, they were hunted.”
“What?” Con asked with a frown. “We never knew.”
“You wouldna,” Fallon said. “You were saving the dragons and trying to stop a war.”
Con slid his gaze back to Rhi. “Do they know who was there to put the magic into the wooden dragon?�
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“That’s what we were looking through the records for,” Rhi explained. “The Skye Druids record everything. Much like you.”
Isla walked to a chair and sank onto it. “So the culprits could be listed.”
“If we’re lucky,” Rhi said with a nod.
Con saw the doubt in the way she held herself. “But you doona think so?”
“I don’t,” she admitted. “The Druids were hiding from those who chased them. They found Skye and used it as a means to keep anyone who wasn’t a Druid out. The thought that any of them was on Fair Isle at the time—”
“Is slim,” Con finished. So much for the glimmer of hope that had begun to shine.
Rhi shrugged, her lips twisting. “Corann is going to keep looking just the same.”
“Whatever has the Ancients stirred up in regards to Ulrik has to do with the wooden dragon,” Isla said. “I know it.”
Hayden walked to stand behind his wife and laid his hands on her shoulders in comfort. “She’s the only Druid at the castle the Ancients are talking to about this. Again.”
Con moved to stand before Isla. He squatted down to look at her. “Is there a chance you are somehow connected to those Druids who created the wooden dragon?”
“Anything is possible,” she said with a lift of her shoulders.
Con straightened and walked away, his mind jumbled with this new added development. Then he spun back to Isla. “In all the times Ulrik and Mikkel were attacking Druids, humans, and us, did the Ancients ever react as they are now?”
“Never,” Isla replied.
Hayden’s blond brows snapped together. “What are you getting at, Con?”
“That the Ancients could care less if Ulrik challenges me,” Con said as he looked to Rhi. “Isla’s right, this is about the wooden dragon.”
Rhi visibly winced. “Well, I might’ve told Ulrik about it.”
“And?” Con asked, curious as to his old friend’s reaction.
Fallon looked at him in shock. “You’re no’ angry?”
“I don’t have the energy to waste on that when, whether Ulrik wants to admit it or not, the wooden dragon affects him because he’s a Dragon King.”
Rhi slowly nodded her head. “That’s why I told him. I wanted him to know there were other things disturbing the Kings.”