Magic Destiny: Dark Paranormal Romance (Irish Rogue Series Book 1)

by Kate Gellar

  Abby frowned at Paul’s easy reply to her discomfort. He was normally so protective of her. Yet he’d been nothing but encouraging about this trip.

  “You just don’t want to give up the house.”

  Paul laughed. “That too. Give it a chance. That’s all I’m saying.”

  Abby sighed. “Okay. How are things going between you and Wendy?”

  Paul paused before answering. “Fine, why?”

  “Did you two have dinner last night?”

  “We did. It was pleasant enough.”

  “Nothing else?”

  Paul huffed. “Nothing else can happen there. Leave it.”

  “Why?” He had never explained his aversion to the idea. “You two are perfect for each other. I don’t get why you’re keeping her away.”

  “It’s a long, complicated story. It’s better this way.” Paul changed the subject. “This call must be costing you a fortune. I should let you go.”

  “Wait!” Abby wasn’t ready to let him go yet. “Where’s Wendy now?”

  “In the house, why?”

  “I just called there. Nobody picked up.”

  “She’s probably still in bed. Look, give the break a chance. And don’t waste your money calling me. If you want to chat, text me and I’ll call you.”

  “Okay.” Abby bit her lip. “Good luck today.”

  “Thanks, cuz.” Paul clicked off.

  Abby tucked her phone into her bag by her bed and locked her room on the way out. The morning shift was almost over but it wasn’t quite lunchtime yet. Time to face the music.

  She pulled on the overalls and boots in her size that she’d left in the mudroom and headed out to the garden. With her head clearer and feeling a little better she could handle whatever the day threw at her. Abby returned to the spot where she and Liam had...where she had stolen something from him. Their connection had made her head spin and her skin tingle. There was no sign of him so she picked up a rake and cleared leaves from under a cluster of trees a short distance away.

  An hour later a bell rang from the house. She looked up to see Sam stood by the entrance to the kitchen waving the bell in the air. “Lunchtime.”

  She dropped her rake and headed back to the house. On the way back she saw Liam walking and chatting with Emma and Astrid, the two girls in her group who were dressed like they were going to a summer party. He looked over and locked his hot gaze on hers. It hit her like a slap to the face. She felt her body get weak, almost as if it craved him. Then the moment passed when Liam looked away. He smiled when one of the flirtatious girls whispered in his ear.

  Irritated, Abby slipped inside the mudroom and yanked off her boots and overalls. The others didn’t follow her in. They must have used the direct kitchen entrance. Made sense. Abby was the only one wearing overalls in the garden.

  She arrived in the kitchen to find a build-your-own-sandwich station. Loaves of bread were laid out on the table along with meats, condiments, and an assortment of vegetables. The other ladies milled around the table chatting and talking. Abby squeezed in and made a simple ham sandwich and took it into the dining room. She sat alone for a while until the other girls streamed into the room chatting and laughing and continuing their newfound camaraderie. None of the boys joined them. It surprised Abby to learn how much that disappointed her. Emma and Astrid sat at one end of the table with the girls from both other groups. Abby ate, pretending not to listen as they compared notes about their guys.

  Noomi, the Swedish brunette, entered the room. Abby hadn’t spoken to her before but she seemed less bitchy than her Swedish counterpart, Astrid. Noomi glanced at the gossiping girls, then at Abby. She slid in the seat next to Abby.

  “Hey, I heard what happened this morning. With Liam. You okay?”

  News traveled fast in this house. Abby kept her eyes forward. “He’s going around telling everyone about it, is he?”

  “No. I heard it from Brendan.”

  Abby rolled her eyes. “Ah, that’s much better.”

  “He wasn’t gossiping.” Noomi shrugged. “I asked him. He told me.”

  “Here’s an idea. Mind your own business.” Abby had always hated it when people stuck their noses into her business. She didn’t accept it then. She would not accept it now.

  “Okay, no need to bite my head off. I’m only asking how you’re doing.” Noomi bit into her sandwich.

  Abby glanced at the five girls at the top of the table, chatting about three out of the four boys. A flare of jealousy hit her square in the chest.

  “What you’re asking is if I feel anything for Liam, right? Well, I don’t. He’s all yours.” Gossipy women were so unattractive. Men who gossiped? Much worse.

  But Noomi didn’t strike Abby as overtly interested in the men. Why then was she sitting next to her, quizzing Abby about it?

  Noomi sighed, stared down at the sandwich in her hand. “You’ve got it all wrong. This place, it’s not what you think. And you, you could be...”

  Abby looked at her. “Could be what?”

  “Are you intensely attracted to any of the guys? I mean, beyond the usual liking the guy stuff?” Noomi met her gaze.

  “What? No! Why do you ask?”

  “Nothing. Forget I said anything.” Noomi smiled at her. “It’s not my place.”

  Abby returned the fake smile. “No it’s not. And it wasn’t your place to ask me about Liam either, but you did it anyway.”

  She hadn’t meant to sound rude, but it bothered her that Liam had told half, maybe all, the girls. Was nothing sacred to anyone?

  “If you’re worried he told everyone else, he didn’t. He told Brendan who told me.”

  That didn’t make Abby feel better. All it took was one person to start a rumor. “The fact that he said it to anyone is one person too many.” She stood up, her appetite gone. “I need to make a phone call before lunch is over. If you’ll excuse me.”

  Noomi stopped her with a hand on her arm and whispered, “I’m not the enemy, Abby. Some in this house are. I’m not.”

  “Good to know.” Abby snatched her arm back and left the room. She took the stairs to the first floor two at a time and strode down her bedroom corridor to the right of the stairs.

  The rune—symbol, whatever—on her door had a faint orange tint to it. She hovered her hand over it and felt a definite heat from the metal. There must have been a power source running through it. Next time she saw Sam she’d mention it to him.

  Abby locked her door, grateful for a space to call her own. She pulled her phone out of her bag and dialed the house phone in Bay Ridge. She had no idea how much this call cost, or her call to Paul earlier, but right now she didn’t care about money. It was nearly 1:30 p.m. here, meaning it was 8:30 a.m. back home.

  The phone rang. A female Abby didn’t recognise picked up on the third ring. “Hello?” She sounded groggy.

  “Hi, who’s this?”

  “Who’s this?”

  She heard Wendy the background. “I’ve got it. Go back to bed. Hello?”

  “Wendy? Who the fuck’s in my house?”

  “Abby. I’m glad it’s you.” Wendy sounded like she was on the move. Abby heard a door being shut. “That was Paul’s date from last night.”

  “What?”

  Wendy sighed. “Fucker invited me out for dinner, then his date showed up an hour later. Turns out he had made plans to go out with her after.”

  “I’m sorry, Wendy. I had no idea Paul could be a dick.”

  “Yeah, a prize one.”

  “And she’s in my house, why?” Abby swallowed back the anger she felt over a strange girl sleeping in her mother’s bed. “Are they in Ivy’s bed?”

  “Maybe. But on the plus side, your mom would get a kick out of it. She liked drama.”

  A little drama, yes, but not an orgy in her bed. “Get her out of there, Wendy, please. The thought is making me sick.”

  “Would love to, hun, but Paul said if I told her to go he’d kick me out of the house.”

>   “Fuck! When did my cousin become such an asshole?”

  “Beats me.” Abby pictured Wendy shrugging.

  “Then tell the woman I said to go. Blame it on me.”

  “That works for me.”

  Silence followed and Abby said, “Are you okay?”

  She heard Wendy smile. “Not really. Being around Paul is harder than I thought. But at least I’ve got my summer bartending job and the two-week summer program at Juilliard to keep me busy.”

  “I apologise for my cousin, Wendy.”

  “Not your fault.”

  “It is. I forced you two together.”

  “How’s Ireland?” Wendy switched subjects and Abby was glad for the distraction.

  “Cold. Green. Wet in the morning.”

  “And the men? Are they hot?”

  “On fire, Wendy.”

  “Shit! Maybe I should forget all this and join you for the summer. What do you say?”

  Abby paused. She wasn’t sure if she was staying yet. It had only been a day, but in her mind it was long enough. “Let me get settled in first. Then we’ll see.”

  “Really?” Wendy squealed. “I was only joking but I could have enough money saved in a couple of months. Plus the program will be over by then. I could come over for the last month of your stay.”

  “That would be nice, but I need a little space to deal with everything first.”

  “Oh yeah, of course. Your mom,” said Wendy. “I’m being an insensitive brat.”

  That wasn’t the only reason, but Ivy would be her excuse for now. “You’re not. You’re fantastic. I’d better go. I’ll check in soon over WhatsApp or text if I don’t have a Wi-Fi connection, which is most of the time. Keep me posted.”

  “Love ya, babe. Be safe. And if you can’t be safe, be bad.”

  Abby laughed at her friend’s advice as she ended the call she was sure cost half of her prepaid credit. She sat back on her bed and thought about Wendy’s last words to be safe. She didn’t know who these men were or what their plans were for the ten women in the castle beyond history lessons. So far they’d been gentlemen, except for Liam. But Abby had initiated that.

  Maybe that’s how cults lured you in, with smiles and promises, until they bolted the door to the only exit.

  Abby checked her watch. It was 1:40 p.m. and still twenty minutes of lunch left. A new headache dulled her senses. Maybe a trip outside would clear it a little. She left her room with the plan to spread her wings a little further than the estate walls.

  She returned to the mudroom and pulled on her boots and overalls. Outside, she started for the driveway to the front of the castle, the same one Sam had driven her up yesterday. The birds chirped high in the trees. Rubber meeting road sounded in the distance as the occasional car passed by the large entrance gates. She loved the peace and quiet of this estate. It was much quieter than either Brooklyn. or New York City.

  Abby saw the gates up ahead. A bout of nerves hit her as she kept on her path, remembering her arrival and how strange she’d felt sitting in the car when her hands had tingled and her face had flushed. That was right before the metal of her necklace had burned her. A similar energy once again surrounded her. Pins and needles spread through her hands and up her arms. Her head pounded more than it had after Brendan’s presentation. She pressed on.

  Just the Electromagnetic field, Abby. She would return with a skeptical Sylvie and prove to her there was nothing magical about this place. It was all science.

  But with every new step, Abby felt like she was treading water. The metal of her necklace grew warm.

  “What the hell?”

  She stuck her hand out and felt a pressure in the air in front of her. If she pushed hard enough, she could make it through.

  “I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”

  A voice from behind startled her. She whipped round to see Sam stood a few feet away. He leaned against a tree, his hands in his pockets. He had a smile on his face, but Abby detected a wobble in his voice. Nerves?

  “What is this?” She looked at him while holding out her hand to the front.

  “Protection.” Sam pushed off from the tree and walked toward her.

  “From what?”

  “I can’t tell you, but it’s nothing bad for you. Trust me.”

  Abby laughed, her own voice suddenly a wobbly mess. “I met you thirty-six hours ago. Why would I trust you? Is this a cult? Do you have electricity running the fence line?”

  Sam dragged a hand down his face. “Sort of. Abby, I really want to explain, but I can’t, not yet. We agreed to talk to all of you as a group.”

  “Who, you and the boys? Did you have a good laugh about what happened between me and Liam?”

  “It’s not like that...” Sam came closer.

  Abby backed away from him. But the pressure on her back kept her from moving too far. “Do you expect me to return to the house and pretend like we didn’t have this conversation?”

  Sam nodded. “That would be nice.”

  “Not gonna happen, Sam. What is this place? Why can’t I leave the estate?” She faced the pressure and moved laterally, feeling as she went.

  “It’s just until we can determine a few things.”

  “Determine what?” She looked back to see Sam had turned away. Whatever secret he hid was difficult for him.

  So what, Abby. He’s keeping you prisoner.

  “I’m not staying a minute longer than I need to,” said Abby. “You tell me what’s going on, or I find a way out of here.”

  “You can’t. A barrier of magic surrounds this property line.”

  “Magic?” She laughed and dropped her hands, forgetting about the invisible wall. “You sound like Sylvie. Is this a cult?”

  Sam was amused by her suggestion. “We don’t have cults in Ireland. Just religion.”

  Despite herself, Abby smiled at the joke. “Because religion in Ireland is practically like a cult, I get it. But that explains none of this.”

  “No it doesn’t.”

  “Is this summer program genuine?” Abby’s heart thumped as she waited for Sam’s answer.

  “Yes, but not for the reasons you think.”

  Abby returned to the pressure line but it felt too solid to break through. “I don’t like where this conversation is heading.”

  Sam followed her, his hands out defensively. “I want to tell you, Abby. I do. But I can’t yet. Not until we figure out a few things.”

  “Well, I’m not staying here under false pretenses. You gonna stop me?”

  “No. You might not think it but you’re free to go anytime. If you find a way out, I won’t stop you.” His words came out low, and throaty, like Abby had broken through his defensive wall. “None of us will. But I want you to stay.”

  She stopped and turned. He leveled her with his dark and brooding gaze. Heat shot straight to her core and ignited a hunger, a desire, for power.

  “I really want you to stay,” Sam repeated. “Liam and Brendan, too. And Murphy, in his own way.”

  Abby folded her arms despite her body’s protests. “I’m going to need a little more information.”

  17

  Sam

  The word “magic” had thrown her. How much truth would Sam reveal to make her stay?

  She didn’t relax her folded arms stance. Then she added a tapping foot to the mix. Sam couldn’t stop the smile that crept on his face. She looked adorable in her overalls and rubber boots, different to the other girls who dressed up for them. Abby didn’t care, and that’s what made her so... so...

  Stop it, Sam.

  He shook his head and with it his impure thoughts about her vanished.

  Abby continued to tap her foot, adding pressure for him to tell her something. If Abby was destined for their four, he couldn’t risk losing her. It had taken him years to find a woman who came remotely close. Sam needed to know what she was, what her role would be, if any, in this ancient fight. Was she witch or queen—or worse, mortal? Liam believed
she was the one. But Sam refused to rely solely on his attraction to her that trumped any feelings he had for the other girls. Which wasn’t much.

  Fuck it.

  Maybe he should tell her. If she left after hearing it, maybe it was better to know now.

  “I’m waiting, Sam,” said Abby.

  He’d been silent for too long. “Okay, but I’m going to need you to keep an open mind.”

  She rolled her eyes and nodded, but the curiosity in her eyes said she meant it.

  “Come back to the house. Please. To my office.”

  “No. I’d rather stay out here.”

  “Okay.” He looked around for his favorite tree, the one he used to climb when he was a kid. “Follow me.” He grabbed her hand and pulled her off the driveway along an overgrown path to a small clearing and the site of the two-hundred-year-old oak tree. Abby’s eyes widened when she saw it. It looked like every other tree on the property, but this one held a special place in his heart. It was the place his father had sent him when the local witches came to help him and his mother battle the demonic souls in the castle.

  “This place is special to you,” she said. Her words surprised him. He glanced down at their hands that where still joined. Feeling stripped bare and vulnerable, he let go.

  If anyone else had said it, Sam would have brushed it off. But her intimate words felt like a breeze against his skin. He ignored the signs pointing to Abby being more than a mortal and directed her to sit.

  She dropped to the ground and sat cross legged while he picked a spot far enough away so he couldn’t touch her.

  Abby looked around. “I can’t explain it, but this place feels familiar to me, like i was sent here.”

  The protection spell connected the people inside the barrier whether they wanted to or not, to strengthen them against what the seal hid.

  But Abby’s words about his connection to the tree delivered a punch to his gut. Because they had nothing to do with the spell.

  “You’re sensing my memories.”

  She shook her head and laughed. “That’s impossible. I must have climbed a similar tree when I was a kid. It’s a memory, that’s all.”

  Sam wished it were that easy. “Abby, I can’t tell you everything, you need to find some things out on your own. But I’ll tell you what I can.”