Midnight's Promise_Dark Warriors

by Donna Grant

  “There isn’t,” Laura said sadly. “I’m sorry.”

  “Then how?”

  Laura rose and leaned against the footboard. “Aisley betrayed Jason to Phelan and the others. So, Jason wanted Phelan to think she betrayed him. It almost worked. There was a large battle, and Jason was winning. Except Aisley stepped between Jason and Phelan and took a hit of magic meant for Phelan. It killed her.”

  Evie gave a choked half-laugh. “But she’s alive.”

  “Magic,” Laura said with a grin. “Turns out Aisley is a Phoenix. It’s something passed down through her family line and hasn’t been seen in ages. She’s able to regenerate like a mythical phoenix.”

  “That’s truly amazing. I didn’t know such a thing existed.”

  “Every Druid and Warrior from MacLeod Castle has had an encounter with Deirdre, Declan, or Jason. It’s been a constant battle against these powerful droughs that seems to never end.”

  “It can end. At least with Jason.”

  Laura licked her lips slowly. “Phelan told me what happened with the ancients. Have you tried to talk to them again?”

  “No.” And Evie wasn’t keen on trying anytime soon. She feared the figure might show once more. Yet, she knew she would have to attempt it again.

  For Brian.

  For Malcolm.

  “Perhaps Aisley and I can try as well,” Laura offered. “One of us should be able to learn how to kill Jason. We’ve asked before, but none of us has gotten the information you have.”

  “I think they were just really pissed at me,” Evie said with a lift of her shoulder.

  Laura turned and softly walked around the bed until she took the chair Phelan had occupied earlier. She caught Evie’s gaze. “Rhys and Malcolm are convinced you are a good person despite now being drough. There is a Druid, Reaghan, who can look into your eyes and determine if you’re lying or not. I don’t have that kind of magic.”

  She paused and took a deep breath. “You see, Evie, the Warriors and Druids at the castle are my family. Many have died in these battles, and I don’t want to see anyone else killed. So I need to know, did you want to use black magic?”

  Evie rubbed her thumb along the tattered remains of Malcolm’s jeans. “You know, Malcolm spoke of you all. He carries such guilt for what he’s done that he doesn’t think he belongs at the castle. I disagree with him. There’s no other place for a man such as him.” Evie stared into Laura’s moss green eyes and said, “No, Laura, I don’t want Satan to own my soul, but yes, I wanted the black magic to use on the person or people responsible for taking Brian. I wanted it to protect the spell Jason is adamant about getting, a spell that could be dangerous or even deadly to all. How could I have deaths on my conscience? Deaths that I could prevent by giving up my soul?”

  She let her gaze fall to Malcolm’s face and sat forward to move the lock of golden hair that kept falling over his forehead.

  “Sometimes we want things to be simple,” Evie said. “But they rarely are. Nothing is really black and white. There are many shades of gray. Am I evil? No. But I am drough.”

  CHAPTER

  THIRTY-EIGHT

  Malcolm was trapped in Hell.

  There were no windows, no doors. Only mind-numbing blackness and the ever-present shadow figure that slashed his flesh again and again.

  Malcolm wanted to fight the figure, but it was as if his limbs were stuck in honey. He couldn’t move them quickly enough to do any damage to the individual.

  Not even Malcolm’s enhanced sight allowed him to see what was attacking him. It melded with the darkness as if it were part of it, controlling it.

  Malcolm bellowed in fury as his back was cut. His leg buckled and he fell to one knee. Blood poured down his back and his chest. His hands were covered in it, which made it impossible for him to grab hold of anything.

  His entire body hurt. It wasn’t just the slashes. It was inside. His bones, his muscles … everything felt as if it were dying.

  He threw back his head, his arms out to the side, as he called up Daal. But his god didn’t answer.

  It was as if Daal had ceased to exist.

  Malcolm braced his left hand on the ground since his right arm refused to work. His mind turned to Evie. She was safe, safe with the Dragon Kings. No matter what hell he had to endure, at least Wallace wouldn’t get his hands on her.

  Malcolm’s chest ached as his lungs struggled to drag in air. He thought of Evie’s clear blue eyes, of her soft touch and her smile.

  Suddenly, off to his right, he could’ve sworn he caught a glimpse of her running past him, her curls trailing behind her as if ensnared in the wind.

  He knew it was either his mind playing tricks on him or the figure’s idea of torture. If it was the figure, it’d found the perfect way to torment him. To have Evie so close, yet not have her.

  And then she was there standing before him. She looked around as if she couldn’t see anything.

  Malcolm called out to her, but she was so far away. He could see her standing there, an unseen wind whipping around her and molding her long, thin skirt to her legs.

  Her beautiful curls hung around her face and danced in the wind. She was talking with someone, but he couldn’t hear her words.

  Malcolm blinked as if in slow motion. Evie moved to the side, toward someone or something. He roared his fury when he saw the shadowy figure dancing around her, but no sound came out.

  No matter how many times Malcolm tried to go to her, he couldn’t take a step. His feet felt as if they were bogged down in tar.

  The longer he stared at Evie and the figure, the angrier he became. Yet, the aches of his body began to dissipate.

  Malcolm looked down at his hands, and then at Evie. Somehow she was doing this. She was taking away his pain.

  “No,” he whispered.

  He didn’t want her trapped as he was. If she didn’t leave soon that’s exactly what would happen.

  “Evie! Evie, you have to leave!”

  She never heard him. Whatever the shadowy figure was doing, it had her well in its clutches. Malcolm watched in horror as Evie began to dance with the fiend. Slowly, sensuously.

  It was the worst thing Malcolm had ever had to watch. His Evie was changing right before his eyes. He’d warned her there would be choices, and he feared he was watching her make one. And it was one that would forever alter her life.

  Malcolm clenched his fists, his arms bent as he leaned over and bellowed his fury and helplessness. This couldn’t be happening.

  He looked up to find Evie dancing alone to music only she could hear. The shadowy figure stood near her, as if orchestrating everything. There seemed to be nothing Malcolm could do. The deeper into the figure’s clutches she went, the better Malcolm felt.

  “No’ for me, Evie. You need to save Brian. He’s the one who warrants it.”

  She stopped dancing and looked around her. Hope blossomed in Malcolm’s chest. Had she heard him? Had he finally gotten through somehow?

  Evie tried to run from the figure, but it wasn’t that easy. As soon as she turned away from the shadowy character, every one of Malcolm’s injuries opened, the blood pouring down him once more as Evie screamed in agony.

  Her pain was his final straw. Malcolm roared, the sound deep and furious. It was the sound of a Warrior, the voice of a god.

  And it got the figure’s attention.

  In a blink, it stood before Malcolm once more and proceeded to reach into Malcolm’s chest and wrap a hand around his heart.

  And squeezed.

  MacLeod Castle

  “I need better answers,” Fallon demanded as he paced the great hall.

  Ramsey shrugged. “I’ve nothing to give. We can no’ attack Wallace’s mansion. It would be suicide.”

  “Is he really that powerful now?” Reaghan asked.

  Ramsey nodded and pushed away from the wall. “We were lucky in the last battle with him. He was one against all of us, and Aisley paid the ultimate price. Had she no’ be
en a Phoenix, Phelan would’ve lost his woman.”

  “And I’m no’ keen on losing mine,” Lucan said.

  Cara smiled sadly and leaned into Lucan. “Nor do I want to lose you.”

  “If we can’t attack, then what?” Saffron asked.

  Ronnie tossed aside the pen she’d been fiddling with. “Well, we sure as hell can’t set a trap for him.”

  “I don’t know about y’all, but I’m not at all interested in waiting around for him to get to us,” Gwynn stated in her thick Texas accent.

  Logan shook his head. “Gwynn’s right. There has to be some way we can get to Wallace.”

  “I’m more concerned with Malcolm,” Larena said.

  Ramsey noticed she sat quietly during much of their talk. Fallon stopped his pacing and went to her. The old Larena was returning, but Ramsey still saw traces of the drough blood lingering. Larena was fighting it, and Britt’s serum was working.

  Larena rose from her seat on the steps. “If Broc can’t find Malcolm, then Wallace is to blame. He has something in store for my cousin, and I simply can’t sit by and wait to discover what that is.”

  “We found a way to kill Deirdre and Delcan,” Marcail said from her spot near the hearth. “We’ll do the same for Jason.”

  Ramsey looked at Gwynn as she rested her hand on her closed laptop. “Gwynn, we could use the aid of all the Druids we can find. Why no’ see if Evangeline Walker might be willing to join us?”

  “Is that wise?” Broc asked.

  “What do we have to lose?”

  Larena stood beside Fallon. “Exactly. We’ve fought battles before. Jason brought us a war. It’s time to end it.”

  * * *

  Evie moved her food around on her plate with her fork. She’d left Malcolm and ventured down into the manor’s kitchen only because Laura and Aisley hadn’t given her a choice.

  That’s when she met Cassie, Elena, and Jane, the wives of Hal, Guy, and Banan.

  “If you don’t like that, I can fix something else,” Jane said.

  Evie looked into her kind amber eyes and shook her head. “I don’t have much of an appetite, thanks.”

  The three women, along with Aisley and Laura, carried on a conversation, but Evie didn’t pay attention. Her mind kept going over what had happened when she had gone toward the chanting and drums.

  The shadowy figure had never been there before. Was it evil trying to take over? Or was it something else? The only one she felt as if she could discuss this with was Malcolm, but that was impossible now.

  Evie sent up another silent prayer to keep Malcolm out of Wallace’s clutches until he was healed. If Jason came for Malcolm now, Evie feared what might happen.

  She also dreaded going to the ancients again. They hadn’t been in the mood to listen last time, and she suspected it would be the same if she tried again. Though she didn’t have a choice.

  There was Brian to consider. Evie knew if she went to Jason, she would be lost. It was a price she was willing to pay if it meant she could get Brian free and possibly kill Jason.

  She realized how rude she was being and pulled out of her musings to hear the women whispering. Evie kept her gaze out the window but listened to them.

  “Does she know?” Aisley whispered.

  Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Cassie shake her head of brunette hair. The American said, “I don’t think so.”

  Elena, another American, leaned over the table and said in a low voice, “She’s been too wrapped up with Malcolm. Besides, the guys were careful not to say or do anything that she could see.”

  “Should we tell her?” Laura asked.

  Evie turned her head to Laura. “Tell me what? What is it that I’ve apparently missed and no one wants me to know?”

  Jane wouldn’t meet her gaze, but Elena did. “You didn’t seem at all curious about how Malcolm got here ahead of you.”

  “What?” Evie set down her fork carefully. “Malcolm told me there was a Warrior who could teleport. I assumed he’s the one who brought him here. Where is Fallon anyway?”

  Laura set down her cucumber sandwich. “Not here.”

  “Did he leave already? When Malcolm needs him?” Evie didn’t want to talk about Fallon. She wanted to concentrate on Malcolm, Brian, and Jason.

  Aisley said, “Fallon was never here. It was Rhys who brought Malcolm.”

  “He can teleport as well?”

  Cassie shook her head. “No.”

  Evie rolled her eyes and scooted back her chair as she got to her feet. “I’ve had a very traumatic day. I’ve got a friend who’s barely hanging onto life, and a brother I may never see again. Oh, and let’s not forget the sociopath who has some kind of plan for me. So, forgive me if I’m not catching on as I should, but if you all have something to say, just say it.”

  “Evie, please,” Jane beseeched. “We didn’t mean any harm, really. It’s just that normally people begin to ask questions.”

  Laura got to her feet. “We’re sorry. You’re right, of course. You’ve had quite the day. We’ve stuffed up. Please sit.”

  Evie hated it when she wanted to be mad but people were nice to her. It took the wind right out of her sails. She sat back down and looked at her plate.

  “A good night’s sleep will help,” Elena said. “You’ll want to be close to Malcolm so we can have the room next to his readied for you.”

  Evie lifted her head to smile her thanks. Her gaze was drawn to the sky that was colored in vivid orange and gold as it sank behind the mountain.

  “It seems wrong for the world to look so beautiful when things are falling apart around you.”

  A roar that rattled the windows sounded into the silence following her words. Evie sat up straight in her chair and noticed Jane looked away while Elena and Cassie watched her carefully.

  “What is going on?” Evie asked warily. The sound was louder than anything she’d heard from Malcolm, even when he’d been fighting Wallace.

  The roar sounded again. A moment later she saw a large shape out of the corner of her eye. When she turned her head to look out the window, she saw the massive amber-colored dragon flying low over the ground and scattering sheep in every direction.

  “What the hell?” she asked as she nearly fell out of her chair.

  Elena reached for the teapot, and said matter-of-factly, “That’s what we’ve been wondering if you knew. The men here at Dreagan are really dragons.”

  CHAPTER

  THIRTY-NINE

  Dragons.

  Evie wouldn’t have believed it had she not seen the dragon with her own eyes. If she weren’t so wrapped up in her own world, she would’ve thought to ask Rhys how he and Hal had gotten to Dreagan so quickly.

  Her system had taken its share of shocks over the last few days to last four lifetimes.

  As Evie walked woodenly from the kitchen, she really looked at the Dreagan manor. Dragons were everywhere. Some were evident, some almost hidden.

  The wall sconces were iron dragons that lunged from the wall, one of their claws holding the dangling lights. The dining room table that could easily seat twenty or more had legs resembling those of dragons. The designer had carved it so it looked as if the dragons were carrying the weight of the table on their shoulders. Even the newel post at the base of the stairs was a dragon winding around the thick wooden post.

  When Evie walked up the stairs her eyes landed on the large pictures dominating the area, and in each and every one of them, there was a dragon.

  By the time she reached the third floor, she had numerous questions—all of which would have to wait. She walked to Rhys who once more stood sentry at Malcolm’s room.

  “So. A dragon, huh?”

  He frowned before his face turned hard. “It’s no’ information you can share, lass.”

  “As if I’ll be going around telling everyone of Malcolm or Jason Wallace. Give me some credit,” she mumbled and looked to Malcolm.

  Only to find Con and Phelan standing on either side of
the bed. Phelan was giving Malcolm more blood, and Con was touching Malcolm, his eyes closed as if all his concentration was on him.

  “He’s going to get better,” Rhys whispered. “You’ll come in here to find him up and about as if nothing happened.”

  “You’ve no idea how much I want that. I’m more scared of losing him than I am of facing Jason.”

  Rhys shifted so he leaned a shoulder against the wall. “You care deeply for him then.”

  “I do. From the moment I first met him I knew instinctively that he would change my life. He’s helped me from the beginning, even when I didn’t want it. Malcolm deserves better than what I’ve led him to.”

  “You didna lead him to anything. You need to remember that,” Rhys said in a cold, hard voice. “Wallace would’ve taken you. Malcolm did what he had to do in order to see you safe.”

  Evie looked into Rhys’s aqua eyes made even more brilliant by the dark hair surrounding his face. “He doesn’t deserve to be on that bed fighting for his life.”

  “He’s a Warrior and a Highlander. What else do you expect?” he asked with a lopsided grin.

  Evie licked her lips and looked at Malcolm. “If I had only listened to him from the start he might not be hurt.”

  “Och. No use going down that road, lass. What’s done is done. Look to the future, no’ the past.”

  Evie remained in the doorway as the minutes stretched on. No matter how much blood Phelan gave or how much magic Con used, there was no change in Malcolm.

  She recalled how much pain she had been in after her run-in with the figure. Just a few drops of Phelan’s blood had healed her entire body instantly. And yet it wasn’t making a dent in Malcolm’s.

  A hand suddenly took her arm and turned her away. “You need to rest,” Laura told her as she led her to where Jane stood at the next doorway.

  Jane smiled and motioned her inside. “You should have everything you need. If you don’t, please let us know.”

  “Guy said you didn’t have any clothes with you,” Elena said as she came out of the connected bathroom. “I can send him to get them if you like.”

  Evie quickly shook her head. There was no way any of them would trust her if they knew where she had been staying. “I’ll make do.”