by Donna Grant
Aisley threaded her fingers with his. “Where was she leading you?”
“As far below Cairn Toul as they could. Deirdre had magical chains waiting for me. Isla clasped those manacles around my wrists. She wouldna look at me, but she told me the shackles would grow as I did so they wouldna chafe too badly.”
“She regretted bringing you,” Aisley said.
Phelan blew out a harsh breath. “It didna matter. I was there. She locked the manacles. Then left me in the dark. I was brought three meals a day, but the Druids sent to me were Deirdre’s slaves and never spoke. Every day Deirdre would have my blood drained from me, enough to fill a goblet. For almost twenty years I had only myself to talk to. Then the real hell began.”
“She released your god.”
He nodded slowly. “Inside me is Zelfor, the god of torment. No’ even being a Warrior got me released from that dungeon. Instead, she continued drinking my blood.”
“I don’t understand,” Aisley said in confusion. “Why would she want your blood? Did she drink all the Warriors’ blood?”
“Just mine,” he said wearily. “My blood can heal anything, beauty. The only thing it can no’ do is bring someone back from the dead.”
She thought of her baby, of how her infant daughter had suffered needlessly. Phelan could have saved her.
Aisley shoved aside such thoughts. That would lead to insanity. Her daughter was gone. The only good thing about that was Jason couldn’t harm her.
“And your power?” she asked.
Phelan stroked her hand with the back of his thumb. He said nothing as he looked into her eyes. Aisley turned her head when she saw something flare out of the corner of her eye.
There was a large fireplace with a giant blaze where the window used to be. A second later and the entire bedroom looked like something out of a medieval castle. She looked around in awe.
And then in a blink, it was gone.
Her head jerked to him. “You can change someone’s perception of reality?”
“Aye. It’s how I stayed sane. It’s also how I gained control over Zelfor.”
“What an amazing power.”
“It’s come in handy a few times,” he said with a grin.
She nodded. “I bet. Did Deirdre eventually let you go?”
“One of the MacLeods was taken by Deirdre. The other two brothers came for him. They brought other Warriors with them. Quinn met Marcail in that place since both were prisoners. Other Warriors who had befriended Quinn then joined in the battle. It wasna long before Deirdre was killed.”
Aisley rubbed her forehead in confusion. “I thought you said it was Laria who killed Deirdre?”
“I did. Deirdre was killed in this battle, but it was just her body that died, no’ her soul. Her magic was powerful enough that she regenerated her body.”
A shiver of dread snaked down Aisley’s back. Her thoughts instantly turned to Jason. It was a tangible fear she had that he would suddenly appear. Now, it seemed, she was right to worry.
“Isla, gravely wounded, came down to my dungeon and released me.”
Aisley set aside thoughts of Jason for the moment. “She did regret bringing you to Deirdre. How long were you in Cairn Toul?”
“I doona know exactly. Fifty years? A hundred? It matters no’. I couldna remember my parents or where they lived. I couldna even recall their faces or names.”
She leaned forward to cup his face. “You couldn’t keep the memories and fight your god for control. It was one or the other. Besides, you were just a small child. How could you remember everything?”
“I doona know what it means to have a family. I have one person I call friend. One. I’ve never had any kind of relationship.”
“I can’t remember the last time I had a true friend.”
He flashed a boyish grin. “Looks like we’re two of a kind.”
“That we are. What happened after you left Cairn Toul?”
“I wandered. Endlessly. I walked the entire breadth and width of Scotland several times over. I learned about coin and how to count it. I learned to read and write. I learned how to make love to a woman. I learned … everything.”
Aisley couldn’t believe all he overcame. She had taken for granted the things she learned from her parents while growing up.
Phelan had nothing but a dark prison and himself to talk to. Yet, he survived. He was strong and stubborn. He could endure anything.
She knew he wouldn’t have fallen for Jason’s false promises.
“What?” he asked.
She lifted a shoulder in a shrug. “I’m thinking that I’m in awe of you. I’m not sure many could have come out of what you did sane, much less in control of their god.”
“I focused on one thing.”
“Which was?”
“Killing droughs.”
Aisley’s stomach fell to her feet like lead. Her heart thudded painfully in her chest as she tried to focus on Phelan’s face.
She knew he would be the one to kill her, but after they had made such sweet love, she had allowed herself to believe things might turn out differently.
Phelan had just put it all into perspective once more.
“At first it was all Druids,” he went on, unaware of her thoughts. “Then I learned there was a difference. My focus shifted to droughs.”
“Do you kill all droughs?”
“Aye.”
He answered without hesitation. How then did he not realize she was the very thing he set out to kill? Didn’t he feel it in her magic?
“Doona feel sorry for them,” he said. “They’re evil, beauty. They give their soul to Satan.”
“I know.” She shifted to the side and heard him release a curse. “What is it?”
His finger ran over the jagged scar on her left side. “What’s this?”
“A lesson,” she answered and tried to hide it.
But Phelan pushed her hands aside. “From who?”
Aisley looked away from his probing eyes. “Someone from my family.”
“And the lesson?” Phelan bit out.
“That I learn my place.”
He sighed. When he spoke again, his voice was soft. “This is more of your secrets you doona want to share.”
Aisley couldn’t look at him. If she did she was liable to tell him everything. He would kill her on the spot as soon as she said Jason’s name. She knew how he loved his home, and to taint it with her death seemed too cruel.
“It is.”
“I willna push. Tell me when you’re ready.”
“I will tell you,” she promised.
His finger traced the wound. “Did you no’ get this seen to properly?”
“I wasn’t allowed. I stitched it myself as best I could.”
He grasped her chin and gently turned her head back to him. “You’re one hell of a woman, beauty.”
For the second time her eyes welled up with tears. “I’m just a person who has done unspeakable things.”
“So have I. As I said earlier, we’re a pair.”
She didn’t stop him when he pulled her onto his chest. Aisley liked the feel of his body next to hers and the sound of his heart beating beneath her ear.
If things were different, she could see a life with Phelan. Not even the prospect of his immortality and her mortality bothered her.
She’d known Phelan was bad news the moment she spotted him while dancing at the club months ago. It was the way he watched her with his compelling eyes filled with desire and longing.
“No running,” he whispered in the darkness as if he knew she might be contemplating it.
“No running,” she repeated.
There will be no more running. Ever.
Phelan promised to protect her. And he would. He didn’t know it yet, but he would be the person to set her free.
She closed her eyes and snuggled against his chest. Freedom. She’d forgotten what that was like until Phelan. He had shown her another world.
It was beautif
ul and tragic at the same time because she was only getting a taste of it. Just as she only had a taste of being a mother.
All of this was punishment for her past sins. She knew that now. She accepted it.
Of course that was easy to do in the arms of a handsome Warrior who knew exactly how to touch to bring about the most exquisite pleasure.
Phelan’s hand caressed her back, lulling her to sleep. She tried to fight it. Sleep isn’t what she wanted. She wanted to live each minute to the fullest for the next few hours.
He kissed her forehead and whispered something she couldn’t make out in her foggy brain. In the next heartbeat, she was asleep.
* * *
Phelan stared at the ceiling as he held Aisley in his arms. Every time he thought of getting up, he found a reason to stay. His usual habits weren’t in play around Aisley for some reason.
And he stopped caring.
He thought of the jagged scar on her side and seethed with rage. Who would do that to her? More importantly, why? He would find out the story. He’d discover who dared to mark her.
Then he’d killed the bastard.
Slowly.
CHAPTER
NINETEEN
It was the birds singing that woke her. Aisley opened her eyes to see a pretty bunting sitting on the sill of the open window. It gave another chirp before it flew away in a flurry of yellow feathers.
Aisley snuggled against the pillow she had her arms wrapped around as she lay on her stomach. The memories of the night before brought a smile to her face.
Phelan wasn’t just a superb lover, he had given her things she hadn’t known she needed. Things like a warm smile, a comforting squeeze of his hand, and the safety of his arms. She still couldn’t believe she had told him of her daughter.
That time of her life she never shared with anyone. Jason had somehow found out, but no matter what he asked, she never gave Jason details.
It had been different with Phelan. He hadn’t pressed her for anything.
She lifted her head and found the clock on the bedside table. “Oh,” she cried and sat up as she saw it was almost noon.
Aisley tossed off the covers and grabbed the first piece of clothing she found as she rushed out of the bedroom and into the kitchen.
After a quick look for Phelan, she tugged on the shirt and saw the front door open and his bare feet crossed at the ankle on the porch railing. She smiled and walked to the doorway to see him wearing a pair of jeans and a smile.
He held out his mug of tea. “Did you sleep well?”
“Thanks, and I did,” she said and took the mug. “You should’ve woken me.”
“Why?”
She sipped the tea as she stepped to the side of the door and leaned back against the house. “There wasn’t a need for me to sleep so long.”
“Exhaustion had nothing to do with it, right?”
She ignored his pointed look and continued drinking the tea.
“That shirt looks better on you than me.”
Startled, she looked from him down to the shirt she wore. Aisley bit her lip when she saw the black tee with a large Celtic emblem on it. It came down to her thighs and smelled of Phelan—all man, wind, and pine.
The fact she was enjoying wearing his shirt made her realize how attached she was becoming. She’d wanted a night in his arms, and she had gotten it.
Now, it was time for the next step in her plan. It wasn’t that she was afraid to die. Oh, she was terrified of Hell, but death was a certain kind of freedom from Jason. But first, she had to stop Jason.
“Is there a town near?” she asked.
Phelan’s forehead puckered as he lowered his feet to the porch and sat up. A breeze off the loch ruffled his dark hair, making her want to slide her fingers into the cool, wavy locks. “Do you need something?”
“I thought we might go to dinner.” When she saw he didn’t immediately take the bait, she added, “And I’ve so little in my duffle, that I’d like to pick up a few more things.”
“Do you always pack so light?”
She shifted her gaze to the loch. Aisley couldn’t stand to look into Phelan’s blue-gray eyes and lie. “I’ve never been on the run before. I packed what I could as quickly as I could. Turns out I brought things I didn’t need.”
“And left things you did,” he finished.
“Precisely. Apparently there’s a fine art to packing when you’re running for your life.”
She glanced over to find Phelan watching her intently. She knew his mind was processing what she said and trying to come up with a way to ask her who it was she feared.
All too soon she would tell him everything. The desire in his gaze would vanish, replaced with fury and retribution. She wasn’t ready for that. Not yet at least.
So Aisley decided to turn the conversation. In a manner. “You said evil was still out there.”
“It is.”
“Am I taking you away from something?”
He rose to his feet and stood in front of her. Aisley had to tilt her head back to look into his face. He gently moved her hair behind her left ear. “I’m here because I want to be.”
Damn, but the man knew just what to say to make her melt. Which made her feel even worse because of her deceit.
Jason had wanted to kill all the Warriors fighting him, but she knew Phelan was a good man, a man needed in this world to keep the balance of right and wrong.
Aisley swallowed to moisten her suddenly dry mouth. As much as she wanted him with her, she also knew how important his work was—and what she needed to do. “Phelan, I don’t want to be responsible for any more deaths.”
As soon as the words left her lips, she inwardly cringed while she waited for him to demand to know what lives she was talking about.
“You can no’ be responsible for your daughter’s death,” he said. “But you’re right. After lunch, I’ll take a look around.”
He walked into the house, and Aisley released a breath she hadn’t known she was holding. She looked down at the mug and saw the scars on her wrists. How Phelan hadn’t noticed those last night she didn’t know.
It was better if she told him the truth before he could ask. She had already lied enough. He deserved better. Yet, she couldn’t feel too badly because the hours she spent with him had been some of the happiest of her life.
She followed him into the house and set the mug on the island, careful to keep her hands from view. He moved about the kitchen wasting little movement as he got out the makings for sandwiches.
Her stomach rumbled loudly, and they shared a smile.
“The dark circles under your eyes are almost gone. You should sleep more,” he said as he began cutting a tomato.
Aisley shrugged, recalling the awful need that consumed her to get as far from Jason and his evil as she could. “You don’t fear anything. You don’t know what it’s like.”
“I recollect fear all too well, beauty.” He paused in his cutting to look at her. “It’s true I’ve no’ feared anything in some time, but I do remember it.”
“Remembering and experiencing it aren’t the same thing.”
“Who do you fear? Tell me his name, and I’ll put an end to your fear today,” he said and pointed the knife to where his motorbike sat.
For a split second Aisley almost told him everything right there. She wanted to share it all. Then she recalled how he’d looked at this place with love.
His home was a paradise for her—one she wanted to leave as she had found it.
She already tainted the place by being there, but that he could get over. Staining the ground with her blood could well ruin it for him.
Or help him get over what you’ve done to him.
Aisley hated her conscience.
“What will it take for you to tell me?” Phelan demanded.
She covered his hand that held the large knife with hers. “I will tell you, Phelan. I promise.”
“When?”
“Take me to dinner tonight. I�
��ll tell you then.”
He placed his hands flat on the counter and dropped his chin to his chest. “I can cook here. And you can tell me now.”
“I shared my body and part of my past with you last night. I’m asking for just a few more hours.” She needed them to gather all the essentials she required to fight Jason.
His head jerked up to pin her with his gaze. “You make it sound as if I’ll be angry when you tell me. Are you married?”
“No,” she said with a soft smile. “I’m not married.”
“But I’ll be angry.”
“The truth is rarely what we want it to be.”
“That’s no’ an answer, beauty.”
“Don’t make me lie. Please,” she begged. She was so tired of lying.
He picked the knife up and finished slicing the tomato. Aisley sighed and wondered if she made a mistake in not telling him right then.
Phelan admitted to killing droughs. What would make him stay his hand against her? The fact they’d shared their bodies? She doubted it.
After what Deirdre and Isla had done to him, she knew exactly how he would react to her betrayal. And how swiftly he’d bring death to her.
She couldn’t take her eyes off him. His muscles moved, bunched, and shifted as he made their lunch. The easiness from earlier was gone, and Aisley found she missed it.
“I’m sorry,” she said.
He threw the knife into the sink and glared at her. “Have I given you any reason no’ to trust me?”
“No.”
“They why do you no’?”
“Because I like you.”
He gave a loud snort. “That’s no’ an answer.”
“Give me today. I’ll tell you everything over dinner in town.”
“Why does it have to be in town?”
“It’s my tale to tell. I get to choose where.”
He shrugged and grabbed the sandwiches. “All right.”
Aisley was almost giddy with relief. If he pressed harder, she might tell him. It was such a burden to bear. And she did like him. More than he realized probably.
It was the attraction, the pull, which drew her to him that told her she was getting too close. But she didn’t care. Her life was about to be over. There would be no heartache for her, no tears or wondering why he had left her.
