Anita Clenney - Heart Of A Highland Warrior

“Do you know where she is?” Ronan asked. He’d been the last to talk to her.

Bree put one hand protectively over her stomach, something she did unconsciously these days. “I think she’s in a castle.”

“Scotland?” Shay asked.

“She didn’t mention going to Scotland when I talked to her,” Ronan said. “She’d just gotten back from there.” The clan had two castles. The Connor castle in Scotland, the clan seat, and this one near Albany, New York, which Druan had used. They were still trying to find out how the demon had a castle that was identical to the clan’s.

“Jamie called Scotland earlier,” Declan said. “She wasn’t there.”

Cody’s arm slipped around Shay’s shoulder. “Where is Jamie?”

“Had something to do,” Declan said. “He’ll be back.”

“Huh,” Cody replied.

Shane stood several feet away, quietly observing as usual. “We should check the secret passages here and in Scotland. I’ll take a look at these. Niall can help.”

“Me? You know I hate those damned passages,” Niall said. “They’re made for dwarves.”

“I thought it was fairies,” Shane said. “Stop complaining and come on.”

“I can’t imagine Anna trapped inside,” Ronan said, “but stranger things have happened.”

“Like vampires,” Brodie muttered.

Shane and Niall walked to the fireplace and disappeared through the secret door.

“I’ll call Scotland and have someone check the passages there,” Cody said.

“What about the jet? Has Anna taken it anywhere?” Brodie asked.

“I don’t think so,” Lachlan said. “I talked to the pilot this morning. I’m going to cover one of his shifts next month.”

Bree groaned and held her head. Faelan held her closer. “What is it now, love?”

“It’s you.” She clutched his arm, her green eyes wide.

“Me?”

“You’re probably crushing her,” Ronan said.

Faelan relaxed his hold, and Bree turned worried eyes toward Faelan. “You’re in danger too.”

“Who’s he in danger from now?” Ronan asked. “Druan is dead.” He was the demon Faelan had been assigned to destroy.

“Not Druan. It’s another demon.” Bree frowned. “I think.”

“You’re not sure?” Ronan still didn’t understand how Bree’s visions worked, but he knew enough not to discount them. She’d been right about too many things.

“He’s powerful. He must be a demon,” Bree said.

“Maybe this is what Jamie was talking about,” Shay said.

Jamie was afraid something was brewing. He’d just destroyed a demon who had attempted to assassinate the President of the United States.

“Two of the ancient demons that make up the League are dead. Druan and Malek,” Ronan said. Shay and Cody had destroyed Malek together, each giving him a killing blow at exactly the same moment, something that had never happened before as far as Ronan knew. But Shay and Bree weren’t normal. They’d done things no warriors had ever done, like moving as fast as vampires. The clan believed it was something genetic they’d inherited from Edward, their father, since they had different mothers.

Shay had let go of Bree’s hand but stayed close to her sister. Cody stood behind her. After she’d almost died, he never let his bride-to-be far from his sight. He was as bad over Shay as Faelan was over Bree.

“Maybe it’s a vampire,” Brodie said. He hated vampires almost as much as Ronan did.

“Voltar and Tristol are still out there,” Ronan said. Both were bad news, really bad news. Voltar was a hate machine. He hated women, warriors, humans, even halflings—anything that wasn’t pure demon. And Voltar was behind some of the worst atrocities humans had ever seen.

“I don’t know,” Bree said, “but we need to protect Faelan and Anna. She’s in terrible danger. I sensed trouble before, but then I found the grave and I thought that must be it. I’m going to look for her. If I drive around, maybe I can pick up some sense of where she’s—”

“You will not.” Faelan put on his fierce, nineteenth-century warrior face. “We’ll look for her. You will stay put.”

“Faelan is right,” Coira said. “I want you to rest. No activity for at least a day.”

Faelan nodded. “That’s just what she needs. Rest.”

“You’d better put a lock on her door if you don’t want her sneaking off,” Ronan said. “Better yet, tie her up. And keep her away from Shay, or they’ll be off trying to save Anna by themselves.” This got him a frown from the sisters and worried looks from Faelan and Cody. Ronan envied both men and felt sorry for them too. The sisters were a handful, in more ways than one. Beautiful and reckless as hell. “I’ll start looking for Anna. But I think we need to call a Seeker.”

Two days earlier…

Anna let Bree’s phone ring five times, and then she picked it up. “Hello.”

It was Ronan. “Anna. What the hell? Where have you been?”

“Scotland. New York. Looking for Angus’s notebook.” Sitting beside his grave. Regretting that she hadn’t been with him.

“You could have called and let us know you’re still alive. We’ve got ancient demons on the loose, and you just up and vanish.”

“I’m sorry. I should have called.” But the grief had caught her off guard. It had hurt when she first found out Angus was dead. But the real pain had hit when she sat in his room and looked at all his things. Saw all the research he would never finish. All the puzzles he’d never solve. And when she stood in the infirmary where he’d whispered the last words to her that he would ever say. I love you . She cleared her throat. “I haven’t replaced my phone.”

“I know you needed to be alone, but you have to check in. We were worried.” Ronan’s voice softened. She’d heard it even softer once. That wouldn’t be repeated. Not that it wasn’t good. Relationships didn’t work for her. She was just damaged goods. According to him, so was he.

“Time got away from me.”

“I know it’s been tough since you were so close. If you need a shoulder to cry on—hell. I guess you’d better find someone else,” he said sheepishly. They were trying to forget their mishap, but it hadn’t been long enough to erase the awkwardness. “Did you find his notebook?”

“Not yet. I’ll keep looking. That notebook was like his right arm. Whatever he found out he’ll have written down. How’s everyone?”

“Alive. But Shay almost died. She did die, but we revived her.”

“My God. What happened?”

“Malek happened. He was her stalker. You’ve missed a lot.”

“Malek was stalking Shay? Why?”

“It’s a long story, but he’s dead now.”

“Who destroyed him?”

“Cody and Shay.”

“Both of them?”

“Yep.”

“They were both assigned?”

“Shay was. It’s a long story involving an unborn baby.”

“An unborn baby?”

“You can ask Shay about it when you get back,” Ronan said.

“You can’t just drop a bomb like that and not explain.”

“Yes I can. Maybe it’ll keep you from running off again. There’s still trouble. Voltar and Tristol are still out there, and those damned vampires. We captured the blond. He had the Book of Battles.”

“We got the book back?”

“We did. Sean has it.”

“I can’t believe it. That’s great. I wish Angus could have known. He spent so much time looking for it.”

“I’m sorry about Angus, but his death wasn’t your fault, Anna.”

“I should have been with him.”

“You were assigned a demon. You had to go. The job comes first.”

Anna sighed. This was true. But if she had finished sooner he might be alive.