Chapter 27
“You imbecile!” Griffin’s grandfather shouted at Seamus when he and Pierce marched Clare into the castle. “I’m not allowing you to start the ritual without my grandson.”
Clare gaped at the elderly man who was tied up at his breakfast table. She didn’t know whatto believe. She’d caught a glimpse of Griffin chasing after the limo. Was he trying to rescue her, or was he putting on an act of heroism, only to swerve into the field and take himself out of the action? Had Pierce truly turned against the Gallaghers or was this, too, an act?
“You’re not in control anymore,” Seamus said. “The O’Tooles, Donnellys, and Bradys took a vote, and we decidedIreland no longer needs four Guardian families. Your family has failed in every way, losing the Heart of Brigid to the O’Munsters before it was sold into the black market.”
“Our family traced it to America through the line of the Morrigan,” Griffin’s grandfather shouted. His face was red, and his flabby jowls quivered. “My son spent his entire life hiding it.”
“For what purpose?”Seamus sneered. “Without the only living descendant of Richard ‘Strongbow’ de Clare, the Heart of Brigid would be useless.”
“We don’t agree on that requirement,” Griffin’s grandfather said. “Brigid will be brought back when Griffin finds his true love. She will be a changeling who possesses Brigid’s eternal spirit.”
“That’s a load of poppycock, balderdash, and malarkey,” Seamus said.“This young lady here is the living body and blood of the Norman invader. She is wearing the Heart of Brigid. Everything is in place for the transformation.”
“Then Griffin must be here,” Gramps huffed. “The young lady is in love with him, not you. Aren’t you, darling?”
“Are you talking to me?” Clare asked, feeling her cheeks heat. She was bedraggled, muddy, damp, and colder thana wet spaniel stuck in a peat bog, and this old man was asking her if she was in love with his grandson?
It was none of anyone’s business.
“Yes, my dear.” Gramps struggled against his bonds. “The magic won’t work unless there is true love involved.”
“Well, in that case, you all might as well let me go,” Clare said, jerking her arm against Seamus’s tight grip. “There’s no lovehere for anyone. Take the Heart of Brigid and find someone else.”
“You’ll be sorry it wasn’t you,” Seamus said. He detached the precious gemstone from the chain around Clare’s neck and put it in Pierce’s hand. “Take this woman and get her ready for the wedding. We only need her blood, not her heart.”
“And you, Pierce.” Gramps fixed his glare on the traitorous butler. “What is themeaning of tying me up? Am I not your master? I command you to throw this O’Toole scoundrel out.”
“You’re finished, Gallagher.” Pierce threw off his butler’s cap and chuckled drily. “This O’Toole scoundrel is my grandson, Seamus. You used to know me as Sean O’Toole, but because your family is so forgetful, you had no clue.”
Clare couldn’t stop gawking at the spectacle in front ofher. Of all the twists and turns she’d concocted for her novels, she had not expected this in a million years. Why would Seamus’s grandfather spend his life as a butler to the Gallaghers?
Apparently, Gramps was similarly bowled over. His eyes bugged out, and he slumped forward in the chair as far as he could, making choking sounds.
“He’s having a seizure,” Clare said. “Put a combin his mouth so he doesn’t swallow his tongue.”
“That’s exactly what you don’t do,” Pierce, or Sean, said. He clapped his hands, and two male servants appeared. “Take him to his bedchamber.”
After they were gone, both O’Tooles grabbed Clare, one on each arm, and steered her up the stairs toward Griffin’s room.
“You’re not going to get away with this,” Clare said. “I don’tbelieve the rest of the Guardians voted to get rid of the Gallaghers. Four has always been the lucky number for Ireland. There are four cities of the Tuatha Dé Danann, four lobes on a four-leaf clover, and of course, the four children of Lir.”
“I wouldn’t call that last one lucky,” Seamus said, referring to the four children of a king who had been turned into swans by their jealous stepmother.“Stop wasting time with chit-chat. You’re going to get cleaned up before the wedding.”
“Who am I marrying?” she asked, but no one answered. Instead, a sharp-faced female with bulging biceps uncuffed her and hog-marched her into a marble bathroom.
She was ordered to undress, get into a bathtub filled with bubbles and rose petals, and get herself ready for her bridal night.
“Can’t I stop this crazy-go-round and get off?” she asked, but of course, no one gave her an answer.
Griffin and Maeve jumped out of the crumpled convertible as soon as the airbags finished deploying.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
“I’m fine, but now what do we do?”
“Do you still have your phone? Call for a rideshare and I’ll reimburse you. We have to get to the castle before it’s too late.”
