Mairwen shrugged. “Whatever is needed. Ye are simply here to heal—yerself as well as others.”
“Myself?” Lyla wondered what all Keeva had told this woman, who struck her as being a lot more sly and powerful than she let on. She’d bet money that when Mairwen told anyone in Seven Cairns tojump, they hurried to ask,How high?“I’m fine, thank you.”
Mairwen eyed her in a way that uncomfortably stripped away the layers of her soul. “But are ye, child? Are ye trulyfine?”
Maybe it was her hoarseness that confused Mairwen. But surely Keeva had told her about that, too. Still, upon meeting her for the first time, many people mistakenly thought she was struggling to overcome some sort of illness that affected her voice. Lyla patted the base of her throat. “This is permanent. Result of a botched surgery on my vocal cords to remove nodules I should’ve left alone.”
“Actually, I was referring to yer spirit.” Mairwen offered her a sympathetic smile. “Ye are in search of peace. Yer soul cries out for it.”
Lyla stared at her, once again snared in the older woman’s cutting, sapphire gaze, then she slowly shook her head, deciding to drop all pretenses. “There is no peace for me. Never has been. Never will be.”
“Peace exists for everyone, child,” Mairwen said ever so gently. “Ye simply have to recognize it once ye find it, then hold fast to it and never let it go.”
Teeth clenched, Lyla forced another polite smile. As far as she was concerned, this first impression had not gone well at all, and it was time tomanagethings better. “Maybe Scotland will provide the peace I need,” she glibly answered. “By the way, have you seen Keeva today? She mentioned something about stopping in, but I haven’t seen her since the morning after I arrived.” And that had been over three days ago. In a town this small, Keeva had to be going out of her way to avoid her. Lyla wondered if she had said or done something tooffend the happy-go-lucky girl who had wrangled her into this little adventure that had so far, fizzled into an uneasy state of limbo where she didn’t exactly know what to do with herself. She didn’t want to treat it like a free vacation in Scotland and take advantage of her new employers, but wandering around here with no purpose was not an acceptable option either. “I tried calling and texting, but haven’t gotten a response. Is there something I need to know?”
“Keeva is busy with a new venture. Yet another reason I stopped in to check on ye. I hadn’t realized she had left ye to yer own devices for so long. Forgive us. Since ye are not from this area and have yet to build up a clientele, we should be better hosts…and employers.” She waved Lyla forward as she turned toward the door. “Come. We have a surprise for ye. One that will chase away the tension plaguing ye.”
“Should I run upstairs and get my purse?” So far, Keeva had footed every bill, making Lyla feel a little…weird. She’d not been allowed to pay for anything she’d gotten at Boyd’s or the treats from Innis’s. Granted, she wasn’t drawing a salary, but that didn’t mean Seven Cairns owed her anything more than the agreed-upon room and board. Especially since, so far, she’d not seen a single person about helping them with music therapy. The only times she had paid her way were when she stopped in for a meal or a drink at the pub—and even that had been a battle. Lilias had tried to insist that Keeva had instructed them to run a tab and that the Council would cover whatever Lyla ordered. But Lyla had won that battle of wills. “It won’t take me but a minute to dash up there and grab it. The Council doesn’t need to pay for everything.”
Mairwen shook her head. “Unnecessary, child. This surprise is healing provided by myself and Scotland. It costs nothing to yerself or the Council.”
“Okay.” Leeriness settled in with a vengeance, but Lyla relented, trying to shake off the feeling that something she might not like was about to happen. She followed the enigmatic woman dressed in the same sort of vintage, flowy skirt and shawl that every tarot card reader and psychic she’d ever consulted had worn. Were the brightly colored linen garments some sort of universal uniform among the new agers? She shrugged off the observation. The rich blues and rusty oranges of the loose clothing suited Mairwen, making her seem a more vibrant force to be reckoned with. Lyla glanced down at her oversized sweater, black leggings, and extremely well-broken in black hiking boots she’d found at a thrift store. Who was she to question someone’s fashion choices?
As they exited the building, Mairwen pointed at a bright red, yet slightly rusted-out pickup truck. “Hop in. My spa is up the hill a ways. ’Twould be rude of me to make ye walk when it’s about to come on a rain, and I’m no’ in the mood for a wet stroll.”
Lyla climbed in and closed the door, but it didn’t latch.
“Shut it hard, child.” Mairwen started the engine. “Ye must show the stubborn contraption that ye’ll not be cowering to it. Make it known ye are to be obeyed. I hate this temperamental thing. Horses are so much more reliable.”
“Okay.” Lyla opened it again and shut it harder this time. It still didn’t latch.
“Slam it.” Mairwen gave her a stern look. “Pretend it’s that Derrick fellow’s neck ye’re chopping. Put some force in it.” With a wry grin, she added, “And aye, Keeva told me about that wee bastard who robbed ye. Dinna fash yerself. Karma has promised to take care of him. My cards told me so.”
“Your cards?” Lyla slammed the door so hard that it rocked the truck. This time, the latch caught.
“Aye, the tarot.” Mairwen nodded. “Keeva said ye enjoyed a good reading now and then yerself.”
“I do.” Lyla found herself relaxing and not feeling nearly as irritated with Mairwen. The elder must be wearing her down. “I’m not very good at reading them myself, though. I look up the meanings in the books, but they don’t always make sense. When other people—professional tarot readers—do it, seems like they’re a lot more accurate.”
“Aye, but that’s when ye must be careful.” As Mairwen shifted gears, making the rickety vehicle shudder and lurch, she nodded. “There’s many a charlatan just looking to empty yer pockets by telling ye whatever ye wish to hear. They’re able to glean enough hints from seemingly innocent questions to know what to tell ye.”
As the truck bounced through a series of potholes, Lyla grabbed hold of the dash and held on tight. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea after all. “Feels like the village road crew needs to do a bit of patching.”
Mairwen laughed. “’Twould do no good. The next good rain would wash it out.” She clamped hold of the steering wheel so tightly that her knuckles whitened. “Hang on. This stretch is even rougher.”
Lyla braced for impact but still bounced across the worn bench seat with the cover split in several spots. “Wow. That was a good one.”
“Aye, we’re nearly there. See up ahead? That wee stone building with the lovely red shutters? It connects with the sacred caves of the mountain there at the back of it.” She proudly nodded. “That’s my spa and the origin of the healing waters of Seven Cairns. A fine, relaxing massage and a good, long soak in those springs blessed by the goddesses themselves will have ye feeling right as rain in no time.”
“You’re a massage therapist?”
Mairwen nodded as she brought the truck to a screeching halt in front of the cottage. “Aye, Shona and I are. I’ll introduceye to her. She is a specialist when it comes to tranquility, and my specialty is time—among other things.” She killed the engine and smiled. “I feel sure we can help ye find the right path to follow for peace.”
Lyla had her doubts, but why not? It wasn’t like she had anyone waiting back at the practice rooms. “That would be great.” She climbed out of the truck and followed Mairwen inside, inhaling deeply as she walked through the door. The clean, soothing scent of freshly sliced cucumbers and clean linens welcomed her. “Oh, it smells nice in here. Veryupscalespa-like.”
Laughing, Mairwen led her through a set of swinging half-doors into an area lit only by the warm golden glow of dozens of softly flickering pillar candles. The musical sound of trickling water danced through the air. “Just because we’re set off in the wilderness of the Highlands doesn’t mean we canna offer the verra best.”
A tall, slender woman with long, strikingly golden hair flowing well past her waist came out from behind a wood-framed parchment room divider at the far end of the room. She smiled, then gracefully bowed her head. “Welcome to ye. I am Shona, and verra pleased to at last meet ye, Miss Lyla.”
