Page 136 of Anywhere

I broke the kiss long enough to kiss Rook before he kissed Eley. It was unbelievably hot, and my mind was already off in fantasy land, imagining everything I wanted to do once we got back to the bedroom.

Eley giggled again—which was so not like her— and pulled on our hands, tugging us into the forest until we could no longer see the castle. It was almost pitch black in here, the overcast sky not offering much light, but I could see her fake smile fall.

“It be over here,” she said, and her hand tightened on mine.

She looked worried, and I prepared to pull on my power or sword. We went around a bend, and Eley guided us off the trail to a large tree before tugging my arm to make me stop. Rook followed beside me.

“Whadda are we lookin’ at?”

Eley pointed to the open hole in the tree that was just higher than my head. “Din’t be puttin’ yer hand in dere. Jus’ take a look.”

The hair stood all over my body as a trickle of unease flowed through me. Eley released my arm, and I stepped up to the tree, stretching enough to see in the hole. My mouth dropped. Stepping back so Rook could look, my eyes found Eley’s concerned expression.

“How did ya find dat?”

“Barry. He be playin’ out here and snoopin’ around like he always be doin’, but he came and got me. Jus’ would’na leave me alone until I came ta see. I taught it was gonna be a big nut, but instead me find dat.”

“What the fuck is that?” Rook asked as he turned to stare at us.

“Dat be a talisman of dark power,” I said, as my mind began to whirl. “Dat maybe yer answer as ta why da power shifted so violently and left ya exposed ta da pull of da dark fade. Dat also be explain’ why da gates never slowed da attack like dey should ‘ave. Dis be interruptin’ da power on da whole property,” I said. “Fuck.”

This meant that the traitor had been here or was still here. Rage filled me as I stared at Rook and Eley.

“A war be comin’ from within, I cannie feel it, but we be ready fir when da day comes.”

“What do you want to do with that?” Rook asked quietly.

“For now, nothin’. We dinnie wanna let da traitor know dat we found dis, but more importantly, we din’t know what might happen if we touch it. Wit a talisman, ya never know what magics ya be dealin’ wit. We’ll come back in daylight and make sure we know which one we be dealin’ wit and den destroy it once we be knowin’ how.”

“Should we put a shield or something around the tree or try to do something to stop the power?” Rook asked.

I tapped my chin as I thought. “A warnin’ shield, fir sure. Eley, what da ya tink?”

She lifted one shoulder gracefully. “Dark magics be tricky. Ya can set off all sorts of evil if ya dinnie be doin’ it right. I’ma gonna say just da shield fir now. Me only concern is if dere is gonna be anotha attack before da ritual.”

“I’ma gonna make a call when we git back inside. I have an idea fir more help. I be unsure if it will be ‘ere in time though.”

Rook growled, and I felt the rage building in him. “No one hurts what is mine,” he said.

I shivered at the tone of his voice. There was a feeling I couldn’t shake. I didn’t doubt that Rook would kill whoever this person was, but he was going to have to beat me to it because this was about me. Whoever this was, didn’t like that I was the next McGregor head of the family. I had my suspicions, but I needed to prove it, and it was going to be tricky since I suspected they were a member of the council.

Rook

Things were tense with Rhys for the last two days. His normal over-protective obsession had become all-consuming, a wild storm inside of him. He barely ate, didn’t come to bed until Eley and I were asleep, and trained harder than ever.

We weren’t fighting, but I felt the worry growing into something that was twisting him inside out. He was bristly, like an old bear poked with a stick, over the simplest of questions.

The traitor still hadn’t shown themselves. We didn’t dare touch the talisman after discovering that it was designed like a bomb. Not the explosive kind, but one that, if messed with, could kill everyone on the property. We placed an invisible barrier around the tree to block any signal it might emit. Rhys said that the spell he found should hold, and we would know when someone tried to take it. That hadn’t happened yet, and it was frustrating.

I hadn’t realized how much of an over-thinker and worrier Rhys could be until now. It made me wonder what he looked like when I initially rejected the pairing. The thought of him pacing the floor all night for weeks with a crippling pain in his chest made me look away from my reflection in the mirror.

It was hard to get ready for our triad union ritual when the nervous energy was amplified between the two of us. Elewyen seemed to be taking everything in stride. She really was the calm and focused one of the three of us. My hands shook as I tried once more to clasp the large Celtic brooch of my family crest in place and ended up stabbing myself.

“Shit,” I swore and put my thumb in my mouth.

“I will do dat for ya,” Elewyen said as she walked into the room.

I was speechless as I stared at her in the elegant yet simple white gown. Her waist-length red hair lay in soft waves down her back while a white cloak draped over her shoulders and brushed the floor. Since she didn’t have a family crest, she wore the symbol of unity at her throat, and I had to admit that it was fitting.