Angus (8 page)

“I don’t know any more than what’s been reported in the press.”

“What is their name?” he asked, irritation threading the words.

“Lennon.”

If possible, the room grew tenser.

“The Lennons, the ones with all the companies?” he asked.

Dylan nodded.  “They are said to be richer than God.”

The small joke pulled a smile from the Benefactor. That look scared Dylan more than a frown. There was no happiness in it, only evil intent.

“There has to be some reason she is with them. Find out.” Dylan had been dismissed. He turned to leave, but was stopped by the final question. “Did you take care of the helper we had in New York?”

“Yes.”

Then, the Benefactor waved him away without another word. Once he was in the massive hallway that lead to the front door of the mansion, Dylan finally had a chance to swallow the bile that had threatened to escape during the meeting. From the moment he had met him six months earlier, the compulsion to vomit in his presence had grown. He had never had that kind of reaction to a human before.

That meant the Benefactor was something other than human.

He said nothing to the staff as he jogged down the sprawling steps that lead to the driveway. He had a family to research and infiltrate…not to mention a witch to catch.

Chapter Ten

Maggie pulled up the covers and then sat next to her boy.

“I’m sorry, Mummy.”

She brushed his bangs out of his eyes. “Whatever for?”

“I shouldn’t have talked in front of the clan.”

She cocked her head and studied him. He had always been a boy wise beyond his years. There were times she cursed the fact he was Magickal. Until she had him in her life, she didn’t realize what a burden it was. The fact that he seemed Magickal since birth, well, that was enough to turn her hair gray.

“Jack, it is best that we all understand where we stand. You think I will die.”

He sighed. A boy his age should never know how to sigh like that.

“I’ve never seen you die, Mummy. It scared me. You have to help them.”

“If I can, I will. Does that sound good?”

He nodded.  “You know he is the man from the dreams.”

For weeks now, Jack’s sleep had been off. He had been cranky at times during the day and his nights were filled with tossing and turning. She could hear him all night long. He would only talk of a man they would meet.

“You think he’s the man who has been scaring you the last few weeks?”

That didn’t sit well with her if it were true.

“No, he didn’t scare me.” His frown turned darker. “I dinna know until I saw him who he was. But he wasn’t what scared me.”

“What scared you?”

He shook his head. “I’m not sure. Something scary. Maybe it was you being hurt that caused it.”

She nodded knowing that Jack wasn’t hiding anything from her. He was always very forthcoming about his visions—at least with her.

“Now, you get some rest, little man.”

She leaned down and kissed him on the forehead. “I love you, Mummy.”

“I love you, too.”

She rose from his bed and knew he was asleep before she reached the door. Glancing back over her shoulder, she blinked away the tears. She would do anything to keep him safe, just as she had done even before he was born.

*  *  *  *

Angus watched as Maggie shut the door to the suite she shared with her son.  It was dark, but he could see her easily in the hallway. The sparks of red fire were almost glowing in her hair. Something told him she wouldn’t be that happy if he told her.

“Is he all right?” he asked.

She jumped and squinted in his direction.

“Yes. I was more upset by it than he was.”

Angus nodded. “My mum always said the same thing.”

“You miss her?”

She didn’t ask if his mother was alive, which is something that should have struck him as odd. He knew that if she hadn’t figured out what they were, she knew they weren’t normal.

“Yes.”

She nodded but said nothing else. As the silence stretched out between them, he realized she was waiting for him to say something else.

“Where were you going?” he asked.

“I needed a spot of tea. I forgot how cold Scotland is.”

He motioned with his head. “Come. I’ll show you the way to the kitchen.”

She fell into step with him and they walked side by side. It wasn’t easy. She wasn’t an overly short woman, but he had long legs.  He slowed his steps so she could keep up. Besides, he found that he didn’t want to rush the time together.

“Why does he say things like that?” Angus asked.

Maggie shrugged. “I’m assuming he has the sight but I’ve no idea how he got it.”

“Really? Both you and his father come from Magickal clans, but you have no idea how he ended up this way?”

“Truly, I don’t. He’s the first male born on my side of the family.”

“Are you telling me that he is the first man in your family ever? That would make it tough to have a family.”

She shook her head. “No. I’m telling you that he is the first born from my side of the family. No matter what the union, there has never been a woman from my family who gave birth to a male. I really thought it was a mistake when I had the first inklings.”

He didn’t like the sound of that. “And?”

“We all know what we will have before the baby is born. For the longest time I thought, well, I hoped for a boy. Losing Ian…it tore me apart. I knew it was bad when he didn’t show. Leaving without saying goodbye was painful.”

“Just like that.  You left?”

“It was a rule. If we didn’t appear at the designated time, there was something wrong. The other partner should make a run for it.”

“But you were married.”

“First, we really weren’t married. I guess we had what they call a common law marriage. No real official documents.”

He let that sink in for a moment or two. “And you think Jack has the sight?”

“I know he does. He…well, he dreamed of you, Angus.”

“Dreamed?”

She nodded, her eyes solemn and her mouth unsmiling.

“Yes. He’s always had the sight. From the moment he could speak, which he did much earlier than other children. There were stories of things that would happen. I thought to take him to a specialist at first, but I dinna have the money.”

Just a day or two out of New York and her accent had thickened.  He found that he liked it almost as much as he liked the tinges of red that now threaded her hair.

“But, you say he dreamed of me?”

“Yes. He didn’t know who you were, but he seemed obsessed with a man who would come to find us.”

Normally, he would accuse her of lying, but there was nothing normal about it. Jack had said a few things that made Angus pause, more than once.

“Is that why you freaked when I showed up at the pub?”

She made a face. “Freaked? Really, how American of you.”

He chuckled. “Phoebe likes a lot of American reality shows. She says they’re like crack. I guess some of it seeped in.”

She smiled then sighed. “It was your accent. And then…the feeling. I’ve had them before and always found it smart to run. My husband died trying to steal a jewel from a Scottish Laird, so I knew there was some connection.”

How did someone survive like that? They had hidden on the continent for a few years, but they had never truly felt hunted. He had his cousins and his brother at least. She had no one.

And she had turned her back on the one thing that would have made it easier.

“You gave up Magick.”

“I was so weak when I was pregnant with Jack. And having no one to call to ask…well, I was on my own. And it wasn’t as if I actually turned my back on it. It seemed to dissolve the further along I got in my pregnancy. I could barely do a spell by the time I was on the run after Ian was killed. When Jack came along, I was just too tired to even think about it. ”

There was something she wasn’t telling him. He could sense it beneath the words, but then, he couldn’t fault her for keeping some secrets. Lord knew he and his cousins were living one every single day of their lives. They reached the kitchen and he went to the massive stove and started a kettle.

“Tea’s just above your head there.”

She turned and reached up. He watched, finding a smile for the first time in hours, when she rose to her tippy toes but still could not reach the box. He gave in and stepped forward but was amazed when the box moved close enough for her to grab.

Maggie pulled it down and turned with a triumphant smile on her face. It faded as he continued to stare at her.

“What?”

“It moved.”

She glanced around the kitchen, then back to him. “What moved?”

“The box. It was too far away but I watched it move.”

“I didn’t do anything.” Then she closed her eyes. “But I did wish it was closer.”

“Have you always been telekinetic?”

She nodded as she opened her eyes. There were a few more sparks of green in them.

“I swear I didn’t make it happen on purpose.”

Before he could say something, the water whistled. He turned off the water, then turned toward Maggie.

“We brought you here to use your magic.”

“What if I can’t get it to work?”

“I think you’ve proven that it is coming back. Even if you have tried to suppress it.”

She handed him the tin of tea. “I assumed that my pregnancy had something to do with it when it first happened. Then, after having Jack, it was apparent it wasn’t coming back. I thought it might have a little bit to do with him.”

“But your mother didn’t lose her power, or any of your ancestors.”

“No, but they all had girls. With the first boy in centuries, I thought it might have something to do with that.”

And he could tell she wanted to stop talking about it. It was late, and they had a long day of travel. He wanted to push her but he knew it was the wrong time. So, he changed the subject.

“Are the rooms big enough?”

She visibly relaxed, her expression softening just a bit. And he decided he would let it go, just for tonight.

*  *  *  *

Maggie was still a little on edge as she walked with Angus back to Jack’s room. There was no doubt in her mind she would be sleeping with Jack while they were there. They had connecting rooms, but especially for tonight, she wanted to sleep with him. He’d been very upset earlier.

“So, you have no family members?”

She shook her head. “My da died before I was born.”

No reason to tell him that it was a common occurrence. Almost every woman in her ancestry lost the husband of her child before the child was born. She hadn’t believed it, playing fast and loose with lives. And Ian had paid for it, but he was mostly at fault for it.

“And your mum?”

She sighed. “Mum died. Hit by a drunk driver when I was eighteen.” Another half-truth. She did die, but Maggie had been long gone. Ian and she were already honing their skills and stealing jewels.

“No one else?” he asked with a tone that made her defensive as usual.

“I did fine on my own. Ian and I had already met and we formed a family with some other folks.”

“Did they also break the law?”

“No. They were Magickal folk like us. We had a little show we put together, traveled through Ireland. But, some people got sick of the travel and wanted to settle. Ian and I didn’t.”

They arrived at Jack’s room and she was thankful. She still had jet lag and she had very little patience at the moment. Plus, she wasn’t at her best.

“So, you know where the kitchen is now. We eat breakfast in the morning room.”

She smiled, her eyes feeling suddenly exhausted. She could barely keep them open. “Imagine that.”

He chuckled. “Maggie O’Conner, you’re a wee bit sleepy.”

“I am. It’s been a long few days. Thank you for the tea.”

But he was waiting for her to do something so she did the one thing she could think of. She rose to her tiptoes and brushed her mouth over his cheek. When she pulled back, he had a stunned look on his face. She started to feel weird standing there.

“Uh, okay. Goodnight.”

“Is that what that was? A goodnight kiss?” he asked. There was something else in his voice. The affable tone had dissolved and there was an edge to it that caused her to curl her toes.

“It was to thank you for the tea.”

“And dragging you across the world and putting you and your son in danger?”

“You know, men can never be happy. I was nice enough to let that go and thank you but no, you have to complain that I kissed you.”

“So it wasn’t a goodnight kiss?”

She rolled her eyes. “No.”

“Good.”

Then, he grabbed her right hand and yanked her forward. Before she knew what was happening, his mouth was pressing against hers. A burst of heat swirled in her belly as she tried to think of something, anything. Before she could, he was stepping back. Her head was still whirling, and she was gasping for breath. He was standing there as if he hadn’t done anything.

“What the bloody hell was that?”

He smiled. “A goodnight kiss.”

Then, he turned and ambled down the hall as if he hadn’t just turned her world upside down.

Chapter Eleven

Angus was up early the next morning. Even with jetlag, he couldn’t lay about in bed. Something urged him up and out that morning. It was the bane of his existence, but he had come to accept it as part of his makeup. Over two hundred years of mornings told him he wasn’t going to change.

That morning, though, it seemed as if something else was compelling him to move. He was so early that he had beaten Callum out of bed. He smiled. Granted, Callum wasn’t always the first to rise these days. His cousin’s attention was now more on Phoebe than work and Angus was glad for it.

“Do you know where to go for breakfast?”

The small voice had him turning around, realizing Jack had snuck up on him. It was an odd occurrence because Angus had exceptional hearing. He found the lad just a few feet behind him. He looked no worse for wear. Truth was, most children wouldn’t be able to deal with the fear of an attack and a trip across the Atlantic the way this child did. He was sure most people would think it odd, but he found the lad fascinating.