Defending Destiny (The Warrior Chronicles) (10 page)

The thought had him whistling all the way down the stairs.

CHAPTER TWELVE

“Not necessarily the best way to get a woman to sleep with you,” Gerry said around a mouthful of cereal, sparing Magnus a glance, before shoveling in another bite from a seemingly endless bowl.

What a slob.

“Of course, there probably are women out there who like that creepy-stalker-panties-stealing vibe.” Gerry chewed as he paused, obviously pretending to think about it. “But I doubt Daisy’s one of them.”

The only thing saving the man’s teeth was the fact that he was fully dressed and Magnus was still in a good mood, having just come from Daisy.

Magnus took a large stoneware mug from the mug tree on the counter and poured himself a coffee. Leaning back against the counter, he surveyed the kitchen. Giant Aga stove, the kind that perpetually heated the house, even in the summer. New oversized refrigerator. Wooden table that could easily seat twelve with benches forming a U around it. A galley-style area full of counter space, dishwasher, upper and lower cabinets, some with drawers. A large stainless double sink, and enough pots and pans hanging from a metal grate dropped from the twelve-foot ceiling to create a feast without washing in between courses. Every pan a weapon in its own right. Two windows. One big enough to crawl in and out of. One no larger than a breadboard above the sink. Two ways in and out; hallway to the pantry and small washroom off the foyer and the window at the end of the galley area of the kitchen. Well stocked and fairly easy to defend, if it came to that.

Magnus’ assessment of the defensibility of the room took less than two seconds.

He took a sip of his coffee. It was good. Hot and strong. Just the way he liked it. Assuming Gerry made it, it gave him another reason not to kill the man and toss his body in the nearest loch. All kinds of loch monsters lived around here. Some were probably carnivores.

“So, how much did you hear?” Magnus asked.

Gerry shrugged, took another bite, and then answered. “Enough. I especially like the part where she threw the doll at your head.”

“She missed.”

Gerry grunted.

Arse.

“What are you doing here, Butler?” Magnus was fairly certain he already knew the answer. No one would be here unless Lauren ordered it so. There would be no getting rid of the man if that were the case. That didn’t mean he couldn’t limit his exposure to him. More importantly, it didn’t mean he couldn’t limit Butler’s exposure to Daisy.

“I was hired. Same as you.” Butler stopped eating and looked directly at Magnus. He held his spoon a little too tightly for Magnus’ comfort. “Lauren had me store my gear in the room just down from yours. It has its own bathroom.”

Magnus didn’t move, but every inch of him tensed. “You won’t be staying, so the bath accommodations won’t much matter.”

“Gerry
is
staying. He
and
a small number of his camera crew,” Lauren said as he walked into the kitchen and poured himself a mug of coffee. He took one sip, wrinkled his nose, and set it down. Lauren was a man who preferred tea. Magnus shared a brief look of conspiratorial allegiance with Gerry. As quickly as the moment came, it was gone.

Lauren looked first at Gerry and then at Magnus. They both got the message. Although Lauren’s tone was affable, as usual, the set of his jaw was not. Lauren meant what he said. No amount of bitching was going to change the fact that they were all going to be sleeping under the same roof. Magnus didn’t like it, but he wouldn’t give
Butler the satisfaction of seeing him argue about it.

His mind knew better than to argue, but apparently his heart was one stupid bastard. “The man’s a Scot.
He can’t be trusted around Daisy.”

Lauren didn’t look shocked by the utter stupidity that just rolled out of Magnus’ mouth. “Gerry’s an American of Scottish descent.
You
are a Scot.”

“Exactly. It takes one to know one. Even a watered-down version.” Magnus jerked his head toward
Gerry, who had given up on his cereal. “And I don’t want
that
one spending any unnecessary time around Daisy.”

That
one raised both his eyebrows, but wisely kept his American-of-Scottish-descent mouth shut. Lauren looked at Magnus like he was speaking Swahili. That was probably fair since Magnus couldn’t make any more sense out of what he’d just said than they seemed to be making. Since he couldn’t define his objections any better, Magnus stopped talking.

He walked to the table and grabbed a handful of grapes from the bowl in front of
Gerry. Magnus threw them in his mouth, crunching their skin with gusto he usually reserved for a good piece of meat. He spoke to Lauren, who was now at his back, but he kept his gaze riveted on Gerry, who was now treating his spoon as a potential weapon.
Smart man.

Magnus smiled at
Gerry as he spoke to Lauren. “If he runs around without pants, I’ll be cutting that sorry excuse for a cock off and feeding it to him.” Magnus grabbed another handful of grapes and walked out. He had answers to find, and since Lauren wasn’t sharing, he’d find them elsewhere. He’d start at the museum. When in doubt, always chat up a local. They knew the best secrets.

…

Gerry put down his spoon, lost his shithead demeanor and asked Lauren for the plan, knowing Lauren would only share what he thought each player needed to know. The man was razor sharp and more secretive than any other Gerry had met, including the Arm-Righ. The Arm-Righ had already tasked Gerry with a mission of his own, one Gerry couldn’t trust with Lauren or anyone. Not yet. The time would come when someone needed to die, but it wasn’t here and it wasn’t now. Until that time came, Gerry intended to keep his mission and his secrets to himself.

“Does Magnus know why I’m really here?” Gerry asked.

“He knows why he’s here. That’s enough for Magnus to know right now.”

“Does he know why you’re really in Kilmartin?”

“You’re full of questions, Butler.” Lauren paused and Gerry knew when he used that tone, the man’s patience was wearing thin. “Magnus believes he’s here for two reasons. First, to keep an eye on Daisy in light of the Arm-Righ’s threats against her…”

Lauren held up a hand, staying any attempt to interrupt.

“No, he does not know of the specific threat, that’s why you’re here. He does know that the Bennett family is on the King’s hit list, as it were.”

“And the second reason Magnus believes he’s here?”

“He’s made himself indispensable and he knows it. There is no one I trust to interpret pre-Christian symbols and Celtic lore more than Magnus. He’s made quite a name for himself in the Celtic antiquities community as a scholar and as an artist. He knows it. And
that
is a very real reason for his presence.”

“He seems capable enough.” Gerry shrugged. “He was sure willing to carve me up. So why call me?”

Lauren sipped from his mug. Weighing words was a fine art to him. “Magnus’ love for Daisy mutes his ability to ensure her safety. It makes him vulnerable. Magnus is a healer by nature, not a killer. You have a different skill set. One unencumbered by Magnus’—shall we say—
flaws.
”

Gerry wasn’t thrilled with Lauren’s vision of him and his skill set, but, he wasn’t hurt by the man’s opinion of him either. Gerry had killed, so the shoe fit. It just wasn’t the shoe Lauren thought it was.

“So, you’re afraid Magnus can’t protect Daisy on his own, even with you, an ex-SAS man, hanging around? In my experience, limited as it may be, love doesn’t stop a man from throwing down when necessary.”

Lauren’s jaw tightened and something like self-contempt flashed across his face. “Love makes men vulnerable and stupid. That’s why you’re here.”

Realizing that Lauren was done sharing, Gerry let it drop. Lauren was right about the state of Gerry’s heart. He hadn’t loved anyone, not even himself, in a very long time. He didn’t love Daisy, but, he liked her—a lot. So, he guessed from Lauren’s perspective, hiring him was logical. He got a great cameraman and an emotionally unencumbered bodyguard. Made sense, Gerry thought, as he drained the remaining milk from his bowl into the sink. He had his own reasons for sticking close to Daisy.

As for Lauren, he had no idea just how vulnerable and stupid he was about to become.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Daisy finished putting away her clothing and the rest of her things in enough time to see Magnus cross the street, his lengthy stride taking him toward the museum. He threw his head back as he popped something from his hand into his mouth. Whatever it was, he sure looked like his was enjoying it.

The gesture brought back so many memories. Daisy loved the way he threw his head back while he ate something he particularly loved, like licorice bits, pistachios, and Harabo gummy bears. She’d never seen anyone else eat like Magnus.

She’d loved him once with every fiber of her being. Could she really be this close to him and keep those feelings from emerging again?

Yes.

Maybe.

Maybe not.

Time for a new list.

Daisy seemed to have lost the one she’d started the evening he walked back into her life and pulled her from the pool. Magnus must have sensed her staring at him, because he turned around and looked right at her. She wasn’t hard to see, standing in front of the largest window in the room. He gave her a knowing smile and fired off a crisp salute.

She flipped him off.

She hadn’t done that since eighth grade and she wasn’t proud of herself for reverting to her inner thirteen-year-old, but it made Magnus laugh and execute a bow before heading into the museum. A small smile tugged at her lips. Magnus was still the only person on the planet who could piss her off, make her laugh, and tug her heart, all in a matter of seconds.

She’d given into that rush of emotion once and it had been wild and wonderful. The soul-crushing afterward had been hell. Daisy yanked the curtain sheers from their hangers and drew them across the window. She could still see shapes through them, but she couldn’t pick out smiles. That was all good. “Get a grip, woman. You’re going to be seeing a lot more of him.”

Daisy grabbed her cell phone and called Taryn’s number. Unfortunately for her, her brother, Jesse, answered. “You were supposed to call when you got to the house.”

“Hello to you too. And yes, the flight was fine, thanks for asking.”

A heavy sigh followed, and Daisy could picture Jesse running his free hand through his hair. A habit he’d picked up from their father, Jordon. “I worry about you, Daiz. I’m sorry if I sounded harsh. I’m glad you got there and that the flight was uneventful. I’m concerned, that’s all. I don’t like the idea of you spending time with he-who-shall-not-be-named.”

Daisy closed her eyes and rubbed her forehead. Hearing her brother use the name she’d given Magnus right after her disastrous non-wedding made her feel even more childish and churlish than flipping Magnus the bird had.
A two-fer within the space of a minute. Yep, way to act like a grown-up.

“You can call Magnus by his name, you know. I’m going to be around the man every day for the foreseeable future. Besides, I’m immune to him and his dubious charms.”

Jesse made a rude noise he didn’t even try to conceal. “Sure you are.”

“I am. One hundred percent immune.”

“You were calling him ‘the Dark Lord’ two days ago.”

“Well, a lot’s happened since then. Can we let this go?”

“I can.”

She didn’t reply to Jesse’s not-so-veiled insinuation that she couldn’t. She could. She absolutely could. And all the battered baggage that went with him. Daisy realized she hadn’t responded and Jesse wasn’t making conversation. “Is Taryn there? I need to ask her about the
Druid’s Scroll.”

Daisy heard laughter in the background. The sound of babies laughing always lightened her mood. “I’ll put her on. Uh, Daisy?”

“Yeah.”

“You know I love you, right?”

“Of course I do.” She did. Jesse hadn’t had any family who loved him before Reed adopted him. Jesse would do anything for her and she knew it. “I love you too.”

“I can be there in seven hours if you need me.”

That was the last thing she needed. Where Jesse went, Taryn followed. And if Jordon thought she needed her brother, for whatever reason, then her father would be on the next plane. Her mother would come too, and then she’d be knee deep in well-meaning Bennetts showering her with their smothering care.

“Ah, thanks, but I’m great here. All shiny and happy and delving into my work. Besides, Lauren’s here. What could possibly go wrong?”
Oh God and Goddess, I shouldn’t have said that.

“Everything’s fine, Jesse. Really. I just need to ask Taryn if she has any leads on where I should start looking for the Scroll, or anything else in the area. I’m working here. You’d be bored silly. And besides, do you really want to be separated from the twins?” Pulling out the twin card was her ace in the hole. Daisy crossed her fingers hoping it worked.