Heart Of A Highland Warrior (13 page)

Of all the Seekers, he had to be stuck with this one. Arrogant prick.

“Keep up,” the baldheaded man said.

Most Seekers were bald for some reason Ronan had never figured out. Maybe their heads couldn’t find lost things and grow hair at the same time. But not all of them were so bad-tempered. Probably overcompensating for his lack of height. He was a full head shorter than Ronan.

“I’m on your bloody heels,” Ronan said, tempted to move past him and really piss him off. Seekers hated it when someone went ahead of them. They
’d
found Anna’s car parked on a side road in the middle of nowhere. It was already dark, not the best time to search, but it was the only time this Seeker had open, else they
’d
have to wait another day for another Seeker to arrive. “Are you certain she’s here?” Perhaps she left her car here and rode with someone else.

“She’s here. Close by. Can you take it from here?” the Seeker asked. He seemed anxious to get back.

Was he kidding? This was his job. To find people. Find things. “Sure.” Asshole. He
’d
find Anna himself, now that he had a starting point.

After the Seeker drove off, Ronan picked up Anna’s tracks in the dirt. At least a woman’s. They must be Anna’s if the Seeker was right. The tracks were no more than a couple of days old. What was she doing in the middle of the woods? A minute later he saw the fence. He would have assumed someone wanted their privacy, but the gates were open. He sniffed the air. That wasn’t good. Demons. He pulled his collapsed sword from its sheath at his belt and pushed the button to extend it. The soft metallic ring sounded loud against the quiet of night. He walked through the gate, but there was nothing here but trees. From the looks of the gate, he
’d
expected an estate.

He studied the ground, trying to pick up Anna’s tracks again, and plowed headfirst into something hard. Still holding his sword, he staggered back. The right side of his body vanished. “What the…” He stepped forward and saw a large stone wolf. Several of them, all lined up like guard
s. Behind them stood a tall fortress. Smack in the middle of nowhere. Cloaked, just like the Albany castle. Ripples of alarm ran across his back. Two cloaked structures just miles apart? What were the chances of that?

Crouching beside the stone wolf, he studied the place to determine the best way to get inside. Anna must be here. He wasn’t about to knock on the door and see if she was a guest. The fortress was tall. Lots of windows to gain entry if he couldn’t find another way in. Good thing it was dark.

He heard a sound behind him, like ice cracking on his mountain lake in the spring thaw. Warm air touched his neck, and he turned. The stone wolf stared at him. But its eyes looked red. He must be imagining it. Ronan blinked, and the wolf blinked back. Its teeth were bared, and he saw its haunches turning from stone to fur. “Holy—” He jumped aside as the wolf sprang. Its shoulder bumped him, and he fell. Rolling to his feet, he lifted his sword and faced the snarling beast. It was huge, eyes level with his. No way he could outrun it.

Ronan waited until it attacked. When it was midair, he drove his sword into the beast’s heart. It was moving too fast for him to get out of the way. The wolf collapsed on him, four hundred pounds, not muscle and bone and fur, but crumbling stone.

The cracking sound started again. The eyes of the next wolf turned from stone to dull red. His whole body hurt, and it took all his strength to shove the stones aside. He leapt to his feet a second before a giant paw smashed down where his head had been. Time to go.

He sprinted to the left of the castle toward a tree with several low branches. He could feel the wolf right behind him. He grabbed one of the branches and swung himself up, scrambling to a higher branch. The wolf leapt, and Ronan climbed higher until its teeth were well below his feet. Several others joined the hunt, snapping and snarling as they circled the tree. If only he had his bow. He judged the distance to the nearest balcony. Could he jump that far? Before he could test his agility, the wolves put their noses to the air and ran off. They
’d
scented someone else to torment. He crouched on the tree limb, pitying whatever they
’d
targeted. He dropped down, landing on his feet, and hurried toward the fortress. He had to find Anna. He didn’t know what she was doing here, but it wasn’t likely that she was here by choice. Not with that hairy welcoming party.

The front door stood open. That in itself was alarming, even if he hadn’t just nearly been eaten by monster wolves. He didn’t hear anything inside. Holding his sword ready, he spun and entered. There were piles of dust everywhere. Like the ones in the battle with Druan. Bloody vampires. What the hell had happened here? Anna was tough, but she couldn’t have killed all these vampires alone. Maybe the wolves? A body lay near the staircase. Not human. Demon. Not Anna’s work. A demon would have disappeared if a warrior killed it. His blood started to pump harder. Bree said Anna was in danger. Was he too late? The wolves…maybe they were after her. He rushed back to the door as he called the castle for backup. The wolves were stone again. Whatever they were chasing had gotten away, or it was too late. But Anna could still be here. Someone was. He could feel eyes watching him.

He turned back to the wide staircase leading from the first floor. It was littered with piles of dust. He followed the trail of ash to the second floor and stepped over a pile of demon guts. This place must have been fancy without all the dust and blood.

The third floor had even more ash. More than dead bodies. The vampires had lost. At the end of one room, he saw a shattered door and found a room that had clearly been the site of a battle. Furniture smashed and things toppled off shelves. Someone was partial to emeralds.

He still didn’t hear anyone, but he could feel eyes watching him. The only thing he saw was a life-size portrait of a woman in a mirror. He continued his search while waiting for the others to arrive. If Anna was captive here, she might be in the dungeon.

He discovered other dead vampires and a few demons as he made his way to the dungeon. It was nicer down here than the living quarters of some castles he
’d
visited, and many he
’d
broken into, but its purpose was obvious the farther he went. He found a room filled with instruments of torture. Blood still stained the floor. He sniffed. Not Anna’s. After the vampire bite he
’d
gotten two years ago, his sense of smell was even stronger. He healed faster, moved quicker.

Still searching, he found cells with shackles on the walls and floors, and in the deepest bowels of the dungeon there was a room that had obviously been lived in. The door was open. Inside there was an unmade bed, a toilet, and a sink. His guts tightened into knots. There was something about the room, a smell, a feel, that made him sick. He hadn’t been attacked so far, so he ignored stealth and called out Anna’s name.

Where was she?

The wolves. The bloody damned wolves. She must have drawn them away.

The woman looked at the desecration. Tristol would be furious. All his hard work destroyed, and by Voltar, one of the League. She
’d
never liked any of them. Traitorous backstabbing bastards. But Voltar was the worst. Even Tristol considered him an enemy. She should have killed Voltar long ago. She would have killed him this time, if she
’d
been here. But she
’d
only arrived in time to see him fling the hybrid aside and run from the castle.

She had failed Tristol. She had worked hard to protect him, fighting battles he didn’t know existed, paving his way to glory. For centuries she had hidden in the shadows, watching and protecting from afar. But when he really needed her, she hadn’t been here.

Her gaze fell on the hybrid, who was standing in the shadow of a statue. Another enemy, but Tristol deserved this one. He
’d
stolen everything from the hybrid. The lost look on his face stirred her heart. He stared at the handsome warrior at the bottom of the stairs, jaw clenched under his beard. As the warrior started out the door, the hybrid started forward, then stopped. His shoulders slumped, and he dropped to the floor as if his legs had been cut away. He put his head in his hands, and she heard a raw, wounded cry. The kind of cry that only came when you were alone and thought no one listened. Her own eyes grew damp. He was bloody and bruised, would probably die from his injuries if she didn’t kill him on Tristol’s behalf. But something stopped her. Instead, she moved back to the emerald room. Nearly everything here had been destroyed from the battle. She moved in front of the mirror and touched the markings on the side. She closed her eyes, questioning her own sanity as the whirring began.

Ronan stepped outside the fortress, disturbed in a way he couldn’t explain. It wasn’t just Anna. Something else was wrong. He felt like stone, like one of those wolves. And there they were, still lined up, cold and hard, as if he
’d
just dreamed that not an hour ago they
’d
been trying to rip him apart.

He quickly checked the outside of the castle, praying they hadn’t gotten Anna, but he didn’t find any bodies. He did find footprints. Two sets. A woman and a man. The man was barefoot and limping. Ronan saw a drop of blood. And injured. Had they gotten away?

He hurried toward the gate to check and see if her car was still there. He stepped on the other side of the veil and heard a whirring sound like a windstorm or a helicopter. But the other warriors couldn’t have arrived this quickly. He looked up, but didn’t see anything.

He stuck his head back through the veil to see if it was something on that side.

The fortress and the stone wolves had disappeared.

CHAPTER TEN

A
NNA HID HER
car in the woods near Bree’s house in case they were followed. She helped the semiconscious prisoner from the car and put his arm around her shoulder. “We’ll stay in the woods until we make sure no one’s watching the place.” When they reached the house, the driveway was empty and the lights were off. No one was there. “Please let them be OK,” she whispered. She didn’t know what the clan would do about Tristol and Voltar. If warriors had been assigned to destroy them, they
’d
better show up soon.

She heard a loud noise like a motorcycle. Faelan had a motorcycle, but he
’d
promised Bree he
’d
stop riding it until the baby was born. It must be Voltar. His human shell had been a biker.

“He’s followed us. The graveyard. He can’t get to us there.” Demons couldn’t step on holy ground. She dragged the prisoner toward the iron fence surrounding the graves. He stopped again, staring at the graveyard. “Hurry, before he spots us. I’m going to hide you here and lead him away.”

“No.”

“We don’t have a choice. You’re going to die if I don’t.”

The prisoner’s arm slid from her shoulders, and he slumped against a tall headstone. “Go on,” he said, clinging to the stone, his body ready to collapse but his gaze fierce. “Protect yourself.”

“Then we’ll both hide in the crypt,” she lied. The burial site that had hidden Faelan’s time vault was empty now that he
’d
sent the time vault back. No one would think to look inside a grave. The very reason Faelan had remained unnoticed for one hundred and fifty years. After she got the prisoner inside, she would close the lid. He was weak now. By the time he got out, she would have led Voltar away.

Working quickly, she helped him inside the crypt, which sat in the middle of the graveyard. It wasn’t large, about fifteen feet square with a stone burial vault near the back to hold a casket. Or a time vault, in Faelan’s case.

Strangely enough, an old wooden coffin was already inside, near the door. What was Bree up to now? She was going to drive Faelan insane yet. The coffin. That might be a good hiding place. She lifted the lid and saw it wasn’t empty. The skeleton occupying the coffin wore a kilt. “That won’t work. Not without crushing whoever’s inside. We’ll hide in the burial vault.” That must be where the coffin would eventually rest.

The prisoner appeared to be leaning on the coffin for support, but when she helped him stand, he seemed distressed. He looked at the coffin and then the burial vault for several seconds through hooded eyes. “You first. I’ll close the lid,” he said, his voice weak.

“No. You’re injured worse. I’ll close the lid.”

“You…” His eyes closed, and he started to fall.

He should be dead. Anna grabbed him. “I’m not letting you die. Now climb in there.” Grunting, she pushed and shoved and got the lid partially open. As gently as she could, she helped him inside. When he was lying flat, she started to pull the cover closed. “No.” The fear on his face tore her heart. He tried to sit up. “Stay here with me. He can’t get in here. That’s why…” His body swayed.

Anna understood why he felt that way. If she were him, she would too. “OK. I’ll stay.” Until he passed out, which shouldn’t be long. Then she would lead Voltar away. “I’m going to close the lid halfway so it’ll be easier to move from the inside.”

After she was finished, she climbed inside the burial vault with him and lay down. It was a tight fit. She had to turn slightly toward him to make it work. She didn’t close the lid all the way. She wasn’t going to be here long. Besides, he had a death grip on her hand. She tried to leave a couple of times, but each time he would rouse and wouldn’t let go of her hand.

“I know my name.…” His voice trailed off, and his eyes closed.

Anna leaned closer, trying to hear. “Tell me.”

He whispered his name as a muffled roar came from outside. “Anna!”

Voltar. She pulled her hand free and climbed out of the burial vault. He was unconscious. She couldn’t let Voltar find him. Her fingers found his pulse—strong—and he wasn’t bleeding now. Leaning down, she kissed his cheek. “I’ll come back after I call Faelan and Bree,” she whispered.

She pulled the lid closed, hoping he wouldn’t wake until she got back or until she had Faelan or someone come for him. Taking care to close the door quietly, she slipped from the crypt, moving silently past the headstones to the fence near the back of the graveyard.

“Anna!”

The hair on her arms stood as a huge shadow melted from behind the chapel. He couldn’t come in here, but how long could she wait him out before he sent in his minions to do the work he couldn’t do? She had to draw him away so he didn’t realize they
’d
been here. The clouds were thick, blocking the moon. She climbed over the fence and ran quietly into the woods. When she was a good distance in, she cried out as if she
’d
fallen. She waited until she heard the trees cracking and limbs smashing in his wake, and then she started running.

“Do you think she was inside the fortress when it disappeared?” Faelan asked.

“I hope not.” Though Ronan had sensed someone watching him. Anna would have let him know if she had been there. “Her car was gone.”

“She must have escaped,” Shay said.

But why hadn’t she called?

“How could a bloody fortress just disappear?” Brodie asked.

“I don’t know.” Ronan rubbed his tired eyes. “But it did.”

“And stone wolves coming to life.” Brodie scratched his head. “What happened to the days when a warrior killed his demon and went home and had dinner? Now we’ve got vampires and stone wolves coming to life and ancient demons trying to kill us. I’m getting sick of this warrior stuff.”

“Your duty won’t be up for a while, so stop whining,” Sorcha said.

Duncan glared at Sorcha. “Do you have to be such a bitch? What the hell’s wrong with you?”

“You know what’s wrong with me,” she said to Duncan.

His jaw clenched.

“Are you still pissed about the traitor thing?” Declan asked.

Sorcha shrugged.

There were whispers, but Ronan didn’t think that was her problem. Her problem was her thick head. “If you run into one of those wolves,” Ronan said, “it’ll give you a new appreciation for Duncan.”

She snorted. “So what are we going to do? We’ve got a wedding, a funeral, a missing warrior, and now a vanishing fortress with monster wolves. Which do we tackle first?”

“I think we need to postpone the wedding.” Shay touched Cody’s shoulder. “There’s too much going on.”

He didn’t look happy, but he nodded. He wouldn’t admit it to anyone, but Ronan knew Cody would be on edge until he and Shay tied the knot. They
’d
been in love with each other for most of their lives, and separated most of that time because of demons and deception. Ronan didn’t blame him for wanting a ring on her finger. Say what you might about marriage being just a piece of paper, but it was a hell of a lot easier to walk away without that paper.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Shane said.

Everyone looked at Shane, who usually didn’t offer his opinion on matters that didn’t directly concern him.

“Why?” Cody asked. “Shay’s right, there’s too much going on.”

“The elders are planning to take Shay away.” Shane’s voice was controlled, like the rest of him. “They want to study her.”

“Study her!” Cody boomed. He advanced on Shane. “What do you mean?”

Shane didn’t move from his perch by the door. “They want to know why she can move like the vampires.”

“Calm down before you explode.” Ronan turned from Cody to Shane. “How do you know the elders want Shay?”

“I heard them talking. They had a secret meeting.”

“You were there?” Faelan asked.

Shane almost smiled. “They didn’t see me.”

“When were you going to tell me this?” Cody asked.

Shane looked nonplussed. “Now.”

“What’s this got to do with them getting hitched?” Niall asked.

“Because they want Bree too,” Shane said.

“Bree!” Faelan said, looking like he
’d
been hit by a rock. “They want Bree?”

Shane nodded. “But they aren’t going to take her. Yet.”

“Yet?” Faelan said. “Yet!”

“Because she’s married,” Shane said. “And pregnant.” He looked at Shay. “You need to be married soon. Or pregnant.”

Cody started pacing. “We’ll get married now.”

“Now?” Shay said. “We can’t do it now. We can’t throw something together this fast. We need wedding plans.”

“Wedding plans,” a loud voice chimed. “We’re just in time, Nina. They’re making wedding plans.” Matilda and Nina entered the room. Nina looked frustrated as she usually did when she was with Matilda. When he
’d
first met her, Ronan didn’t know how Nina kept her sanity around her crazy cousin. But Matilda grew on a person, kind of like a wart. And after her run-in with the vampire in the Connor castle secret passageway, she insisted on staying near the warriors. And the cat.

“We would have been here earlier, but Matilda was looking for the cat,” Nina said.

“I’m sure the poor thing is traumatized after the little incident in Washington,” Matilda said.

“I heard about your little incident,” Cody said. “That’s why Jamie sent you here in a hired car. What I’d like to know is how the cat got inside the White House?”

“You don’t want to know,” Nina said, easing onto a chair.

Cody groaned.

“I think it’s a great idea to get married now,” Matilda said. “We need a celebration to get our minds off those vampires…and other unpleasant things. Nina and I will plan everything. You won’t have to worry about a thing.”

“No!” Shay clenched her hands. “Thank you, Matilda, but it’s OK. Bree, Sorcha, and I have a lot of the plans in place already. Don’t we, girls?” She threw a panicked look at the women, who looked blank, then quickly nodded in agreement.

“That’s right,” Bree said. “We just have to speed things up. You worry about writing your book, Matilda.”

“I’m stuck on chapter two. I can’t focus. Has anyone seen the cat?”

“The last time I saw it was at the grave,” Bree said. “Tavis’s grave.”

“What grave?” Nina asked.

They explained to Nina and Matilda about the grave and about Anna. Matilda didn’t know all the clan’s secrets, but she had seen too much to keep everything hidden. Bree reached for Faelan’s hand. “We have to bury Tavis properly first. And find Anna.” She looked at Cody and Shay. “Then we’ll throw the biggest wedding the clan has ever seen.”

“Lachlan and Marcas took some warriors back to the fortress site tonight. Maybe they’ll find her,” Ronan said.

“If not, we’ll call in a Seeker,” Declan said.

Ronan grimaced. “Not the same one.”

“Did you get that short asshole?” Declan asked.

Ronan nodded. “That’s the one.”

“Can I interview him?” Matilda asked. “Maybe tag along and get some good material for my book.”

There was a resounding no from everyone in the room.

“Well, then,” Matilda said, looking almost offended.

“I thought you were writing about vampires,” Shay said.

“I’ve decided to write my memoirs. I’m not famous, but how many people have encountered a vampire and know real live warriors?”

Cody gritted his teeth. “You can’t write about warriors. Remember, we told you about the secret.”

“Oh, I won’t use real names,” Matilda said.

Cody clenched his hands together, and Shay patted his chest.

“And I’m including a chapter on reincarnation,” Matilda said.

“I didn’t know you believed in reincarnation,” Nina said.

“I just started. I think the cat was human once.”