Midnight's Warrior (2 page)

“How long have you been at Dunnoth Tower?” he asked as he once more knelt in front of the outlet on the opposite wall.

She hated when people asked her questions, but for some reason she wanted to answer Ramsey’s. Which wasn’t a good sign for her at all. “A few weeks.”

He pulled the outlet from the wall and inspected it before he twisted a few wires. “Hmm,” he responded.

“What brought you here?” She licked her lips, refusing to wonder what made her ask her own question. She never did this. It made it appear as if she were interested in him when she needed to keep her distance.

But there was something so alluring, so fascinating about Ramsey that she couldn’t help herself.

“Chance, maybe.” He shrugged and tightened a wire. “Who knows? How about you?”

“I was driving and the road took me here.”

He looked up and met her gaze. “Definitely chance on your part.”

She grinned as she leaned her forearms on her desk. She had no idea what had come over her, asking and answering questions. And she even left her answer open so Ramsey could ask something else.

But he didn’t.

Because he didn’t it gave her the insane urge to inquire about something else. Thankfully, the phone rang, saving her from making an utter fool of herself.

Tara kept glancing at Ramsey as she looked at the calendar to book a company conference. She grew agitated at the woman on the other end of the line because Ramsey was finishing up with the outlet and she was still on the phone.

And then Ramsey closed his toolbox and stood. He gave her a smile and walked away.

Tara sighed. “I beg your pardon, ma’am. I didn’t hear that last bit. Could you repeat it?”

As she wrote down the dates in the calendar and calculated the deposit, Tara told herself now wasn’t the time to find a man she was interested in.

The problem was there was never a good time for her to get involved with anyone.

CHAPTER TWO

Ramsey leaned against the wall and dropped his head back. Touching Tara had been a mistake. A drastic mistake.

He looked down at the spread fingers of the hand that had held her. White tendrils of magic floated along his skin like smoke. It made his skin tingle and his own magic burn to be released.

Ramsey fisted his hand and clenched his jaw. In all his immortal years, never had he encountered a Druid who had affected his magic the way Tara did.

He tilted his head slightly and listened to her sweet voice as she spoke on the phone. She laughed, the sound shooting straight to his balls, making them tighten. Need, thick and strong and unyielding, ran through him.

If he had known how being near Tara would affect him, Ramsey might have brought another Warrior with him. But he’d come alone. It was a risky endeavor, but he knew he had to accomplish it by himself.

After all, he was a Warrior, a Highlander with a primeval god locked inside him that gave Ramsey immortality and a host of enhanced senses as well as incredible power. Those same gods were the ones freed by the
droughs
from their prison in Hell to help fight the Romans who had invaded Britain so many centuries before.

He wasn’t just a Warrior though. He was also a Druid. A fact he had kept from his brethren until a few days ago. He hadn’t known how they would react to the news, but that wasn’t the only reason he hadn’t told them. It was a secret he had kept from everyone since the day Deirdre took him and unbound his god.

A smile pulled at Ramsey’s lips as he thought of Deirdre. Finally, after centuries of fighting her, they had managed to awaken her twin from a magical sleep. It had been dangerous finding and awakening Laria, but in the end, she was the only one who could kill Deirdre.

None of them had expected that it would claim Laria’s life as well.

Deirdre’s death should have ended all their misery. Should have, but didn’t. Because there was another power-hungry
drough,
a man who had used his magic to pull Deirdre forward four hundred years in time.

Declan Wallace.

He was the reason Ramsey had tracked Tara. Declan was a menace who needed to be killed, but he was devilishly lucky. Too lucky, in fact.

Ramsey covertly leaned around the doorway and looked at Tara. She had her earphones back on and was slowly tapping her left foot to the beat of whatever she was listening to.

She seemed oblivious to his real motives for coming to Dunnoth Tower, and that worked perfectly for Ramsey. He would do everything he could to stop Saffron’s vision from coming true.

His mobile phone vibrated in his pocket suddenly. Ramsey hurried away from Tara and reached for the device. He was still getting used to the technology of the age, but he was catching on fast.

Ramsey answered his iPhone with a whispered, “Aye.”

There was a sigh, and then Saffron’s voice said, “You’re supposed to say ‘Hello.’”

“Ah. Well then, hello.”

The Seer chuckled. “Have you seen Declan yet?”

Ramsey glanced around him as he shouldered his way through a door that led outside to the cottage given to him as the all-around handyman of the tower. “No’ yet. How are things at MacLeod Castle?”

He missed being at the castle. It was the only home he’d had in centuries, and now that most of the Warriors had found their mates with Druids, the castle was more of a home than ever.

“Everyone is anxious to hear from you. Uh. Actually, I was calling to let you know that you’re going to have a visitor.”

“A visitor?” he repeated as he reached his cottage and set down his toolbox to open the door. As soon as he stepped inside he found the leader of the Warriors, Fallon MacLeod, sitting in the overstuffed chair. “Fallon.”

“Yep,” Saffron said in her American accent. “He’s already there, isn’t he?”

Ramsey nodded, then said, “Aye.”

“My cue to hang up.”

Ramsey returned the mobile to his pocket as Fallon stood. They clasped forearms and nodded their greetings.

“It’s good to see you,” Ramsey said. “Is something wrong?”

Fallon shook his head. “Nay. I just wanted to see how things were going.”

“It’s been naught but two days.” Ramsey eyed the eldest MacLeod and appointed leader of the Warriors. “What really brings you?”

Fallon ran a hand down his face. “I never liked the idea of you being here alone, not with Declan coming for Tara.”

“I can handle him.”

“I’m no’ saying you cannot. All I’m saying is that I willna lose another friend. It’s been four centuries, but I feel the loss of Duncan to this day.”

Ramsey rubbed the back of his neck and nodded. “I as well. Who do you want to send here?”

Fallon grinned.

Ramsey rolled his eyes as understanding dawned. “Who’s here?”

“Arran and Charon.”

He cringed. “No’ two I’d have paired after their time in Deirdre’s mountain together.”

“Arran says he’s over it. I think it helps that he now knows Deirdre was forcing Charon to spy for her.”

“Where are they?”

“Around. You willna see them unless there’s trouble. I still think you’re taking a huge risk doing this, Ramsey. Declan could recognize you.”

Ramsey shook his head. “He was too preoccupied with Saffron and Camdyn as well as watching Malcolm turn against Deirdre to have noticed me during the battle at the Ring of Brodgar.”

“If there’s any trouble, take Tara, by force if needed, and get back to MacLeod Castle.”

Ramsey gave a brief nod of assent. None of them knew just how powerful he was, and for the moment, that’s exactly how Ramsey wanted it. There would be no running for him. He intended to kill Declan before the
drough
had a chance to get to Tara.

Ramsey was descended from a line of male Druids from the Torrachilty Forest who were fabled for their potent magic. They had been the warriors of the Druid world, the ones who had kept the
droughs
and
mies
from massacring each other. Add the power of Ramsey’s god and he was a force to be reckoned with.

On only one occasion had he shown some of that power, and that was the first time they had killed Deirdre. With all the Warriors battling her at once, no one realized what Ramsey had done. But for all their power, Deirdre hadn’t stayed dead. This time, however, was different. She was well and truly gone.

It had relieved Ramsey for all of a day before Saffron’s vision. As a Seer, Saffron didn’t always see everything in her visions. What she had seen was Tara. Saffron had been shown that Tara’s life was in danger, and that Ramsey was to be the one to save her.

It hadn’t taken them long to piece together from Saffron’s earlier visions that Declan was the one after Tara. And after Ramsey paid a little visit to Tara’s drunk of a mother, it was confirmed that Declan had called on her looking for Tara.

Ramsey watched as Fallon walked to the window and looked across the snow-covered grounds to the castle. “Have you spoken with Tara?” Fallon asked.

“Aye. She’s guarded, as I expected. From your description of the Druid who ran from you in Edinburgh, she’s one and the same.”

Fallon crossed his arms over his chest. “You seem different, old friend.”

Ramsey had never been much of a talker. He liked to formulate his answers and think of every possible outcome or decision before he voiced anything. But there were times, like now, when he didn’t have that option.

Fallon was a noble man, a natural leader, and a good friend. He didn’t want to lie to Fallon.

“Tara’s magic is…”

“Different?” Fallon offered as he turned his head to look at him.

Ramsey nodded. He held up his hand where the magical tendrils could still be seen.

“Bloody hell,” Fallon murmured as he dropped his arms to his sides and stared at Ramsey’s hand.

“I touched her on her arm briefly. Through her sweater. Her magic is unexplainable. I’ve never felt anything like it. It’s strong, but no’ as strong as Isla’s or Reaghan’s. Yet, in some ways it’s stronger than all of the Druids at MacLeod Castle combined.”

“Is she
drough
?”

Ramsey had looked at Tara’s neck for the Demon’s Kiss, a small silver vial that held the first drops of a
drough
’s blood after the ceremony where they gave their soul to the Devil. “I’ve no’ seen proof of it. And with the sweaters she wears, I’ve no’ had a chance to look at her wrists for the cut marks.”

“Does her magic hurt?”

“Nay.” Anything but. Her magic was the most wonderful thing Ramsey had ever felt. He wanted to keep touching her, to keep that feeling close to him. It was like a drug, and after just one touch, he was addicted.

Fallon’s green eyes narrowed as if he knew exactly what Ramsey was thinking.

“Get back to your wife,” Ramsey said. “I doona want Larena angry at me because you’ve stayed away too long.”

The mention of Fallon’s wife and only female Warrior always made Fallon smile. “Aye. She and Isla want to go to Edinburgh Castle to see if they can find the hidden spell that would bind our gods that Laria spoke about. I know it’s long gone from Edinburgh, but the girls say they need to start somewhere.”

“I want to know the progress of that, so keep me informed.”

“Will do. And doona do anything stupid, Ramsey. We need you at the castle.”

Ramsey grinned. “Fallon, I’m no’ the rash one.”

“True, but I wanted to issue the caution just in case. I’ve seen what my sisters-in-law did to my brothers and the other Warriors. It seems that Druids are paired nicely with us Warriors.”

“You have nothing to worry about with me. I’ve no desire to find a woman.”

Fallon slapped him on the shoulder. “Good luck with that. Until later.”

And then Fallon teleported back to MacLeod Castle.

Each Warrior had a special power, and Fallon’s was jumping places in a blink, but he had to have visited the place before. He couldn’t teleport somewhere he’d never been. Which was why he had driven with Ramsey to Dunnoth.

But it did make travel easy with Fallon around.

Ramsey shook his head as he walked to the refrigerator and grabbed a Coke. He unscrewed the cap and tilted it to his lips for a long drink.

There was a huge list of things for him to do around the castle, and with the heavy clouds overhead, there was little doubt that more snow was on the way. Ramsey replaced the bottle of Coke in the fridge and decided to do the outside chores first before it began to snow.

If he waited, they’d start asking why he wasn’t wearing a coat. He couldn’t exactly tell them that he didn’t get cold or hot as mortals did, or that he rather liked the feel of the cold against his skin.

It was just better not to take any unnecessary risks unless it was absolutely essential. He snorted. He’d heard that so many times from his father and uncle that it had stuck. It had been something Ramsey lived by, and only rarely did he take such a risk.

He consulted the list the owners had given him that morning at dawn and searched for the things that needed to be done outside. After making note of the first two, he folded the paper and stuffed it in his back pocket before heading out the door.

Dunnoth Tower sat on the beach, by Sinclair’s Bay in the North Sea. The water was darker and choppier than the sea at MacLeod Castle, but no less pretty.

The salt hung in the air, and the brisk breeze coming off the water only added to the stoic beauty of the castle. It hadn’t stood as long as MacLeod Castle, but neither did it have its grisly history.

Ramsey inhaled deeply as he finished fixing the lock on the gate leading to the private drive of the owners. He walked toward the shed to get the snow shovel and remove the snow from the path leading down to the beach. There were only two guests in the castle at present, but everything needed to stay spotless at all times.

Ramsey had shoveled half of the path when he felt someone watching him. He paused and leaned against the shovel as his gaze roamed the area.

And came to rest on Tara standing ten feet from him holding a steaming cup of coffee.

His magic swarmed through him as he drank in her beauty. She had a natural look that he liked entirely too much. She wore makeup, but very little, and what she wore only accentuated her large, almond-shaped eyes and full lips.