Page 84 of Anywhere

I could just make out the sound of the person on the other end of the phone line as they yelled back at the mystery man. It sounded like a small chipmunk, making it impossible to understand a single word.

“Fine, Iz will do it yer way, but not fir much longer.”

The blue light got brighter, and I pressed myself against the rock, making myself as flat as possible. Luckily, the light began to fade as the sound of his boots travelled away from the cells. I let out the breath I’d been holding. Putting my hand in my pocket, I pulled out the ring and stared at it. Whoever this belonged to, he wanted it back, and it was definitely the person who had taken me. It made me want to know the answers this ring held that much more.

Peeking around the edge of the door, I didn’t see or hear the man, but there was a strange energy left in the air from his presence. I didn’t like it, and I didn’t trust it. Holding out my arm, the hair stood as the electricity ran over my skin. It felt like some sort of alarm system.

Shite, shite, shite.

Slipping back inside the cell, I eased myself to the ground and tensed as my back screamed. Clenching my jaw, I leaned against the cool stone. If I was going to attempt to make it through whatever the fuck that was, I was going to need a cloaking spell. I wished I had Rhys’s ability to blend with the shadows. That was another McGregor trait, but I did have other tricks up my sleeve.

I should’ve just attacked him, but then I wouldn’t know who he was working with or what they have planned. And if I didn’t win, then I was once more a liability. Whoever he was working with didn’t sound happy, and I would bet my ass that they were talking about Rook and Rhys. What the hell did he mean by no one would get hurt if he fell in line? Who was supposed to fall in line?

Staring at the door, I decided on the spell to use, but remained still. The man needed to be as far away as possible. He would only have put the spell if he thought someone was down here and was waiting outside to attack or because he wanted to be alerted if anyone entered the cave.

Laying my head against the stone, I stared at the damp wall across the way and the marks that had been etched into it over time. Time…that was a funny word. Sometimes it felt like we had too much and other times not enough.

My life had always felt like I was running but held in stasis. Now it seemed as though my feet had finally touched the floor, but I had nowhere to run to other than a bleak emptiness.

My eyes travelled to the four corners of the old cell that had been used back when the war raged between the Flitters and the Factions. The Flitters had it better than they realized, and I understood Rook’s desire to run away from all of this. If I’d been given the choice…

I shook my head to rid it of the thoughts that would never come to be. This was my life. I’d chosen to help the Faction while I found ways to protect the women they tried to suppress. I wouldn’t take that back, no matter the cost.

Laying my head on my knees, I focused on who the mysterious man could’ve been talking to and began making a list in my head.

Rhys

For a whole extra day, I sat around and made phone calls and negotiated assistance from our allies. Lochlan was a good help, and Caleb, when he could focus long enough, was an amazing talker. That guy could sell ice in the middle of a snowstorm.

Nigel Kelly, the head of the Kelly house had held up the meeting saying he was running late, then cancelled coming altogether. I knew the man didn’t like me and would prefer any other McGregor as the head of the family. At one time, that would’ve bothered me but not anymore. The man could go fuck himself.

Slipping my arms into the black and burgundy cloak, I pulled the hood up over my head. Just the act of putting the ceremonial piece on seemed to bring me closer to the spirit world. I could already hear the soft chanting of those who had arrived before me echoing along the stone hallway. The sound of the multiple voices was both haunting and thrilling.

The old catacombs held a power that not even I understood. Picking up my candle and knife, I made my way toward the protective barrier that was the seal to keep both the living out and the spirits of the dead inside.

I could feel the invisible barrier and stopped to bow my head. “Go dtuga na spioraid rochtain agus cosaint do magus mé ag taisteal ina réimeas.”

The air shimmered as I asked for the blessing to pass beyond the realm of the living without issue and to travel back again. Slowly kneeling, my voice dropped, and I hummed along with those on the other side of the barrier before continuing my blessing. “Lig do na spioraid mé a threorú agus na cinntí a dhéanaim a chumhachtú.”

Placing my hand over the wick of the candle, it roared to life, the flame piercing my hand. I sucked in a sharp breath with the sharp pain as the flame tested my power. The skin separated and showed me the bones within my hand and the muscles that wrapped around them. It lasted but a moment before the flame died down and became small once more. I stared at my hand with fascination, as I always did, at how not a mark was ever left behind. Rising to my feet, I closed my eyes and held my hands out to my side.

“Coinnigh mo lámh agus lig dom taisteal abhaile le scian I mo lámh agus faic I mo dhroim. Is é seo a iarraim.”

The long blessing had taken forever to get right when I was young. So many times, I’d forgotten a word and the barrier wouldn’t let me pass. My father had made me practice the words from the moment I could speak, and now the old language spilled off my tongue with grace that filled me with pride.

The flame extinguished as I stepped through the barrier and then flared to life once more. Cold blanketed me and grew stronger with each step. As I always did, I paused beside the two memorials in honour of my parents and took a moment to lay my hand on the stones that represented my ma, my da, and of course, Robin, my father’s second. Their bones lay in the catacomb under Glentruan, but each castle had a memorial for all those from our Faction who had passed on.

“I wish you rest and love in the afterlife. May your souls always be at peace.” Removing my hand, I stayed a moment more to stare at the three stones.

I’d never met my parents’ third. He was murdered before I was even conceived. It was inevitable that this was how I was going to end up one day. Reduced to nothing more than a stone and my spirit haunting the catacombs under Glentruan. If history had anything to say about it, then what time I had left was slim. The second was always the target, and it felt like the sands of time were already dripping faster.

Pushing the thought aside, I continued to the ritual area and glanced around the room, noticing that there were a few more missing spots. A couple I expected, like Angus Adair, Rook’s father who lived overseas, but it was awkwardly noticeable that Kingsley McKinnon was not present. He was the last remaining McKinnon elder. That was a snub to my authority as the head McGregor, and my teeth ground together. It was bad enough that Nigel had decided not to show, but now Kingsley.

Shaking it off, I stepped into the middle of the pentagram and up to the stone dais and the marble sacrificial table. For this ritual, there wasn’t a need for a human sacrifice, but there had been times when it was necessary. It never sat well with me that we needed to take a life to save others, but if the spirits demanded it to save the masses, it was what needed to be done.

I sat the candle off to the side, and the chanting around me grew louder. The words repeated over and over with more vigour than before. The walls shook, and dust sprinkled down on the pristine marble as the power began to rise. Spinning the knife around in my hand, I closed my eyes and allowed my voice to join with the chorus. Rocking softly, my mind and body began to drift into the spirit world, and the images of those transparent wisps slowly took shape in my mind.

Laying my left palm on the marble, I stabbed through the centre of my hand until the metal tip hit the marble. The pain radiated up my arm, but I held still and allowed my mind to overpower the physical sensation.