Chapter 11
Rain drenched Scott and Filip as they finished repairing the corner of Elodie’s cottage, the water soaking through their coats, sweaters, and undershirts to land upon their skin like tiny shards of ice.
“Fuck me,” Filip muttered as a gust of wind made him nearly drop the hammer.
Scott turned his head away from the worst of the tempest, but it did little to help. It almost felt as if the storm were alive.
And attacking them.
The magic on Skye was significant, but surely not like that. Or was it?
Scott caught Filip’s eye. “Tell me the rain isna after us.”
“I can no’,” Filip shouted over a boom of thunder.
He frowned, unsure if Filip was teasing or not. They kept working. Any conversation was delayed since it was impossible to hear anything over the roar of the rain and the cracks of lightning and bellowing thunder.
“Get inside. Now!”
They looked up to see that Elodie had opened a window near them. Scott lowered his gaze to Filip and finished hammering in the last nail, then they both raced to the door. Elodie was there with towels.
“Get out of those clothes,” she ordered. “Some of Elias’s things are in the bathroom and his bedroom. Something should fit you until your clothes dry.”
Filip didn’t argue. He raced to the bathroom. Scott removed his boots and hung his coat, the garment dripping water onto the floor. He hesitated, wondering if he should take it to the sink.
“It’s fine. I’d rather you get dry and warm,” Elodie said and gently turned him toward her brother’s bedroom.
Scott was more than happy to remove his sodden clothes and wipe the cold rain from his body.
True to her word, Elodie had taken out several pairs of sweatpants and some sweatshirts and sweaters.
There were socks, as well. Scott hastened into a pair of gray sweatpants and a faded maroon sweatshirt with some logo that was all but gone.
With the dry socks on, Scott was already warming up.
He returned to the kitchen with his wet clothes in hand. Elodie took them and placed them on a drying rack with Filip’s. Scott tried to help her, but she wouldn’t let him. Then Filip placed a mug in his hands. Scott closed his eyes and sipped the delicious tea, the heat filling him as he swallowed.
“Thank you,” he said when Elodie turned back to him.
Her lips flattened. “You two stayed out there too long.”
“It needed to be done,” Filip added.
Elodie lifted her gaze to the window as she reached for her mug. “What an angry storm. I didn’t see many of them like this in Edinburgh.”
Scott was startled to hear that she had been in the same city as he, but he was more interested in her take on the storm. “Why do you say it’s angry?”
“Look at it,” she said without taking her eyes from the window. “The rain is slanting sideways. The wind howls its fury. And the lightning…” She paused. “It almost feels as if it’s trying to tear the sky in two while the thunder rattles the very ground.”
No sooner had she said the words than the sky let loose a long rumble that indeed shook the house and rattled the windows. Scott glanced at Filip, but he was looking down at his tea, his expression closed off.
“Most say it’s because we’re an island,” Elodie continued. “That it’s the sea and the wind currents. But the Druids know it’s so much more.”
She fell silent. Scott wanted her to continue, but given how she and Filip were acting, he wasn’t sure if he should push.
Filip finally broke the silence. “It doesna want me here.”
Elodie’s head swiveled to him. “You’re a Druid, Filip. You were born here. You belong.”
“Maybe it’s me,” Scott said. His breath locked in his chest when Elodie’s pale blue gaze slid to him. For the briefest of moments, he saw the pain and fear she fought so hard to conceal from everyone—including herself.
“I rather think it’s directed at me,” Elodie replied.
Scott frowned. “Why would you say that?”
Instead of answering him, she looked out the window. He was beginning to think she would never respond when she whispered, “Skye is particular about who finds a home here.”
“You were born here, too,” Filip said, using her words. “You’re a Druid. You belong.”
The smile she gave him was so full of melancholy that it brought Scott up short.
Elodie was hiding something big—something she didn’t want anyone to discover.
But for the life of him, he couldn’t imagine what it could be.
Like Filip had said, she was a Druid born to Skye. She belonged. He, however, didn’t.
Elodie turned from the window and faced them. “It doesn’t look to be letting up anytime soon. Besides, your clothes are still drying. How about some lunch?”
“I could eat,” Filip said with a smile.
Scott chuckled. “You’re always hungry.”
“I can no’ help it. I’ve a high metabolism,” Filip told her with a wink.
The laugh that bubbled from Elodie was musical. Scott was transfixed by how her face lit up. And her eyes…they sparkled. He wasn’t sure if it was the strength he saw in her or the fear she battled, but he was glad that he had been sent to Skye for her. Everything about her captivated him.
“Let’s see what you have.” Filip started to rise.
Scott pushed him back into the chair. “You burn everything you attempt to cook.” He looked at Elodie. “If you want edible food, keep him away from the kitchen.”
Her eyes crinkled at the corners. “Thanks for the heads-up. Though I should warn you that I’m not the best either. However, since it’s merely sandwiches, I think I can handle it.”
Scott and Filip helped Elodie get everything out of the fridge and onto the table.
She got out plates while Filip found the bread.
Scott watched the easy way Filip got Elodie to talk.
As they made their sandwiches, he brought up their childhoods and things he and his brother had done to get into trouble.
It wasn’t until they were halfway through their meal before Filip asked, “Elias didna take all his things?”
“He left in a hurry,” Elodie replied softly.
Scott saw that the mention of her brother was like scratching at a wound that hadn’t healed. He tried to imagine how he might feel if his sister had left without a word. “Well, I’m thankful for the clothes. Otherwise, we’d be sitting in towels or a blanket.”
Filip chuckled wryly. “Damn, that storm. Every way I moved, the rain seemed to move with me. It struck my face with force.”
Scott could’ve kicked Filip. At the mention of the tempest, Elodie seemed to withdraw into herself.
There was no more talk during the meal. They cleaned up and moved into the living area as the storm raged. Scott lit the fire while Filip sank into one of the large chairs. Within moments, his friend was snoring.
Elodie walked in and caught sight of Filip. Her lips twitched as she bit back a laugh. “He’s always been able to sleep anywhere. I can’t tell you how many times he did that in school.” She sat in a corner of the sofa and curled her legs under her.
Scott took the other chair. He stared into the fire as it took root and began to pop.
He wanted to ask Elodie so much, but now wasn’t the time to come right out and ask her what’d happened to her father.
That might very well get Filip and him thrown out into the storm.
No, that wasn’t something she would do. Elodie would just shut down. He suspected she did that a lot.
“It’s good that you came to Skye with him.”
Scott swung his head to her and nodded. “Kevin’s death was a shock.”
“What happened to him?”
“He was murdered.”
Elodie’s face blanched. “What? How?”
Scott hesitated. How much did he reveal?
“Never mind,” she said with a wave of her hand. “It’s none of my business.”
“It isna a secret. That isna why I paused. Kevin wasna the first Druid in recent months to be singled out and killed.”
She licked her lips. “I don’t understand.”
“You lived in the city. You know how volatile things can be as a Druid.”
Elodie’s gaze skated away. “I didn’t mix with other Druids in Edinburgh—or any place I’ve lived.”
That drew him up short. “Why?” The word was out before he even thought about it.
“I ran from Skye because I wanted to get away from anything having to do with Druids and magic. And, yes, I ran. As far and as fast as I could. I left Edie behind, just as Elias left us both. I didn’t care. I knew if I stayed…”
“What?” he urged softly.
Her eyes returned to meet his. “That the island would suffocate me. I thought if I had a chance at a life, I needed to leave all of this behind.” She swung her hand out, indicating the cottage, her family, and Skye.
“Did you find what you were looking for?”
She issued a soft bark of laughter filled with cynicism. “I came close at times, but something always shoved me right back to the ground. I kept pulling myself back up, only to be knocked down again. In case you were wondering, that’s why I’m here. What little I had in Edinburgh is gone.”
“Surely no’.”
“There’s no need to be kind. It is,” she said dryly. After a moment, she sighed and looked at the fire. “Filip told you about my parents, didn’t he?”
“Aye.” Scott decided to be honest. He suspected that she would appreciate that.
Elodie wrapped her arms around herself and rubbed.
“I used to think our family was cursed or something. We had a great life until the incident. I have no idea where Elias is, and I know how my life has been. I’m such a horrible sister that I believed Edie was making up how good things were for her so I wouldn’t worry.
Then I came back and discovered that she has an amazing life with a loving husband and two adorable children.
” She glanced at him. “Looks like our family isn’t cursed. Maybe it’s just me.”
“You’re no’ cursed,” he told her.
“Mum never told Da she had magic.”
Scott grew still and waited for her to continue.
“What kind of wife doesn’t tell her husband something as important as that?
If he had said that he didn’t believe in magic, she could’ve shown him it was real.
And if he had been sickened by it, she would have known they shouldn’t be together.
Yet, that isn’t what happened. Instead, she decided not to tell him. That’s the part I don’t understand.”
Her voice was so low that he barely caught the last sentence. Scott didn’t have an answer for her. He was just as mystified by her mother’s actions as she.
“I’ve not been in their bedroom since it happened,” she confessed as she looked at him. “I don’t think I can go in there.”
Scott held her gaze. “Then doona. No one says you have to.”
“What about meeting the past head-on?”
“You can do that in a variety of ways. It doesna mean you have to go into their bedroom.”