Chapter 18
Scott couldn’t sleep. He kept thinking about Elodie being in the cottage alone and the limb covered in drough magic.
Finally, he got tired of tossing and turning and got up to dress.
He had Filip’s keys in his hand before he knew what he was doing.
Scott scrawled a quick note to his friend before walking out of the house.
He would just drive by Elodie’s and make sure everything was fine.
He drove for miles on Skye’s winding roads without encountering a single car.
It was so different than the city, yet he liked it.
The island made him feel as if he were the only person there.
The quiet was refreshing, the stillness invigorating.
No matter how he tried to understand it, he couldn’t see why Filip had ever left.
Elodie leaving was another matter entirely. He would’ve done the same thing in her shoes. Sometimes, the only way to move forward after such a tragedy was to leave a place behind.
He leisurely continued down the roads. The sky was clear, and most of the debris from earlier had been cleared away.
The moonlight bathed the island in a soft glow.
All he wanted to do was pull over and just take it all in.
While the serene scene was picture-perfect, something sinister was on Skye.
Whether it had always been here or had recently arrived, it had focused its attention on Elodie.
With the murdered Druid the night before, Scott couldn’t take any chances.
Though he had no idea what he was looking for. Magic could come in all sorts of ways. It made it more difficult when hunting someone, but it could be done. He had done it. Several times. He’d been hunting Kevin’s killer when George had sent him here.
The only reason Scott hadn’t balked was because George had said that Elodie could end all the strife. Now, Scott wasn’t so sure. How could Elodie do anything without magic? Hadn’t George seen that? What was Scott missing?
He thought about calling George but hesitated.
George never disclosed everything that she saw as a seer.
For all he knew, something could change in or around Elodie so she ended up everything George claimed.
Everything George did was for the Druids.
He had doubted her once, and it had nearly ended in disaster.
So, he wouldn’t doubt again. George knew how to use her abilities.
If only she could use them to save the Druids from being killed instead of bringing in Elodie.
Scott took the turn to Elodie’s cottage.
He drove slowly, his gaze searching for anything that seemed out of place.
As he reached her drive, he turned off his lights and veered onto the side of the road.
Trees blocked his view of the cottage, and he didn’t want to chance waking her by driving by.
He parked the SUV and turned off the ignition.
Exiting the vehicle, he softly pushed the door closed before starting down the drive. He rounded the bend that opened to the view of the cottage and the cove. That’s when he saw it. Mist clung to the ground, heading straight for Elodie’s cottage at a speed that told him it was far from natural.
Scott called his magic to him as he ran toward the house, but he wasn’t fast enough. The mist enveloped the building as if it were searching for a way inside. The way it moved was frightening—as if it were alive.
As the storm had been.
He pushed his magic toward it, trying to get the mist’s attention.
It didn’t do anything. He tried again, this time using more of his magic.
He saw something move out of the corner of his eye.
Scott turned his head in time to see a small portion of the mist coming at him.
He flew through the air from the assault.
Before he knew what was happening, he landed with a hard thud against the garage and dropped heavily to the ground.
Scott bit back a groan of pain and jumped to his feet. He could take stock of his wounds later. As soon as he faced the mist, it came at him again. Enveloped him. While he couldn’t see anything, it felt as if a dozen fists were pummeling his body.
He bellowed as he threw out a shielding spell.
It moved the mist off him for the briefest of moments before it came back.
His body was wracked with agony as the mist hit him repeatedly.
His knees buckled, and then he was being pressed into the ground, his face shoved into the dirt hard enough that he couldn’t breathe.
Just as quickly as it all began, it stopped.
He pushed himself up with his arms and spotted Elodie standing at the now-open door.
She rushed from the house in her bare feet when she saw him.
Scott looked up to see the mist above them.
There was no face to it, but he knew it watched her.
He tried to tell Elodie to stay back, to remain inside, but he wasn’t quick enough.
Scott forced his feet under him. He glanced up to see the mist gathering into a single column.
He knew it was about to come at them. He took Elodie’s hand and ran to the door, pushing her in ahead of him.
Scott grabbed the knob, swung it closed, and then turned to put his weight behind it.
The mist slammed into it, knocking him on his arse as the door flew open.
Suddenly, Elodie was there, pushing the door closed again.
Scott jumped up and put all his weight behind the effort.
Finally, the door latched shut. He closed his eyes with his cheek against the wood and waited to see what the mist would do next.
The house didn’t shake, and the windows didn’t rattle. No mist poured through any cracks.
He turned to put his back to the door and then looked at Elodie beside him. Her long, blond hair hung loosely about her shoulders, and her blue eyes were wide. “Are you hurt?”
She shook her head. “What just happened?”
“Apparently, the mist wants you.”
“Mist? This morning it was rain, now mist?”
He noticed how rapidly her chest rose and fell. Shock. That’s what he saw on her face. Not that he blamed her. He was in shock himself. “Looks that way.”
“What are you doing here?”
“I couldna sleep. Thought I’d take a drive and make sure things were okay here.”
Her brow furrowed for a moment. “I didn’t hear your vehicle.”
“I parked near the road. I didna want to wake you if you were asleep. And now that I’m telling you this, it sounds a wee bit…”
“Like a stalker?”
“Aye.” He wrinkled his nose as he inwardly winced. “I swear I was just checking on you.”
She pushed away from the door and crossed her arms over her chest. “You could’ve formed the mist.”
“I could’ve, but I didna. I know you’ve no reason to believe me, we just met, but I’m telling the truth.”
Elodie studied him for a long moment. “If you had called the mist, I don’t think it would’ve done that to you,” she said as she jerked her chin to him.
Scott glanced down to find his clothes ripped and shredded. He had blood on him—his blood. He knew he’d been beaten, but he hadn’t realized that it was this bad. Just then, all the aches of his body made themselves known.
“Let’s get you cleaned up.”
He watched her retreat deeper into the house.
Scott sighed and pushed away from the door.
He took a few steps and decided to use the wall for support.
He found Elodie in the kitchen, holding more of her brother’s clothes.
She handed them to him, and he slowly made his way to the bathroom.
When he emerged after a shower and change, she was at the kitchen table with a first-aid kit.
She stood and walked around him after he’d sat. “You hit your head.”
“Aye. When it slammed me into the side of the garage.”
Elodie didn’t say more as she set about tending to him. She had a light touch. Scott closed his eyes and went over the attack in his head.
“So,” she finally said, “looks like someone wants to harm me.”
His eyes opened to find her before him. “I doona think the mist can get into the cottage. Could be Rhona and Balladyn’s wards did the trick.”
“Until something else comes for me. It isn’t as if I can fight it.”
“You willna face it alone.”
“This isn’t your fight.”
He grunted and held out his hands. “Look at me. They made it my fight.”
“I can’t continue counting on others.”
“Why no’?” He stopped her hands from dabbing at his wounds. Scott held her gaze, sinking into the soft blue of her eyes. “We’re going to help you.”
“I need to be able to fight this on my own.”
“Only fools refuse help.”
She quirked a blond brow. “You might have a point.”
“You were born with magic. You can get it back.”
Elodie released a sigh. “If someone wants to hurt me, then I want to be able to fight back.”
“So, you’ll try to do magic?” Scott could hardly contain the hope that flared in his chest.
Her lips curved into a small smile. “Yes.”
Only then did he realize that he still had a hold of her hand.