Chapter 31
Chapter Thirty-One
Mason was glad Rowen wanted to drive back to the cottage since his mind was too preoccupied to be behind the wheel.
His thoughts moved from Billings to the estate, London, the water pillar, and everything else like a bird flitting from one tree to the next.
When he blinked again, they were already parked at the rental, and Rowen was out of the car.
He climbed out and trailed her to the porch.
“We need to ward the cottage,” she said as she unlocked the door.
He waited for her to enter before stepping inside and closing the door. “I did that the first night while you slept. Balladyn told me that he had also added his magic.”
“Really?” she asked in surprise and headed into the kitchen.
“I was surprised, as well, but Ferne said he’s done that for everyone in the group, and lots of other Druids who have no idea.”
“A real-life Fae,” she murmured, shaking her head. Suddenly, she stopped and faced him. “Are you good? You seem kinda out of it.”
“I’m fine.” Mason rubbed his head, not wanting to get into it. “I know I already asked, but what about you? Are you sure nothing happened?”
Her expression fell.
He walked to the counter and grabbed a bottle of wine. “You don’t have to tell me. I just want to make sure you’re okay.”
“I should tell you. I’d rather you hear it from me than from your sister. Besides, I get the idea that there aren’t secrets in this group, which is a good thing.”
Mason quietly studied her as he opened the wine and got out a glass.
He raised his brow, and at her nod, he pulled a second one down, filling it before handing it to her.
“Everyone has secrets. There’s no getting around that, but in this situation, where so many are relying on others to watch their backs, I can understand where they don’t leave room for them.
If this is personal, however, then it should remain that way. I’ll tell them to back off.”
“Thanks, but I can do that myself.” She sipped the wine. “The thing is, while it is sort of personal, it also involves this,” she said, swirling her hand. “I think I need to sit.”
He shadowed her to the living area. Rowen took the sofa, and he claimed one of the chairs. Her face was pinched, and she kept worrying her bottom lip with her teeth. “We don’t have to do this n—”
“I thought I heard something,” she blurted out.
Mason took a deep breath. “Okay. When?”
Her face creased as she briefly squeezed her eyes shut. “Last night. I asked Finn if he had ever heard the Ancients. I hadn’t, you see, and I was curious if he had. I wanted to know what they sounded like.”
“Had he?”
“No.” She sighed and took another drink, her gaze on the floor. “When we got back last night, I went to bed because I was still so tired. I heard someone. A voice, really. I thought it was a dream. I still think it’s a dream,” she hurried to add as her eyes met his.
Mason’s alarm grew as she spoke. She was desperate to make it seem like it was nothing, but it evidently was something. To what extent, though, remained to be seen. He hoped Finn hadn’t scared or upset her. At least not until there was something to worry about. “What did the voice say?”
“‘Rowen, we’re so glad you’re finally here.’”
“That’s not creepy at all.”
She let out a burst of laughter, some of the stiffness leaving her body. “Right? I thought so, too.”
“Are you sure it was a dream?”
“I was falling asleep. You know that place where you’re asleep but also kind of awake?
If I had heard a voice, I think I would’ve woken up, but I can’t be certain.
It’s all so hazy.” She shrugged. “I made the mistake of telling Finn, and he immediately got all weird, saying that it might be the evil that had converted Kerry and Edie. He told me that if he thought I was a threat, I’d never see him coming. ”
Mason was instantly defensive of her. How dare Finn threaten her? Though he also understood why Finn had gone to such lengths. Everyone had been living with constant danger for weeks now. He and Rowen had not.
They were the newcomers, the ones who had yet to prove themselves or their loyalty. If he were in Finn’s shoes, he’d likely wonder if Rowen’s voice had been a dream.
Rowen nervously tapped the wineglass. “Sabryn came in after Finn walked away. She had overheard, and she didn’t seem to think it was a dream either. Now, I think I’m back to being someone they don’t trust. Or maybe they never did.” She brought the wine to her lips and drank.
He watched her mouth, his gaze moving to her throat as she swallowed.
He was torn between sitting next to her, wrapping his arm around her, and telling her everything would be fine, and driving back to the manor and having a word with Finn and Sabryn.
The only other person he’d ever felt so protective of was Ferne.
At first, Mason thought his feelings had developed to that degree because Rowen had saved his life, but he wasn’t so sure anymore.
“Say something. Please,” she begged, her pale blue eyes pleading. “I promised them I had already chosen a side, but neither seemed to believe me. Do you?”
Mason remembered seeing her come out of the darkness behind the building and help him to his feet. He recalled her soothing touch as she wiped his fevered skin after sewing his wounds closed. And he would never forget watching her walk out of the trees with a bundle of flowers clutched in her hand.
He didn’t know her favorite food, the names of her family members, if she had a boyfriend, or what her occupation was, but that didn’t mean he didn’t know her.
Their dangerous journey had put them in situations where they saw each other’s true depths.
It was rare to get a glimpse into someone like that, and he didn’t take it lightly.
“I believe you,” he replied.
Her shoulders drooped as she sighed, her brow furrowing as she held back tears. “Thank you.”
“I hope it was nothing more than a dream. Had you heard anything like that before?”
“No. Never.”
That was a relief. “Then it could’ve been a dream. However, maybe consider what you will do or say if it wasn’t.”
Rowen dropped her head back against the sofa cushion and stared at the ceiling. “I knew you were going to say that. It’s the right thing to do, but I just want to forget it.”
“I’m afraid we can’t do that.”
“Yeah, I know. I’m just not happy about it,” she grumbled. “I want it to be nothing.”
Mason smiled at her reply. She didn’t hold back, at least not with him. “I know.”
“Maybe I’ll just tell it to fuck off.”
He chuckled, not realizing until that instant how much he had needed to laugh. “That might work.”
Her grin faded. “But if it doesn’t, I’ll need something more.”
“You aren’t in this alone. I’ll be right there with you every step of the way.”
“Thanks.” She took another drink. “I won’t be keeping anything from you. I need you to know that. If it happens again, I’ll tell you.”
“Good.”
She ran her fingers through her hair as she shoved it back. “What did Kerry and Edie do?”
“I’m not sure anyone ever asked them. They might have joined immediately. I mean, you heard the voice and thought it was the Ancients.”
Rowen grimaced. “It was the first thing I thought of.”
“What if this evil is claiming to be the Ancients? Would you, a Druid who has waited her entire life to hear them, turn away?”
Rowen’s face paled as her mouth went slack. “Oh, my god. No, I wouldn’t. Do you think that’s what’s happening?”
“It’s a theory. Not sure if it’s accurate or not.”
“It’s a terrifying thought, though.”
Mason nodded solemnly. “That it is.”
“But I know the Ancients are being silenced now, and I’ve passed that on to my mom, who is telling others. Surely, this evil—whatever it is—will know that word is getting out. It wouldn’t be that stupid to approach me, claiming to be them.”
“Who knows what it’s thinking? If you hear them, I don’t care what time it is or where you are, come find me. I’ll help.”
Her eyes softened as she stared at him for a long moment. “I’ll do that.” She cleared her throat and sipped the wine. “Now. Enough about my issue. What about yours?”
“It’s nothing.”
“Neither was mine,” she pointed out.
Mason laughed softly. She had opened up to him. It was only fair that he do the same. Besides, this wasn’t the time for secrets. “Do you remember in the library when we were talking about finding the next water dancer?”
“Hard to forget that. I also saw Ferne give you a look.”
“That’s because I was able to move water when I was young.”
Rowen lowered her wineglass to her lap, her eyebrows shooting up on her forehead. “Are you telling me you’re a water dancer? Why didn’t you say anything?”
“Because I’m not. It was a fleeting ability that stopped the summer of my tenth year.”
“I don’t understand,” she said, frowning.
He downed the last of his wine and set the glass aside. “There’s nothing to understand. It wasn’t as if I had any major control over water. I was able to do a few small tricks. My parents thought I might have that gift, but it turned out I didn’t.”
“Have you tried it since?”
“I have, and there’s still nothing there.”
She tucked her legs up against her as she shifted onto one hip. “That’s weird, though, right? To have that ability and have it just stop?”
“My parents thought so, yes. They took me to see some Druids, who did tests. One was a water dancer, and each of them proclaimed that I was not one.” He shrugged. “Ferne and the others are looking for a miracle, but it isn’t me.”
“It got you thinking, though,” she said softly.
Mason flashed a smile. “It did. Who wouldn’t want to be one of the pillars?”
“Me.” Rowen chuckled. “Think of the responsibility. Not to mention, both Ariah and Sabryn had to fight to claim their pillars.”
He looked toward the window, unable to stop himself from wondering if he would be able to defeat whatever came at him if he were the water pillar.
His father had prepared him for battle. Mason had always thought it was for something grand, but it looked as if it had been to go up against London.
He couldn’t be upset about that. Both he and Carlyle had benefited from the effort his father had put into them.
And Mason intended to carry it forward. When he slid his gaze back to Rowen, it was to find her watching him.
“Thinking about being in one of those battles we heard about?” she asked with a small grin.
“Hard not to.”
“Tell me about it. Everyone there is a complete badass.”
He laughed and pushed to his feet. “I think I’m going for a walk. I want to get better acquainted with the land surrounding us.”
“Mind if I tag along?”
“Not at all.”
Within minutes, they walked out the back door and headed along one of the trails he had seen. They fell into the easy silence of the evening. It was about an hour before sunset, so there was still enough light to see the wonders around them.
“Finally, blue sky,” Rowen said, pointing upward.
Mason followed her finger to see a patch of cerulean through the clouds. “We shouldn’t go far in case it rains.”
“Getting caught in the rain is half the fun.”
The smile in her voice caught him off guard. He came from a world where women did whatever they could to avoid getting caught out in any weather for fear it would mess up their hair, makeup, or clothes. Rowen was the opposite in every way. She embraced the messy and welcomed the complicated.
“This place,” she murmured. Almost immediately, it was followed by a delighted gasp. “Look at the waterfall.”
It was a small one that tumbled from the rocks and meandered its way to a stream down below.
A herd of sheep grazed in a pasture farther afield, looking like fluffy white dots against the deep green of the grass, while a stone fence separated the land into sections.
What a wild, picturesque land. He wondered what Skye had looked like for the first Druids who found the isle and walked the very steps he was taking.
Had it been just as untamed? Or had it been wilder?
“Mason.”
He swung his head at the sound of his name to see Rowen at the waterfall.
She plopped down on a large stone and patted the seat beside her.
There was no way he would pass up the opportunity to be next to her.
He still missed having her beside him, his arms around her shoulders, but at the same time, he was glad to be healed.
Her grin was wide as he sat beside her, their shoulders brushing. Then she motioned with her hand.
His breath locked in his chest when he beheld the dazzling splendor before him.
“I know,” Rowen said softly. “It takes my breath away, too.”