Chapter 37
Mallaig, West Coast of Scotland
There was something about a marketplace that always made Logan think of his family. He usually kept memories of his parents and younger brother pushed far back in a corner of his mind, but once he had reached the mainland port of Mallaig, those memories had bombarded him.
He hadn’t tried to rid himself of them. In fact, he had allowed himself a few moments to remember a happier time, a time when life had been pleasant. A time when he had been a good son.
A time before he had betrayed his family.
“You’re quiet,” Duncan said from beside him as he surveyed the port town from the docks to the houses that lined the coast.
Logan shrugged and let his eyes continue to wander the teeming market. “Maybe I’m thinking.”
Duncan snorted. “You who makes jests and tease everyone mercilessly? I think no’.”
It was true. Logan had created a different side of himself, one that always wore a smile and made jests to hide the truth. It had worked effectively. Everyone thought he was something he wasn’t.
And if he had any say in it, no one would know the truth.
Logan turned to Duncan and regarded his friend. “I have no’ asked since we left MacLeod Castle, but why did you come? Why leave your twin?”
“I wanted to do something in this quest of ours. No’ that I doona enjoy protecting the castle and the Druids within, but I'm a Warrior. The god inside me wants to fight. And so do I.”
Duncan didn’t need to say more. Logan understood everything he didn’t convey into words. The only way to understand what it was to be a Warrior and contend with the constant fury and evil of the god inside them was to be a Warrior.
“And you?” Duncan asked. “Why did you leave the castle again?”
“As soon as Sonya mentioned the Isle of Eigg, there was an overwhelming need for me to reach the isle. I cannot explain it, but the closer I've gotten to Eigg, the more it feels as if this is where I'm supposed to be.”
Duncan let out a long breath. “I’ve seen much in the way of magic throughout my two hundred years as a Warrior. I've seen the good magic of the mies and the evil of the droughs.”
“You think it’s magic pulling me here?”
“What else?”
Logan wasn’t sure what to think anymore. Memories he had hidden away for more than a century were returning, with no way for him to shove them away.
He didn’t know what was in store for him in the coming days, but whatever it was, he knew it would alter the course of his future. He didn’t care what it was as long as he could continue to fight against Deirdre.
The oath he had made to put an end to her rode him tirelessly. He hadn’t felt as if he were doing enough, which is why he was anxious to find the next artifact, the Tablet of Orn, which would lead them to the place where Deirdre’s twin, Laria, slept.
“The isle is protected,” Duncan murmured, his brown eyes narrowed in concentration.
Logan felt it. The magic was solid. Resilient. Stalwart “There must be many Druids who make Eigg their home.”
“Aye. Many. Do you think they’ll allow us on their isle willingly?”
Logan grimaced as he recalled how the Druids at Loch Awe had reacted after learning he and Galen were Warriors. The magic of those Druids had waned. That of the Druids on Eigg had not. They wouldn’t easily be fooled.
“No’ if they fear Warriors. We’ll have to convince them we are no’ working with Deirdre.”
Duncan nodded, but before he could utter a word, the feeling of magic—drough magic—engulfed them.
“Deirdre,” they replied in unison as they unleashed their gods.
They spun around, ready to attack, to find Deirdre and a dozen yellow-skinned wyrran. Logan started toward the beast. It was Duncan’s growl that had him looking over his shoulder.
Two Warriors had taken hold of Duncan, and, while they couldn’t subdue him, it was Deirdre’s black magic added to the mix that kept Duncan immobile.
Logan cursed and bared his fangs at the two Warriors.
Deirdre’s soft laugh as she approached made Logan’s skin crawl. “Surprised? Wait until you see the next surprise I have in store for you.”
Logan met Duncan’s gaze. They were strong, but with Deirdre’s magic, she could hold them indefinitely. Somehow Logan had to get them out before Deirdre did something irreversible.
Out of the corner of his eye, Logan spotted movement.
He shifted his gaze and his breath caught in his lungs.
He couldn’t believe his eyes when he recognized Malcolm.
Shock soon turned to bewilderment as Malcolm’s skin changed into deep burgundy, wine-red-tipped claws shot from his fingers, and the same burgundy color filled his eyes.
In an instant, Logan knew what Deirdre was about. He let out a roar when Malcolm moved to Duncan. Deep inside Logan, his god, Athleus, bellowed for blood, demanded death. And Logan was about to give it to him.
Before he could reach Malcolm, something halted him, as if he had run into an invisible wall. He tried to move his arms and legs, but it was useless. Deirdre’s laughter caught on the breeze and echoed in the air as her black magic surrounded and incapacitated him.
“There’s no use struggling,” Deirdre told him as she approached. “Just as Duncan can’t. Besides, you know how powerful I am.”
Logan’s gaze shifted to Duncan. His friend’s lips were peeled back in a snarl, his fangs gleaming in the sunshine. Malcolm said not a word as he stood before Duncan and waited.
“You might have nearly destroyed me, Logan, but I have returned stronger than ever,” Deirdre said.
“Next time we’ll make certain you stay dead,” he retorted.
Deirdre threw back her head and cackled. Her white hair began to swirl around her, a warning that she was gathering her magic.
Her eerie white eyes locked on Logan. “You were one of my best. You who came to me seeking to unbind the god inside you.”
Logan’s chest clenched as Duncan’s gaze narrowed and he let loose a low, angry snarl.
“Ah, so none at MacLeod Castle know what you’ve done,” Deirdre chuckled, glee shining in her eyes. “How very...interesting.”
“What do you want?” Logan demanded.
The smile which pulled at Deirdre’s lips spoke volumes. “Why, I want everything. And I’m going to get it.”
With a slight nod of her head, Malcolm drew back his claws and severed Duncan’s head from his body. Rage threatened to devour Logan. Athleus was ready to take over, ready to erase all that Logan was.
He roared his fury and fought against Deirdre’s magic while he struggled to keep control of his god. He hadn’t saved Duncan, hadn’t even come close to helping his friend.
And now Duncan was gone.
Logan thought of Ian, Duncan’s twin, of Arran and Quinn and the other Warriors. It was up to him to deliver the devastating news.
If he managed to get away.
“It’s time for your punishment,” Deirdre said as calmly as if she were speaking of the weather. “Afterward, you will be brought to Cairn Toul. You came to me to be a Warrior. Therefore, you are mine.”
Suddenly, Deirdre’s magic was gone, and Logan was swarmed by the wyrran and three Warriors.
He widened his stance, ready for whoever came first. Instead, they rushed him at once.
The pain was blinding, but nothing could overshadow the wrath which governed him.
His god demanded death to avenge Duncan, and Logan wouldn’t deny him.
Claws raked over his body from both the Warriors and the wyrran. He was thrown onto the ground as they continued to claw viciously at him.
But Logan fought back. He might have been outnumbered, but he landed quite a few slashes of his own. It would be more than just his blood shed that day.
As quickly as his wounds healed, more were inflicted. He was losing blood too fast. His strength began to wane, but still he refused to give up. Deirdre would not take him. He would not return to Cairn Toul and the evil which grew there.
Of a sudden, his attackers retreated. Logan lay upon the ground, his chest rising and falling rapidly as he blinked the blood and sweat from his eyes. He knew the next moments could be his last, and though he hadn’t fulfilled his vow, anything was better than being Deirdre’s prisoner.
“You always were a great Warrior,” Deirdre said as she stood over him. Her hair scraped the ground and caressed his arms and chest. “When I’m through, you will willingly join my new group, led by none other than Malcolm. You should never have allowed him to leave MacLeod Castle.”
Logan rose up on his elbows and glared at Deirdre. How had he ever thought her beautiful? He had been naive the first time he had seen her, but not even that should have stopped him from seeing—and sensing— the evil that she was.
“I will never be yours,” he vowed.
“You were once. You will be again.”
“Never.”
“We shall see.”
Logan gritted his teeth as he felt her magic once more. All Druids had magic, but the droughs gave their souls to the devil in order to use the more powerful black magic.
There was nothing Logan could do against the magnitude of her magic, no matter how hard he tried. And try he did. To no avail.
This was it, then, he thought. His end. He wasn’t afraid to die, and in some ways he welcomed it. But he hadn’t achieved his promise.
And then suddenly the sickening feel of even more drough magic surrounded him. Deirdre looked up, her white eyes wild with...was that fear?
A small smile pulled at Logan’s lips.
It was all the time he needed to gain his feet and attack the wyrran. The diminutive creatures might have viciously long claws on their hands and feet, as well as mouths full of teeth, but they were no match for a Warrior.
Logan killed five before the Warriors realized what he had done.
That was the difference between a newly made Warrior and one who had a century to learn his god.
He ducked a massive swing from the orange Warrior’s arm, only to sink his claws in his opponent’s belly.
The Warrior gave a grunt as blood spilled down his front.
Logan kicked him in the chest, sending him sprawling backward.
Logan turned and braced himself for the next attack, only to find Malcolm standing before him. “What have you done?”
Malcolm blinked slowly. “I had no choice.”
“There is always a choice.” Logan didn’t give him a chance to respond as he called forth the power of his god.
He could feel the sea behind him, feel the way it gathered and answered his call.
With merely a thought, the water rose up in a massive column shaped like an arm. The arm descended and a hand appeared.
Just before the hand could lift Deirdre away, the air shimmered around her as the black magic increased. Logan took a step back, trying to get away. He watched as Deirdre, her wyrran, and her Warriors were surrounded by the shimmer. Deirdre’s face lifted to the sky as she let out an angry shriek.
And then they were gone.
Logan blinked and released the water. There was only a hint of black magic that hung in the air, and it was receding quickly. Somehow Deirdre had vanished. Logan didn’t know how, nor did he really care. She was gone, and that was all that mattered.
He let out a sigh. Then he turned and looked at the body of Duncan. Ian would never forgive Logan, and Logan would never forgive himself for what had happened. It was another sin he would shoulder until the end of his days.
He dropped to his knees beside Duncan, his jaw clenched tightly against a flood of emotion. It should have been him lying on the ground, not Duncan.
It took a moment for Logan to feel the mie magic surrounding him. He jerked his head around and looked over his shoulder to find a group of six Druids—two men and four women—watching him.
One of the younger women with long, dark hair approached him. “We felt Deirdre. I’m sorry we didn’t arrive in time to help save your friend.”
“Brenna,” barked one of the men who stood off to the side, his black eyes narrowed with disgust on Logan. He held a staff in his hands, obviously a leader among the Druids.
Logan gained his feet and turned to face the Druids. “You know what I am?”
The leader gave a single nod of his head. “You are no’ welcome here, Warrior. We’ve been watching you for some time. My daughter thinks your intentions are good. But I know the true nature of your kind.”
Logan clenched his jaw. His emotions were too raw, too exposed for him to dole out his usual charm. It took everything he had not to show the Druids exactly the true nature of a Warrior was.
But he latched on to something the leader said. “You’ve been watching us?”
At that moment, the call of a peregrine sounded above him before the magnificent bird flew over the Druids.
“Ah. I see,” Logan mumbled. “You’ve been spying.”
“Watching,” Brenna said in earnest. “I’ve seen you battle the wyrran and save Druids. I’ve seen you battle Deirdre. With my magic I’m able to see through the eyes of an animal. The falcon allowed me to use her so I could learn more about you and the other Warriors at MacLeod Castle.”
Even though Logan now had the answer to the falcon, it didn’t appease him. Nothing would until he returned Duncan’s body to Ian. Logan squeezed his eyes closed.
When he opened them, he turned to the leader. “Listen to your daughter. She speaks the truth. We are waging a war against Deirdre.”
“And no’ doing a verra good job of it,” he responded.
“Who are you?” Logan demanded.
“Kerwyn, leader of the Druids of Eigg.”
Logan raised a brow, not at all impressed. “No’ all Warriors are the same. The sooner you believe that, the sooner we can win this war. Consider that the longer Druids such as yours hold out, the more of you die.”
He turned and looked at Duncan’s body and thought of his brethren at MacLeod Castle. There was no doubt Ian already knew the link between him and Duncan was gone. Logan had wasted enough time. He needed to get back to the castle.
“Why did you come here?” Brenna asked softly behind him.
Logan turned his head to the side. “That no longer matters at this time. I’ll return soon, though.”
“You willna be welcomed,” Kerwyn declared. “Consider yourself warned, Warrior. We’ll take action the next time you set foot near our isle.”
Logan raked a hand through his hair before he gathered Duncan in his arms, the Druids forgotten. His friend and fellow Warrior deserved a proper burial, surrounded by friends and family.
Logan would return Duncan to MacLeod Castle and Ian.
A twinge of worry settled in Logan’s gut. With Duncan gone, Ian would suffer the full force of their god.
Logan’s stretched his legs into a run. He had to run faster than he ever had before. Time was of the essence.