A Shift in the Air (29 page)

Farren barked her thanks. The stones
needed to recharge now, and moonlight would help. Caitlin left the
bracelet and quartz on the rock and retrieved the ancient book.
Even though she couldn’t read many of the words, some of the pages
contained carefully drawn images. She’d find something. She had
to.

After a few pages, two
words stood out.
Cloch
and
croí.
Stone and heart. But how they connected, she couldn’t tell.
The French doors to the house clicked as Tierney joined her. He’d
shifted back to his human form, and his jeans rustled as he sat
down next to her. “Caitlin, ya have to be chilled. Can I get ya a
blanket?”

She barely registered the question and
countered with one of her own. “Do you speak Gaelic?”

“
I do.”

Caitlin turned the book slightly.
“What do you make of this phrase?”

“
I don’t know much old
Gaelic, but something about holding the power close to yer
heart?”

“
That’s what I thought.”
Several pages later, Caitlin frowned. An image depicted two women
facing off with one another. One had her arms extended to receive
bolts of energy from the other. Between the figures, the book’s
author wrote the old Gaelic word for “heart.”

Nothing made sense. Could the two
sisters send and receive their elements at will? If so, could
Caitlin and Fergus do the same? Could Caitlin and Mara? This book
held all of the keys, if only she could decipher them.

Distracted, Caitlin reached for the
leather Liam had given her. She fingered the supple cuff, running
her thumb over the now-cleansed amber. An odd crinkle sounded, and
she abandoned the book for a moment. Under the braided leather that
held the amber, Caitlin found a small pocket. “Oh, Liam,” she said
quietly and slid a finger inside, finding a folded slip of
paper.

Mo chuisle, mo
chroí
. My pulse, my heart. A tear landed on
the book and seeped into the ancient parchment. A cool, fresh
resolve spread through her, calming the burning pain of her missing
element. Liam loved her, and she
would
find him and defeat Fergus. And
save Mara. And herself. She slipped the paper back into the pocket
along with the smoky quartz. Keeping the crystal close had to
help.

Turning another page, Caitlin gasped.
Here, a bit of modern Gaelic decorated the margin next to another
image that showed the two women separated by a massive burst of
power. “Oh my God.”

“
Caitlin?” Tierney leaned
forward and read. “’Two cannot coexist. What I cannot give, she
must take. The four points hold the key. Earth, air, fire, and
water. If I die before she finds what she needs, may my children
not suffer my fate.’”

“
Holy shit,” Caitlin said
and turned to Tierney. “I have an idea.”

***

Liam couldn’t stop shaking, which only
made the agony of his injuries worse. Numbness enveloped his left
arm, but the rest of his body hurt with every breath. He needed to
pop his shoulder back in the socket, but with several broken ribs,
the smallest movement threatened to send him into unconsciousness
again.

When he’d come to, alone, he’d been
shocked. Fergus wanted his death. Why hadn’t he followed through on
his threats? Remorse? The drugs? Had the insanity passed long
enough for him to spare Liam? He wasn’t sure he had the strength to
shift, but he tried anyway, holding onto the smallest hope that
Fergus had released the charm.

But within seconds of
reaching for his wolf, the beast shrank into the depths of his
consciousness.
Fuck. Caitlin, I’m sorry,
luv. Fight. I won’t survive this, but you can.

The full moon twisted his emotions,
wrenching a hoarse scream from his bruised and bloodied lips.
Memories of Caitlin both comforted and shattered him: her scent,
her kiss, her fingers in his hair, and the breathy moan she made
when he slipped inside her.

At least he didn’t think Fergus had
her. Yet.

Another howl escaped, this one nothing
but pure, unadulterated anguish. He needed his mate. To shift. To
rip Fergus limb from limb. But he could do none of those things. He
couldn’t even move. He’d be lucky to survive until the moon
set.

The rasping, metallic scrape of the
lock made him flinch. He couldn’t take much more. For a moment, he
prayed Fergus would end his torment. Death would bring an escape
from the pain.

Light flooded the small space. The
scent of the sea wafted over him, the salty freshness mixing with
Fergus’s dark, loamy earth and the coppery scent of Liam’s blood.
He couldn’t be far from the ocean. Still in Doolin? Lahinch?
Caitlin could find him, couldn’t she?

“
I thought about what ya
said. I’ll give ya to yer pack—a peace offering in exchange for
Catie. But first, ya call her so she knows ye’re alive and get her
to agree.” Fergus held out Liam’s mobile phone. The cracked screen
still glowed, and through the swollen slits of his eyes, he made
out the highlighted name.
Caitlin
.

Relief and the desperate need to speak
to Caitlin warred with the urge to protect her however he could. He
couldn’t let her put herself in Fergus’s thrall once more. No
matter how strong she’d become, the danger of her slipping under
his control couldn’t be ignored.

“
No,” Liam whispered.
Relief had a corner of his mouth tugging into a half-smile. He
would die now, at peace knowing Caitlin lived free. And by the look
in Fergus’s eyes, he’d go to his death soon.

Fergus kicked Liam in his injured hip,
and a weak scream pierced the air. “I won’t ask again.”

“
Good. I can’t stand
lookin’ at yer face any longer. Go ahead and kill me, ya coward. I
won’t help ya hurt Caitlin.”

Fergus grabbed him by his hair. “I
never hurt Catie.”

“
That’s rich.” Liam’s chin
hit the dirt, and he barely avoided biting through his own tongue.
With all of his remaining strength, Liam rolled over onto his back
and blinked up at Fergus. The earth elemental reached for the
bottle of pills and shook two into his mouth. Liam had a chance if
he could time his questions to coincide with the momentary sanity
from the drugs. “How many times did ya beat her?”

“
Never.” Fergus’s voice
softened to child-like innocence as the drugs worked their way into
his system. “I showed her how much I needed her…how much I hurt
whenever she ran away.”

“
With…yer…fists?”

A shadow passed over Fergus’s face,
and he knelt down next to Liam. “I hurt her?”

“
Ya need…to let her go.”
Liam reached out for Fergus’s knee. The man flinched and slapped
his hand away. “Give her back her element. Please.”

“
And let ya go, too?”
Fergus leapt up and started to pace the room. “Did ya please
her?”

Liam didn’t know how to answer. Would
any response keep Fergus from descending into madness again? In the
end, only one answer rose to the surface. “I love her.”

“
Did ya fuck her?” Fergus
stopped, strode over to Liam, and pressed his boot into Liam’s
broken leg.

Liam screamed, and his wolf pulsed
under his skin. The pain fuzzed his mind. Caitlin. He needed
Caitlin. Even as he writhed in agony, he considered the irony of
the situation: two men, both desperate for Caitlin. Unlike Fergus,
though, he’d sacrifice his life to keep her safe.

“
Ye’re not better than me,
wolf.”

So kill me and be done with
it.
A cold sweat covered him. He couldn’t
speak. Couldn’t move. Nothing made sense. Fergus ranted. Pacing.
Panting. Kicking. The ground shook. Air churned. Caitlin. He needed
Caitlin.

“
She loves you.” Fergus
towered over him. He pulled a switchblade from his pocket and spun
it in his fingers. “Until ye’re dead, she’ll never be mine. Once
ye’re gone, she’ll be too weak to resist. She’ll come back to
me.”

“
Doesn’t matter,” Liam
managed. “Dead or alive…she’ll never…be…yours. Go to
hell.”

“
Ye’re goin’ first.” The
blade flashed, sinking between Liam’s ribs. He couldn’t manage
enough energy to flinch. The pain barely registered. Blood: warm
and wet and sticky gushed over his side. “Shite. Catie. I need
Catie. Ya had eleven years with her. Tell me how to win her
back.”

“
Ya…can’t,” Liam gasped.
“If ya love her, let me go. Let us both go.”

Fergus roared, pulling the knife free.
“Fuck you, wolf. I’m goin’ to get my Catie.”

His wolf so weak and ravaged he knew
he’d never shift again, Liam pressed his hand to his side. “Fight
him, luv. Please.”

***

The ringing phone jarred
Caitlin’s hand as she poured herself a mug of coffee. A bit of the
rich brew sloshed over the edge of the cup.
What the hell?

She wiped her hand on her pants and
dug into Liam’s jacket pocket for her mobile. The name on the
screen sent a double-edged sword of fear and hope through
her.

“
Liam?”

“
Catie? I need ya. Come
back to me. Bring me the book.” The raspy voice sent chills down
her spine. An odd note, almost remorseful, tinged his words. Could
the drugs have a hold of him?

“
Where’s Liam? Fergus,
please. Tell me where Liam is, and I’ll bring you whatever you
want. Me. The book. Everything.”

Cade and Mara burst into the kitchen.
Caitlin held up a hand to stop them from interrupting and put the
call on speaker.

“
I can’t, Catie. I…did
somethin’ bad.”

Her heart stopped. Mara grabbed her
hand and squeezed tightly. When Caitlin met her gaze, Mara nodded.
“Ask,” she mouthed.

“
What did you do, Fergus?
Where’s Liam?” She swallowed hard. “Is he alive?” Her voice broke,
and she prayed harder than she’d ever prayed before.

Fergus didn’t say anything
for so long, she feared the call had dropped. “I can’t hold the
darkness at bay any longer, nothin’ works. I couldn’t stop myself.
I tried, Catie. I did. He wanted to take ya away from me. He
did
take ya away. I
couldn’t let him.”

His whisper confirmed her worst fears.
“What do you mean, Fergus? Where is Liam?”

“
I couldn’t stop myself,”
Fergus repeated, a childish curl lilting over his words, as though
he’d been caught stomping a praying mantis or torturing a kitten.
“He won’t wake up.”

Agony pierced Caitlin’s heart, and she
fought her tears. “Take him to a hospital, Fergus. Do that and we
can talk. Don’t let him die because you’re mad at me.”

“
Help me, Catie. Everything
hurts. All the time.”

“
I will. Just help Liam
first.” Hope surged. This Fergus would listen. If the drugs had a
hold of him, she—and Liam—had a chance. “I’ll come back to you. We
can be together.”

“
Forever?”

“
Yes…luv.” The word caught
in her throat, but she forced herself to continue. “Let Liam go and
you can have whatever you want. I’ll help you be whole
again.”

“
Whole?” Fergus’s voice
hardened into a snarl. “Ya never wanted me to be whole. Ya wanted
me to give up yer air.”

The sudden change in Fergus’s demeanor
clenched Caitlin’s gut.

“
I won’t. I’ll have all
four elements and then ye’ll see. Ye’re going to bring me the book,
and the one with ya—she’s like me, isn’t she? Fire and water
together? I’ll be whole. And we’ll be together. Yer wolf breathes
his last.” Each word sharpened until the remorseful, child-like
voice of the boy disappeared into the harsh insanity of the man. A
thin, desperate cry, rattling with the death knell of too much
blood, accompanied a dull thud. “I told ya wolves had power. And
I’m takin’ his. Ye’ll be free of him in minutes. Free to come back
to me. If ya don’t, I’ll kill all of them.”

Liam.
Only Fergus’s breathing carried over the line now. The
rattling stopped, the keening, the unsteady gasps she’d clung to
for a shred of hope. This had to end. Liam’s death couldn’t be in
vain. She muted the call. “Trust me, please.” Her tearing eyes
pleaded with Cade and Mara.

They nodded, their faces reflecting
her own sorrow. “We do,” Mara said. “Get him to meet us. Use
me.”

Pressing that mute button took all the
resolve Caitlin had left. She couldn’t break now. “I’ll bring Mara.
You’re right. There’s nothing left for me now. Nothing but
you.”

“
The cliffs. At dawn. Bring
the elemental and the book. Ya do that, and we’ll be happy.
Together forever. Once we have fire and water, I’ll be whole and
you’ll see. I won’t need these feckin’ pills any more. I’ll be the
man ya deserve. Ye’ll love me.”

He ended the call, and Caitlin slumped
against the wall. She couldn’t muster the energy to cry. Fergus had
taken everything from her. Her life. Her love. Dying hadn’t worked,
and Katerina’s charm only wrapped her agony in flames, allowing the
fire elemental to twist Caitlin’s heart and soul for her own needs.
She had to take what little of her life remained back. Liam would
want her to live, and though her soul hung in tattered bits, deep
down she wanted to live too. Free. Liam’s death would mean
something if she escaped and saved Mara from the darkness that held
Fergus prisoner.