Mystical Warrior (6 page)

Johnnie gave a laugh and headed to a small blue car. “I’ll bring my skidder down to the dock, and we’ll hitch it to the stern of your boat and go chain-to-chain.”

“Last I knew, skidders can’t swim, and neither can you.”

Johnnie climbed into the car and rolled down his window. “I appreciate the heads-up on Fiona.” He snorted again. “I really need to stop being a sucker for a pretty face. I just spent all last month pulling one woman’s claws out of my flesh; I should probably let the wounds heal before I let another one maim me again.”

“Been there and done that myself,” Trace drawled, “and personally, I don’t ever intend to let another woman get that close again.” He gestured toward Jason. “And if your brother’s half as smart as he is pretty, maybe he’ll learn from your mistakes.”

Johnnie started the car and put it in gear but looked at
Trace. “I’ll call you, and we’ll go over to that new bar in Oak Harbor and toast our bachelorhood,” he said, pulling onto Main Street and heading toward Ellsworth.

Trace set the dog food in the back of his truck, then leaned his arms on the fender to watch Fiona and Gabriella walking down the sidewalk toward home. The puppy apparently had never worn a collar before, much less had to deal with a leash restricting its movements. One minute it was lunging ahead to go after something, and the next it was fighting Fiona’s efforts to pull it along.

Trace glanced over his shoulder at the sound of a powerful small engine and saw William Killkenny veer his motorcycle into the parking lot, missing a car by inches before coming to an abrupt stop beside him.

“It’s a little cold to be riding a bike, isn’t it?” Trace asked when William shut off the engine.

“Real men don’t get cold, Huntsman,” the Irishman said with a chuckle. But then he turned serious. “Ye haven’t seen Gabby, have you? She and Sarah were supposed to be tidying up the woods around my building site, but when I went to check on them not twenty minutes later, my sister had disappeared.”

“You mean that sister?” Trace asked, pointing down the sidewalk.

“Goddamn it,” William growled. “I should have known something was up when the girls
volunteered
to go pile brush along the driveway.” He shook his head even as he grinned. “Sarah made up some outrageous story that Gabby had gone to my cabin to make them both some hot chocolate.” He sighed. “My sister’s been here less than a month, and she’s already corrupted that sweet child.”

Trace gave a laugh. “You want to blame anyone for corrupting Sarah, blame your wife. When Maddy was Sarah’s age, she could have given snipers lessons on sneaking around.”

William sighed again. “Gabriella’s not supposed to associate with Fiona.”

“Why in hell not?”

“Because Kenzie believes Fiona will never find her backbone again if any of us help her.”

“That’s bullshit, and you know it. Gabriella understands Fiona’s fears better than anyone. They both were brutalized by men, and they both got thrust into this century by your crazy drùidh buddy, Mac the Menace. Have you or Kenzie considered that maybe the two women can help each other?” He shook his head. “Because dumping Fiona on my doorstep and telling her to figure it out on her own sure as hell isn’t working.” He pointed at the bag of dog food in the back of his truck. “She bought a puppy today because she was afraid to say no to the man selling it.”

William gazed down the sidewalk, watching the two women and the puppy disappear around a curve. “Maybe you’re right about them helping each other. For the most part, Gabby acts like any normal teenager, but some nights she wakes up screaming bloody murder. Maddy has tried talking with her, but the girl refuses to discuss anything about that day, saying she’s decided to pretend it never happened.” He looked back at Trace, his eyes filled with pain. “I don’t know how to help her,” he said thickly. “Maybe I
should
ask Fiona to befriend her.”

“Or maybe you should just leave them both alone,” Trace suggested. He nodded down the sidewalk. “Neither of them
needed any prompting to get together today, and they both managed to survive their little adventure.”

William looked appalled. “Ye expect me to ignore the fact that Gabriella snuck off? The brat left her cell phone with Sarah, along with instructions to say she was indisposed if I happened to call. I’ve spent the last four hours going out of my mind looking for her.”

“Now you know to try Fiona’s cell phone the next time Gabriella goes missing,” Trace countered, chuckling at William’s thunderous scowl. “Or simply tell the girl she doesn’t have to sneak off in the first place, because you happened to notice she’s all grown up now and quite capable of making her own decisions.”

“Do
you
have a sister?” William growled.

“Quite happily, no. But I did spend many nights riding every back road in the county with my uncle Marvin, which taught me that it’s a lot easier if they
tell
you where they’re going than it is to find them if they don’t want to be found. Marvin finally gave up and suggested that if I ever have daughters just to hand them the car keys. He said they’ll live up to my expectations if they know I trust them, instead of putting all their energy into outfoxing me.”

William visibly shuddered. “I don’t know if Mac thought he was doing me a favor or trying to kill me when he brought Gabby here. If I do survive her antics long enough to get her safely wed, I’m just going to have to suffer through it again with Sarah.” He suddenly grinned. “But Maddy is giving me a son, according to Mac, and at least I won’t have to worry about
him
.”

Trace gave a bark of laughter and started backing toward the store. “You hold on to that fantasy, Killkenny. Raising
boys today is a damn lot harder than it was in the ninth century, and by the time your son reaches manhood, you’re going to think Gabriella and Sarah were saints.”

Trace turned away from the Irishman’s scowl with another laugh and headed into the Shop ’n Save to the sound of the powerful motorcycle roaring out of the parking lot. But he quickly sobered, remembering Fiona’s relief to see him and how good it had made him feel. Dammit to hell, she’d better not think he was going to come to her rescue every time she got into trouble, because he
wasn’t
. He’d left his hero uniform in Afghanistan, and he sure as hell wasn’t ever putting it on again.

Not even for a pair of vulnerable golden eyes.

And that clueless puppy had better not come scratching at his door with its nose full of porcupine quills, either, because he was just as immune to soulful
canine
eyes.

Goddamn it, didn’t the woman know she was supposed to ask her landlord if she could have a pet before she brought one home?

W
atching Gabriella disappear up the road on the back of William’s motorcycle, Fiona stood at the bottom of the stairs leading up to her apartment, torn between wanting to run inside and staying to face her landlord like a confident, modern woman. She started walking Misneach around the yard, trying to persuade herself that she wasn’t afraid of Mr. Huntsman and that there wasn’t any reason they couldn’t have a calm, civilized discussion about her owning a pet. But half an hour later, worried he might not be in the mood to hear how having a dog would benefit the both of them, Fiona found herself waiting for him
halfway
up the stairs.

Just as soon as she’d sat down, Misneach had flopped down with a doggy sigh and immediately fallen asleep on the step above her, apparently exhausted from all that had happened to him today. The poor little bugger; he must be so confused and frightened and feeling so powerless that falling asleep was his only defense. For didn’t she herself know the horrors of waking up one morning belonging to
one master, only to be bartered off before nightfall to another one for a few measly coins?

“Don’t worry, my little friend,” she whispered, stroking his wavy coat of dust-colored fur. “If Mr. Huntsman says you can’t stay, you have my word of honor that I will not hand you off to another master. I learned all about surviving the elements when I was a hawk, and we’ll just go live in the woods if he won’t let me keep you. You’ll give me courage, and I will give you my loyalty, and together we will make a formidable team.” She kissed the top of his head. “And if by some miracle Mr. Huntsman does agree to let you stay, then you must also become a perfect tenant and do your business in the tall grass and not jump on him with muddy paws. Oh, and no barking when he’s home, as he works very long hours and needs his sleep,” she added in a stern whisper.

Fiona sat upright when she heard the distinct rumble of her landlord’s pickup turning into the driveway, and that persistent knot in her gut rose into her chest, squeezing her suddenly pounding heart. She stood up, hoping it would help her breathe normally, only to realize that she might appear to be looking down her nose at him. So she sat back down and folded her hands on her lap, again wishing she’d never gone to town.

But when Misneach gave a soft little puppy snore, Fiona realized that if she hadn’t, there was a good chance he would be in that terrible shelter right now, praying that he could go to sleep and
never
wake up.

The old green pickup came to a halt just out of her line of vision, and she heard the engine shut off and the vehicle’s door open and close.

And then nothing.

She leaned forward and frowned down at the porch. He had to have seen her sitting on the stairs when he’d driven in. Why wasn’t he coming to discuss her new pet?

Gathering her courage, because she knew that postponing the confrontation would only add to her angst, Fiona started down the steps. But she plopped back down with a gasp when her landlord silently rounded the corner of the house carrying her bag of dog food. He set it on the bottom step, then pulled some money out of his pocket and held it up for her to see.

“Johnnie Dempster asked me to give this to you. He told me once he thought about it, he decided he wanted you to have the dog when he realized it was going to a good home,” he said, tucking the money under the bag of food.

Fiona stood up in alarm. “Oh no, you must give it back to him! I do not wish to feel beholden to Mr. Dempster.”

“Hey, I tried to get him to keep at least a hundred, but he insisted on giving it all back minus what he spent on the food and leash. Don’t worry; Johnnie’s not looking for a new girlfriend. He just got rid of the last one with his skin barely intact.” He stared up at her for several seconds and then suddenly blew out a sigh. “Dempster’s a good man, Fiona, and he has a passion for dogs. But your new little friend there,” he said, gesturing toward Misneach, “was the runt of the litter, and Johnnie knows he’ll make a better companion than a hunter, so
he’s
beholden to
you
for taking it off his hands.”

Fiona plopped back down on the stairs, trying to decide if she believed him or not. “And you … you will let me
keep Misneach?” she whispered, looking at his broad chest because she wasn’t quite able to meet his gaze.

She saw him shrug. “I’ve wanted to get a dog myself but didn’t think it was fair, considering the long hours I’m gone from the house. Truth is, I like the idea of having a dog around to keep the raccoons and skunks out of the barn.” Although it didn’t quite reach his eyes, he smiled up at her. “Just teach him to do his business in the woods, and keep him out of the trash.”

Fiona jumped to her feet again, unable to contain her excitement. “I
promise,
you won’t even know he’s here!”

Misneach came awake with a startled yelp and tumbled down several steps before he slammed into Fiona’s legs, knocking her off balance. She tried to grab the railing with one hand and Misneach’s leash with the other, only she missed both when the leash tangled in her legs. But just as she felt herself falling, she was suddenly swept off her feet and gently set on the stairs.

“Th-thank you,” she whispered in horror.

But she was talking to Trace Huntsman’s back. And if she hadn’t still been shivering from the feel of his warm, powerful arms around her, she might have thought nothing had happened as she watched her landlord disappear around the corner of the house—with Misneach, leash flapping behind him, yapping excitedly at his heels.

Fiona shivered again. She couldn’t believe a man could move that fast or so silently; yet he must have, or she would have been lying in a heap on the ground right now.

Hearing a sudden yelp followed by strangled cries of distress, Fiona rushed down the remaining steps to find Misneach hanging off the side of the porch, frantically pawing
the air. But before she could even reach him, Mr. Huntsman was there, unsnapping the leash from his collar before lowering him to the ground.

Fiona swept the whimpering puppy into her arms and whispered soothing words into his trembling fur. But when she lifted her gaze to thank her landlord, the man had once again disappeared as silently as a ghost.

She frowned down at the leash. The handle had wedged in a crack between two rotten boards, apparently bringing Misneach to an abrupt halt before flinging him off the porch. She kissed the top of his head and set him down, then pulled the leash free. But before she could snap it onto his collar, the pup was off again, racing after his savior.