Shatter - Sins of the Sidhe (23 page)

After a few minutes of thinking and stewing in her self-pity, Rowan went back out to join everyone else. “Is there a slice for poor, poor pitiful me?” She tried to smile.

Brinley came over and gave her a hug. “I love you.”

“I know.”

And that was all it took for two lifelong besties to make amends. Adam was warmed by its simplicity. ‘Tis a rare gift to find a true friend in the world. Some go their whole lives without ever knowing the experience. What Brinley and Rowan shared together was a rare gift indeed.

After dessert, Rowan was feeling better and less angry with life. She wanted to go back to Devlin’s and see if he was there. She had some words for him, though she planned on trying to tone down the rudeness meter.

Adam escorted Brinley and Rowan back to the stone cottage. The deal was if Devlin was there, Brinley and Adam would leave to give them space for a while. If he wasn’t there, Brinley would stay with Ro until Adam found Devlin and they returned. Either way, Rowan was not being left alone.

They walked up the driveway and out pops Fintan. “Oh my God, a fox!” Brinley squealed and backed up. Rowan immediately got down on her knees and rubbed his head. She was never so happy to see such a sweet furry critter in all her life. She told the fox as much too and kissed his nose.

“Uh, is he a pet or do you have super creature powers now?”

“No, he’s Devlin’s. His name is Fintan. I like to spoil him and he likes to be spoiled, so we’ve got a good thing going here.” Rowan opened the back door and everyone went inside, Fintan leading the way.

The house was empty and quiet. No Devlin here. Ro was one part relieved and two parts anxious because now she was worried for him. Her instincts said to find him, but her mind said to leave him alone. The smell of Devlin was everywhere in here and made her stomach sink to her toes. She missed him.

“Don’t worry, my dear,” Adam said quietly, “I have a feeling I know where he is.”

Rowan nodded her head and bit her lip. She didn’t know what she wanted to say so she didn’t say a damn thing.

Adam went out to look for Devlin after reinforcing the protection wards around the house. He wasn’t happy about leaving the two women alone, but Ava had business of her own to attend to and there was no one else he trusted. Reassuring himself that he wouldn’t be long, Adam sprinted out of the house in search of his friend. Heading straight towards the one place he was sure he’d find the Druid, Adam didn’t notice the black dog watching behind the shadows of the trees.

The girls went back to the spare bedroom. Rowan was exhausted and jittery. Brinley was too busy thinking to be tired. The blonde plopped down on the big bed with a sigh, “What a day, huh?”

“Yup. Pretty shitty. And it was going so well too.”

The girls crawled into bed, too tired to sleep, they chatted about what happened between the Faire that weekend and some of the events that led up to now. It’s been a busy few days to say the least. Rowan told her all about Devlin and Adam coming into the studio. How they brought her back here (and how she yacked in the traveling). Brinley teased her for it like she expected her too. Rowan didn’t want to overwhelm Brinley too much, so she didn’t explain the whole Sidhe thing other than to say that her ability to see the dead is stemmed from powers that were old and strong.

Brinley wasn’t surprised that there was more to Rowan’s gift. Brinley was an accepting person; she was a believer in things that can’t be explained. It was a blessing and one of the main reasons their friendship was so strong. Brinley wasn’t one to run away when things got weird or scary. Actually, the woman almost searched for it. She kept her eyes open at all times, ready for a thrill – even if they were made of darker things. One more reason why the two women were so damn close.

“Aren’t we too old for this shit?” Brinley teased.

“You’re only as old as you feel,” Rowan rebutted. “But yeah, this is one helluva rabbit hole.”

Ro also explained Devlin’s job as a Druid and what that duty meant for him and Adam. She held back from telling her friend Adam’s true identity. It wasn’t her secret to tell, so she decided to distract Brinley (and herself) with a dirty recap of the wild and crazy that happened between her and Devlin in the fairy hill – contrary to popular belief, besties did the kiss and tell thing.

Brinley’s mouth gaped opened. “Whoa, girl. That’s crazy. That’s sexy, awesome, I-wish-I-had-some-myself crazy.”

She knew Brinley would accept her story, no matter how farfetched it was. All trusting and accepting, that was Brinley. It made Ro feel better. She practically beamed with the images Ro had vividly painted in her head, dirty and delicious as they were, and then let it fall away to a face that held concern.

With that, Brinley cleared her throat, “Look, I know you don’t want to talk about what happened today. So let’s don’t for now. You can tell us when you’re ready. I know better than to push you Ro– you’ll just fight back.”

Agreed.

Brinley knew her best friend well, but said it as both a comfort and a warning. Brinley wanted answers but was willing to be patient about it. Rowan got the message loud and clear.

They waited for the men to come back for what seemed like hours, until their eyes could no longer stay open. Rowan worried about Adam and Devlin, but they were grown men (as Brinley liked to point out) and could take care of themselves. A cell phone rang and Brinley grabbed the cell out of her back pocket. “Mother Hen” she confirmed.

“You talk to her Brinley, you’re better at hiding stuff than me. I swear the woman’s got a built-in lie detector in her ears.”
Must come with giving birth
, Ro thought.

Brinley answered all cheery and told Christine that Rowan was fine and that she’d call her when she could – busy and all that, it might be a few days or so before the callback. Christine must have been satisfied with the answer because there were no further questions. Phew.

Rowan was suddenly exhausted. She curled into bed and stared down at her arms. Her wounds were much better, thanks to her Sidhe-side giving her a boost of healing. “Thanks, Brin,” Ro whispered before falling asleep.

“For what?”

“Never leaving,” Ro mumbled.

“The people who love you will never run, Ro,” she whispered. Brinley stayed awake a little while longer, holding onto her friend, thinking about everything she’d told her. It was a lot to take in. Geesh, leave Ro alone for a minute and she all but turns the world upside down. But that was why Brinley loved her so much.
 

Adam went directly to the fairy mound after leaving the women. He knew Devlin would be there. Walking in, he dropped his glamour and felt better for it. It’s good to be one’s true self. He found Devlin brooding by the reflection pool. He sat down next to him and sighed.

“How are you brother?”

Devlin didn’t answer. His face blank, eyes were boring holes into the side of a fallen log. Smaller Fae floated in the air like wisps, some coming to greet Adam and then flying off again. The two men didn’t speak for a very long time. Finally, Adam took a deep breath and smacked Devlin’s back with a gesture of brotherly love.

“She’ll be fine, Devlin. Her burns are fading already. She’s strong and resilient. I’ll be the first to admit, I’ve never met a woman like her before. The Fates have chosen well.”

Still not speaking, Devlin just stared away, lost in thoughts of creative ways he was going to torture whatever did this to her. “Aye, she is strong. And resilient.” Blowing out a burst of air he looked down at the ground. “And I’ve no hope of getting her back. She is lost to me.” He sunk his head into his hands and shivered with the agony of it all.

“Nay brother, she’s not lost to you but she’s very mad. You acted like a boar at dinner. For the life of me, I’ve no idea what got into you. For truth, I thought you were going to tear her apart at the table and I don’t know why.”

Devlin looked at his friend and shook his head. “Och, I’d never harm her, ye ken that. I’m tearing myself up. I’m the devil, Adam. The heathen that told her to go in there and sent her alone. I laid her down, enchanted her with a sleep spell, and fed her to the bloody wolves.”

Well that’s not quite the way of it, and Adam said as much. “She knew what the risks were. She knows better than any of us. She did it because she has a purpose here. And so do you.”

Getting up and brushing the grass off of his black Armani pants, Adam left Devlin alone. Walking out of the fairy hill, he prayed to the Gods for guidance and strength. They were going to need every ounce of it after this night.

Adam walked back to the stone cottage and searched the rooms looking for the two women. Anxious at first when he didn’t hear a peep, Fintan came out of the back bedroom and showed him where they were. Like two dolls sleeping, they were a tender vision. Rowan was curled up in a ball, blankets tucked all around her letting out deep even breaths. Smiling with relief, Adam looked from Rowan to the golden angel lying next to her.

There was his enigma. Blonde hair pulled up in a pony, arms around her friend- on guard even in her sleep. He walked over to the lass and bent over, breathing her scent in. She smelled like jasmine. It was intoxicating.

With his guard down, Adam’s glamour slipped and the Sidhe bared his teeth in a quiet hiss of wanting. Sinking lower, lower, lower, his lips were almost touching hers. Her soft breath tickled his lips and a sigh came from her pink mouth. Just before he was about press his lips to hers, Rowan rolled over dragging the blankets with her and the movement startled Adam back to his senses.

By Danu, he’d nearly kissed her! Now was not the time for distraction. Slapping his glamour back into place, he left the temptress to her dreams and took up watch in the living room.

The sun came up and shined brightly in the windows. Rowan woke with a good long stretch. Fintan must have thought it was a good idea because he did the same. Brinley was still out cold. The woman would sleep half the day away if she could.

Ro got up, took a shower and got dressed.
It was a new day, full of possibilities. It was going to be good. Ro put that vibe out there once again, determined that she’d make it so. Being stuck in gloom and doom will only add wrinkles and grey hair, she was too young for that shit.

Rowan went down the hall to Devlin’s bedroom. Empty. Untouched. He never came home last night, but there wasn’t anything she could do about it. Ro wasn’t his keeper. If she was truthful with herself, she knew this whole thing was moving way too fast. Her senses have been clouded since the first day of being around him. Maybe it wasn’t meant to be and this was some foolish (albeit dramatic) tryst. No… that wasn’t it. Her gut and heart told her it was something else.

She went out to the kitchen to see if there was any coffee and saw Adam standing in the living room looking out the window towards the gardens. She was happy to see him.

“Hey.”

“Good morning, my dear, did you sleep alright?”

“Yeah, I did actually. The birds woke me up this morning. It’s a nice way to wake up, even if it’s a little earlier than I’d like.” She was cheery and it showed. Rowan hummed a song while brewing a pot of tea (no coffee was found) and then she went back in the bedroom to wake up Brinley.

Once Brinley was dressed and ready, they all left the cottage and headed back to Adam’s house. Ro half hoped Devlin was there, and half hoped he wasn’t. She’d be happy to see him safe but would be pissed that he didn’t come to her last night when she had waited for him. She wanted to ask Adam about Devlin, but stopped herself. There was no point, the end result was, he’d not come back to her when she felt he should have. Devlin was good as gone, like she feared.