Worlds of Obsession (Celtic Otherworlds) (3 page)

             
Otherworld:
The world of the Sidhe, made up of countless realms which may each have one or more purpose, or be occupied by one or more race of beings.  It is thought to exist both underground, beneath lakes and rivers, and otherwise in parallel with the human world.  Doorways to the Otherworld are numerous and are often associated with forests, caves, or bodies of water.

Frowning, she flipped to the ‘S’ section, because she had no idea what Sidhe meant.

             
Sidhe:
  The many races of immortals and deities which inhabit the Otherworld, although many can also walk unseen or unnoticed in the human world.

             
“Well, that’s not very helpful”, she muttered.  The woman sitting next to her looked up briefly, then went back to watching the in-flight movie.

             
“Sorry”.  Liv flipped lightly through the pages, which held entries for all kinds of creatures and places, some of the names familiar, some not.  Kelpies, Selkies… Ghillie Dhu? 

             
She skimmed the entries in the book for a while longer, then tried to watch something on the little TV built into the seat in front of her, but she was too excited to concentrate on anything, so she settled for listening to music with her headphones and staring out the window at the star-filled sky.  Around midnight she eventually dozed off into a fitful sleep, cheek pressed against the window, tiny complimentary pillow clutched in her lap. 

When turbulence jarred her awake sometime later, she realized she had been dreaming.  And it was one of those odd dreams that felt so real that you woke up feeling confused and slightly disorientated.  She had been in a castle of some sort, and wearing old fashioned clothing.  Must be because she was on her way to Scotland and hoped to tour
some ruins while she was there, because it had felt so real.  In fact, she had the distinct impression that she lived there… in the castle. 
Because Jess had joked she was going to inherit a castle, of course.
 

But the one thing that stood out in the dream was that s
he had been happy… happier, in fact, then she ever remembered being in real life.  She had swept into a room in a beautiful, flowing dress, and there were several women there, fussing over a gown that was laid out on a bed. 
A wedding gown?
  Oh yes, she was getting married soon, that was why she was so happy.  She was completely, totally, head-over-heels in love.  All she could think of was the upcoming wedding… and wedding night, because her husband-to-be was tall, dark, and gorgeous.  All male, and all hers.  He had already pledged himself to her, heart and soul, and was so desperate to see her that she had been sneaking out from under her father’s guards, just to steal a kiss or two.  He had promised to make her happy… to see her every dream come true.  He wanted a real home and he wanted children and a family, just like she did…

             
Another bump jarred her out of her thoughts, and the little ‘fasten seatbelt’ light blinked and made a dinging sound.  She shoved the little pillow between her head and the window and tried to doze off again, but the dream had left her feeling rather off-kilter, as if there were something missing, or she had forgotten something important and just couldn’t remember what it was no matter how hard she tried.  And as hard as she tried, she hadn’t been able to shake the funny feeling for the rest of the flight.

             
The plane landed at Heathrow in London, and then she had to catch a train to Glasgow, where she took a cab to her hotel.  She had chosen one that was with reasonable walking distance to everything, including the address she was supposed to visit.  No way was she renting a car and driving on the wrong side of the road, she was directionally challenged as it was.  Combine that with the nervous energy currently zinging through her at top speed, and she was bound to end up in some sort of trouble.  Nope, better to walk or take a cab.  She pulled out her phone and sent a text to Jess that she had arrived safely, suddenly feeling a little sad that no one else knew where she was or would worry about her any time soon.  Other than Gran, she had nothing in the way of family, and since she had only recently moved to Boston after grad school and worked full time, she hadn’t made many friends yet.  She really was pretty much on her own in the world. 

Well, then… might as well head out and see what’s in store… after all, it was only early afternoon, and spending the rest of the day in the cramped and dingy hotel room definitely didn’t appeal to her.  She would go stir-crazy in about fifteen minutes.
  Liv jumped into the shower, put on clean clothes and a little makeup, dried her hair, grabbed her purse and a map, and headed out the door for the beginning of her epic adventure.  She just hoped it wouldn’t be a monumental disappointment, like a large-scale practical joke, or a great-aunt leaving her a prize poodle named FiFi. 

Chapter 3

             
The Harley couldn’t possibly go any faster, which was deeply disappointing.  Bastien pushed the throttle to the limit, navigating the road with reflexes far superior to any mere human.  The thrill of deadly speed and negotiating the narrow, winding roads was one of the few things that could almost make him feel alive again… at least for a short time.  In the end, if he crashed, he’d be out one hell of an expensive bike but he’d always walk away. 
Fuck
. 

Bastien rode to the highest point
in the landscape that he could get to on a motorcycle and then pulled the bike over, cutting the engine and kicking down the stand.  He left it at the side of the abandoned road and walked a short distance to a place he visited quite often.  It was a cliff edge that overlooked both the jagged arms of land jutting into the sea to the west, and the green and olive colored hills and vales to the east.  From here, he could see so much of Scotia, but at a distance… as if it wasn’t quite real.  The view of his earthly homeland warmed him, just a little.  Just enough to make it through another night of hunting, his one and only purpose in life.  If he could not be happy, then at least he spent his time ensuring the happiness of others.  That was something, anyway. It was what he strove for.

He took a deep breath of the crisp, damp air, letting the
cutting wind whip his long hair loose from its tie.  It was good to be home.  He really had no idea what had possessed him to buy a house in the Mediterranean, or to actually spend any time there.  It had been a whim, and he had way too much money anyway.  He should probably start giving some of it away.

             
Like any being that had lived as long, Bastien had accumulated vast amounts of wealth, almost by accident.  To him, wealth meant little.  He bought himself the necessities, and once and a while splurged on something like a fast car or motorcycle, but he was not one to have a string of mansions all over the world.  No, exorbitant spending and over-the-top luxury was more the habit of the Vampire races.  Vamps were naturally creatures of material decadence, but Bastien liked to keep things as simple as possible.  He owned a couple of modest properties, one in the Highlands, and the latest one in the South of France.  Most of the time, he crashed in his room at the Guild headquarters with the other single males that called the big Glasgow row-house
home
.  He’d been there the longest of any of them, because once they one-by-one found their mates, they generally left headquarter housing and set up a household… had a family… whatever it was a male did when he had a female of his own to care for.  But for Bastien, that ship had sailed long ago.  For him, there was nothing to look forward to but hunting Dark Sidhe and hanging out in what most of the time amounted to little better than a frat house.  At least they had a few servants there who cleaned the place up once in a while and made sure there was always food in the fridge, otherwise he suspected it would be barely livable by most standards. 

With a long exhale, Bastien got on his bike and started back the way he had come. 
Another night, another patrol.  Tonight he was in Glasgow, a recent hot-bed of Dark Sidhe activity that had required a major step-up in security.  It tended to cycle like that, between cities, with the larger ones like London taking a hit more often than others.  Erath had already been called back from Inverness, and Jace was due to arrive any time now.  When Dark Sidhe numbers were on the rise, they tended to swarm to the easy pickings of Glasgow’s seedier neighborhoods, blending in with the gangs of human thugs, drug addicts, and down-and-outs that frequented the streets.  Bastien welcomed the diversion.  It had been a while since he’d fought, weeks at least, and he could feel the urge for the physical release of battle, and the satisfaction of sinking a blade into the flesh of a creature that preyed on innocents.  The momentary high of the kill was all he had to look forward to. 

Bastien flew into the garage on the Harley, skidding it to a sideways halt and cutting the engine.  A car pulled in behind him just as he got off the bike. 
Erath, a fellow warrior for the Guild, and one of the few he would consider calling a friend.  At least Erath put up with his bullshit most of the time, and Bastien knew he had dished out a lot over the years.  Erath got out of the sleek red sports car and stretched to his full, towering height.  He grinned when he saw Bastien.

“Hey, Bro.  You on tonight?”

“Yeah.”  Bastien made a face as Erath came closer and they both walked toward the door.  “Fuck, Erath, you smell like human female.”

“Yeah, well, I had a busy night.  Again.  Human females are almost too easy, sometimes I miss a good challenge.  Blood and sex, on tap, whenever I want.  Where’s the fun in that?”

Bastien rolled his eyes.  “Mmm, so hard to be you.”  Erath was always ribbing him about his lack of a sex life, but he had never told the Vampire the truth of his situation.  Even if he
wanted
to have sex with a female, he
couldn’t
.  Once a Fomori male finds his mate, his body is hers and hers alone, responding only for her,
needing
her to sate his needs.  There would never be anyone else. For males like Erath, it was a different female every night, the satisfaction of physical urges and nothing more.

“Don’t you ever want more?”
Bastien asked quietly. 

“More?” 
Erath gave him a confused frown.  “More what?  I have everything I could possibly want and then some.”

“I mean a connection… something that was more than just
sex
with a female.”

Erath
put his hands up and took a step back.  “Uh uh, no way.  You sleep with the same female twice, they start to get all clingy and then they think you have a
relationship
.  No thanks, I’ll stick to playing the field.  Hey, what the fuck is up with you lately, anyway?”

Bastien shook his head.  “Nothing.  Just been restless the past few days.  I need to go out and fight, that’s all, it’s been a while.”

Bastien went to his room to change into his combat gear: black leather pants and boots, a fitted black tee, and a leather jacket with a series of inside pockets that held his weapons of choice: an assortment of blades and a few guns for good measure, although he preferred fighting at close range to using bullets.  Most Sidhe creatures could only be killed by decapitation or direct removal of their heart.  Shooting one only slowed them down a little. 

With all his gear in place, Bastien paused to tie back his hair and stalked off to the garage.  He was on edge tonight and more than ready for some action.

Fifteen minutes later, he turned down a narrow one-way in his midnight black Aston Martin.  Out of all the vehicles he owned, it was his favorite because it was the fastest and sleekest, and it hugged the twists and turns of the rugged Scottish roads like nobody’s business.  Sometimes he thought driving it was as close as he was ever going to get to having sex again.  The thought amused him in a pathetic kind of way.

The car was drawing the attention of everyone he passed, it always did
because the thing screamed money, but he didn’t care.  Just let someone fuck with him tonight… he was in the
mood
to fight.  He had been feeling agitated lately… tense, like something major was about to go down and he didn’t have a clue what the hell it was.  The feeling had him pacing his room at odd hours and driving fast and hard; even more recklessly than usual.  The close confines of the car began to press in on him, and he rolled down the windows to take in the night air, on constant alert for that particular cloying scent that would lead him to his enemies.  All he could smell at the moment was the oily pavement and grime and humanity that was unique to Glasgow.  Certainly not a pleasant scent, but heady and real just the same.

Bastien’s cell went
off and he picked it up off the passenger seat to look at the lit-up screen.  Unknown number.  He debated for a second whether to answer, since anyone who called him on a regular basis was programed in, and very few others had his number.  But what the hell, it was a slow night so far.  He pushed ‘talk’ and held the phone to his ear. 

“
Yeah?”  His finger hovered over the ‘end’ button, in case it was a telemarketer or prank call.  He hated both.  He didn’t have the patience for any of that bullshit.

“Bastien, I’m so glad I got
hold of you!”

His eyes narrowed. 
It was a woman’s melodic, lilting voice.  He thought it sounded vaguely familiar, but he couldn’t quite place it.  He wrenched the wheel hard to the right and the car slid neatly around a corner.  “Who is this?”

Whoever she was, s
he ignored his question.  “Listen, Bastien dearest, I have it on good intel that a couple of D.S. are hanging around the alley between Market Square and Coventry Lane.  They’re sizing up victims as we speak.  Get on it.  Now.”  The line went dead.

Bastien blinked at the blank screen. 
What the hell…
  No one except Arawn himself gave him orders.  Ever.  He glanced up at a street sign as he drove by; Coventry Lane was only a few blocks away.  Since he was so close, he might as well go check it out, but if someone was fucking with him, there would be hell to pay, and then some.  That thought almost made him smile.  Almost.

He gunned the engine and expertly maneuvered down the narrow street, hoping that a good kill was waiting for him in that alley
, or maybe the female who had called him on his private line, because he’d love to give her a piece of his mind right about now and maybe scare the crap out of her for good measure.  He’d rather it was the kill, though, because he was feeling keyed up and raw, and nothing brought him down like taking out a Dark Sidhe or two.  The bastards were responsible for nearly all of the unsolved rapes and murders in Glasgow, and most of humankind had no idea they even existed.  Or at least the majority chose not to believe it, because it wasn’t like the information wasn’t out there.  Usually completely inaccurate, but out there in spades.

***

              Liv took another right, wondering now if she should have gone left at the last intersection after all.  Brighton Street… Brighton Street… how hard can it be to find Brighton Street, damn it?  According to the map, it should be right here… somewhere.  Who knew the streets of Glasgow were so damn hard to navigate?  It was even worse than Boston, and
that
was saying something.  Cursing under her breath, Liv turned down another side street and picked up her pace to a near jog.  It was already early evening, and the light would be fading soon.  The last thing she needed was to be lost at night in what looked to be one of the seedier parts of Glasgow.  Crap, she should have just taken a cab from the hotel after all!  She swore repeatedly under her breath. 
If I get out of this alive, I am
never
going to be this stupid again. 

             
Twenty more minutes passed, and ok, she was lost.  Completely, totally, utterly lost. And to make things worse, her cell phone had died at some point, because she had forgotten that her power cord wouldn’t work over here. It was high time she found a gas station or convenience store so she could call that cab and get back to the hotel before it was completely dark.  Tomorrow she would give a cab driver the Brighton Street address and let
him
find it. 

She made another
right turn, and immediately thought better of it.  The narrow street was more like an alley and was dark and unwelcoming, with the stench of garbage and urine, and low-crouching brick buildings on either side.  But wait… there were bright lights at the far end and it looked like it may lead to a main street. 
Oh, thank god!
  Scanning her surroundings as best she could, Liv took a deep breath and started down the long, cobbled passageway.

             
She had taken only about twenty steps when she sensed that she wasn’t alone.  The little hairs on the back of her neck stood on end, and a cold shiver of fear slid down her spine.  She froze, then looked slowly back over her shoulder. Though she saw nothing out of the ordinary, there was no denying what every instinct was telling her, and Liv broke into a run, barreling headlong over the damp and slippery cobbles. 

Oh this whole thing was such a bad, bad idea!
 

She never saw the arm that swept in front of her and curled around her waist, stopping her
desperate flight and bringing her up short.  With a scream frozen in her throat and the first shot of adrenaline already flooding her veins, she turned to face her attacker, but she was unable to clearly see his face with her panic and the dim light. 

Oh
god!  This is
so
not how I wanted to die…
ok Liv, pull yourself together.  Remember your self-defense classes… go for the balls… 
She twisted hard to the right, lifting her knee and giving it her best aim, but at the last moment, she was thrown off balance and tumbled to the ground.  Scrambling to her hands and knees, she began crawling, trying all the while to gain purchase with her feet.  A hand grabbed the back of her collar and pulled.