Page 15 of After Midnight (Skye Druids #7)

Chapter Twelve

There was nothing more depressing than a hospital.

The hope mixed with grief, dread, and sadness seeped from every crevice.

Sabryn couldn’t stand being in the building, but she couldn’t leave either.

She might despise Kurt , but Saber had been a trusted and integral part of her team.

The fact that they were one and the same made things that much more difficult.

The door to the private room opened, and Song entered before walking to Carlyle . Chief Superintendent Boyd had spoken to them all, but Sabryn knew they hadn’t seen the last of her. Right now, Sabryn couldn’t care less.

She sank into a chair in the corner and gazed at the carpet after staring at the wall for the last half hour.

Every minute Kurt remained in surgery meant he was closer to dying.

She couldn’t think about the mixed emotions that thought conjured because she wasn’t yet ready to face any of it.

She might never be prepared. So , she turned her focus to Parker .

Thanks to Kurt , they knew the Edinburgh Druids were working with him.

George and her organization had repeatedly come after those on Skye , and Sabryn had reached her breaking point. It was time George felt her wrath. And once Sabryn handled them, she planned to turn her attention to Parker . The bastard would pay for what he’d done. Slowly and painfully.

Sabryn was imagining all the ways she would make him scream and beg for mercy when the door opened, interrupting her thoughts. Her gaze snapped toward it as Finn rushed inside, out of breath and his eyes blazing with fury. He motioned Carlyle and Song over as he sat beside her.

“ What’s going on?” Carlyle asked.

Finn leaned forward and lowered his voice. “ I finally got in touch with Elias .”

Unease slid down Sabryn’s spine at the indignation deepening Finn’s already dark eyes. “ What happened?” she asked.

“ His mum’s cottage was attacked. Emily was watching Edie’s children at the time,” he explained.

Carlyle grunted. “ So , they were after the bairns?”

“ Not by what Elias said. They set a fire outside the house,” Finn told them.

Song jerked back in shock. “ They were trying to burn them?”

“ Maybe ,” Finn said with a one-shoulder shrug. “ That’s not all.”

Sabryn braced herself. “ Go on.” She nodded.

“ Theo took off with Callum because one of the boats Callum had been working on blew up. Shrapnel went everywhere,” Finn said.

Carlyle shook his head, anger darkening his face. “ Was anyone hurt?”

“ Callum wasn’t there, of course, and his father was in the house. As far as I know, no one was hurt.” Finn paused for a beat. “ Then there’s Ferne’s store.”

Sabryn glanced at Carlyle . “ The bookstore? What happened?”

“ Someone broke in and destroyed it.”

Carlyle surged to his feet and shoved a hand through his hair. “ She was getting ready to open in less than a week.”

“ This was a coordinated attack,” Song replied.

Sabryn nodded. “ They waited until we were all together before striking places that would send us in different directions.”

“ To what gain, though?” Finn asked.

Carlyle sat back down with a sigh. “ It has to be Kurt .”

“ I don’t understand why Edie would allow her children to be harmed,” Song said.

Carlyle took one of her hands in his. “ I don’t think she cares about them now that she’s working with the evil.”

“ Then she doesn’t deserve them,” Song stated angrily.

Finn twisted his lips and nodded. “ We can all agree on that. I’d really like to know how she’s still alive.”

“ Stop ,” Sabryn told them. “ We’re looking at this all wrong.”

“ All right. Where should we be looking?” Carlyle asked.

She curled her hands into fists. “ Parker .”

“ So , this is about Kurt ,” Finn murmured.

Song wrinkled her nose. “ Maybe it’s a combination of everything. Carlyle and I both saw Edie . She should’ve died in that house. If that was her out there, she’s looking for revenge.”

“ Against all of us,” Sabryn pointed out.

Carlyle released a long breath. “ Bloody hell. Will this ever end?”

“ Maybe that’s part of it. They’re wearing us down,” Finn replied.

Song asked, “ Has anyone heard from Rhona or Balladyn ?”

Finn shook his head. “ Not a word.”

“ What about Ariah ? How’s the Tea Talker . Was she hit?” Sabryn asked.

Finn squeezed the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger. “ No one said anything.”

“ I’ll call,” Carlyle said, pulling out his mobile.

They waited for the line to connect. The conversation was brief, and within a few seconds, Carlyle gave them a thumbs-up to let them know that Ariah , Killian , and Ruby were unharmed.

“ Stay vigilant,” Carlyle told them before hanging up. “ They’re good,” he announced to the room.

Finn scooted down in his chair and stretched out his legs. “ It’s weird that they wouldn’t attack there.”

“ I agree. Ariah is a big part of the group, and everyone else was hit,” Song said.

Sabryn popped her neck. “ Who’s to say they’re done with us?”

“ Fuck ,” Carlyle muttered and leaned forward, dropping his chin to his chest.

They all jerked to attention when the door opened, and a woman in scrubs walked inside.

“ Hello . I’m Dr . Dunn ,” she said with a thick Scottish accent. “ Are all of you with Mr . Barclay ?”

Finn and Carlyle stood up. “ We are,” they said in unison.

Sabryn’s heart thudded in her chest as she scrutinized the doctor’s face, trying to discern anything that might give her any indication of Kurt’s health. They had been waiting for news, but now she wasn’t sure she wanted to know.

Song scooted over and placed her hand atop Sabryn’s . She hadn’t realized she was squeezing the edge of the chair. Sabryn turned her hand over at the contact, grateful for Song’s support.

“ The knife wound struck between his ninth and tenth rib, grazing the ninth. That slowed the blade’s trajectory into his spleen. There was minor damage to the organ and a small nick in his left kidney,” Dr . Dunn said.

Sabryn hung on every word, even as she was afraid to hear the rest.

“ It took longer than I would’ve liked to find and repair the lacerations. If the blade had been longer, it could have potentially damaged his lung, as well. Mr . Barclay is very lucky,” the doctor said.

Finn sank heavily into a chair and hung his head in relief.

“ Kurt is stable, then?” Carlyle asked hesitantly.

Dr . Dunn’s smile was small and controlled. “ He is stable for the moment. He lost a considerable amount of blood. We’ll be keeping a close eye on him to make sure nothing was missed.”

“ You mean internal bleeding,” Finn said as he lifted his head.

The doctor dipped her chin. “ Exactly . He coded on the table but was successfully resuscitated.”

Just when Sabryn was relaxing, Dr . Dunn’s words had the room tilting.

She tightened her hand on Song’s while trying to figure out how to get a Healer into the hospital and to Kurt without being seen.

That’s all it would take to fix Kurt . There was no need for him to lie there in pain, possibly still wounded.

“ When can we see him?” Song asked.

Dr . Dunn twisted her lips. “ Mr . Barclay will remain in the critical care unit until I’m sure of his recovery.”

“ One more thing, Doctor ,” Carlyle said. “ An attempt was made on our friend’s life. There might be some who call, wanting an update.”

Dr . Dunn looked at each of them before returning her gaze to Carlyle . “ That detail has already been handled.”

“ What do you mean?” Sabryn asked.

“ Chief Superintendent Boyd locked Mr . Barclay’s file so only I can access it.”

“ I wasn’t expecting that,” Finn said.

Carlyle held out his hand. “ Thank you, Dr . Dunn .”

They were quiet after the doctor left, each lost in thought about how close Kurt had come to death.

Finn broke the silence. “ We need to get a Healer in here ASAP .”

“ Getting one in isn’t the issue,” Carlyle said. “ It’s the time it will take as they use their magic. As long as Kurt’s in the CCU , we can’t get to him.”

Sabryn shrugged. “ We can’t. But Balladyn can.”

“ That’s assuming he’ll come if called,” Finn pointed out.

Carlyle crossed his arms over his chest and rocked back on his heels. “ Rhona and Balladyn wouldn’t have just left. They either had to leave like everyone else, or someone got to them.”

“ No way,” Finn replied with a firm shake of his head. “ He’s a fekking Reaper who can veil himself and anyone he touches. And he can teleport. There’s no way something on this isle could take him and Rhona .”

“ That we know of,” Song added.

Finn blew out a frustrated breath as he realized she spoke the truth.

Sabryn released Song’s hand when Carlyle noticed them. She flashed a quick smile of thanks to Song and got to her feet. “ I can’t stay here. I’m going to look for Rhona .”

“ The fek you are. You’re going after Parker ,” Finn said.

There was no need to lie now. She had attempted it, but the boys had seen right through her. And given Song’s expression, so had she. “ Fine . I’m going after Parker .”

“ Not alone, you aren’t,” Carlyle declared.

Song crossed one leg over the other. “ I know you all have good intentions because I have them myself. However , when Kurt wakes, he’ll want Parker for himself.”

“ We’ll hold the wanker for him,” Finn said with a grin.

Carlyle rubbed the back of his neck. “ We set a trap that went badly. We have no idea where Parker or his Druids are now.”

“ Which is why we need to find them,” Sabryn replied.

Carlyle stared at her for a long moment. “ They aren’t done with us. They’ll wait until we’re alone or in small groups.”

“ They can try. I was right fucking there,” Sabryn said, her voice breaking. “ I was right beside Kurt . I never saw the knife. I never saw Parker …”

Finn stood and moved to her side, concern coloring his face. “ That isn’t on you.”

“ I underestimated Parker and overestimated our plan. I all but ignored Kurt because I was angry. Had I paid attention, had I? —”

“ Don’t do that,” Carlyle interrupted. “ You know that road leads nowhere.”

Sabryn looked at the three of them. “ We were played today. London and Edinburgh keep coming at us. And now, it looks like they’ve paired with Edie and whatever she’s partnered with. We’re running out of time, guys. I can feel it.”

Finn and Carlyle exchanged a look before Finn asked, “ What do you want to do?”

“ I want answers. And I want Parker ,” Sabryn said.

Carlyle took Song’s hand. “ We’ll look for him. You and Finn stay here.”

“ You can stay,” Sabryn declared. “ I can’t sit here any longer.”

She didn’t wait for a response as she strode out of the room and down the hall. Sabryn didn’t remember where they had parked or even what vehicle they had come in, but that didn’t slow her.

“ Wait up,” Finn said, jogging to catch her. “ You’re not going without me. Besides . You’ll need these.”

She looked over as he jingled the keys. “ And where we parked.”

“ That , too.” His smile slipped. “ He’ll be okay. One way or another, Kurt will be fine.”

She sure hoped Finn was right. They walked out of the hospital to Carlyle’s SUV . Finn got behind the wheel, something for which Sabryn was grateful. Her mind was too preoccupied to concentrate on driving.

“ Where to?” Finn asked after starting the engine.

“ There’s only one place to go.”

“ The hotel Parker was staying?”

She nodded in agreement.

Finn backed out of the space and put the vehicle in drive. “ I doubt he’ll be there.”

“ If he’s smart, he won’t be. But Parker isn’t as smart as he thinks he is. Someone would’ve seen Kurt being taken off in the ambulance.”

“ Meaning ?” Finn asked as he glanced at her.

“ Meaning there will be calls to hospitals. I wish the chief had told me what she planned. I would’ve asked her to say that Kurt was dead.”

Finn slowed to take a turn. “ You think Parker would leave Skye then?”

“ Possibly .”

“ Unless he plans to come for you.”

Sabryn stared out the windshield. “ I hope the motherfucker does.”