Page 10 of Blood Skye (Skye Druids #6)

Chapter Ten

England

Carlyle adjusted Devon’s body in his arms when she began to slip. His muscles screamed for release, but he kept pushing himself to keep going. He could put her down, leave her, and forget her. She would likely do so with him if their positions were reversed. But she had answers. And while she might pretend ignorance, he knew otherwise. He would carry her across the Sahara if it meant learning where his father was.

His foot slipped on the dew-glistened grass as he trudged up a steep hill. He caught himself and dug his toes into the ground to get a better grip before trying again. His breath was ragged and puffed around him in the cool spring night air. When he reached the top of the rise, he looked down and wanted to shout with joy when he recognized the forked oak.

He glanced at Devon and found her eyes closed. Carlyle adjusted her once more before staring down the hill. When he reached the bottom, he hurried across the shallow valley to the next hill and laid her on the ground next to the oak. He scraped away some leaves and ivy vines but didn’t disturb any of the vegetation that had grown up. All he needed was the handle. His lips split into a wide smile when he found it.

The lock was tattooed in his memory. Shane had hounded Mason and him about learning it, as if he’d known that one of them might need it. Carlyle hadn’t interrogated him then, but after everything he’d learned, he wished Shane was standing before him now. He had so many questions he’d like to ask.

Shane had built the bunker to blend seamlessly into the hillside. Only those who knew of its existence could discern the door. It was well hidden by the hill, the tree, and the vegetation. Once the entrance was open, Carlyle gathered Devon in his arms and entered before shouldering the door closed. Lights flickered on in succession at their arrival.

Carlyle descended the steps, moving deeper into the hill and lower into the ground. The passage brought him to another door. He had to turn to the side to use his hand to grip the handle and his magic to unlock the door with yet another code. He ended up switching two numbers but got it open on the second try.

He strode through a main living area, where other rooms branched off. He went to one of the two bedrooms on the floor and laid Devon on the mattress of the lower bunk. As he drew back, he noticed the dark stain on his shirt. His gaze jerked to her. He had to get her out of those wet clothes.

Carlyle went back and closed the second door, locking it. He and Mason had only been in here once, but Shane had stocked the bunker with everything they might need to hide out for an extended period. Carlyle found the first-aid kit and then searched for sheets, blankets, and pillows. He found everything he needed in an airtight plastic tub in a closet.

He returned to the bedroom and undressed Devon , removing her shoes and socks before divesting her of her jeans, followed by her sweater and camisole. There was no time to look at her body as he gently rolled her onto her stomach and turned her head to the side. He grimaced at the blood-soaked bandage.

“ Fuck ,” he whispered when he peeled back the gauze and saw that several stitches had been torn.

He put the kit on the bed and opened it to dig out a needle and some thread, his hands shaking slightly as he hurried to get everything out. The only good thing was that she would be unconscious when he stitched her this time.

Carlyle sat on the edge of the mattress and turned on the wall light next to them, adjusting it to shine on her injury. He removed the busted sutures and restitched the section before putting on a new bandage.

Only then did he release a breath and take a second to himself. But it was only a moment. He packed away the first-aid kit and wrapped Devon in a blanket before readying a bed in the next room. The feel of her cool skin prompted him to get two more blankets to add to the bed. Once it was readied, he carefully carried her into the next room and laid her down before pulling the covers up to her chin. Carlyle shut off the lights and walked out, pulling the door closed behind him.

He leaned back against it and closed his eyes. He hadn’t slept in nearly forty-eight hours, and all he wanted to do was collapse onto a bed, but that would have to wait. He gathered Devon’s clothes and took them to the laundry area. After he’d undressed, he threw their clothes into the wash.

Carlyle dug in another airtight container and found some joggers and a T -shirt. He made up a bed for himself in the room he’d originally taken Devon to and looked longingly at it. His eyes burned, and his body was on the last of its energy. But he forced himself to take stock of what was in the bunker. A quick look in the kitchen had him finding plenty of food and drinks. He grabbed a bottle of water and downed it as he searched the rest of the main floor and the one below.

When he located a box of burner phones, Carlyle’s chin dropped to his chest as a wave of relief assaulted him. He put everything away and stumbled back to his room with a mobile. He slipped beneath the covers and was asleep before his head hit the pillow.

Carlyle rolled onto his back and threw an arm over his eyes. The events of the previous day greeted him before he was fully awake. He listened for the sounds of Devon in the next room before wearily rolling onto his side and swinging his legs over the side of the bed. He gripped the mattress on either side of him and yawned. He hadn’t looked at the time when he crashed, so he had no idea how many hours of sleep he’d gotten. However many it was, it wasn’t enough.

He stifled another yawn and pushed to his feet to look in on Devon . The door was still shut. He quietly turned the knob and peered inside. The light from behind him illuminated the bed. She hadn’t moved much from where he’d placed her. He entered and touched a lock of her hair that lay across the white pillow. It was dry.

Carlyle brought her a bottle of water and set it next to the bed before closing the door behind him. He made his way into the kitchen and opened the package for the burner phone as he ate crackers with thickly spread peanut butter. He drank another bottle of water and finished the entire package of crackers before putting away the peanut butter. Carlyle leaned back against the stainless-steel counter and stared at the mobile.

The phones with the numbers he had memorized had likely already been destroyed. There was no way to get in touch with Finn , who was the closest. He didn’t know Sabryn’s or Elias’s new numbers—or if they even had them. For all he knew, whatever had caused Sabertooth to tell them to destroy their mobiles had to do with something on Skye .

Carlyle tapped the phone against his mouth and considered his options. He might not know new mobile numbers, but there were other ways to get in touch with those on Skye . Theo was an option. As a detective inspector with the Isle of Skye Police , they would be able to patch Carlyle through to him. But there was also a good chance someone might listen in on the call. He’d rather not chance that. Partly because Theo kept his Druid status a secret.

That left two other options: the co-op the Browns owned. Their daughter, Kirsi , had been a major player in their latest battles on the isle. Kirsi could get a message to Sabryn . If the young woman was there.

His other option was the Tea Talker . Ariah ran it, and if she didn’t answer, her partner, Killian , likely would. Carlyle’s very last resort would be Ruby , another Druid . If she was there, he could perhaps send a message through her.

Carlyle powered up the mobile and searched for the number to the tea shop before dialing. He brought the phone to his ear. It rang four times before a Scottish woman answered.

“ Hi . I’ve completely run out of tea,” he said. “ I was hoping you might have some English breakfast blends in stock.”

There was a brief pause as voices in the background reached him. “ Carlyle ? Is that you?”

He smiled. “ It’s me, Ariah .”

“ Are you okay?” she asked, her voice lowering as the conversations grew indistinct and then quieted altogether. “ Is Finn ? Where are you?”

“ I’m safe. For now. I don’t know where Finn is.”

“ That doesn’t sound good,” she said.

He closed his eyes and ran a hand through his hair. “ Finn and I got separated. It was planned, but not the way it went down. All of that happened after the message to destroy the mobiles came through. What’s happening there?”

“ We don’t know. No one has heard from Saber . A box of new mobiles arrived a short time ago. Elias is handing them out to everyone. Is this your new number?”

“ It’s a burner.”

The sound of a drawer opening reached him. “ I’ll give it out to everyone so they can contact you.”

Carlyle heard someone call Ariah’s name. He could tell she moved the phone away from her mouth when she answered. It was all he could do to patiently wait until she came back on the line.

“ Hang on,” Ariah said.

A moment later, a distinct American accent filled the line. “ Carlyle ?”

“ It’s me,” he answered Sabryn . “ It’s good to hear your voice.”

“ Same . Are you all right?”

He quickly filled her in on everything that had happened since he and Finn arrived in London and found Devon at his father’s townhome.

“ But you’re safe?” she asked.

He rubbed his eyes. “ For now. Shane stocked this place well. We could remain down here for years, I’m guessing.”

“ Then maybe that’s what you make this Devon think you’ll do. She might be inclined to talk if she doesn’t think she’ll see the sun again.”

“ I’ve considered that.”

Sabryn was silent for a heartbeat. “ Though she might say anything to get free.”

“ I’ve thought of that, too. I just can’t wrap my head around why they would go after her.”

“ Are you sure they weren’t after Mason ?”

Carlyle walked out of the kitchen to the center living area and sat in one of the chairs. “ I can’t be positive because I didn’t see all of it. I do know they went straight for her. I think I was targeted, only because I was between the men behind me and her.”

“ They came in from the doorway within the house and the glass doors from Mason’s office?”

“ They did.”

Sabryn grunted. “ Are you sure they didn’t find you at the lodge through her?”

“ Am I a hundred percent? No . But my gut tells me it has to do with us being compromised.”

“ I think you’re probably right. We need to talk to Saber and Finn to be sure, though.”

“ Devon is London’s fixer,” Carlyle said. “ Why go after her?”

Sabryn sighed. “ You said yourself that she told you the bullets didn’t kill.”

“ It looked like they were hunting her. And you don’t have to say it. I know it could all be a ruse.”

“ We’ve used something similar before.”

Carlyle glanced at Devon’s closed door. “ I know. It’s why I thought of that first. Too many things don’t make sense.”

“ Stay put for the time being. Rhona sent Esther , Nikolai , Henry , and Melisse to London . I’ll have them search for Finn to find out where he is. Then they’ll come for you.”

“ Melisse ?”

There was a grin in Sabryn’s voice when she said, “ You’re about to meet a Dragon Queen . The first, I might add.”