Page 19 of Blood Skye (Skye Druids #6)

Chapter Nineteen

Several refusals filled Carlyle’s mind, but not one of them made it past his lips. Devon —or Song , he supposed—had opened up. He’d asked questions in an attempt to discover any lies, but either she was a terrific liar, or she spoke the truth.

Her dark gaze moved away, letting him know she wouldn’t say anything more until he told her something. He contemplated returning below but knew it would only be a matter of time before he returned, asking her the same questions.

She had bent.

It was time he did the same. As galling as that was.

Every bone in his body told him not to give the enemy any ammunition to use against him. But she wasn’t the enemy anymore. She was supposed to be an ally. It would be folly to disregard that now. As he’d told her, trust had to be forged, not given.

“ I never cared one way or another about the organization,” he said. “ My family had been part of the London Druids since the Olivers settled in the area after being kicked off Skye for their corruption like so many other families.”

Her gaze swung back to him and softened slightly as she listened.

Carlyle drew in a breath and slowly released it as he returned to sitting on the roof. “ There were stories handed down through my family, of course. Dad told them to me from the time I was a young lad. But the organization was something I was involved in before I was even aware of it. I wasn’t asked. None of us ever are. We’re a part of it because our parents are, just as their parents were, and their parents before them. It’s expected. And we’re raised to never go against London .”

He paused and looked at the small wake behind the boat as the vessel steadily—but slowly—moved onward. “ I went to meetings when told. I joined in when ordered. Everything changed when I went to uni. I experienced freedom on all fronts. My father was never overbearing. Quite the opposite, actually. We lost my mother when I was very young, and he never remarried. It was just the two of us, and we did everything together. He never forced the organization on me, but it was an unspoken demand. And I found it impossible to refuse him. When I left for uni, he had his own kind of freedom. He got out more, even dated. I enjoyed seeing him like that, but he wasn’t as keen on learning how far I took my independence.”

“ Meaning ?” Song asked.

“ When I came home for holidays, I found reasons not to attend the meetings. I found ways to get out of doing anything with the organization. Not because I didn’t want to be a part of it but because I wanted to decide when to take a position. The elders put pressure on Dad about that, but like so many times before, he stood by me. He made excuses and allowed me the time I wanted to figure things out. That’s when I spent nearly all of my free time with Mason and his family.”

Song stood to stretch her legs. “ Who were very involved with London . I can see why Thomas didn’t mind.”

“ That was a part of it, yes.”

“ Do you think London knew about your time with Mason ?”

Carlyle raked a hand through his hair when the breeze moved it into his eyes. “ I assumed they did. Knowing what I know now and how Shane trained us at the lodge, I’m not so sure.”

“ What about your father? Did he know?”

“ Dad knew Mason and I trained with our magic, but I didn’t tell him all of it. Shane didn’t ask it of me, but I felt I should keep the location to myself.” He slid his gaze to Song . Her attention was on the water, and he used the time to look at her while unguarded. She wasn’t as tense as before. The water had a way of easing troubles. “ After uni, I slowly began to attend the meetings again. I still didn’t want to commit fully to the organization, though. I was just finding my way.”

He braced his hands behind him as he leaned back and let his eyes lift to the sky. “ My parents and Mabel’s were close. She was nine months younger, and we were always together after that. We weren’t siblings, but we fought and loved like we were. I took the role of big brother and always looked out for her, but she did more for me. Even when I was at uni, she always had my back. She visited Dad and kept him company when I was gone so he wouldn’t be alone. She was kind, decent, and gentle. Mabel had the biggest heart of anyone I knew. She always did the right thing. Even when I didn’t.

“ As I’m sure you know, she and I were both fire walkers. She commanded it so easily. I once tried to teach her something, but she was the one who ended up schooling me. Mabel was more intuitive with her magic than I’ve seen with others. It was beautiful to watch how she worked not just the fire but also her magic. I was always quick to pull out a lighter so I’d have fire at the ready. She , on the other hand, reached for fire last. Eventually , I began to do the same.”

Song moved the tiller as the narrowboat took a curve. “ I wondered why you hadn’t used fire.”

“ There are occasions for it. Just as with our magic.”

She nodded slowly.

Carlyle thought about ending the conversation there, but he had begun it. So , he would finish. “ Mabel and I were supposed to have lunch, but she had to cancel to do something with her family. I don’t even remember what it was. We rescheduled for two weeks later, but I was the one to cancel that time. Because I was with a woman. Mabel knew, but she didn’t get angry. She never got mad. She told me she hoped the woman was right for me. A few days later, she rang to reschedule. We didn’t stay on the phone long because I was sorting out some estate business at the time. I promised I’d call her the next day. I forgot.”

His stomach knotted painfully as he thought back to that horrific day. “ She rang and left a message. She didn’t sound like herself. I was with Dad at the solicitor’s office. The day was packed with meetings, and it slipped my mind. Three days later, she rang again. I looked at the screen while in a restaurant with a woman whose name I can’t even recall. I declined Mabel’s call and went back to lunch. I was walking out of the restaurant when I learned that she had died. I didn’t believe it. I couldn’t.” He sat up and ran his hands over his face as he blew out a breath. “ I remembered her ringing. I checked the voicemail. Listening to the fear in her voice did something to me. I rushed to her flat to search for her, but she wasn’t there. I don’t recall getting from her place to mine. I saw her everywhere I looked. And it was too painful. The next thing I knew, the police had me on the ground. I’d torn up my flat in my grief.”

Carlyle paused, his words dancing across the water before floating away. “ Dad took me to the country estate. As we drove out of London , we passed Mabel’s flat. Her parents were there, surrounded by London Druids . But there were others watching everything. Including me. When we got to the estate, I must have listened to her message a thousand times. And I knew one thing: London was responsible.”

Song’s eyes were solemn. “ How ? What did the message say?”

“ She was approached by a salesman.”

“ That could be anyone.”

Carlyle shook his head. “ We came up with words only the two of us would know so we could talk about things in front of our parents or anyone who wasn’t a Druid . It started off as a childhood game, but we continued it as we got older. Especially once I pulled away from the organization. Mabel never did, but she respected my need to make my own decisions. She came up with salesman , which was code for a London Druid . She said the salesmen had returned and were aggressive and insistent. She fled her flat. They chased her, and…you know the rest.”

“ Wait . She said returned . Did you know they had visited her before?”

“ I didn’t at the time. I went back through some of her voicemails I hadn’t yet deleted. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary until the end of one message when I heard someone banging on her door and calling her name.”

“ You think that was them?”

Carlyle nodded. “ I do. That was three days before she was killed.”

“ And those London Druids were the last to see her,” Song finished.

“ They forced her to drive her car into traffic. They killed her.”

Song’s face crumpled with sorrow. “ But …why? What could they possibly have wanted with her that would end up with her dead?”

“ Your guess is as good as mine. I was lost after that. I couldn’t be near anyone. It was why I pushed Mason away when he tried to reach out. I wasn’t sure who all was involved, and I didn’t want to chance anyone in the organization discovering my suspicions. But Mabel’s voicemail sealed my fate when it came to London . My intention was to find out who’d come to see her that day, but my grief was too raw, my guilt too intense. I should’ve answered her call. I could’ve gotten to her. I could’ve saved her.”

“ Perhaps ,” Song said. “ But if it was London , they would’ve returned another day.”

“ I recognized the men. They were from the organization.”

She tugged the sleeve of her sweatshirt up. “ What happened next?”

He shrugged. “ I bungled my investigation. I was at my wits’ end when I met Sabryn . We were both dealing with shame and sorrow. We struck up a friendship that turned into a partnership. It’s through the Knights that Saber uncovered everything else about Mabel’s death. Ever since the Knights first set out to hunt Druids hurting others, no matter what chapter they belonged to, I knew I would eventually end up back in London to face the organization.”

“ Why not bring Mason into the Knights ?”

“ Mason and Ferne’s mother was on her way to becoming an elder. I might have chosen my path, but I didn’t want to put him in a position where he had to either refuse and turn against me or agree and lose his family.”

Song tilted her head to the side. “ Yet you were prepared to be banished by your father.”

“ My dad is many things, and he might publicly do whatever London demands, but he would never cut me out of his life. I know that to the depths of my soul.” He drew in a breath and shook his head as he looked toward the shore. “ I left everyone I knew. I could say I did it to protect them, but I was too wrapped up in my anger and guilt to think of anyone but myself. And revenge. I was ruled by emotion then.”

“ And you aren’t now?”

He grunted, thinking what Finn might say. “ This isn’t like Mabel’s death. I’m livid and scared for my father, but I’m not reckless. Finn would no doubt say differently.”

“ There’s an argument that you are, indeed, careless. You teamed up with me. Your enemy.”

Carlyle’s gaze slid back to her. “ We’re after the same thing.”

“ To find family members.”

“ And after that, we part ways. Because I will take down those responsible for Mabel’s death and my father’s disappearance.”

She pressed her lips together. “ You don’t need to worry about me. After I get my sister, we’re leaving.”

“ There’s nowhere you can go that London won’t find you. You’ll be on the run forever.”

“ It’s better than the alternative.”

He couldn’t argue that point. “ Have you thought about what might happen if Lauren doesn’t want to leave?”

“ You mean if they’ve brainwashed her? It won’t change my mind about what has to happen.” She briefly looked away. “ We both know if the organization gets their hands on you, you will end up on their side.”

“ I’ll die before I let that happen,” he vowed.

“ They’ll make sure you don’t.”

Something about the way she said that made him sit up straighter. “ They don’t have control over life and death. They’re not that powerful. No Druid is.”

“ You’re aware that Druids bring their newborns to the elders. Every individual in the organization believes they’re getting a blessing, when in fact, the elders are spelling the babies so they’ll know if they ever go to Skye or interact with a Druid from the isle.”

Carlyle rested his hands on his thighs. “ I heard that rumor.”

“ Trust me. It isn’t a rumor. The elders have an iron grip of control over those in the organization. And …”

He waited as she trailed off. She had something more to say, something he might not know. Carlyle jumped from the roof and walked closer to her. “ London came after you. You’ve also chosen to stand against them. You have no more reason to be loyal to them. Please . Tell me.”

“ London has joined forces with Edinburgh .”

Carlyle clenched his teeth as he digested that information. “ Of course. We suspected they might. Did George reach out to them?”

“ George ?” Song asked with a frown.

“ Georgina Miller . She goes by George . She’s been leading the Edinburgh chapter for some time.”

Her shoulders lifted in a small shrug. “ I don’t know who reached out to who. I never heard names. I only heard the elders ordering some in the organization to get to Edinburgh immediately.”

“ When was that?”

“ About a month ago.”

Carlyle rubbed the back of his neck. “ I need to let Sabryn know so she can pass on that information to Rhona .”

“ The best thing for those on Skye to do is remain there. London won’t venture to the isle.”

“ Are you sure about that?”

Uncertainty filled Song’s dark eyes. “ There are Druids in London who revere the elders like gods. They will do whatever is asked of them without coercion.”

“ Because they believe so fiercely?”

She nodded once. “ I’ve seen them give up their lives willingly. Being banished from their families and London is nothing to them.”