Page 23 of Blood Skye (Skye Druids #6)

Chapter Twenty-Three

Crawford Estate

Melisse parked the vehicle and unfurled from inside. She looked up at the impressive facade of the large manor. To humans, the size of their living accommodations, along with the amount of land they owned, equaled wealth. To some extent, it was how her mother had lived on the Fae Realm .

But her father? All he’d needed was the open sky.

Though that’s what any dragon craved.

Melisse looked at the front door and headed toward the steps leading up to it. Nothing she had seen so far told her there had been any kind of attack. Being half- Fae and half-dragon had its perks, though. She had abilities from both sides. Dragons were one of the most powerful beings on Earth . No others could come close to their magic and might. The Druids couldn’t. Not even the Fae .

Except for her.

Something she had learned by accident.

The mix of dragon and Dark Fae in her was potent and dangerous. It terrified the dragons and was why she had spent so many millennia locked away.

But that time was over. She was free. She had found a place among the current Dragon Kings , moving between Earth and Zora , where the dragons had been sent long ago. Melisse wasn’t just trusted now. She was accepted and loved. It was still new. There were times she pinched herself to make sure she wasn’t dreaming. Then , she would look at Henry . Her mate. One smile from him, and she was lost.

Melisse pulled the old doorbell and waited. The door swung open, and she stared into Billings ’ dark eyes. Finn had described him perfectly, right down to his straight back and the gray at his temples.

“ May I help you, ma’am?” the butler asked.

She gave him a soft smile. “ I hope so. Finn sent me. I would like to have a word with Mason .”

Billings didn’t move as he looked her over. Then , he stepped aside to allow her to enter. “ Please wait here.” He shut the door behind her. “ Who shall I say is calling?”

“ Melisse .”

“ Just Melisse ?” he asked, his brows raised.

She thought about that for a moment and grinned. “ Melisse North .”

“ How is…?” He trailed off and glanced around.

Melisse understood Billings wishing to keep his relationship with Finn and Carlyle a secret. She took pity on him. “ Finn is fine. Carlyle is in the thick of it with his companion, but he’s sorting it out.”

“ You don’t sound like you’re from our part of the UK ,” he said.

She shook her head. “ Because I’m not. My life has been spent to the north in Scotland .”

“ Forgive me for saying, but you don’t sound quite Scottish either.”

“ My mother was foreign.” Since Melisse wasn’t sure how much Billings knew about the Dragon Kings and the Fae , she kept her explanation to a minimum.

Billings stared at her, his brows still slightly raised. “ But you’re helping?”

“ I am. And I’m not alone.”

“ That’s good to hear. Give me a moment to inform His Lordship of your arrival.”

Melisse didn’t watch the butler walk away. Instead , she looked from the black-and-white-tile entrance to the soaring ceiling above, painted with a mural. She studied the granite pillars and the stunning floral display in the center of the round table in the middle of the entrance. Yet the portraits of what she could only assume were Mason and Ferne’s deceased relatives drew her. She had been interested in the time periods of the last three thousand years, each seemingly designated by a different style of dress, especially in the British Isles .

“ Miss North ,” Billings said.

“ Missus ,” she corrected.

“ Mrs . North , I can take you to Lord Brannelly if you will follow me.”

Melisse hadn’t understood what was so important about women taking their mate’s last names until she heard Henry’s surname attached to her first. It had felt exciting…and right. She couldn’t wait to tell her mate. She twisted her lips and recalled that mortals called them husbands and wives. She , however, would always think of Henry as her mate.

It was a short trip down a hall and through some double doors in what was once an office before bullets had torn through the room. She got her first look at what Finn , Carlyle , and Devon had faced. Mason finished speaking with a man who appeared to be a contractor of sorts and made his way over.

“ Thank you, Billings ,” Mason said.

The first thing Melisse noticed was that Earl Brannelly was tall—taller than she’d expected. He wore gray slacks and a tan, waffle-knit shirt under a maroon cardigan. Simple clothing, yet it had a luxurious look. Maybe even hand-tailored. He wore his wealth effortlessly, the mantle of head of the estate seeming to rest easily upon his shoulders.

She saw the similarities between Mason and Ferne . Both siblings had the stunning golden-brown skin of their mixed heritage and hair as black as midnight. Ferne’s locks were long and curly, whereas Mason’s was short and straight. And he kept it tidy. The difference was their eyes. Ferne’s were green, while Mason’s were stormy gray. Melisse met his gaze and saw the intellect and wariness there, even as he greeted her with a smile.

“ Mrs . North , I don’t think we’ve had the pleasure of meeting,” Mason said as he held out his hand.

She flashed a smile as they shook. It was an odd human tradition, but she followed along when she was with mortals. “ We have not.” Melisse purposefully didn’t say more.

He waited expectantly before releasing her hand. “ What can I do for you?”

“ I’d like a word, if you can spare a few moments.”

Mason hesitated. He looked back at the crewmembers cleaning up the mess while others began repairs. “ I can spare a few minutes. Let’s go into another room where it’s quieter.”

“ How about a walk outside?”

He turned and motioned with his arm to where the glass doors had once hung. “ We can go out here.”

Melisse picked her way through the workers. She spotted significant blood on the desk. Carlyle had said that Devon was injured. Once on the terrace, Melisse paused and waited for Mason .

“ Seems like you had quite a party,” she said.

His mouth was tight when he nodded. “ There’s a path around the manor or through the garden.”

“ The garden, I think.” It didn’t go unnoticed that he hadn’t wanted to discuss the mess in his office.

They walked together down the terrace steps to the beautifully manicured garden with a plethora of flowers budding. Only a few had dared to flower already. In a few weeks, the entire garden would be a rainbow of colors. It was too bad she wouldn’t get to see it.

“ Forgive me for being blunt, but I’ve found it’s the easiest way,” Mason said.

She glanced at him. “ You wish to know why I’m here.”

“ I do.”

“ We have a common friend.”

Mason raised his brows, waiting.

“ Carlyle Oliver .”

“ We went to uni together and were friends once upon a time.”

She murmured in agreement. “ I’m sorry to hear you no longer consider him a friend.”

“ Life happens.”

“ So it does. Tell me, do you know anything about his father, Thomas’s , disappearance?”

“ I do not.”

Melisse noted the hasty way he answered. Did he know something and was trying to appear as if he didn’t? Or was it that he was bothered by Thomas vanishing? “ I lost both my parents when I was very young. On the same day. It was devastating. And it changed me forever.”

He stopped and faced her. “ I’m sorry for your loss, but I’m not sure how that involves me.”

“ You , too, lost your parents.”

A muscle clenched in his jaw. His eyes hardened a fraction. “ I did.” He stepped closer. “ Are you threatening me?”

“ With what?” Melisse asked innocently. “ Your parents are gone, and you’ve cut your sister out of your life. What is there to threaten you with?”

“ My life.”

She turned her face to the side and blew out a breath, then swung her head back to him. “ Not everyone is as cutthroat as London .”

His brow slowly furrowed as he stared. “ Who are you?”

“ I already told you. A frie?—”

“ A friend of Carlyle’s ,” he said over her, his face lined with doubt. “ I think you’re lying.”

Melisse had expected this. She would’ve thought less of Mason had he not stated it. “ I might be. Or I could be speaking the truth. Just like I could say your sister is a delight. She has thrown everything she has into opening the bookstore.”

“ That’s information easily gotten from the internet.”

“ She has a wicked sense of humor. When she loves, she loves deeply. Theo is a good match for her.”

Mason took two steps back and swallowed as he regrouped. “ What do you want, Mrs . North ?”

“ I have a hard time believing you could turn away from your sister simply because someone demanded it.”

“ You know nothing about me.”

Melisse eyed him, looking for any tells. “ I know a lot more than you think.”

“ I doubt that.”

“ You had a guest when your wild party happened. Where is she?”

Mason’s nostrils flared. “ It was too much for her. She departed.”

“ You seem like a decent fellow. Carlyle and Ferne speak very highly of you. I hope you don’t come down on the wrong side of this.”

“ You’re courting death. The elders do not allow Skye Druids here.”

Melisse laughed. “ Oh , I’m not a Druid . I’m something far, far more dangerous.”

“ You put a target on my back by coming here.”

Her smile vanished as she cut him a hard look. “ You did that when you chose them over your family. Nothing and no one should ever come between family.”

“ You think you know the elders, but you don’t. You think you know what they’re capable of, but you have no clue.”

“ Then fill me in.”

Mason threw up his hands, palms out, before letting them fall to his sides. “ I believe you’ve worn out your welcome, Mrs . North . You need to leave.”

“ Is this an act?” she demanded.

“ Now .”

She narrowed her eyes. “ Maybe they’ve spelled you.”

“ Get out,” he said in a low voice, his body tense.

Melisse called up her magic. She had hoped not to need it, but she had known in the back of her mind that it would always come down to this. Slowly , she pushed the magic around Mason , searching for anything that might tell her there was a Druid spell. But she felt nothing.

Maybe if she pushed harder. She wavered. Her fear of accidentally harming him caused her to hesitate for a heartbeat.

“ I’m not playing,” Mason stated.

Melisse gave her magic another push, this time harder. Mason jerked as if hit on the shoulder.

“ So , you came to kill me.”

She hastily called her magic back. “ I came only to talk. Which we’ve done. Remember what I’ve told you.”

“ You mean your veiled threats?”

“ I mean the truth.” She turned on her heel and walked away.

“ Never return. The same goes for Carlyle and Ferne !” Mason shouted at her retreating back.

Melisse got into her car and started the engine. As she drove away, she looked at the manor in the rearview mirror. Once she was on the road, she called Henry .

“ You’re on speaker,” he told her.

Melisse gripped the steering wheel and relayed her and Mason’s conversation. “ I used my magic but didn’t feel any spells. When I pressed harder, I hesitated, and my magic surged. It struck him in the shoulder. He now believes I came to kill him.”

Her mate sighed. “ Bloody hell. He actually said that?”

“ He did,” she admitted.

“ I think we might have done more harm than good,” Finn said.

Esther spoke up then. “ Maybe he’s just being cautious.”

“ Or maybe he’s joined London ,” Nikolai replied.

Melisse looked at the clock and pressed the accelerator. “ I realize Ferne wants her brother, but I don’t know if we should put so much effort into Mason . Whether he’s with London , acting, or spelled, I don’t believe he’ll help locate Thomas .”

“ Then we need to find Carlyle ,” Finn stated. “ He’ll go straight for the organization.”

Henry made a sound. “ It’s what I’d do.”

“ Me , too,” Nikolai added.

Melisse merged onto the highway and continued to accelerate. “ Me , as well.”

“ All right. Where do we start?” Esther asked.

Finn was the one to say, “ The headquarters of the London Druids .”