CHAPTER 26

I n the quiet shadows of the sleeping pub, Fintan Sullivan observed the kissing couple. They were about to face another hurdle, and soon, unless he missed his guess. He’d come out to speak with Fionola, only to find her on the phone and Patrick hanging about like a damned wraith, unwilling to let the woman out of his sight. The overprotectiveness made Fin frown harder, because he’d a vision of the man walking away from her for good, though it wasn’t clear precisely why yet. The Sullivan ancestors were stingy with their visions at times.

When Fionola pulled back, the bright glow of love lit her aura. Even had he not been able to see such things, Fintan would’ve known she was smitten by the flush of her cheeks and the sparkle in her large blue eyes. He hated to be the one to tell her about her upcoming heartache, but he didn’t want her to be blindsided by someone she trusted. Being on the receiving end of betrayal hurt like a motherfucker.

As if sensing his presence, she cast a side glance his way. Her smile dimmed, and she murmured something to Patrick, who turned to look at him.

“What’s the craic, man?” he called out to Fintan.

“I’ve a mind to speak to Fionola.”

After a quick study of his serious face, Patrick slowly, as if reluctant to, dropped his hands from her hips and rose. The couple shared another sweet kiss before parting, with Patrick heading out the door and Fionola joining Fintan.

“What’s this about?” she asked curiously. “Does it have something to do with what you saw during the meeting, then?”

A smile curled his lips. “Noticed that, did ya?”

“Aye.”

Hesitant to say, he looked toward the door Patrick exited. “Where’s your man gone?”

“Don’t know. He mentioned giving us privacy and that he’d a thing to do. Should I be worried?”

“I think you should seek out Noah Riley and ask him what he knows about yesterday’s attack.”

She sucked in a breath so sharp she coughed, and Fintan experienced a twang of remorse for his bluntness. “Ach, and I’m after apologizing for being as dull as a turnip. I didn’t mean he’s responsible, just that he likely knows who is. Or he will by the time you go see him.”

“Why can’t you just tell me?”

“Sure, and that’s a grand question, but not one I can answer easily enough.” He exhaled a frustrated sigh. For years, he wondered the same bleeding thing. His life would be a helluva lot easier if he could just blurt out what he knew and be done with it. Subtle nuances were not for the likes of him! “My ancestors aren’t inclined to be forthcoming. Their greatest pleasure is forcing me to run around like a feckin’ chicken without its bleedin’ head.”

Her mouth twitched, and humor lit her eyes. “My sympathies.”

They conversed for a short while, mainly because she had questions about his gifts and he had the time to humor her. Yet as he turned to go, the sensation he associated with an incoming vision struck. His nerve endings tingled, and his brain felt too tight for his skull. The room disappeared, leaving him in a weightless state in an endless black space with no sense of up or down. He didn’t have time to wonder what Fionola thought of his reaction, but he’d been told in the past that his eyes tended toward an opaque white and went sightless. All in all, an unnerving thing for an onlooker to see. It also left him vulnerable to attack, should someone take it into their mind to strike, and he hated it.

“Fintan.”

Experience had taught him the omnipresent voice was a collective of his ancestors, with the dominant member’s message taking precedence over the others. He didn’t bother to answer. There was no point. They’d reveal what was necessary and throw him back like an unwanted catch from a fisherman, leaving him to flounder and attempt to get his bearings.

“Save the patriarch.”

“What pat?—”

He was thrust back into the land of the living, and he staggered, unprepared for such a short encounter.

Although Fionola stared at him in abject horror, she instinctively caught and helped to steady him.

“Thanks,” he growled, not irritated with her, but the entire situation. Why couldn’t he be at the Sullivan estate, ensconced in the library with a good book, away from the world at large?

“You didn’t finish your question.”

He frowned, trying to recall what he’d asked her. Nothing came to mind.

“You said, ‘what pat,’ then swayed on your feet,” she prodded gently.

“Oh! Aye. Yeah, and that wasn’t for you—” But it was, he recalled with sudden clarity.

Patrick O’Malley was the patriarch!

Fuck!

“Where did your man go?” he demanded briskly. “And don’t be plaguing me with twenty questions. Tell me and be done with it, yeah?”

Goddess love her for recovering from his salty attitude as quickly as she did, because Fi shook off her surprise and pointed toward the neighboring building. “Black Cat Inn. Said he had an errand.” Her head whipped in the direction she pointed, and she swore under her breath. “Let’s go!”

They took off at a run, and by the time they arrived at Patrick’s room, he was gone.

Fionola surveyed the pin-neat space and immediately registered that Patrick had cleared out. A quick check proved his toiletries were missing from the bathroom and the wardrobe contained no clothing. The linens and comforter had been stripped from the bed and were placed in a neat pile beside the door.

“He left me!” she exclaimed aloud in her shock. How could someone kiss her as he had, then leave immediately after? No hint he was going or a goodbye and good riddance. Just disappeared without a word, and her thinking they had developed something special after his beautiful song. She turned stricken eyes to Fintan and winced at his compassionate expression. For a hardened man like the Seer to show his softer side, he had to believe she was a pitiful sack.

Her anger built.

“What did you want with the fecker, anyway?” she snarled.

“I’m to ‘save the patriarch.’ That means Patrick O’Malley.”

“You’ll be needing to save the bastard, all right. When I find him, I’ll make his time with Loman O’Connor look like a bleedin’ picnic, I will!”

Fintan’s dark blond brows shot up, and he sputtered a laugh. “Scarlet in your mam for the way you turned on your mate just now!”

“Did you miss the kissing and flirting, then?” she asked incredulous that he didn’t see it from her side.

“Aye, but I also saw the crafty expression on his mug. Though I’d say you seemed to miss it with all the stars in your eyes.”

She narrowed those eyes on Fintan. “Just tell me what you know and be done with it.”

“I’m ashamed to say I’m after fearing ya, I am.”

“You’re nothing of the sort, man. And if I have to ask ya again, I’ll be calling Bridget in here to take you to task, yeah?”

“I told you what I know,” he said as if he were talking to an eejit of the first order. “You’re to find Noah Riley to learn what he’s uncovered, and I’m to save the patriarch. That’s all me fuckin’ ancestors revealed, and don’t think I’m chuffed about it.”

“Fine!” She shut her eyes, prepared to teleport, when his fingers closed around her wrist. “What the bleedin’ hell?—”

After glaring her ire, she gave his hand a pointed look.

“I’m going with ya,” he replied, fatigue heavy in his voice. “Did I not just say?—”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah! Hold on.”

Closing her eyes again, she envisioned Noah’s flat above the pub. From deep within her cells, she gathered her standard store of magic and shaped it into a thread. It would be invisible to the naked eye, but it allowed her to determine if anyone or anything was in the way of her teleport. It could ruin a witch’s day to stumble upon Noah in the middle of bow chicka wow wow.

She retrieved the thread when she received the all clear and, once again, envisioned the space as she knew it to be laid out. Her body warmed past the point of uncomfortable, but quickly cooled the instant she landed on the other side.

Snapping her lids open, she noted the curiosity on Fintan’s countenance. He nodded as if the flat was as he expected it to be, then led the way to the door. They thundered down the stairs, not bothering to be quiet. No one would ever hear them over the roar from the taproom.

As they rounded the corner, Noah appeared and stepped into her path, causing her to impact his chest and knocking them both backwards a few feet.

“Jaysus!”

“Noah! Just the man I was looking for.” She latched onto his wrist and dragged him toward his office. “No time to waste!”

“What the fuck is going on? And who the fuck are you ?”