Page 58 of The Valiant Knight (The Ravensmire Chronicles #2)

Yeah, he was right.

Because both men were ignoring him, he was curious.

“What did you want?” Finn asked.

Tony was confused.

“What?” he asked.

Finn stared at him.

What was this?

“You called me.”

Now, Finn was confused, but then again, so were the two other men.

“No I didn’t. I’ve been scraping this paint. I’d know if I called you.”

Finn blinked, and he didn’t think they were busting his ass.

“What do you mean you didn’t…?”

And then, he heard it.

A scream.

His stomach bottomed out, and he started panicking over the mistake he’d just made.

That was his Gabby.

Well, holy shit!

Without hesitating, all three men ran up the stairs, leading them to the tower, and the whole time, Finn was in a panic.

All he could think of was the window was open, and Gabby was being dragged to it, so she’d fall.

His heart was racing, and he was sick to his stomach over it.

He’d left her alone against his best judgment, despite the vibes being better.

Clearly, they were not.

At the door, there was a problem.

It.

Was.

Locked.

Only, that door didn’t have a lock which made it all the worse.

“Gabby!” he shouted, as Graham slammed into the door with his shoulder.

It shook, but it didn’t budge.

He hit it again.

“Gabby!” Finn called again, but this time, she answered him.

“FINN!”

All he knew was that they had to get in there. Together, they both hit the door all at once, and it flew open, as the two men hit the floor.

That’s when they saw it.

There were two ghosts standing in the room. Both were wearing hoods over their heads. Not far from them was a third one but it was more shadowy and less formed.

The two ghosts were between Gabby and the creepy shadow, blocking her from it. As soon as they saw them, the two shadows backed up and stood in front of the mirror.

The one lowered his hood, and it caught them off guard.

It was Ciarán.

That was the man in the painting they’d just brought downstairs.

That meant that the bigger apparition was Duncan. Without a word, they backed up, and were gone into the mirror.

That was all they had to see.

Finn was up, and Graham threw the sheet over the mirror, not sure how that would help.

But it was better than nothing.

Grabbing his woman, Finn picked her up, and they hauled ass out of that room, Tony pulling the door closed behind them.

What the bloody hell?

When he got her downstairs to the kitchen, she sat at the island, and Graham made her a cup of tea as she calmed down.

She was shaking, and no one could blame her.

NO.

ONE.

“It’s okay. I’m here,” Finn said, letting her lean against him. “They can’t hurt you,” he said.

She clarified.

It had nothing to do with ‘THEY’ .

It was only one of them.

“The two spirits close to me were trying to protect me,” she said. “It was the dark one in the corner. When you left, I heard the door closing, and I figured it was a draft. Then, it showed up.”

They didn’t know what IT was, but someone needed to put that spirit back where it belonged.

In Hell.

Tony touched her arm.

“So those ghosts just protected you from that other ghost?” Tony asked.

Gabby nodded.

“The one locked me in here and was stalking me around the room. I yelled for help, and they appeared. They wouldn’t let it hurt me.”

Graham was to the point.

“I think they are trying to tell us that they are here, but not dangerous. It’s that darkness that’s the problem. That has to be what is after Gabby.”

And unfortunately, it was a problem they didn’t know how to fix.

Honestly, knowing this didn’t make Finn feel any better about what was going on.

His woman was still in danger.

And that was a problem for him.

“They were like a wall, standing there and protecting me from it. That pissed it off too. We have to figure out what is going on here. If not, this is never going to stop.”

Oh, they were aware.

And that was a problem.

Because Elizabeth Blackhawk would be coming here soon enough, and if this thing targeted women…

She was a sitting duck.

* * *The Ravensmire Castle* * *

Ravensmire

Dusk

Finn needed to get his woman out of there, so since the sun was going down, he was going to take Gabby for a quick horseback ride.

She was still rattled, and honestly, he was planning on talking her out of staying in the castle for the last couple of nights.

He had a perfectly safe, non-haunted house with a cozy bed for her, him, and Bark.

Because this castle…

It was not woman-friendly.

Not.

At.

All.

As they rode, she was in front of him on Romeo, and he had his arms wrapped around her.

And he was silent.

“You’re worried,” she said.

At her words, he laughed sardonically.

“Yeah, you can say that. I don’t want you staying there. In fact, tonight can we stay at my place?” he asked. “You’re wearing a bullseye for this malevolent spirit, and I’m not a fan.”

She didn’t speak.

Finn knew this was bordering on being bossy, but his gut was telling him to keep her out of that tower before something made Ceit’s death replay, at the cost of Gabby’s life.

“I know it’s asking a lot, but you’re the one this darkness is targeting. Not Graham, not me, and not Tony. Please, Gabriella.”

She didn’t argue with him.

“Yeah, you’re probably right. We should find other things to do that aren’t in that castle.”

Thank God.

As for finding things to do, he’d planned on giving Gabby her ring after hitting the pub, but honestly, he was beginning to believe he’d just do it by the waterfall.

He wasn’t in the mood to skinny dip in a hot tub next to a place where something dark lived.

Call him crazy.

“I do,” he said. “Can we reach an agreement about sleeping at my place?”

She didn’t argue.

“Okay.”

The second she said it, he was relieved.

“Really?” he asked.

Gabby nodded.

“If it makes you uncomfortable, I’ll stay at your place. If it made me uncomfortable, wouldn’t you try to make me feel more at ease?”

He nodded.

“I would.”

Then, he had his answer.

“Well, then, we’re staying at your place.”

Now that they’d worked through that, as a couple, he could enjoy his night.

As they approached the location near the waterfall, Gabby was enjoying the sunset over the trees.

“It’s so pretty here.”

Oh, he agreed.

That was why he was going to do the deed. After two days, he was going to make the woman his, and then, they’d get hitched.

FAST.

Hopping off Romeo, Finn helped her down. As he did, she leaned into him, and gave him a kiss.

Finn took that moment to enjoy it.

Why the hell not?

When she broke the kiss, she was smiling up at him, and Finn got lost in her eyes.

“God. I love you,” he admitted, when he could finally speak. “I’ve found my person.”

Oh, well, she felt the same.

“I love you too, Finn.”

He needed to do this because he couldn’t wait any longer. It was killing him.

“Come with me,” he said, moving her to where the waterfall was, and where they’d first made love. This place would always be special for him.

FOREVER.

When he turned, he took her face in his hands, and made a promise to her.

“Your life with me will never be like it was with your ex. I promise that I’ll love you forever, Gabriella. You’re now my whole world, and I can’t wait to take this journey with you.”

She had tears in her eyes.

“I can’t wait to see what our journey gives us, Finn. I’m so excited.”

He was too.

It was time.

Stepping back, he reached into his pocket, and pulled out the ring box.

The second he did, she gasped.

“Finn!”

He went down on one knee, popped the box open, and did the deed.

“Gabriella, will you be my wife?” he asked.

The tears that had filled her eyes at his words now began slipping down her face.

The whole time, she stared at the most beautiful ring in the world. It was so pretty, and the blue was amazing. It was the same color of Finn’s eyes.

It was breathtaking.

“Oh, Finn.”

He waited for her to reach out and touch it. The whole time, he couldn’t wait for it to be on her finger.

“What say you, Lass? Will you marry the man and start a life you’ll never forget?”

There was only one answer.

“Yes, I’ll marry you,” she said, going into his body and kissing him.

Yeah, that made his night.

No.

His life.

Because he could, Finn kissed her, and then, because he was so desperate to see his ring on her finger, he broke the mating of mouths to put it there.

He was so close to claiming the woman who was born for him.

“Give me your finger, mo ghràdh,” he said, and then slipped the pretty ring onto her finger.

It fit perfectly, and didn’t even need to be sized. To him, that was just one more sign.

“Oh, I love it,” she said, as they were both on their knees in a field of spring flowers next to a waterfall.

He was so glad.

“Can we celebrate?” she asked. “You, me, and Bark, back at your place after we go into town with Tony? We should take separate cars.”

He stopped her.

“Yes, Lass, but it’s our place.”

That made her smile.

“Yes, at our place, Fineas.”

The truth was that he’d never feel like this ever again. This was the pinnacle of his life. Then again, the day they married, and began having kids might just top it.

“I love you, Gabriella.”

Oh, she loved him too, and she really loved her gorgeous new ring.

“Tonight, maybe we can pop some wine open, and get naked in our bed.”

Sign.

Him.

Up.

For Finn, she didn’t have to ask twice.

“Because I want to do that more than anything, let’s go back, grab your things, and get to the village. We’ll have dinner with Tony, and leave him to his own devices so we can get naked.”

She stared at him.

“Uh, that’s never a good plan. He was dancing on the bar on the first night we were here. Graham and I had to practically abduct him to get him back.”

He laughed.

Yeah, he would picture that.

“Well, Tony went and saved Graham last night, so Graham will have to return the favor. I have a fiancée to make love to all night.”

Sign.

Her.

Up.

It was a beautiful night as they walked back to the horse. Once there, he helped her.