Arcane Rising: The Darkland Druids - Book One, R Nicole [suggested reading TXT] 📗

“The two faces of Rory Mackenzie,” I drawled. “One’s a sweet man and the other is a raging arsehole!”

“Raging arsehole?” he exclaimed. “After all I risked saving you from that Chimera scum, you’re calling me a raging arsehole?”

“Is that even your real name? I didn’t know Scottish Highland clans were full of Druids.”

“No, I’m not a true Mackenzie, but it doesn’t matter,” he spluttered. “We’re talking about you, Elspeth.”

“If we’re talking about who saved who, then it’s me you should thank!”

“So you’re admitting it, then? You are a Druid, Elspeth, and wherever you go, the Chimera will follow. They know who you are now, and it doesn’t matter if you’re willing to accept it or not.”

My knees shook and I bit my bottom lip. I was a mess. Everything was a mess.

“But my dad was an environmental scientist,” I murmured, my voice wavering. “He was…”

“Well, someone was a Druid,” Rory said. “I don’t want to speculate, but I think we should focus on you right now. The family tree can come later.”

I shook my head and lowered my gaze so my tangled hair covered my face.

“Ach, you stubborn lass.”

“If I believe it, then it’s true,” I shouted at him. “They murdered my father.”

The bed rattled and scraped across the floor an inch, causing the cat to rise. It hissed and flicked its tail back and forth.

“Careful,” Rory warned. “I don’t want a repeat performance.”

I didn’t know this world existed, let alone my father being a part of it. He was more than my dad—he was my best friend. We knew everything about one another, us against the world, but now I realise I don’t know the first thing about him.

“They killed him,” I whispered, my jacket slipping from my fingers and hit the floor with a dull thud. “They pulled him into the fire and…”

“Likely they were the fire,” Rory murmured.

I wiped at my tears. “What?”

“Elemental warriors. There aren’t many of them on Earth, but they have a pact with the Chimera. They sought their protection in exchange for some nefarious duties of their own.”

“Bounty hunting.”

He nodded. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know.”

Neither did I.

“Elspeth, I’m not here to hurt you.” Rory’s thumb pressed against my wrist and the warmth spread, calling to the strange power that had exploded on the street. “I want to help.”

My breath caught as I felt the same unfamiliar energy rise. Fear began to quicken my heart and I pulled against Rory’s hold.

The cat yowled and spat, causing him to let me go.

“Okay, okay, you whining flea bag,” he said to it. “No funny business.” He raised an eyebrow at me. “It seems like you’ve got yourself a cat.”

“A cat?” I exclaimed. “What am I going to do with a cat?”

Rory laughed and shook his head, saying something in Gaelic.

“What?” I demanded. “What does that mean?”

“It means, the cat is the least of your problems.”

The Chimera.

“They’ll be hunting me now, won’t they?” I whispered. “I’m… I…”

“This is what I know,” Rory said, tugging me back onto the bed. “You came here looking for answers about your father’s family and found out the truth wasn’t so magical as you had expected. You are special, Elspeth, but it’s rarely the key to eternal happiness.”

“With power comes responsibility,” I murmured.

“Exactly.”

I shook my head. “What do I do now?”

“I can’t tell you want to do,” Rory told me. “But if you want my opinion…”

“I’m so lost.” The cat rose its head and peered at me. “I don’t know a single thing about this world or what I did out there. I don’t know who I’m supposed to be.”

“Well, acknowledgement is the first step of acceptance.”

I wasn’t taking the bait, not after everything that had happened. Another argument wouldn’t help anybody.

“There’s Jaimie Fraser the dog-man, and you mentioned someone named Delilah.” His girlfriend most likely, which made our current position totally awkward. There was no way a guy who looked like Rory Mackenzie was unattached…or interested in a plain Jane like me. “How many Druids are there?”

“Not many, but enough,” he replied, keeping it vague. “Which is why I’m confused about you. Hiding a Druid child? It’s nigh on impossible.”

But my father did it. Why?

Rory sensed my turmoil and took my hands in his. “Look, it’s a shock. You’ve believed you were human your entire life and now everything has changed. I don’t understand what you’re going through, but I can help you understand what it is you’ve fallen into. That’s what I promised you, remember?”

I nodded, remembering our conversation on top of Calton Hill.

“Can I tell you our story?” he asked. “The story of the Druids?”

“Yes…” I swallowed hard. “I’d like that.” And I owed it to him after all the trouble I’d put him through.

“Once, the Druids lived in a world of peace and beauty,” he began. “A world rich in nature. A world where we lived in harmony. We call it the Druid homeland—Thríbhís Mhór.”

“What language is that?”

“It is old Irish for the three spiralled triskele.” He picked up my hand and drew the pattern on my palm, a blue glow forming where he touched. “It is the connection between earth, sea, and sky.” The glow faded, leaving behind a tingling sensation. “Thousands of years ago, the Druids became restless and opened portals to other realities, forging a path as explorers of space and time. One of those realities was Earth, but not this one.”

“Another Earth?” I murmured.

“Yes. Similar, but different in so many small ways,” he explained. “It was there we forged an alliance with another supernatural species, but it ended in calamity. Their own meddling opened a rift in the fabric of the universe, allowing a horde of Dark creatures to stream through. In the years that followed, the Druids were hunted almost to extinction. Knowing there was no way we could stop the Darkness from spreading, our leader Merlin decided to guide our people home. Our wandering would be over, and we could begin anew in our ancestral lands. Our exploration was folly.”

“Merlin?” I