Faelan shook his head. “I doubt it. When I was in Scotland keeping an eye on Shay, the bartender at the pub said Nick had missed work the day before without calling, so he was probably already dead when the intruder broke into Shay’s shop.”
“Maybe the intruder killed Nick,” Shay said, “but why?”
“No idea, but we’ll need to leave as soon as possible. You’ll have to go to Scotland and talk to the police,” Cody said. “Marcas, see how fast the jet can get here. You, Lach, and Jamie can stay here and look for Renee. You know the area, and you know Renee.” He suspected Renee was past help. “The rest of you can escort us to Scotland.”
Jamie shook his head. “I go with Shay. She still needs to be protected.”
“I can’t leave Renee,” Shay argued.
“You have to.” Cody’s voice was soft, but firm.
“You can’t stay. It’s too dangerous here,” Jamie said.
Bree looped her arm around Shay’s back. “They’re right, Shay.”
“Another metal bird,” Faelan groaned.
Ronan slapped him on the shoulder. “Don’t worry. I’ll knock you out, if it’ll help.”
“Not if you value that pretty face of yours,” Faelan said. “I’ll stay too. I can help look for Renee.”
Cody rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Jamie and I will take Shay to Scotland. The rest of you stay here. There’ll be plenty of warriors at the castle to protect her.” If Renee was alive, she probably needed all the help she could get.
***
Shay sat in Cody’s kitchen, only half listening to the Scottish police officer on the phone. She kept staring at the tattoo on Cody’s neck, looking for the mark he claimed meant they were destined mates. Mates? What was she supposed to do with that? Nine years she spent hating him, and in a matter of hours she found out that he hadn’t even gotten her letters, and he was her mate. Was that why she never got over him? Why hadn’t he told her? Was he hiding more secrets? Her head was reeling so badly she had to keep asking the officer to repeat his question. She hung up, relieved that she wasn’t a serious suspect, only a person of interest they wanted to see as soon as possible.
“We need to talk,” Cody said.
“Not now,” Shay said. She went upstairs, found her suitcase, and numbly gathered her clothes. Was Renee alive? Shay had spent the night snuggled with Cody, warm in bed, while Renee was probably bound and gagged, who knew where. Shay’s cell phone buzzed in her pocket. She grabbed it, staring at the display. Her pulse pounded. “Renee? Are you okay? Where are you?”
There was silence, punctuated by heavy breathing. Shay’s throat tightened.
“Renee?” she whispered.
“Listen, carefully,” the raspy voice said. “Don’t get help. Don’t speak. If you want to see your friend alive, you’ll come to me. Alone.”
“Where is she?” Shay picked up a notepad and pen by the bed.
“Luray Caverns. Wait until dark. The door will be open. Come alone. If anyone follows you, she dies.”
“I don’t know if I can get away,” she said as she scribbled on a pad beside the bed.
“Then she’ll die.” The phone went dead.
Chapter 10
“Anyone seen Ronan?” Faelan appeared, dressed in jeans for once.
Cody dropped the papers Sam had faxed and rubbed his eyes. “I thought you two were going back to Renee’s shop.” There had to be a clue somewhere to put them on the right trail.
“Ronan took off earlier,” Lach said, selecting another knife. Some of the others were getting ready to search for Renee. “He said something about you staying here to watch Bree.”
“Why’s he so bloody worried about my wife?” Faelan looked over Cody’s shoulder. “That’s the dead guy?”
Cody nodded.
“He’s just a kid. Damnation. If you need me to go to Scotland, I’ll go,” Faelan said.
Cody knew how much Faelan hated flying, but there was another reason he wanted Faelan to stay in Virginia, away from the danger following Shay. Faelan didn’t know he was going to be a father, but Cody intended to make sure Faelan was around to raise his child. Maybe he and Bree could go on their honeymoon as soon as Renee was found, and Bree could share her news with him under more pleasant circumstances.
“Stay here and help look for Renee. There’ll be more than enough warriors in Scotland to protect Shay. No one’s infiltrated the castle since it was built. She’ll be safe there. We’ve kept it hidden for this long.” Or had they? They still didn’t know who built the one in New York.
“I’ve got a bad feeling about Renee,” Faelan said.
“Me too.” Cody saw the lid was ajar on the box that held Edward’s talisman. Cody opened the box and frowned. “Did someone take Edward’s talisman?”
“I saw Shay there earlier,” Lach said.
She’d have to return the talisman. It was sacred, to be worn only by the warrior it was made for, not to mention it was dangerous.
“I’m going to try Ronan again,” Faelan said.
“Is Shay packing?” Lach asked.
“Aye. And she was going to take a nap before we go.”
“I still can’t believe she’s your mate and you never even bothered to tell us. Your own brothers,” Lach said.
Cody couldn’t believe he told the whole bloody lot of them.
Lach grinned. “Mom will be overjoyed. She loves Shay. And Nina and Matilda—” His grin faded. “You think the two of you could elope?”
“Who said anything about a wedding? I’ll be lucky if she even speaks to me after this.” Cody gave Lach a warning glance. “Keep your mouth shut. Shay already feels pressured enough.”
“I’m not the one who keeps blurting out secrets,” Lach said. “We need to check Nina’s house, make sure it’s locked.”
“I’ll check,” Cody said. He walked through the tunnel, one of the hardest things for him to hide from her. She always loved secret rooms and tunnels, but every time he was tempted to tell her, he remembered that sharing secrets could endanger her life. Cody checked the doors and windows and then noticed Shay’s car was missing. His throat went dry. He ran back through the tunnel and upstairs to Shay’s room. She wasn’t there, or in the bathroom.
“What’s going on?” Marcas asked from the doorway.
“Shay’s not here. Her car’s gone.”
“Jamie’s gone too. Maybe he took her someplace he thought was safer,” Marcas said.
Someplace away from Cody and his mate mark. The guy was still in love with Shay, whether she was Cody’s mate or not. Were her feelings for Jamie deeper than she realized? She almost married him. “Shay was upset with me. I probably scared her off.”
“Blurting out that she’s your mate in front of everyone wasn’t the smartest thing you’ve done.”
“I wasn’t thinking straight. I saw her kissing him,” Cody said, pulling out his phone.
“What kind of kiss?”
“A kiss kiss. His lips on hers, hers on his.” Cody punched in Jamie’s number, but he didn’t answer.
“Maybe it was a sympathetic kiss or a good-bye kiss. Your head’s usually screwed on tighter than anyone else’s. That’s why you were assigned an ancient demon. If you don’t get your head on straight now, Shay’s going to pay the price for your jealousy. You can’t protect her if you’re worried about keeping her away from Jamie.”
“Why didn’t you tell me he was dating her?”
“We didn’t find out until just before they broke up, when Shay told Nina. Jamie didn’t want us to know,” Marcas said. “If I’d known about your mate mark, I’d have told you as soon as I found out. You should’ve told us Shay was your mate.”
“Guess we’ve all been keeping secrets.” Cody shoved the phone in his pocket. “I hope I haven’t ruined my chances with Shay.”
“She’s upset, but she’ll get over it. Let her make the decision on her own. No mate mark is strong enough to force a woman to marry a man if she doesn’t want to.” Marcas tapped Cody on the head. “Don’t worry. It’ll all work out.”