“Angel, she tore a guy’s throat out, turned another man to jelly, and ripped one of their partners into bite-sized snacks.”
“But she didn’t eat you, did she?”
Maddock let out a long sigh of exaggerated patience. “I managed to distract her so we could get away. She’s only a little worse for the wear.”
“Good. I love Nessie.”
Maddock grinned. “Only because you’ve never met her.”
Angel laughed. “What happened after all the carnage?”
“The treasures weren’t the sort you can sell. Two of them we brought out and arranged for them to be delivered to the National Museum of Scotland, along with directions to the shrine where we left the other treasures. We told our contact about the monster, too, but I doubt anyone will believe him.” Alban Calderwood, the professor who’d helped them in their search for the Stone of Destiny, was well-connected, and had proved useful for passing along information without naming too many names. Maddock trusted he’d do the right thing in regard to information concerning the monster.
“You didn’t bring the other treasures with you?” Angel asked.
“The monster was sort of in the way. Anyway, once we crossed the Is and dotted the Ts, we had to get cleaned up and stitched up. Now we’re going to drink the pain away.”
Angel didn’t miss the word “we,” so Maddock described the injuries they had suffered and assured here they would all be fine.
She let out a long, exasperated sigh. “You and I had better never have sons. I’ve got enough to worry about with you and Bones.”
“Are we having kids? Are we even getting married?” He probably should have handled that more smoothly but he was tired and in pain. Anyway, it was out there now, for better or worse.
Angel fell quiet.
“I’ve been trying to figure out how to talk to you about this. My life is changing fast.”
A cold feeling hung heavy in Maddock’s gut. This was the talk he’d been dreading.
“I think I’ve been in love with you since the first time my idiot brother brought you home for a visit. I was just a teenager and I worshiped you. And then when you said you had feelings for me, well, things went awfully fast. I went awfully fast, pushing you to set a date.”
“What are you saying?” Maddock’s voice sounded strange, distant.
“I want to figure out our new normal before we get married, and definitely before we talk about kids. Maybe take a break. Is that okay with you?”
Maddock frowned. “Are we breaking up?”
“No, you freaking asshat. I mean, that’s not what I want.Let’s just give each other a break.” She paused. “Look, I know I’ve been distant, and maybe I’ve screwed things up between us. If it’s over, you can tell me.”
Maddock reached into his pocket and took out a folded sheet of paper. He’d found it stuck beneath the windshield wiper of their vehicle when they’d left the Well of the Seven Heads. He unfolded it and read, for what must have been the twentieth time, the message contained within.
Please give me a chance to explain.
Isla.
A telephone number and email address were scribbled at the bottom.
“I hear you. You’re right. Let’s cool things down for a bit.”
Strangely, although this hadn’t been what he thought he wanted, he felt relief. They talked a little while longer, more relaxed and upbeat than they had in weeks, maybe months. After they’d hung up, he made his slow, aching way into the restaurant.
Bones and Grizzly had ordered up a pitcher of ale. Grizzly pushed a mug into Maddock’s hands and urged him to “catch up.” Maddock grinned. The cryptid hunter would never be a friend, at least, not a close one, but he had guts and hadn’t flinched in the face of danger. That had to count for something.
“To a mystery solved,” Grizzly said, raising his mug. “Even if no one else ever learns the truth.”
“Cheers.” As he raised his mug, Maddock locked eyes with Bones, saw his friends questioning gaze. He shrugged and forced a half-smile.
Bones seemed to understand. He took a long swig of ale, belched loudly, and set his mug back down.
“Got a question for you, Maddock.”
“We’re not breaking up, exactly. Just taking a break. Neither of us is in any hurry to get married.”
Bones waved the reply away. “Save that for my mom and your sister. They’re the ones who care about that crap. I’ve got a much more important question.”
“And that would be?”
“What treasure are we going to hunt for next?”
Maddock grinned.
“Oh, I’ve got a couple of ideas.”
Epilogue
Isla looked out the car window at the vast emptiness of the Cornish countryside. Rolling hills as far as the eye could see. Bodmin Moor was a lonely place — a fitting match for the way she felt. She would have welcomed any distraction from the internal struggle that tore at her heart. Had she done the right thing? Could her mother be trusted? And what was this Sisterhood of which Brigid spoke?
She had so many questions, and so far, her mother had answered precious few, always saying that the explanation was complex and would take more time than they had at the moment. Furthermore, Brigid claimed there were things she had to show Isla, people Isla needed to meet, before they began to untangle the knot. They were on their way to meet one such person.
Once again, her thoughts drifted to Dane Maddock. She could still see his eyes, blue like the sea on a stormy day, feel his embrace. She remembered their one kiss, all too brief. He had turned her away, but she had seen his reluctance, felt his desire. It was not over between them. If he was still alive.
Tears welled in her eyes. He had to have survived. He was strong and resourceful. Surely he had escaped the beast that guarded the treasure. She still couldn’t quite believe the legends were true. All of it — the beast, the treasure, and its mysterious power.
“What’s wrong, dear?” Genuine concern filled Brigid’s voice. In so many ways, her mother was just as Isla remembered her. But the deception of the past several years, coupled with the woman’s remarkable rise in station, had built a wall between them that Isla was not yet ready to break down.
“Just thinking about Dad,” she lied.
“I have people working on that right now. When I learn the name of the MI5 agent who was responsible, we will have our vengeance.”
“But it won’t bring Dad back,” Isla said, dabbing her eyes with a tissue.
“Sometimes revenge is all we have to give. That and seeing his dream come to fruition. We will honor his memory by completing the task.”
Isla remembered all the times her father had regaled her with visions of a proud nation united by the bonds of their Celtic heritage and the worship of the Tuatha de Dannan. A society healed of the sharp divisions brought about by the Roman church and the influx of adherents to other false faiths. A nation which respected the earth, as their ancestors once did. She almost smiled at the memory of his passion and devotion to his cause.
Brigid thumbed through her phone and breathed air through her teeth. “Another attack today. Five dead.” She shook her head. “The children and grandchildren of Abraham. Strange that the Jews, Christians, and Muslims are cousins in faith, yet they treat one another like the bitterest of enemies.”
“Strife within families surprises you?” She made no effort to soften her acerbic tone. “Have you already forgotten the Well of the Seven Heads?”
“Of course I haven’t. It’s simply another reminder of the death toll that can be placed at the feet of these so-called religions of love and peace. You’d see no such internal strife in a pagan nation.”