Last Wish (Highland Magic #4)

‘I’m the only thing keeping the Fomori demons at arm’s length,’ Aifric muttered. ‘Without me they would swarm across this country and destroy us all. This isn’t just about you and me. This is much, much bigger. Do the right thing.’

I sucked in a deep breath. Everything fell away and the large Sidhe congregation no longer existed. The walls of the church were nothing and even Byron ceased to exist. All I could hear was the thumping of my heart and all I could see was the intelligent evil glittering from Aifric’s soul. That and the three strands of magic swirling inside him: Pyrokinesis, like Byron, Dowsing and Healing. I blinked and looked away.

Byron said something to me but it seemed as if it were from a long way off. I shook myself and focused on the rest of the Sidhe. Perhaps it was a result of the brute force of my anger; whatever the reason, I could now see all their Gifts too. Levitation here. Precognition there. With a clarity that I wouldn’t have previously thought was possible, I could tell from looking at them what magic each person possessed. I stared at the man whose Gift was the ability to control another’s body against their will. My eyes narrowed and I reached inside him and yanked it away, dragging it into myself and taking it all. I staggered back. The man let out a terrified scream and collapsed.

The sound was all it took to galvanise the Sidhe into action. Several yelled and surged forward once more. Aifric couldn’t stop them this time and he probably didn’t want to. All the same, he grabbed Byron and pulled him backwards. ‘That was you,’ he hissed in a low voice so others wouldn’t hear. ‘You burned down our own house. It wasn’t an accident after all. You have betrayed me.’

‘No, Father,’ Byron replied. ‘You have betrayed Scotland.’

Aifric threw out his arms, sending out plumes of fire across the church. ‘Byron, no!’ he yelled, immediately blaming his son for his own actions. ‘Don’t hurt these people!’

As I dodged a spark of lightning from a seething Fairlie Sidhe, the walls caught fire. All around us people shouted, pushing past one another in a bid to get to the door. A few with water-based Gifts tried to douse the fire but it had caught too quickly. The whole structure was doomed. The people around us screamed, scattered, stampeding towards the door to escape the flames.

‘I killed my best friend and his entire Clan,’ Aifric said, speaking the truth for the first time. ‘Don’t think I’ll hesitate to kill my own son too if you continue to get in my way.’ Molly Kincaid’s mouth dropped open. She’d heard his words and, unaware he’d been overheard, this time he wasn’t masking his meaning.

I lunged forward, shoving her away to get her as far from Aifric as possible before he realised his error. ‘Get out of here!’ She turned and ran, only to be replaced by three Sidhe who were less afraid of the fire than the others. They came at me, their enraged and contorted faces obscured by the now billowing black smoke. ‘You’re not going to murder anyone else, bitch!’

Byron spun towards them and used Telekinesis to push them away before they could do any harm. As he turned his back, Aifric lunged for him. Most of the Sidhe wouldn’t believe a word that came out of my mouth but Byron was a different matter and that made him a more dangerous opponent for Aifric.

I didn’t waste any time ? I needed this Gift anyway. I squeezed my eyes shut and reached out, separating Aifric’s magic until I had what I needed. I snatched at the first strand and drew it away. Aifric gasped, feeling its absence. I ignored him and kept pulling. I needed it all. Aifric’s knees buckled and he collapsed.

It was difficult to tell through the thick, choking smoke but it seemed as if everyone else had managed to escape.

‘Integrity!’ Byron yelled. ‘We have to get out of here!’

That was stating the obvious. I tugged at Aifric’s body. ‘Help me.’

‘Just leave him.’

I wiped my streaming eyes with the back of my hand. ‘No. We’re not murderers.’ And, I added silently, he’s still your father. You’ll never recover if you do this.

I couldn’t see Byron’s expression but a moment later he was lifting his father and throwing him into a fireman’s lift over his shoulder. Then, with his free hand, he grabbed mine and began to run, ploughing through the church and out to safety.

The bright morning seemed incongruous compared to the hell we’d left behind. Most of the others seemed to have moved a safe distance away. A few were still trying to put out the fire. There were still some pained grimaces in my direction.

A roar came from behind some small houses to the left and Candy appeared, carrying massive bundle of white fabric. It took me a moment to register that it was Tipsania. He bounded towards us, Brochan hot on his heels.

‘Bob!’ I yelled. ‘Show them where the boat is!’ There was a flash of blinding light and Bob appeared, bowing grandly in front of my face before taking off with the merman, the Wild Man and what could have been Little Bo Peep in his wake.

Byron lay his father on the ground. Aifric coughed, spluttered and rolled over to one side. I watched him for a brief moment; he’d be alright. ‘Taylor!’ I yelled, bending down and getting into his face. ‘Where is Taylor?’

Aifric didn’t answer and I cursed loudly. Was Taylor still alive?

There was a rumble as the timber roof of the church collapsed. Terrified that he was inside, I prepared to go back in if need be. Then I heard a shout from towards the back wall. With my cuffed hands in front of me, I ran as fast as I could.

Three bodies, Jamie and Angus standing over them. My heart in my mouth, I stumbled forward to Taylor’s prone form. I was shaking all over. Tears were leaking down my cheeks; whether they were from the smoke or because I thought Taylor was dead, I couldn’t have said.

‘He’s still breathing, Tegs,’ Angus said. He didn’t sound reassuring, despite his words. As I felt for my old mentor’s pulse and registered his shallow, heaving breaths and the sallowness of his skin, I knew the reason why. This was like Morna all over again; Taylor was dying. This time, however, I could do something about it and it was all thanks to Aifric. The tragic irony wasn’t lost on me.

I could only guess how the Gift of Healing worked. I ran my hands lightly across Taylor’s body, trying not to let the gaping wound in his torso stop me doing what needed to be done. His eyes were closed and, even without any medical training, I knew that he was at death’s door. Well, death could keep on knocking as far as I was concerned. Today, no one was going to answer.

I searched inside myself for the right magic and withdrew a delicate tendril. The last thing I wanted was to fill Taylor’s body with power and cause an overload. While Angus and Jamie watched, confused and probably assuming I was saying my goodbyes, I let the magic out to do its work.