Filip rose from his seat and carried his drink to the bar. He took the stool next to Scott. His voice was just above a whisper as he said, “Damn. Everyone still hates her.”
“Not everyone,” Scott pointed out. The men were eying Elodie with interest. Some of the women around her age seemed curious, but it was the older women who wanted nothing to do with Elodie.
Filip shrugged. “Enough, though. It’s in the past.”
About that time, Edie and Elodie left the pub. Scott wanted to go after them. He’d lost his chance to talk to her, and if her welcome had been any indication, he likely wouldn’t get another shot.
“Good riddance,” the barkeep said as the door closed behind the sisters.
“Get over yourself, Anna. It was fifteen years ago, and you were leaving David anyway,” an older woman stated as she got to her feet. “Elodie was a child dealing with the loss of her parents. She had an excuse for her behavior. You’re an adult. What’s yours?”
Anna let out a breath. “I don’t like her, Violet.”
“The past is the past,” Violet stated. She looked around the room with her blue eyes, pausing briefly as she met Scott’s gaze. “Let me say that again for anyone holding a grudge against Elodie after all this time. The past is the past.”
Filip let out a low whistle after Violet had taken her seat. “I guess she put Anna in her place.”
“Who’s Violet?”
“She’s one of the deputies I told you about. There are five, splitting Skye into sections. We used to outnumber the others here, and it was easier for Corann to get information to his deputies, who then got it out to their people rather than calling everyone together.”
Scott nodded. “Because that would’ve drawn attention. How many Druids now?”
“One of my buddies just told me they dropped to under four thousand recently.”
“Still a nice number. More than anywhere else on our planet.”
Filip grunted. “It used to be double that. If we keep diluting our blood, we’ll be gone.”
“Which is why we’re going to make sure that doesna happen.”
“Aye, we are.” Filip smiled.
“We have to succeed first.”
“George has a perfect plan. What could go wrong?”
“The battle that was just here is a reminder of what could go wrong.”
Filip scoffed at that. “The Fae were stupid and greedy. We willna make those same mistakes.”
“Skye has its Warden now. Balladyn and Rhona are no’ to be underestimated. No one on this island should be.”
“I agree with that, but we have to somehow meet Elodie.”
Scott threw down some money and slid off his stool. “That might be harder than I first thought. I need some air.”
He walked outside, leaving Filip and the noise of the pub behind. He inhaled the brisk night air, letting it fill his lungs. He needed to come up with a plan and quick. Imagine his surprise when he spotted Elodie and her sister in the carpark. Scott paused and watched as Edie gave her sister a hug before getting into her vehicle and driving away. Scott’s gaze was glued to Elodie as she sighed forlornly and looked at the moon as dark clouds drifted over it.
CHAPTER FIVE
Why had she let her sister talk her into going to dinner? Elodie had known the residents of Skye wouldn’t forget—or forgive—easily. Tonight had been proof of that. Just another example that Skye was Hell.
She pulled her gaze from the many stars dotting the night sky. No amount of wishing would take her anywhere else. The only thing she could do was deal with things on the island and then get out as fast as she could.
Elodie turned to her car as she fished out her keys. Her gaze collided with a man’s. Her heart jumped into her throat for an instant at discovering someone watching her. He was near the pub, standing beneath a light so she could see him, though not in detail. He looked near her age with dark hair and a beard that was just past a five o’clock shadow. Six feet, at least. Rugged build. A face cut from granite. Eyes that seemed to stare right into her soul.
“Hi. I didna mean to intrude. I saw what happened inside,” he said as he hitched a thumb over his shoulder. “I was leaving and wanted to make sure you were all right.”
“I’m fine.” She unlocked her door and opened it to get inside.
“You should’ve stayed.”
Elodie paused and looked at him, taking in his tall stature. He stood casually near the corner of the pub and shot her a lazy smile that probably charmed women—not her. He had his hair trimmed short on the sides and back with the top longer, styled in that effortless look achieved with product by a man who knew how to do his hair.
His wide lips held that smile as he watched her. She wondered what color his eyes were. She couldn’t tell from the distance, and she had no intention of getting closer. He was clearly a man who took care of himself, and she’d bet that he had the body to prove it.
“I’m not in the habit of subjecting myself to that kind of disdain.” Though she had no idea why she bothered to answer him at all. The fact that he’d followed her outside made her uneasy. “What do you want?”
His lips twisted as he shrugged his shoulders. “I just wanted to tell you that the hostility of a few shouldna keep you from enjoying yourself.”
As if there were anything about Skye to enjoy. Once, she would’ve named a multitude of things, but the incident had ripped off her rose-colored glasses.
“I’m Scott, by the way,” he said. “Scott Ryan.”
Elodie watched him for a moment longer. A part of her wanted to have a conversation, but she knew that now wasn’t the time. She hadn’t yet pulled herself out of her current situation. She gave him a nod of acknowledge and climbed into her car.
On the drive back to the cottage, she kept thinking about what Scott had said. He likely would’ve learned all about her from those in the pub. Why had he really approached her? He wanted something. She was certain of that.
Was he a reporter? Come to dig into her father’s death? Was he some newcomer to Skye who wanted a shot at sleeping with her? The one thing Elodie had learned was that everyone wanted something. Power. Money. Love. Everything was up for grabs, and the sooner a person realized that everyone was after something, the easier it was to maneuver and navigate the complex and constantly changing battleground called life.
Edie had called her jaded, and she was cynical. She had every right to be.
“If you keep looking for the worst, then that’s what you’ll find.”
Her mother’s words rattled around in her mind, causing her throat to clog with emotion. Elodie wished she could see the best in everything as Edie did. How could she, though, when she kept getting shite on again and again? She’d start to pull herself out of the gutter, only to get trampled.
It wouldn’t be long now. The cottage was clean, and she was starting on the outside tomorrow. Her list of needed repairs was growing ever longer. A part of her was irritated at Edie for allowing the cottage to fall into disrepair, but then she remembered that it wasn’t just Edie’s fault. She and Elias also shared in that burden, and neither of them had done anything. Why should Edie have to do it all just because she chose to stay on the island? Elodie was glad that her sister hadn’t held a grudge because Edie had every reason to be upset with her and Elias.