The Enchanted Five

Book 1 Chapter 17

Ari didn’t stop walking until she reached the castle. Her cheeks were flushed from cold and anger, her pulse still pounding from the argument she absolutely did not want to think about. She marched straight inside, ignoring the curious looks from passing clan members, and headed for the one place she could hide: The library. She shut the door behind her, dropped her bag on the table, and opened her notes with the determination of someone trying to outrun her own thoughts. She lasted five minutes. Five. Because every time she tried to focus on her mother’s journal, Bram’s voice echoed in her head. Why would it be your business, Bram? You have Eilidh. She groaned and shoved the book away. “Nope. Not doing this.” She tried her room next. Maybe a change of scenery would help. She spread out her papers, lit a candle, and stared at the prophecy symbols until her eyes crossed. Nothing. Her brain refused to cooperate.

By lunchtime, she was starving, so she slipped into the Great Hall, grabbed a plate, and sat at the far end of the table like she was hiding from a sniper. Moira spotted her instantly. “Lass,” she said gently, setting down a basket of rolls. “You’ve been avoidin’ everyone all mornin’. Especially a certain someone.”

Ari stiffened. “I’m not avoiding anyone.”

Moira gave her a look that could peel paint. “Aye, and I’m the Queen of England.”

Ari stabbed a piece of fruit. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Then maybe you should talk to him.”

“Nope,” Ari said, standing abruptly. “I’m taking a day to myself.”

Moira sighed. “Ari...”

But Ari was already walking away. She grabbed her coat, shoved her notebook into her bag, and headed out the castle doors. The cold air hit her like a blessing. She needed space. She needed quiet. She needed to not think about Bram Fraser and his tragic, complicated, unavailable heart. The village was only a short walk down the hill, and the moment she reached the cobblestone streets, she felt her shoulders loosen. Shops were open, people were chatting, and the smell of fresh bread drifted from the bakery. Normal. Calm. Human. Exactly what she needed. She wandered past the market stalls, stopping to admire handmade scarves and jars of honey. She was just starting to relax when a voice drifted from the shadows of an alley.

“Well, well. Look who wandered off alone.”

Ari froze. Kellan stepped out from behind a stack of crates, hands in his pockets, smile sharp and amused. “Thought you’d never leave that castle,” he said. “I was beginning to think you were hiding.”

Ari’s pulse spiked. “What do you want?”

“Oh, nothing,” Kellan said lightly. “Just keeping an eye on things. Making sure you don’t get yourself into trouble.”

His eyes glinted. “Or into the wrong hands.”

Ari took a step back. Kellan took a step forward. And then...

“Ari!”

Bram’s voice cut through the street like a blade. Kellan’s smile vanished. Bram strode toward them, jaw tight, eyes locked on Ari like she was the only thing in the world that mattered. He stopped between her and Kellan, shoulders squared, every inch of him radiating fury. “Are you alright?” Bram asked, voice low.

Ari blinked. “I...yes. I’m fine.”

Kellan chuckled. “Always showing up at the perfect moment, aren’t you, Laird?”

Bram didn’t look at him. “Leave.”

Kellan tilted his head. “Or what?”

Bram’s eyes darkened. “Don’t make me repeat myself.” For a moment, the air crackled with something dangerous. Then Kellan smirked. “Another time, Ari.”

He slipped back into the alley and vanished. Ari exhaled shakily. Bram turned to her, expression tight with worry and something else she couldn’t name. “You shouldn’t be out here alone,” he said.

Ari bristled. “I can take care of myself.”

“I know,” Bram said quietly. “But I’m still going to worry.” Her heart stuttered. She looked away. “I needed space.”

“I know,” he said again. “But don’t disappear like that.”

Ari swallowed hard. “Why do you care?”

Bram opened his mouth and stopped. Because he didn’t have an answer, he was ready to say it out loud. Not yet.

Kellan never made it back to the inn where he was staying in the village. He slipped through the narrow alleys of the village, boots silent on the cobblestones, until he reached the edge of the woods. The shadows thickened there, colder, sharper, a place where the veil between worlds thinned just enough for her to hear him. He stopped beneath a twisted rowan tree, exhaled once, and let the darkness coil around him like smoke.

“Morgana,” he murmured. The air rippled. A voice slid through the shadows, soft and poisonous. “You’re late.”

Kellan smirked. “I was… interrupted.”

“By the girl?”

“By the laird,” he corrected, rolling his eyes. “Again.”

The shadows pulsed, irritated. “Explain.”

Kellan leaned against the tree, crossing his arms. “Every time I get close to her, every time Bram Fraser appears out of nowhere like some overgrown guard dog. It’s almost impressive.”

Morgana hissed. “He interferes too much.”

“Oh, he does more than interfere,” Kellan said, amusement curling in his voice. “He’s jealous.”

A pause. Then: “Jealous?”

Kellan nodded. “Painfully. Obviously. It’s almost embarrassing to watch.”

The shadows stirred, intrigued. “And the girl?”

Kellan’s grin sharpened. “She’s fighting it and fighting him. Fighting herself. But the tension between them?” He whistled low. “You could cut it with a blade.”

Morgana’s voice darkened. “This bond was not meant to form.”

“No,” Kellan agreed. “But it is forming. And they’re both too stubborn to admit it.”

He pushed off the tree, eyes glinting. “Which means I can use it.”

Morgana’s presence coiled tighter, listening.

“They’re distracted,” Kellan continued. “Confused. Hurt. Perfect conditions for mistakes. If I push the right way… if I twist the right thread…” He smiled, slow and wicked. “They’ll unravel themselves.”

The shadows purred with approval.

“Good,” Morgana whispered. “Let their hearts betray them. Let their confusion blind them. And when the moment comes…”

Kellan bowed his head. “I’ll bring her to you.”

The darkness receded, leaving the woods silent once more. Kellan straightened, brushing frost from his coat. “Oh, Ari,” he murmured, turning back toward the village. “You really should stop wandering off alone.” He smiled. “Because next time, he might not get there in time.”