Page 61 of Whiskey & Witches

Roisin, on the other hand, was earthy and bold. Her golden blond curls flowed midway down her back. At any given time, she would shove the mass of hair impatiently away from her face when she wasn’t remembering to hide her scars. Her clothing reflected her laid-back nature, and she preferred jeans and a thick jumper most days.

But the one area that they were the same was their core strength. Vivian had been ready to go to war with Damian over the attempt on their child’s life. When the Aether had ordered her to stay behind, her mouth had tightened in frustration, and the strain was there in her icy blue eyes. In the duration, she’d barely spoken to Carrick other than to offer refreshments or scold Sabrina for her recklessness right before dragging the distraught girl into a hug.

And Roisin, well, she hadn’t had time to tell him the complete story of what had happened, but he knew she’d been in the thick of things before returning with Aeden. Now, she was using the last of her strength to help the man responsible for their woes.

“Ya look ready to murder something… or someone,” Ronan said. “If it’s me, I’ll not hold it against ya.”

“Shut up, ya tool.” Carrick touched the back of his hand to Ronan’s brow and frowned. “You’re burning up, man. What was on that knife?”

Ronan groaned as he shifted to his side and tucked the pillow into the crook of his neck. “If I had to guess, the same thing Moira poisoned your brother with.”

“Jaysus! I should’ve guessed that was what was causing your problems.” Whipping out his phone, Carrick placed a call. “Piper, I need ya to listen to me. Can you remember the recipe you used on Cian when you removed the poison and your mother injected the antidote?”

“Not off the top of my head. That day was absolutely insane, but I’m sure my mother made notes in her medical journal, and I can grab the spell from your family’s grimoire.

“Could you get your mother here? I know it’s an ask, but I think Moira is up to her old tricks. She cut Ronan across the back, and he’s in a bad way.”

There was a long pause on the other end of the line.

“I can’t guarantee she’ll come, but I’ll try. Where’s ‘here’?”

“The Dethridge estate.” He glanced down at Ronan, who was fighting to stay alert. “And I don’t need to tell ya to hurry, do I?”

“No. I’m well aware of how fast that toxin works. See you soon.” Before disconnecting, she said, “Oh! And Carrick? Don’t let anyone touch the wound without gloves.”

He looked down at one of his hands, covered in Ronan’s blood. “Right. Bring enough for two doses, yeah?”

“Shit!”

CHAPTER24

The wait for help was maddening and went against Roisin’s healing nature. It hadn’t helped that she’d overheard the tail-end of Carrick’s phone call with Piper and realized he’d probably absorbed some of the deadly toxin through his own skin. By performing magic and speeding up his cells, he would’ve accelerated the effect.

Roisin limped back and forth, trying to pace off her anxiety, as Carrick casually sat and sipped tea in one of the leather club chairs.

Vivian had helped prepare the poultice but then left to keep an eye on Aeden and Sabrina, who were resting in the girl’s bedroom.

“What’s taking so bloody long?” Roisin snapped.

“They’ll be here soon, pet.” Her husband’s calm assurance irritated the feck out of her.

She stomped to where he half-reclined, hands on her hips, and glared down at him. “You’d think a man with your brains would know better than to expose himself to poison. But did you? No! Always the fecking hero, ya are!”

His brows shot up, and his tired eyes lit with humor. “There’s my Ro. Always salty when she’s worried about those she loves.”

“Of course I love you, ya eejit.” She growled and would’ve gripped his beloved face between her hands to kiss him if she wasn’t worried about potential harm to herself. Her knowledge of Moira’s poison was scarce, and she blamed herself for not learning more about it when she’d heard Cian had first been attacked. “And if you die on me, I’ll be so cross I’ll not mourn you. Not for one second of one day.”

He tried to hide his grin behind a sip of tea. “I’ll be grand, Ro.”

“You don’t know that!”

“Actually, I do. The Aether would never have let me touch Ronan if there was a chance I’d become infected.”

She frowned and dropped her arms to her sides. Sure, and he was right. Damian had the ability to see the immediate future, and he had no reason to jeopardize Carrick’s life. Plopping down in the chair next to him, she compressed her lips against a relieved sob and nodded absently.

“It’ll be all right, love,” he said. “You’ll see.”

“How can you be so certain, Carrick? This is so far beyond our skills and understanding…” Roisin shook her head and locked her attention on Ronan. He’d worsened in the last little while. “And I’ll be gutted if he dies.”

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