Aisling Chapter 18

The whole way home, I was on pins and needles, wondering who was behind the threat, wreck, and fire. I was impatient to get there, but at the same time, I hated to leave the cabin. It was so relaxing to be there. I enjoyed meeting and talking with Casper, too. We’d have to go back again soon. The journey back through the tunnel was quick. The cart was where we’d left it, or someone had returned one there.

We went straight to the tunnel, which led to the main house. I had no doubt the family would be gathered in the kitchen or family room. It wasn’t late, so no worries about anyone being asleep unless it was Ronan. It was still too early for it to be Khloe’s bedtime. As we entered the house, Shane was standing there waiting for us. There was more than one secret door in the house from the tunnels, but this was the centrally located one. The others were mainly in the bedrooms.

“They’re all in the kitchen. Come on,” was all he said.

We followed him, not that we couldn’t guess where they were based on the noise. When we entered, we were both greeted warmly. As usual, there were hugs and kisses before we were allowed to get down to business. Checking out the room, I saw Khloe wasn’t there, but Alexis was. I wondered who was with her because Mamó was in the room, too, along with Martin, Cody, and Brayden.

I worked at not getting distracted by the smell of food cooking. There would be time to fill my belly later. A chair was pulled out, and I was gently pushed into it. Alistair remained standing with the rest of the men.

“Okay, we’re here. Mind telling us what you found out?” Stair asked, getting straight to the point.

“In a minute. We hate to bring you back so abruptly, but we can’t be sure how long we have before they might strike again. Cody and his team found out who was behind what happened to Ais and the fire at Maeve’s. Beloved, why don’t you tell them the backstory first?” Patrick asked his wife with a tender smile.

I was startled. Why would Maeve be the one to tell us rather than Patrick or one of the other men, even Cody?

Maeve looked tired as she gave us a weak smile. “You’re wondering why I’m telling the story. The reason is because this whole thing is all my fault,” she said sadly. An automatic denial was on my lips, but I was beaten to it.

“Like hell it is! None of this is your fault, and I don’t want to hear you say it again. It’s all that bastard’s fault,” Patrick snapped. The others were all muttering darkly. I felt lost.

“I agree. I can’t see this as being your fault, Maeve. Just tell us,” Alistair said compassionately. She cleared her throat before starting. Her voice was low as she did.

“Believe it or not, this all started over forty years ago. When I met Patrick, my parents were still alive. The older kids recall my mother being around when they were little…” she paused. It was difficult for her to get whatever this was out.

“I don’t remember her, but I do remember you talking about her,” I stated, hoping to ease her tension. She gave me a grateful smile and nodded.

“The thing we never told any of you is that the reason she was the only grandparent on my side wasn’t because my father was dead.” This caused murmurs to break out from us kids. The older adults, of course, weren’t surprised.

“The reason we never talked about him is because he wasn’t a part of our lives. My father was a cruel, abusive bastard who beat Mom and me. She ran away with me more than once when I was growing up, but he’d always found us and dragged us back. The punishments were terrible when he did. When I turned eighteen, I tried to get her away from him for good a few times, but he always found ways to get her back, and like when I was a kid, the beatings were worse.

“When I brought Patrick to meet my parents, my father showed his true colors. I hadn’t said anything about how he was, but Patrick guessed it right away. Suffice it to say, we took Mom with us that day, and he was told never to come near us again. He was frightened enough that we thought he’d do it, and that would be the end of it. Later, we heard he’d relocated to the other side of the country. He never attempted to contact or come near us, so our goal was accomplished. After my mom died, we stopped caring where he was or even if he was alive. That was a mistake.”

At this point, Patrick took over because Maeve was too tearful to do it. “What we didn’t care to find out and should’ve done was when he relocated, the son of a bitch ended up marrying a much younger woman. They ended up having a son. From what we’ve discovered, the son grew to be an abusive man, too. The family Maeve’s father married into was a small family with a local winery in California, which, over the years, has grown into a larger, more profitable one. He might’ve been a bastard, but he had business smarts. He took over the helm of the business since there was no son in their family. The winery has attained some recognition over the past forty years.” He paused to let what he’d just said sink in. I knew immediately what happened.

“A winery in California… That's why Maeve’s Cellars was targeted. But why wait all these years to come after the family? I assume, based on the story, it’s Maeve’s half-brother who’s behind these attacks. Why does he care now?” I asked.

“Why he cares, we don’t know. As for why now, we think it’s because Maeve’s Cellars is growing and making a bigger name for itself. The rumors about the new wines you’re developing and how they’ll win awards will impact other smaller wineries. The recognition of putting Temecula even more on the map as a great place to grow wines is a big factor, too. The fact it’s run by our family and technically named for and was bought for his sister is too much, we believe.” Darragh was the one to add this part.

Silence reigned for a long minute or so before Alistair broke it. “Alright, so we know who, and we can guess at least partially why. How did you figure this out, and where does this leave us? Do we know where he is or anything about his next moves?”

Cody answered him. “It was the IP addresses on the dark web. I finally unraveled them and found out where those messages were originating from. I don’t know if he has the smarts to do it or if someone is working for him who does, but he did it the right way. It led me to California and from there to his family winery. He wasn’t very smart in sending them from there. He should’ve used the internet at a coffee shop or someplace that was public, but luckily for us, he didn’t. I found out his connection to Maeve when I began to dig into him.

“As for his next moves, the chatter is getting worse and uglier. There’s now ranting about how you are ruining his business and must be stopped. He even dropped the hint that a trip to Florida is needed. He hasn’t publicly given out your name, but there are people responding they’ll help him get rid of his problem. I’m trying to determine if they privately contacted him, but we have to assume at least one did. These aren’t decent human beings we’re talking about. Unlike the Hounds, they don’t care if their targets are innocent or not. It’s all about the money.”

I knew what he said about the Hounds and others was true. Having to sit and wait for the man and his possible accomplices to make a move would drive me insane, and based on the expressions on Alistair’s and the others’ faces, they felt the same.

“I know you have a plan or at least the start of one. You got us back here. Why? You could’ve told us all this over the phone, so I presume there was a reason,” I pointed out.

I saw them exchange looks, and then they glanced over at Alistair. It was Darragh who said something. He did it cautiously, I thought. “Alistair, as the head of the Hounds, you know how an operation like this goes. We have a tactical advantage if we make a move before he does. At the moment, he seems to have dropped out of sight. Cody and others are searching to locate him, but there’s a chance he’s found someone, and they’re on the move.” He stopped abruptly after saying it.

“You want to use her as bait to bring them out!” Alistair shouted, making me jump. He made a movement toward Dar, but Daid stepped in between them.

“ Mac , none of us want to endanger my daughter. I know you know that. However, Dar has a point. We can’t wait for them to attack first. Yes, she’s safe behind these walls, but she can’t remain here indefinitely. And what’s to prevent him if he can’t get to her from going after someone else? He might turn his eye to Maeve or one of the other women, or what about Ronan and Khloe? I believe we can do something to bring them out in the open, in a place of our choosing, while still keeping her safe.”

I saw the tension in Alistair’s body as he stared at my daid . I knew it would take a lot of convincing for him to agree. As for me, I saw the rightness of the plan. No way did I want this monster to go after anyone else in my family. This was the best way to ensure it. I got up and walked over to my man. He looked at me, and I saw fear. I placed my hand on his chest as I got closer and stared up at him. His arms wrapped around me.

“Stair, mil, mo ghràdh, mo neach-dìon, you know this is the best way.” He began to glare again and opened his mouth, but I put my hand over his lips. “I know what you’re about to say, but you realize what we have to do. I can’t allow someone else to get hurt. It’ll destroy me if that happens. I have every confidence in the world that you and my family can ensure my safety while we bring this terrible man and anyone with him to justice. I’m not helpless or weak. I’ve been through the same training you give all your Hounds, even if I don’t practice it every day like you, and they do. You wouldn’t hesitate to let my brothers or cousins join you in this. Don’t treat me any differently. I can do this.”

“ Mo ghràdh, mo shealladh àlainn, I have no doubts about your capabilities. I made sure you were well-versed in handling yourself. However, there are differences between you and your brothers and cousins.”

“The fact I’m a woman,” I huffed.

“As much as you hate it, yes, it is part of it. Not because you’re weak or any such nonsense. It’s because I’m a goddamn primitive when it comes to wanting to protect women and children. It’s worse with you, my woman. Add to it, as much as I like and respect your family, they aren’t the love of my life and the one I can’t live without. If anything were to happen to you, it would kill me, literally. And what if we were unsuccessful in protecting you? Then it wouldn’t just be you that I might lose,” he said as he placed his hand on my stomach.

Gasps went up around the room. Damn him. He wasn’t playing fair. I put my hand over his. As unlikely as it was, since I still had a few days until my shot was to be renewed, I hoped we had created a baby.

“You won’t lose me or us if we’ve been successful. I have no doubt my primitive will be glued to me. There’s no way the Ceannaire Cúirt an Cheartais, the leader of the Hounds of Justice, won’t protect his mate and possible pup to the death. Although if you get a scratch on you, I’ll kick your ass,” I growled.

“You’ve really been trying to get pregnant? We thought you were just kidding. Wow. Okay, I know we’re in the middle of something really big and important right now, but this is too. You’re trying to knock up our sister. Where’s her ring?” Aidan interjected.

I whipped my head around to scowl at him. “Shush. You’re not gonna guilt him into asking me to marry him!” I hissed. Not this again.

“Why would it be guilting him? We wanna know. Is he planning to do the honorable thing and marry you? Or is he just gonna defile you and have you two live in sin?” Shane added.

Cathal and Tiernan were nodding their heads in agreement. When I peeked to see what Daid was doing, I saw that he was watching Alistair intently with his arms crossed. Dear Lord, this had gone off the rails quickly. We needed to get back on track. Yes, I wanted to marry Stair more than anything, but I needed him to want to marry me just as much and not be pushed into it by my overbearing family.

I peeped a glance back at Alistair. He didn’t appear upset, but I wanted him to know I wasn’t asking him to propose. “Stair, ignore them. We’ll live our lives the way we want.”

He gave me such a tender and loving smile that my knees got weak, and I almost melted into a puddle on the floor. He drew me even closer. “ Leanabh , I told you I love you more than anything. I mean that. And your family isn’t capable of making me do anything I don’t want to do. They just ruined my moment. I had this whole plan, but with what is coming and their stance, I gotta do this.” He scanned them as he said, “I’m marrying your daughter, your sister.”

“What if we say no?” Cathal asked. I wanted to kick him.

Alistair shrugged. “It’s a respectful thing for me to ask, but no matter what you say, I’m marrying her. I’ve waited years for her. She’s always been meant to be my wife. The only way this isn’t happening is if she says no. No disrespect, Cormac and Cyndi.”

When he finished, he went back to staring at me. “So, Aisling O’Sheeran, will you marry me or condemn me to be a bachelor for all eternity?”

Excitement coursed through me, but I had to be sure he was doing it willingly. Despite his speech, what if it was because they put him on the spot? “Alistair Graeme, I would love to marry you, but only if you’re absolutely sure this is what you want. Don’t let these guys acting a muppet force you to do it. I’ll continue to love you no matter if we’re married or not, and I’ll happily bear your children.”

His smile stretched wider. Abruptly, he was kneeling before me on one knee. I heard the other women sigh. I was frozen. Oh, Dia , he was doing it. As if his kneeling wasn’t enough of a shock, he stunned me even more when he reached into his jeans pocket and brought out a ring box. My heart galloped away, and I was having a hard time catching my breath as he opened the lid.

“I think this shows how serious I am. I was gonna ask your daid, mam , and brothers in private for their blessing and show them the ring. It’s kinda out of order, but will you marry me? We’ll celebrate the way I planned later.”

All I could do was nod and hold out a badly shaking hand for him to put the ring on. He slid it into place, and I stood there admiring it. The ring was ornate and unique, but what really caught and held my attention was the center diamond. I fell in love with it instantly. It was shaped like a heart.

“I’m giving you my heart, so I thought it was only appropriate to symbolize it with your ring. Do you like it? Say something.” he said softly. I heard the nerves in his tone just a tiny bit. That snapped me out of my trance. I dropped to my knees in front of him and cupped his face.

“Alistair, it’s beautiful and perfect. I love it, and I love you. Thank you for making me so happy,” I sealed my declaration with a kiss. It was a passionate one, and I took my time. I ignored the guys’ groans and mutterings. I knew they were playing around. He returned it with just as much desire. When we finally broke apart, all I wanted was to go to the house and make love.

“Alright, stand up, you two, you’re embarrassing us. All this mushy, lovey-dovey stuff. Yuck. Alistair, just so you know, you still have to go through a gauntlet to get our blessing.” This came from Rian.

Alistair helped me to my feet as he rose up. He tucked me under his arm. “And exactly what is the gauntlet?”

“We all get into the fighting ring, and you take our best hits or kicks. We have to be sure you can protect her, and you have a teeny tiny taste of what’ll happen if you hurt her in any way,” Rian explained with a fierce stare.

“No way are you beating on him!” I objected loudly.

“Okay, I’m all for that. Do we do it now or later?” was Alistair’s too-calm reply.

“No, you won’t!”

“Yes, I will.”

We bickered back and forth for several minutes, but he remained adamant. It was Daid letting out a loud whistle, which got us to stop. “As much as we love to see how Alistair holds up in the ring, I say we postpone the gauntlet until after we take care of our enemy. We need to plan how we’re bringing him out into the open while keeping Aisling protected. That will take some discussion and debate, no doubt, so I propose we all help get dinner on the table. We’ll fill our bellies, then get down to plotting.”

This seemed to meet everyone’s approval, which was how we went from a deeply serious moment to carefree and laughing the next. We all pitched in to finish the meal and get the dining room ready. I discovered that Agatha had been entertaining Khloe. She happily joined us. It wasn’t long before the entire family was seated and eating. I made sure to enjoy it. You could never take moments like this for granted. You never knew how many you might get.