Page 22 of Wild Scottish Rose

At her words, the birds veered off and flew back toward the castle. My eyes widened. Could Sophie talk to animals? Seeming to hear my unspoken question, Sophie glanced at me with a grin.

“I trained them to come to me. They bring me gifts now.”

“Do you understand them? Like can you talk to them?”

“Not in the magickal sense, no. This was plain old bribery.”

“What kind of gifts do they bring you?”

“Mmm, all sorts of stuff. Coins. Marbles. Beads. Anything flashy or interesting they can find really.”

Archie drew to a stop by a low stone wall, where he placed his basket, and pulled out a bundle of what looked to be sage. The clouds shifted, and sunlight speared us, enveloping us in a soft glow.

“Now, lass. You’ll repeat after me. We’ll do this at the four cardinal directions on the property. Once finished, you’ll be initiated into the Order, and then we wait to see how your magick manifests. As a garden witch, your power may focus in the areas of nurturing, growing, healing, and providing. To pass your challenges, you’ll need todemonstrate, unequivocally, your ability to shine in one or more of these skill sets.”

I shifted on my feet at his words, unease making me antsy. Archie lifted what I saw now to be a bunch of dried thistle and lit it. Agnes, Sophie, and Hilda ranged next to me, silent.

“Repeat after me,” Archie said. “I, Shona Scott, the third member in the Order of the Caledonia, announce my arrival.”

I dutifully repeated what he said, pausing as a strange hum began to vibrate inside of me.“I accept the responsibility of protecting the Clach na Fìrinn and promise to restore the Order to its fullness. In doing so, I show myself worthy of the magick of Clach na Fìrinn.”

I repeated the words, the hum growing stronger in my core.

“It is with these words I establish the Order of Caledonia as the first line of protection for the Clach na Fìrinn and alert the Kelpies to my arrival. I accept the power bestowed upon me.”

When I finished speaking, the hum had reached a dull roar inside of me, and I physically felt myself shaking as energy coursed through me. Unable to speak, I followed Archie silently as we continued to the next spot. Finally, unable to contain myself anymore, I grabbed Archie’s arm.

“What if you already have magick?” I rushed out, giving voice to the worry that continued to niggle at me. At that, a whisper of a smile crossed Archie’s face.

“Nae bother, lass. You’ll just become more powerful.”

CHAPTER EIGHT

Shona

Ifelt lovely and loose inside, like I’d had a few drinks, but instead of alcohol buzzing through my veins, it was magick, apparently. I still couldn’t believe thatI, little garden hermit Shona, was a garden witch.

A freaking witch.

Like…where does one even start with something like this?

After the ritual was complete, we spent an hour in MacAlpine Castle’s gorgeous library, where I learned more about the history of the Order of Caledonia and how the Stone of Truth had called upon the people of Loren Brae to protect it. It was an honor, I was told, and I couldn’t help but agree, even though fear of the Kelpies lingered deep inside of me. At one point, Lia had popped in to say hello, bringing with her a tin of cinnamonchocolate chip cookies for me to take home, and she’d suggested that I dig through Gran’s stuff to see if I could unearth anything now that I knew more about my lineage.

It wasn’t a bad idea, and with the knowing look that Agnes had given me, surely remembering how cluttered my cottage was, it wasn’t unlikely that I’d missed a box or two of Gran’s stuff. Deciding to dig through the storage at the greenhouse first, I wandered through my gardens, strands of twinkle lights affixed to the fencing illuminating my path, and a soft mist of rain dampening my cheeks. These were my favorite type of evenings, with a hint of chill in the air, and the promise of more rain on the horizon.

“Get in line, lads, get in line. She’s coming!” A gruff voice pulled me up short, and I stopped in my tracks. Turning, I scanned my presumably empty gardens, and tried to place where the voice had come from. I shivered, wrapping my arms around my body, and waited, hoping for another clue. “There you go. All in formation now. And…go.”

A soft shuffling sound, interspersed with odd chirping noises, had me rounding the corner of the greenhouse. I gasped.

“One, two, three, four, one, two, three, four. That’s right, lads. Just like I showed ye.”

The gnome stood in front of a line of hedgehogs, which were currently marching in formation. As a gardener, I was delighted by the presence of hedgies among my plants, as they were known to eat unwanted pests, and I didn’t mind them having a wee dig about in the dirt. But to see so many of them, synchronized in their movements, gave me serious pause.

“Um,” I stuttered, my hand at my heart, “just what, exactly, is going on here?”

“Damn it, Eugene. Keep up the pace.” The gnome snapped his fingers and growled at a hedgehog that was moving a touch slower in the back of the formation.

“Be nice to Eugene,” I said immediately, feeling bad for the wee beastie.He was doing his best, wasn’t he?Wait, was I sympathizing with a hedgehog? What the hell was happening?

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