When Irish Eyes Are Haunting
Heather GrahamWhen Irish Eyes Are Haunting
A Krewe of Hunters Novella
By Heather Graham
1001 Dark Nights
Copyright 2015 Heather Graham Pozzessere
ISBN: 978-1-940887-34-0
Foreword: Copyright 2014 M. J. Rose
Published by Evil Eye Concepts, Incorporated
The Silenced Text Copyright © 2015 by Slush Pile Productions, LLC
Permission to reproduce text granted by Harlequin Books S.A.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights.
This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination and are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or establishments is solely coincidental.
When Irish Eyes Are Haunting
Devin Lyle and Craig Rockwell are back, this time to a haunted castle in Ireland where a banshee may have gone wild—or maybe there's a much more rational explanation—one that involves a disgruntled heir, murder, and mayhem, all with that sexy light touch Heather Graham has turned into her trademark style.
About Heather Graham
Click to purchase
Heather Graham has been writing for many years and actually has published nearly 200 titles. So, for this page, we'll concentrate on the Krewe of Hunters.
They include:
Phantom Evil
Heart of Evil
Sacred Evil
The Evil Inside
The Unseen
The Unholy
The Unspoken
The Uninvited
The Night is Watching
The Night is Alive
The Night is Forever
The Cursed
The Hexed
The Betrayed
Coming in Summer and Fall of 2015
The Silenced
The Forgotten
The Hidden
(All available through Amazon and other fine retailers, in print
and digital—and through Brilliance Audio as well.)
Actually, though, Adam Harrison—responsible for putting the Krewe together, first appeared in a book called Haunted. He also appeared in Nightwalker and has walk-ons in a few other books. For more ghostly novels, readers might enjoy the Flynn Brothers Trilogy—Deadly Night, Deadly Harvest, and Deadly Gift, or the Key West Trilogy—Ghost Moon, Ghost Shadow, and Ghost Night.
Out next for Heather the second book in the Cafferty and Quinn series, Waking the Dead—which follows Let the Dead Sleep. Go figure! (I guess they've slept long enough!)
The Vampire Series (now under Heather Graham/ previously Shannon Drake) Beneath a Blood Red Moon , When Darkness Falls, Deep Midnight, Realm of Shadows, The Awakening, Dead by Dusk, Blood Red, Kiss of Darkness, and From Dust to Dust.
For more info, please visit her web page, theoriginalheathergraham.com or stop by on Facebook.
Dedication
Dedicated with love to my cousin, Patrick DeVuono, who grew up with me in the family where leprechauns were real and the wonderful tales our elders told could leave us in awe—and give us the chills!
In memory of my Mom, born in Dublin, the most intelligent and wonderful woman I ever knew. When she couldn't give us a real answer, she would smile and say, “Let's look it up!”
And for Granny, who was about 4’11”—and could convince us that indeed, the banshees would be getting us in the outhouse if we didn't behave—even when we didn't have an outhouse.
For Aunt Amy and Katie (and Sam! Who made marrying an Italian a good thing!)
For all my mom's family, the wonderful Irish Americans.
And, for Ireland, of course. I'm an American and I love my country.
But, I also enjoy every second of being in Ireland, and loving the land that bred so many people I adored so very much.
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1001 Dark Nights story
The First Night
by Lexi Blake & M.J. Rose
Table of Contents
About Heather Graham
Dedication
Foreword
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Epilogue
Also From 1001 Dark Nights
An excerpt from The Silenced by Heather Graham
Special Thanks
One Thousand and One Dark Nights
Once upon a time, in the future…
I was a student fascinated with stories and learning.
I studied philosophy, poetry, history, the occult, and
the art and science of love and magic. I had a vast
library at my father’s home and collected thousands
of volumes of fantastic tales.
I learned all about ancient races and bygone
times. About myths and legends and dreams of all
people through the millennium. And the more I read
the stronger my imagination grew until I discovered
that I was able to travel into the stories... to actually
become part of them.
I wish I could say that I listened to my teacher
and respected my gift, as I ought to have. If I had, I
would not be telling you this tale now.
But I was foolhardy and confused, showing off
with bravery.
One afternoon, curious about the myth of the
Arabian Nights, I traveled back to ancient Persia to
see for myself if it was true that every day Shahryar
(Persian: شهریار, “king”) married a new virgin, and then
sent yesterday's wife to be beheaded. It was written
and I had read, that by the time he met Scheherazade,
the vizier's daughter, he’d killed one thousand
women.
Something went wrong with my efforts. I arrived
in the midst of the story and somehow exchanged
places with Scheherazade – a phenomena that had
never occurred before and that still to this day, I
cannot explain.
Now I am trapped in that ancient past. I have
taken on Scheherazade’s life and the only way I can
protect myself and stay alive is to do what she did to
protect herself and stay alive.
Every night the King calls for me and listens as I spin tales.
And when the evening ends and dawn breaks, I stop at a
point that leaves him breathless and yearning for more.
And so the King spares my life for one more day, so that
he might hear the rest of my dark tale.
As soon as I finish a story... I begin a new
one... like the one that you, dear reader, have before
you now.
Chapter 1
“Ah, you can hear it in the wind, you can, the mournful cry of the banshee!” Gary Duffy—known as Gary the Ghost—exclaimed with wide eyes, his tone low, husky and haunting along with the sound of the crackling fire. “It�
s a cry so mournful and so deep, you can feel it down into your bones. Indeed. Some say sheâs the spirit of a woman long gone whoâs lost everyone dear in her life; some say she is one of the fairy folk. Some believe she is a death ghost, and come not to do ill, but to ease the way of the dying, those leaving this world to enter the next. However she is known, her cry is a warning that âtis time for a man to put his affairs in order, and kiss his loved ones good-bye, before taking that final journey that is the fate of all men. And women,â he added, looking around at his audience. âAh, and believe me! At Castle Karney, sheâs moaned and cried many a time, many a time!â
Yes! Just recently, Devin Lyle thought.
Very recently.
Gary spoke well; he was an excellent storyteller, more of a performer than a guide. He had a light and beautiful brogue that seemed to enhance his words as well and an ability to speak with a deep tone that carried, yet still seemed to be something of a whisper.
All in the tour group were enthralled as they watched himâeven the youngest children in the group were silent.
But then, beyond Garyâs talents, the nightâoffering a nearly full moon and a strange, shimmering silver fogâlent itself to storytelling and ghostly yarns. As did the lovely and haunting location where Gary spun his tales.
The group sat around a campfire that burned in an ancient pit outside the great walls of Castle Karney, halfway between those walls and St. Patrickâs of the Villageâthe equally ancient church of Karney, said to have been built soon after the death of Irelandâs patron saint. A massive graveyard surrounded the church; the Celtic crosses, angels, cherubs, and more, seemed to glow softly in a surreal shade of pearl beneath the moon. That great orb itself was stunning, granting light and yet shrouded in the mist that shimmered over the graveyard, the castle walls, and down to embrace the fire itselfâand Gary the Ghostâin surreal and hypnotic beauty.
Garyâs tour was thorough.
Theyâd already visited the castle courtyard, the cliffs, the church, and the graveyard, learning history and legends along the way.
The fire pit they now gathered around had been used often in the centuries that came beforeâmany an attacking lord or general had based his army here, just outside the walls. They had cooked here, burned tar here for assaults, and stood in the light and warmth of the blaze to stare at the castle walls and dream of breeching them.
The walls were over ten feet thick. An intrepid Karneyâalive at the time of William the Conquerorâhad seen to it that the family holding was shored up with brick and stone.
âThe night is still now,â Gary said, his voice low and rich. âBut listen if you will when the wind races across the Irish Sea. And youâll hear the echo of her wail, on special nights, aye, the heart-wrenching cry of the banshee!â
GaryâDevin knew from her cousin, Kellyâwas now the full-time historian, curator, and tour director at Castle Karney. Sheâd learned a lot from him, but, naturally, sheâd known a lot already from family lore. Kelly Karney was her cousin and Devin had been to Castle Karney once before.
The Karney family had held title to the property since the time of St. Patrick. Despite bloodshed and wars, and multiple invasions first by Vikings and then British monarchs, theyâd held tenaciously to the property. So tenaciously that fifteen years agoâto afford the massive property along with repairs and taxesâthey had turned it into a fashionable bed and breakfast, touted far and wide on tourist sites as a true experience as well as a vacation.
Gary, with his wonderful ability to weave a tale, was part of the allureâas if staying in a castle with foundations and a great hall begun in the early part of the fifth century was not enough!
But Gary had gained fame in international guidebooks. While the Karney family had employed him first for the guests of the B&B, theyâd always opened the tours to visitors who came to the village and stayed anywhere thereâor just stopped by for the tour.
âIndeed! Here, where the great cliffs protected the lords of Karney from any assault by the Irish Sea, where the great walls stood tall against the slings, rams, arrows, and even canon of the enemy, the banshees wail is known to be heard. Throughout the years, âtwas heard each night before the death of the master of the house. Sometimes, they say, she cried to help an elderly lord make his way to the great castle in the sky. Yet she may cry for all, and has cast her mournful wail into the air for many a Karney, master or no. Saddest still, was the wailing of the banshee the night before the English knight, Sir Barry Martin, burst in to kidnap the Lady Brianna. He made his way through their primitive sewer lines of the day, thinking the castle would fall if he but held her, for she was a rare beauty and beloved of Declan, master of Karney castle. Sir Martin made his way to the masterâs chambers, where he took the lady of the house, but Declan came upon him. Holding the Lady Brianna before Declan, Sir Martin slew her with his knife. In turn, Lord Declan rushed Sir Martin, and died himself upon the same knifeâbut not until heâd skewered Sir Martin through with his sword! It was a sad travesty of love and desire, for it was said Sir Martin coveted the Lady Brianna for himself, even as he swore to his men it was a way to breech the castle walls. While that left just a wee babe as heir, the castle stood, for Declanâs mighty steward saw to it that the men fought on, rallying in their masterâs name. Aye, and when you hear the wind blow in nowâlike the high, crying wail of the bansheeâthey say you can see Brianna and her beloved. Karneyâs most famous ghosts are said to haunt the main tower. Through the years, theyâve been seen, Brianna and her Declanâseparately, so they say, ever trying to reach one another and still stopped by the evil spirit of Sir Barry Martin!â
There was a gasp in the crowd. A pretty young woman turned to the young man at her side. âOh! Weâre staying at Karney Castle!â she said. âAnd the main hall is just so hauntinglyâhaunted!â
âAhha!â Gary said, smiling. âHauntingly haunted! Aye, that it is!â
âWeâre staying there, too!â said an older woman.
âAh, well, then, a number of you are lucky enough to be staying at the castle,â Gary said. âTen rooms and suites she lets out a night! Be sure to listenâand keep good watch. Maybe youâll see or hear a ghostâthere are many more, of course. Itâs been a hard and vicious history, you know. Of course, you need not worry if ya be afraid of ghostsâwhile the main tower is most known to be haunted, Brianna tends to roam the halls of the second floor, and thatâs where only the family stays.â
Devin felt a hand on her shoulder and heard a gentle whisper at her ear. âYou, my love. Have you seen Brianna?â
It was RockyâCraig Rockwell, the love of her life, seated by her side, their knees touching. And it was the kind of whisper that made her feel a sweet warmth sear through her, teasing her senses.
Rocky was her husband of three days.
But though she smiled, she didnât let the sensual tease streak as far as it might. Oddly enough, his question was serious; partially because they were staying in the old masterâs suite, since they were family, through marriageâRocky, through her. Devin, because her motherâs sister April had long ago married Seamus Karney, youngest brother of the Karney family.
His question was also partially serious because they were who they were themselvesâand what they did for a living, rather strange work, really, because it was the kind that could never be left behind.
She and Rocky had been together since a bizarre series of murders in Salem. Devin owned a cottage there, inherited from a beloved great aunt. Rocky had grown up in nearby Marblehead and hadâtechnicallyâbeen part of the case since heâd been in high school. As an adult, heâd also been part of the FBIâand then part of an elite unit within the FBI, the Krewe of Hunters.
Devin had beenâand still wasâa creator of childrenâs books. But, sheâd found herself part of the case as well, nearly a victim.
Somehow, in the midst of it all, theyâd grown closer and closerâdespite a somewhat hostile beginning. As theyâd found their own lives in dan
ger, theyâd discovered that their natural physical attraction began to growâand then they found they desperately loved one another and were, in many ways, a perfect match. Not perfectânothing was perfect. But she loved Rocky and knew that he loved her with an equal passion and devotion.
That was, she thought, as perfect as life could ever get.
And, sheâd discovered, she was a âjust about as perfect as you were going to getâ candidate for being a part of the Krewe as well. That had meant nearly half a yearâpretty grueling for her, reallyâin the FBI Academy, but sheâd come through and now she was very grateful.
Rocky had never told her what she should or shouldnât do. The choice had been hers, but she believed he was pleased with her positionâit allowed them to work together, which was important since they traveled so much on cases. While the agency allowed marriages and relationships among employees, they usually had to be in different units. Not so with the Krewe. In the Krewe, relationships between agents aided in their pursuits.
While Devin had never known sheâd wanted to be in law enforcement before the events in Salem, she felt now that she could never go back. She belonged in the Krewe because she did have a special talentâone shared by all those in the unit.
When they chose to be seen, sheâlike the othersâhad the ability to see the dead.
And speak with them.
It wasnât a talent sheâd had since sheâd been a child. It was one she had discovered when bodies had started piling up after she returned to live in Salem. The victim of a long ago persecution had found her, seeking help for those being murdered in the present in an age-old act of vengeance.