“However, there was nothing the gargoyle could do. He’d already fallen in love with the dryad and given her a child. I imagine he hadn’t intended that to happen, for no creature of the Light would willingly beget young in the Battle Goddess’s domain.” Another shrug. “Darkness hasn’t yet told me all the gritty little details.”
Anna nearly choked on a bit of rabbit. She knew Shadowlight called his father Darkness. She looked down upon the gargoyle child, and everything snapped into place. The cryptic comment earlier about his parents wanting to help Lillian but unwilling to leave Shadowlight behind enemy lines.
Well, fuck.
Shadowlight and his sister were created in part due to this Battle Goddess’s manipulations.
Greenborrow took a flask from an unseen pocket. “You see why it’s better the boy not be reminded of where he came from?”
“Hell yeah.”
“I do not believe the boy is evil, but I certainly don’t trust his mother. She only betrayed the Lady of Battles because her love for her children was slightly stronger than her fanatical loyalty to her overlord.”
“How do you tell a kid his mother happily serves the Antichrist and is also a willing member of a terrorist organization?”
Greenborrow nodded. “He was likely created to be the equivalent of a weapon of mass destruction. Because I can guarantee you, the Battle Goddess planned for Shadowlight’s birth as surely as his sister’s.”
Anger kindled in her stomach. She was familiar with human monsters, had seen enough of their work, but what kind of monster breeds for children specifically so she can use them to achieve her own twisted plans? A demigoddess, apparently.
Greenborrow took another sip from his flask and then handed it to her.
She took a big gulp, and the alcohol burned all the way down.
“Moonshine?” she wheezed.
Greenborrow laughed. “Only the best.”
He sobered and studied Shadowlight for a few minutes.
“I see no darkness upon him. Even the unicorn and the pooka detected no traps or taint within him. After what happened to Lillian, they know what to look for.” He looked up at her. “But Lillian’s demon seed remained dormant for twelve years before it roused. Darkness swears there is no evil within his son, and I believe him.”
“Believe or believed?” Anna stressed the past-tense.
“Shadowlight possesses the purest spirit I’ve ever seen, and the unicorn concurs.”
Anna breathed out the lungful of air she’d been holding.
“But there is something clearly odd with his blood.”
“How so?” she asked guardedly and found her one arm coming up to circle protectively over Shadowlight’s head while he slept.
Greenborrow waved at her. “You, dear. You’re the proof. You’re living, breathing proof something is not as it should be. His blood should have killed you or healed you, not changed you.”
“Maybe you’re overreacting. It’s only my nails after all.” She flexed her fingers to study the oddity in question.
“It’s not just your nails. Your eyes are solid black like a gargoyle’s, and your ears are pointed.”
“Okay, so I can’t see my eyes, but I’d know if my ears were suddenly pointed.” Her seeking fingertips circled the lower lobe. It felt normal, and then she moved on up to where the top curve should be yet wasn’t. A defined point met her seeking fingers. “Fuck. Fuck it! Fuck it all to hell!”
“I think you may need to expand your vocabulary a little more. You seem overly fond of a certain word.”
Glowering, she demonstrated the depth of her vocabulary in a creative string that went on for over a minute.
Greenborrow arched an eyebrow. “Or continue as you were. We can finish this later if you prefer.”
“Sorry.” She bit out and swallowed a few other choice words she’d had all lined up. “Go on.”
“Shadowlight may not even know your changes aren’t normal, or there might be some instinct or implanted memory from his mother’s bloodline that’s guiding him. Either way, I doubt he’s aware your changes signal a darker purpose.”
Greenborrow reached out and took her hand, pressing at the base of each nail bed and watched as the talon flexed out until it was fully extended. “These differences are why you and our young friend are in danger. While the other fae may not know if Shadowlight serves the Battle Goddess, the possibility alone will be enough for some of them to act and eradicate that risk.”
“Then why am I alive? Why tell me all this? Surely you could have just killed us before we were even aware.” She was on the verge of shaking Shadowlight awake. Maybe together they could overpower the leshii.
“Just because the Battle Goddess has plans for our young gargoyle here, and you now by association, doesn’t make either of you instantly evil. As I recall, the Battle Goddess had plans for Lillian and Gregory as well. So far, they are doing a fine job of foiling her plans. I hope you and Shadowlight will continue the tradition.” He shrugged. “Or you and he may bring about the destruction of all, but either way, it’s bound to be an interesting few years.”
Anna gaped at the old reprobate, speechless for the first time.
“Wake Shadowlight or his meal is going to get overdone.”
Still too flummoxed to think, she gave Shadowlight’s shoulder a shake. It took two more tries before the kid stirred.
“It’s dinner time.”
Chapter 23
SHADOWLIGHT STARTLED awake but was quick to accept the hot meat Anna handed him. He’d eaten his kills raw before but found he liked them cooked better. He devoured his portion and looked around for more. A spurt of guilt assaulted him when both Anna and Greenborrow offered him half of theirs.
Anna gave her offering a little shake. “Take it. You’re three times the size of us and still growing. You need it.”
He took what they offered.
After his belly was full, his brain kicked in, and he realized he’d drifted off to sleep while their dinner had cooked. A wave of hot embarrassment swamped his body. So much for staying alert and keeping watch.
Wanting to at least sound more like an adult than a fat pup who had overslept, he asked, “What plan of action have we devised?”
Anna laughed, and he realized she’d picked up on his thoughts again.
“The kid wants to know what he missed while he napped.” She ruffled his mane affectionately. He didn’t like that she’d embarrassed him in front of Greenborrow, but he did rather like the scratch behind his ears. He leaned into her fingers and forgave her earlier laugh at his expense.
“We talked some boring old history and then some adult conversation you’ll get to hear about in a few years,” Greenborrow said with an accompanying wink.
Shadowlight’s curiosity spiraled up another three notches.
He rolled his eyes up at Anna.
“He told me about my new eyes and ears. Also, a bit about gargoyle history, the other fae, and why they won’t view a human—even one with gargoyle blood—as a friend. That’s about as far as we got.”
Oh, good. He hadn’t missed much then.
“I’ll help you hide her,” Greenborrow said as he picked up his knife and started carving his piece of wood. “You can’t keep her out in the open like she’s part of a zoo exhibit.”
Shadowlight felt his ears wilt. “It was the best I was able to find given the time I had.”
“I’m not criticizing you. Just saying it’s time to find a better lair. I just happen to know a good one.”
SHADOWLIGHT STARED doubtfully at the large, three-story home Gran called the Cottage. He’d been inside it before, had, in fact, slept an afternoon away inside one of the second-floor bedrooms the day after the battle with the Riven. His parents had shared the room with him, likely to be certain he didn’t wander off and get caught by the human soldiers who had been sniffing around.
“I don’t think this is a good plan,” Anna whispered close to his ear.
He wa
s inclined to agree. Turning his questioning look to Greenborrow, Shadowlight used his tail to tap the leshii’s shoulder.
“Oh, ye of little faith.” Greenborrow gestured at the home. “It’s a great place to hide. The entire top floor is an attic, but there is a hidden room in the northeast corner with fully functional facilities. I’ve stayed there a time or two before. It’s a fae safe house, designed to be soundproof as well.”
“Safehouse? Really?” Anna questioned.
“During the Wild Hunt the occasional young hothead gets hurt, and we need a safe place to stash them so they can mend where no human will find them. We have other such places throughout our territories. Though this one is the closest.” He shrugged. “It’s empty now, and since Shadowlight’s parents will likely wish to stay close to Lillian and Gregory, our young gargoyle will have the run of the place without drawing suspicion. It certainly shouldn’t be too difficult to sneak food. Besides, gargoyles all eat like horses. No one will be surprised if a young, growing gargoyle takes some back to his room for later.”
“It might work,” Shadowlight admitted.
“Of course it will work. Let’s see if we can get our human friend up there without anyone knowing.”
“Don’t gargoyles have a super sense of smell? At least Shadowlight does. Aren’t I in danger of getting tracked down by scent?”
“We’ll have to use a spell to cloak your scent as we travel through the house, but once you’re situated in your new quarters, you should be fine. None of the gargoyles go up into the attic. If it was the middle of winter with all the windows closed, we might have had to try somewhere else. However, this is the best we can do for the short term.”
Greenborrow glanced toward the east. “We need to do this now. It will be dawn in another hour and a half. Then others will start to stir, and I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to be the one who has to explain to Gregory why we’re sneaking a human into his territory without his knowledge.”
Anna made a small, unhappy sound. “He’s one of those Avatars, right? Let’s not run into a demigod.”
“I’ll make introductions if we are so unfortunate,” Greenborrow added cheerfully.
Shadowlight whined.
ANNA HARDLY DARED TO breathe as she made her way up the stairs. Greenborrow led the way while she and Shadowlight hung back. The young gargoyle was using his shadow magic to hide their presence, but it wouldn’t shield them from another gargoyle.
In other words, if they met anyone getting up for a piss, she really hoped it wasn’t a gargoyle.
The trip up to the second floor was uneventful. Greenborrow led them down a long corridor, flanked by what she assumed were bedrooms on either side. When they reached the end, he turned right onto another short hall. This one ended at a brown wooden door. He produced a key, unlocked the door, and opened it to reveal another set of stairs. These ones obviously leading up to the attic and what was to be her new prison.
They made their slow way up the stairs, Greenborrow pointing out the seventh and tenth treads were ‘blighted noisemakers’. Anna committed them both to memory. It was bound to come in handy later when she planned her escape.
Unlike when she’d been trapped under the energy dome, she now had a hope of escape.
Even if they erected other protections to keep her here, she figured they couldn’t summon another dome. At least not without putting up a sign the equivalent of a drive-in movie screen saying, ‘come look what we’ve hidden in the attic.’ She liked her new odds much better.
“What is a drive-in movie screen?” Shadowlight asked.
Oh. Shit.
“Something I should know?” Greenborrow asked.
Shadowlight explained, and the leshii’s broad shoulders shook with silent laughter. At least he didn’t make enough sound to give away their location.
She just reached the top of the stairs when a bright silvery light seared her eyeballs, and she raised her hand to cover her watering eyes. When she was able to see through the floating spots obscuring her vision, she located Greenborrow holding a small glowing ball of light.
Anna blinked while she took in the strange sight. The leshii and the gargoyle had used magic before, but it was still all so new to her; she just had to stand and stare. Her mind kept looking for logical reasons to explain the impossibilities that kept cropping up.
But she still hadn’t found any. She compressed her lips and frowned. How the heck would she explain all this to her superiors?
“You’ll have your physical changes to act as proof for some of your story,” Shadowlight added helpfully.
“I thought you said you couldn’t read my thoughts? That I had to project them?”
Shadowlight patted her shoulder. “With my magic cloaking both of us, it’s the same as if I was touching you. Physical touch strengthens our magical link.”
“Why on Earth did you just give me that information? I could use it against you later. Kid, learn some basic survival skills.”
“I have. I now know how a human thinks.”
“We’re not all the same you know.”
“No? I’ll learn what I can from you anyway. Would you actually try to run away if you could? We’re linked through my magic. I could track you before you got far.”
She sensed hurt accompanying the young gargoyle’s words. He took it as a personal failure that she wanted to escape instead of staying and being his friend. He didn’t word it as such, but it was there in her mind. Poor kid was starved for attention.
An unhappy twist of emotions churned within her. The kid was so damn sincere about everything, and she’d hurt his feelings. Damn it. She shouldn’t care if she hurt his feelings. He was her captor. Guilt still kicked her in the gut.
“Do you know what duty is?” she asked at last, after a lengthy internal debate.
Shadowlight nodded his head. “All gargoyles are born knowing it is our duty to serve the Light, to protect those weaker than ourselves.”
“The same duty rules me, too. I serve and protect my people. It’s my duty to share what I’ve learned so they can better protect themselves. It’s not that I wish to abandon you, kid. It’s that I have a duty to my people first and foremost.”
Shadowlight butted her in the shoulder. “I’m your ‘people’ now too. I’ll help you keep the other humans safe.”
His response touched her in a way she wasn’t ready to admit, so she fell back on snark. “You’re such an innocent.”
And she realized no matter what happened to her, she couldn’t let the other humans ever get their hands on Shadowlight.
“See. Told you.” He sounded far too pleased with himself, but she could only smile at his boldness. He was correct, he was one of her ‘people’ now too, and she would protect him. Something within her demanded it.
“Now children,” Greenborrow whispered. “We don’t have time for group hugs. We need to get Anna settled into her quarters.
Anna nodded sharply and walked into the room. Inside it was not precisely cramped, but not spacious either. She’d slept in worse. The room was sparse. Its only furnishings a narrow bed, nightstand, lamp, and dresser. That was about it. The walls were unfinished plywood, but the floor was carpeted. It would help muffle noise, and Greenborrow had said the room was sound-proofed by magic.
Off to her left was a small bathroom.
“Is there anything else I can get you?” Greenborrow asked. “Shadowlight doesn’t know a lot about humans, so he may not have stocked your bag with useful items.”
“Razors and tampons would be nice since you’re asking.” That reminded her of something, and she went over to her pack and rooted through it until she found the pregnancy test. “I certainly don’t need this, but since Shadowlight said he took one of everything he found in his sister’s vanity, someone might want to return this before she misses it and starts asking questions you don’t want to answer.”
Greenborrow stared at the box she held out for all the world like he was gobsmacked.
Shadowlight leaned in closer for a look. “I didn’t know what that was, but she had several stuffed behind other items. I didn’t think she’d miss it.”
Greenborrow jerked his gaze to Shadowlight. “She has more than one?”
“Yes, several. Why, is that bad?”
“It doesn’t concern you but thank you for letting me know. I will see this gets to where it needs to go.” Greenborrow gave Anna an old-world bow. “Now I must be off, and our young gargoyle needs to go find his bed before his parents find it empty. Dawn isn’t far off.”
Anna watched as they left, closing and locking the door behind them. She was a prisoner for now, but she would get free and then run to the nearest military personnel she could find. At least now she knew where she was, and which direction led to the rest of civilization.
All in all, it had been a harrowing few days, but she’d survived and had gathered more intel since meeting the young gargoyle than the whole science team had in three months leading up to this. She just had to find a way to get it to her superiors without endangering Shadowlight. She didn’t want to see the leshii come to harm either, but he was old and wise. She bet he could take care of himself just fine.
Chapter 24
“THAT WAS AN EPIC WASTE of time and money,” Lillian mumbled as she stood in front of the vanity and looked down at the pregnancy test in her hand. Like the other two varieties she’d used, this one just showed a purple blob instead of the marks it was supposed to.
Well, what had she expected? She wasn’t human. She shoved the useless test in the garbage, tossed some crumpled facial tissue on top and made a mental note to find a better way to dispose of the used tests. As she washed her hands, she remembered the one military tail had seen in her basket at the drugstore and had raised an eyebrow at her purchases.
Yep, she’d best burn them all in a bonfire later tonight. That way there was no chance of them falling into the hands of some scientist.
The Complete Gargoyle and Sorceress Boxset (Books 1-9) Page 66