The Complete Gargoyle and Sorceress Boxset (Books 1-9)

by Lisa Blackwood

  But, by the God and Goddess, how had Shadowlight matured so much in so short a time?

  Gryton hated surprises.

  Unaware, and likely uncaring even if she’d known of Gryton’s displeasure, Anna continued forward. No one tried to stop her, he noted.

  “I’m told you helped Shadowlight and me escape the Battle Goddess after we fought the blood witch. I remember little after she magically gutted me. Thank you for protecting us long enough for us to escape.”

  Once again Gryton found himself frozen in surprise, speechless, not knowing what to say. He had expected no thanks.

  Anna didn’t suffer the same speechlessness he felt, though. And she smiled harshly at him.

  “Aiding us that one time doesn’t excuse you for everything else you did. Know that I won’t kill you out of respect for Lillian and Gregory, but if you step out of line or think to betray their trust, I’ll let Obsidian have you.”

  “I have no plans to betray my sire or dam.”

  The Null joined them then. The two women sized each other up. Once they had come to some conclusion, the Null directed her comment at Anna. “No worries. He’s got a new keeper. I’ll make sure Hot Stuff stays out of trouble.”

  Anna tilted her head, studying the Null curiously. After a moment, she must have concluded the Null wasn’t an enemy for her shoulders relaxed, and she lowered her guard. “And you are?” She asked the other woman.

  The Null grinned. “Private Erika Emerson.”

  Another gargoyle came forward. Gryton had been in enough skirmishes with the Legion in his lifetime to know who this was. Adept Thayn was the oldest of the gargoyles and not an opponent one rejoiced in facing in battle.

  The gargoyle elder came forward and addressed Anna. “The more important distinction is that she’s a Null. And one possessing a very ancient soul.”

  Erika snorted and muttered under her breath. “First, I’m a Null—a nothing. Now I’m old. Guess that makes me an old nothing. Thanks.”

  Thayn caught her words and laughed. “There’s nothing wrong with being old and wise. While I would gladly discuss the joys of experience, we have a lot to discuss and decisions to be made.”

  The oldest of the gargoyles glanced over his shoulder at the Avatars, his look thoughtful, or perhaps cunning was a better word.

  Gryton felt a touch of unease slide across his soul.

  Chapter 22

  Obsidian

  HE HELD HIS SILENCE and left Anna and Thayn to do the talking. It allowed him to continue his study of Gryton. It was challenging to think of the commander as family. Regrettably, it was clear by how Lillian referred to Gryton that she embraced him as her son, as someone in need of training and guidance. He also got the impression she planned to lead him further down the path of enlightenment even if she had to drag the fire elemental kicking and screaming.

  And it was also clear that Lillian wanted her younger gargoyle brother and her son to make peace. Obsidian grunted. He wasn’t ready to make peace yet, but he was attempting to get along with Gryton.

  However, if Gryton tried to get any closer to Anna, peaceful coexistence would die a swift death when he grabbed Tin Man by the throat and tossed him out the window.

  Anna speared him with a look. “Calm yourself. I have zero interest in Gryton. Besides, I think he’s just trying to get away from the Null.”

  Obsidian continued to glare at Gryton, but now that Anna mentioned it, Tin Man did seem to be trying to inch away from the Null.

  Private Emerson was having none of it and stayed at Gryton’s shoulder like a loyal hound.

  Now that he knew that she was a Null and that she’d been sent to this realm by the Divine Ones to help Gryton control his magic, Obsidian counted the human soldier a great ally.

  Gryton’s disdain for his Null keeper was entertaining. For her part, Private Emerson seemed to take great pleasure in getting under his skin. Obsidian admitted it might be juvenile, but it pleased him that the Divine Ones had created a thorn to repeatedly shove in Gryton’s side.

  When Adept Thayn had finished explaining about Nulls, Major Resnick had swiftly jumped in and begun the interrogation. Only Gran kept the debriefing civil.

  Obsidian had a feeling Thayn was silently laughing at everyone, especially at the little biting exchanges between Gryton and Private Emerson. Eventually, both sides told their stories in full.

  Lillian came over and placed her hand on his cheek. “My little brother isn’t so little anymore. Goddess, I can’t believe it’s been almost fourteen years for you. There must be so much more to tell me.”

  “And I’ll tell it all. I promise. Just as soon as we have dealt with more pressing concerns.”

  “The secret second Legion,” Gregory interjected as he padded across the room to join them. “Sly old bastard.”

  Obsidian wasn’t sure if Gregory was referring to Thayn or the Lord of the Underworld.

  Before he could ask which, there was a commotion from outside. A guard entered and whispered something in Major Resnick’s ear. The major frowned at the interruption but nodded. “Let her pass. She deserves to know Shadowlight is alive.”

  The soldier straightened, nodded sharply, and then disappeared back outside.

  Major Resnick’s use of his juvenile name wasn’t the first or even the tenth slip of his name. Obsidian supposed he had to expect it. No doubt it would take everyone a few days to come to terms with the fact he was a battle-hardened adult now. Eventually, they would grow accustomed to him and his new name.

  The door opened again. This time a dryad accompanied the soldier.

  Obsidian stood straighter, his horns rasping on the ceiling. Everyone else faded away as he focused on the dryad.

  The longer she looked upon him, the wider her eyes grew. He was becoming accustomed to the initial shock his large size inspired. River recovered quickly. Her gaze running from the tips of his horns all the way to the talons on his toes. She reversed course, meeting his gaze. Recognition reflected back at him.

  “Hello, Mother.”

  She exhaled a shaky breath. Then drew in another before her lips parted. Only a soft, questioning ‘Shadowlight’ emerged.

  “It is me.” He skirted the kitchen island and bypassed the others in the room. When he was within striking distance, he launched himself at her and wrapped her in his arms.

  “My boy. My beautiful boy!” River hugged him back with all the fierce strength in her smaller body.

  His mother’s tears wet his skin, and he knew at that moment it didn’t matter that River had served the Battle Goddess willingly; he couldn’t hate her.

  “Mother,” he whispered into her hair as his words turned into a sob. “I missed you.”

  “I missed you, too. I can’t tell you how relieved I am that you’re safe.”

  She pulled away long enough to wipe at the tears streaking her cheeks. “Look how you’ve grown. How? What did the Battle Goddess do to you?”

  “It wasn’t the Lady of Battles.” Then he gently began to tell her his story.

  When it was over, River was silent for a long time. At last, she turned to Thayn and bowed respectfully. “We might have lived most of our lives as enemies, ancient one, but I thank you most sincerely for looking after my boy. I can see he has grown into a great and powerful man, wise beyond his years. Thank you.”

  Thayn snorted. “I can’t take all the credit. Much of that thanks goes to the Divine Ones for forging two such magnificent young souls to lead the new gargoyle legion.”

  A throat being cleared drew all eyes in the room back to Major Resnick. “As heartwarming as all this is, I’m needed elsewhere. First priority is getting Gryton back on base. And second, Anna, I still have a lot of questions for you and Obsidian. You’ll both accompany me back.”

  “Yes, sir,” Anna barked and then saluted. “I’ll shift back to human form for the rest of the debriefing.”

  “I think that would be best. Your father will be there. He’ll...” Resnick just looked at
her gargoyle form and shook his head. “It will just be best if you’re in human form.”

  “Yes.” Anna swallowed hard.

  Obsidian wanted to reach out and pull her into a comforting hug but resisted because he knew how much she hated being coddled. “My meeting with my mother went well enough. Perhaps yours with your father will go just as well.”

  Anna snorted. “You haven’t met my father yet.”

  Obsidian shrugged. That was true.

  Gran approached them. “Obsidian, we kept your room ready for your return. I’m sure someone can round up a uniform for Anna. Why don’t you two go on up while I entertain Adept Thayn and the others?”

  Obsidian glanced around. Resnick looked like he wanted to throttle Gran but knew better than to pick a fight with her. As for Thayn, the old gargoyle looked delighted to spend time with Gran.

  “They’re kindred souls,” Anna whispered in his mind.

  Obsidian couldn’t have agreed more.

  “Come.” He held his hand out to her. The gesture was innocently made, but he realized everyone in the room was watching and reading more into the gesture than there was.

  Anna only grinned at him and then clasped his hand without complaint.

  “Let them think what they want,” she told him. “It’s none of their business, anyway.”

  Chapter 23

  Anna

  THE DEBRIEFING WAS hours in length. In truth, it was more interrogation than debriefing. Eventually, Anna’s superiors were satisfied with her answers or at least believed she was telling the truth. It had been a lot to swallow. She couldn’t blame them for the doubt she’d seen in their eyes more than once.

  Hell, it had been a lot for her to accept and she’d lived it.

  To her surprise, she wasn’t to be court-martialed or otherwise severely reprimanded. Lillian and Gregory were responsible for that miracle. They’d explained about the powerful compulsion that had controlled Anna and forced her to follow Shadowlight into the Magic Realm after he’d been captured.

  Anna wasn’t sure it was the magical compulsion. She and Shadowlight had been through a lot together. That formed bonds of camaraderie not easily severed. She thought she would have gone after Obsidian even without the compulsion driving her.

  As for the military, they didn’t like any part about how she could be compelled to obey Obsidian, but they weren’t so foolish to alienate the authority and influence she now had over a powerful faction of the Magic Realm fae. And Obsidian garnered bonus points for having proven to be human-friendly as a child.

  Now all she and Obsidian had to do was prove their trustworthiness to Command.

  From several new faces around the table, Anna gathered a lot had changed in the months she’d been away Earth time. Before it had only been British, Canadian, and American militaries involved, but now it looked like they’d brought in over half the allied nations into the secret.

  Beyond that, she couldn’t do more than guess, since no one gave her any information. All information was flowing from her to them. Which was to be expected, she supposed.

  “We’ll learn everything we need to know later from Lillian, Gregory, and Gran,” Obsidian whispered along their link.

  “I know.” But the debriefing had to finish up before that happened, and it didn’t look like the interrogators planned to quit soon.

  But they proved her wrong.

  The debriefing ended a little over ten minutes later. Anna and Obsidian were ushered under guard to another room in the basement of the town’s community center.

  “Now what?” Obsidian asked using their mental link.

  “I imagine we wait for my father and Major Resnick to arrive.”

  Obsidian huffed softly. “That’s likely. At one point, I thought your father was going to come over the table and attack the grey-haired man who accused you of turning traitor to humanity.”

  Anna winced at the memory. While the debriefing had gone better than she’d thought it might, there had still been more than one rough patch.

  “I could scent your father’s anxiety over the roomful of other conflicting smells.”

  Obsidian’s words made Anna glad she’d returned to her human form. Her duller senses had probably been a blessing in that roomful of hostility.

  The sound of brisk footsteps approaching drew Anna’s gaze to the door a moment before it opened suddenly. Beside her, Obsidian shifted, his stance alert and ready for anything, but not overly aggressive.

  Good.

  Major Resnick stopped a few feet in front of them and frowned.

  “Major?” Anna said and acknowledged him with a salute.

  “At ease.” Major Resnick looked them both over before his gaze settled on Anna. “That meeting might have gone better, but it could have been worse.”

  She nodded.

  “Your father is on his way. He just had to speak with General Tremblay first. There is still some discussion about yours and Obsidian’s lodgings.”

  Anna snorted. “Should I assume some of them wanted us in cages next to Gryton to be overseen by his Null keeper?”

  “Yes, until General Williams of the British Armed Forces pointed out that no one wants to see a battalion of angry gargoyles dropping out of the sky to rescue their Rasoren and Kyrsu.”

  Major Resnick only stumbled over the foreign words a little.

  “Wise of them.” Obsidian’s voice lowered until it was nearly a growl. “Anna may have started out life as a human and still is loyal to her birth race, but if anyone tries to harm or imprison my Kyrsu, it will not go well for them.”

  “Figured as much. Which is why Brigadier General Mackenzie is still back there reminding everybody what one damned gargoyle is capable of and then multiply that by ten thousand.”

  “Sounds like dad.” Anna rubbed her palms against her thighs. It had been strange sitting in a room while getting questioned and never having her father acknowledge her as his daughter.

  Oh, they were both professional. Business always came first, but that didn’t mean a kind look would have gone amiss, given they hadn’t seen each other in months.

  But he hadn’t so much is given her a hint of a smile. Now she wondered if he thought of her as changed beyond recognition. Did he believe the daughter he’d known was dead?

  Dammit. What was the point of returning to human form at all?

  “Your father is happy you’ve returned.” Obsidian dipped his muzzle and bumped her shoulder affectionately. “Along with his concern, I could also smell the relief that you had returned to him. I think it took him a great deal of inner strength to stop from crossing the room and hugging you.”

  Perhaps.

  She didn’t have long to worry. The door banged open, and her father marched in. He halted six feet away and stood there. Just staring.

  Then he held his arms open wide. “You going to just stand there blinking at me? Or are you going to give your dad a hug?”

  Half laughing and half sobbing, Anna ran to her father and hugged him tightly. His arms enclosed her and the fear that he’d never accept her new nature melted away.

  “That’s my girl. Always knew you’d come back.” His voice was strained with emotion, and when he released her and leaned back, there were tears in his eyes.

  “I tried to rescue Shadowlight and escape.” She wiped at her own foolish tears. “I always planned to bring him right back, but they captured us before we could escape.”

  Her father’s expression darkened. “The one called Gryton told us some of what occurred. Fuck. I think I grew several gray hairs just listening to that monster’s tales.”

  “It was bad, but I think it would have been much worse without Gryton watching over us. We didn’t know he was the Avatars’ son. We didn’t even know he was protecting us until he helped us escape.” Anna just shook her head. Looking back, now that she knew he’d been trying to help, she could see some ways he’d watched over them. “It could have been much worse.”

  Her father’s nostr
ils flared and his lips compressed. “It was plenty bad enough.”

  “Yes,” she agreed softly.

  For the first time, Anna’s father turned his attention to Obsidian. “Once I arrived, I talked to every Fae, soldier, and scientist who had contact with you. I read every report. Everything pointed to the fact that you adored my daughter. Which was all fine and good when you were a child.”

  He paused and looked Obsidian up and down, his frown deepening. “You’re no longer a child. I demand to know your intentions toward my daughter.”

  “Oh, my God! Dad!”

  Anna had been expecting a lot of awkward, uncomfortable questions about things she endured while in the Battle Goddess’s Kingdom and then later about her time with the Legion. But this line of questioning wasn’t one she’d prepared for.

  Though, perhaps it shouldn’t have come as a surprise. Obsidian was no longer the innocent cub, and Anna was a full-blooded gargoyle now.

  Her overprotective father was going to come at Obsidian full throttle.

  “It’s nothing like that. Obsidian is still Shadowlight. He might have matured and bulked up like a bodybuilder, but he’s still my brother.”

  Her father snorted. “That might be how you think of him, but I assure you, he’s male and will have unbrotherly thoughts. You can’t trust him.”

  “You are wrong in that,” Obsidian said, joining the conversation. “Anna can trust me always. Yes, I’ve matured. And the Battle Goddess made many modifications to me that I passed on to Anna when I converted her, but I have known of these changes for many years, and my mentors have trained me well.”

  Obsidian elaborated further, explaining how his blood, saliva, and seed were all designed to convert others into his slave gargoyle army. He then followed that explanation with another, telling the general how his mentors had seen the signs early and trained him to ignore that part of his nature.

  As for the ability to command Anna, his mentors had drilled into him how wrong it was to steal another’s will.

  “Do you see?” he asked into the heavy silence. “I never have and would never steal Anna’s will.”