A Warrior's Heart

by Donna Grant

  At this early time of the morning, not many people had ventured from their homes, and Danielle knew it was going to be decidedly difficult to get into the castle by herself. She was going to need help, she decided.

  She stopped as she reached the long, winding road. To her left was the imposing castle. She was anxious to get inside the castle walls and find Gabriel, but too many years of searching had taught her some measure of patience.

  Her options were few. She was just about to step back into the forest and wait until later in the day when she heard something down the road. She peered to her right and strained to hear just what was making the racket so early in the morn.

  The rickety old wagon being pulled by an equally old horse turned the corner in the road, and Danielle couldn’t help but smile. She now had her way into the castle.

  “Damme, ol’ Ruth,” the old man cursed as he tried to get the horse to move faster.

  “I know ‘tis cold. Believe me, me old bones feel it just as yours do, but yer load isn’t that heavy.”

  Danielle stood waiting in the middle of the road, but it appeared the old man hadn’t seen her and the horse wasn’t going to stop.

  “Do you need some help, sir?” she said. When he didn’t answer, she spoke louder and hid her smile when he jumped.

  He stood just a few strides from her as he came to a halt and looked at her as if she had just sprung up from the earth. He looked to be a kindly old man with tufts of white hair poking out of his head and his face a mass of lines and wrinkles against skin so pale she could see his veins.

  “A lass? Helping me? Nay, girl. I should be the one helpin’ ye.”

  Danielle smiled and walked to the mare. She patted Ruth’s neck as she looked at the wagon.

  “I’d offer ye a ride, lass, but I’m afraid ol’ Ruth just cannot bear it.”

  She waved away his words. “I’m hale and hearty, sir. Let me lend you a hand to get out of this cold. Where are you going?”

  A WARRIOR’S HEART

  Donna Grant

  11

  “To the castle. I’ve got some food for me granddaughter that I need to get to her and her younguns.”

  Danielle picked up one of the bags of food. It wasn’t as heavy as she first perceived, so she grabbed another one. With a bag in each arm, she walked until she stood beside the old man.

  “That should help Ruth a bit, aye?”

  He smiled, showing several missing teeth. “They call me Jobbins.”

  “Good morn, Jobbins. I’m Danielle.”

  “You speak like a lady, Danielle. Are ye sure ye should be out here alone?” he asked looking around.

  Danielle laughed. “Come, Jobbins. ‘Tis cold and your granddaughter needs her food.”

  Behind her she heard Jobbins coaxing Ol’ Ruth to get moving again.

  Surprisingly the mare did move a bit faster. Danielle didn’t like how she worried about the mare or Jobbins. It had been a long time since she had interacted with people, and she hadn’t expected to feel the ache for her family after so long.

  She wasn’t given long to dwell on her thoughts as they reached the massive wooden gates of Stone Crest castle. Danielle slowed her steps until Jobbins was even with her. She hoped the old man would vouch for her when they were stopped by the menacing looking guards. Yet, the guards called to Jobbins by his name, as they asked about his family and even how Ol’ Ruth was holding up in the weather. Never once did they ask about her, though one of the guards did watch her suspiciously.

  Danielle walked with Jobbins through the gate and into the bailey. She let her gaze wander around the large enclosure as she continued to follow Jobbins. Her heart raced with anticipation. Gabriel was in the castle. He was so close she could almost feel him.

  At long last she would have her revenge.

  “Danielle, lass, Ol’ Ruth and I sure do appreciate yer help this cold morn’,”

  Jobbins said as he stopped the cart. Danielle opened her mouth to tell him it was no problem when several children ran up to him and Ol’ Ruth.

  She watched Jobbins with his great-grandchildren, the love he held for them shining brightly in his eyes. Danielle felt her eyes begin to sting, and she hastily blinked and turned to find a young woman standing beside her.

  “Good morn,” the woman said.

  Danielle glanced at the woman to find her black hair pulled back in a neat plait and her figure slightly plump from childbirth. “Good morn.”

  “Did Grandda talk ye into helping him?” she asked with a friendly smile.

  Danielle returned the smile and laughed. “Nay, I insisted on helping him since Ol’ Ruth was having a hard time. My name is Danielle.”

  “Thank you for your help, Danielle. My name is Lizzie,” she said as she took one of the bags out of Danielle’s hand. “Every winter I expect it to be Ol’ Ruth’s last, yet every season she lives on. I’m not sure what we’ll do when that mare finally does leave us.”

  With the children helping Jobbins and Lizzie, the small cart was emptied of food A WARRIOR’S HEART

  Donna Grant

  12

  quickly. Danielle stood by Ol’ Ruth and petted the tall mare as Jobbins argued with Lizzie about leaving. Lizzie finally got her way and convinced Jobbins to stay for awhile.

  “I need to see ta Ol’ Ruth,” Jobbins said.

  “All right, but make sure you come straight back here. There’s no reason for you to be staying by yourself in those hills when there’s room for you here.”

  Jobbins tsked at Lizzie, but Danielle could see he liked his granddaughter’s attention. “Thank ye again for all yer help, Danielle. If ye ever need anything ye can find me here or in my cottage in the hills. Ye cannot miss it. Just follow the road and then take the left fork.”

  Danielle waved as Jobbins walked Ol’ Ruth to the stables. With a deep breath she turned toward the castle and stopped dead in her tracks. Coming toward her was none other than Gabriel.

  She had wondered if she would be able to recognize him after so long a time, but he hadn’t changed at all. His tall frame still bulged with muscles, and his gait was that of a man with a purpose. His face no longer held the boyish charm and instead was closed and unforgiving.

  With one hand on the hilt of his sword and the other arm swinging beside him, he made his way toward her. Even from the distance she could see his molten silver eyes, eyes that had once held warmth and promise now were as cold and hard as a lake in winter.

  Danielle made herself walk toward him. It wasn’t time for her to attack. First, she needed to study him, to get close to him.

  He was nearly upon her when she raised her gaze to his face. She knew he couldn’t see within the hood of her cloak which was the only reason she allowed herself a glance at his face. It was leaner, harder. And his hair was longer, well past his shoulders now.

  As she drew along side of him she could still make out the red strands mixed with the varying shades of brown. A smile pulled at her lips as she moved past him.

  He was within her reach. Just a little more time and then Gabriel would die.

  * * * *

  Gabriel stopped in mid-stride. He turned and looked at the woman that had just passed him. There had been something familiar about her, something that nagged just out of memory, which was distinctly odd since he had seen nothing of her face.

  He watched as she disappeared amid the people of the bailey, and though a part of him wanted to follow her to discover who she was, he knew it would be folly. The Shields needed him more than he needed to satisfy his curiosity.

  With a shake of his head, he continued on toward the other Shields.

  “Well?” Cole asked impatiently as he walked up.

  Cole had been found by the Fae, as well, though the reason he couldn’t remember his realm was that he had been but a small child and the realm had been destroyed by the Great Evil.

  Gabriel nodded to Roderick and Cole. “Val and Hugh haven’t returned from their look to the east. I searched th
e forest and found where someone had stood all night.”

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  Donna Grant

  13

  “Did you smell evil?” Roderick asked.

  Gabriel

  leaned

  against the thick curtain wall that surrounded the castle. “A faint whiff, nothing definite.”

  Roderick growled and raked a hand down his face. “Cole and I searched the south woods and found nothing.”

  “Did you venture to the monastery?” Gabriel asked.

  Both men shook their head. “I think we all should search there.”

  “Maybe so,” Cole said as he leaned against the stones with his hand. “I don’t like that place, and I don’t think neither Mina nor Elle wish to return any time soon.”

  “They don’t need to,” Gabriel answered. “I think it better if the four Chosen stay inside the walls of the castle.” As he looked at his two friends he realized something else. “You both should stay and protect your mates.”

  Roderick shook his head. “I’m not going to leave you, Hugh, and Val to fight this evil alone.”

  Gabriel pushed away from the wall and looked at the four women as they walked from the castle laughing and talking like old friends. He wondered what it was like to find a connection to the past, something or someone that would help to heal the void within him. The four Chosen had found that in each other, and they were as close as if they were sisters.

  “Nay, that’s not what I mean, Roderick,” he said. “All of you need to defend your mates.”

  Cole’s dark gaze narrowed on him. “We are brothers in this, Gabriel. You cannot fight this alone, nor will I allow you to.”

  How could Gabriel tell them that he knew he had to fight this alone, that his four friends must protect their women in order for the evil to be vanquished?

  “We haven’t even found the evil yet,” he said in answer to Cole. “Until we do, it’s all a moot point anyway.”

  “Speaking of the creature,” Roderick said. “Doesn’t either of you find it strange that it hasn’t shown itself yet?”

  Gabriel nodded. “I’ve been thinking on that. Before, the creatures have always been large and powerful, beasts that no ordinary man could defeat.”

  “True,” Cole said. “First the gargoyle, the Harpies, a Minotaur, and then the Griffon, a beast so pure that it was thought never to turn evil.”

  “Yet, it did,” Gabriel said. “Each creature has been more powerful than the last.”

  “What are you getting at?” Roderick asked.

  “Just what Aimery told me last night. We need to look for the unexpected. This is the Great Evil’s last chance to end this and gain power.”

  Cole smiled as understanding filled his dark eyes. “The Great Evil isn’t going to send us a mythological beast to battle.”

  “He’s going to send us something we’d never expect,” Gabriel finished.

  Roderick whistled. “By the gods, what are we going to do?”

  “Keep the women safe,” Gabriel said.

  “Easier said than done,” Cole muttered. “All I hear from Shannon is that she wants to help us hunt the evil.”

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  Donna Grant

  14

  Gabriel glanced around the bailey, hoping to see the cloaked woman again, but many wore black, nondescript cloaks, making his search in vain.

  He turned back to his friends. “Have the women stumbled across anything that would show them what they needed to do to kill the Great Evil once and for all?”

  “Nay,” Roderick answered. “They try not to show it, but I know they’re becoming frustrated. All of them assumed that once the fourth was found, they would have the answers.”

  Cole inhaled deeply. “You’ve the right of it. Shannon said they have tried nearly everything they can think of, but nothing seems to work. She’s afraid that there will come a time when they must band together and none of them know what to do, which will mean the Great Evil will win.”

  “I wish he had a name,” Gabriel mumbled. “I want to see his face, to know what he is.”

  Cole grinned. “You always were more prepared once you got a look at the creatures.”

  “I’m not sure seeing the Great Evil will aid us,” Roderick said.

  “Meaning?” Cole asked.

  Roderick turned away from watching his wife to look at his fellow Shields.

  “Meaning, Gabriel is right. No matter what, we won’t be prepared for whatever is sent to us, even if it’s the Great Evil himself.”

  “True,” Gabriel admitted. “However, I think it’s the not knowing that is eating away at everyone.”

  “The not knowing what or when,” Cole corrected.

  Roderick nodded. “You’ve the right of it, Cole.”

  “Well, I need more,” Gabriel said. “I’m heading out to the monastery.”

  “I’ll come with you,” Cole said and pushed away from the wall.”

  Roderick nodded. “You think there’s something there?”

  Gabriel shrugged. “I have no idea, but because two battles with the creatures were at the monastery, there might be something there.”

  “Good luck then,” Roderick said. “I’ll stay behind with the women. I don’t like leaving them alone.”

  “Keep them together,” Cole said over his shoulder as he followed Gabriel to the stables.

  As the two men hurried into the stables, the stable boys moved out of the way because they knew that all the Shields liked to saddle their own mounts themselves.

  Gabriel had just finished fastening his saddle and mounting when Cole walked his horse up.

  “Ready?”

  Gabriel nodded. “Ready.”

  They clicked their horses into a trot and rode out of the dimly lit stables into the bright morning sun. The horses snorted, creating clouds out of their breath. Gabriel’s gaze roamed the bailey, though he wasn’t sure what he looked for.

  They approached the castle gate, and Cole called out a greeting to the guards, who hastily opened the massive structure enough so that they could pass through.

  A WARRIOR’S HEART

  Donna Grant

  15

  Once they left the bailey and heard the gate close behind them, Gabriel nudged his mount into a gallop. Winter had England firmly in her grasp, as was evident by the blanket of white on the ground and the ice covering the lakes.

  It wasn’t until they reached the line of trees that began the forest that Gabriel felt it. He pulled back on the reins and brought his gelding to a stop.

  “What is it?” Cole asked as he drew alongside him.

  Gabriel’s gaze roamed over the castle. “Someone is watching us.”

  Cole chuckled. “It is probably nothing more than a servant or one of Stone Crest’s people seeing what we are about. I’ve never seen you so edgy before,” Cole said as he moved his horse into the forest.

  Gabriel hesitated a moment. He wasn’t uneasy by nature, but he couldn’t stop the niggling in his mind that something was going to happen. To him.

  And it wasn’t going to be good.

  A WARRIOR’S HEART

  Donna Grant

  16

  Chapter Four

  Danielle stood atop the battlements and watched Gabriel and the other man as they rode to the forest. When Gabriel stopped his mount and turned to watch the castle, she knew he had felt her gaze.

  And she was glad of it.

  She was curious to know if he could feel his impending doom. Just the thought that he might be a bit frightened brought a smile to her lips.

  It was hard for her to admit, even to herself, that seeing Gabriel for the first time since … well, since he had ruined her life had upset her more than she had expected. She hadn’t known exactly what she would feel, but the excitement of finally capturing her prize had outweighed the fear of seeing him again.

  Laughter from the bailey below reached her. Danielle drew her thin cloak tighter around her and looked
over the side to see four women huddled together laughing and talking.

  At one time she’d had friends and family, people she could laugh with and spend time with. But that was before Gabriel. Now, as she stared at the four very beautiful women, she felt a pull within her, a longing for her old life she hadn’t felt in many years.

  Suddenly, one woman’s gaze rose to Danielle. She had eyes the color of a clear blue sky and thick auburn hair pulled away from her face in a thick braid.

  “Hello,” the woman said.

  Danielle jerked and realized she was staring. She nodded at the woman and turned away. When she glanced at the forest she found that Gabriel and the other man had rode into the thick trees. For so long Danielle had been on her own, keeping to herself at all times. She realized that might not have been the wisest choice since she would have to mingle with the people of Stone Crest in order to get close enough to Gabriel to kill him. And then get out before anyone realized she had been the one to kill him.