A Forbidden Temptation

by Donna Grant

  Val looked to the cave and saw Nicole at the entrance. Her black hair, loose and hanging around her shoulders, blew in the gentle breeze as she watched them.

  “Whose dog is this?” Aimery asked.

  Gabriel laid a hand on the tall beast. “Mine.”

  For long moments Aimery simply regarded Gabriel. “I have no news,” Aimery finally said. “I’ve been to Stone Crest and Hugh, Roderick and Cole are fortifying the castle as we speak.”

  Gabriel fingered the hilt of his sword. “I don’t like this Aimery. We’re taking a huge chance.”

  “We don’t have any other way. I have my soldiers surrounding Stone Crest.”

  Val nodded. “Even if we were able to reach Stone Crest, based on what you told me today, I think it’s imperative that we kill the Gryphon here.”

  “What did you learn?” Aimery asked sharply.

  Val paced the shoreline as Gabriel told Aimery of his findings and Nicole’s reaction.

  When Gabriel was finished, Val turned to Aimery. “There is something different here. No one has heard of the blue stone.”

  “That doesn’t mean it isn’t here,” Aimery said. “You just need to look for it.”

  Val shook his head. “I don’t think so. An evil brought Nicole here. Why do you think that is? For her entire life, the village has made sure she stayed right here,” he said pointing to her cottage. “She was left on the shores of this loch, Aimery.”

  “He’s right,” Gabriel said. “The village has gone to a lot of trouble to keep her here. I doubt they would let her leave easily.”

  Aimery turned to the cave and waved Nicole towards him. “Let’s find out, shall we?”

  “What is it?” Nicole asked as she reached them.

  Val looked deep into her beautiful violet eyes. “If you could leave here, right now, would you?”

  She nodded eagerly. “Aye, I would.”

  “Then, lets try,” Aimery said and reached for her hands.

  Val waited for Aimery to disappear with Nicole, but nothing happened. “What is it?” he asked Aimery.

  The Fae commander released Nicole’s hands and blew out a frustrated breath. “Whoever brought her here has also anchored her to this place.”

  Val hated that he was right, but at least they knew what they were up against. In order for them to take the fourth Chosen one back to Stone Crest, they had to kill the Gryphon. He exchanged a glance with Gabriel who had also reached the same conclusion.

  “What is it?” Nicole asked. “Are you saying I cannot leave?”

  Aimery shook his head. “You were right, Val. There is something much more going on here than the stone and the creature. I must speak with Theron and Rufina.”

  In a blink Aimery was gone, and Val turned to Nicole whose eyes had gone round with fear. “Nay, you cannot leave. Not yet at least.”

  “I’m doomed then,” she said and wrapped her arms around herself.

  Val removed his fur lined cloak and wrapped it around her. “You shouldn’t have come out here without your cloak. You’ll freeze to death.”

  When she raised her face to him, he saw the desolation in her eyes. “It would be better than being ripped apart by the Gryphon.”

  “We won’t let that happen,” Gabriel said.

  Val wrapped his hands around Nicole’s arms until she faced him. “I vow to you that I won’t let the Gryphon harm you. Do you hear me?”

  She nodded and lowered her gaze. “I appreciate what you are both doing, but it’s useless. I’ve known it my entire life, but I allowed myself to hope for the first time last night. Having that hope ripped from me is worse than never having any at all.”

  Val let her go when she stepped out of his arms and turned to walk to the cave. He dropped his head and raked a hand through his hair.

  “What’s going on with you?” Gabriel asked.

  Val shook his head and turned away from his friend. There was no way he could tell Gabriel the truth. “She depends on me. I won’t let her down. I can’t let her down.”

  He didn’t wait to see if Gabriel would respond but quickly walked away, needing time alone with his thoughts and a past that forever haunted him. * * * *

  Gabriel watched his friend walk away. There was no doubt that something bothered Val. Usually Val was calm and stoic, nothing much affecting him. Odd that since they had met Nicole he seemed on edge.

  Very odd.

  Gabriel glanced at the cave then at Val’s retreating back. Only four of the Chosen were needed, and three found their mates in the Shields. Could Nicole find her mate in Val?

  He hoped so because Val deserved happiness. Gabriel refused to think about being the only one who wouldn’t find his mate, but, then again, men without a past didn’t deserve much of anything.

  Chapter Eight

  Regardless of how far or fast Val walked, he couldn’t leave his past behind. He had thought because he hadn’t been plagued with the nightmares for awhile that they had gone. They might be gone in his sleep, but he could still hear his sisters’ screams as they begged for his help.

  When he came to a fallen log, he brushed off the snow and sat because he didn’t know how much longer his trembling legs could hold him. The only thing he was thankful for was that none of his Shield brethren could see him now. He made sure they only saw the staid, calm Val.

  For so long his concentration had been on killing the creatures, and then locating the Chosen. Now, he found himself in a situation he had prayed never to be in again—and like a fool, he had given a vow. At least this time, it was a vow he knew he could keep. He wasn’t the naďve young man that he once was. Time and evil had seen to that.

  He raised his gaze from the calm waters of the loch to the sky and found the sun above him. Though he wasn’t ready to return to the cave, despite being chilled to the bone, he knew Gabriel and Nicole would be waiting on him to eat.

  Slowly, he rose and began the trek back to the cave. He refused to think about the past and instead looked at the beautiful snow covered scenery. The only sound was the crunch of his boots on the snow.

  Right before he got a whiff of evil, the hairs on the back of his neck rose, alerting him that someone was watching—someone evil.

  Instead of walking to the cave, he stood at the loch where just hours before he and Gabriel had talked with Aimery. He crossed his arms over his chest to warm his hands in case he needed to use his sword, and as he pretended to admire the loch, his eyes scanned the mountain and groves of trees around him.

  Nothing moved. Nothing made a sound. But something was definitely out there.

  Behind him, he heard footfalls and rocks sliding down the mountain. Val didn’t need to turn around to know it was Gabriel. Each of the Shields knew each others habits, voice and walk, and could pick each other out of a crowd blindfolded.

  “What is it?” Gabriel whispered as he came to stand beside him.

  “Evil.”

  Gabriel took a deep breath. “Ah, the stench of evil. Do you think it’s the Gryphon?”

  “Nay. Something worse.”

  Gabriel swore under his breath. “My bow and arrows are in the cave.”

  “It’s all right,” Val said and turned to smile at Gabriel. “You protect Nicole in the cave. I’ll face whatever is out here.”

  “Not alone,” Gabriel argued. “You may have a gift of mastering any weapon, but I refuse to allow you to face this unknown evil alone.”

  Val knew arguing with Gabriel was futile. “Fine. We’ll both return to the cave.”

  “It’s a better defense anyway,” Gabriel said as he turned and started toward the cave. “Give me a moment to get in the cave and get my bow notched.”

  Val gave a quick nod while he tried to locate which direction the evil was in. A short time later he heard Gabriel give a bird whistle. Val took one more glance around him before he turned and started up the mountain to the cave.

  When he stepped inside, Nicole stood several paces behind Gabriel, twisting her hands while Laird sat at her feet.

  “Wh
at is it?” she asked. “Is it the Gryphon?”

  “I don’t know,” Val answered and reached for his halberd. “Just stay at the back of the cave if something happens.”

  Thankfully, she nodded and moved away, and Laird followed her. Val didn’t know how long he and Gabriel sat in the shadows waiting for something to attack, but nothing did.

  “Whatever it was is gone,” Val said as he stood.

  Gabriel nodded after he took a deep breath. “I hate the stink of evil.”

  Val stretched the kinks from his back. “This has me worried. If they saw Nicole come from the cave earlier, then they know she’s here.”

  “I didn’t smell the evil then, and Aimery surely would have noted the evil.”

  “True, but just in case, let’s make sure Nicole stays in the cave until all of this is over.”

  “I agree,” Gabriel said. “Now come, let’s eat.”

  Val’s stomach rumbled as soon as he reached Nicole and the fire. She gave him a smile and handed him a large piece of bread and cheese.

  “I don’t have much left in my cottage, but we should get it while we can,” she said as she handed Gabriel food after he had lowered himself to the ground.

  Gabriel nodded as he took a bite, and Laird moved closer to him.

  “I’ll go down later and get what you need,” Val said around his food.

  They all sat around the fire and ate in silence. Several times Val caught Nicole glancing nervously toward the entrance.

  “You’re safe,” he said.

  She shrugged. “I know.”

  But he didn’t believe her. She was frightened, and with what was coming for her, he would be frightened, too. He looked over his shoulder and saw the light fading quickly.

  “We’ve lost most of the day. Going to your cottage may have to wait until morn,” he said to her.

  “There’s nothing I need now.”

  Val turned so that he sat near Nicole, and so he could see the entrance to the cave that was a good fifty strides from them. Where Gabriel had built the fire was hidden by a large formation that jutted from the cave wall, so anyone walking into the cave wouldn’t automatically see the fire.

  It was a perfect defense; Val just wished the rest of the Shields were with him. All five of them could easily take the Gryphon.

  He sighed and rubbed his eyes with his thumb and forefinger as he yawned.

  “What was your childhood like?” Nicole asked.

  Val turned to find her staring at him. “Mine?”

  She smiled and nodded. “I am looking at you.”

  “It was a typical Roman childhood of any senator’s child.”

  She laughed, the sound delightful in the somber atmosphere.

  “Since I know nothing of your Rome, you’ll have to be a little more detailed.”

  He glanced over and saw Gabriel watching him. Val spoke rarely about his time in Rome, and he knew Gabriel was curious.

  “There isn’t much to tell really,” he said with a shrug. “My father, as a senator to Rome, was broiled in politics. Everything our family did was a reflection on him. We had to dress a certain way, act a certain way, and say the right things all the time.”

  He thought back to his mother and smiled.

  “My mother hated the time he was gone from the house. Father was always with the senators debating some issue or another, and the higher my father rose in the political arena, the less we saw of him. She tried to make his absence less noticeable by keeping me and my sisters occupied.”

  “She sounds like a good mother,” Nicole said.

  Val looked at her and smiled. “She was. Oh, she had her faults like everyone, but she was a wonderful woman. And beautiful, too. She had the most amazing hair, dark blonde hair that curled into ringlets that I would wind around my finger.”

  He didn’t know why he was telling them all of this. Maybe it was because they were good memories, and he didn’t mind sharing those. Or maybe it was because he knew Nicole hadn’t had a good childhood, and he knew she wanted to have a peek into his.

  Nicole sighed. “Sounds lovely. And your sisters?”

  “They were mischievous little vixens who were constantly in trouble, and it was my duty, as their elder brother, to get them out of whatever they had gotten in to. We were all very close for a time.”

  “What happened?” Gabriel asked.

  Val licked his lips and picked up a stick to stir the fire. “I came of age. My father thought it was time I received the proper training of a senator’s son.”

  Nicole leaned forward. “Which meant what?”

  “School of course,” he said. “I hated him for taking me away from my mother and sisters, but I quickly found a group of boys that became my friends. From them I learned of the debauchery and excess my mother had kept hidden from me.”

  He didn’t wish to say more, but he knew they would want to know the rest of the story.

  “So what happened?” Nicole asked softly.

  “To my disgrace, I became the very thing my mother had wanted to keep me from. I became a true Roman in every sense of the word. It wasn’t until I joined the army that I learned she was ill. I was in when she died.”

  Nicole’s hand came to rest on top of his. “I’m so sorry, Val.”

  He shrugged. “By the time I was granted leave and returned home, it had been three months since her death. My sisters had grown up in my absence and married. They had my mother’s beauty and my father’s adventurous spirit.”

  Before Nicole or Gabriel could ask more, Val rose up on one knee and reached for the water skin. “Tell us more about Margda, Nicole.”

  Nicole wasn’t fooled. She knew Val changed the subject because there was something he didn’t wish for them to know. Just a glance at Gabriel showed the worry that lined his face as he watched Val.

  “There isn’t much to say,” Nicole finally answered. “She was a witch, in every sense of the word.”

  “She practiced black magic?” Gabriel asked.

  Nicole shrugged. “I don’t know. I never saw anything, but there were times she would disappear and not return until morning.”

  “Do you think she was seeing a man?” Val asked.

  Nicole laughed and shook her head. “Nay, I don’t think she was seeing anyone romantically.”

  Gabriel leaned back against the cave wall and asked, “How long did you live with her?”

  “Until I was ten and four. She caught a fever at the beginning of spring and never recovered.”

  “So, you just stayed in the cottage?” Val asked.

  Nicole recalled the day she had started to pack so she could leave only to find out the villagers had other ideas. “Before Margda was even buried, the village elders came to see me to say that the cottage was mine.”

  “Why didn’t you leave?”

  “Where was I to go?” she asked. “I had no coin and no family. Starving didn’t really appeal to me at the time.”

  Gabriel snorted at her sarcasm and scratched Laird’s neck. “They didn’t allow you to leave, did they?”

  She slowly shook her head. “At the time, I thought it the right thing. I was finally alone, to do as I pleased without Margda standing over me. I thought I was free.”

  The longer Val sat beside her, the more Nicole found it difficult to think. She had never been around many men, and the ones she had were usually the village elders. The men of the village tended to stay far away from her.

  Oh, there were the few who would venture near her cottage to see if they could catch a look at her to see if she really was as crazed or evil as the villagers claimed her to be.

  But Val was different.

  Not only was he as handsome as sin, but he had an easy way about him that immediately put her at ease and made her feel safe. She couldn’t describe exactly what it was.

  And to make matters more complicated, she couldn’t understand that while Gabriel was a handsome man, he didn’t make her stomach flutter as Val did.

  Then she found her gaze on Val’s lips and wo
ndered what it would be like to be kissed by him. Since she had never been kissed, she had no idea if his lips would taste as good as he looked.

  Suddenly, his lips curved into a small smile, and she jerked her gaze to his and saw a flicker of something cross his eyes. Her breath caught in her throat as his gaze slowly lowered to her lips.

  Before she could help herself, she licked her lips and could have sworn she heard Val groan low in his throat.

  Gabriel saved her from making a fool of herself when he cleared his throat and said, “So, you thought you were free. I take it the villagers made sure you knew otherwise.”

  “Aye,” Nicole said and hastily looked away from Val. He was more tempting than the freedom she sought so desperately, and, having never found herself attracted to a man, the emotions were heady indeed.

  “How?” Val asked.

  She shrugged and tugged at her skirts. “It was little things at first. The village elders would bring me food and other items. It wasn’t until several months later that I realized they did it to keep me out of town.”

  Gabriel’s brow furrowed. “Did you not go into the village with Margda?”

  “Nay. Margda rarely went into the village herself, so I never thought anything of it. It was only after I told the elders that I could get the food myself that they made it clear they would bring it to me.”

  “How long did this last?”

  Nicole turned to Val at his question. “Another three months at the most. Then, they stopped coming at all. I knew where Margda stashed the coins, so I gathered them and went into town when I ran out of food.”

  She remembered that day vividly. She had been so excited to finally see the village and meet someone her own age, someone that could be a friend. But it wasn’t meant to be. She suppressed a shudder as she recalled the force with which the first rock hit her.

  Chapter Nine

  “What happened?” Gabriel asked softly.

  Nicole swallowed and looked at her hands in her lap. “It wasn’t what I expected. No one would sell me any food.”

  “What did they expect you to do? Starve?” Val asked.

  “Nay. They just didn’t want to supply me with food anymore. It wasn’t long after that Donald began to bring me food and material for clothes. I always paid him for his troubles, because I knew what the villagers would do to him if they ever found out.”