by C. D. Gorri
It was too much to take in. Everything he’d ever been taught dictated he destroy the Were and report the sorceress responsible for harboring him. Every single code of honor he’d ever had or sworn to uphold demanded he comply with the Council’s orders. But his heart, his foolish heart would not turn her in. So, Garren did the only thing he could do and it was the hardest thing he’d ever done in his life..
He turned his back on her and walked out of the clinic doors.
Chapter 23
“Good night, Knox,” Isabeau tucked the young Were in under his blankets and dropped a kiss on his furry forehead.
His transformation would be any day now, and his physical appearance reflected that more and more with each passing minute. She watched him for a moment. Without the fur and ears, he was just like any other boy, exhausted from running around all day and happy with his belly full of his dinner.
Isabeau placed extra wards on the clinic before she went to follow where Garren had last walked. Her heart was as heavy as her mind. She hadn’t lied to him. Not really. Just an omission of something that might be true. She didn’t have facts. How could she? This was a fairy tale for Pete’s sake! A thousand-year old prophecy that spoke of peace and harmony and could be attributed to a million other things. He had no right to be angry!
After that brief moment of self-righteousness, Isabeau hung her head and allowed sorrow to seep in. The moon was bright, though not yet full. She heard the gentle roar of the African lion in his pen not far from the clinic. Her sanctuary was full to capacity with animals both normal and magickal, but she’d never felt so alone.
Because of him. All because of Garren Strengest. The sorcerer had snuck in past her best defenses and somehow, he was permanently etched inside her heart. Branded there like a tattoo. She loved him. It was as simple and as enormous as that. Isabeau loved Garren. And now, he’d left her. After just twenty-four hours.
She felt her very soul stretch to its limits. Beau let out one soft sob then clenched her mouth shut. She would not cry. Not here with so many ears to listen. Instead, she held onto the trunk of a walnut tree to steady herself.
How is Knox? A voice said inside of her head. She turned and found Artemis sitting up beside her.
“Just fine,” she answered aloud.
Where are you going, mistress? After the man? He is that way, you know.
Beau looked at the wolf who had been her companion for many very long years and nodded her thanks. Yes. She needed to go after him. To explain.
She turned towards the direction Garren had walked and straightened her shoulders. He might have every reason to walk out on her, but not before he listened to what she had to say.
Chapter 24
“You know this is the boy, Beau, you have always known.”
It was a statement not a question. Isabeau stood regally in the shadows and listened to him, she could feel the thoughts clicking around in his brain as if they were her own. He was conflicted and jaded, but he wanted to believe. She was as certain of that fact as she was of the fact that she’d fallen completely in love with the man in the course of one night.
“You’re a sorcerer Garren Strengest, a powerful one. You have been an Enforcer for almost all of your three hundred years. Loyal and honest. You have seen things that would haunt most of the beings in our world. Dangerous and evil things. I know it is hard for you to believe, but yes, Knox is the one.”
“But you didn’t tell me-”
“I am telling you now. At great risk to my charge and to myself,” she pointed to her heart as tears stung her eyes. He was looking down, away from her, and she saw the shadows of his doubt closing in all around him. It hurt that he did not believe her. So badly she thought she’d break in two.
“Garren, the Council was formed in a time of chaos to help our kind and the Enforcers were their means to bring in the unruly, but you know better than most that their power is being abused. Things are going wrong. We are killing what we should revere. Making war instead of peace.”
“We are trying our best, Beau.”
“You are trying your best, but you cannot speak for the Council. Knox will stop all that madness, Garren.”
“He is just a boy.”
In that one sentence, Isabeau felt hope rise in her chest like a bird beating its wings in a closed room, prepared to take the flight of its life. His silver eyes glittered in the darkness and she saw his emotions real and raw inside of their depths. She was right to love this man. He was everything that was right and good in the world. Even if he walked away from her, she would love him still.
“Yes! My sweet Garren, you said it! He is a boy. Not a thing. And this is his destiny. He can do it with my help, with your help. We need you. I need you.”
“Isabeau,” his voice was a whispered growl, but she felt his need tangled within the word itself.
“Stay,” she pleaded, “stay with me.”
Chapter 25
Garren was many things, but he was no coward. True, he wanted to tear down buildings and burn whole forests away when he’d first understood the secret she’d kept. But now that she stood before him, pleading with him, he found he could not look away.
So, he stood silent and watched her closely as she spoke. She was so beautiful, beguiling even, but this was no spell she weaved. This was his lady fair in all her glory.
He felt his heart pound and his blood pump faster as she spoke. He was a sorcerer, yes, and she a sorceress. They were the same at their very core. Two halves brought together under impossible circumstances.
He had a job to do, but if he were as honest as he claimed, he’d admit she was right. There was something rotten in the Council. Had been for centuries. Isabeau was out here alone trying to right all the wrongs in the world by herself. She was so brave. How could he not love and admire her?
Did he believe in her cause? He knew deep down that he did. As an Enforcer he had vowed to keep magickal beings safe from harm, even if that harm was caused by themselves. His vows never spoke of policing creatures for the sake of the Council’s whims. And isn’t that what he’d become? A hitman for a Council run by a madman.
Isabeau was right, but was he willing to take a chance on everything he’d ever believed in? Now that was the real question.
“Well? Will you stay with me then? Be a part of this?” He saw hope and fear in her eyes. That fear nearly brought him to his knees.
“Let me sleep on it, Beau, let me sleep on it.”
He walked over to her and kissed her gently on her full lips. He forced himself to walk away, though he wanted nothing more than to bury himself deep within her and stay there forever. He knew that what they needed now was distance and clarity.
“You’re welcome to stay in a guest room,” she began but he was already walking towards the woods.
“I’ll be fine, Sorceress Rose,” he smiled at her, calling her by her formal title, “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Garren,” she said and the hitch in her voice had him wavering, “go have your space, but take this with you should you decide to come back.” She slipped a pendant around his neck on a long gold chain.
It bore the head of a wolf with one green emerald for an eye and one silver sapphire for the other. He accepted the pendant and walked off leaving Isabeau to watch after his retreating figure.
Chapter 26
Garren entered a clearing in the woods about ten miles away from the sanctuary. His dragon skin jacket kept him warm. The light of the near full moon made it easy to see. Heart heavy and soul torn, he had questions that needed answering. So, he raised both arms wide and chanted low and deep. Before him an image appeared, translucent but tall enough to represent the three Council members with whom he sought an audience.
“Greetings Enforcer Strengest,” the one witch in the trio said. She had short black hair and appeared no more than twenty, but Garren knew Winifred Wellden to be well over five-hundred years old.
“I greet you three representatives of
the Council,” Garren spoke with the reverence he’d been taught from an early age.
“What have you to tell us of your mission, Enforcer?” asked the Wizard Gimm standing on the right side of the witch in his long navy robes with great gold buttons down the front, barely visible through his immense grey beard.
In the middle of them was Hayden Jorgensen. He was of medium height and slight build. His red eyes danced in is pointed face, his blonde hair slicked back and tied in a knot at the nape of his neck, he was young-ish looking, but that too was nothing mor than a glamour that Garren could easily see through.
Hayden looked around anxiously, and Garren swore it was fury that flashed across his face when he saw the Enforcer was alone. Before he could answer the question posed by the Wizard Gimm he was interrupted by Hayden.
“Why have you failed, Enforcer? Is the bitch protecting that thing too strong for the likes of you?” He snarled the question baring his perfectly straight teeth in a threat.
“Do not dare utter that word about Sorceress Rose in my presence again Hayden Jorgensen or you will regret it.” Garren’s threat was met with shock by the man he’d once respected. He could see it now. The pettiness, hate, but most of all, the fear that seemed to ooze off Hayden like so much slime. He dismissed the man and addressed the other two beings he’d summoned.
“High Council members, I respectfully ask that you give me some time with this mission, it would seem all is not as I had been told-“
“You were told what we know, are you saying we are wrong then, Enforcer?” asked the Wizard Gimm, obviously offended.
“The boy is more than just an orphaned Were. I don’t believe he is dangerous. I think he may be the one to fulfill the great prophecy, my lords and lady,” Garren said respectfully.
“Your job is not to think. It is to enforce our laws. Our laws say that an orphaned Were is too dangerous,” interrupted Hayden, but even Garren could see his excitement was misplaced.
“You seem agitated, sir,” Garren began.
“Agitated? Ha! That thing will create havoc and lead people to question our laws and I, I mean, we cannot allow that. The boy must die!” Hayden hissed angrily.
“Jorgensen, we sent the Enforcer to capture the child not to kill him,” Witch Wellden interrupted, her expression shocked.
“I didn’t realize that your position gave you the power over life and death, Hayden,” Garren growled, “I thought the Council’s job was to protect all beings magickal and non, not to enforce laws simply for that sake of those laws.”
“How dare you!” Hayden spat out in his fury.
“Gentlemen please,” interrupted Winifred Wellden, “though Hayden you are head of the Council we still must bring this matter to all the members and put it to a vote. Something is not right here.”
“Weres are dangerous!” Hayden hissed at the witch, but Garren noted his attempt to appear calm and respectful.
“He is being cared for by someone of great power,” Garren interrupted.
“Weres are only dangerous when alone because they can’t control their change. If the Enforcer is right, this Were is being looked after. We have three days until the transformation, it is enough time to reach a decision about the prophecy.”
Garren could see Wizard Gimm liked the idea and Hayden could not be more furious with either the interruption of his words or his plans. While they spoke amongst themselves Garren watched, he noticed Hayden’s eyes flash angrily though he nodded his agreement.
“Fine,” he announced, “We will deliberate.”
Quicker than they appeared, the three of them were gone, and Garren was once more alone in the woods.
Chapter 27
He settled down against the trunk of a tree and thought back to the day he first spotted Isabeau. It was not the day they met. It was long before that actually.
He had been watching her for weeks now. Took interest in her as she moved about taking care of the creatures around her. These woods were a perfect place for her to have her sanctuary. It was secluded, quiet. Nothing but farmland and a few scattered goat, cattle, and even horse ranches around. She didn’t draw much attention to herself or her practices.
As far as anyone knew she was young and single with a veterinary degree in both wild and domestic animals. She ran her place with few volunteers and donations. She shopped at the local grocery store, was seen at the shopping mall, and a few local restaurants on occasion. Just enough to stave off questions. She seemed perfectly adapted to life in the human world.
Most magickal beings chose to live in private communities where their magick could be practiced in the open. These villages and cities existed throughout the world without the knowledge of humans due to a few complicated spells and wards that kept them out.
He knew of most of those places. The Grand Canyon was actually the site of a marvelous magickal city that the naked human eye only saw as a huge natural phenomenon. There was also one of Garren’s favorite, the Gobi Desert, a popular vacation spot with wonderful beachfront hotels on a marvelous magickally hidden port to the ocean.
So many places. So many things to see and try. Garren’s job of course had led him to most of them at one time or another. Still, it never ceased to amaze Garren. There was just so much size and depth of the magickal community. So much more than the Council was currently teaching. Maybe Beau was right. There was a reason why stronger beings, those with their own classifications, rules, and hierarchy, were no longer following the laws of the Council.
He had always had great adventures on his job, but lately he had been feeling restless, even angry. Being an Enforcer had always been the most important thing to him. Until now.
Isabeau Rose with all her passion and strength was filling all his senses. Even when he tried to distance himself from her. He could still smell the spicy scent of her on his skin and taste her sweet honey on his lips.
Garren could’ve been there with her. Right now. Instead of sleeping in this damned clearing by himself.
Isabeau. She was everything to him now. His lady fair. The other half to his soul. How keenly he felt the distance between them on this night. It had been years since he’d indulged in an affair of any kind, and never with a sorceress. He knew the legends.
One soul, two beings. His lady fair would own him, body, heart and soul. He’d just never believed it before. Just as he’d never believed in the prophecy of one boy who would one day bring together all magickal peoples in peace and harmony. One boy who would stop the renegades and bring unity. A fairytale. Or was it?
The sounds of the forest sounded loud in his ears, but all of it lessened to a dull roar as he closed his eyes and sighed. An image of his redhaired lady fair burned inside his mind.
Chapter 28
Garren doubted if he had ever really believed in anything before he met Isabeau Rose. He knew now that everything she’d told him was real and true. The Council was corrupt. His obligation as an Enforcer was null and void. He served no fake masters.
Garren wanted to go back to her right then. He would too, if he didn’t feel like such an ass. He didn’t need to see Hayden to know the man was just wrong. He’d only had to look inside of himself to know it. Hopefully, she would listen tomorrow when he apologized. He’d grovel if need be.
Just as he began to doze off, Garren heard a long howl. It was followed by more howls, honks, growls, and roars. Soon, the entire forest full of animals were sounding alarms. He sat up, heart racing. Then he heard it more clearly. Fierce howls and screeching coming from the direction of the sanctuary.
Garren jumped up and sped off on foot, faster than any human eye could see. He used his powers to aid him over the terrain. His lady fair needed him. He would never again stray from her side.
“I’m coming, Beau,” he huffed and pressed on faster.
As he neared the wooden sign for the Beleza Wildlife Sanctuary came into view, Garren saw them. Large, hooded figures that were trying desperately to climb or break through the ever grow
ing, ever widening gate that surrounded the place.
Garren reached into his dragon skin coat and pulled out what looked like a sling shot. Only his ammunition was no rock. It was magick.
Garren pulled back on the band and released his hold, chanting a few choice words. Blue lightning flew from his touch towards the hooded figures nearest him. He hit the largest one on the right the hardest and the figure disappeared instantly. Again and again he let his magick fly and the shadow creatures vanished one at a time.
Garren ran to the gate’s entrance. He heard the animals screeching and knew she was aware of what was happening. Was she injured? Captured? Panic had his entire body trembling.
“Beau?! Where are you?!” he looked around frantically but received no answer. He had to get to her in time. For once in his life, he felt powerless, and he didn’t like it. Not one bit.
Chapter 28
The grunts and screams of the would-be intruders were steadily growing as did their numbers. These were not real creatures, but the magicked apparitions, shadow creatures who could do real harm.
Garren took comfort in the fact that they hadn’t breached the gate. Then again, neither could he. His lady fair’s wards were stronger than usual. He tried pounding and using force, but the thing would not budge.
Panic threatened to consume him, but he fought against it. Closing his eyes, Garren concentrated on finding Isabeau. Within seconds, he heard her chanting in his mind. Then he saw her. Rising above the sanctuary in a swirl of emerald and ivory robes her green eyes aglow with power, Isabeau called upon old magick to protect her home and all in it. Very old magick
Suddenly, Garren remembered what she had said earlier about him coming back. He reached inside his jacket and pulled the wolf head pendant Isabeau had given him out of his shirt.