The Sacred Guardians Series Box Set: Books 1-4 Omnibus

by Wendy Owens

  “Gabe!” Michael bellowed. “Stop this now!”

  Gabe had never heard Michael so stern and immediately halted, looking over at his leader who was rushing towards him.

  “What has gotten into you?” Michael demanded.

  “Maybe you should be asking Uri why he is trying to steal my girlfriend!” Gabe shouted.

  “What? Are you daft?” Uri spat, overwhelmed by the accusation.

  “I was just with her, Uri! All she could do was talk about you,” Gabe argued.

  “Well, can you blame her? I do have quite a sparkling personality,” Uri laughed, glancing over at Michael who simply shook his head in a disapproving manner at the joke.

  “You think this is funny? You think destroying my life is some kind of joke?” Gabe felt himself becoming angrier by the moment. “She just told me she was thinking about asking you to the Fall Festival dance.”

  “Really?” Uri asked in disbelief.

  “What’s your game?” Gabe demanded.

  “Look, Gabe, I didn’t do anything. I have only been helping Sophie understand who the Guardians are and how things around the manor work,” Uri insisted.

  “Yeah, I bet!” Gabe said lunging at Uri again.

  “Gabe!” Michael bellowed. “If Uri says he didn’t intend for this to happen then I believe him and you should, too. The two of you are friends!”

  “Yeah man,” Uri continued. “No lies! In all seriousness, I would never do that to you.”

  “I know you were interested in her before I came here,” Gabe argued.

  “Yeah, before you came here,” Uri reiterated. “But you did come and the two of you hooked up. That took Sophie out of the game for me.”

  Though Gabe still felt frustrated and overwhelmed by the situation, he could see in Uri’s eyes that he meant the words he spoke. He wanted to punch something with all of his might, but couldn’t justify it being Uri.

  With a huff, Gabe walked over to the sofa and plopped down.

  “Are you going to be all right?” Uri inquired.

  “I don’t know. What am I going to do?” Gabe muttered, hopelessness consuming his voice.

  “Gabe, this is going to take time, you have to be patient,” Michael assured the young boy.

  “Time, Michael? She doesn’t even see me. Heck, now she has fallen in love with my best friend. How can I possibly be patient?” Gabe groaned.

  “She will come around, I’m sure of it. And I would hardly say she’s in love with me,” Uri added.

  “It just feels so hopeless. I wish I could say to her ‘Sophie, I am in love with you and you’re in love with me.’ And we would be back to the way things were.”

  “What?” Sophie’s small voice gasped from the doorway. As the three had been talking, no one noticed Sophie had quietly entered the room in search of Michael.

  “Sophie!” Gabe exclaimed hopping to his feet. “I can explain.”

  “No! Stay away from me!” Sophie cried running from the room.

  Gabe turned to give chase, but Michael grabbed his arm, holding him back. “No Gabe, let her go.”

  “But—” Gabe began.

  “You will have time to talk to her; right now she needs to be alone with it. All right? Patience. We can’t rush her through this process,” Michael said reassuring his young student.

  Gabe looked at the door, though he wanted to chase after her he knew his teacher was probably right and chose to wait. Every fiber of him wanted to give chase, but for now he would give patience a try for the sake of him and Sophie.

  “I don’t understand why this is so hard,” Gabe muttered.

  “What?” Michael asked, a confused look in his eyes.

  “If Sophie and I are destined to be, then why has it been so hard for her to fall in love with me again?” Gabe inquired.

  Michael sighed, saddened by the state of his student’s heart. “Gabe, it’s just like you and your destiny. You may be the protector of the prophet, but it is your choice to actually fulfill it.”

  “Are you telling me that even if Sophie is my soul mate we may still not end up together?” the question slipped out of Gabe’s deflated body.

  “Would you want her to love you if it wasn’t of her own free will?” Michael posed.

  Gabe thought on his mentor’s words for a moment, “I suppose not.”

  “Gabe, she loved you very much. I think it comes down to you needing to be patient and give her time. I am sure she will come around,” Michael reassured the boy.

  “Have you seen her today?” Gabe asked Dina, eagerly waiting for a sliver of news about Sophie.

  “Not yet …” Dina hesitated, it was clear to Gabe that something was on her mind that she was reluctant to share.

  “Is something wrong?” Gabe prodded.

  Dina peered over her shoulder as if to make sure no one was listening. In a low voice she muttered, “Honestly, I’m a little worried about her.”

  Gabe leaned forward, unsure why they were whispering, “I think we’re all worried about her.”

  Dina quickly stiffened, realizing she had probably already said more than she should.

  Sensing she may be hiding something, Gabe continued to push. “Is there something you want to tell me about?”

  Dina stood silent, simply shaking her head and glancing down at the floor to hide her telling eyes.

  “It has been over a week since she overheard Michael, Uri, and I talking in his office about our relationship. Michael told me to give her space so I did, but things aren’t getting better. Now, as soon as she sees me she turns and runs the other way. I can’t even get close enough to talk to her if I wanted to,” Gabe groaned.

  “I think she just needs time, Gabe,” Dina reassured her friend, wishing she herself could avoid this exact conversation.

  “Yeah, that’s what Michael keeps telling me, but I am starting to think he has no idea what he is talking about,” Gabe rebutted, tired of being told the same thing by everyone around him.

  Dina shifted uneasily where she stood, glancing around again.

  “Are you looking for someone?” Gabe questioned, aggravated.

  “No!” Dina exclaimed a bit too quickly.

  “Dina?” Gabe urged his friend to reveal her secrets.

  “Umm …” she began, still hesitant if she should be telling Gabe this information. “I guess I’m … well … I am actually hiding from Sophie.”

  “What? Why on earth would you be hiding from her?”

  “She keeps pressing me about her mother. It’s like every time we’re together she is asking me if I have heard when her mom is coming for a visit or if she could possibly call her. I keep telling her she has to talk to Michael about it, but she seems to be avoiding Michael like the plague as well,” Dina explained.

  “I’m not really surprised, after her running out of his office the other day like she did, that she is avoiding him. She must be embarrassed. I wish she hadn’t heard all of that,” Gabe confessed.

  “I get that, but I don’t know what else I can possibly say to her when she asks now,” Dina confided.

  “I know you don’t want to hear this, but someone is going to have to tell her about her mom sooner or later,” Gabe stated flatly. “I think sooner the better. The longer we wait, the less she will trust any of us when she does find out.”

  “Not only that, but I’ve run out of excuses. I really don’t know what else to say. Do you know how hard it is to change the subject when she brings her mom up about every five minutes? Before Michael left I told him how bad it has gotten and he said he would talk to her when he returned, but I’m not sure how much longer I can keep this up,” Dina worried.

  “Wait, what? Where did Michael go?” Gabe was surprised to find out he would leave the manor with the state Sophie was in.

  “Oh, you haven’t heard? The council has requested his presence for something,” Dina disclosed.

  Gabe’s mind began racing, could it be about Sophie and the wipe? Perhaps they wanted to talk
to him about the tracking device Michael had found inside Gabe’s stomach, or worse, what if Baal was coming? “Do you know why they needed to see him?”

  “Nope, it was kind of sudden though. Seems odd to me,” Dina replied.

  “Hmmm …” Gabe began. “I guess we’ll find out when he returns.”

  “Yeah, I guess.”

  Gabe’s mind shifted back to Sophie. He hadn’t seen much of Uri lately either. Though he hated admitting it, Uri’s lack of daily presence in his life had Gabe’s mind wondering about Sophie’s ill-placed crush. He would have awful daydreams about the two of them stealing off together for some alone time.

  “So … I know this sounds kind of crazy, but what is going on with Sophie’s infatuation with Uri? I feel silly even asking the question,” Gabe chuckled, trying to mask his true fear.

  “I don’t know. She was pretty embarrassed I think when she overheard everything in Michael’s office. She really doesn’t talk about it a lot. She pretty much pesters me about her mom until she gets that I won’t tell her anything and then she wants to be alone. She spends a ton of time walking through the cleric’s gardens,” Dina confided.

  Gabe felt somewhat warm about the idea that Sophie was drawn to the place that had meant so much to them.

  “Oh yeah,” Dina chimed. “Raimie told me he went out with the scouts today and they found Baal’s troops trail, it seems to be headed away from Rampart. Looks like they’ve lost your scent. I suppose that’s good news.”

  “Yeah, kind of hard to get excited when all I can do is worry about Sophie, though.” Gabe replied. He remembered Michael’s sudden trip to the council. It was clearly not about Baal finding him. He again wondered if it might be about the memory wipe.

  “I know sweetie, hang in there,” Dina said, patting Gabe on the back.

  Gabe felt overwhelmed by the frustration of it all. He turned away from his friend and, shoving his fist into the nearby wall, let out a moan. It wasn’t Dina’s fault, he knew that and he wasn’t angry with her. He wanted someone to understand where he was coming from. If just one person would try and be there for him, perhaps this would be more bearable.

  “Gabe,” Dina gasped, stunned by his behavior. “What has gotten into you?”

  Gabe turned and thrusting his back against the wall, slid to the floor in a huff. Dina, folding her legs, kneeled next to him and placed a delicate hand on his arm.

  “Are you all right?” Dina could finally see the toll all of this was taking on Gabe.

  Gabe ran his fingers through his hair, resting his elbows on his knees. His face had flushed red in his anguish. He couldn’t put into words the despair he felt. Feeling hopeless, he simply shrugged in response.

  “Come on, talk to me. Don’t shut down,” Dina insisted.

  “I don’t know how much longer I can do this, Dina. Nobody talks to me, I feel so alone.”

  “We’ll talk to you sweetie,” Dina reassured her friend who was now trembling.

  “I can’t talk to anyone about Sophie; it’s always the same thing. Everyone tells me to be patient, give her time. I feel so alone without her. Think if it were you and Raimie,” Gabe proposed without looking at Dina.

  Dina sat silent, her hand falling from his arm. Gabe wondered if he had offended her with his words. He had never thought of himself as a needy person, but perhaps he had devolved into one. He was ashamed he’d unraveled into the emotional heap he was.

  Dina slowly stood, still silent. When Gabe at last mustered the courage to look up at his friend he saw her hand extended towards him, open palm. Instinctively, he reached up and took hold. Dina pulled him into a standing position and cupped her other hand over the top of his.

  She waited for him to look into her eyes and then whispered with a slight smile, “The training area on the cliff side. Go get her.”

  Gabe’s mouth dropped open. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. At last a person was not telling him to wait, to be patient and give Sophie time. Dina understood, finally. Being deprived of the person you love is like being deprived of oxygen.

  Gabe leapt forward and embraced Dina, “Thank you!”

  With a swift pat on his back, Dina urged Gabe not to waste anymore time. “I know how you feel, Gabe. Now go tell Sophie!”

  As Gabe left Dina’s side, he busted out into a full speed sprint. His feet burned from the intensity with which they hit the earth. If he could fly there, he would have. All he wanted to do was reach Sophie and tell her everything. She needed to know that not only was he in love with her, but before all of this happened she had been in love with him as well. Their relationship was destined according to the Oracle.

  At last he wasn’t going to listen to Michael and Uri. Instead he was going to finally tell her everything. Gabe approached the stone steps near the training area. He had such fond memories of the place. When he had first arrived at the manor this was where his friends had taught him so much. He thought about the day Sophie had watched one of his earlier lessons from those exact stairs, their relationship just beginning to blossom.

  Gabe bent over, hands on his knees, heaving, trying to catch his breath. He couldn’t wait to talk to Sophie, but he wanted to make sure he would actually be able to speak when he did. With one last huff, Gabe decided it was time; in a moment he would lay everything out for Sophie. He just hoped her response would be one of joy.

  The first step, then the second … his stomach twisted as the butterflies swarmed. Gabe leaned against the cool stone wall. He wanted to catch a glimpse of her before they spoke. Peeking around the edge, he could hear faint voices and Gabe wondered who Sophie might be talking to.

  Still unable to see her, he edged around the corner a little more. At last her flowing auburn hair came into view. It cascaded down her back in large bountiful locks and Gabe longed for her smell. Her silhouette was accented by a gown that had layer upon layer of white sheer fabric. It hinted at the bare flesh that hid beneath it.

  Sophie had always been sort of a tom boy, but since the wipe a more feminine side had definitely emerged. As beautiful as she had always been to him, Gabe thought he could get used to this new aspect of her personality.

  Just before he emerged from his hiding spot, Sophie shifted slightly and Gabe could see who she had been speaking to; it was Uri. Instinctively he clung to the wall again. Dina had said nothing about Uri being here. Perhaps she didn’t know. Pressed firmly against the wall, out of sight, Gabe watched.

  He could not hear anything they said, just soft mutterings. Gabe intensely watched their interaction, hoping body language would reveal what they were discussing.

  Uri shrugged and Sophie reached out to touch his arm. Gabe covered his mouth, resisting the urge to shout. Uri pulled away, he seemed almost agitated. Sophie stepped forward but it only caused Uri to shift back even more. Gabe thought he would give anything to hear what they were discussing.

  Sophie spun around towards the cliff side. She stumbled a few feet forward and buried her face into her hands. It was clear she was crying. Gabe couldn’t decide if he wanted to go punch Uri or hold Sophie. Uri rushed up and touched Sophie’s shoulder. Gabe was at least glad he seemed sorry about upsetting her.

  Sophie didn’t move. Grasping her other shoulder Uri tried to turn her around. Before Gabe could even comprehend what was happening in front of him, Sophie turned and threw her arms around Uri. A second later their lips met in a kiss. At first it was just Sophie kissing Uri, but a moment later her lips parted and Uri was returning the passion.

  Gabe didn’t realize he had stumbled out into the open while watching the spectacle. In shock, he was only able to stare and watch the kiss happen until at last he muttered, “Sophie?”

  Uri pulled away looking over at his friend in a panic. “Gabe!” he exclaimed. Gabe looked at Sophie’s face but there was nothing. It was as if it didn’t register that she had just reached into his chest, pulled out his heart, and crushed it. Gabe’s head was spinning.

  “It’s not what it l
ooks like,” Uri insisted, running towards Gabe.

  “Save it,” Gabe snarled. In an instant, the dizziness faded and Gabe snapped back into reality. He knew he didn’t want to talk to Uri so he turned and ran. He didn’t know where to go, just as long as it was anywhere else but where the two of them were.

  Gabe could still hear Uri calling after him, but he didn’t slow his pace. He decided he would escape to Michael’s office. According to Dina, Michael had been called away, but Gabe made up his mind he would simply wait there for him to return. Michael would know how to deal with this treachery Gabe thought. If anyone could fix this it would be him.

  With his destination determined, Gabe quickened his pace. Darting through the cleric’s garden and cutting through the library hall, Gabe closed in on Michael’s office. Each step was still haunted by flashes of Uri and Sophie’s passionate embrace. Some friend, Gabe thought. Uri swore he had no interest in Sophie. That he was my friend and would never go there. Liar! Gabe had trouble quieting his thoughts.

  Gabe reached Michael’s office, bursting through the doors, panting, ready to scream with frustration. However, Gabe was startled by a man standing behind Michael’s desk, garbed in long black robes.

  The man was of above average height; Gabe thought at least six foot, five inches. His head was large and long. His hair black and cut tight and close to his scalp. His ears looked like they loosely hung from his head and Gabe couldn’t help but be distracted by the large mole on his cheek. His eyes were dark and sunken, nose large and bulbous, lips wide and thin. An unsettling, dark looking character.

  “Excuse me,” the odd man moaned in a low tone. “May I help you?”

  “What? Who are you?” Gabe demanded, trying not to reveal he was slightly afraid of the man.

  “Bishop, but I think the question is, who are you?” the man replied coldly.

  “No, I don’t think so,” Gabe said defensively. “Why are you in Michael’s office?”

  “It is my office actually, and I asked you a question,” the man paused and glared at Gabe intensely. “Who are you?” he bellowed loudly.