“Thank you all for everything you’ve done.” She turned to the others.
Kayla’s face turned troubled. “You better go. My energy is draining. I don’t know how much longer it will stay open.”
Arielle turned back to Calum. He took her in a fierce embrace, reluctant to let go of her. She couldn’t go through that portal and leave him.
It’s what she wants. You have to let her go.
When she pulled her head from his shoulder, she glanced at him. His gaze moved from her eyes to her mouth. He lowered his mouth to hers, capturing her in an urgent kiss. The passion rose instantly. He didn’t hold anything back, desperate to brand her with a part of him, possess her for one perfect moment. Tell her all the things he couldn’t say. How he’d never met anyone like her. How he doubted a minute would pass without thinking of her.
But it wouldn’t change anything.
She sobbed against his mouth, pulling away from him. “I have to go.”
Her eyes were shiny with tears. He swallowed a lump as hard as a microphone before he choked up as well.
He held on to her hand as she walked away, clinging to the touch of her fingers, until the last moment.
As she moved closer to the portal, a desperate urge to stop her welled up within. It took all his self-control not to destroy what they’d all worked so hard to accomplish.
This was it. The last moment he’d see her.
Arielle turned and faced him, locking her gaze on his as she stepped backwards toward the portal. Her silvery blonde hair floated around her like a halo. The energy from the portal seemed to reach out and grasp her.
Vibrant colors shot around her and then swallowed her whole. Calum stepped forward and slammed his hand over his heart.
He blinked, and reopened his eyes. But the outcome was still the same. Arielle was gone.
“Kayla!”
Mason’s shout startled Calum. When he turned, Kayla was on the ground, eyes closed.
“What happened?”
“I don’t know!” Mason exclaimed. “She collapsed in my arms.”
Calum’s blood froze. If anything happened to Kayla, Mason would never forgive him. He and Kayla had overcome obstacles that had kept them apart, the ones who were brave enough to breach the territorial divisions between species on the isle.
Mason put a hand on her cheek. “Kayla,” he whispered. “Please be okay. I need you. And our baby.” He dropped his head onto her belly and sobbed. “I need you both.”
Mason’s agony ripped through Calum. Guilt rose like a cresting wave in Calum, spreading through his body. He was to blame for Mason’s suffering. Calum was the one who’d found Arielle and asked his brothers for help.
After several minutes, Calum urged, “Let’s take her back to her coven, Mason. They can help her.”
Mason waved a hand back, releasing a cry of anguish. He then fell silent, which was even more terrifying. After several moments, he raised his head. Raw emotions burned through his red, tear-filled eyes. Calum’s muscles clenched. He’d never seen Mason controlled by such fury and despair. If he stayed on this path, he’d be consumed by blood lust, controlled by rage.
Calum swallowed. “What can I do?”
“The magic must’ve taken too much of her energy from her. She better be all right.” Mason turned back to Kayla, ignoring the question.
Calum paced from forest to shore and back. He had to do something to help his brother, but what?
“Maybe we can try to transfer our energy into her?” Calum offered.
Mason dragged his gaze to Calum. “Aye, that might work.”
Calum exhaled. It was the first moment Mason didn’t appear savage, on the verge of tearing out Calum’s throat.
The next part was tricky. Neither one of them were experts in this task. Yet, they had both passed their energy to Lachlan in the past.
“Let’s try what we did with Lachlan,” Calum suggested.
Calum took a deep breath before bending over Kayla. She appeared even younger in this state. Almost too young to have a child. What would happen to the child if Kayla never woke?
They each took several deep breaths. Calum relaxed his body and mind on the exhales until he felt centered enough to continue. He focused on passing his energy to Kayla, while Mason did the same.
For several minutes, they repeated this process.
She didn’t respond.
Now what the fuck could they do? Nothing. Gargoyles were known for strength and protection, not bloody magic!
Magic. Wait. Calum reached inside his pocket and trailed his fingers over the soft edges of Arielle’s feather.
The pegasi had a special kind of magic, one Calum didn’t fully understand, yet her hair had helped heal his burns from the dragon. The witches had asked for a single feather.
“Will you let me try with this?” Calum pulled it out.
“Are you mad?” Mason said. “That’s a bloody feather!”
“But it’s from a pegasus.”
“If our energy didn’t help Kayla, how the hell do you expect a simple feather to?”
Mason might be right. But what else were their options? Nothing except bringing her back to the coven—and facing the wrath of several witches.
“Arielle’s hair healed my burns, brother. Let me give it a go.”
Mason appeared unconvinced. “Fine,” he snapped. “I’ll do it.”
He took a deep breath and ran the feather over Kayla’s body, starting at her forehead and moving down. He spoke gently to her, encouraging her to get well. He concentrated in a circular motion over her belly, whispering to his child.
After several minutes, nothing had happened. Calum sank back on his heels, defeated. “I’m sorry, brother.” He lowered his head. “So sorry.”
Mason didn’t reply. Calum didn’t know what to do, what to suggest. So much guilt weighed heavy on him.
“She’s moving!” Mason’s voice pierced the air.
Kayla’s head rolled to the side and she moaned. Her eyes were closed.
“Come back to me, love,” Mason said to her in a gentle tone.
“It’s okay,” she said in a sleepy voice. Her eyes fluttered open. “I’m fine.”
Mason enveloped her in his arms. “You terrified me. If anything happened to you… Or the baby…”
“We’re both fine.” Kayla glanced at the shrinking portal. Her eyes widened and she clasped her hand over her mouth. She pulled herself up on her elbows. “It worked. I can’t believe it!”
“But you were unconscious. Are you all right?”
“I’m fine. Magic takes a toll. That sometimes happens conducting a spell of that magnitude.” She stared at the portal, clearly jubilant at her success.
Mason’s eyes gleamed with joy. He’d never found such happiness until he’d met Kayla. And if he ever lost her, well, Calum wondered if Mason would ever recover.
Look at him. Elated.
Love could do strange things to a man. Give him the impetus to conquer any obstacle.
Like crossing realms.
Have you taken any risks to be with Arielle? No.
The portal was closing. An impulse to jump in and follow Arielle bolted through him.
Should he? His feet itched, as he was eager to take the leap. But, he had to think, not rush headlong into another realm without thinking of the consequences.
Mason and Kayla only had to overcome prejudices on their islands. Calum and Arielle were separated by a distance far greater, which might be physically insurmountable. They lived in two different worlds, and probably fit in neither. Arielle wanted to return to her family and her home. No matter how happy they’d been, they’d never discussed a future together.
The portal closed, with no sign that ever existed. Calum stepped closer to where it had been, running his fingers through the air. A faint sense of higher energy tingled over his skin. Then it was gone.
He’d lost his chance.
Chapter 14
One day stretched on
the same as the day before. Arielle should have been content to return to her realm, surrounded by family and friends, and other pegasus shifters like her. Only the happy homecoming wasn’t what she’d thought. Something was different.
Although she’d been trying to get back here since she’d ended up in the other realm, now she questioned why she’d rushed to return.
As she interacted with her clan, the differences between them seemed more pronounced than ever. They might be the same species, but other than that they were nothing alike. She was more like Calum in that regard. He understood her—her need to explore, to experience life. And she him. She felt more connected to him than those of her own kind.
Now what could she do? She’d gotten what she’d wanted as she made it home. So, she had to find a way to move forward.
“What’s wrong, Arielle?” Her mother asked. “You’re not like yourself at all.”
It was true. Arielle usually spent her days in this realm roaming the land or flying. But, her world seemed smaller somehow, more confined than ever. There was another world out there. One in which Calum lived.
“It’s been — an ordeal.” Arielle hoped her mother would leave it at that. Of course, she didn’t.
“You’re home now. Everything should be all right, shouldn’t it?”
If only it were that easy. She wished she could control her mind to keep from thinking about Calum, and wondering what he was doing. Was he on stage commanding the crowd during a performance? Sauntering across the stage with all his magnetism? The ambiance of the pubs flashed before her mind’s eye, with all that gritty atmosphere that excited her on some primal level. She’d never experience that thrilling rush again.
If he was at a show, was he being entertained by other women at the concerts? She’d seen the way they looked at him, ready to devour. A stab of jealousy pierced her and she closed her eyes. Would she be forgotten as soon as the next woman warmed his bed? She forced the image away with a turn of her head.
She sighed. “I guess it will take some time to readjust.”
As the days went on, more doubts crept in. She fidgeted, restless, and unable to sit still. Arielle had been so hell bent on returning home that she hadn’t considered her time in another realm as an opportunity. The boredom of her home life returned. It lacked excitement, why she’d often sought adventure to begin with—which had set her on an unexpected adventure with a dragon in pursuit. Back home, she was just the youngest of three daughters. Nothing special.
She sat by a pond, and watched the shimmery reflection of a tree in the water. How she missed Calum. None of the male pegasi gave her any tingles. Not in the way her body and mind seemed to light up whenever Calum was near.
What about Sven? He’s shown interest in you.
Sven was son of their alpha and considered a top catch in the herd. Arielle tried to envision it. Her mother would be thrilled if Arielle settled down with a strong and steady shifter like Sven.
But what about Arielle?
She doubted it. He didn’t look at her the way Calum did, as if she was the lightness in his day. He looked at her like she was just another clan member.
You’re not looking at him as a lover. Picture yourself kissing him.
She forced the image of them in a passionate embrace, one like she’d had with Calum.
Nope. Nothing. Not a single twinge of excitement.
Why?
Was it because they were nothing alike? Although they were both pegasi, they had no common interests.
In those days with Calum, they never had a forced moment. Being with him had felt natural. He’d seemed content, too, often humming as they walked over the isle. She’d had something special with him. She was sure of it.
And she’d given him up.
Calum hoped memories of Arielle would fade with her gone. The optimism failed him. Nights passed with no signs of that happening, not with memories of her imprinted on every inch of the island.
I need some distance. Some distractions.
He’d never had any trouble finding a lass or two to distract him. That’s what he set out to do during their next show.
He burst out on stage determined to tear the conflicted emotions out of his head and rock the crowd, feed off their energy. He scoured the lasses near the stage, fixing his gaze on a few while he belted out The Hunt.
Then it all went to shite.
They didn’t do a damn thing for him. He didn’t want to bed any of them, let alone spend time with them.
They weren’t Arielle.
Although he usually fed off the crowd’s energy, it left him empty tonight. She wasn’t out there. He couldn’t fix his gaze on her, fueling their mutual anticipation of a hot encounter after the show.
It was time to play Conquered.
I don’t want to sing it, Calum told his brothers.
Don’t be soft, Gavin said. It’s a fucking song.
It’s too late to change the set list now, Lachlan added.
Don’t think of her, Mason added.
As if it were that easy.
Calum forced Arielle out of his mind as he sang the lyrics. At first, he started in a detached tone. He didn’t want to get too close to the lyrics. And he sure as fuck didn’t want to think about the last time he’d sung it to Arielle.
His voice took on a melancholy edge, wistful about what he’d had and what he’d lost. Lost in his head, he only barely noticed the lassies cheering like mad.
Backstage after the show, Gavin said, “You’re off tonight. Like a ghost out there. What is it?”
Calum dropped his head into his hands. “I’m fucked.”
“Shite,” Gavin said. “Not you, too. You better not be turning soft like the rest of them.”
“I’m not,” Calum protested. “What’s the use? She’s gone.”
Arielle sought out her mother and found her pulling weeds from her herbal garden.
“You know that time you took me to the other realm when I was young? Tell me about it.”
“I needed some herbs for a spell. Thought we’d go on an adventure. You were always a restless child, and had a wanderlust about you.”
Yes, back then her mother hadn’t worried so much. She hadn’t until her father had died, when her mother had turned to her daughters, overprotecting them. As if smothering them would keep them from harm.
“But how did we get there? I remember going there, but I don’t remember all the details.”
Her mother eyed Arielle for a long moment before responding. “Magic. I opened the portal.”
Hope flared within Arielle. “You can do that? Does this mean—I could go back if I wanted?”
Perhaps one day she could visit Calum. Assuming he’d be happy to see her.
Her mother grabbed a weed and tugged. “I’ve questioned taking you to the other realm ever since. It didn’t sate your curiosity. In fact, it made you even more eager to explore. And look what happened…”
“I’m grown, Mum. You need to realize that.”
Her mother gave her a sympathetic look. “I know. All I’ve ever wanted to do is protect you.”
So did Calum. But not in the way that her mother did, treating her like she was a kid even though she was grown. Calum made her feel loved not stifled and cherished, even.
“You seem different since you’ve returned,” her mother added. “Wistful rather than relieved. And somehow, you’ve grown. Did something happen while you were in the other realm?”
Did it ever. She’d met Calum. Flashes of the moments they’d spent together made her smile. The time they spent on the island. Going to his concerts. In some ways, it had been the happiest time of her life.
“Not really,” she said. Why torment herself with telling the story?
“Oh, I know that look,” her mother said. “Did you meet someone?”
Clearly, her mother wasn’t fooled. Or, was Arielle that transparent?
“Tell me, Arielle. Who did you meet?”
The most wonderful man
she’d ever known. She picked up a twig with a leaf still attached, something to distract her. She spun it, examining it from every angle. One corner of the leaf had curled, turning brown. The rest remained bright and green. The blend of colors reminded her of Calum’s eyes, colors as wild as the forests themselves.
She dropped the twig and stared at it. Closing her eyes, she took slow breaths, waiting for the ache inside to lessen.
“I found someone who would be my perfect mate. And I left a part of me back on the island with him.”
“You met another pegasi in that realm?” Her mother’s expression turned confused.
She shook her head. “No. A gargoyle.”
Her mother stared. “You must be confused. It would be natural considering you were lost in another land.”
Arielle raised her chin. “I’ve never been more certain of anything in my life.”
After she sighed, her mother asked, “Why did you return and not stay with him?”
“Because this is home. And I knew you’d be worried, wondering what happened to me.”
Her mother was silent for a long pause. “I was terrified, yes. And appreciate you thinking of me.” With a resigned nod, she added, “If he’s the one for you, being apart from him will only bring you pain.”
Arielle tilted her head as she studied her mother. “Like with Papa?”
A smile with a twinge of sadness passed over her mother’s face. “I loved him and we had many wonderful years together. We believed our love was more important, no matter what the sacrifice.”
“Do you regret it now?” Arielle felt strange asking a question she’d never asked her mother before. But the answer was more important than ever. “It left you in much pain after he died.”
With a shake of her head, her mother said, “Not at all. The pain shows how much I loved him. He will always be with me.” She put her hand over her heart.
Arielle said, “You and Papa were both pegasi. You lived in the same realm. It’s not so easy for Calum and me.” She spread her hands. “I don’t know what to do.”
Her mother gave her a sympathetic nod. “Yes, you do.”
Knights of Stone: Calum: A gargoyle and pegasus shifter paranormal romance (Highland Gargoyles Book 5) Page 12
