A Warrior's Heart (Shields)

by Grant, Donna

  Only to find nothing.

  It was then he remembered using it on Hugh and never replacing it. He gritted his teeth as a wail of anger built inside him. This couldn’t be happening. Not now. Not to Jayna.

  “Shhhhh,” Jayna whispered as her cold hand rose up to touch his cheek. “It was not meant for you to save me, my love. I’m so sorry. For everything. I was such a fool.”

  “Nay,” he said again, his throat closing with agony. Tears burned his eyes as he struggled to think of other herbs that could save her. “You won’t die. I am a great healer, you know. I will save you.”

  Tears poured from her eyes to fall down into her hair. “You cannot.”

  “I lost you once, I won’t do so again,” Gabriel vowed as he looked through his black bag, seeing herbs but nothing that could bring her back from the death that was coming to claim her.

  He turned back to her then and placed his hands on either side of her head. “Jayna.”

  “I love you. I’ve always loved you.”

  “Forgive me for betraying you.”

  She smiled. “I already have.”

  Gabriel raised his gaze to Aimery. “Save her. Please. My life for hers. Take my life and give it to her.”

  “I wish I could do as you ask.” Aimery lowered his gaze.

  With a curse, Gabriel returned his gaze to Jayna. “Don’t leave me,” he begged as her eyes began to close. “Jayna. Please.”

  “I never have,” she whispered.

  Gabriel took her hand. Her grip was light, barely there. “Dammit, Jayna, fight. Fight death as you fought me,” he bellowed.

  Her eyes slowly opened. “Let me go, Gabriel. Let me find the peace I seek.”

  Gabriel could only watch as her life slowly ebbed from her to paint the snow red.

  Her hand fell from his, signaling the end. He had never felt so useless, never felt so...empty as he did now.

  His entire body shook as he kissed her forehead before placing her hands together. After a deep breath, he stood and faced Aimery and the Shields. He looked at each of them, hoping they would say something. Yet no one moved. The loss of Jayna touched him to his very soul, and the need to hunt the Great Evil was all that kept him from lying down beside Jayna and wishing for death.

  “You know the truth now,” he said slowly. “The memories I feared were much worse than you could imagine. I am from an ancient race of this realm –Babylonians. I was gifted with healing abilities, and so was sent from realm to realm learning all that I could.

  “Eventually I knew how much power I wielded in these hands,” he said as he gazed upon his hands. “With my healing powers, vast knowledge of herbs and then the magic I learned, I could bring people back from the brink of death. The offers I received were numerous, the sums...enormous. But I wanted more.”

  “That’s how the Great Evil found you,” Aimery said.

  Gabriel nodded slowly. “I was an easy target. I was power hungry, and he gave me that power. He shifted me through time and made me near invincible. All that he asked was that I help him in one small task.”

  He hesitated as unwanted memories flooded him. “He sent me to Jayna’s realm. A realm rich in minerals, life and...magic. What I didn’t know was that the evil had been steadily going from realm to realm, destroying them. I helped him get into the realm, and once in, it didn’t take him long to annihilate it.”

  “I don’t understand,” Mina said. “How did this realm manage to keep him out?”

  Aimery sighed loudly. “This realm was small, but their magic was strong and true. The Fae had helped to combine our magic with theirs to keep any unwanted evil out of the realm. There has to be a balance of good and evil, so they couldn’t extinguish the evil that already resided on the realm.”

  “How exactly did Gabriel get in then?” Hugh asked.

  Gabriel inwardly cringed at Hugh’s words. He didn’t blame Hugh though for he knew if he was in Hugh’s place, he’d think him evil as well.

  Aimery glanced at Gabriel. “Because for all of Gabriel’s faults, the evil knew Gabriel wasn’t evil. Gabriel’s thirst for power is what allowed him to be seduced by the dark side, much like Nicole’s brother.”

  “My brother was trapped for centuries,” Nicole whispered as her gaze rose to Gabriel. “How did you manage to get out from the Evil’s grasp?”

  Gabriel turned and looked at Jayna. “My orders were to make sure I was in the fray, I didn’t realize what that meant until the attack started. I refused, and the Evil threatened Jayna’s life, which left me no choice. I kept my sword in my hand and stood to the side sickened at the destruction.”

  He licked his lips and turned back to the group. “When I saw one of the many creatures enter the palace, I charged in after it since I knew Jayna was there with her family. I battled the creature and wounded it, but it was already too late for most of Jayna’s family. Her father was the first killed. I found her at the back of the castle hunched over her two small sisters that had been slain.

  “She knew I was part of it, knew I had brought the evil to her realm. She attacked me, and I let her. I deserved death and she deserved her retribution.”

  Silence filled the air then. Gabriel looked around to find the mist completely gone.

  “The Great Evil has left,” Shannon said.

  Aimery shook his head. “Nay, he’s gathering his forces. To leave these ruins would be folly. We wait here for the attack, for he will attack us first. He wants Gabriel.”

  “Why?” Val asked as he moved toward Gabriel. “You betrayed him.”

  Gabriel shrugged. “I wish I knew.”

  “Tell us what happened next,” Cole prompted.

  Gabriel wasn’t deceived by their even tone. He knew they felt betrayed themselves and he couldn’t blame them. “As much as Jayna hated me, she couldn’t kill me. She had wounded me gravely in her grief, though I’m not sure she realized what she had done. I knew it was just a matter of time before I died, but before I did I wanted to end the evil.”

  Roderick snorted. “Fool. You are only human.”

  “True. Yet, I knew I could. I made it back into the castle and stood guard as a group of people stood together fighting the evil. I don’t know what they chanted for I couldn’t understand the words, but they were defeating the Great Evil.”

  Elle’s mouth parted as hope filled her eyes. “You mean, like we are supposed to do?”

  Gabriel nodded but couldn’t meet her eyes. “That’s when the evil sent in another creature, a Hydra, a nine-headed beast. There was nothing between the creature and these people but me. I fought him as best I could, but I was no match for him since I was already wounded. He got past me and killed most of the small group. That’s when the evil came for me.”

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  “Yet he forgot the gift he had given you,” Aimery interrupted.

  “Aye,” Gabriel said as he met Aimery’s gaze. The Fae commander’s gaze was steady, no hatred or disgust shown in his fine features. It gave Gabriel a small measure of hope. “My immortality. I tried to find Jayna to take her with me, but she was gone. The realm was about to implode, so I opened a doorway.”

  Aimery gave a quick nod. “And was found by us. The Great Evil cannot venture into our realm, which shielded Gabriel from him.”

  “And his memories?” Hugh asked. “Did he lie to us all this time?”

  “Nay,” Gabriel nearly shouted. “I would never deceive you like that.”

  “He’s speaking true,” Aimery said calmly. “Theron, Rufina, and I were able to discern some of his memories but not all before they were closed off to us all together. At the time, we thought Gabriel had closed himself off to us, but I realize now that wasn’t the case. The Great Evil might not have been able to reach Gabriel, but he still had enough power over him to keep his memories locked.”

  Gabriel ran a hand down his face. “Why? Why does the bastard want me so badly? I’m of no use to him now.”

  “Really?” Aimery cocked his hea
d to the side as he regarded him. “You said that some of your memories were still hidden. Think, Gabriel. What could you have seen that the Great Evil went to such lengths to keep from you?”

  Gabriel turned to the women. “I’m sorry. What Jayna knew and never said was that her realm...Elrain...is the very realm you four come from.”

  There was a pause as each considered Gabriel’s words. The silence was deafening. Gabriel glanced at Jayna. She looked as though she slept, but he knew differently. It was the only time he had failed to save someone, the only someone he had never wanted to fail.

  Suddenly Val pointed to the sky. “It’s about to start.”

  They all looked skyward to see the sun being blocked by a wave of blackness.

  Elle moved toward Gabriel and took his hands. “Do as Aimery said. Think back to when you saw the group chanting. Can you remember anything? You must have saw something that could aid us.”

  Gabriel shook his head sadly. “Elle, I wish to God that I could. All I remember is the small group standing over....” He blinked as a smile pulled at his lips. “Water.

  It was a small basin of water.”

  “We don’t have any water,” Cole said. His voice was soft, but held a note of disappointment.

  Mina stepped forward then. “There is some. To the back and surrounded by stones.”

  “What else?” Elle urged him.

  Gabriel took a deep breath and closed his eyes as he gathered his memories around him.

  He saw the group, felt the fire of the palace as it burned. He was weak due to his wounds and knew the evil was coming for him, could feel the hatred nearly devouring him.

  The group standing around the pool of water began to chant some incoherent language he didn’t understand, and the water glowed a bright purple before fading to a milky white. Mist began to float above the water as if soaking in the magic of the group.

  And that’s when he saw it. The rock in the middle of the shallow water.

  Gabriel’s eyes flew open to look at Elle as he smiled down at her. “I know what you need.”

  “Hurry,” Aimery urged. “The Evil is nearly here.”

  Gabriel rushed to his black bag beside Jayna and ripped open the lining where a small rock no bigger than a child’s palm was nestled safely.

  He picked the rock up and rushed to Mina where she led him to the small pool of water surrounding by tall stones that hadn’t been touched by erosion or time. He looked down at the stone where the same symbol that marked the Chosen was branded on the stone.

  “Place it in the center of the water,” he said as he handed it to Mina. He turned to move away only to find that Aimery carried Jayna toward him. “What are you doing?” he demanded.

  “Trust me,” Aimery said softly.

  Gabriel clenched his jaw and swallowed past the urge to seize Jayna’s body from him. He stepped aside and let Aimery move toward the women. Jayna was placed near them as they circled the water.

  “Get ready,” Aimery yelled as he raised his hand over his head and a line of white magic shot from his hand that then fell over the women to surround them in a type of bubble.

  Hugh moved toward his wife, but Aimery held him back as a line of Fae suddenly appeared and surrounded the Chosen.

  “Fight the Great Evil,” Aimery said. “The Fae will keep the women safe.”

  Gabriel didn’t wait for Hugh’s answer as he turned on his heel to retrieve his bow. He might have lost Jayna, but he wouldn’t let the men he considered brothers lose their mates. The black cloud was almost upon them, the stench of evil nearly suffocating.

  That’s when he felt the Shapeshifter near. Gabriel notched an arrow and let it fly. He heard a sharp hiss of pain as the arrow embedded itself in the shifter. The smile of triumph pulling at Gabriel’s lips didn’t last long as the Shapeshifter shifted into the Harpy.

  Gabriel barely had time to duck and roll away before the Harpy’s talons reached him. He jumped to his feet and ran away from the ruins and the Shields. The Great Evil wanted him after all.

  “Gabriel!” Hugh bellowed.

  But he wasn’t listening. He didn’t need to look over his shoulder to see if the Harpy followed, he knew it was right behind him by the clang of its wings.

  “Damn, Shapeshifter,” he cursed as he stumbled to his knees. He reached for an arrow as he rolled to his back. The Harpy flew over him and he released the arrow to watch it root itself in the metal feathers.

  Gabriel chuckled, thankful he always kept a few of the arrows full of Fae magic with him.

  The Harpy shrieked as it tried to pull out the arrow. Gabriel waited for the Harpy to realize this arrow was different than the others. The Fae arrow held a dose of magic.

  Gabriel rolled to his feet and watched as the Harpy’s eyes widened as the magic took effect, robbing the creature of its ability to move. The creature plummeted to the ground, its screams of terror and pain echoing around them.

  He moved toward the creature and notched another arrow as he did. Before his eyes, the creature changed from the Harpy to Aimery to Hugh then to Gabriel.

  He stared down at himself wondering what trick the Shapeshifter was trying. Gabriel backed away from the creature slowly. He was about to release his arrow in the creature’s other eye when he gagged on the stench of evil.

  “Hello, Gabriel,” the Great Evil said in his ear.

  Gabriel sighed and lowered his bow. He turned to find the mist now surrounded him and blocked the ruins from his view.

  “Oh, they cannot help you now,” the voice said with a chuckle. “I’ve waited a long time to once again have you in my clutches. I’m not about to let you go now.”

  Gabriel threw down his bow and arrow. With Jayna gone he no longer cared about living. “What do you want from me?”

  “Did I block your memories too well?” The voice spoke softly as it drifted around him, but Gabriel wasn’t fooled. The Great Evil had a vicious temper and it was just a matter of time before it was released.

  “It appears so,” Gabriel answered. “You did hide Jayna’s mark well, just not well enough, as we discovered it.”

  An eerie chuckle filled the air. “As if I care that you discovered Jayna was a Chosen now that she’s dead. I allowed her to think she was tracking you all these years, when in fact I kept her from you.”

  Gabriel felt his heart clutch painfully. “Why?”

  “Because it wasn’t time for her to find you. The timing had to be perfect for her death.”

  Gabriel clenched his hands in an attempt to gain control of his growing anger. The need to kill the Great Evil was strong, so strong that it overruled everything else.

  “That’s it, Gabriel,” the voice whispered. “Give in to the anger, the hate. Let loose the rage that consumes you.”

  “Gabriel!”

  He turned to find Aimery standing beside him. “Don’t listen to the Evil.”

  Gabriel shook his head. “I have no more hope. It died with Jayna.”

  “Yes,” the Great Evil hissed.

  Aimery grabbed ahold of Gabriel’s arm. “Nay. You must trust me.”

  Gabriel pulled out of Aimery’s hold. Only once had he ever asked the Fae commander for anything, and Aimery didn’t respond. Jayna lay dead now because Aimery refused to help him. Gabriel took a step back and tried to swallow past the guilt and anger inside himself.

  The Great Evil laughed as the mist swirled toward the sky. Gabriel slashed his hands through the mist as he growled in frustration.

  “Don’t laugh yet, you bastard,” Gabriel yelled. “I told the Chosen what they needed to do to defeat you. Its just a matter of time before they succeed.”

  In an instant Gabriel was hurled through the air to slam into one of the Druid stones. For a moment the world went black just before he slid to the ground. The impact of the landing jarred him awake.

  “You better pray they don’t succeed,” the Great Evil shouted. “I will have my true form again. I will rule the Realm of Nations as only I can
.”

  Gabriel threw back his head and laughed while he staggered to his feet. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Aimery walking slowly toward him and the Shields on the other side of the ancient stones.

  He gripped the stone as he swayed. “If you are so powerful then show yourself now,” he demanded of the Evil. “Show us just who we’re up against.”

  Silence greeted his words. The only movement was that of the mist that continued to mill around him. Gabriel suddenly found himself very tired. All he wanted to do was find Jayna and lay down beside her.

  With a heavy heart, Gabriel turned to enter the stones when he was thrown backwards. He hit the snow packed earth heavily. With a groan, he turned onto his side and rose up on his hands and knees.

  “What do you hate more,” he asked the Great Evil. “The fact that you won’t succeed, or that I remembered the one thing you tried to keep from me?”

  The mist rushed to his face, nearly suffocating him before falling back. He took a deep breath and let his head drop.

  “I thought you wanted power, Gabriel.”

  He was really becoming to hate that bodiless voice. With a sigh Gabriel rose to his feet. “Things change.”

  “I don’t.”

  “And that will be your downfall.”

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  “Hurry,” Aimery whispered as he joined the Chosen.

  Mina turned to him. “We aren’t sure what to do.”

  Aimery cursed and glanced at Gabriel. He didn’t want to leave him alone any longer than he had to. The Great Evil was up to something, but what Aimery didn’t know. Yet.

  “Concentrate,” he told the Chosen. “Your parents gave you the information you needed. You just need to find it. Stand around the water and close your eyes. Let the magic of these stones release what is keeping your mind locked.”

  He stepped back and watched as the women did as he commanded. If they didn’t succeed soon, the Great Evil would win, and Aimery refused to let that happen. He opened his arms and closed his eyes as he focused all his energy on Jayna. Hidden deep in her subconscious were the answers they desperately needed. He just needed to find them.