Page 34 of The Gargoyle's Gift
I felt knots of tension release from my shoulders as Lovette covered my hand with hers. There were eyes on us, I could feel them, but she didn’t care. I straightened, deciding that if she wasunbothered, I could be too. Besides, I never wanted her to think I was anything less than proud to be seen with her.
“I'm sorry for what I said about trying to deny the bond?—”
“Stop worrying about it. I wasn't offended. Just be happy, Gaius.” Her joy translated directly through the way she held herself proudly, the way she smiled. The glow in my chest where our bond connected us. She was not afraid nor ashamed of what anyone in the meetinghouse had to say now that her father knew.
As we ate, her hand remained where it was, thumb gently stroking along the back of my hand. I appreciated the grounding it provided, the quiet in my head her touch always gave.
When we stood to leave, I caught the eye of several kin on our way to the door, my cane an additional thump on the wood floor as we went. They all gave a polite nod, a smile, or both.
Approval. Congratulations. Community.
I needed it all much more than they knew. And once again, I had a bold, golden-haired healer to thank for it.
Chapter 17
Lovette
Iwasn’t privy to everything that happened once the councilmen left my care, but I understood well that the next several months were going to be full of serious changes.
Hugo’s and Augustus’s fate would be decided following an investigation from within not only the stone kin council but those of the mages and witches as well. To get all of the factions involved spoke of serious transgressions… and rumor had it they were not the only ones under a watchful eye. My father had never been so enthusiastic about being a required participant in council meetings.
Ophelia, who had yet to be wrong about much of anything, certainly had the right of things when she proclaimed it was time for the stone kin to experience change starting at the very top and to set down some roots. Construction was beginning both at d’Arcan and at the conclave, and it felt like the first breath of spring when the flowers begin to show through the soil, despite it being nearly time to turn over the earth for winter. Something good was coming. Something hopeful.
As I entered the infirmary under the cool white light of a full moon, I found it bustling with people. The cots had all beenpushed against the walls to make both useful flat surfaces and more standing room.
Gaius spotted me and came over as quickly as he could, his cane thumping along the stone floor. When he kissed me on the cheek, I looked up to find my father watching, expression indiscernible. When I met his eye, though, he winked reassuringly back at me.
“Does everyone have their assignments already?” I asked, stunned at how many stone kin they’d recruited for our late-night journey into Revalia.
“Yes. Here’s yours.” He handed me a small grouping of necklaces hung on a short rod, each tagged with a name and address.
We’d finished sorting the jewelry just a couple of nights prior, and after enlisting some invaluable help from Calla, Grace, Greta, and the girls that worked at d’Arcan, as many items as possible had been linked to updated family names and addresses. It had taken some firm handling, but I’d managed to convince my mate that trying to manage the return of such a vast number of pieces was far more than he could handle alone, even with my help. People would start talking, and the more times we had to return, the more dangerous it would become. So, over several tankards of ale between Gaius, Imogen, and my father, a blitz was planned.
Funny thing was, the more they talked about it, thinking they were being quiet, or at least well ignored, the more people volunteered to help.
Pride swirled through me, making my heart thump and the bond glow. I looked around to find my sister mixed in the crowd, double-checking everyone had what they needed. But there was also an unfamiliar face. A demon, if I had to guess.
“Who’s that?”
“Ah! Seir? If you please?” Father gestured him over. “I’d like to introduce you to my daughter.”
Like his brothers, the demon was tall, quick to smile and more handsome than he had any right to be. He had short auburn hair, cut to just above his jaw, the front pieces pulled back away from his face with a leather tie. Twisted brown horns extended out and back from the top of his head through his russet hair, and he had a pair of dark wings tucked tight to his back.
Gaius shifted beside me, a frown on his face as the demon enthusiastically shook my hand. “Hello, I’m Seir.”
“Lovette.”
He turned to my father. “Have you installed the portal then?”
“Portal?” I asked, glancing between them.
“Like a doorway, you just need to think of where or who you want to go to and it will take you there.”
“Yes, I’m aware of what they are, I just didn’t know we had one of those.”
“Of course you do! I gave him one ages ago.”
I tilted my head, silently questioning my father. “It wasn’tthatlong ago, and it’s a permanent installation, I had to be sure of my choice.” He shrugged.
