Page 17 of Cherished By the Gargoyle
“Thalric!” Geralt calls, motioning me over to him. “I’m so glad you came to see me off. Hey, you’re headed to the capital for training to be a royal guard, right?”
“Yes.”
“My uncle’s a captain in the royal guard,” he says. “I’ll be staying with him and my aunt while I’m in the city. I could put in a good word for you, if you’d like.”
“Thank you,” I reply, touched by his offer.
“I don’t really think you’ll need a good word, though.” He grins. “I’m sure you’ll do great.”
A faint smile curves my mouth. “Thank you, my friend.”
“Maybe we could all meet up for lunch or something when we’re there,” he adds.
I nod. “I’d like that.”
I glance back to where Aurora was sitting, and she’s gone. “Excuse me,” I call over my shoulder as I scan the group, searching for Auri.
Sera is still nearby, chatting with another boy, but Aurora and Raina are nowhere in sight.
Panic tightens my chest as I walk over, interrupting their conversation. “Do you know where Aurora went?”
Sera gestures to the ruins. “She went off with Raina, Reid, and the others. I think they’re playing seek and find in the castle.”
My heart races as my gaze snaps toward the dark, looming structure, and I immediately head toward the entrance. I’ve heard rumors about Reid using the game of seek and find to steal kisses from other maidens.
Besides that, the castle is old and crumbling. It’s not safe to wander around inside. There have also been reports of a fewthieves and bandits that tried to make camp here before the Wolf Shifter pack chased them off.
As I stalk through the ancient ruins, searching for Aurora, faint whispers and voices echo through the corridors. Shadows move in the hallways, but through the fog and darkness, I catch her scent. Honeysuckle and lavender—sweet and uniquely Aurora.
A snarl curls my lips as I hear Reid speak her name.
Something hot and possessive burns deep inside me. He’s had his eye on Auri for at least a few months now, and I’ll not stand by and allow her to fall victim to his attempts to woo her.
CHAPTER 9
AURORA
Moonlight spills through the cracks in the mortar as I weave through the shadowed halls of the ancient ruins, thinking about the stories of ghosts and curses lurking between the crumbling towers.
I’ve never believed them, of course. Such stories are made up for entertainment or to frighten.
Well, I’m not afraid.
As I move through a wide corridor, searching for a good hiding place, Reid’s voice grows fainter behind me as he continues counting aloud. Hushed giggles draw my attention to a small alcove, and a furious blush heats my face when I see Raina kissing Dolan.
She’s been mooning over him for the past several months, and while I’m glad her affections are returned, I quickly look away, embarrassed to have stumbled upon them like this.
The moss-covered bricks are soft and damp against my fingertips as I trace a vine-covered wall, stepping carefully over fallen stones, searching for somewhere to hide. The air shifts asI cross under an old archway, thick and heavy with the smell of wet stone.
A strange sense of unease crawls down my spine, and I go completely still as something moves in the shadows beyond a broken pillar up ahead.
A cool breeze whispers through the hallway, rustling leaves as dread settles in my gut.
I’m not alone.
My heart taps a frantic beat, and I spin around, only to crash straight into a solid, immovable chest.
Thalric.
