A Warrior's Heart (Shields) Read online

  A WARRIOR’S HEART

  By

  Donna Grant

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  A WARRIOR’S HEART

  Copyright© 2012 Donna Grant

  Cover Artist: Croco Designs

  ISBN: 978-0988208476 (ebook)

  ISBN: 978-0988208483 (print)

  Smashwords Edition, License Notes

  This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only at Smashwords.com. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  www.DonnaGrant.com

  Chapter One

  England, 1123

  Stone Crest Castle

  If Jayna had known what she would become, she would have plunged the dagger into Gabriel’s heart when she’d had the chance. That decision had cost her her soul.

  And she paid for it every day.

  She didn’t like what she had become, but her mother had told her that in order to survive, one had to adjust. Jayna had certainly adjusted.

  As she stared at the imposing mass of rocks that was Stone Crest Castle, she thought about the people within its thick walls. A shiver raced over her skin, but it wasn’t due to the icy night air.

  She had finally found Gabriel.

  And it was time he paid for his crimes.

  Jayna smiled with anticipation, her heart pounding with excitement. She’d waited so long for this moment that she almost couldn’t believe it had arrived. Yet it had, and she was going to carry out all the ways she’d thought of to make Gabriel pay.

  She pulled the hood of her cloak up to cover her head and face. Getting into the castle wasn’t going to be easy, but she was certainly up to the challenge. After all, she had waited nearly an eternity to see the look on Gabriel’s face when she confronted him.

  “Gloating already?”

  Jayna stiffened when the familiar wash of air moved around her. He might not have a form, but he was the most powerful being in any of the realms.

  “I know I shouldn’t,” she answered as she kept her eyes on the castle.

  A tsking sound came from behind her then a warmth enveloped her. “My dear, Jayna, did I teach you nothing?”

  She smiled a true smile and breathed deeply. “You taught me to survive, and for that I owe you everything.”

  “Do you think I kept you alive just so you could mete out your revenge against Gabriel?”

  For the first time in centuries, Jayna felt a gnawing sense of worry. “I assumed so, aye.”

  “That was part of it, my dear,” he whispered in her ear. “Once I regain my form, I’m going to need a queen. Someone who knows how to rule with beauty, grace, and the iron fist of vengeance. In other words, Jayna, I need you.”

  Jayna didn’t know what to say. For too many years all she had cared about was finding Gabriel and killing him. Never had she thought about a husband or family. It had always been about Gabriel.

  As if reading her mind, he asked, “Just what had you planned on doing once you killed Gabriel?”

  “I don’t know. I’ve never thought about it.”

  “I think the time has come for you to think about many things. My mission is nearly complete. For the first time since time began, evil will dominate the realms. No longer will good triumph and evil be punished. It will be our time. Think about it.”

  And just as suddenly as he had appeared, he vanished. Jayna pushed aside his words. She needed to focus on Gabriel, on finding him and sinking her blade deep into his heart as he had done to her so very, very long ago.

  Chapter Two

  Gabriel splayed his hands against the cold stones of the battlements and looked over the valley, missing Laird bitterly. He hadn’t wanted to care for the wolfhound as he did, and it was because the dog meant so much that Gabriel had begged Aimery to take Laird to the Realm of the Fae.

  Until the Great Evil was gone.

  The merriment inside the great hall reached Gabriel even outside, and though he hadn’t wanted to hurt Hugh or Mina’s feelings he hadn’t been able to celebrate.

  Too much had happened in Scotland. In the back of his mind he always knew he didn’t wish to discover his memories. He had feared they would be as tarnished as the nightmares that plagued him, nightmares he had never told anyone about.

  Nightmares that showed him unspeakable horrors and deeds.

  When the Fae had found him, Gabriel had been all but dead. Yet, with their healing abilities, the Fae had restored him, but they hadn’t been able to help him with his memory. For a long time he craved knowledge of his past, who he was, if he had a family or a wife. He wanted to know details.

  Yet always there was this underlying fear that someone was coming after him. The Fae assured him it was only due to his extensive injuries, and for a while, Gabriel had believed them.

  Until recently.

  Discovering he was immortal should have been a joyous occasion. Instead, it had only made him realize his past was deep and dark. A place he wanted no part of. He would like nothing better than to say he was the man he had become, but only fools discounted their pasts.

  He had sinned.

  He knew it in the marrow of his bones.

  How he had sinned was the question, but he had a sneaking suspicion he would find out very soon.

  “There you are,” Cole said as he sauntered up, a big smile on his face and a mug of ale in his hand. “Mina demanded I find you and give you your ale.”

  Gabriel tried to smile as he accepted the mug. “I wouldn’t wish to upset the lady of the castle. But I imagine it was more likely Hugh that sent you to find me.”

  “All right,” Cole said with a loud sigh as he leaned his back against the stones and looked at Gabriel. The smile was gone and worry showed in his dark eyes. “We all know something is bothering you. What we don’t know is why you aren’t coming to us for help. We are your family, your brothers.”

  “I’m fine,” he lied. “I’m just worried that the Great Evil isn’t done with us. Now that all four of the Chosen have been found, he can be defeated.”

  Cole raised his brows at Gabriel’s words. “We’re all worried about the Great Evil, and if you expect me to believe the words you just spoke, you don’t know me as well as you should.”

  Gabriel raked a hand through his hair. “Cole, sometimes things are better left alone.”

  “Like your past.”

  “By the gods,” Gabriel bellowed and pushed away from the wall and faced his friend. “Leave it alone. I beg you.”

  “Nay.”

  “Please.”

  “As I said earlier, we are your family, and family look out for one another.”

  Gabriel shook his head as he realized the futility of arguing with Cole.

  “Have you remembered your past?”

  Gabriel cringed and turned his back to Cole. “Nay.”

  “The only thing you know is that you’re immortal. That shouldn’t be something for you to fear.”

  “What I fear is my past,” Gabriel said softly.

  Cole moved until he stood in front of him. “Your past is exactly that, my brother. It doesn’t matter what you did or who you were. We know who you are now and that’s what counts.”

  Gabriel felt something touch his hand and
looked down at the mug of ale. He took it and looked up to see Cole smile before he walked off.

  The ale was just what Gabriel needed. He leaned his head back and took a long drink. He glanced out over the land again and could have sworn he saw something move near the forest. With a step closer to the wall, he stared at the spot and waited, but nothing stirred.

  Gabriel took a deep breath and decided he had done enough worrying for the night. The four Chosen had been found and the end of the Great Evil was coming. It was time to celebrate. With his family, his brothers.

  When Gabriel reached the great hall, he stopped at the balcony that overlooked the massive room and gazed down. The people of Stone Crest dined on roasted pheasant and potatoes.

  His eyes traveled to the dais where the Shields sat. Hugh, their leader, and his wife Mina sat at the center of the table. Hugh had not only found his mate upon coming to Stone Crest, but he had found a home as well.

  To the right of Hugh was Roderick. Roderick was an immortal prince from the realm of Thales. To Roderick’s right was his wife, Elle. Next to Elle sat Nicole, who Gabriel and Val had battled a Griffin to free, and then Val, a Roman general.

  On the left of Mina sat Shannon and Cole. The empty chair beside Cole was Gabriel’s spot. Gabriel wanted to join them, needed to join them, but he found it more than difficult. Each of the Shields had found their mates while battling the Great Evil, and though Gabriel would never admit it, he longed to find a woman for himself as well.

  The yearning he felt deep inside his chest when he watched his friends with their wives left him feeling desolate and as though he would never be whole. It was almost as if he had lost his mate.

  With a deep sigh he made his feet move and descended the stairs that led into the great hall. Cheers rose from the Shields as he approached. Gabriel smiled and raised his mug of ale as he walked the length of the long table to his seat.

  “I’m glad you joined us,” Cole said as he leaned toward him. “We were becoming concerned.”

  Gabriel sank into his chair and looked at the trencher laden with food. He shrugged and began eating. Cole knew him well enough to know that he didn’t wish to talk. Though from the corner of his eye, Gabriel could see Hugh and the others glancing at him from time to time.

  What began as a very tasty meal soon lost all flavor as he pretended to act as though all was fine. When he finished, he pushed back his trencher, drained his mug of ale and forced a smile as he looked to Mina.

  “The meal was excellent, my lady.”

  Mina smiled, her blue-green eyes reflecting worry. “I’ll be sure to tell the cook.”

  He rose and started around the table when Hugh stopped him. “Where are you going?”

  “You all celebrate. I’ll keep the first watch,” he threw over his shoulder.

  Hugh sighed loudly as he leaned back in his chair. “I worry about him. He hasn’t been the same since he and Val returned from Scotland.”

  “Nay,” Val said softly. “It was like discovering his immortality made things worse.”

  Nicole, Val’s mate, tsked as she threaded her fingers within his. “Give him time, love,” she said, her Scottish accent thick.

  “We don’t have a lot of time,” Roderick stated.

  Hugh looked to his wife and held out his hand for her as he stood. “Are you ready for bed, my love?”

  Mina smiled as she accepted Hugh’s hand. “Always.”

  Hugh tucked Mina’s arm in his and looked at his men. “The Fae are guarding Stone Crest. However, I think it would be vigilant of us to keep a lookout ourselves. The Great Evil hasn’t been foolish before. I doubt he’ll start now.”

  * * * *

  Gabriel leaned his head back and sniffed the wind. It was faint, very discernible, but he was able to smell it. Evil.

  He shifted his shoulders as his hand gripped the smooth wood of his bow. The need to kill the Great Evil was overwhelming, and for only an instant, Gabriel almost left Stone Crest to do that.

  “Your thoughts are troubled,” a smooth, deep voice said from beside him.

  Calm instantly surrounded Gabriel. He didn’t need to look to his left to know it was Aimery. The Fae Commander had always managed to quiet the thoughts in his mind.

  “The evil is nearly here.”

  “Nay, Gabriel. It already is here.”

  Gabriel turned to Aimery. He needed to see the truth in the Fae’s shimmering blue eyes to believe him. But Aimery wouldn’t look at him. The Fae’s gaze was directed over the land, to the forest Gabriel had stared at most of the evening before he joined the others in the great hall.

  “The smell of evil is faint.”

  “I know,” Aimery said softly. “It’s not the Great Evil, nor anything as great as the Griffon. This evil is something different.”

  Gabriel understood now. “It’s something we won’t expect.”

  “Exactly.” Aimery faced him then. “Why were you thinking of finding the evil by yourself?”

  He shrugged, unsure now of anything. “I had a powerful urge to seek it out and kill it myself.”

  “That would be folly, my friend.”

  Gabriel saw the doubt in the Fae’s mystical eyes. “I’m not part of the evil.”

  For long moments Aimery stared at him. “Nothing we have ever done has opened your past, Gabriel. We don’t know who you were, your family, or even where you were from.”

  “I know.” Aimery wasn’t telling him anything he didn’t already know.

  Aimery crossed his arms over his chest causing his long flaxen hair to shift in the breeze. “Though immortality isn’t an obscure occurrence, there are few races throughout the realms who are immortal.”

  Gabriel’s stomach clenched and the blood in his veins ran like ice. “What are you saying?”

  “I’ve sent out runners to the realms who are immortal.”

  He turned away, unable to hold the Fae’s gaze any longer. Aimery had always been someone Gabriel looked up to. He had been the one to find Gabriel and even helped to nurse him back to health. He owed Aimery greatly, but there was one thing he feared above all and that was letting Aimery and the Shields down.

  “I don’t want to know,” Gabriel finally said. He braced his hands against the stones once more and let his head drop.

  “What do you fear?”

  Gabriel lifted his head slightly and glanced at Aimery. The Fae stood regal in his tunic of silver with blue threads that matched the blue in his shimmering eyes perfectly.

  “You know of what I fear by reading my thoughts. Why do you want me to speak them?”

  “Because I think you need to hear them aloud.”

  Gabriel shook his head. “Nay. I have a duty, Aimery. I gave my word, my vow, to the Shields. My word is all that I own in this world. I refuse to lose it now.”

  “No one doubts you, Gabriel. The Shields all know that you are one with them. They simply worry about you.”

  A wry chuckle escaped Gabriel as he let his head drop between his arms again. “And you, Aimery? Do you know that I am one with the Shields?”

  “Aye.”

  But Gabriel knew the truth by hearing the hesitation in Aimery’s voice. He didn’t prod the Fae more. There was no need. Gabriel had the answers he sought.

  Chapter Three

  Jayna couldn’t stop her hands from shaking. All night she had remained in the woods watching the castle as a lone man walked the battlements while she waited for the rising sun.

  Snow began to fall, thick and heavy just a few hours before dawn, but Jayna hadn’t minded. She stayed huddled under the pine trees. But now the time had come. It was time to venture into the castle and find Gabriel. Find him and kill him.

  She took a deep breath to calm her racing heart. After she adjusted her cloak and ensured the hood hid her face, she began her walk to the road that would take her to the castle gates.

  At this time of the morning, not many people ventured from their homes, and Jayna knew it was going to be decidedly diffi
cult to get into the castle by herself. She was going to need help.

  She stopped as she reached the long, winding road. To her left was the imposing castle. She was anxious to get inside the castle walls and find Gabriel, but too many years of searching had taught her some measure of patience.

  Her options were few. She was just about to step back into the forest and wait until later in the day when she heard something down the road. She peered to her right and strained to hear just what was making all the racket so early in the morn.

  The rickety old wagon being pulled by an equally old horse turned the corner in the road, and Jayna couldn’t help but smile. She now had her way into the castle.

  “Damme, ol’ Ruth,” the old man cursed as he tried to get the horse to move faster. “I know ‘tis cold. Believe me, me old bones feel it just as yours do, but yer load isn’t that heavy.”

  Jayna stood waiting in the middle of the road but it appeared the old man hadn’t seen her and the horse wasn’t going to stop.

  “Do you need some help, sir?” she said. When he didn’t answer, she spoke louder and hid her smile when he jumped.

  He stood just a few strides from her as he came to a halt and looked at her as if she had just sprung up from the earth. He looked to be a kindly old man with tufts of white hair poking out of his head and his face a mass of lines and wrinkles against skin so pale she could see his veins.

  “A lass? Helping me? Nay, girl. I should be the one helpin’ ye.”

  Jayna walked to the mare and patted Ruth’s neck as she looked at the wagon.

  “I’d offer ye a ride, lass, but I’m afraid ol’ Ruth just cannot bear it.”

  She waved away his words. “I’m hale and hearty, sir. Let me lend you a hand to get out of this cold. Where are you going?”

  “To the castle. I’ve got some food for me granddaughter that I need to get to her and her young-uns.”

  Jayna picked up one of the bags of food. It wasn’t as heavy as she first perceived, so she grabbed another one. With a bag in each arm, she walked until she stood beside the old man.