The Guardians Crown (The Guardians Book 5) (3 page)

“Well if it isn’t Gabe Harwood.” The instant he heard the voice, he recognized it.

“Clarite,” he snarled, looked over his shoulder and turning to lock eyes with the oracle who had first so delightfully told him of his destiny. “I never expected I’d find you here.”

“Why is that? Figured your master would always keep me locked up down there in my prison cell?” she asked, baiting him.

Rachel could see it made Gabe want to explode with anger. She quickly poked him in the side, “Aren’t you going to introduce me?”

Before Gabe could say a word, Clarite took it upon herself to respond. “Oh my, this must be the little Mrs.; how exactly did your ex-girlfriend take the news of your new love? I’m guessing not so good.” Clarite was enjoying herself so much that she could barely contain herself.

“You’re just as delightful as I remember you,” Gabe said sarcastically. “Rachel, this is Clarite, she was the resident oracle at Rampart Manor. Clarite this is Rachel.”

“Oh wow, you knew Gabe when he was just a boy,” Rachel offered, politely extending a hand.

Clarite reached out to accept the gesture. “Yes, he was quite the Romeo as I recall. But of course I doubt …” As the two women’s flesh touched, Clarite gripped Rachel tightly, her head jerking back, and her eyes revealing only the whites.

“Are you all right?” Rachel gasped, frightened by the display.

As a low growl came from within the woman, Gabe lunged forward, attempting to break the connection. “Let her go!” he shouted.

When at last he managed to pull them apart, Clarite collapsed to the ground. Frightened and unsure what to do, Rachel looked to Gabe. “Is she all right?”

“Step back,” Gabe commanded, lowering onto one knee next to Clarite. He reached, down, pulling back one eyelid, and exposing the white beneath. Suddenly, the eye shifted and the iris was staring back at him. Gabe gasped, falling backwards onto his bottom.

Clarite sat up, shaking off whatever it was that had just overcome her. Gabe stood up, Rachel rushing past him to the woman’s side. “Is there anything I can do?”

“No, no, I’m fine,” Clarite replied, standing up and brushing herself off. “But you’re not.”

“Excuse me?” Rachel’s voice trembled.

“You’re in great danger,” Clarite replied.

“Of course, here it comes,” Gabe scoffed.

“I’m sorry, what’s going on?” Rachel inquired, looking back and forth between the two.

Clarite refused to let Gabe answer, jumping in herself first. “Gabe here’s a skeptic. You still don’t believe in oracles’ abilities, do you?”

“Oh no,” Gabe corrected. “I believe, I just think you’re a liar.”

“Gabe!” Rachel scolded, appalled by her beloved’s behavior.

“Please, don’t tell me you’re buying this act,” Gabe argued.

“It doesn’t matter what I think, it’s still no excuse to be rude,” Rachel replied.

“I don’t mind, the truth is hard for some people to hear,” Clarite offered, in a voice that reflected her as a delicate and feeble woman.

Gabe laughed loudly, “The last thing you know anything about is the truth.” Turning to Rachel Gabe excused himself. “I can’t listen to this anymore. I suggest you don’t either. I’m going to go find Uri, I’ll catch up with you later, all right Rachel?”

Shocked by his reaction, Rachel nodded silently.

The women watched as Gabe walked away from them. Clarite smiled, “He really hasn’t changed much at all, has he?”

“I wouldn’t know, I didn’t know Gabe back then,” Rachel replied coolly. While she was happy to be polite to the woman, she was no fool. Rachel trusted her husband, and if he said not to trust her, Rachel would make sure she kept her guard up.

Clarite stared at her, sizing her up. “I can tell you two love each other.”

Rachel nodded, giving Clarite a half smile, “Yes, we do.”

Clarite furrowed her brow, as if she were debating on asking her next question. “Does he know?”

“Know what?” Rachel peered at her, a blank look on her face.

“Sweetheart, it won’t be too much longer and you won’t be able to hide it from him,” the woman suggested.

Rachel looked away, wondering if something she had done revealed the secret she had not yet confirmed, even to herself. “I don’t even ... I mean, how did you …”

“I’m an oracle, remember?”

“I wasn’t even sure if I was,” Rachel replied.

“Well, you are. When do you plan to tell Gabe he’s going to be a father?”

Rachel reached out, steadying herself on a nearby post. She knew she had been late and that motherhood was a possibility, but now faced with the reality that it was true, she felt her legs grow weak. “Please don’t say anything.”

With an eyebrow cocked, Clarite grinned, saying “Trouble in paradise?”

“No!” Rachel exclaimed, annoyed at the insinuation. “It’s just, Gabe has enough on his mind without adding anything else to it.”

“Yes, that’s right, the Guardians crown,” Clarite added.

“What? How did you know about that?” Rachel gasped.

Clarite sighed, “Eventually it will click for you honey, I’m. An. Oracle.”

“And you’re such pleasant company, too, aren’t you?” Rachel chimed sarcastically.

Clarite laughed at the girl’s snarky comment, pleased to see a bit of the girl’s actual personality emerge. “When we touched I not only could feel that life inside of you, but I also saw what you all are seeking. It’s one of my abilities.”

“Great, thanks for the heads up when I went to shake your hand.”

Clarite raised both her hands, waving them in the air. Rachel had it all wrong, and she needed to explain herself. “Wow, you’re a lot like your husband.”

“Well thank you!” Rachel snapped. “I take that as a great compliment.”

“Will you listen for a second? I sensed your hopelessness, but you should know something. It’s not. The weapon’s real.”

With a skeptical glare Rachel asked, “What are you talking about?”

“The Guardians crown … it exists,” Clarite confirmed.

“And why exactly would you be telling me this?” Rachel inquired.

“Let’s just say I owe one of the Guardians a very big debt. But you need to know that it won’t be easy. The crown is protected by a keeper.”

“Where is it?” Rachel questioned, still unsure if she could believe anything the woman was telling her.

“That I don’t know. The location was moved long ago and it has been a secret ever since,” Clarite explained.

“Then how on Earth does that help?”

“I never said I could help you, I just thought it might bring you a little comfort to know it’s real.” Reaching out and squeezing Rachel’s arm gently, Clarite added, “I hope you find what you’re looking for.”

Rachel hesitated for a moment, “Pardon me, I don’t mean to sound disrespectful, but from what I’ve heard about you, I doubt you owe anyone enough of a debt to actually help us.”

Clarite turned to take her leave, glancing over her shoulder she replied, “Dina, she’s the one I owe.”

Rachel tilted her head and watched as the woman walked away. For some reason she believed her. Lowering her hand to her belly Rachel cradled it gently. She would need to talk to Gabe, soon; he needed to hear the news from her.

“It’s about time! Where have you been?” Gabe demanded.

Rachel flashed a shocked expression in Gabe’s direction. “All right, I’m going to act like I never heard you ask that.”

Gabe’s aggravated look quickly faded as he realized how he must have sounded. “Babe, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to snap at you like that. It’s that woman, she just gets my under my skin.”

“I agree, Clarite can be quite challenging, but I’m glad I stuck around, we had an interesting discussion,” Rachel remarked.

“Oh yeah, some big revelation, I’m sure, she loves those,” Gabe added.

Rachel considered the words she had shared with the oracle. She couldn’t help but focus on the irony of Gabe’s statement. If he only had known how big of a revelation had been revealed. He was going to be a father sooner than he ever imagined. There was something that Rachel couldn’t deny about what Clarite had said; soon enough she would begin to show and would no longer be able to conceal it from her husband.

“Well?” Gabe prompted.

“Well, what?” Rachel peered at her husband.

“Are you going to share what you two talked about, or what?” Gabe pushed.

“Oh, I thought you didn’t want to hear what she had to say. Isn’t that why you left?” Rachel taunted. She knew it was torture for Gabe, but she was also a little thrilled to put him in his place.

“Fine, don’t tell me,” Gabe replied sternly.

“Geez, you take all the fun out of this. She confirmed the Guardians crown exists. Only problem is that she doesn’t know where it is.”

“Only problem is her lips were moving, and we all know what that means,” Gabe snarled.

“All righty, yes, we all know you can’t stand her and it’s clear you definitely do not trust her, but you need to lighten up a little.” Rachel instructed, growing impatient with his attitude. “Let’s just not talk about her anymore. Did you find Uri?”

“Yeah, he had some stuff to take care of, but he said he saw Sophie earlier at the back of the grounds, near the forest.”

“Perfect, we should get going then. The sooner we get Sophie on the case, the sooner we find the Guardians crown,” Rachel suggested.

Rachel linked her arm around Gabe’s as they made their way to the rear of the compound, weaving in and out of the refugees. Her touch immediately brought a peace over him.

“I really am sorry I’ve been such a pain in the ass,” Gabe offered, looking down at the profile of his beloved.

“Oh, I don’t know if I’d go that far, perhaps a pain in the neck,” Rachel giggled.

“Gee, thanks,” Gabe replied.

“Seriously, are you okay?” Rachel asked, looking up briefly into her husband’s eyes.

“Of course I am,” Gabe quickly answered in a light-hearted tone.

“Gabe, I think I know you well enough to tell when something’s wrong,” Rachel protested.

Gabe hesitated. He didn’t want to worry Rachel, but he also didn’t want to be the guy he used to be. The type who pushed the people he cared about away. “I promise, I’m fine. I think I’m just feeling the stress of it all. It seems like right when I think we might be getting close to an answer, we find out something else that puts us back at square one.”

“We knew this wouldn’t be easy.”

“I know, and that’s not the part that has me freaking out. It’s the fact that I feel completely and utterly helpless. I have no control over the situation, I simply hold my breath and wait for the next surprise,” Gabe explained.

Rachel held her breath for a moment, she wanted to tell him about their expected child more than anything, but it was clear now, more than ever, that he wasn’t in any frame of mind to take in that kind of information.

“Rachel, honey, I want to keep you safe, that’s all,” Gabe added softly.

“We’ll figure this out.” She attempted to reassure him. “I know you …” the words lodged in her throat as she caught sight of something she hadn’t expected to see.

“Sophie?” Gabe gasped as they came to a stop.

“Damon!” Rachel cried, still processing the scene in front of her.

Damon and Sophie’s bodies were pressed into one another, leaning against a nearby tree. Their lips interlocked, and tongues exploring the inside of one another’s mouths. At the sound of their names, they pulled apart.

Damon wiped a little saliva away from the corner of his mouth, “Hey sis.”

“Hey sis?” Rachel challenged, in a raised voice. “Are you kidding me?”

“What?” Damon inquired defensively.

“What’s going on here?” Gabe asked, in hopes to reduce his wife’s stress level.

Damon looked over at Gabe, his glare twisting as he barked, “I don’t really think that’s any of your damn business.”

Sophie quickly reached up and placed a hand on Damon’s chest, attempting to push him back into a more submissive posture.

“Excuse me?” Gabe asked, his jaw dropping in disbelief.

“That’s my husband, Damon, you don’t talk to him like that,” Rachel demanded.

“I’ll talk to him any way I want,” Damon argued, unwilling to back down.

“What has gotten into you?” Rachel shouted.

“Into me? You’re the one who disappears forever, we all think your dead, months later I get kidnapped and brought to this God-forsaken place, only to be abandoned by you again. And for what? For this douche-bag? So pardon me if I don’t roll out the welcome mat sis,” Damon’s voice dripped with contempt.

“Look man, I don’t know what I ever did to you, but …” Gabe quickly jumped in, attempting to diffuse the situation.

“It’s not what you did to me,” Damon replied, looking over at Sophie, wrapping an arm around her.

“What did you tell him?” Gabe snapped.

“The truth,” Sophie replied flatly.

“Oh really?” Gabe was quickly becoming agitated. “Which version?’

“Look, this is ridiculous, are you here for a reason?” Sophie asked, hoping to avoid delving any deeper into the conversation. Stepping in Gabe’s direction, she stood directly in the path between Gabe and Damon.

“That’s my brother-in-law Sophie. Are you really so bitter that you would try and get in between family?” Gabe shouted, ignoring her question.