Born of Silence (Immortal Guardians) (24 page)

“I thought I was dead,” his father explained. “They made it so I couldn’t scramble away, and I was too weak to do magic. I thought for sure they’d go for my essence.”

Dani looked momentarily confused by this, but must have quickly realized what he meant. Garrick had already explained the precarious relationship between Fairies and Harpies, so she knew what stealing an essence meant. Either death, or living out the rest of their days as a weak as a human. It all depended on how many injuries one suffered before, during, or after the removal of
one’s
essence.

“I fought them though,” his
father
continued. “I refused to just give up and die. Thank the gods that others came by
then, o
therwise I know I’d have never made it back here alive.”

Other Fairies had come
with their arrows flying and swords glistening in the sun. The Harpies hadn’t anticipated so many to attack en masse and had taken to flight, shrieking their anger at the abrupt interruption of their meals.

“Did Cedric stay hidden?” Dani asked quietly.

“He did. Once he was hidden, it was he who alerted the others of the battle. It was his first act as king as he led the convoy back to the castle.”

Dani would have no clu
e who Cedric was, but she was
clearly so engrained in the story that her knowledge of the man held no difference. Her face was alight with excitement and fear as though she’d been right there, battling alongside his father and keeping Cedric safe herself. He couldn’t blame her though
:
Fairies had a gift for storytelling.

Then again, given what Ekhart had done to her, would she fight alongside the Harpies, or with the Fairies?

His father was studying Dani now, clearly assessing her. He flicked his eyes toward Garrick and leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table as he steepled his fingers. “What have you brought Danielle here for, Garrick? We haven’t heard from you in nearly a decade and a half, and yet you show up here without sending word ahead and with both of you
appearing like you’re living
like beggars
. Is that what you are? Is that what’s become of you?”

Dani’s face flushed as she looked down at herself, shifting uncomfortably in her chair. Garrick’s jaw tightened, angered that his father would make her self-conscious. “No,” he replied. “That’s not what has become of me. I am a warrior. So good that I have been requested to fight alongside the Guardians.”
Not that his father would know o
f the Guardians—not unless anyone had actually stumbled across the portal. He stood then, walking behind his wooden chair and sliding it under the table. “Why are we here? We’re here because it’s the way back home. Where
we
live.
That
is the only reason we
’re
here
right now
.”

His father stood as well, though it took him a lot longer with his two wooden legs to contend with. “Oh, and how did you find yourselves all the way out here since you live so far away? Where did you get the lady, Garrick? She’s not Fae, that’s for certain, though I can’t tell exactly what she is.”

“Mel,” his mother hissed.

“That is none of your business,” Garrick replied.
Gods dammit, he knew coming here had been a mistake.

“Mommy?” A small voice sounded from the hall, and a little girl peeked around the corner, her eyes
touching on
each person in the dining room.

Garrick’s eyes narrowed, then widened as he looked at Gabriella. “
Mommy?
”

“Don’t you look at me that way, little brother,” she hissed back. “If you want to know whose she is, you should look at your own mother.”

Slowly,
hi
s
head swiveled to look at his mom, then at his dad, and then back at his mom again. He slumped into a chair as his gaze went to the little girl who was no more than three years old.

“It’s true.” His mother held out an arm toward the girl. She ran over, climbed onto her lap and immediately stuck a thumb into her mouth. His mother held her tight, rocking back and forth as she kissed the top of her head. “Marian, meet your brother, Garrick.”

Marian nuzzled her head against her chest, peeking at Garrick shyly with her big brown eyes.
She had his father’s eyes.
Her thumb didn’t come out of her mou
th as she eyed him, and her gaze
stayed fixed on him even as they became hooded from the constant rocking.

Garrick cleared his throat and then looked up at his mom. “Wha
…
well, what I mean is
…
when?”

“She’s almost three,” she replied, warm, motherly love gleaming from her eyes. “Our little Marian’s birthday is in less than a month.”

A sudden knock on the door interrupted the confusion, and Gabby rushed off to answer it.

After a few seconds of hushed conversation at the door, Gabby called out
,
“Garrick.” He knew her well enough to hear the anxiousness ring out as she led someone into the dining room. His gaze
flicked
from the light brown features of his sister to a man with blond hair and yellow eyes. His clothing held no room for error in guessing who he was. He was one of the king’s guards—and a high-ranking one at that.

Gabby’s gaze met Garrick’s once more, her brown eyes holding that same anxiousness that her voice betrayed only seconds ago, along with a hint of something else. “Garrick, you’ve been summoned.”

“Here,” Garrick said, tossing a bundled-up ball of yellow fabric to Dani. They came up to his room shortly after the king’s guard came, and he was rummaging through his closet of old clothes that he’d left behind so many years ago. Gabriella had just dropped off a dress so that Dani would have something to wear to court, and scurried off so she could change as well.

Dani fumbled with all the fabric, her eyebrows lowered as she groaned in irritation. “What is all this?”

He laughed. “That’s all the layers ladies wear here. I told you we were behind the times in this realm.”

“So I gathered,” she replied, shaking her head. “I don’t even know what to do with all of this.”

Garrick drew his shirt on, leaving it unbuttoned as he hurried over to her. “Here.” He took the bundle from her and laid it out on his bed. “This goes on first, then this, and then this. I can get Gabby in here if you want.”

“No, no. I’ll try to manage.”

“I’ll dress in the closet,” he offered. Grabbing and lighting a candle, he took it as he stepped inside the closet and closed the door with a snick. “Holler if you need anything.”

At the sound of the closed door, Dani hastily pulled her
dress
off her body and kicked it away. Wishing she’d have time for a shower or a bath, she fumbled with the slip Garrick told her to put on first. That slid on relatively easily, and she grabbed the massive skirt that he’d pointed to next. It was made up of four hoops that increased in size, the bottom one so large she was certain she wouldn’t be able to fit through the doorway. She stepped into it and did up the clasp before turning toward the dress on the bed. She fumbled with the fabric for a bit before finding the right place to tunnel her way in. As it slid over her shoulders, she smoothed it down over the hoop skirt. The back was wide open, and she peered into the mirror to see countless loops and ties. “How in the—”

“Dani?” Garrick asked from the other side of the door. “Can I come out yet?”

“I don’t know. I don’t know what I’m even doing.”

“Are you decent?”

“I have more clothes on than I ever have before,” she responded.
Even if they aren’t done up
, she thought
,
irritated.

He tugged on the
doorknob
, a kind Dani had never seen before,
walked through,
and
smiling at her brightly. He, apparently, had had no problems getting dressed and looking better than she’d ever seen him look before. “Want help?”

“Yes,” she breathed.

He approached her as she turned her back to him, holding up her hair so it wouldn’t get caught in the ties. The backs of his fingers brushed her lightly as he fiddled with the ties, causing goose
bumps to spread over her body. He obviously knew what he was doing
though, working quickly to
do her up. She wondered how many times he’d helped other ladies get dressed, and then decided she didn’t like that train of thought.

“Garrick,” a chastising voice said from his door. Both she and Garrick whirled around to see Gabriella standing in the doorway, her hands on her hips as she tapped a foot rapidly on the floor. “
What
do you think you’re doing?”

“I’m doing up her laces.”

“Oh, I can see that,” she said excitedly. “That’s not appropriate and you know it. You should be glad mother didn’a see this. She’d tan your hide, even if she
is
almost your lady.”

Dani wasn’t exactly sure how to take that, but her tone suggested she knew they weren’t really engaged.

Gabriella hustled him out of the way and took over with the laces. “Don’t you want to hold on
to something?”

“Uh, yes,” she replied, gathering from the tone of Gabriella’s voice that she definitely
did
want to hold on
to something. She stepped forward with Garrick’s sister holding on
to her ties and gripped the bedpost.

Though she grumbled under her breath about the sight she’d just seen, Gabriella wasted no time getting the laces tightened and tied up. “There you go
,
dear,” she said, and then bustled out of the room quickly.

Dani watched her wide skirt squeeze through the doorway before her shoes clacked down the hallway.
She’s like a whirlwind
, she thought to herself. She looked down at
her clothes
, noticing that her skirt was every bit as big, and then turned to Garrick. “What did you get me into?”

He snorted. “Oh, you have no idea.”

“Garrick,” Dani warned. “I’m serious. I can’t pretend to be a lady. Your sister already knows I’m not. How am I supposed to do this
and
not breathe?”

“Not breathe? Oh.” His eyes traveled down her tight bodice. “That. Yeah, you’ll get used to it.”

She flipped her hair behind her ear, trying to fight the smile his obvious appreciation invoked. “How do you know?”

He returned her smile and shrugged. “I don’t. It’s only what I’ve heard. In any case, it’s too big. We’ll need to get you a change of clothes as soon as we can.”

Her mouth dropped wide open. “Too big—”

“Garrick,” Gabriella yelled from downstairs. “Stop dallying. Get down here
so we can go
.”

He rolled his eyes and stepped forward, holding out an arm to Dani. There was a twinkle in his eye as the orange sunlight filtered in through the window. “Well
,
my lady, are you ready to face the firing squad?”

She wound her arm around his, but feared his choice of words as he led her down the stairs and through the front door.
She wasn’t ready to deal with more people. She’d had more than her fair share of acquaintances so far, and she wasn’t sure her nerves could handle it.

The king’s guard, Sheldon, helped Dani and Garrick into the palace carriage and took his seat next to the driver before they took off toward the palace. Garrick’s family was to follow shortly after
;
however
,
the king had requested Garrick’s presence immediately.

He kept quiet for most of the ride, but she could see that he was troubled, fidgeting as he was. The drive to the castle was short, and the driver halted the horses just in front of the stairs that led to the front entrance of the immaculate
rose-colored
stone building. Sheldon held the door open and helped them out, and then led them up the steps and through the well-guarded entry to the castle.

Dani was surprised at how many people milled about inside the castle walls, and even as the three of them walked through the wide corridors, they drew the attention of every Fairy they passed, each one of them bowing or curtsying in their wake.

“My lord has asked that he meet with you in here,” Sheldon said, holding
open
the heavy wooden door that led into a large room with a rolling fire in the hearth. It was the king’s sitting room, so far as Dani could tell, and Garrick nodded at the guard silently as he pulled her inside.

Sheldon left them alone then, assuring them that he would tell his majesty that they had arrived.

“Alright,” Dani said, her nerves finally giving her enough strength to ask. “What’s going on? You’re keeping something from me.”