Page 73 of The Gargoyle and the Songbird

Karisse nods, embarrassed and relieved. The tension drains from her small frame. I glance up at her mother and see the same relief echoed in her face.

I grin and step back. “Tell you what—I’ll get you some concert tickets instead. Front row seats, backstage passes, enough for you and a few friends to all come. How about that?”

Karisse’s face lights up. “Really? You’d do that for me? Even after…” she gulps, “what I did?”

“Of course,” I say, reaching out to tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear. “Anything for my biggest fan.”

The crisp wintryair nips at my skin as Graeme and I step out of Karisse’s house and onto the path out of the forest. I breathe in deeply, savoring the refreshing chill that fills my lungs. Now thatthe confrontation is over, it catches up to me in a rush, making my heart pound in my ears.

I turn to Graeme, unable to resist teasing him.

“See, I always knew that stalker wasn’t such a big deal,” I say, my voice light and airy. “I told you, sometimes things have a not-scary explanation after all!”

Graeme rolls his eyes, but I catch the hint of a smile on his chiseled features.

“You got lucky this time, Ecco,” he grumbles, but there’s no real bite to his words. “Let’s just hope there’s not a next time.”

I merely grin in response, lacing my fingers through his as we leave the forest and reach the outskirts of Elderberry Falls. The cobblestone paths have been shoveled countless times but are once again dusted with a layer of fresh snow, and we step carefully, watching for icy patches.

As we walk, hand in hand, my mind drifts back to my own tween years. I remember the struggles of coming into my powers, the constant fear of losing control.

Deandra’s words from the other week echo in my mind, her voice as clear as if she were standing right beside me. “You have a gift, Ecco. You should embrace it.”

My whole life, I’ve been focused on trying to rein in my powers. Too scared of what might happen if I let them run wild.

But now, as I think back on Karisse’s struggles, on the way she’d broken down in tears, something clicks into place.

In my quest to control my powers, to keep them locked away and hidden, I may have been holding myself back. Maybe I’ve been denying a fundamental part of who I am, a part that’s been yearning to break free.

And in that moment, I realize what I have to do.

27

ECCO

We step into the warmth of the Moonflower Inn’s lobby and my gaze immediately falls on Mariah at the reception desk. She knew where we were headed, and her face is an open book, worry etching lines around her emerald eyes and across her freckled brow. She spots us and tenses, clearly anticipating news.

I’d continued to keep the stalker situation a secret from Mariah. She’s been so busy operating the inn at full capacity and trying to help Velda. I didn’t want to worry her.

But once the cops showed up at her inn yesterday, I had to come clean. She was pissed that I’d kept such a big secret from her, but her fear for me kept her from getting too angry.

Now, I walk over to her quickly, not wanting to keep her in suspense.

“It’s fine. It’s all fine! It was all a misunderstanding. Karisse is a chronos sprite who can’t control her powers. She was trying to come watch my past performances and was accidentally sending herself all over the place.”

Mariah’s eyes widen with relief. “Oh, thank gods!”

But then the blood drains from Mariah’s face, leaving her sickly and pale. She lurches for the waste basket beside the desk and retches violently, her slender frame shuddering.

“Mariah!” I rush over and crouch beside her, rubbing her back. “Mariah, what’s going on? Are you okay?”

She looks up at me, strands of chestnut hair plastered to her sweaty forehead. A tentative smile tugs at her lips despite her sickly sheen.

“Surprise?” she whispers weakly. “I’m pregnant.”

Her hand comes to rest on her still flat stomach, her fingers splaying protectively.

I gape at her, my mind blanking out.Pregnant? But… but…

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