Page 44 of Stone Heart
Chapter 15
Rina strode toward the entrance of the lair with Vikuth at her side. She kept glancing at him, seeing him in his human form.
“What is it?” he asked, clearly sensing her attention on him.
“Nothing. This the first time I’ve seen you as a human.” She smiled as they continued.
Nerves filled her belly at the thought that her parents would be here any minute. The dark lair of gargoyles was in an uproar due to the arrival of Faery’s royalty. Servants and guards scurried around preparing for the regal couple.
They came to the stairwell that led to the ground level of the warded building. Rina paused at the bottom stair and tried to slow her racing heart.
“What is it?” Vikuth repeated, pausing on the stairs.
He leveled his ice-blue eyes on her, and she returned his gaze.
“I haven’t seen my parents since I was eight years old. I don’t even know what to say to them,” she admitted. She pushed her hair behind her ear, tremors in her hands.
He came down the stairs to stand next to her. His eyes searched hers as if he were looking for something. “Rho has been my friend since we were young.”
“Rho?” She raised her eyebrow at the nickname.
“Don’t tell anyone.” He smirked.
Vikuth was handsome by many standards, but he just didn’t make her heart flutter as Rhodack’s intense gaze did. Some lucky woman would win a prize in Vikuth.
“He told me of you fighting off the demons. You impressed him something fierce, and let me tell you, he doesn’t impress easy. He holds me to a higher standard than any of the warriors because we trained together and fought together.”
A small smile appeared on her lips, and she glanced down at her hands. She knew what he was doing. Creating a distraction. She clasped them together, trying to still the nervous tremble. Her thoughts went back to the fight with the demons.
“You really think he was impressed?” She looked at Vikuth in time to catch his nod.
“Yeah. For what you’ve been through recently, I think its badass. I can’t wait to see what you do with more training. Now come, the king and queen should be here any moment.”
He gently gripped her arm and guided her up the stairs to the main level that led to the lobby. The building was a gateway to the underground world, and the main lobby resembled Grand Central station.
The air was filled with magic as inhabitants of the world came and went. She glanced about. Gargoyle warriors spread out around the lobby.
“Have you seen Rhodack?” she asked. When she’d awoken, he was gone. She’d laid there thinking of the events from the previous night, and her cheeks flushed.
“He’s around here somewhere. With your parents coming here, he has to make sure that our realm is secured. He’s been working with the other gargoyle clans around the world to ensure we can handle the Fae royalty coming. It’s been centuries since the Fae have stepped foot in this realm.”
“What did Rhodack mean when he said that my parents had broken a treaty?” she asked.
“Around the time of your disappearance, gargoyles had come to an agreement that no Fae would cross over into this realm because of the war. We had to protect the Terra realm at all costs, and the war between Fae and necromancers could not spill over here. This world wasn’t built for it. It still isn’t.”
“So planting me here on Earth broke that agreement,” she murmured.
“Come.” He guided her over to where Solana stood.
Rina smiled at her foster mother. She rushed over to her, into her waiting arms. Even though Solana wasn’t her birth mother, she would always hold a special place in Rina’s heart.
“Nervous?” Solana asked, pulling back. She gripped Rina’s chin and stared deep into her eyes. She could always read her emotions.
Rina had figured it was mother’s intuition, but now she knew it was the witch in Solana that allowed her to tap into Rina’s emotions.
“A little,” she admitted.
Solana let her go. “Don’t worry. Your parents are probably just as nervous as you are.”
