Page 91 of Revelations

There it was, right in front of her after so long—the place where she had become a guardian angel. The fear that hadoverwhelmed her that night pierced her mind now. An image flashed before her of a shred of light; the same light that had beckoned her out of the earth. She felt the dirt caked on her skin and in her tousled hair. A familiar pungent odor assailed her nostrils.

For a moment, she was back in that night. Newly emerged from her own grave, she heard the soft strains of laughter being carried over the wind. Her eyes sought out the tree that Jasper had been leaning against when he’d first introduced himself.

She had put away those memories long ago. Now, they assaulted her full force. The fear and bewilderment that she had felt then slammed into her again, as if not a moment had passed.

Willing her courage and strength to return, Greylyn forced herself to walk down the hill toward the cemetery. Every step felt like she was walking through a field of tar, not a grassy pasture. The pull inside her grew more urgent, more demanding. She tripped over her own feet, nearly stumbling into the ramshackle fence that enclosed the cemetery.

Although she saw a hand open the gate, her body was not aware that it was her own on the rusted metal. She didn’t feel in charge of herself. She didn’t even feel like she was really there, like this was an out of body experience and not her corporeal form stepping over stone grave markers as she made her way to the far corner, just a few yards from the familiar line of tall trees. The trees were larger, some fallen or since cut down. But whatever scene met the human eye this night, Greylyn’s eyes saw only what had been four hundred and fiftyyears earlier.

The newer burial plots had names engraved on stone crosses with dates of birth and death. Picking her way through, older plots emerged. Some were so overgrown, the only way to discern them from the surrounding grass was a small, polished rock. Still, even those were too new to be from her time.

Her leaden feet carried her onward, until she reached a bare rectangle outlined in the grass. The only thing differentiating it from the rest was a slightly darker shade of green, probably not even enough to be perceived by humans. There was no marker at all. No name. No indication that it was even a gravesite.

But she knew. The earth-pounding echo of her heart deafened all else. All air escaped her lungs in a gust. Every nerve ending fired at once, sending wave after wave of pain throughout her body.

Her heart knew. Her mind knew. Her body knew. This had been her grave. This had been the place in which she had been…reborn.

Her knees buckled, unable to hold up her tiny frame any longer. She collapsed to the ground, finally allowing long pent-up emotions to overcome her. Heaving sobs ripped from her lips. Tears blinded her. The very ground she lay upon seemed to beckon her back. If she’d had the courage, she would’ve dug herself back into the ground.

She might not remember her life here, but her death marked her beginning. She had come full circle, at last.

***

She had seen Greylyn’s arrival at the inn but had no intention of confronting her yet; not with the human present to interfere. No, she would deal with him soon enough.

Watching the guardian run toward that awful place, her human grave, tore Adeline’s heart in two. Although she hadn’t been there that night, she felt the pain. It had been her pack’s responsibility to keep the woman, now known as Greylyn, safe. Her own family had taken a vow to serve and protect her, much like the Faoladh of ancient times—wolf shifters who served as protectors and particularly as guardians. The oath still held, although few wolf shifters remained to uphold it.

This was not how it should have happened. This was never how it was supposed to happen. The evil should never have found Greylyn. The cloaking should have kept her existence hidden from even the most prying eyes. The guardian angel thing had been a twist no one had seen coming.

Greylyn was home, finally; but not with the warm hugs and smiles of loved ones to welcome her, though. Those she had loved were long dead. All that was left was an empty plot of dirt.

Now with the son of Diana nowhere in sight, presumed dead, it would be up to the pack to help Greylyn break the prophecy.

Adeline intentionally cloaked her presence from the guardian. The poorthing had enough to deal with at the moment. There was noneed to alert her just yet. She deserved this time to mourn her lost life before facing down revelations that would soon come to pass.

Watching from the shadows of a grove of pear trees that overlooked the cemetery on one side, but with an impressive view of the lough, Adeline’s lips curled up in a sad smile. An empathetic tear streamed down her own face.

“Welcome home, Granauile. Welcome home.”

TO BE CONTINUED

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