The Forsaken by Renee Pace Page A

eyes shifting uneasily to the side to where Shea stood, half in the shadow. He quickly composed himself, straightening his wide shoulders and moving into his at-ease, casual military stance. It was a move Meredith had grown accustomed to seeing when he tried to find his balance and fight the need for the liquid poison that helped ease his misery.
    “Izzy told me to talk with you if any of you gave me trouble about seeing her,” he said, his voice dropping an octave.
    “Shea, why don’t you take your tea in your room? Gareth would you like a hot drink?” said Meredith, ushering Gareth to the sofa with a hand gesture.
    Gareth nodded and sunk into the sofa. Meredith watched Shea leave and then dashed into the kitchen to return with a tray of hot tea for herself and hot chocolate for Gareth. Ever since his war duty he hated tea. Hot chocolate appeased his sweet tooth.
    “Thank you,” said Gareth, accepting the hot chocolate with grace for a man with large hands. Hand that she knew he’d used to kill. He never talked to her about what he’d endured but she, like Izzy, had come into enough physical contact with Gareth to read his psyche.
    Meredith took a sip of her tea before speaking. “Gareth, Izzy can’t see you tonight but…but I would like to speak with you.”
    Gareth’s nervous energy flowed like a swirl of tropical colors around him. Meredith closed her eyes for comfort, feeling his fight. Of all the men who had attempted to breech their sanctuary with charm, money, and muscle, it had been an ex-thief, an ex-military man, who had chiseled down Izzy’s defenses. Meredith knew why. Gareth looked Seraphim. He, more than the rest, with his military swagger and muscular physique had made her friend’s heart beat. Meredith knew it had been a faint beat and that Gareth lusted after Isabella, but she didn’t have the heart to turn him away when obviously he needed soothing.
    Meredith knew all about Gareth’s drinking and the promise he’d given Izzy. She watched him take a sip of the sweet drink. He sighed and that pleased her. “Gareth, Izzy is unable to see you tonight. Let me be the one to ease your suffering.” She’d said the words low, using the power of her Cherub voice for once.
    “What the fuck are you talking about?” His eyes widened and his voice filled with anger and hurt.
    He reached out to take hold of Meredith’s hand. The scent of him, slightly sweaty, streamed into Meredith. A lot taller than her, he loomed over her even as he sat on the sofa, demanding an answer. Feeling rattled, Meredith did the only thing she could think of.
    She reached out, brought her hand to his heart, and fed him the love she felt for him, allowing him to see her truly. Her wings unfurled, the feathers arching high toward the heavens as they breathed in the stillness of the night.
    He jumped up from the sofa, nearly stumbling as he scrambled away like her touch burned. His rejection, a reminder she wasn’t as holy or deserving as Isabella, almost brought tears to her eyes.
    “What the fuck are you playing at?” Gareth’s jaw clenched and his eyes narrowed in disbelief. “And what are those?”
    Reaching for calm, Meredith instantly made her wings invisible. “Nothing. Trick of the light,” she mumbled, attempting to remain on the cool leather sofa.
    Gareth grabbed her arm, pulling her off the sofa. “Bullshit, Meredith. I want you to tell me exactly what’s going on here. I know what I just saw and the only other time I’ve seen wings like that I thought I was fucking dying. So don’t think you can feed me a line. I know what I saw, so explain to me what’s going on.”
     

Chapter Seven
     
     
    Rain poured down in gray sheets, soaking him to the bone. Fitting. Nat shivered and hiked his jacket collar more around his neck. Fat droplets of rain still slid down his back, causing him to quicken his pace. For two days, he’d avoided Isabella and her sisters. Time was a necessity he needed. Isabella’s