Gargoyle Guardian Chronicles Omnibus, Books 1-3 by Rebecca Chastain

Author:Rebecca Chastain [Chastain, Rebecca]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-0-9906031-9-1
Publisher: Rebecca Chastain

12

I limped down the library steps and turned to wait for Oliver to glide down to meet me. Pigeons cooed and bobbed along the roofline, but the blue sky remained empty. I turned away, my heart constricting with familiar soreness. It’d been almost two weeks since Oliver had departed with the FPD, and I’d thought it’d be easier by now. For the twentieth time today, I assured myself that I’d made the right decision in encouraging him to go with the squad. Remembering his excitement helped.

Distractions worked better.

I purchased a copy of the Terra Haven Chronicle from a newsboy on the corner and hobbled to lean against the brick wall of a building, out of the way of traffic. The healers had done a wonderful job mending my foot, though it’d hurt worse than the original injury. I had another week of wearing a brace while the freshly knitted tissue and muscle strengthened before I’d be cleared to walk unimpeded. I was counting the hours.

The front page of the paper focused on the recent governor’s debate and had nothing to do with me, gargoyles, the full-five squad, or Focal Park. I breathed a sigh of relief. I’d had the dubious honor of gracing the front page again, thanks to Kylie. Sometime before the healers had arrived, she’d snapped a picture of me, Marcus, and the marmot behind us. I’d looked like a disaster victim, not a hero, especially next to Marcus, who even in repose managed to appear ready to rush off to halt a swarming clutch of basilisks. The headline had been equally embarrassing: Gargoyle Healer Saves Terra Haven. Kylie had a gift for writing, but she tended to exaggerate my heroism. Thankfully column space had been limited, and after she’d described everything else that had transpired thanks to Elsa’s purifier, she’d only had two inches left to recount my destruction of the null. She still managed to make me seem impressive enough to be a member of the FPD.

I found Kylie’s follow-up story on page 11 today. It detailed the ongoing cleanup at the park and a few facts about Elsa’s career, ending with a simple statement: Elsa Lansing remains under guard at the Soothing Halls mental hospital, awaiting trial.

I folded the paper and stuffed it in my bag with my haul of books. I slung it over my shoulder and checked to see if Oliver was—

Releasing a sigh, I limped along the sidewalk and tried to picture a punishment a jury could dole out that would be worse than Elsa’s current fate. In her greedy pursuit of more power, she had nullified herself. For the rest of her life, she’d be able to see magic but never touch or use it again.

I shuddered. The few minutes I’d spent inside the null field had been some of the most horrific of my life, even discounting the agony of having magic sucked through my skin from my bone marrow. Cut off from magic, the world had felt dead. I had felt dead.

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