Repairer of the Breach (Stones of Fire Book 4) Read online

  Repairer of the Breach

  Sarah Ashwood

  Contents

  Author’s Inspiration

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Acknowledgments

  Stones of Fire Series

  About the Author

  Works by Sarah Ashwood

  Repairer of the Breach

  Copyright © 2021 Sarah Ashwood

  Editing by Olivia Cornwell Editing Services

  Proofreading by Fantasy Proofs

  Cover art by Oliviaprodesign.

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Excepting brief review quotes, this book may not be reproduced in whole or in part without the express written permission of the copyright holder. The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal.

  This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, real events, locations, or organizations is purely coincidental.

  All Scripture quotations from The Authorized (King James) Version.

  Created with Vellum

  Dedication

  In memory of my Gran, Alamae “Polly” Ferguson. It was from her that I inherited my sense of humor, my love of black coffee, my love of the color red, my love of poetry, my love of puns, and my love of words themselves. Without her influence, I doubt I would have become the person—or author—that I am today.

  Author’s Inspiration

  “And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in.”

  —Isaiah 58:12

  “Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire.” —Ezekiel 28:14

  Chapter One

  I don’t know what made me wake up. There was no loud noise, no sudden action or movement. Maybe it was the dull, pounding pain in my head, my limbs. Not the type of pain that jerked you from slumber, like a leg or foot cramp in the middle of the night, but the kind whose awareness slowly grew on you until it eventually drew you awake.

  “Uuuuhhhh…”

  I heard groaning as I came to, and wondered who was making those noises. Took me a minute to realize they were coming from me.

  Slowly, I unwound my limbs and dragged open my eyelids. Slowly, consciousness returned and my attention focused. Something was underneath my legs—cold, hard ground. Something cold and hard was also underneath my torso, my head, my arms. I raised my head so I could look down.

  A body. A bronze, like a statue. But a statue that lived.

  Carter. The Talos.

  Just like that, my memory starting working again. My limbs felt sluggish as I scrambled up to my knees, one hand reaching for the spot on his chest over his heart, the other for his face.

  “Carter,” I whispered, my throat raw as if from heat or smoke inhalation. “Carter, are you okay? Can you hear me?”

  His eyes were closed. Despite his fall through the fire, the portal, he hadn’t shifted back into human form. I didn’t know if that was a good or a bad sign. Maybe the Talos was what had saved him, and me, as well? Because of his bronze exterior, I couldn’t feel a heartbeat under my palm. I fought my trembling fingers to place them on his neck, feeling for a pulse. At the same time, I bent, putting my face in his, praying desperately to feel his breath on my cheek. A few tense seconds of holding my own breath, shutting out the questions, the worries, focusing solely on what I wanted to find. I never felt the weak thrumming of life beneath my fingertips, but I did finally feel the soft inhale and exhale of air against my chin.

  “Oh, babe…”

  I sank back with a half-laugh, half-sob of relief.

  “You’re still here,” I said. “Thank God you’re still here.”

  Wherever here was…

  With the blessed realization that he was alive came the next realization that I had no idea where we were. I sank back on my legs, both hands on the Talos’ chest, grounding myself to reality by touching him, knowing I wasn’t alone in a strange world. Although, at first survey, it didn’t look so strange. Beneath my legs, beneath Carter’s body, was sand. Normal course, yellowish sand. A few paces away, water lapped at the edge of the beach. Pebbles and tiny seashells were strewn about on the water’s edge, just like a beach back on earth. A thick, grey-white fog hung over the scene, obscuring the water beyond the shore. I couldn’t tell if it was a river, a lake, or even an ocean cove. Thin, reedy grass grew up to the edge of the sand on the opposite side of the beach. Beyond that were a few trees, around which tendrils of fog snaked and curled. Beyond them? More fog. Darkness. Possibly a forest? I squinted, thankful to realize I still had my glasses, but couldn’t be sure. Still, there was nothing outright weird or supernatural to suggest that we were in some strange, alien place.

  Maybe we are still on earth?

  I didn’t know where else the fall through the Stones’ portal would’ve taken us. I hadn’t calculated that part, or even tried to. In the moment, there had only been the desperate need to follow my instincts and push Carter through the portal, hoping to save his life.

  I glanced down.

  It had worked. For now. Feeling his breath had told me he was still alive, but he hadn’t moved since I’d awakened. Not so much as a twitch. He hadn’t reacted to the sound of my voice or my touch. Instinct told me that he needed help if he was going to survive.

  At that thought, sheer panic seized, causing me to glance around wildly. Where was I? Whether on earth or in some other world or dimension, I obviously wasn’t in Texas anymore. I was in a strange place and, if Carter died, would be totally alone. I wasn’t much of a nature girl or a survivalist. I honestly didn’t know what I’d do if I had to try and make it on my own out here. Not to mention, I had no idea where to get help, or if I were even physically capable of searching for it. I hadn’t tried to stand yet, but my legs had that heavy, numb feeling of limbs that had fallen asleep.

  Maybe that’s all it is, I reassured myself. I’ve been laying here so long my legs are asleep. There can’t be anything wrong with me. There wasn’t before I fell through the portal.

  True. Not like Carter, who’d surrendered his life’s blood—the Talos’ blood—in order to save me. Which meant it was now my turn to protect him.

  My medical training kicked in.

  He’d been bleeding before our journey. Was he still? If so, I needed to stanch the flow if he was going to survive.

  I pushed myself back up on my knees, willing my legs to move. I crawled one pace, two, three until I w
as down by my husband’s legs where I could bend over and see his feet, his ankles.

  My heart sank.

  Dark blue liquid seeped from the self-inflicted slash above his ankle, staining the sand beneath his bronze heel. There wasn’t a large pool, and it looked to me like the cold and inertia had helped reduce the flow, but who knew how much blood he’d actually lost back there on the country club grounds, in the circle of shifters? Who knew how much he could afford to lose? This wasn’t normal human blood. This was magical blood from a unique, powerful shifter.

  Nothing in my nurse’s training had prepared me for dealing with magic and ichor—the supposed blood of the gods—or for trying to stanch blood on a bronze body. Nevertheless, my nurse’s training was all that I had. I still wore the gown Mrs. Costas had purchased for me, but me lying on the sand had left it damp and covered with grit. I was afraid to put it against Carter’s wound due to the risk of infection. I doubted antibiotics would be available if he did get infected. As it happened, my bra was the cleanest thing on me, so I reached back and unzipped the dress enough to slide it off my shoulders. After removing my bra, I twisted my arms awkwardly to refasten the dress, then folded the bra, placing it over the open wound, using its straps to bind it to Carter’s bronze flesh as best I could.

  Would it work? I swiped damp hair off my forehead with the back of my wrist, studying him worriedly.

  This isn’t good enough. It might stop the bleeding, but what if he’s already bled too much? What if it’s already infected? I need some type of antiseptic. I need bandages. I need to keep him warm. Or does a bronze man have to be warm? Can a bronze man get an infection? What if I’m doing this all wrong?

  Tears flooded my eyes. I was cold and lost and terrified, both for Carter and myself. I felt like I was at the end of my rope. I was weak. I admit it. For a few seconds I sat there and cried, grasping one of the Talos’ cold, bronze hands in both of mine.

  “I don’t know what to do,” I begged through the tears. “I don’t know what to do. Please wake up, Carter. Please wake up. Help me out here. Help me know what to do to save you.”

  Nothing. He might as well have been a genuine, inanimate bronze statue for all the response I got.

  Desperation deepened, but I knew I couldn’t sit here crying and not do anything to help us. Wiping away my tears, I gave Carter’s heavy hand a final squeeze I doubted he could feel and pushed myself up to standing. Dizzy, I swayed, clapping a hand to my face, shutting out dim light and the unfamiliar world around me. After a couple of deep breaths the sensations subsided and I was able to think more or less clearly again.

  “Okay. Help. Got to get help,” I whispered aloud, encouraging myself. “Nothing to do but search around, find it.”

  I hated leaving Carter, not knowing if he’d even be alive by the time I returned. There was also the question of who or what I might run into while searching, or who might stumble across him while I was gone. Friend, foe? Ordinarily, I wouldn’t do it, but I’d simply run out of options. I couldn’t drag Carter anywhere, especially in his altered form. He was too heavy. I didn’t have a coat or sweater or even my light wrap from last night to drape over him. I could’ve taken off my dress and gone three-quarters naked, but that wasn’t going to do either of us any good, I thought wryly.

  Before walking away, I knelt next to Carter, saying into his ear, “Honey, if you can hear me, I’m going to go find help. I’ll be back. Hang on, Carter. Hang on for me. I’ll be back soon.”

  Naturally, I had no idea if I could keep either of those promises—to find help or to return—but it was do it or die trying.

  Chapter Two

  I left my designer heels on the beach next to my husband, figuring they’d be more of an impediment than a help at this point. Once I was off the sand and in the grass I regretted it. The grass was prickly and tough; not exactly easy to tramp through. The fog refused to yield, but I hadn’t struggled through the grass very long before dark shapes loomed before me. I pressed towards them despite my reservations. Quickly, they solidified in the weaving grey mist, and I could see they were trees.

  Beyond the beach, a forest soared. The ground beneath the thick, overhead boughs was damp with a carpet of leaves and needles, from which ferns sprouted. Emerald moss sprawled across boulders and tree bark. I kept a wary eye out for snakes, insects, thorns, or other dangers to my bare feet. I didn’t spot any snakes, but I did disturb a few creepy bugs that skittered away, and despite my best efforts my feet uncovered plenty of sharp points that pricked and cut.

  Really, really, really wish I had some hiking boots right about now, I mourned, but there was nothing to be done for it. I could’ve gone back for my shoes, but the ridiculous heels would have sunk into the damp earth and caught on every vine and long twine of grass.

  I was chilled and miserable. My feet were sliced and hurting. Even as I explored, I didn’t want to get too far from Carter in his condition, and certainly not so far that I couldn’t find my way back again. The only thing more frightening at the moment than not locating any help was being lost on my own out here. I don’t know how long I trudged and fought my way through the unyielding forest, seeing no signs of life besides forest life. Eventually, I broke back out of the trees, and was facing the strip of tough beach grass between the trees and the water’s edge. I couldn’t see Carter sprawled on the sand, since the fog hid him from view, but I assumed he was still there.

  Shielding my eyes from the weak light that bounced and glowed off the drifting sheets of fog, I tried desperately to peer through the grey curtain. I saw absolutely nothing. My heart sank all the way to my battered feet.

  We’re doomed. I should’ve let Nosizwe kill us. It would’ve been faster than dying of starvation and exposure to the elements.

  Again, tears stung my eyes. For the life of me, I couldn’t force them away.

  Why did You bring us here? I prayed, moisture clouding my vision as I stumbled back through the knee-high grass towards the dying Talos. I thought You’d always be with me. I don’t feel you here, but if You are here, please help me. Please help us. I’m at my wit’s end. I don’t know what to do or where to go. If there’s something or someone nearby who can help us, please open my eyes to see it. Right now, I’m blind. If I stay blind, Carter and I will both die. If we both die here, if we never get back to warn Mr. Costas, who knows what havoc those two women will wreak on Earth? We’ve got to survive. We’ve got to get back. Please help us…

  By the time I staggered back onto the sand, where I could see my husband’s inert bronze form glistening even through the ribbons of fog, I was crying so hard I was having a hard time breathing. I felt like I’d felt the first time I met Carter and had been introduced to shapeshifters: overwhelmed, full of fear of the known and terror of the unknown. That night, I’d been mostly depending on Carter to get me out of those terrible situations alive. Now, not only could I not depend on him, he was depending on me to rescue us both.

  The burden was too heavy to bear. I collapsed on the beach, far enough from Carter that, even if his subconscious could hear, he wouldn’t catch my sobs.

  I don’t want to see him die, I told myself. I can’t watch that. I can’t.

  However, my conscience wouldn’t allow me to sit and wallow in despair.

  Really? it goaded. You’re going to sit here and cry while he dies alone because you don’t want to watch him die? What kind of a selfish brat are you? Would he do that to you?

  I knew the answer to that.

  “You’re right. I’m sorry,” I murmured aloud, to no one in particular. Maybe to Carter. Maybe to myself. Maybe to God. “I’m being weak and I’m being a coward. If I can’t do anything else, I can at least sit there with him until—”

  The notion was too terrible to finish aloud.

  I got back on my feet and made my way over to the sleeping Talos.

  “Carter,” I said, lowering myself down next to him, placing a hand on his cold, motionless chest. “Carter, can you hear m
e? If you’re there, listen. I’m sorry. I’m sorry you had to sacrifice yourself for me. I’m sorry I forced you to come here. I thought it might save your life, but I think all I did was kill you a different way. I don’t know. I’m sorry it didn’t work, though. I’m sorry I can’t seem to find us the help we need. I’m sorry I don’t know what to do. I’m sorry I’m not stronger and braver and more resourceful. You deserve someone like that. I’m sorry you’re stuck with me, but I promise I won’t leave you again.”

  Still no response. Not a twitch of the mouth or flicker of an eyelid. I put the back of my hand against his bronze lips and was able to detect the faintest flush of air. He was still there, hanging on by a thread.

  Reassured that I wasn’t alone, yet, I folded my arms on his chest and hid my face in them, cradling my head against him.

  If You’re there, please help us, I prayed again.

  I don’t know if I fell asleep or passed into a trance. All I know was I felt a sudden touch to my shoulder, a touch that startled me awake like I’d been asleep. I sat up, looking around. I felt out of it, sort of like when I’d come out from under anesthesia after my surgery.