The Prophecy (The Guardians) - By Wendy Owens Page 0,32

heap of pancake at him.

“Hey!” Gabe yelped, dodging the flying glob. “I’m serious, I want you to stay. Will you?”

“Well, I must admit, leaving does worry me. After all, I would hate for you to go back to just eating your cooking. You might wither away to nothing if it weren’t for my mad skills in the kitchen.”

“Rachel, I need to be serious for a moment,” Gabe decided he had to make the situation clear to her in order for him to carry no guilt over her choice.

“Oh no, not serious,” Rachel mimicked Gabe, giggling.

“Listen,” Gabe tried again to gain her attention. “There is a good chance Baal’s armies won’t find us here. They haven’t yet, so it seems reasonable to think that will continue. But you have to understand something; as long as you’re here, you are only protected by me. At Iron Gate there is a good chance you could be detected, but on the other hand you would be protected by an army of Guardians.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Rachel chimed, waving her hand in a dismissive way at Gabe’s warning.

“Rachel!” Gabe raised his voice, determined to get her attention. “I mean it. If they find us, I probably won’t be able to keep you safe.”

“Gabe, I get it. I have been here with you for months, I trust you. I’m sure these other people are great, but they are strangers to me. I would much rather be here alone with a friend than protected by an army of strangers. I know I must seem crazy.”

“Not really, I get it.” Gabe’s heart felt like it grew three times its natural size when she referred to him as a friend. He had treated her with such reckless regard, he thought for sure she had a hidden disdain for him. Her confession that she felt safe with him made him smile, though he tried to resist the urge.

“Can we not talk about this anymore?” Rachel asked. “I was thinking of jarring some preserves today, what do you think? I even thought we could take some to town eventually for trade.”

“That’s a great idea, I’ll watch.” he replied with a devilish grin.

“I don’t think so. You get to march your butt to town and get me some jarring equipment.” Rachel instructed.

“Nah, sounds like too much work. How about we go swimming instead?” Gabe grinned, the idea of Rachel’s wet body pleasing him.

“You’re incorrigible.” Rachel laughed.

“I try.”

CHAPTER TWELVE

The afternoon sun was high in the sky; Gabe raised a hand to shield his eyes from the rays. He had noticed some time ago that Rachel had headed off in the direction of the nearby brook. Not wanting to seem as though he was obsessed with her activity, he had not followed.

Something had been off about Rachel all day though. She had barely spoken at breakfast; Gabe could tell whatever was on her mind was weighing heavily. He worried she might be reconsidering her choice to stay in the valley with him.

Enough time had passed since she left his sight that Gabe decided it would simply be prudent of him to go and check on her. Ensuring her safety after being absent for such a lengthy amount of time couldn’t possibly be misconstrued.

“Rachel?” he called out as he approached the clearing near the brook. When he emerged from the tree line he caught a glimpse of her. She seemed so peaceful, sitting along the water’s edge, running her fingers through the lush blades of grass. Turning around at the sound of her name, Rachel half smiled as she watched Gabe approach.

“Hey Mr., what are you up to?” she asked turning to stare at the water some more.

“Looking for you, actually.” Gabe replied taking a seat next to her relaxed body.

“Oh yeah? What’s up?” Rachel inquired.

“Nothing really. I guess I just wanted to make sure you were alright.”

“Yup, I’m fine.” Rachel answered, without shifting her gaze.

“Can I say something?” Gabe asked politely.

“I don’t know, can you?” Rachel smiled, pleased with her snarky response.

Gabe took it as a good sign that she was cracking a joke. No matter how much he dreaded the conversation and that the result may reveal that she wanted to leave the valley, he hated seeing her this way more. “I don’t want to make you mad or anything, but I have noticed that you haven’t seemed like yourself for that past few days.”

“Who do I seem like?” Rachel continued with the jokes.

“I’m trying to be serious here, is something wrong?” Gabe asked, staring