Knights of Stone - Lachlan by Lisa Carlisle Read Free Book Online Page A

he’d disappoint her as well. Why did that bother him most of all?
     
     

CHAPTER FOUR
     
     
    After the sun descended in brilliant orange brush strokes across the horizon, the four brothers transformed to gargoyle form. Cloaking themselves so they’d be invisible to any human onlookers, they unfurled their wings and flew from the Isle of Stone. All were quiet during the flight, which gave Lachlan time to think. The only sounds came from the flap of their wings through the air and the distant sound of the ocean movement below.
    As they flew over the Atlantic, the moon grew brighter. The bright orb reflected in a thousand shimmering lights on the waves of the North Atlantic below. They appeared to float along beneath them as if accompanying them on their journey south. Had it been only a couple of days since the moon had been at its full peak, wreaking such havoc on the Isle of Stone?
    Know what you’re going to say? Bryce communicated to him through his thoughts.
    No. Even silently, he heard the curtness in his tone.
    After several minutes, Calum brought up the future of the band again.
    Just because we don’t have an audience on the isle doesn’t mean we can’t go back to the way we were before. Playing in the cities.
    Gavin let out a mirthless laugh. As humans. Masquerading like we’re one of them. Not being who we are.
    We knew from the beginning the concerts wouldn’t work forever on the isle, Lachlan reminded him.
    When dealing with humans, Bryce added, they find a way to botch things up.
    With supes, too, Gavin replied. I’m going to miss playing. All of it.
    Agree. From shifting from stone all the way to the end when we unfurled our wings and flew , Calum added.
    That’s the only choice, Lachlan declared, wanting to end this sore topic. We have more important things to worry about right now than the future of the band.
    When he pinpointed the edge of land below, relief swept through him. Although he’d been born and raised on the Isle of Stone, the ancestral hold of the Highlands pulled at him. Gargoyles had lived there for centuries, embroiled in countless battles between human clans. No matter how they’d intervened to prevent the humans from fighting, humans continued undeterred. Hell-bent on annihilation, they often ended up destroying themselves in the process. No amount of reason could stop a proud, stubborn Highlander.
    The gargoyles flew over hills and valleys, barely visible by night. Their acute vision enabled them to discern the sinewy peaks of a mountain range in the distance. They soared by rolling slopes, which softened into gentle planes. A loch rippled with a shimmering gleam, reflecting the celestial bodies above.
    Once they passed the body of water, Lachlan pointed to the open expanse of a meadow below. Land here.
    What for? Bryce replied.
    I want to walk the rest of the way. He wanted to tread the land of his ancestors. Maybe he’d find guidance on the grounds where many gargoyles had sacrificed their lives, caught in battles between clans.
    It’s a half a mile up hill.
    Lachlan ignored his brother’s protests and landed on the grass with little sound. The varieties of heather surrounded him with their soothing fragrance.
    “You’re acting odder than usual,” Gavin pointed out.
    “Gathering my thoughts before we show up unannounced.”
    Gavin shot him a skeptical glance but didn’t say a word.
    Lachlan led them up a hill covered with various types of grass and wild vegetation. Rocks had rolled down the hill, remains of the stone edifice a few hundred feet ahead. They penetrated the greenery and led the way forward to the castle remains where the Calder clan had returned to live. The clan had come full circle. They’d left the Highlands after centuries of battles to find peace on the Isle of Stone. And now they were back to find solitude in the Highlands, southwest of Thurso, near Loch Calder for which they’d taken their name.
    The castle had been badly damaged in clan