When a Gargoyle Lives (Gargoyles Book 2) (13 page)

Chapter Twenty-Five

Ric paced.  Or more like prowled grumpily.  The sun went down ten minutes ago.  Gracchus had already switched the TV on.  Annis was already cooking.  Cai and Ingrede appeared to be coupling – it sounded like a fight to the death but with more moans.  And Luc and Kylie had already left, as Kylie wished to ask around the town about Chloe.  Luc insisted on shadowing her – in spite of her loud and lengthy objections.

Where in the heavens was Brenda?

She said she would come.  She wanted to talk.  While that thought filled him with a little dread, the idea that he could sneak a few kisses with her was enticing.

Luc had told him he believed Kylie was his true mate.  A mate destined to be with him.  Ric had scoffed at that, mostly because his parents had always scoffed at that.  The ancient dragons had believed each of them were destined for a particular mate, also.  They thought that every dragon was born only half a heart and that their true mate possessed the other half.

Like Luc, numerous gargoyles believed they had inherited this trait from the dragons.  They thought that a female or male fated to be theirs was in the world somewhere and that when they met them, they would know.

But just as many thought this was pure hogwash.  His father - who was also his clan leader - had been particularly vehement on the subject.  Arguing that the so-called fated pull was nothing more than attraction, and noting that many gargoyles he had known died unmated – so did that mean that their mates would wander the earth searching for someone they would never find?  His father could find no logic in the matter, and therefore, he had no time for it. Given that he was a creature born from a magical spell, and created from a statue and a dragon, Ric often thought that a little faith would not have hurt.  But, in his youth, he had not cared much for fanciful notions such as true mates.  Now, he was not so sure.

The way he felt about Brenda, his attraction to her, his need for her – it was unlike anything he had ever experienced.  He’d felt attraction to females, but this was something new.  The speed with which his affection grew for her almost frightened him.  Almost – because he would never admit to being scared of anything.

But, he was hesitant.  These kinds of feelings, or even admitting to having these kinds of feelings, were entirely new to him.  He did not want to rush and make a mistake with Brenda.  He had already told her he wished to claim her, and she had not seemed overly thrilled.  A part of him bristled on that point, but he convinced himself it was just because she was human and they seemed to relish moving at the pace of a snail.  No, judging by her fervent kisses, the way her hands caressed his skin and tangled in his hair – she felt the same way.

He thought of his kiss and with Chloe and huffed.  The coldness and mechanicalness of it repulsed him.  How he could have ever entertained thoughts of taking her as a mate baffled him.

His phone vibrated, and he pulled it out of his belt.  Chloe’s name did not appear on the caller ID, and so he knew it must only be one other person.

Eagerly, he answered.  “Brenda.”

“It’s me,” she replied.  There were some shuffling and grunts down the end of the line.  “No!”

“Brenda!” he snarled.  The phone creaked under the intense pressure of his hand.  His wings unfolded, readying to take flight.  “What is happening?  Where are you?”

“Kevin…  Kevin… he…”

The line went dead, and Ric resisted the urge to crush the infuriating device in his hand.  She was in danger.  That monstrous human boy had returned and was hurting her.  He had to find her; he had to help her.  His heart clenched at the thought of never seeing her pretty smile again, of never listening to her musical laugh as she made fun of him.

He hit the callback button on his phone, and a woman told him that the number he had called was unavailable.  He yelled at her that Brenda was in trouble, but the woman seemed unconcerned.  He then cursed her and all her future offspring.  He was becoming accustomed to technology, but he hadn’t quite mastered the idea of automated messages.

Brenda.  Kevin could be doing anything to her at that very moment.  She was scrappy, but the boy could have brought a human weapon.  One of their awful guns.  She could be lying in a pool of her own blood at that very moment…

No, losing her was unacceptable.  If need be, he was prepared to show himself to the world.  He did not care what happened to him.  The only thing that mattered was Brenda’s safety.

He spread his wings, readying for flight.

“Amalric,” called a gentle voice.

“Not now, Annis.”

“Where are you going?”

“Brenda is in trouble; I must go to her.”

With that, he left Annis twittering on the ground as he soared into the night.

Hold on he thought, willing Brenda to hear him.  He would save her and then he would never let her go.

*

Ric dropped to the ground in front of Brenda’s house.  He could not hear or see anything amiss.  The house looked dark and empty.

Maybe Kevin had abducted her, and thrown her into a vehicle so that he may take her away from Ric.  Take her back to this Phoenix place Brenda mentioned.

He scented the air, and the delicate aroma of Brenda lingered along with her uncle’s, but it did not smell fresh.  And thankfully, he did not smell any blood.  But that also meant that the attack may have happened elsewhere.

Where did Brenda go when she was not at the house?  Who did she speak to?  Who did she know?

Belatedly, he realized how little he truly knew about her.  He wished he had taken more time to understand who she was.  While that was a very alien thought for him to have about a female, he furiously told himself that there would be time for that later.  After he saved her from her lunatic ex-boyfriend.

Ric stilled as he heard a click.  He sensed danger and his wings flexed.  Slowly, he moved down to a crouch.

Someone was nearby.  Not Brenda, not even that oaf, Kevin.  Someone who was taking great pains to try and hide their scent.

He sensed movement behind him.  Just the barest twitch.  And then another movement to his left.

Ric remained painfully still.  There was more than one of them, and judging by the increased shuffling movements, they were growing impatient.

It was dark; there were no streetlights outside Brenda’s house, and the porch light, which had been on when he visited the other night, was switched off.

It was an ambush.  They were there for him.  He had thought Brenda was in danger and had stupidly abandoned his clan.  Damnit, he should have told them what was happening.

Undoubtedly, these unworthy snakes knew he was there.  Hell, if they were using those night vision goggles humans had invented, they could probably see him.  Human technology had a lot to answer for.

He could hear seven – no make that eight - distinctly different bodies moving, but there may be more.  His fists tightened; patiently letting the seconds tick by as he waited for their attack.

They wanted him to move first, but he wouldn’t.  Humans were easy to fight.  But humans with their modern weapons were a different matter.

Eventually, one of them grew bored and lunged at him.  Ric roared and sprang to his feet, his wings exploding out of his body, knocking the man over before he could even pull the trigger of his weapon.

Ric grabbed the man and threw him at three more advancing on him.  He clawed, lunged at beat at them.  He spun, lashing out at one with his tail, sending the male flying through the air, crashing into a car with a sickening crunch.  They tried to tether him, to wrap chains around his arms, but he spun, dragging the human still futilely clutching the chain, and hurling him into more of them.

He had brief moments of satisfaction as bones crunched and they screamed in what was either pain or horror.  Most likely both.  Ric roared, baring his fangs as he swiped his claws at an advancing male.  The human jumped back, narrowly avoiding being sliced open.  The faint smell of urine reached Ric’s nose.

But as scared as they may be, they certainly did have weapons – painful weapons, and what they lacked in individual strength, they made up for in sheer numbers.  For every human he took down, another two seemed to pop back up.  His body was wracked with agony as electricity coursed through him.  They hit him again and again with darts and tasers.  He could only fight the effects for so long before their weapons took their toll.

He took hold of one of them by the neck and the male, although scared managed to jab him with a knife.

Ric howled, and he stumbled, and they piled on him.  Those who could still walk.  Most of them were rolling around the ground moaning.  He felt a needle being jabbed into his neck and as everything faded to black, Brenda's face swam before him.

For their sake, she better be safe.

Chapter Twenty-Six

Brenda found Annis in the kitchen, fretting as she refolded the same sheet over and over.  She’d enjoyed dinner with Chris, almost inhaling her burger, onion rings and chili cheese fries.  Then she went home and brushed her teeth – because onions, chili, and cheese made a potent combination.  Especially as there was a chance she may be kissing a certain gargoyle again soon.

It was a lucky break when Chris went out on a call.  She hadn’t relished the thought of trying to climb out of her window. Although she didn’t feel good about being sneaky, it was necessary.

She’d tried standing out the gate and waving outside the Hardcastle house, but no one seemed to be letting her in.  So, yes, she resorted to Bob’s hole.  Crawling under a hedge was starting to feel normal.  Then, it had been a very odd week.

“Everything okay, Annis?”

Annis almost leaped a foot in the air; her wings flapped helplessly, and she spluttered at Brenda.  “What are you doing here? Isn’t Amalric with you?”

Brenda felt a tickle of fear.  “Why would Ric be with me?”

“He said you were in danger.  He took off after you.”

Her heart boomed in her chest.  “After me?  Why would he think I was in danger?”

“What is happening,” rumbled Gracchus, exploding into the room.  “Child, you are okay?  Where is Ric?”

“I have no idea!” she cried.  “I assumed he was here with you.  What the hell is going on here?”

Gracchus bared his fangs.  “I have a very bad feeling about this.”  He held out his huge hand, which contained the remains of a mangled cell phone.  “I found this in the garden after he left.”

Brenda felt the bite of jealousy.  “Chloe gave it to him.”  She paused.  “He told you about Chloe, right?”

“Yes,” growled Gracchus, “he divulged that information last night.”

“When did he leave?”

“I don’t know,” murmured Annis.  “Perhaps thirty minutes ago.”

“I think Ric might be the one in danger.”  Brenda ran her hands through her hair.  Her thoughts thundered in a thousand different directions, worrying at what might be happening to him.  That she’d never see him again.

Worry turned to fury.  “I knew it; I knew I hated that… that… woman.”  Even if she’d only briefly seen her and heard a couple of snippets of her voice, Brenda knew she was evil.  She recalled that Chloe was the woman who helped her pick up her belongings after she knocked into her friend.  That couldn’t have been a coincidence.

“Where would he go?” snarled Gracchus, angrier than she had ever seen him.  Gracchus was always mild, kinder than the other males, but the fury on his face made her shiver.  “Where would he look for you?”

“I don’t know, my house, maybe.”

“You will show me the way,” he ordered.

“We’d have to walk through town.  I don’t think you can really do that.”

His dark eyes narrowed.  “I had no mind to walk.”

*

“Brenda?  Brenda?”

His voice echoed through the small, dark house.  Chris rubbed his jaw.  He was tired from working nearly every hour of every single day – he didn’t need this crap.  Not that he tended to sleep anyway.  He’d barely slept more than a few hours each night since he moved from Portland.  But, sometimes it really caught up with him, and he was almost dead on his feet.  Which was why he decided to ask one of his officers to deal with the call tonight – it was only Ms. Perkins, and she just wanted someone to rant at.

He knew Brenda had been through a lot, what with the move and then Kevin – Chris wanted to beat the living daylights out of that little fucker - but he had thought that he was, at least, making headway with her.  Then she decides to sneak out.  He’d only been gone from the house for fifteen fucking minutes!  It was a surprise they didn’t pass each other going back and forth from the house.

Maybe he should cut her some slack.  She seemed okay, but he wasn’t exactly the kind of guy interested in talking about feelings.  If he ever admitted to having one, he had to scratch his ass just to regain a little manliness.  Or his balls if the situation really was dire.

Chris had known Kevin was bad news since the moment Brenda introduced them during a visit – the little shit had the gall to grab Brenda’s ass right in front of him.  But he honestly never pegged Kevin for being violent.  Chris was losing his touch.  Time was when he worked in Portland he could spot a wife beater in a crowded room.

Chris rolled his shoulder, groaning at the ache in his muscles.  Maybe he was just getting old.  Until Brenda came to live with him, he’d still considered himself young.  Thirty-six was by no means ancient, but being around a youth half his age certainly made him feel his years.

Although weirdly, Brenda always seemed to be tired.  And he knew who was to blame.

He’d always liked Kylie and Maggie, even if Kylie used to get all giggly around him and Maggie called him Chief Tight Pants.  But maybe they weren’t such a great influence on his niece.  He knew Brenda missed her grandmother, and that a female presence was welcome, but they were keeping her out to all hours, and she still had school to think about.

It would be different if he were married.  He ignored the twinge of sadness and slowly made his way outside.  He was going to find Brenda and get her home.

Chris squinted as he looked at his car.  He had a car, but most of the time he walked everywhere – even after dark, finding the cool night air soothed him.

He ran his fingers along the side of the door.

“What the hell?”

Where the fuck had that dent come from?!  Immediately he suspected Brenda had driven his car and crashed it, but he always kept the key with him.  Unless she had developed some serious hotwiring skills – she couldn’t have even started it.  Who the fuck did this then?

Great, just what he needed.  He let out a breath and set out for the Hardcastle mansion.