When Garogyles Love Trilogy
Page 22
“Show me that address.”
She did. “I’m sorry, Declan. Even when we told her you needed her, that you both had to work together to get rid of the goblin, we couldn’t convince her that she was a fairy and that this guy Brent was bad news.”
“It isn’t your fault. I tipped my hand. If anything happens to her….”
Meg stopped him with her hand. “Save her, Declan. She’s our best friend.”
Declan strode out onto the patio and let his wings unfurl. He shifted into full gargoyle mode, talons extended where nails had been. His teeth elongated and his eyesight sharpened. He took off into the sky in search of his fairy feeling as if his whole life had come down to this very night.
He’d trained and never been field tested, but tonight he would be. He couldn’t fail.
He set down on the balcony of Brent’s penthouse. The goblin had slid the doors open and stood there grinning, his fangs dripping with saliva. His large ears twitched and his long, bony fingers flexed into fists. “Feckin’ gargoyle. Come at me.”
Fiona lay at the goblin’s feet. She wasn’t moving. Declan could still feel her so she wasn’t dead. He must have drugged her. “Fiona? Love? Wake up.”
The goblin let out an eerie laugh that sounded like someone drew a bow across a saw. The sound sent a chill skittering up his spine. He couldn’t get distracted. “Fiona?”
“She won’t wake up.”
Declan had once been told in one of those long endured lessons, that he could reach out to his fairy in his mind. He’d never done it and neither Sean nor Donal had mentioned doing it. He took a deep breath then let it out. “Fiona?”
“What?” she reached back.
“It’s Declan. Wake up.”
“I’m dreaming?”
“You’re not. I’m here. Brent is here and we’re going to look scary, but please don’t be afraid of me. It’s me in a different form. I need you to wake up.”
The connection was lost. Brent had severed it, but he didn’t see Fiona moving. Brent took a step towards Declan, but Fiona’s scream stopped him. He looked down as she crawled away from him.
“I’m here, Fiona. Trust me,” Declan said.
He couldn’t use his charm. He couldn’t use his humor. No, instead he had to trust that he’d laid enough ground work for Fiona to believe him and the sight of the goblin in true form would convince her. Brent laughed as Fiona screamed again. The distraction allowed Declan to get closer to her without Brent noticing. She was almost within his reach.
Fiona cringed away from him.
“Fiona. It’s Declan.”
She glanced from the goblin then back to him, her eyes wide, her mouth contorted. She blinked a few times, her face relaxing. “Declan?”
“Aye, love. I know I don’t look my best, but it’s me.”
The goblin turned to her, his hand raised to let loose whatever hell he could let loose. Fiona rolled toward Declan just in time, the ball of light spewing pieces of concrete when it hit where she’d been. Declan reached out and grabbed her arm. He yanked her so that she was pressed against him.
“Think bad thoughts about Brent.”
“What?”
“Once a year you can think bad thoughts. I’m sorry I can’t explain more, just do it. Trust me.”
Fiona seemed to square her shoulders and Declan was glad the mental connection had been severed. He didn’t want to know what she was thinking. With her, he could eliminate the goblin. With her and only her. It had to happen…it had to work. He held her close as he let loose a fire ball torching the goblin.
The goblin, the horror of Brent whatsisname, went up in a fiery scream…then there were just…ashes. Declan hadn’t known he could do that. He called to his brothers then turned back to his human form. Fiona turned in his arms and pressed her face to his neck.
“I will never forget that sight.”
***
Fiona didn’t remember much after the goblin was ignited. Declan tucked her into bed and she slept for the next nine hours.
When she eventually or finally awoke, it felt as if she’d been sleeping for one hundred years. She wasn’t sure what time it was and she didn’t hear anyone in her apartment. She shut her eye for a moment then stretched. That’s when the smell of coffee wafted her way. Sniffing, she climbed out of bed, following the scent to her small kitchen where a large man stood with a steaming cup of the black brew.
She paused in the doorway admiring him. He turned and flashed her a shy smile. “Hi.”
“Hi.”
Declan extended his hand with the mug in it. “Coffee?”
“Thank you,” she said, taking the cup. She eyed him as she sipped. “I guess we have a lot to talk about.”
He nodded. “Whenever you’re ready.”
She jerked her head towards her living room couch. “Come, sit.”
She led him to where they could sit and face each other.
“Ask me anything,” he said. “I promise to tell you what you need to know.”
She tilted her head slightly “I’m a fairy.”
It was a statement, but he nodded at her. “Aye, love.”
Love. Did he call everyone that or just her? “Start from the beginning.”
“Donal, Sean and I are gargoyles. This is history, Fiona. Back before time was written down. We were part of an elite group who were assigned to protect a specific fairy.”
She gave him a small smile. “And I’m your fairy?”
“Aye, love. By the actions of our father who broke an ancient rule, we were cursed to remain in stone as the gargoyle you first saw me as until we met that fairy.”
“Meg is Donal’s and Colleen is Sean’s.”
“Aye.”
She put up a hand to stop him from talking. Wait? What? “Can fairies be…sisters? That could mean that Colleen Meg and I are related.”
“Most likely, love.”
She would ponder that another day. “So what did your father do?”
“He laid with a fairy which is against all rules. When she became with child, he left her.”
Fiona cocked her head. “So you might have a sister or brother?”
The surprise on Sean’s face told her that he hadn’t thought of that. “I don’t know what would have happened to him or her. My brothers and I will have to talk about it.”
“So where have Meg and Colleen and I been this whole time?”
“I don’t know for sure, but I’d say that your soul was reborn with a new person because you didn’t fulfill your destiny that time around. We didn’t meet.”
“So we were fated to meet?”
“Aye, love. That doesn’t diminish my feelings for you,” he said.
He touched her face, tucking a hair behind her ear. He started to move closer then stopped as if he thought better of it.
That made her pause because she had feelings for him. “Even when I was angry with you, I’ve felt as if you were always part of me.”
“Aye. I felt it too.”
She reached out a hand to him and his engulfed hers. “So I’m a fairy and can only do good things?”
“Yes, love. Once a year you can wish something bad for someone. Last night was your one time this year. It was necessary. He would have killed us both.”
“And the goblin was incinerated.”
“Aye. I didn’t know we could do that. Donal and Meg tested it this morning on their barbecue and it worked. We never had that power before so we don’t know where it came from. Usually, it was just a ball of light that would kill a goblin.”
“Does it change anything?”
He laughed. “It just means we have to be careful if we are mad at the same person.”
She liked his throaty laugh. She wanted to hear it for a long time. “So what is our future?”
“I’d like it to be together, but we haven’t had time to really get to know each other so we can start there.”
She smiled at him. “I’d like that.”
He pu
lled her into a kiss to seal the deal.
She really liked it!
I hope you enjoyed this trilogy. Stay tuned for Stone Protector which will be Tex’s story.
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