by Karen Duvall
Elmo waddled in from the coffee shop’s kitchen. “There’s an entire house above us with plenty of room.”
“Great idea, Elmo, thanks.” Aydin clapped the little man on the shoulder. “Lead the way.”
It wasn’t a large house, but there were three tiny bedrooms and a big old-fashioned sofa in the living room. Aydin opted for the sofa so that he could keep one eye open for any Vyantara who had survived the explosion. There had been so much magic in that place, and a number of portals leading to who knew where, that I guessed more than a few had escaped. How easily they could return from where they’d vanished was anyone’s guess, but we didn’t dare let our guard down. Especially when it came to Shui, who would be gunning for me the moment he found out where I was.
I tried not to let that scare me. I’d had run-ins with Shui before, and if not for Gavin’s intervention, I’d be dead. Things were different now. I was different, stronger, more confident. Best of all, I had Gavin’s stone knife, which seemed to have a powerful effect on the gargoyle. But my biggest advantage was knowing how to kill Shui.
There were iron bars on all the windows of Elmo’s house. The iron would help keep out any unwanted fey or demon influences, and according to Aydin, the metal blocked telepathy, as well. So any mind readers out there were out of luck.
After Quin and Elmo disappeared behind the doors of two of the three bedrooms, Aydin and I sat together on the sofa to talk about Geraldine. “Do you trust Quin?” I asked him.
Looking unsure, he said, “Yes, and no. I don’t think he’d do anything to intentionally harm her, but I can’t ignore the chance he might hurt her by accident.”
“I understand.” Perhaps I’d underestimated how important she was to him. “You still love her, don’t you?”
He looked surprised, then chuckled. “You mean romantically? Of course not.”
“But you told me you’d fallen in love with her.”
“That was nine hundred years ago, Chalice.” He leaned back on the sofa and lifted his legs to rest his heels on an early twentieth-century coffee table. The entire house looked as if stuck in a time warp from that era, but it felt comfortable, too. Normal, like a real home.
“For one thing,” Aydin said, “Geraldine never loved me back. I’d mistaken admiration and awe for love when it had only been infatuation. I was young and foolish, and the object of a fallen angel’s bad joke. I’ve since learned to deal with my curse, and I’ve matured enough to know the difference between real love and a crush.”
“Have you ever been in love?” I wanted to grab those words as they left my mouth, but it was too late. I’d said it, and I couldn’t take it back.
Aydin smiled while giving me an appraising look. His Asian eyes crinkled with amusement. “As a matter of fact, I have.”
My mouth went dry and my heart tripped over itself as I hoped it was me he loved. I loved him, or at least I thought I did. Unfortunately, this damn curse kept getting in my way of believing it.
I studied his face, seeing his gentle eyes trained on me as if reading pages in a book. He knew how I felt. He knew everything about me and instead of being annoyed at having my privacy invaded, it turned me on. I had no need for inhibitions around Aydin. It was okay for me to be myself, but I wasn’t used to that kind of freedom. What if it backfired?
An awkward silence fell between us so I stood up to leave. “I’ll let you get some sleep.”
Eyes still focused on my face, he moved both his legs from the coffee table to the couch, then settled his head back against a stack of lacy throw pillows. He winked at me. “Sweet dreams, Chalice.”
sixteen
WE SLEPT HALF THE DAY AND WAITED UNTIL dark before going to Quin’s house. We piled into Elmo’s ancient Studebaker that was in surprisingly good condition, though it took a few tries getting it started. Aydin said Elmo never drove it because his feet couldn’t reach the pedals, but Aydin would take it out for a spin every few weeks to keep the battery charged. Maybe Elmo had only bought the car because it made him feel like an American. Like a human.
There were no lights on in Quin’s house when we arrived, which wasn’t surprising. While still parked in the driveway, I removed my nose filters and my earplugs to scope things out. I didn’t smell any intruders, and I especially couldn’t smell any gargoyles. That was a bad sign.
“He’s not here,” I told Aydin. “I know what Shojin smells like and there’s no scent even similar to his.”
He looked concerned when he asked, “What do you smell?”
“The exact same odors as last week.” I inhaled the brisk autumn air and shook my head. “All that’s missing is the smell of blood.” Which I considered a good thing. “I might find more odors once we’re inside.”
Quin unlocked the front door and the three of us entered the house. It didn’t take sensitive eyes to notice the house had been ransacked. Furniture was broken, the stuffing torn from cushions, books were scattered across the floor with the pages ripped out, drawers were upended and their contents strewn from one end of the living room to the other. It was the same in other parts of the house, as well.
Aydin looked at me expectantly and I shook my head.
He and Quin rushed to the staircase leading down to the basement workshop. I could smell Shojin now, but very faintly. It was the residual scent of wet fur and feathers.
The workshop was in just as bad a shape. Tools littered the concrete floor, and chunks of drywall were ripped away as if someone had searched for something in the walls. All the drawers in Quin’s workbench were missing.
“What did you have in them?” I asked.
“Crystals, a few angel charms, incense, a bunch of dried herbs. Nothing of any real value. The Aztec scrying mirror was the only artifact I’d kept in there.” He pointed at a hole in the wall. “Is that where you hid Saint Geraldine’s hand?”
Aydin nodded. “Gavin must have sensed its presence, probably by using a dowsing spell.” Seeing loose feathers on the floor beside the workbench, he knelt to pick one up. “Shojin was here.”
I found an envelope on the worktable with Aydin’s name scribbled on the front. I recognized the handwriting. Shit! Gavin had survived after all. My heart racing and my mouth desert dry, I handed Aydin the letter. “Gavin left you something.”
Scowling, he took the envelope from me and ripped it open. I watched his expression change from interest to anger in a matter of seconds. His chest heaved with each breath and his hands began to shake. He tossed the note aside and ran his fingers through his hair while throwing back his head to stare at the ceiling. “Not now. This can’t be happening now!”
An airline ticket stuck out of the envelope and I slipped it free. A one-way flight to Quebec scheduled to leave tonight. I peered at Aydin, whose eyes were unfocused as if in a trance. “What does it mean?” I asked.
“It means Gavin took Shojin.” He turned away from me and kicked a box filled with odd pieces of iron cookware. It slid across the floor to crash against the wall, the clang of metal echoing against the basement walls before trailing into silence.
“I still don’t get what the ticket has to do with—”
He grabbed the ticket from my hands and shook it at me. “It means I have to leave. Now. Tonight.”
Of course. Without Shojin, he would succumb to the curse and transform. I wondered if Shui was there with Gavin, but I didn’t think so. I may not be able to communicate with him telepathically, but I sensed his nearness. Shui was still here in Denver.
I picked up the letter Gavin had left and began to read.
Aydin, my old friend—
I may as well forego any pleasantries and cut to the chase. I realize now that your loyalties lay elsewhere, therefore I’m giving you the opportunity to make a choice. Chalice’s dark angel destroyed what was home to a dozen Vyantara members, including you and your gargoyle, so those of us who survived the conflagration are moving to the Fatherhouse in Canada. It took forceful persuasion to encourage Shojin to join
us, and it is now up to you to make sure your bond with him remains intact.
I believe your latest cycle concludes early tomorrow morning. Therefore, this plane ticket will guarantee your reunion with Shojin in plenty of time.
I know Chalice is with you. She has proven to be a disappointment, but I will miss her company, as well as her impressive skills. Be assured that her future life as a gargoyle is imminent, and I have already arranged her bonding with a necromancing witch who’s in need of some extra motivation. I have no doubt the new Chalice, whom we will rename Sha’ling, is just what our recruit needs.
I look forward to seeing you soon.
Sincerely, Gavin Heinrich
P.S. Chalice, if you’re reading this, be aware that the knife you stole from me won’t stop the inevitable.
Your fate is sealed.
Sha’ling, huh? Gavin was renaming me before I even had a chance to sprout wings and claws. His confidence was premature. My fate sealed? Like hell it was.
I fumed over his letter as we drove to the airport. We had Quin take the Studebaker back to Elmo’s after rethinking our original idea that it was safe for him to return home. Then we took his Acura. There was no time for Aydin to pack a bag, though he didn’t intend to stay in Canada long enough to need one. Once he got what he needed from Shojin, he and his gargoyle would vanish to somewhere not even Gavin could find. But I didn’t want him going too far. I needed Aydin to come back to me.
“I wish I could, Chalice,” he said, after parking the car in the airport parking garage. “But the first place Gavin looked would be wherever you are.”
I closed my eyes to calm myself. A variety of scenarios went flying through my head as I considered what I was up against. Shui was out for blood and in the end, it would be either him or me. I touched the stone knife inside my jacket’s inner pocket and believed I could use it to control Shui. I’d not allow my body to change into a hideous monster just for the Vyantara to use however they liked. If it came to a choice, I’d die before letting things get that far.
“You’re sure about this knife?” Aydin asked, not sounding sure himself.
“Since I don’t have another gargoyle to do the deed, it’s a chance I have to take.”
“Gavin is set on you going through the change. That means he’ll do what he can to keep Shui away from you.”
And Gavin knew Shui would kill me if given the chance. If Gavin had his way, he’d capture me, then torture me into making the change. Shui, on the other hand, was ready for a fight. And so was I.
“Gavin can’t control him anymore, so Shui can do whatever the hell he wants. I’m counting on it.”
“If Shui can’t find you, he can’t touch you.” Aydin’s chest heaved with an exaggerated sigh. I understood he worried, and I appreciated that he cared, but he had to realize how determined I was to put an end to this curse. I’d do anything to be free. Anything.
“There’s only one way to let Shui know where you are,” he said. “Have you tried contacting him with your mind?”
I shuddered. “Not yet.”
“Then you better start practicing.” He slid out of the driver’s seat and held the door open for me to take his place behind the wheel.
I stood beside Aydin in front of the open car door, my heart aching as I thought about how much I’d miss him. He had been my mentor, my savior, my friend. And to be honest, I wished he’d been even more.
He lifted his hand to smooth back a tangle of shaggy hair from my face. My spiky haircut was at that bottle-brush stage, the ends dry, the roots greasy. If only I had inherited my father’s perfect hair.
Self-conscious, I yanked my head back from his touch. It wasn’t a rebuff, but the wounded look in his eyes said he took it that way. I grabbed his hand and held it firmly in my own. Smiling, I told him, “Don’t stay away from me too long, okay?”
He gave my fingers a squeeze, but the smile he returned was melancholy. “You’re breaking my heart, you know that?”
“Mine is already broken.” I brought his hand to my cheek. “Believe in me?”
He frowned. “Of course I believe in you.”
“Then stop worrying.” I pressed a light kiss to his palm. “Just knowing we’ll be together again gives me incentive to survive, and to survive as a human.”
“You’re making it very hard for me to go.”
I gently dropped his hand and took a step back. “You have to. It’s the only way for you to stay human.” And I wanted nothing more than for both of us to remain human together.
His smile broadened as he reached for me. I let him take me by the waist and pull me into him, his rock-hard chest pressing against my breasts.
He held my gaze, his pupils expanding like tiny balloons. I recalled how I’d felt when his ghostly body merged with me, his mind sharing my thoughts as his essence filtered through my blood and bones. I wanted that again, but now was neither the time nor the place for intimacy. We’d have to wait. And it gave me something to look forward to.
One hand at the back of my head, he held me while slowly touching his lips to mine.
I inhaled a shaky breath just before our mouths touched. It stung at first, but then our lips seemed to melt together, warm and soft and natural. It was a sweet kiss with just a hint of passion underneath. A promise for the future.
I leaned back to study his face. “Do you think Geraldine will be okay about us?”
He held my chin and ran his thumb lightly over my bottom lip. “She’ll be fine. She wants what’s good for me, and I want the same for her.”
My voice breathy from the adrenaline surge Aydin’s kiss had caused, I said, “Speaking of what’s good for Geraldine, I plan to steal her head from the cathedral vault. We have one of her hands and I know where to get the other one. Once we find her feet, we can bring her back.”
Still holding me, Aydin nodded and his eyes brightened with hope.
I hugged him, resting the side of my head against his shoulder. He held me closer, sighing into my ear, his moist breath like a kiss of warm air. It would be harder than ever to see him go now. Within a few short minutes we had moved from close friends with a sexual attraction to something deeper, just as I’d hoped we would. It was too good to be true.
He eased away from me and headed for the double glass doors leading to the elevators inside the airport. Once halfway across the parking lot, he turned to face me and walked backward while waving goodbye. I waved back, my heart growing tight, the first stage of yearning taking hold. The sensation was bittersweet; I felt happy that he cared, yet sad he had to leave.
“Goodbye, Aydin,” I whispered, knowing he couldn’t hear me. “I…” But I couldn’t say the rest. It hurt too much.
I turned off the I-70 and was heading for downtown Denver when I decided to drive past the ruins of the Fatherhouse. According to news reports, very little of the building had survived the blast and the fire. The fire marshal reported it an accident, saying a source of natural gas had ignited and literally blew the top off the house. The building used an energy efficient wood-and-coal burning furnace, so there was no gas line. The source of the gas remained a mystery.
How Barachiel had managed to drum up a gas explosion without gas had me curious, but I strongly believed the buildup of power created by the Vyantara’s collection was the cause. Looking at it that way, it was apparent they’d blown up their own Fatherhouse. How ironic.
As I drove past, I saw the remnants of display cases and storage cabinets, and I knew some of the collection must have survived. Too bad. I made a mental note to return later and retrieve what I could.
I didn’t stop the car, but inched along the curb. A couple of the stone gargoyles had fallen from the roof and shattered on the ground. A head here, a wing there…but what caught my eye was the color of the stone. I stopped the car and picked up some of the broken chunks. They were marbled purple and red with thin veins of black running through them, just like the stone knife I’d taken from Gavin.
No
w it made sense. Gavin’s knife had been created out of the body of a dead gargoyle after it had turned to stone. That’s why Shui was afraid of it. Using the knife to kill a gargoyle would be the same as one gargoyle killing another.
I imagined there were precious few of these blades in existence because such weapons would make it too easy to eliminate the winged beasts. If the Hatchet knights were armed with knives made of gargoyle stone, a fatal attack by a gargoyle assassin might not be so fatal. The women would at least have a fighting chance. I just prayed Gavin and his Vyantara pals would never find the knights to begin with.
My gaze wandered back to the ruins, to within the shadows of broken brick walls and shattered concrete. The ghosts hadn’t left the premises. In fact, at least one new one had been added. I quickly recognized the hippo outline of my not-so-dear friend, Zee. That meant she hadn’t made it out in time, and I wasn’t heartbroken about it, either. Her shade peered at me through ebony holes that used to be her eyes, her vaporous visage morphing into pure fury. Oh, dear. She was seriously pissed.
Walking into the ruins, I navigated through a sea of bricks, boards and broken furniture, just to get to the stone gargoyles.
Vaporous shapes tried to impede my progress. One in particular leapt in front of me, even on top of me, in an effort to make me stop. It was Zee, of course, and I ignored her. She was a newly made ghost and therefore too weak to do any harm.
I gathered chunks of stone from the broken gargoyles, the edges so sharp that one of them sliced through my winter gloves and cut my palm. Blood flowed, though not very much, and within seconds the piece of rock crumbled to dust. That was strange. I hadn’t squeezed the rock hard enough to break it, and it had been firm as a chunk of iron. If that’s what blood did to these rocks, I’d have to be careful not to cut myself again or I could lose my entire collection.
I loaded my cache of gargoyle stones in the car’s trunk, then slid behind the wheel. Zee’s specter flew toward the car like a demon possessed, as she likely was, and I stomped on the gas pedal. Gazing in the rearview mirror, I caught sight of her hulking form as it levitated to the middle of the street, her attention focused on me. I cringed as the car behind me drove straight through her. The mist of her ghost-body dispersed, then simply gathered back into its original shape.