“I am,” he exhaled. “I am no better than them…the creatures we are running from. I am no better than the Degare’.”
“That’s not true,” she protested. “You are not like them.”
“Really?” he asked with incredulity. “What would you call someone who has been turned to stone, has superhuman strength, and comes back to life when the moon is full? What would you call a person like that?” he asked his voice desperate, pleading, filled with so much anguish and bitterness it wrenched at her heart and twisted her insides.
“I guess I would say you are…” she paused searching for the right word. “ Complicated,” she blurted. “Yes I would say you are complicated.” She nodded her head up and down for affirmation.
A look of astonishment crossed his face as he stared at her in the darkness. “You can’t mean that,” a tinge of hopefulness in his voice that had been long vacant.
“Yes. I. Do.” She moved forward and placed her hand on his arm. Again, he flinched but this time he didn’t back away. She took that as a good sign.
“Evie…” He shook his head. “Don’t you understand?”
“Understand what?”
“I am not normal,” he stated the obvious.
“I told you,” she stepped closer. “I am not normal either.”
“Evie you are human,” he argued.
“So are you.”
“Not really.”
“You were.” She was adamant. She knew he was she had seen it in the vision.
“But I am not now,” he forced the words out, trying to make her see.
“So, what difference does that make?”
Again his eyes widened in disbelief. “Evie, it makes all the difference in the world…can’t you see that.”
“Adriane…” her voice shook, trying to swallow back the sob trying to come out of her throat. She was losing the battle she could feel it.
He exhaled and walked across the room. He lifted his hand and pulled a latch hidden behind a stack of books. The door slid, moving silently. Damp cool air filled the room along with a smell of wet dirt… it reminded her of when she was in school and her art teacher Mrs. Brewster had them work with fresh clay to make pots and vases.
“We don’t have much time…you need to get out of here,” he said, stepping away from the bookcase.
“Me?” She gaped. “By myself?”
“Yes.”
“WH-what do you mean?” she stammered, feeling her heart begin to pound uncontrollably.
“I can’t go with you.”
“Why not?” she asked, her voice sounded strangled forced.
“There are things you do not know…things about me…”
“I told you I don’t care.” She was desperate now, desperate to make him see. She grabbed hold of his arm.
“It’s more than that.” He pulled his arm away. “You have to leave.”
“I don’t understand?” and she didn’t. Why was he asking her to leave? Her chest felt tight, she wanted to cry. This was so much worse than what Colton had done. She bit her lip to stop from crying out loud, her vision clouded. It didn’t matter she couldn’t see anyway. What in the hell was the world coming too? She was being dragged along on a ride she didn’t sign up for, kicked to the curb by a statue. Now that was epic.
Finally, everything from the day came crashing in on her, and at first she didn’t think she was going to be able to handle it all. Then just as suddenly calm spread over her body, bringing her resolve with it. He was not like Colton, he was different and yes, he was kind of a monster, but none of it seemed to matter as long as they were together. She took a deep breath, prepared to fight if she had to.
“I am not leaving without you, so just get that foolishness out of that thick rock-head of yours,” she tossed out angrily, not ready to give up on him yet. It took a moment for what she said to register fully. Thick … rock…” She covered her mouth with her hand appalled at what she had just said. And then she laughed, it was a low rumble at first, from her belly, but it bubbled upward and out. Her callous words; they resonated with her, making her begin to laugh even more. It was utterly ridiculous. Rock…he was a freaking statue. Shit. This was good—epic even, she laughed harder, she couldn’t stop, she sounded bonkers, completely, unequivocally bonkers and it didn’t matter, not any longer.
Adriane stood there clearly in shock. The heartlessness of her words ringing out loud and clear in his mind. He wasn’t sure what to feel.
She kept laughing.
And then suddenly the humor hit him too. The corners of his mouth began to lift. The unfamiliar sensation of laughter bubbled up to the surface— pushing the desperation away, replacing it, with the warmth of her laughter. She was making it better, like she always said she would—her laugh was contagious. So he laughed with her, feeling much better than he had in a very long time. Sure, they were still-hunted and would most likely be killed, but at that moment, he felt like he was given back a little piece of himself that had been taken away so long ago. He felt almost… human, and it was all thanks to the girl standing not ten feet from him. Maybe she was the answer to all his prayers. He had hope for the first time, in a very long time—a very long time indeed.
***
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They were trapped.
Blood smeared across the expanse of the room, coating the stone floor underneath a dark shade of red. A lone Degare’ hell dog tore apart the last recognizable body in the corner. The steam rising up from the fresh kill released an acrid stench into the unusually cool room.
“What is in there?” Evie panted, pushing up beside Adriane, trying to see around his broad back into the dimly lit chamber, her heart still pounding uncontrollably from her sprint down the darkened passageway.
Adriane turned and wrapped his arms around her, holding her in place. “Don’t,” he warned when she tried to pull away from him.
“Why?” she asked, her voice muffled against his shirt.
“We need to find another way out,” he whispered against her ear. She could feel how tense he was and knew he had seen something terrible.
“But you said this was the only way out,” she argued, trying to keep her own voice low now, too.
An ominous growl sounded from behind her. She knew that sound, recognized it from earlier when he told her to run. Before she could react, he swung her body around, using his to shield hers, pressing her against the cold stone wall of the passageway. “What is that?”
“Stay here! Do you hear me?” His warm heavy hands, once comforting, shook her shoulders roughly, trying to make her listen. Her head snapped back and forth. “Evie, please don’t go in that room. Do you hear me?” his voice filled with growing urgency as another low growl emitted from the darkened shadows.
“Yeeess,” she chattered out, her teeth clacking against each other.
“I will be back,” he said.
“You promise,” she asked, not caring how desperate she sounded now.
“I promise.” His mouth landed on hers for a brief moment.
She reached out to grab him, but her hands came up empty.
He was gone.
Slowly, she moved along the cool damp stone wall, shying away from the horrible noises echoing down the passageway. It was just like the first night she had met him. It was a terrible sound, like massive animals were tearing one another apart. “Oh, no, no, no,” she whimpered, scared out of her mind.
“Adriane,” she called weakly. He didn’t answer, and the unnatural sounding growls were growing fainter, like they were moving further away. She took a tentative step forward, wanting to help but not knowing how…then she heard another sound behind her, to her left. It was coming from the chamber Adriane told her not to go into. St
upidity reared its ugly head and her feet started moving toward the entrance of the room.
“I’ll just take a peek,” she reasoned, feeding her guilt. That way she would still be doing what Adriane asked, right? Sure, sure, her stupid brain said. Pressing her palms against the rough stone, holding on, she leaned forward, the toes of her Chucks still a good distance away from the inside of the chamber. Immediately she jerked back out of the door, stumbling, her back slammed into the wall behind her.
Ohmigod! Ohmigod! Ohmigod! She flattened her back against the wall, covering her mouth with both of her hands to stop from crying out. Bile rose in her throat, she needed to get sick but she couldn’t or else that thing in there would hear her. She swallowed back the burning taste of vomit, a cold sweat breaking out on her forehead.
“Where did all the people go?” Chance’s words that seemed silly at the time echoed through her mind.
“Gee Chance, they ran and now some godawful creature hanging out down in the bowels of Briarcliff is having them for dinner,” her sick mind echoed back. Clamping her hand tighter on her mouth she tried to stifle the scream of hysteria that was desperately trying to escape.
She had no idea how long she stood there fighting wave after wave of fear coursing through her body, but something finally gave. Voices broke through her slipping consciousness, reviving her tenuous hold on reality, echoing in the darkness.
“Find a weapon,” someone yelled.
Evie wasn’t real sure if it was her mind finally snapping or her battered resolve finally kicking into gear.
“I can do that,” she was saying to the disembodied voice, patting her pockets with shaking hands. Reaching in one, she pulled out her iPod. “Stupid iPod,” she groaned inwardly. The tips of her fingers grazed across one of the rivets on her belt. Thank God! Quickly her trembling fingers unbuckled her belt, unwinding it from her waist. It swung like a pendulum above the floor. Again, she heard voices, louder this time. One distinct voice rose above the rest. Was that Heather? Hope sprang in her chest. She never thought she would be relieved to hear Heather’s voice, but right now she didn’t care. Shuffling out of the shadows, she inched forward gripping the wall with her rigid fingers, trying to see inside the room.
A startled gasp slipped from her throat. Over to the far right side she saw a group of people still alive on a slab of stone jutting up from the floor itself. It was her friends!
Relief, along with a growing sense of fear washed over her simultaneously. They stood in a semi-circle, shoulder to shoulder around the edges of the stone slab. They were all using makeshift weapons to battle against the monster. Michael Kors, Betsey Johnson, and Coach would have been proud as the designer purses used like maces whipped through the air against their solitary attacker.
The beast let out a high-pitched whine, its step faltering when a Coach purse slammed into its hindquarters. “Yeah, take that you nasty piece of shit!” Heather yelled crazily, whipping her purse again in the air, pure adrenaline racing through her, preparing to do some major damage.
Another low ominous growl emitted from the beast as it shook its massive head, stalking with lethal intent toward Heather.
Evie held tightly to one end of her belt, getting the momentum up, swinging it above her head, making a strange whizzing sound as it sliced through the air. With every bit of strength she had, she slammed the buckle into the back of the beast. The action sent jarring ripples of pain through her arms just like hitting a fastball at the batting cages. The beast reared its massive head and swung it in her direction. Demonic yellow eyes bore down on her. Taking a reflexive step back, her body pressed up against the wall with no place to go. “Hoshit!” Evie knew she was done for. And then out of nowhere low chants started to fill the room, growing louder, echoing eerily off the walls.
Everyone turned toward the compelling noise with one exception, Evie. She was trying to figure out how not to become Fido’s dinner. The beast stalked closer, moving in with predatory intent, growling, a gray froth dripping from its razor sharp teeth. Immediately she knew what Barnaby had meant when he said it was like Cujo, except this bastard was so much worse. She instantly regretted saying Heather looked anything like the creature that was stalking purposely toward her now. She squeezed her eyes shut, trembling.
“Waa,” split the air.
She opened her eyes just in time to see Colton jump off the slab, his hands slicing toward the creature. He landed short of his mark, hitting the floor with a dull thud.
The creature swung its gigantic head in his direction snapping its massive jaw, inches from biting his leg off.
“Ahhhhhhhhh…” Colton screamed, scrambling backward, but he couldn’t move fast enough.
“Ohmigod!” Evie gasped. Did Colton just try to save her life? Suddenly everything seemed to slow down—coming into focus with vivid clarity. The room. The creature. Colton’s selfless act. It was all too much. She couldn’t take it. Opening her mouth, she screamed like a crazed lunatic, her voice coming out in an unnaturally high-pitch. The sound was deafening.
The beast reared its head back, howling in agony.
A blur of black and red sprang from the center of the slab, landing in front of the beast. In one swift movement, Simon grabbed its neck and twisted its head quickly to the side, snapping the bones with a cascading cracking sound. Big pieces of stone clattered loudly to the ground and a vile smelling steam emitted into the air.
Evie shut her mouth.
Each one of her friends stared, looking at her like she was a freak, and for once she found she could agree.
The chanting that had died down to a whisper suddenly grew louder, echoing throughout the cavernous room. All of her friends climbed down off the stone slab. One by one, they dropped their makeshift weapons onto the floor into a pile at the base and lined up like soldiers, swaying in time to the luring sound. They looked like they were sleep walking, filing out of the room, through a black opening in the wall she had not seen before.
“Wait!” she called out but no one seemed to notice. “Ohhellno!” she raced forward to catch them. There was no way her ass was getting left behind.
Halfway across the room, Simon stepped in her way, stopping her.
“What are you doing? I have to follow them,” she tried to explain, trying to move around him but he kept blocking her.
“No, I don’t think so,” he said, shaking his head.
Evie didn’t know which to feel. Fear or anger? Both ended up coming out. She narrowed her eyes, her hands shaking. “MOVE!” she gritted, planting both of her hands against his chest and shoved with all her strength. Nothing happened. It was like she was butting up against a solid rock wall.
He gave her a wounded look. “You know that was not very nice.”
“I need to follow my friends!” she practically screamed in his face, trying to push past him.
He exhaled heavily, unperturbed. “Yeah, about that…” He shook his head. “I’m afraid you can’t leave.”
“What?” She gaped at him. “What do you mean I can’t leave?” She tightened her hold on her belt.
A slow smile crept over his face, making his eyes glitter wickedly in the dim light as he watched her every move.
Suddenly she felt like little ole Red Riding Hood facing up against the Big Bad Wolf. The odds were stacked against her. She swallowed hard past the lump stuck in her throat. She had a very bad feeling—a very, very, bad feeling.
Within in two strides he had her backed up against the wall. Both of his hands braced on either side of her head.
“Shhh,” he said, dipping his head down in front of her face, his warm sweet smelling breath wafting over her.
It was ludicrous. She felt like he was going to kiss her. She bit down hard on her trembling lower lip. Then he smiled. It wasn’t a normal smile. It was feral. He leaned in closer, breathing deeply, her body responding, shaking from his nearness. She didn’t know what to say, or what to do. He had her trapped. She was afraid to move, or breathe; his
mouth hovered above her own.
“I wonder if you taste as good as you smell,” he asked leaning in, his enticing voice vibrating against her ear making prickles of pleasure erupt over her skin. “Simon, move please,” she asked, appalled by her reaction to him.
“It’s going to be all right,” he said, trailing the backs of his fingers down the side of her face. His entire body pressed against hers, his heat seeping through the front of her clothing. His hand slipped under her hair and he began pulling her head towards his face.
Jerking away, she shoved him back hard. This time he did move, just a bit. “I don’t want you! I want Adriane!” The words rushed from her mouth a little more forcefully than she intended, but she didn’t want him to get the wrong idea.
“You are just like her!” he spat inches from her face, his face twisted in anger. “You are all the same!” he raged, pacing now.
His demeanor had completely changed. One minute he was being sweet and the next he was screaming in her face like a crazed lunatic like Dr. Henry Jekyll and Mr. Edward Hyde.
“Who?” Evie asked stalling. Gripped with fear she inched her way toward the back wall where the sconces were, watching him cautiously. Each step she took brought her no closer. It looked like it was getting further away, like an illusion at the fun house. Even the big black hole all her friends had went through was now gone and in its place was another solid rock wall.
“I was a Rock Star. Did you know that?” he asked, out of nowhere, like he was commenting on the weather, Henry apparently making his appearance once more.
“Yeah, I can see that.” It was true; he definitely had that certain “something” that draws people in. Then just as suddenly, he changed again. His pretty face twisting with rage and disgust.
“I saw her sucking Vincent’s cock.” Lifting his hands, he dragged the tips of his fingers over his face, raking them against his flawless skin, leaving red trailing lines.
“Who?” Shit! Edward’s back. She stumbled backward over her own feet and almost fell, but caught herself on the stone slab her friends had been standing on. She could see dark stains marring the top and sides.
Gargoyle: A Reawakening (Briarcliff Series, #2) Page 19