by Rosalie Redd
NIGHT ANGEL
GARGOYLE NIGHT GUARDIANS BOOK 2
ROSALIE REDD
Copyright © March 2020 by Rosalie Redd
All rights reserved. The uploading, scanning, and distribution of this book in any form or by any means—including but not limited to electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise—without the permission of the copyright holder is illegal and punishable by law.
This book is a work of fiction. All names, characters, locations, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination, or have been used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, locales, or events is entirely coincidental.
For permissions contact: [email protected]
Cover design by Croco Designs
ISBN: 9781944419271
United States of America
To those who wear rose-colored glasses
and believe in the good in others, bless you.
CONTENTS
GET MARKED BY LOVE FOR FREE
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
About Rosalie
GET MARKED BY LOVE FOR FREE
To instantly receive the free award-finalist novella Marked by Love, featuring Aramond the rogue panther shifter in this second chance romance, sign up for Rosalie’s free author newsletter at www.rosalieredd.com.
CHAPTER 1
Sunshine. Such beautiful torment.
Seth Denton squirmed inside his gargoyle, eager to break free from his unrelenting stone form, but the sun chained him to his daytime post atop Stuart Hall at the University of Chicago better than any manacles ever could.
A growl burned, hot and fevered, from the depths of his pitiful soul. Unable to move until the last rays of the setting sun plunged beneath the horizon, he hated the confinement. Even now the golden orb, descending slower-than-molasses, taunted him, but if sunlight brandished his tender flesh for more than a few minutes, he’d receive a sunburn from which he’d never recover. That wouldn’t do.
In the library’s shadow, darkness filtered between the newly budded limbs and over the expansive lawn. The tips of the branches swayed in a slight breeze, eerily similar to the claws of a predator. Come nightfall, as one of the goddess Rhiannon’s Gargoyle Night Guardians, he’d hunt as well. Except his prey wasn’t innocent. The dark fae were killers.
Created by Gwawl, a bitter, angry god of the Otherworld, after Rhiannon refused to wed him in favor of a human man, fae killed humans for his pleasure and his revenge, and he added corrupt and malevolent souls from recent human deaths to his burgeoning ranks.
Finn, Seth’s best friend and one of his partners in this war against the fae, whistled through the gargoyle mind link. “Seth, your lass, she’s comin’ this way.”
Irritation slipped along Seth’s nerves.
“She’s not my lass.” Yet, his attention riveted to the library’s steps.
Hannah McAllister tightened her grip around the collar of her pink jacket and raced down the stairs. Her exquisite blonde hair cascaded over her shoulders, bouncing with each step. Cheeks reddened from either exertion or cold accentuated her porcelain skin and her enchanting emerald green eyes.
Beautiful, pure, innocent.
Against his will, a warmth Seth had no business feeling expanded deep inside. As much as he longed to spend time with her, he didn’t deserve anyone as fine as Hannah. He had a questionable soul, after all, and a job to do.
“Deny it all ya want, but I’ve seen ya pinin’ over her many a time. It breaks my heart, muffin.” Finn laughed.
“You’re imagining things, partner.” Despite his best friend’s amicable taunt, Finn had hit the mark a little too close to home.
Seth had tried to forget her and failed. He’d earned a rare night off a couple of weeks ago and had spent it in one of the dance clubs, drowning his sorrow in Jim Beam and a welcoming woman, one as far away in innocence and purity from Hannah as one could get.
Seth tracked Hannah’s movements as she strolled across the grass. There were no other students in the vicinity. Most had already left for vacation or returned home for spring break. Even at this distance, he had no trouble noting the twitch of a grin on her features. To him, her smile lit up his world.
“Grayson, Damian, Finn, Seth, I’m picking up signs of fae near the twelfth street beach. That’s your first stop tonight.” Drake, their follow-the-book squad leader, issued his command.
The last guy who disobeyed Drake’s orders and took an unscheduled night off ended up grounded for a week. No one, absolutely no one, wanted that kind of break, especially Seth. Stuck in gargoyle form during daylight hours unable to move was bad enough, but to be submerged in total darkness and unable to see?
A chill rippled through him. That, he couldn’t handle.
Better to fight the fae and follow Rhiannon’s primary decree—protect humans. As with all her warriors, Seth had powerful strength, extraordinary speed, and extrasensory hearing and sight, along with the ability to shift and blend in with his surroundings.
At least he was on the right team in this war. He couldn’t imagine what it would be like to be a fae in Gwawl’s army.
Between the trees, wind swirled into a small dust storm, picking up a few bits of dirt and grass in the churn—the telltale sign of fae.
Adrenaline zipped along Seth’s nerves. The distance between Hannah and the fae was far too close.
He glanced at the setting sun. A thin line of the golden orb remained.
Hurry, damn it!
It seemed the fae wanted an early start, pushing dusk to the limit. The dust storm whirled faster. A piece of paper caught in the undertow and rose into the air. A moment later, the roiling energy slowed. In its wake, stood a fae.
With short, dark hair, a blue button-down shirt, and a pair of designer jeans, he seemed as ordinary as any man except for the yellow glow around his eyes and his three-inch claws. He bolted after Hannah.
Seth’s pulse skyrocketed. He yanked against his invisible bonds.
The sun slipped beyond the horizon.
“Single fae in the quad. I’m on it. See you at the meeting point.” Seth didn’t wait for a reply. He clicked off the mind link, dematerialized, and reformed on the grass into his human form.
The bitter metallic tang of fae coated the back of his throat, evidence his enemy remained close. He scanned the vicinity. Movement several yards away caught his attention. The fae slipped between two trees, stalking Hannah.
Rage, mixed with the tiniest bit of fear, surged through Seth’s veins. His skin rippled, taking on the greenish hue of the nearby hedge and camouflaging him.
He drew his whip from the belt clip at his waist, and with the other hand, he yanked his dagger from its sheath. Seth really missed his old six-shooter, but bullets turned to mush when they hit a fae.
He bolted toward his enemy, boots silent over the lawn. His Stetson slid off his head and bounced against his back, the hat held in place by the strap under his chin.
/> The fae closed the distance to its target. A sharp hiss burst from its mouth.
Hannah spun around. A loud, terrified scream erupted from her lips.
The fae leapt into the air, claws extended.
A warlike cry burst from Seth as he uncloaked himself and cracked his whip. The barbed tips wound around the fae’s torso. With a hard jerk, Seth yanked the fae off balance.
The evil creature fell to the ground. Blood oozed around the barbed tips and stained his blue shirt crimson.
Hannah stood frozen in place, her hands covering her mouth.
“Run, Hannah!” Seth barked.
Horror reflected in her beautiful eyes, but then a fire burned within their depths. She lowered her hands, turned, and bolted.
Relief swept through him so hard, his fingers shook.
“You cost me a nice kill.” Whip still wrapped around his torso, the creature gripped the leather and yanked.
Seth dug in his heels, his snakeskin boots sinking into the soft grass. He hardened his skin, his flesh now solid as stone.
The taut rope strained under the force.
“I’ll be doing the killin’ tonight, not you.” Seth jerked the whip, snapping the fae off his feet.
The whip uncoiled, and the barbed ends smacked the horrid creature in the face. A howl burst from his mouth.
Seth pounced on the guy.
The fae struggled under Seth’s weight.
Seth raised his dagger and plunged the tip into the fae’s eye. He buried the blade to the hilt. A familiar exhilaration swept through him. Damn, that never got old.
Fae died by one of three methods—piercing the eye, severing the jugular, or setting the fae on fire. Seth preferred to see the realization of impending death up close and personal. He twisted the blade and yanked it from the dying creature.
The fae stiffened. A blood bubble formed alongside the wound then popped. Droplets of blood splattered over the fae’s cheeks and chin. On a slow exhale, the dark creature disintegrated into a swirl of dust, leaves, and twigs, leaving no trace behind.
Another fae down. Score one for team Rhiannon.
Seth rose to his feet, clipped his whip to his belt, and adjusted his hat on his head. He surveyed his surroundings. Muscles still tight with tension, he couldn’t afford to relax. Where there was one fae, there could be more.
Several yards away, Marco Valentelli leaned against an oak tree. Seth sneered at the fae’s signature designer suit and overcoat. With his short blond hair and model-like features, Marco had lured many an unsuspecting human to their death.
Seth clenched his jaw until his teeth audibly ground together. He’d encountered this particular fae several times over the years, but the guy always seemed to elude Seth’s grasp. Not long ago, Marco had toyed with Hannah in a battle that hadn’t ended well for the fae. It seemed too much of a coincidence that Marco was here now, within striking distance of her.
Hatred rose from deep inside, and the spark stone over Seth’s heart, the one Rhiannon implanted in all her warriors and contained a small piece of his soul, burned hot and fevered. He didn’t need to look to know the small gem had changed from its normal opaque white to a deep red. One of these days, he’d kill Marco or die in the process.
The dark fae’s gaze drifted along Hannah’s path.
Seth’s stomach knotted. He couldn’t allow the fae to pursue her.
“Marco!” Seth tightened his grip on his dagger and stepped into Marco’s line of sight.
Marco pushed away from the tree and spread his hands wide. The edge of his coat billowed around his knees, and the handle of his cane rested over one elbow.
A mocking smile tugged at his lip. “Ah, Seth. So good to see you, again. I really don’t appreciate you killing my minion.”
Seth’s fingers twitched with the urge to bury his blade in the fae’s eye.
“You’re next, you piece of…” He clamped his jaw tight.
“Tsk, tsk. Such a gentleman. Won’t cuss in front of the lady, hmm? I know Hannah’s here somewhere. Think I can catch her before you?” Marco glanced between the trees.
Seth’s gut twisted in agony as if Marco had shoved a knife deep inside, but he couldn’t show any sign of weakness in front of this fae.
With a jerk of his wrist, Seth unclipped his weapon from his belt and cracked his whip. The barbed end crackled loud in the night air. “You won’t get that far.”
Marco smirked, and his eyes glowed a putrid shade of yellow. He placed his palm over the handle of his cane. “Well, cowboy, I hate to burst your bubble, but I can’t stick around. I have other matters that require my attention. Perhaps we’ll meet up another time.”
Bits of grass and dirt swirled around Marco in a large whirlwind.
Seth lunged toward the dark fae, but the fiend disappeared into the churning mass before Seth could wrap his fingers around his measly ass and kill him.
Irritation flicked along his nerves followed by an uncanny sense of urgency. He glanced toward the trees. Hannah was out there somewhere. Whip in one hand, dagger in the other, he turned to pursue her.
“Seth?” Hannah’s shaky whisper carried along the breeze.
“Hannah…” He exhaled, the tension at his nape slipping into the night air.
She stepped from behind a nearby tree. Her shoulders shook, and her fingers clasped and unclasped the strap of her backpack.
Seth hooked his rope onto his belt, shoved his dagger in its sheath, and ran to her side. The urge to wrap her in his arms and cradle her close swept over him, but he stopped mere inches away. Even though there wasn’t a single spot of the fae’s blood on him, he didn’t deserve to touch her with his dirty, filthy hands.
“Are you all right?” he asked.
A shiver wracked her shoulders, and her cheeks reddened to a delightful shade that accentuated her rosy lips. “I’m okay. Thank you for saving me, yet again.”
Last summer, after the encounter with Marco, he’d taken an unconscious Hannah to Wynne. The witch had revived her and from that moment forward, Hannah’s beauty and innocence, so like his deceased Emily’s, had branded into his soul.
In the ensuing nine months he’d tried to forget Hannah, but as she was a student here, he’d spotted her on a regular basis during her trips to and from the library.
Bound by his stone griffin during the day, he’d watched her from afar. Now that she stood next to him, her clean, crisp-as-fresh-linen scent weaved its way into his senses, burrowing deep and setting him on fire.
He removed his Stetson, ran his hand through his hair, and dipped his head. “You shouldn’t be out here at night, especially alone.”
Only a few people knew about the gargoyles, the fae, and the war between them. Cernunnos, Lord of the Otherworld and Rhiannon and Gwawl’s boss, had decreed that all involved remain hidden from humans. Better that way for everyone, but a handful of humans had stumbled across the truth, including Hannah and her sister, Sadie.
If Hannah died at the hands of a fae, it would shred Seth from the inside out. He hadn’t been able to protect his Emily, but he’d guard Hannah and keep his distance at the same time.
“It took longer to finish the final paper for my intro to business class than I thought, and I forgot to check the time. I hadn’t realized dusk had fallen, but when I came outside, I thought I could make it home before the fae came out.” Her gaze roamed his features, and she flitted her gorgeous green eyes back and forth as she studied him. “The fae… I was so scared. Until I saw you.”
The muscles in his shoulders stiffened. She drew him in like a moth to a flame. Little did she know how dangerous he could be to her purity and innocence. If he wasn’t careful, he might—
A distinct metallic odor, like an old copper penny, swept by on the breeze. Fae.
He stiffened and settled his hat on his head. “I should get you home. Safer if I take you.”
She nodded, her bottom lip quivering. “Do you mean fly? Like before. When you brought me home after you saved
me from Marco the first time?”
The hair on his scalp rose. Fly? Oh hell no.
He reminded himself she, along with everyone else he knew, had no idea of his unusual skill. When Rhiannon selected a questionable soul for her army, she infused each gargoyle with a special talent, unique to each one.
No way this side of the Otherworld would he show Hannah his embarrassing gift. She was referring to the gargoyles’ ability to transport people by dematerializing through space.
A sense of urgency spiked in his veins. He glanced around, his awareness growing of their vulnerability out in the open. “Yeah, we’ll take the dematerialization express. Ready?”
She bit her bottom lip, gnawing at the plump flesh and distracting him beyond measure. A slow nod followed.
He didn’t want to touch her, not with his filthy, no-good hands, but he needed the physical contact to transport her. With moths fluttering in his gut, he held out his palm.
She studied him for a moment, but then she slipped her fingers against his.
A tingle of pure sensual energy rippled between them.
The need to drag her into his arms whipped through him with gale-force intensity. Instead, he dematerialized.
Moments later, they arrived on the wrap-around front porch of an old Victorian a few blocks away. Streetlights spotlighted cars parked along the curb. Music blared from a nearby resident’s window. Several houses down, a dog barked.
No sign of fae.
Although none of the fae’s blood had coated his skin, the need to remove his dirty, tainted palms from her swept over him in a wave. Seth exhaled and released Hannah’s hand. The lack of contact left him cold.
He removed his hat then cleared his throat. “We’re here, darlin’.”
“I’ll never get used to that feeling, my body breaking up like that and reforming. Weird, but thank you for bringing me home. Fae are so…”
“Evil. Dark. Dangerous. It’s a down-right blessing the fae don’t emerge during the day, but I don’t like you out at night.” He fisted his hands at the thought of one of those creatures harming or even worse, killing Hannah.