Page 44 of Dark Shadow of Guilt

Madeline had rocketed off her pillow. She’d likely never encountered a gryphon before. Or even someone like the witch. Maybe it was Ohngel who made her googly-eyed.

Once Dom made the intros and Madeline insisted on being called Maddy, Indigo flashed a smile, shook out her skirt, and rushed toward the human, her shitload of bracelets jingling. She gathered the female in for a big hug.

Watching the exchange carefully, Dom prepared to intervene in case Indigo cast a spell or some such shit.

When Madeline broke from the embrace, her eyes bounced from Indigo to Oskar. “What’s that?”

Indigo said, “A gryphon. Pretty much.”

Oskar plopped his large ass down, occupying an unfair portion of Dom’s salon.

Madeline was slack-jawed. “A live gryphon? They’re real? I’ve seen pictures of the mythical beasts, but they didn’t have scales.”

Ohngel’s mate sported a proud smile. “Indeed, they are real. Mine’s a dragon upgrade, though. He was a little despondent, feeling unattractive. We agreed some scales were just the bling he needed.”

“May I touch him?”

“I don’t know. Ask.”

Madeline smiled. “He talks?”

Indigo shook her head. “No, but he understands.”

“Oskar, may I pet you?”

His neck whipped up and down.

Once he’d consented, the mesmerized human stroked the fur on his haunches. Oskar twitched, swung his head around, and licked her hand with a long tongue. She jerked back, laughed, and resumed petting the creature.

Ohngel stopped the lovefest. “You called us to talk, Dom.”

Continuing to stroke Oskar, Madeline said, “You’re Ohngel. The Immortal who saved Earth. I saw you on the news.”

Seeing her star-struck by his fire-winged brethren, Dom contained the unexpected jealousy that bubbled up inside him. It was irrational. This female brought out emotions he chose to bury, and he didn’t like them. He’d avoided messy connections for centuries. Yet now, a human threatened his stability.

What the fuck?

Dom signaled Madeline to return to her pillows near the fireplace, which she did immediately upon his command.

He studied the human and Indigo as they settled close to the warmth and each other, chatting like old friends, their heads together while they whispered.

Ohngel chose nearby cushions, his gaze also on the females. The fire-winged assassin stretched his legs out, his ankles crossed and his arms behind his head. As always, when he stared at his mate, his gray eyes, normally razored chips of glass, warmed. The consummate warrior morphed into a lovesick wolver pup.

The two assassins remained quiet, talk not interfering with their concentration on the females.

Dom glanced outside. The temperature had dropped. When the wind picked up, he cast the invisible wall around his house. The Feard would be able to enter despite the undetectable shield. Beyond the deck, a blizzard raged, the snow so thick it was a white drape that obscured the craggy edge and the water below.

Remi arrived, floating into the salon, brushing flakes from his long-sleeved black t-shirt. After a few moments, Ely followed. Like a wolver, he shook his entire body, the wet droplets on his icy-white hair scattering across the room.

Dom made the intros and provided his guests with mulled wine to drive away the cold.

Once everyone settled in with a drink, Dom began with the easy shit. He recounted his convos with the OneCreator. “The boss denied knowing about a human in Angor, denied ordering the extinction of the Scourge Ike, seemed to accept we had nothing to do with it, offered up Michael, and defended Harmony. And here’s a good one. He said we should check out Lucian. We need to find Luce, get together with Michael, and reach out to Harmony.”

Ohngel said, “I’m the only member of this friendly group Michael might talk to. So setting up the meet with him falls on me. And since I’m doing the flyovers, I’ll likely be the one to spot Luce.”

The Feard nodded.

“I’ll get with Harmony. Is the OC playing a game?” asked Ely. “He loves games. He could be entertaining court with a mystery to solve.”

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