Page 12 of Guardian of Shadows

“We’ve been here four years. I created a language translator out of driftwood so I could understand what the humans were saying, but we stole food and hid away in abandoned buildings while learning what was what. Grevolus thought that since my sister had been here, she must have had help, and he instructed me to find whoever aided her while in this realm. He quickly figured out that was impossible, so he insisted I learn all I could about humans and how they made money. Back in Winterhaven, fae bartered everything, but that doesn’t happen here, so he decided stealing was the only way we would get by. At first, it was taking ATM cards and withdrawing as much as allowed, which isn’t a lot. He told me if I didn’t figure out a way to get more, he would kill me.”

Elle placed her mug down and stood, pacing the living area. Anthony wanted to go to her, so he did. He stepped in front of her and gently gripped her upper arms. “Elle, I don’t blame you. You already said you were waiting on your siblings to come find you, so you did what you had to in order to survive.”

Surprising Anthony, Elle leaned her cheek against his chest and wrapped her arms around his back. “That doesn’t make it right, though.”

“It also doesn’t make it wrong, Sweetheart.” He kissed her hair, rubbing a hand up and down her back. “Once you get to know me and my Clan, you’ll understand we’ve done things to survive too, and some of those are worse than taking money.”

Elle leaned back to look up at him. “I still don’t know what you are.”

“I’m a Gargoyle. I have a beast inside, and when I call him forth, I have fangs, claws, and wings. The males of my kind have nearly impenetrable skin. Should you have stabbed me earlier, the blade would have bounced off unless you went for my neck.” Anthony touched Elle’s skin under her chin. “We can only be slain by decapitation or a few select poisons, which are rare in this world.”

“Can I see you in your other form?”

Anthony was glad they were in a suite, since it was large enough to accommodate his wings. “Move over by the door please.” When Elle did as he asked, Anthony stepped to the middle of the room, removed his shirt, and called forth his wings.

Elle’s eyes widened. “They’re stunning,” she whispered. “And your fangs?” Anthony let his sharp teeth drop, and he held out a hand, lengthening his claws. When she gasped, he recalled both. “Can I touch your wings, or is that asking too much?”

Tony retracted them. “That is reserved for one’s mate because they’re sensitive. Elle, you mentioned Grevolus and Asherah were mates. Were they fated?”

“I don’t know what that means,” she admitted, returning to her seat at the table.

“Gargoyles believe in the fates. Supernatural entities who choose the perfect being as our other half. Until we meet them, we can spend time with anyone we wish, but once we meet our fated mate, all others cease to exist.”

“Oh, like the dragons.” Elle got a far-away look in her eye mentioning the beasts. “They can choose a consort until they meet their intended. Do you also get a mark on your skin when that happens?”

Tony’s Goyle rumbled, not liking Elle getting dreamy-eyed about dragons. Ignoring it, he rubbed his stomach before leaning down to grab his tee. “No, nothing as cool as that. We feel like we’re going to throw up.” Elle’s eyes remained on his chest as he pulled his shirt back on, and that had his beast rumbling for a different reason.

“Earlier, you said something about being drawn to my picture.” Elle angled her head to the side, her blue eyes wide. “Am I your fated mate?” she asked softly.

“If you’ll have me.” Anthony knelt beside her knees and took her free hand in his. “The choice is yours, Elle. I don’t need an answer immediately. We can spend time getting to know each other, and if you decide you don’t want to be with me, I’ll abide by your wishes.”

“But you said these fates choose the perfect being for you, right?” Anthony nodded, rubbing his thumb against her skin. “If I say no, will you get a different mate?”

“No, Sweetheart, I won’t. I understand I’m no dragon.” Anthony released her hand and stood, crossing the room to the large window, where he looked out across the city. It was a rare occurrence for him to feel off-kilter. Before meeting Elle, Athony had been content with his life, but now the thought of her choosing to walk away from him was unbearable.

Her coffee cup clinked against the glass table, and he sensed her walking toward him. Elle’s hand on his back was like a brand, but he didn’t look at her. He couldn’t. Anthony wouldn’t allow her to see how much he wanted this. It was her choice whether to accept the bond.

“Anthony, please look at me.” When he didn’t, Elle moved around him, getting between him and the window. She placed her palms on his bearded cheeks. “I was only asking because of the sigil. If we can’t find a way to remove it and Grevolus comes after me, I wouldn’t want you to go the rest of your life without a mate.”

Closing his eyes, Anthony pressed his forehead to hers and placed his hands on her hips. “I appreciate that, but rarely do the fates make it easy on us Gargoyles. There are a few who found their mate and settled easily into the bond, but in my family, almost every one of us had to overcome some obstacle, my parents included. Hell, wars were fought in their day. More recently, my cousin Sebastian, who is also our King, had to fight the Alpha of his mate’s wolfpack, even though Sebastian and Dakota were fated.”

“Your Queen is a wolf shifter?”

“Yep. Then there are also Gryphons, polar bears, foxes, lions, and cheetahs, that we know of. My cousin Harlow is a Gargoyle-Gryphon hybrid.”

“No wonder you weren’t freaked out by my ears.”

“Freaked out? Hardly. I find them rather sexy,” Anthony husked.

Elle moved her hands from his cheeks to slide them around his neck, playing with the short hair on his nape. “Our situation with the sigil isn’t merely an obstacle. It’s an impossibility.”

Tony pressed his lips to her temple, then hugged her close. “There’s no one stronger or more powerful than Grevolus who could remove the sigil?”

“Maybe Queen Zarina, but that would mean finding a portal back to Evyndral.”

“Then we keep you away from Grevolus until we find one.”

“But with the sigil, he can locate me no matter where I am.”

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