Page 27 of Fated to the Gargoyle
Thehours flewby duringAnya’sshift.Ispent a majority of it in the library, going throughAdelaide’spapers and reading the pagesIcould understand inEnglishandFrenchin the family grimoire.Thebook itself was fascinating.Magicappeared to float from the pages in wispy ink.
Mygrandmother had so many supplies to perform her magic in her hidden space.Toget closer to her—and tap into this side of myself with witch blood—Ipracticed connecting to my energy inside, the wayAnyahad shown me she was learning to do yesterday.ThemoreItried, the quicker and easier it was to perform basic spells, such as for protection.WhenI’dfirst read words on the page, nothing happened, andIfelt foolish.ButwhenIput my intentions behind the words,feelingthem,Ihad more success.
Intriguedby the descriptions of the elements and their associated powers,Ispent time studying more about each and how to connect with them.
WhenAnyajoined me later,Iexclaimed, “Idid it!”
“Didwhat?”Shefurrowed her brows.
“Magicusing the grimoire.”Iraised my hand and spread my fingers, aiming my focus at the book.ThenIrepeated the wordsI’dmemorized to turn the pages without me touching them.
Anyacocked her head. “Didyou do that?”
“Idid.”Ibeamed.ThenIrolled one shoulder. “Iknow it’s not much, butIthink it’s cool.”
“Oh, it is,” she agreed. “Withthe number of booksIread,Ishould learn that trick.Teachme?”
“Sure.”Ishowed her. “Here’sanother oneIworked on, which is was kind of cool.”Ifilled a glass with water and put it on the table. “IfoundIhave more success with magic involving water.Haveyou noticed anything like that?”
“No,” she replied. “Butthat makes sense.It’sone of the elements.”
“That’swhatIwas thinking.”I’dbeen reading about how some witches have an affinity for one. “Okay, here we go.”Tappinginto my energy,Irepeated a spell, which not only knocked the glass over, but allowed me to direct the course of how the water flowed.I’drepeated it so many times thatIwas able to have it move across the floor in a serpentine pattern.
“Wow!”Sheclapped her hands together. “That’stremendous.You’vebeen quite the busy bee.”
“Orbaby witch.”Ishrugged. “Mightas well do something productive with my time.”Itwas better than sitting around contemplating the return of demons or worrying aboutDumont’ssafety out there among them.
WhenIreturnedto theVault,Dumontstill hadn’t arrived.Iate in his apartment that night to giveAnyasome time alone withHugo.Dumonthad plenty of food in his fridge, having stocked up on options for me.Thatwas sweet.Iate pasta with a creamy sauce and had a glass of sauvignon blanc.
Icrawled into his enormous bed alone once more and curled up under the fluffy black comforter.Thesheets smelled like him—an enticing, masculine musk.Iinhaled it deeply.
Imust have fallen asleep asIwas caught in a nightmare—demons, gargoyles, and fire in the sky.Ahand shook my shoulder, waking me, andIblinked my eyes open.Amassive figure with curved horns reaching to the ceiling bent over me.Ilet out a shaky gasp and ripped the sheet off me soIcould run.
“It’sjust me,Eloise,”Dumontsaid in a gentle tone.
“Oh.”Iabandoned my escape effort asIsorted between dream and reality.Mybreath came hard.Hissilhouette came into clearer focus as my eyes adjusted to the darkness.Helooked human aside from the horns—well, an incredibly massive human.
“I’msorryIfrightened you.”Hestood and stepped away.
Thatwas the last thingI’dwanted.I’dbeen waiting for him here, wanting to be near him again.
“No, it was me.Ihad a nightmare.”
“About?”
Mylips parted beforeImashed them shut.Ididn’t want to talk about frightening images my mind conjured up.
“Justa silly dream.Itdidn’t mean anything.”Ireached for him. “Don’tgo.I’vebeen waiting for you to return.”
Hepaused before walking closer to the bed.Withouthis shirt on, his muscular torso and cut abs were on full display.Mygaze raked over his contours of his body.
“Areyou hiding your wings and tail from me?”
“Notexactly hiding.Iretracted them,” he said. “Sometimesit’s necessary to better blend as a human.”
Inodded. “Dumont?”
“Yes?”
