Page 39 of Fated to the Gargoyle
One—two—five heartbeats echoed in my ear before he responded.
“Thebitch deserved it for denying me.Youand your sister will make up for it by serving me.”
Ragerolled through me like a brush fire that quickly escalated to rising flames.Hewas the reasonIgrew up without a family.Noparents.Nograndmother.Notwin sister.AndnowCalixthought he could controlAnyaand me?
“Never.”Ilunged at him. “Never!”
CHAPTER 15
DUMONT
Don’tengage!IcommandedMarcandLuc.I’mon the way.
Itwas true.Hegot her!Thatsonovabitch got her.
Ipounded my wings with utmost speed across the city, like sprinting through the sky.Theywere all at the library.AndCalixhad just threatened to burn it all down—includingEloise.
Eloise…
Itold the sentries not to intervene becauseIcouldn’t risk anything happening to her.Shewas my mate, and now she was in the clutches of a power-hungry monster with formidable abilities.Onemove could trigger?—
No,Icouldn’t think it.Icouldn’t bear to envision anything bad happening to her.Hersoft skin.Sofragile and vulnerable.Shedidn’t have the same magical abilities thatAdelaidehad givenmy team to better protect her granddaughters.Magicthat made us as fireproof as our stone.
Whythe hell not?Couldn’tAdelaidehave given her granddaughters that same magic—especially after they’d both barely survived a fire when they were young?Orwas it impossible since they couldn’t shift to stone, which was impermeable to fire?
Questionsbattered my brain asIsoared over, most swirling around a huge one—how couldIsaveEloise?
Thatwas what was most important.SinceI’dmet her, this had been a battle wrecking my brain.Duty.Loyalty.Responsibilities.Yes, those were all well and good, whatIthought were the most important things in the world—but now…
Thebreeze rolled across my wings, slicing through the humidity on the otherwise sultry summer night.Oncethe tree-lined campus came into view below,Isoared like hell across it.Althoughthis was the fastestI’dever flown, the duration seemed to stretch longer.Theremote part of campus had fewer lights aside from those illuminating the library, shielding it from the shroud of darkness.That’swhereIsaw them.
Underthe pale moonlight,Isaw them on the grass before the library.Calix…andEloise.Shewas fighting him, letting loose like a wild banshee.
“Iwon’t help you.I’ddie first.”
Inthe next blink, he shifted into a phoenix.Hegrasped her in his claws and flew upward.Thatunnatural vision shook me to my very soul.He’dstolenEloise.Mymate.Wherewas he taking her?Icefroze my blood, leaving me as petrified as stone.
Ihad to stop him and get her back.Freeher from his despicable hold, but do so in a way that prevented her from getting hurt.Moregargoyles were on the way.Ifwe outnumbered him, we stood a better chance of defeating this monster.Butfirst,Ihad to getEloiseaway fromCalix.
Soaringtoward them,Ishouted, “Puther down!”
Calixturned his avian head toward me and let out a vicious squawk.Shadowyforms flew in from both sides of my peripheral vision, dark-feathered wings spreading wide.Thestench wafting from them struck my nostrils.Demons.
Calixlaughed a high-pitch, bloodcurdling sound.Heopened his claws and droppedEloise.
ELOISE
Iscreamed asIplunged through the sky, anticipating the inevitable crash.
Handsgrabbed me, andIsucked in a breath.OnceIregained my bearings, realizingIwasn’t about to die,Iglanced over my shoulder. “Dumont!”
Hefound me.Hecaught me!
“I’vegot you.”Heheld me against his hard body as he flew us downward, his magnificent wings spread wide behind him.Howdifferent it was to be in his arms in flight—comforting rather than the unimaginable horror whenCalixhad tormented me in the air.
Dumontlanded gracefully on the campus grass, butIstumbled to catch my footing.
“Areyou okay?” he asked with concern in his eyes as he steadied me.
