Rocked by Love (Gargoyles Series) (34 page)

It laughed, a sound that scraped against bone and tooth, pinging against exposed nerve. “Poor fools. Do you not see that the thing you so value is your greatest weakness?”

“Weakness?” Kees hissed, baring his fangs. “Our Wardens are standing against your precious servants and fighting the battle we all know we
will
win. You cannot triumph, Demon, not while the Light exists.”

“Oh, your precious Light is already growing dim,” the Demon said dismissively. “In the end we will devour it, just as we will devour this pitiful little world and every soul in it.”

It lifted its head, stretching the human neck to unnatural lengths, then closing its eyes and sniffing the air like a pig scenting truffles. “Mm, so many tasty, tasty souls, falling like a banquet before me. I must remember to thank my servants for the feast.”

Suddenly its eyes snapped open and its head whipped around to stare at Kees with a malevolent smile. “Though what was that you said about your Wardens ‘standing,’ Guardian? Because I think that if you’ll care to look, you’ll see one of them very much off her precious little feet.”

Kees looked immediately to the floor, his black eyes searching for the petite form of his mate. Dag looked as well. His gaze flitted over Fil, her pale hair easy to spot in the crowd, and he thought he saw Wynn as well, but the glimpse was fleeting. He told himself not to worry because his gaze failed to find Kyle; she was so tiny, she could easily become lost among all the taller and larger humans. And Ella might be a bit larger, but her sweet, unremarkable looks could also get lost in the chaos below.

Kees growled, and Dag turned to glare at him. “Calm yourself, brother. You know better than to listen to a filthy, lying Demon. Your mate will be well. They will all be well.”

“Such optimism, Guardian,” the Demon taunted. “Are you so certain your own
little
female is not one of the souls that already fills my belly?”

“I am certain,” Dag snarled. “Her power is such that it would catch in your accursed gullet and choke you, filth of Darkness.”

“Ooh, that flavorful, is she? Maybe I’ll save her for dessert, then. I could even let you watch while I suck her body dry.”

Kees thundered, “Shut your mouth, Demon scum. My brother is right. Our Wardens are too much for you or any of the loathsome pit crawlers called the Seven to deal with. In fact, if I were you, I would turn my attention away from baiting the ones who will destroy me and fix on the depletion of my forces by the little females you choose to dismiss.”

For a moment, the Demon’s smile slipped and his gaze flew to the floor of the auditorium.

Dag had heard a shift in the chaotic noise of battle, but he stood angled too far away from the floor to see what had happened. Kees had a much better view and had begun to appear grimly satisfied.

“I believe I see your little Warden, brother,” Kees said, satisfaction ringing in his voice. “And I believe she has just managed to ensure that no more demonic scum will be joining us for this morning’s festivities.”

Dag felt a surge of relief and renewed purpose. He knew his Kylie was strong and more powerful than she believed, and he couldn’t wait to rub her nose in the evidence.

For a moment rage and disbelief flashed in the Demon’s stolen eyes, but it was quickly masked behind another taunting smile. “Oh, don’t worry, Guardians. The fun isn’t over. I still have a few tricks up my sleeve, if you will. In fact, let me show you one of them.”

Lifting its fingers to its lips, the demon whistled shrilly. All at once, the chaos in the room went silent, like a television turning off. A glance showed that every remaining living human in the room had frozen like a statue where they stood. A moment later, Dag heard the sound of wings cutting through the silence. Not Guardian wings, but something smaller and faster, something that stirred the air with the scent of old blood and rotted meat. Just as the smell registered, a thump shook the stage to his right and a snarling, cursing witch appeared at the Demon’s feet. Immediately, it grabbed her by the hair and hauled her close, and a small dagger appeared in the hand pressed to her throat.

Kees immediately leaped high and dragged the winged minion out of the air, snapping its spine and tearing its heart from its chest with his bare fangs. As it dissolved into ash at his feet, he roared his displeasure into the Corruptor’s laughing face.

“Tsk-tsk,” the Demon chided. “That temper could get you into trouble one of these days, Guardian. You wouldn’t want that, now would you?” The hand at Wynn’s throat shifted and a thin line of red appeared, drops of blood welling to the surface.

“UNHAND
MY
MATE!”

The thunderous roar shook the stage and rattled the lights in the rigging. Knox swooped in from above like death, covering the distance from the back of the auditorium in two beats of his powerful wings. He landed on the edge of the stage in a crouch and let out another cry so loud and so fierce that even Dag felt the need to bow to his fury.

“Careful, Guardian,” the Demon said, smile tightening and eyes flashing red. Its hand pressed tighter to Wynn’s throat. “Make me nervous and I might just slip. No one wants any accidents.”

“I’m fine, big guy,” Wynn reassured her mate. Her voice shook, not with fear, but with anger. “Don’t worry about me. Just stick to the plan.”

The Demon chuckled. “Oh-ho, there’s a plan, is there? That just sounds so precious. Would anyone care to enlighten me on the details?”

“There really aren’t that many.”

Dag’s heart stopped in his chest as his tiny mate climbed up on the stage at Knox’s side and stood facing the ultimate corruption of Nazgahchuhl with nothing but a few feet of space separating them.

Kylie stood as she always did, with her head high and her shoulders back, looking like nothing so much as a bored college student facing off against an arrogant professor. He wanted to grab her and kiss her and tell her how proud she made him; then he wanted to turn her over his knee and beat the stuffing out of her for putting herself in danger and scaring millennia off his life.

“Not that many details, I mean,” Kylie continued. “Mostly it was just a matter of come here, kick your ass, then go home and eat babka.”

Nazgahchuhl turned his attention to Kylie, and Dag rumbled a warning. He couldn’t help it. It escaped without his permission, but at least he maintained enough control not to leap at the Demon’s throat, thus jeopardizing Wynn’s life.

“So you’re the little thing my servants were trying so hard to find,” the Demon mused, tilting his head as he gazed at her. “I can see how they overlooked you. You’re quite insignificant, aren’t you?”

“Short jokes? Really?” Kylie scoffed, which made Dag twitch. “You’re, like, as old as time, and the best you can come up with are short jokes?” Kylie looked at her mate and jerked a thumb in the Demon’s direction. “Is this thing for real?”

“I can assure you I am very real,” the Demon hissed, leaning forward over Wynn’s captive head to glare at the Warden. “If you don’t believe me, I’m certain your friends can share with you a few of my greatest achievements.”

While everyone concentrated on the conversation between the Demon and Kylie, Dag became aware of more movement. From the floor of the auditorium, Fil approached with Spar by her side. They climbed onto the stage between Kees and Knox, providing the last pieces in a wall of opposition to Nazgahchuhl and his plans.

The Demon saw them—everyone saw them—but its reaction was not what Dag had expected. Instead of growing more tense in the face of the combined power of four Guardians and three Wardens, the Demon smiled and seemed almost to relax.

“Well, now, I see the gang is finally all here,” it said, sounding almost cheerful. “Excellent.”

Once again, Kylie’s mouth took off. “What? You were waiting to ask for our autographs?”

Fil snorted and this time the Demon just smiled.

“Oh, no, nothing like that,” it said dismissively. “But now I have the chance to tell you all how much I appreciate your kind assistance.”

Dag’s gut clenched as he realized something was very, very wrong.

“Assistance?” Kylie demanded, fisting her hands in the front pockets of her jeans. “You think we helped you out today?” She looked at Dag. “He’s a
meshugener
.”

“Oh, no, I can assure you I am quite sane,” the Demon practically purred. “Quite intelligent, too. I had to be in order to plan out this little distraction so convincingly.”

“Distraction,” Dag snarled. He had a bad, bad feeling.

“Oh, I’m sure you’ll read all about it in the news, but I really couldn’t have done it without you.”

Kylie shook her head. “
Zayn vort zol zayn a brik, volt ikh moyre gehat aribertsugeyn
. If his word were a bridge, I’d be afraid to cross it,” she muttered. “You’re trying to tell us that you didn’t really set this up and attempt to massacre all of these people because you wanted to. You just thought it would keep us busy while you did something more important. You couldn’t have just sent us to the movies?”

“I never said this little event wasn’t fun,” the Demon taunted. “And delicious.” It licked its lips, and Kylie made gagging noises. “I’m merely saying that this is not the only city in the world, and that death tastes sweet all over.” It gave a sigh of pleasure that raised growls from all four Guardians. “But enough chitchat. I’m afraid I must be going.”

Dag tensed at the statement and leaped, forgetting the knife at Wynn’s throat, forgetting the poor odds, forgetting everything but the need to seize the Demon before it could escape.

He was too late.

They all were. The Guardians crashed together in the spot where Nazgahchuhl had stood, nothing there but an empty space and an extremely ticked-off witch who told them all in no uncertain terms to get their fat asses off her.

Knox scooped her up in his arms and cradled her to his chest, crooning reassurances at her until she slapped him upside the head and demanded to be set back on her feet.

“I’m fine,” she insisted, loudly, as the others gathered around in concern. “The scratch on my neck doesn’t even need a bandage, and that flying monkey barely dropped me six feet. Quit worrying. About me, anyway. If anyone wants to worry about what the Demon meant by his psychotic little spiel, I’d be happy to join you.”

Suddenly a scream rang out from the middle of the auditorium floor, and Dag turned to see that the spell the Demon had cast to freeze everyone in place had ended as abruptly as the creature had disappeared. Instantly, he and the other Guardians shifted to human and looked to their mates.

“Anyone know how we’re going to explain this?”

They all turned their gazes to the room filled with dazed and injured humans, as well as the bloody remains of the dead and the scattered ashes of destroyed demons.

Kylie sighed and pulled out her cell phone. “I have no idea. But you know what? That’s why we have mayors, and why mayors have public relations specialists. I’m calling 911. We did the hard part, now someone else can clean up the mess.”

Chapter Twenty

Az der soyne falt, tor men zikh nit freyen (ober men heybt im nit oyf).

Rejoice not at thine enemy’s fall (but don’t pick him up, either).

That night, over Indian takeout, they watched the news. The lead story on the local station was of the terrorist attack at the John B. Hynes Veterans Memorial Convention Center.

According to eyewitnesses, a hallucinogenic gas had been deployed in the auditorium during an important speech by noted philanthropist Richard Foye-Carver. Assailants had then stormed the room, killing seventeen people and wounding more than a hundred others. Carver’s representatives assured the media that his security team had gotten him to safety, but that he would be canceling his public appearances for the near future out of legitimate concerns for his safety.

“I’ll give them concern for his safety,” Kylie mumbled before biting savagely into a hunk of naan.

Beside her Dag chuckled. “Down, girl. We still need to see what the Demon was really up to. Then we will decide how you are going to kill it.”

That pacified her for the moment. Barely.

It also helped mellow her homicidal tendencies that she was frickin’ exhausted. The events of the morning had led to five more hours at the convention center talking to police, talking to the FBI, giving statements, giving more statements, getting checked by paramedics, and giving yet more statements. By the time their group had finally returned to the brownstone and collapsed in the living room, she’d barely had the energy to call the restaurant and have the food delivered.

Seriously. She and the other Wardens had played rock-paper-scissors to decide who had to answer the door when it arrived. She had suggested rock-paper-scissors-lizard-Spock, but had been vetoed. Apparently, she was just “a big ol’ geek.”

Pshaw.

They all perked up, at least mentally, when the television transitioned to the world news. There, the terrorist attack in Boston took second fiddle to the news of a much greater disaster in Ireland.

“More than seventy people are dead, and authorities warn that the numbers may continue to rise as they sort through the aftermath of this afternoon’s tragic events in Dublin, Ireland. Sources in the capital city are calling this attack ‘an utter and complete surprise,’ as well as ‘one of the worst terrorist attacks in the history of the Republic.’ Coming on the one-hundredth anniversary of the Easter Rising, Sunday’s bombing and riot shocked authorities who claimed to have had no prior warning leading up to the event.”

The station cut to film of an Irish official looking shocked and devastated as he delivered a statement to the press. Kylie felt a knot of dread in her stomach as she turned toward her friends.

“I think we know now what the Demon was really up to.”

Fil looked blown away. “I can’t believe they could do this. I mean, I can’t believe they managed to coordinate across two continents to create simultaneous events. And to use one as a distraction for the other? That is way more sophisticated than we’ve been giving them credit for.”