Gargoyle's Mate (15 page)

***

Krail stiffened as he listened to his older son describe the events leading up to his mate’s disappearance. He’d said a succubus and gremlin were behind the lure to get Fatima alone, but what he didn’t say, what they all knew, was ultimately the woman had left of her own free will.

“Do what you must, but I want her returned,” Lorn stated vehemently, looking into the faces of each Protector assembled. The twenty gargoyles gathered in Lorn’s Chicago home and paid close attention as their brethren ran down what transpired in Paris and New York.

“Why should we waste our time helping you when our own mates have yet to be found? Simply because you can’t keep yours under wraps doesn’t mean the rest of us should join in your quest to locate a woman who’d rather not be with you,” Alexi responded from his vantage point near a window.

“If you don’t wish to help, Alexi then by all means leave,” Lorn retorted, eyeing the man. He was wound tighter than a drum and would be very willing to indulge Alexi in the fight the Protector always seemed to be spoiling for when the two were in each other’s presence.

Alexi shrugged nonchalantly as if to suggest it didn’t matter either way.

“Why do you think this succubus would risk involving herself in gargoyle matters?” Jean asked.

“I don’t know but I mean to find out.” Lorn’s jaw clenched automatically at the thought of the elusive female creature with his mate. Fatima had been missing for over two weeks, and he was no closer to finding her than he had been when she first disappeared.

“I believe she has Fatima in a coastal state, most likely as close to the ocean as possible,” he provided.

The Protectors nodded their agreement; it explained why none had been able to fix on her scent. The other reason – well, no one was willing to accept it, least of all Lorn. There was no way she would cheat him out of his vengeance through death.

“We will need to use all our other abilities, as well as alert any trusted life walkers and immortals.”

“Do you think it wise to draw so much attention to an unguarded Fledgling?” another Protector asked.

“It is not something I relish doing, but too much time has elapsed. If Fatima is in the company of a succubus she is already in harm’s way.”

“Very true,” Krail agreed aloud. “And I have a sinking suspicion this particular succubus is one of the most lethal.”

“Sire?” Lorn questioned.

“As one of the oldest living Protectors, I have been a part of and seen many things all of you present cannot begin to imagine.” He shook his head as if to ward off a bad memory. “We have always known one or more succubi played a role in the Fledgling suicides, but what their exact involvement was has always eluded us. I think the same culprit may be responsible now.”

Green eyes shone on the wizened Protector as he spoke. The Fledgling suicides were a topic not readily discussed among Protectors. ‘I believe I know the creature responsible for so much pain. Her name is one almost as old as time itself, but none can ever remember it. By all rights she is a life walker, though she has managed to live like and immortal.”

He paused; the consequences of his long ago affair hit him with a force strong enough to temporarily knock the wind from his body. “I was involved with this creature for a couple hundred years before meeting my mate.”

The silence in the room was unearthly.

“She was a very jealous sort. I thought nothing of it because succubi are not known for their fidelity. She was different. After I was mated I could only think of Laurel.” The anguish in his voice illustrated the years of loneliness he’d endured without his woman.

“She came to me many times seeking to continue our relationship, and each time I refused she became more incensed. She suddenly stopped altogether. Until the hundredth year anniversary of the suicides,” he remembered.

“
You
do not need to mourn so, my love. I am here for you.” The blonde seemed to appear out of nowhere as he knelt over his wife’s grave. A lone tear trickled down the side of his face, although his grief consumed him like a thousand wildfires.

“Go away,” he mumbled, not taking his eyes from the headstone reading, ‘Your wisdom in life went unrecognized’.

“No matter how often you come here it will not bring her back. Why do you torture yourself by lusting over a rotting corpse when a warm body eagerly seeks your attention?” The woman huffed like an exasperated child.

“If you do not leave me now I’ll not be responsible for my actions.” He held his anger in check, not wanting to sully his mate’s resting place with his fury.

“Now we’re getting somewhere. Tell me, lover, what will you do to me?” She sashayed around his crouched form, stopping to rest a hip on the headstone.

Krail wasn’t sure what happened next. One moment he was touching the earth covering Laurel’s body, the next he had the blonde creature by the throat, squeezing the very life force from her. Her look of astonishment soon gave way to fear. Krail fought against every instinct in him begging to terminate the life of the woman. At the last moment he tossed her away from him, her body thudded against a nearby tree. There was no remorse as he sank to the earth on both knees.

After several moments of silence the succubus wailed in a voice capable of putting any banshee to shame. “How dare you! I promise you, Krail, you will live to regret this.”

“Trust me, there is nothing you could do to me to make me feel any worse than I have this past century,” he said without looking up.

“You think this is the same succubus?” Alexi asked.

“I cannot say with certainty, but my intuition is strong on this matter.”

“How do we find her, Sire?”

“You do not, if she is not interested in being found.”

***

Gordy came instantly awake, his body drenched in sweat. It was the third night in a row he’d awakened in the early morning hours this way. Stumbling from bed he made for the bathroom, turning on the shower’s cold spray.

He let out a sigh of relief as the frigid stream doused his heated flesh. Knowing from his previous experiences his bed sheets would need replacing, he hoped Fatima wouldn’t question him about the change in linen for the third time in a week. The first night he’d woken in this state he’d had a moment of pure embarrassment because he was certain he’d wet the bed like some freshly potty-trained toddler. He quickly deduced the odorless sheets and his inflamed body temperature were not signs of a bed wetter but someone suffering the effects of major night sweats.

The blonde had promised him perfect health and strength. Was this some sort of weird side effect of his transformation? He would ask her the next time he saw her. The woman had become scarce the last few days, not returning his numerous calls to her cell. He briefly thought something had happened to her, but for some reason doubted it possible. She was definitely capable of handling herself. He would try her again later while Fatima joined her conservation group for their hike and trail restoration.

Fatima. His thoughts drifted. He still couldn’t believe his good fortune at having her with him where she belonged. He could suffer through their brief separation a couple times a week if it meant having her come home to him. She’d signed up for the group after deciding there was only so much in Avalon City one could do without dying from overindulgence or boredom. Neither of them was any closer to settling on how to handle their newfound knowledge.

After their initial arrival Gordy managed to slip away to the mainland a few times to meet with the succubus. He kept his visits a secret, knowing Fatima wasn’t too keen on trusting anything not human, not until she could find some tangible information to determine the difference between good and bad ‘otherlings,’ her new pet name for non-humans.

***

Fatima’s own beginning to the morning wasn’t much better than Gordy’s. However, instead of spending it in the shower, she hung her head over a toilet bowl while the contents of her evening meal revisited her. She heaved until there was nothing left to give to the porcelain throne. Nausea had become a constant companion over the last week but this was the first time it had progressed to full-fledged retching. It was only one of many things happening with her lately. Although they weren’t all unpleasant. She was just different. There were subtle changes in her appearance; she wasn’t embarrassed to call them improvements. Her hair was thicker with a natural lustre, her skin glowed. Those weren’t the only things, her hearing was more acute but Lorn’s isolating technique helped to block out the background noise. Her other senses were heightened. She could identify every ingredient in her meals; navigate her way through the bungalow in the dark without flipping a light switch. It was inexplicable. She rinsed her mouth before beginning her brushing ritual. Giving herself a brief once over, she checked her temperature and vitals to make sure everything was within normal range. Satisfied with the state of her body, she prepared herself for a busy day of conservation work.

“Are you sure you’re all right?” Fatima asked, hesitant about leaving a clammy looking Gordy alone. She’d found him lounging haphazardly on the love seat, looking hot and utterly miserable.

“Yes, I’m fine. Just go… have fun sifting through rocks.” He tried to sound light but failed miserably.

“I don’t have to go to today.”

“Fatima, please you would just drive me crazy playing mother hen all day long.”

“All right. I know when I’m not wanted but can you just promise me you will take it easy today?”

“Aye, aye, doctor,” he agreed. “Now go and protect the environment from all the vacationing city dwellers,” he urged.

Fatima left, making a mental note to return on the early afternoon bus to check on Gordy. He hadn’t looked good over the last couple of days, and she realized she’d probably caught some version of whatever bug had infected him. Fortunately, her strain of the virus seemed to have little effect on her other than the occasional nausea but it was tolerable. Gordy on the other hand seemed lethargic and irritable lately. His newly acquired tan had faded, leaving him a sallow color. Their shared bathroom was next to her room which enabled her to hear his early morning showers, and she’d discovered the damp sheets he’d hidden at the bottom of the clothes hamper when starting laundry that morning.

She felt a twinge of guilt for wanting to be outside of the house lately. Yet she craved the remote protected area of the island away from Gordy and the vacationing hordes. Her work as a conservationist allowed her to enjoy nature while giving her something to do with her time.

In the afternoon she returned only to find their little bungalow silent. Immediate concern rushed through her body as she searched every room for any sign of her sickly roommate. Had he gotten worse? Had he gone to see a doctor, or to the mainland to a hospital? She paced the floor, afraid if she left he would show up and need her help. At times like this she wished they conversed more with their neighbors instead of isolating themselves but they’d both agreed to try and maintain a low profile. She’d argued they couldn’t stay holed up in the small bungalow indefinitely but Gordy was adamant they should wait a little longer.

Afternoon gave way to evening, and she found herself hunkered down on the little love seat, TV on for company while she waited. She’d just started to drift off when the door opened, admitting a grocery-toting Gordy.

“Where have you been” she started, sitting up while simultaneously clicking off the television with the remote.

“I went to get food,” he offered, going into the adjoining kitchen with his burden. “I picked up some of your favorites.”

“Gordy, you can’t just go out for hours in your condition”, she nagged, taking her tirade to the kitchen behind him. She paused in the archway at the sight of him. Gone was the pale pasty complexion and sunken eyes. He looked great.

“What did you do?” she gasped.

“I told you, got some groceries.”

“You know what I mean. This morning you were barely able to move, and now you look like you could run a marathon. What did you do?” she drilled, taking items out of his hands, and forcing him to look at her.

“I felt better and didn’t want to waste the day sitting in here.”

“That’s impossible. Even medicine couldn’t take effect this soon. What’s going on?”

He sighed, “I went to see my friend, and she gave me something for my illness.”

“I thought we decided you shouldn’t meet with her again, not until we can determine who’s who in the whole otherlings scheme of things.”

“And how do you suggest we find out on our own? We can’t even go back to the university right now because your little gargoyle buddy has friends stationed everywhere.” He exhaled noisily.

“How do you know?” She was temporarily distracted by the new bit of information.

“The succubus told me. Apparently they’re staking out our apartments as well as the school.” He gave a quick chuckle. “If they only knew how close they were.” He shook his head, continuing the task of unloading the groceries.

“Are you certain they can’t find us here?”

“Don’t worry, like I told you before salt water is the so-called Protectors’ nose kryptonite. We’re safe as long as we stay near the ocean.”

“Which leads me to another point. You can’t keep risking your little jaunts to the mainland if they are this close.”

“You’re worrying too much. I stay in coastal cities, and besides, you’re forgetting our secret weapon.”

“What?” she looked confused.

“Our very own succubus,” he responded as if she were daft.

“You’re putting a lot of faith in her. Will I ever get to meet this woman? Why is she so damned elusive?” she bombarded.

He shrugged. “I’m sure she had her reasons for staying away before, but she’s agreed to come for dinner tonight.”

What
? “Why didn’t you tell me before?”

“You didn’t give me a chance. I’m glad you will have an opportunity to see for yourself she’s a good person,” he said with the excitement of a child.