"Where is she?" Force roared, blood pouring down his arms as he searched the sky and the pack closed in.
I checked on Sophie and spared a glance for Mitch. The young harpy was torn to shreds but she was still alive. As for my pack…they looked like on-set extras for the Walking Dead. Force wasn't the only gargoyle who was bleeding; he was just doing the best job of it. But Victor was next in line, swaying on his feet, his hair matted with blood. Defiance ran a close third with a long tear ripping down his arm while Chaos tried to clear the blood that spilled from a slash in his forehead. Then I saw Dare who had fought at my back. It looked like something prehistoric had chewed him up and spat him out. Only Valor remained relatively unscathed, a testament to his fast reflexes.
"There," Valor shouted, and pointed at the large dark shape that blotted out the stars. He opened his wings and started toward the monster with Chaos fast on his heels.
Crouching, I shot straight upward, unfurling my wings and reaching Retschka first. With the long machete clutched in my fist and traveling at top speed, I hit the monster so hard she almost split in two. By the time Valor and Chaos caught up to me, the Gangboss was dead. With satisfaction, I watched her lifeless body turn to stone as she fell to earth.
I twirled in the sky, bloodlust hazing my vision, looking for more monsters to kill. But the quarry was quiet, the stone bodies of the harpies littering the ground. Below me, I could see the rest of the girls hurrying to join us, escorted by Reason. Courage had already landed with Lorissa. Opening my wings wider, I drifted to earth where Sophie and the others had gathered around the broken young harpy lying on the ground.
"Sophie," I croaked, dragging her into a fierce hug, cradling her skull in my fingers and crushing her face against my chest. Her dress was torn at the shoulders where Retschka's talons had dug deep. But I saw no blood, thank God. "Sophie," I breathed.
"I'm fine," she insisted, her palms pressing gently against my chest. "But…Mitch."
"Mitch," I whispered. "Mitch." It was a hard thing to do, but I let go of Sophie and dropped to my knees beside the young harpy.
Several of the rocky plates that protected her chest had been torn off. A great gout of blood welled from a hole close to her heart. I looked for Defiance, the pack healer. He had raced to meet Whitney. As I watched, he ripped the bottom of her dress away then strode back toward us, wadding the fabric in one hand and pulling Whit along with the other one.
Lifting Mitch's head, I nestled it in the crook of my arm while Defiance used the wadded fabric to staunch the flow of blood. Mac pressed her hands over his, clutching the bag of sawdust in her fist and murmuring healing spells.
"Mitch," I whispered, gazing down into her black eyes.
"Havoc's beautiful hair all gone," she croaked in a hoarse whisper, reaching her fingers upward and sliding her hand through the short strands above my ear.
I captured her hand and pressed her palm against my cheek. "It'll grow back."
She blinked up at me. "Mitschka save Havoc's Girly-girl. Help Havoc."
"Mitschka did good," I told her. "Now rest. Rest and get better."
The harpy's eyes closed then opened again. "Great Warrior be proud of daughter."
It took a while for her words to sink in. "G-Great Warrior?" I stammered. "What do you mean? Mitch, are you telling me you're…Malarkey's daughter?"
Her eyes were closed and I gave her a gentle shake.
"Mitch. Mitch, honey. Wake up."
Her eyes opened but only with great effort. "Mad Mal tell Mitschka's mother about Havoc and his family. How Mal looked for the lost nine but never found them. Havoc go to North Country and find Mad Mal? Tell Great Warrior how Mitschka helped Havoc?"
"Aye," I answered in a faint voice, stunned to think I was holding Malarkey's daughter in my arms. "Aye. We'll both go. We'll go together."
A look of peace softened her gaze. And as I held her, I knew what I had to do next. Supporting her head carefully in one arm, I bared my barbs on my free hand and prepared to make my mark on her shoulder.
"What are you doing?" Defiance demanded, his fingers covered with blood as he leaned his weight on Mitch's wound.
Ignoring my cousin, I scratched the first line of my rune into the harpy's rocky hide. The brilliant blue color boiled on Mitch's skin.
"What are you doing?" Defiance repeated in a bark.
"Shut up," I answered and made the second line.
Mitch's gaze moved slowly to my hand on her shoulder. "Havoc giving Mitschka his rune?"
"A deal is a deal," I answered.
"Mitschka not live long enough to enjoy it."
"It's yours," I told her quietly. "You earned it."
She watched my hand move on her skin and seemed sad. "Mitschka not have much time. Havoc kiss Mitschka first? Mitschka never been kissed."
"What, a pretty young thing like you?" I said, my voice cracking.
But Mitch thought I was turning her down. The look on her face was unspeakably sad.
"Of course I'll kiss you," I whispered, smiling down at her as I lowered my lips to hers. They were cold and hard but I kissed her gently. I kissed her for as long as I felt there was life in her kiss. There was a smile on her face and her eyes were closed as I went back to work on the rune.
Of the different runes worn by my family, Courage's is probably the simplest. Five quick strokes and it's done. Dare's is the longest at nine strokes. Mine takes six. I was working on the fifth curving line when I felt Defiance's hand on my arm, tugging at me.
"She's gone, Havoc. There's no need to finish."
Roughly, I shrugged him off. "I meant what I said. And I mean to keep my word," I growled, and carved the last line into the harpy's rocky armor.
Chapter Twenty-Three
After I had marked Mitch, there was nothing more to do. The harpy had known she was dying. Her arms were crossed restfully over her chest and her legs were pulled together in a straight line. Her eyes were closed…but there was a peaceful smile on her face. It gave me some comfort to see that quiet expression of contentment.
Banking my barbs, I rubbed my knuckle into the corner of my eye. Slowly, I rose to my feet. I looked around at my pack, their expressions solemn and sad. Several of the lasses were crying.
Sophie's fingers touched my elbow and jerked me out of my sober mood. Instantly, I relived the battle that had just taken place. The battle that had started with Sophie falling and ended with Mitch's death.
I spun around to face her. "What the hell happened?" I shouted. "Why'd you go back to the house? You almost ruined everything." I was shaking from head to toe. I wanted to tell her how terrified I was when I'd seen her dangling from Retschka's talons. How afraid I'd been that she would end up hurt. Or dead. Like Mitch. Torn to shreds.
"Havoc," MacKenzie said in a soft warning of reproach.
But I ignored Valor's lass.
Sophie's face was pale. I wanted to grab her head and kiss some color back into her cheeks. Instead, I yelled at her. Not my finest moment, but my emotions were out of control. "What happened? What on earth could have taken you back to the house?"
"I-I stopped for gas at the edge of Boulder," she explained haltingly. "There wasn't enough gas in the Jeep to get home. But Hooli slipped out of the car when I opened the door. And he made straight for your place."
I stared at her as a deafening silence filled my head. "Oh," I said eloquently.
"I followed Hooligan," she went on, "hoping I could round him up again before the harpies got there. I was afraid they'd kill him. I'm sorry. Please don't be so mad."
I stared at her face, streaked with the tears she'd cried for Mitch.
I felt like an ass.
But I didn't tell anybody.
"What happened to Agent Moreno?" I growled, suddenly (and conveniently) remembering him.
"Agent Moreno?" Chaos muttered. "I saw a man being carried by a harpy but—"
"He was Simpson's replacement. The…the guy who was supposed to deliver our citizen
ship paperwork."
There were a few seconds of silence as the pack absorbed this bleak information.
"The harpies must have dropped him," Victor said, his face grim.
"W-We'd better look for him," I croaked.
"You stay with Sophie," Victor suggested quietly. "We can do this. You don't need to be the one to find…"
"Sophie will be safe with Lorissa and Mac…and Torrie," I whispered, wishing I could take Victor's advice. I didn't want to leave Sophie. Neither did I want to find Agent Moreno's body. But I couldn't avoid the task. I felt like Moreno was my responsibility since I was the only one who had met him…and maybe the reason he had returned to the house. I looked around at my family, most of them torn and bleeding. If they could rouse themselves for a search, I could damn well do it too. "I need to do this."
"Alright," Victor said reluctantly, eyeing me with concern before he gave the girls instructions to head back to the bunker. We watched them as they set off, Torrie taking the weight of Mitch's head while Camie and Whitney each took one of her feet.
As Mitch floated toward the bunker with the girls, I lifted into the air with the rest of my family, looking for the smashed and broken body of the FBI agent. And I'm sure every one of us hoped he wouldn't be the one to find it. We crossed the area several times, covering every inch of the quarry's bare stone ground…but didn't turn him up.
Finally, I followed the quiet sound of lapping water. And there was the little agent, paddling around the edge of the lake, looking for a place to haul himself out. But the walls were too high and steep.
"Found him," I called out to the others, and dipped down to pluck him from the water.
I set Moreno down on the rocky ground as the others caught up and formed a circle around us. "This is Agent Moreno," I told my family, and introduced them one by one to the agent.
Gasping, Moreno slumped to his elbow then lifted himself on one arm. His thin graying hair was plastered to his head and water streamed down his face. He stared at us. Taking into account the amount of blood that was in attendance, we must have looked like a tough lot. We must have looked a shade on the murderous side, come to think of it. But Moreno had probably seen blood before…and murderers. So, it was our wings that captured his full attention. He stared without a word.
"Why didn't you call for help?" I asked him.
"I didn't want those monsters coming back for me," he panted as he squinted up at me. "What the hell were those things?"
"Harpies," I answered. "Not very nice creatures."
"No kidding," he muttered. "Since when are harpies anything other than myth?"
"Myths are often rooted in fact," Victor offered. "Harpies have been around for a long while. Fortunately, most humans have been spared that knowledge."
Moreno's apprehensive gaze swept across the bare quarry. "Where'd they all go?"
"We killed them," Force rumbled.
"You killed them? B-But there were dozens of them. And they were huge."
"Aye. They do run a bit large," I agreed, the corner of my mouth twitching as I fought the urge to laugh. I was just so relieved to find the agent alive.
"So if those things were harpies, wh-what are you guys?" Moreno asked.
I looked at Victor.
"Gargoyles," he answered in a low voice.
The agent's eyes swept around my bloodied family enclosing him in a circle. "Are you guys going to…kill me too?" he asked.
"Why would we do that?" Victor asked, surprised.
"To make sure the story dies with me?" the agent suggested although I could see he wasn't really very keen on the idea.
"Nay," Victor answered, grinning as he reached down and helped the agent to his feet. "We're going to let you go and hope the story dies with you anyhow."
The agent's eyes narrowed with suspicion. "Does Agent Simpson know about you guys? Does he know what you are?"
Victor hesitated before answering. "We wouldn't want to implicate Agent Simpson in any way," he finally said. And with his hand on the agent's elbow, he turned him in the direction of the bunker. "It's a bit of a walk," he said apologetically.
"We'd be happy to fly you over there," Reason offered.
"I'll walk," the agent said firmly.
"You don't mind if we get back to our lasses, then?" Reason asked, clearly anxious to make sure the girls were okay.
"Lasses?" he questioned.
"You guys go ahead," Chaos said, waving off the rest of the pack. "I'll stay behind and give Havoc a hand with the agent."
"Aye. Get going and check on the girls," I said. "We'll be right behind you."
For the next few seconds, I watched my family take to the air and drift toward the girls who had not yet reached the bunker. An unconscious sigh of relief eased from my lungs when the guys landed and everyone was together again.
"Why'd you go back to the house again after you left?" I asked the agent as we made our way across the quarry.
Moreno shuddered. "Believe me, I didn't know I was going to run smack into a mutant war."
"We're not mutants," I said mildly.
"No?" he challenged me in an accusatory tone.
"Nay," I answered. "If we were mutants we'd have our own comic strip."
"Which would be really cool," Chaos murmured with a grin. He used his night vision to point out a stretch of uneven ground and we placed our next few footsteps carefully.
Moreno peered up at my cousin and cracked the first smile I'd seen on his face. It wasn't a big one. But it was a smile. And a small smile from an FBI agent probably means more than a big smile from regular folks.
"So, why'd you go back?" I asked the agent.
Moreno seemed reluctant to explain as we scuffed along. Finally, he started. "The girl who answered the door at your house was acting…strange. I thought I'd better go back and check things out. Make sure she hadn't killed off the entire household."
"You FBI guys are a suspicious bunch," I remarked.
"Give me a break," he growled. "The girl started off claiming to be somebody's girlfriend then decided to be his sister instead. That would be suspicious behavior in anyone's books." He scowled at me. "Your mouth is bleeding, by the way."
I rubbed a hand over my mouth and checked out the smear of color on my palm. "That's not blood," I told him. "That's lipstick."
"Lipstick!" he exclaimed.
And I realized he hadn't connected me with the girl he'd been talking about a few seconds earlier. Of course, my hair was short and my jacket was gone, along with the sheer white blouse (not to mention my previously substantial chest). I was just a guy with shortish hair, dark slacks and a black leather vest…and a very scarlet shade of lipstick.
"Yeah," I said, grinning down at him. "I guess I'm a bit metro."
Back at the bunker, we joined the rest of the pack gathered beside Rafe's long limousine. I slid a glance in Sophie's direction just to make sure she was coping. Because let's face it, she'd had a lot thrown at her in a short amount of time. I was relieved (and proud) to see her helping Mim with Dare.
"I assume you'll want a lift back to your car in Boulder?" Victor asked Moreno. He was holding Samantha as tightly as I wanted to be holding Sophie.
"I'll be wanting a lift," Moreno agreed, sounding all stuffy and officious again. "By car, if you don't mind."
"Maybe when we get back to town, you could give us that…delivery from Agent Simpson?" I suggested.
Moreno studied me through narrowed eyes. "Maybe I'll want to check into it a bit more thoroughly," he answered. "I have no idea what's in that envelope. Maybe it's time I investigated and found out. I'm not saying anything against Agent Simpson but, considering what I've learned tonight, maybe I should take this up the ladder and make sure everything's on the up and up."
I started to argue but he cut me off.
"Forgive me for being a little edgy," he snapped, "but tonight I've learned of two new human species that I didn't previously know about."
"Harpies aren't hu
man!" Chaos exclaimed hotly.
But Moreno talked right over my cousin's words. "We're talking about species that might threaten the security of this country—of the world. It would be irresponsible for me to proceed without further investigation." His cheeks were flushed as he sent a challenging glare around the gargoyles standing in the garage.
Defiance elbowed Force who was standing beside him. "You were right," he growled. "We should have killed him."
"I never said that," Force drawled.
"Maybe not," Defiance grunted. "But you should have."
A deadly smile curved Force's mouth as he targeted the FBI agent with his steely gaze. Moreno backed away from the two brothers, his expression considerably more nervous than it had been a few seconds earlier.
Victor stepped forward and shot an impatient scowl at Defiance. "My cousins are kidding," he told the agent.
"Maybe," allowed Defiance. "But we could have just left Moreno in the lake and the result would have been the same as if we'd killed him. Havoc didn't need to pull him out. Am I right, Havoc?"
I didn't need to think about my answer. And I didn't know why Defiance was going out of his way to provoke the agent when he was the guy in control of our identification papers. "I couldn't have left him there," I answered shortly. "And neither could you."
Defiance answered with a disgruntled look. But he didn't argue. Because I was right. Defiance wouldn't have left the FBI agent to die in that lake. Beneath his cold exterior, Defiance wasn't any different from me. Deep down, he was good.
Chapter Twenty-Four
We got Agent Moreno settled inside the limo, then most of the pack climbed in behind him. Working together, Reason and Courage slid Mitch into the long space between the soft leather seats. Then they offered to stay behind and get rid of the bodies. We figured the harpies would fit very nicely into the large lake. My cousins could fly home when they were finished.
I got in the car last while Samantha slipped into the driver's seat with Victor beside her; he opened the window that separated the cab from the seating.
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