Embrace (The Gryphon Series Book 2)

by Stacey Rourke

  Just as we peaked over the treetops, and the skyline of Nashville loomed out before us as a far off beacon of hope and safety, Alaina yelped. We spun back toward the ground in a whipping, churning, freefall. All the air pushed out of my lungs as I slammed to the ground with all of Alaina’s weight on top of me. Shrieking, she rolled off of me. My head lulled to the side, and I eagerly sucked in air to fill my painfully empty lungs. In the middle of regulating my breathing, I caught a glimpse of Alaina’s silhouette. My eyes bulged and my jaw fell slack. A small wooden dart protruded from Alaina’s neck. As I watched her feathers and wings melt away. Vanishing without a trace. She became—human.

  She gaped down at her exposed, and very human, body. Panic boiled in her voice. “Oh! Oh! Oh! My…my…wings!” Her eyes, now green like Caleb’s, widened with terror as she scoured my face for an answer. “Where are my wings?!”

  I bit back a pained scream as I sat up to shrug off my zip-up sweatshirt and toss it to her. My T-shirt was shredded from the rib area down, but I was still way more covered than she was. “Uh, Caleb? We’ve got a problem!”

  In between blasts of fire and ice, he glanced back over his shoulder. Strands of black hair stuck to his sweaty forehead. “Why are ya still—oh, blimey.” His shoulder’s sagged, but only for a moment. “Reversal Demon,” he shouted and turned his attentions to the fire demon that loomed closer. “His darts temporarily remove the powers of supernatural beings. Get ‘er in the truck and get out of here!”

  With an inner confidence he hadn’t had before, Eddie cocked his head to the side and glared in my direction. Malicious intent wafted off of him. “No, I think she needs to stay right here.” A flick of his wrist and a dart zinged through the air and imbedded in my front driver’s side tire.

  I pulled myself up onto my knees and watched as the tire hissed flat. Caleb threw another look back. His ebony brows drew together as his gaze locked with mine. Gray storm clouds filled his eyes.

  “Just run.” His voice came out a rough rumble of thunder.

  His jaw rotated as he turned his head. A ferocious gust tore out of him that extinguished Red’s skin to embers and sent Eddie tumbling back toward the flower shop.

  While I wanted to curl up in a ball and wait for the pain to subside, there wasn’t time for that. I pulled myself up and locked an arm around Alaina’s waist to help her stand. Her legs wobbled. Before we both tumbled to the ground, I dragged her as quick as I could shuffle across the gravel toward the road. I kept my other arm pressed to my midsection to relieve the feeling that it would rip open and spill my guts across the ground at any moment. Alaina couldn’t defend herself at all right then. If nothing else, I had to at least get her to safety.

  From behind us, Caleb bellowed. I hoisted Alaina up and pivoted us both around. With a dart in his jugular Caleb collapsed to the ground. My heart raced. With him out of the fight, the odds tipped drastically against Gabe and Kendall. Pain or no pain, I couldn’t stand back and do nothing.

  I started to ease Alaina to the ground where she would be hidden behind my truck, when her milky white hands grasped the front of my shirt. “Celeste, no!” she whispered urgently. “If you go out there, you will die! Please, think of your calling and all you represent! You are not strong enough to fight right now. The world cannot afford to lose you!”

  I didn’t even pretend to listen. Kendall had ducked out of reach of the Henchman and rushed to Caleb’s aid. She crouched in front of him, shielding him with her wings. Gabe released the Lamusango. Its wings beat against the air as it rose into the night sky, then careened back down for another attack. The lion galloped to Kendall and Caleb’s side where he positioned himself in front of them. With his legs locked in a battle ready stance he arched his back and released a mighty roar daring them to advance. With gleeful expressions, they attacked. Gabe snarled and swiped. His jaws snapped. None of them flinched. The demonic posse crept forward until they completely surrounded our trio.

  My hands closed around Alaina’s as I peered down at her. “Could you ever forgive me if I just stood back and watched while Gabe died?” I watched the message register. Sorrow crept into her eyes at the mere idea of losing him. Like it or not, she really did love my brother.

  She released me. Her hands fell into her lap as she curled her bare legs under her. “Please be careful.” The look in her eye tagged on ‘and keep him safe.’

  I gave her a forced reassuring smile. “I’ll do my best.”

  She chewed on her lip nervously as I turned on my heel fully prepared to limp into battle. I didn’t make it one step. A strong hand latched onto my upper arm and forcibly yanked me back. Fist raised, I spun. Rowan caught my hand. Amusement twinkled in his turquoise eyes.

  “Easy now. I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” He smirked and quirked one golden eyebrow. I snatched my hand out of his grip before he could influence me in any way. He snorted a laugh. “Time and place, Lass. This is neither the time, nor the place.”

  Moving on instinct, I backed away from him. My hands still balled in a fist. “What are you doing here? You were granted your freedom. Shouldn’t you be an ocean away by now, turning helpless girls into your puppets?”

  “That was the plan. But the sight of you and your sad puppy dog eyes wouldn’t leave me head.” He reached out and soothed a stray lock of hair behind my ear. I tensed and contemplated slugging him.

  “I don’t know what you think you saw,” I snarled. “But I would never give you…”

  “Can we talk about this later, Poppet?” Rowan blatantly interrupted as he stepped past me. “I’d like to stop that bunch from killin’ the only real friend I’ve ever had, if that’s okay with you?”

  Before I could stop him, or argue in the least, Rowan sauntered toward the band of demons. Moonlight glistened off his golden locks as he tilted his head and focused his ability on them. Each of them froze as if someone had pushed their pause button. Then they began to retreat. Moving back like expressionless zombies. Kendall, Gabe and even Caleb stared in wide-eyed astonishment. Judging from their relieved, and somewhat dumbfounded, expressions it was obvious they all thought this was going to end in a very different—very bloody—way. Truth be told, so did I. Rowan herded them back until one by one they blinked out of our realm in a puff of smoke.

  I gave Alaina a nod that it was all clear. Then we both hobbled over to our loved ones as quickly as we could. Alaina threw her arms around the weary lion’s neck. Exhaustion set in, and he folded to the ground. The magnitude of his plethora of wounds and gashes finally caught up with him. Alaina caught his massive head before it slammed to the ground and cradled it in her lap. She stroked his chestnut mane and murmured to him softly as Keni wrapped her wings around him to heal him. I got to a very wobbly Caleb in time to help him to his feet. Pasty pale and saturated with sweat, he swayed unsteadily. He flung an arm around me and used me as a crutch to keep him upright.

  “Lookin’ rough, Mate,” the blonde pirate stated, as he ambled back over. He shook a handkerchief out from his pocket, rolled it up, and handed it to Caleb. “Bite down. It’s clean. I promise.”

  With no further prompting, Caleb shoved it between his teeth and clamped down. Rowan grabbed his shoulder, then jerked his chin in my direction. “Use that super strength of yours to hold him steady.”

  I figured it would be a bad time to point out that I felt like I might collapse at any second, so I grasped Caleb’s shoulders as firmly as I could. Blood spurted out as Rowan used his thumb and forefinger to dig the remnants of a dart out. I had to look away. Caleb winced and bit down harder on the fabric crammed in his mouth. A muffled gasp escaped him. His hand drenched with blood, Rowan pulled a chunk of dart almost three inches long out of Caleb’s neck.

  Instantly my Irishmen’s color began to improve. “Thank you,” he murmured and held the handkerchief out to Rowan.

  “Keep it.” Rowan waved it off.

  “What made you come back?” Caleb’s eyes regained their shine along with a fair am
ount of doubt as he glanced from me to Rowan and back again. His pirate friend had gone against his very nature by coming back. Caleb’s furrowed brow told me he assumed I had been the catalyst for that freak act.

  “Maybe I just couldn’t stand tah see ya hurt, Mate.” Rowan shrugged. His eyes flicked to the side as he followed Caleb’s questioning gaze. A wry smile curled his lips. “Or…maybe you’re currently in possession of somethin’ I want.” Beside me Caleb tensed. His broad chest expanded. Rowan gave a broad grin. “Either way, you have me word I won’t stand in the way of you two livin’ out a Taylor Swift song. I just hope for your sake she never second guesses her choice. Elsewise, you’ll find me lacking in remorse or guilt.”

  My fingers weaved between Caleb’s. I laid my other hand on his taut forearm. I hoped the physical contact would reassure him and defuse the situation a bit. “That won’t happen. Ever,” I declared with a firm set of my jaw.

  In a blur of speed Rowan stood in front of me. He raised his hand to my cheek, but didn’t let his skin touch mine. The tips of his fingers caressed the veil of air between us. My body quaked at the memory of the pulsating heat of his touch. Before I could stop it, a moan escaped my parted lips.

  Caleb scowled, and squeezed my hand, his way of anchoring me back to him. Rowan beamed with delight. “‘Ever’ is such a very long time.” His eyes caught mine and held. “We’ll just have to wait and see.”

  With a wink, he disappeared in a cloud of black smoke.

  Epilogue

  Quarter past twelve and I was sound asleep. Happily sawing logs and drooling on my pillowcase. The ssshhhhttt of my window sliding up its sill broke through my blissful slumber. My heavy lids fluttered open to see a black haze of smoke seeping in through the cracked window. Instinct kicked in before my brain could snap to comprehension. I sprang off my bed, snatched my wooden Gryphon statuette off my end table, and arced it back over my head. Whatever idiotic demon thought it wise to sneak up on the Conduit in the middle of the night was about to get a splinter to the brain.

  The smoke formed a silhouette and began to solidify. I swung my Gryphon like a tiny baseball bat. Caleb dropped the stargazer lilies from his hand, and ducked out of striking distance.

  “Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!” He held out one hand defensively in case I swung again. “Celeste, lovey, it’s me! Drop the…what is that? A toy?”

  “Caleb?” I asked the darkness, then leaned over to flick on my lamp. As happy as I was to see him, I couldn’t get past my irritation at his choice of entrance. “What the heck is the matter with you? You know how many people want me dead! Why would you—OWWWW!!” I forgot about the wooden spike that stabs out of my Gryphon carving until it embedded itself in my palm. A long string of expletives followed as I dripped blood on my comforter.

  “Blimey! Ya’re bleedin’.” Caleb scooped up a dirty T-shirt that had fallen off the top of the heaping full hamper and onto the floor. He stepped close enough for me to get a waft of the crisp night air that still clung to his skin as he cradled my hand in his. Carefully, he folded the shirt, and then wrapped it around my injured palm. It was such a sweet gesture, I didn’t ruin it by telling him I’d be healed long before he could knot the makeshift bandage.

  “I was tryin’ for romantic,” he muttered, while a smile tugged at his lips. “Then all Hades broke loose.”

  “I guess you’re unaware of my official title; Conduit of the Gryphon and killer of romance.” I laughed. My gaze fell to the discarded flowers. “You brought me lilies?”

  Caleb glanced over his shoulder as if he, too, had just remembered them, and then swiveled to retrieve them. “Aye.” He deposited the beautiful arrangement of silky pink and white flowers into my open arms. I closed my eyes and inhaled their wonderful fragrance. “I have tah admit I cheated a bit. Ya’r Grams told me they were ya’r favorite.”

  I cocked my head and tried not to beam like an idiot. “You called my Grams and asked?”

  “Of course.” He hooked a finger in the top of my shorts and pulled me to him.“I had to find some way to let ya know I missed ya terribly.”

  His eyes twinkled as he graced me with that half grin I adored. The soft light from my lamp made blue highlights dance through his ebony hair as he leaned in to press his lips to mine. The two weeks we’d been apart had been too long. Once his freedom had been restored, Caleb finally ventured to the one place he’d been longing for—his home, Ireland. He asked me to go, but I thought his first trip back should be solo. Let him lay his past to rest first. Then he could share it with me. After that he promised to do a little digging through his demonic resources around the world (those that hadn’t dried up already) to see if he could find out anything about Alec. Where he was, what he was up to—anything. I hadn’t given up on saving my friend, and Caleb promised to help in any way he could.

  “Nice entrance, by the way,” I murmured as our lips parted. “It was very Bram Stoker’s Dracula of you.”

  “Where do ya think I got the idea?” he asked, with an over dramatic Dracula-esque raise of his eyebrow. After dotting my lips with another quick peck he turned and walked to the window.

  “The gesture was sweet though. Sorry I ruined it.”

  “No worries.” He shrugged and pulled the window down to ward off the cold November breeze that had sliced through the room. “Bad news though. I found out nothin’ about ya’r boy, Alec. Thars talk of new demons bein’ made, but no one knows by who or why. I’ll keep lookin’ into it. Ir’land was lovely though. Even more beautiful than I remembered…”

  I knew I should be listening, but I had gotten…distracted. If it was possible, I had actually forgotten how painfully hot Caleb was in his absence. The white T-shirt he wore hugged his muscular torso as he moved. He had donned a saffron yellow kilt in honor of his homeland along with white socks pushed down into a pair of brown work boots. He raked a hand casually through his hair as he spoke. It fell around his head in a messy halo.

  “The valley looks exactly the same, but thar’s no trace of my village. Not that I expected there tah be.” He paused and cocked his head to the side. A questioning smile played across his heart shaped lips. “What? Why are ya lookin’ at me like that?”

  “You’re too far away right now.” My cheeks instantly reddened at the forward statement that forced its way from my brain to my lips.

  Hunger flamed to life in his eyes. In a blur of superhuman speed he closed the gap between us. With my face cradled in his hands he brought his lips to mine in a feather-soft caress. Gentle and sweet quickly morphed into urgent intensity. My fingers tangled in his silky hair as I pressed my body to his. He gave a throaty moan. Then he guided my back up against the wall. A blaze of white-hot heat coursed through me as he kissed and nipped his way down my neck. I sighed in euphoria.

  “Do ya realize,” he murmured into the crook between my shoulder and neck, “that with the Countess out of my head, this is the first time we’ve actually been alone?”

  “You’re not alone,” said a muffled voice from across the room. “Kendall’s in the room and not asleep! So, please, stop what you’re doing before you scar my sweet, impressionable mind anymore!”

  Caleb’s head fell against my shoulder. His hair tickled my cheek as he shook with laughter. Turns out demons can blush. “Ya could’ve told me that ya’r kid sister was in the room.”

  I straightened my clothing—a pair of guy’s boxer shorts and a T-shirt—and tried to steady my breath. “Sorry. You started kissing me and I forgot she was here.”

  “Oh, that’s nice!” Keni laid the sarcasm on heavy as she rolled up onto one elbow. Even with an abysmal case of bedhead she managed to look adorable. “Just so you know, the way you were sighing and moaning? Yeah, you sounded like a water buffalo in heat.”

  Caleb’s eyes popped and he bit down hard on his lower lip.

  “Don’t you dare laugh,” I threatened.

  “Wouldn’t dream of it, lovey.” He grinned mischievously and pulled me in for a bear hug.
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br />   From out in the hall came, “I think I heard his voice. I just want to pop my head in and say hello.”

  “Secure the breakables!” I shouted to Kendall.

  We both sprang to action. I pushed passed Caleb to help Kendall scoop up all of our fragile items and stuff them into the closet. I answered the unspoken question of Caleb’s bewildered expression with, “You’ll see.”

  After a soft knock, the door popped open and in strolled Alaina in all her feathered glory. Her bout with mortality hadn’t set well with her. Since then, she had her wings out and feathers on display at all times. In cramped spaces she frequently left a path of destruction in her wake. Her wide wingspan had taken out a lamp, a framed wedding photo of my mom and dad, and—in one incredibly ugly situation—Grams’ full wine goblet. (For a moment we had thought Grams was going to use Alaina’s golden feathers to swab up her Cabernet, but somehow she managed to restrain herself).

  As usual, Gabe trailed her. Softly, he pulled the bedroom door shut. Wherever Alaina’s path of destruction lead, Gabe was right there to pick up whatever mess she made and offer up his apologies to anyone she disrupted. Not once did he utter a single complaint. Love looked good on my big brother.

  “Caleb!” Alaina beamed and crossed the room to embrace him. Kendall and I got smacked in the face by her wings as she passed.

  Gabe grimaced and mouthed a quick ‘sorry’.

  “Good to see ya,” Caleb responded and squeezed his sister. “Although I don’t really think we need to see so much of ya.”

  “Pardon?” Her feathers ruffled and smoothed as she jerked her head to the side in a bird-like manner.

  “The wings?” He jerked his chin in their direction.

  Her porcelain skin took on a rosy hue, as she cast her avian eyes down at the floor. “Yes. Well, it seems I’ve allowed them to become a bit of a crutch.”

  One side of his mouth drew back in disapproval. “Hmmm…my big sister still needs a security blanket? Shame that. ”