Sacrifice (The Gryphon Series Book 3)

by Stacey Rourke

  He ignored my look and busied himself digging another vine of ivy out of the box. “No really, Gabe and Alana are wonderful people. Deserve all the happiness in the world and perfectly placed lights … as it were.”

  “Alaina,” I corrected and scooted my ladder over to the middle of the archway.

  “Aye. Her, too.”

  Before I formed a suitable rebuttal, Alaina deterred the conversation as she buzzed up like a caffeinated humming bird. Her auburn hair was pulled back in a messy bun and her blouse hung lopsided from being buttoned wrong. Add that to her frantic gaze that darted here, there, and everywhere and it appeared our bride was on the verge of unraveling. “Celeste! Have you seen Kendall?”

  I peered around the room, my forehead creased. “Actually, no. I haven’t. Shouldn’t she be here with a clipboard and a whip making sure every flower and candle is positioned exactly right?”

  “Yes!” Alaina’s hands came up like she wanted to grab someone and shake them. Rowan and I both jerked back … just in case. “She has the centerpieces, the linens for the cake table, the guest book, and the wedding favors to go on the guest tables.” She counted the items on her fingers before she jammed her pointer finger into her chest hard enough to make me wince. “Do you know what I have?”

  Rowan and I exchanged looks.

  “Does she expect us to answer?” he whispered out of the corner of his mouth.

  A bit of her former eagle-self came out when she squawked, “Do you?!”

  “Oh, she does.”

  “Terrified guests?” I slapped a hand over my mouth, surprised I’d let it slip out.

  “No! I have three hundred guests attending my wedding tomorrow and no idea what’s going on because your sister insisted on handling everything and then decided to vanish! What do I do, Celeste? What do I do?” Sweat dotted her brow as her chest rose and fell with each ragged breath.

  I sidestepped the ladder, rounded the table, and took Alaina’s hand. Centering myself, I found my personal calm. My well of inner strength tended to run dry frequently as of late, but I gave her all I still possessed. Peaceful essence flowed between us. “Kendall will be here. She will. In the meantime, you’ve got all your family and friends working to make sure everything will be beautiful.”

  The tension drained from her like someone pulled the plug on a full bathtub. Her breathing steadied and her hunched shoulders relaxed.

  “Tomorrow you’ll marry the man of your dreams and you’ll get the happily ever after you’ve waited centuries for.” I broke the link and dropped Alaina’s hand before she felt my own sorrows sneaking in.

  Alaina sighed. Once more she looked the part of the glowing bride-to-be. “Thank you. I needed that.” Her emotional reprieve came not a moment too soon because the overly tanned caterer began shouting about some insufficient electrical outlet drama.

  “Duty calls!” She grinned and trotted off, refreshed and regenerated.

  Rowan sauntered up beside me and eased the tulle from my white-knuckled fist. To others it would appear a meaningless act, the simple exchange of fabric, but with that brief skin on skin contact he drowned my pain with hope and optimism. Then, wordlessly, he strode back over to the archway and climbed the ladder.

  I stared after him, my mind blown by the realization that just occurred to me. “You knew today was going to be hard for me. That’s why you came.”

  He raked his fingers through his hair and let his lips slide into a cocky leer. “As noble as that makes me sound, it’s just not the case. My being here has less to do with your emotions and more to do with the startling revelations you made last night.”

  Heat rose in my cheeks. I quickly found a string of ivy that desperately needed untangling right that minute. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  Rowan crossed his forearms on the top step and gave me a wink. “Perhaps you’d like to stick your finger in me chin dimple and refresh your memory?”

  My face ignited with heat so intense it was surprising flames didn’t shoot out my eye sockets. The voice in the back of my head put down its tea and crumpet long enough to mutter, “See? I told you you’d regret it.”

  I struggled to keep my expression neutral despite my radioactive glow. “Maybe decorating should be a silent activity.”

  

  An hour later the second floor of the Gainesboro library—the town’s only rentable hall space—bustled with pre-wedding activity. Gabe and his football players set up the guest tables under the watchful eye of the bride. Mom guided the florist through the space to show her where everything would be and what went where. Grams schooled the bartender on some of her homemade concoctions that I sincerely hoped he never tried on another human being.

  I secured the last of the skirting to the bridal table and attempted to tune out Rowan’s yammering. “I’m just sayin’, Mo Chroi, ya begged me to be your date. Really. It was a deep yearning grovel that was most unbecoming.”

  “You planning on dropping this topic any time soon?” I muttered around the clip I held in my teeth.

  He leaned over the table and wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. “The topic of how bad you want me? I’ll drop it as soon as you admit … ”

  In a flash I was on my feet, one hand held up to silence Rowan. He followed my stare to the intimidating large dude in black biker boots, faded jeans, dingy white tank top, and black leather vest that just entered. Imagine Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson minus the charismatic charm or basic approachability. Tattoos covered every visible inch of this guy’s bulging arms and thick neck. He slid off his black shades and peered around the room with emotionless slate eyes. No doubt about it, this dude equaled bad news and he was dragging my little sister along by her arm. My muscles tensed. There were way too many innocents here. If things got ugly I was going to have to find a way to get the big guy out of here fast.

  Mystery Man shoved Keni into the nearest chair. “Stay,” he barked around the cigar lodged in his teeth. She crossed her arms and rolled her eyes.

  The bald, bespectacled hall manager scurried over, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose as he ran. “Excuse me, sir? I’m going to have to ask you to put that out. This is a no smoking facility.”

  The stranger said nothing … just stared.

  The manager shifted his weight from one foot to the other. Visible sweat stains appeared under his arms. “You know what? We’ll … we’ll make an exception this one time.”

  Turning on his heel, the manager darted off for the safety of the kitchen. In his mad dash he bumped into Alaina, who glanced up and caught sight of our new arrival.

  “Big Mike!” she squealed and sprinted over to him.

  His stern expression broke into almost a hint of a half-grin as he scooped her up in a bear hug. “Little Lani, traded in the wings for a shiny rock? Never thought I’d see the day.”

  At the mention of wings, Gabe and I exchanged alarmed looks across the hall and rushed to intervene.

  “It’s been such a long time! I’m so happy to see you!” Alaina said in mid-gush when I walked up.

  Gabe arrived at the same time I did and whispered in his bride-to-be’s ear, “Maybe we take this greeting out into the hall?”

  Alaina gave an enthusiastic nod and caught Big Mike’s wrist. Before he budged an inch he clamped a mammoth hand around Keni’s upper arm and yanked her along, too. “I wasn’t sure you got my invitation, but I’m so happy you could come!”

  “The Council wasn’t going to release me until my presence here became a necessity.” Slate grey eyes bore into Kendall, who squirmed under their weight.

  “Became a necessity?” I asked as soon as we made it to the hallway. “Why, did the Council hear about the demonic stripper?”

  “Demonic what?” Gabe’s eyebrows nearly shot off his forehead.

  Alaina cleared her throat and busied herself inspecting the crown moldings above the stairway. Gabe turned to me. His expectant stare demanded an answer.

  “Want m
e to tell Alaina what the real draw of the owl themed restaurant is?”

  “I heard nothing.” Gabe relented and turned back to Big Mike.

  “It seems,” Big Mike’s deep growl cut off any other further discussions, “little sister decided to give base jumping off a Nashville high-rise a try. Took a running leap off a twelve-story building without a parachute. Her little show would’ve had a nice sized audience, too, if I hadn’t stepped in.”

  “They wouldn’t have seen anything!” Kendall argued, her tone dripping with annoyance. “As soon as my wings were out I would’ve taken off and been nothing more than a blurred flash of white.”

  Alaina gasped and covered her mouth with her hand. “How did you stop her?”

  The muscles of his shoulders rose and fell in a casual shrug. “Jumped out of a second story window and tackled her into an alley.”

  “Kendall, what were you thinking?” I threw my arms out to the sides, palms up.

  The dramatic black and purple makeup caked on her eyes amplified her condescending look. “Unclench, Cee. It’s seriously not a big deal.”

  “It seriously is a big deal,” I hissed in an urgent whisper.

  “This is the Conduit?” Big Mike jerked his head in my direction.

  “Oh, yes! Sorry! Big Mike, this is Celeste and my fiancé, Gabe. Gang, this is Big Mike, my mentor.”

  Before I could open my mouth to utter a greeting he balled up his fist and punched me square in the face.

  “OW! What the heck!”

  “Huh. I expected the Conduit to have faster reflexes.”

  “I like him,” Gabe declared through a Cheshire cat grin.

  “I’m not a fan.” I rubbed my nose and tried to blink back my tears.

  Alaina ignored the socially inappropriate sucker punch and spun on Kendall. “Can you imagine if people would’ve seen your wings? Any attempts at normalcy would be gone! For all of you! Not to mention what you did was so risky that the Council felt the need to intervene. That should give you a clue that you aren’t making the most sound of judgments.”

  Kendall’s face formed a rebellious sneer I didn’t know she was capable of. “I’m sorry, but did you get reinstated as our Guide? Because last time I checked you’d been long since fired from that job.”

  Alaina’s lip trembled and tears instantly welled in her eyes. Anger flared Gabe’s nostrils and puffed up his chest. “Kendall! I don’t know what rebellious teenage crap you’re going through but you need to get over it. Apologize to Alaina!”

  Kendall gave a disinterested snort and started for the stairs.

  “Hey! We’re not done here! Where are you going?” he called after her.

  “If I have to spend all day tomorrow with you losers I’m not wasting today here, too,” she shouted, but didn’t break stride. “Don’t worry. I’m over jumping off of things. That was lame anyway.”

  This nasty attitude was so unlike her. What the heck was her deal? A sudden thought occurred to me that made my stomach twist in a painful knot. I had seen a transformation like this once before—Alec.

  As the heels of her knee-high boots clicked down the ornate staircase I opened the channel to her emotions. Her warm glow still remained—which I took as a good sign—but some dark emotional drama she battled overshadowed it.

  Gabe folded his arms over his chest and tucked a hand under each arm. His thumbs pressed against his giant man-boobs. “Think it’s too late to talk Mom into only having two kids?”

  “Maybe she’s missing Keith more than she’s been letting on?” I chewed on my lip and sincerely hoped that was all that was plaguing my sister.

  “Don’t mean to interrupt this touching family moment,” Big Mike cut in, “but you know there’s singing demons setting up in the hall, right? The lead singer looks like Eddie Munster.”

  “Of course there are,” I muttered and rubbed my suddenly throbbing temples.

  CHAPTER twenty

  From the foot of the small, raised platform stage Gabe, Alaina, Big Mike and I gaped at … the Dark Army Glee Club. Grams and Mom led the rest of the onlookers in a round of applause when their rendition of Girl From Ipanema ended. The four of us by the stage didn’t join in. Not that the geeky musicians weren’t vocally talented. They absolutely were. However, knowing their dorky exteriors were disguises to hide the nasty demons underneath jaded us to the performance a tad.

  “Eddie.” I nodded to the Eddie Munster look-alike who served as the closest thing this band of misfits had to a leader.

  “Celeste.” He worked his eyebrows in an odd way that made me think he was either trying for an evil villain face, or he was gassy. I really couldn’t tell which.

  “Bold move coming here.” I looped my fingers in the pockets of my shorts and straightened my spine.

  “Straight into the lion’s den.” Gabe let his fangs slide out and curled his upper lip to show them off.

  Red—a tall, lanky demon with shockingly red hair and the ability to actually become fire—gulped. “We’re not scared of you.”

  Big Mike raised an eyebrow, the most emotion I’d seen him exhibit.

  Red’s hand shook as he pointed at our tatted up muscle man. “The new guy, on the other hand, is terrifying. Who’s he?”

  I gave a casual shrug. “We’re going for a tougher image. Traded in the cute blonde for him.” Big Mike pressed one palm over the opposite fist to crack his knuckles. “What do you think? Effective?”

  Eddie’s pasty skin blanched. “Very. Is it too late to get the blonde back? I liked her.”

  “Liked her so much that you tried to kill her?” I stared pointedly at the party responsible for that particular act—the demon in the back who fiddled with the microphone in attempt to make himself look busy. His blotchy, boil-covered skin hung off of him like it was a few sizes too big for his scrawny frame. When he attacked Kendall he grew into a globulous, mountain of a beast. Now he refused to look me in the eye. Go figure.

  Hiding behind him were the twins. They were attached at the shoulder and completely identical. Matching bowl haircuts, small statures, and thick glasses held together by Scotch tape. Despite their weenie exteriors, they were a force to be reckoned with. They had the ability to transform into a giant, two-headed lizard with a wingspan like a B-52 bomber. Gabe still had a scar on his shoulder blade from a particularly nasty bite one of them landed during their brawl.

  “She wasn’t our target. Speaking of which, how is Caleb these days?” Eddie asked with his eyes widened in mock-innocence.

  I lunged for him with every intention of delivering one well-placed punch that would rid him of his front teeth.

  Gabe’s arm shot out to block my path. “We have an audience.”

  The mic kicked on with a static buzz. Boil Face’s surprisingly smooth baritone voice flooded the room. “How about this song during dinner to get people ready to dance?”

  Together he and the twins launched into a full out chorus of Build Me Up Buttercup. It ended rather abruptly when Eddie unplugged their mic. “You know that I have from the … HEY!”

  “We’re not actually singing at the wedding!” Eddie yelled as he shook the cord at them. “I just said that to get us in here.”

  “You really should have told us that before,” one twin huffed and folded his arms.

  “Like, maybe, before we worked up an entire song list,” his brother declared and shook the paper at Eddie.

  I utilized their distraction and opened my link to Rowan. A small taste of my emotions told him all he needed to know. He bowed his head, focused his gaze, and cleared the room. The entire crowd of innocent bystanders—Mom and Grams included—stopped their wedding tasks and filed out of the room like mindless drones.

  Alaina gnawed on her lower lip as she watched them exit. “Uh … Celeste? Quite a bit of the decorating is already done. And if you fight here … ”

  “Oh, there won’t be a fight,” Eddie interrupted with a self-assured smirk. “We just came to deliver a message and have taken … m
easures to ensure that we get out of here unscathed.”

  “Oxygen tanks have been hidden behind the speakers and amps. Two in the kitchen, one under the bridal table, one by the dance floor, and a few others scattered around the guest seating area,” Red added and held up his index finger that glowed red hot. “One wrong move by any of you and I blow this place sky high.”

  “You’re bluffing.” I dipped my toe in to test the waters of that theory even though he looked serious.

  “Try me.” Red’s thin lips pulled back in a grin that revealed small, widely spaced teeth.

  “You’re the Conduit. Why are you even talking to them?” Big Mike extinguished the stub of his cigar on the sole of his boot, and then flicked it aside. His hands curled into bowling ball sized fists. “Where I come from we don’t negotiate with their kind … ”

  “Our kind? What are you, a barbarian? We may be evil, but that’s really no excuse for poor manners,” Boil Face scoffed.

  “How about if I apologize by ripping your head off your shoulders and grinding my boots in the sludge that’s left behind,” Big Mike snarled.

  The entire Glee Club cringed and recoiled.

  Eddie held up one hand and whispered behind it, “Where you find this guy? He’s like a caricature of himself. Look into anger management for him. Seriously.”

  “Personally, I kinda like him,” a familiar voice murmured behind me.

  “Kat.” This girl’s habitual appearance at the worst possible moments annoyed me.

  Gabe quickly pulled Alaina behind him.

  “Another demon!” Beautiful bronze, tan, and white hawk wings slid out from slices cut in Big Mike’s leather vest. His wingspan spread out twice the size of Keni’s. He flapped his wings once and was on top of Kat with his face locked in a vengeful sneer.

  I leapt into the air and spun into a sidekick that sent him flying back into the nearest chair. On impact the chair legs wobbled and threatened to spill him to the ground.

  I answered his shocked expression with one raised finger. “I don’t care what Council you work for. You’re on my turf and you will simmer down. Call that payback for the sucker punch. How ya like my reflexes now?”