Despite her disbelief, she smiled softy. “I see.” She set the empty glass on a nearby table. Bradley was definitely tipping the scales.
“Was that a yes?”
“No. It was an ‘I see’ and my answer is no, Bradley. If I dance to another song I’m going to collapse.”
He looked disappointed. “Okay. Would you like to sit together, then? Or take a walk somewhere? Or we can view the art display that’s set up in the adjoining ballroom.”
She stifled a pained expression. All she needed was a few moments to herself, if only to clear her head. She hadn’t come there to frolic all night. She had business to attend to. “I’m sorry, Bradley.” She placed a gentle hand on his arm. “I’m really too tired. I just want to sit for a while. Alone.”
He pursed his lips in a half frown. “Okay, fine.” He sighed. “Let me know if you need anything. I’ll be right over there.”
She nodded with a smile. “I will. Thanks.”
When he finally turned around and ambled through the crowd, she breathed a sigh of relief. Alone at last, she slumped in the chair nearest her and massaged an ankle. A glance at her watch revealed that she had another three hours to go before the end of the event. She had yet to speak with the chief inspector overseeing the Mady Halman case. Her eyes found him at one end of the ballroom. Since his arrival, Inspector Cantrell hadn’t spent one moment alone. Women hovered around him, flirting relentlessly or waiting their turn for a dance. Now he stood in a circle of his peers, sipping wine and laughing heartily.
Alexandra decided that if she was going to approach him, her time had come. She stood and made her way across the room, making sure that she stayed far out of Bradley’s line of vision. She waited until Inspector Cantrell turned to place his empty wineglass on the tray of a passing waiter before introducing herself.
With a determined look, she extended a hand. “Inspector Cantrell, hi, my name is Alexandra Barret and I’m a reporter for the Daily Sun.”
His eyes flashed with approval as they trailed the length of her. He reached out slowly and accepted her hand. “Hello. And to what do I owe this introduction?” he asked with a subtle smile. He was a tall man with broad shoulders and a suave demeanor.
She returned his smile. “I understand that you’re overseeing the Halman case. I just need a moment of your time to relay a few new developments.”
“Ah, I see. You want an interview. And here I thought you wanted to steal me off to the dance floor.”
Alexandra played along. “Perhaps we can do both,” she said.
Inspector Cantrell inclined his head. “I see no reason to refuse.” With that he led her to the center of the floor and slipped an arm about her waist. “So you’re covering the Halman story?” he asked as they began a graceful waltz.
“Yes, and I’ve interviewed a few eyewitnesses who said they saw a girl fitting Mady’s description near Brook Park on the day of her disappearance,” she lied. She’d already resolved to fabricate a story because she knew that if she dared to mention her visions, her claims would be instantly discredited.
The inspector’s eyes narrowed on her. “My men did a sweep of that neighborhood and came up clean. Where did you find witnesses?”
“Well, I went to the park and interviewed a few of the parents and kids there. One child said she saw a girl who looked like Mady talking with a man the day she went missing.”
“Did anyone actually see the girl being taken?”
Alexandra was briefly tempted to affirm his statement, but she wasn’t about to fabricate a witness she couldn’t produce. “No, there’re no actual witnesses to an abduction, but the child was able to provide a description of the man. He was tall, thin, wearing a gray sweatshirt, and he was driving a blue van. Are there any suspects who match that description?”
She waited, hoping she’d piqued his interest enough to release some pertinent information.
With a pensive look he shook his head. “No, there aren’t, but I’d like to speak with the child who gave you the information. Perhaps if we got a sketch of this guy…”
“That won’t be possible,” Alexandra said, her mind working to find a plausible excuse. “She didn’t see his face,” she added. “And I doubt I could find her again.”
The inspector gazed at her as if he knew she was hiding something. “Then I’m afraid the description you’ve given me is next to useless, unless a suspect turns up fitting that profile. There could be a hundred men in the Brook Park area like the one you’ve described.”
Alexandra nodded solemnly. “I know.” Silently she scolded herself for not being able to learn more from her vision. “May I ask how many suspects you do have in this case?” She tried her luck.
A wan smile crept to his lips. “You can ask, but I’m not at liberty to answer. Until I have conclusive evidence, the identities of all suspects will remain confidential.”
“So…are there any sex offenders living in that area?”
The song ended and they came to a stop. “Let me worry about that, Miss Barret. I suggest you stick to your reporting and leave the police work to the police,” he said firmly. “Now would you do me the honor of sharing another dance?”
Alexandra would have declined, but she was halted by a piercing cry that filled the room. Her eyes immediately found the source of the exclamation. A middle-aged woman stood at the center of the ballroom with her head tossed back as she gazed up at the skylight. Her eyes were wide and she trembled.
An older man stood at her side wearing a worried expression. “Carmine, what is it, love?” he asked. “What did you see?”
She brought a gloved hand up to her throat. “A face, Nigel! A hideous face!” she exclaimed.
Gasps filled the room and heads tilted back in anticipation of catching a glimpse of the face.
Nigel looked skeptical. “Are you sure, dear? Perhaps you should sit down.” He took her arm and began to guide her to a vacant chair.
“I don’t see anything,” said a lady in a blue gown.
“Neither do I,” added her companion.
Similar comments hummed throughout the room. Alexandra looked to the skylight. She could see nothing, yet only one thought circulated within her mind—the gargoyle. Fear and anticipation drummed through her. Had he followed her here?
A man wearing an array of colorful insignia passed through the anxious guests. Alexandra recognized him as Andrew Wagner, the New York police commissioner.
He approached the terrified woman. “Carmine, Nigel, what’s going on here?” he asked as he clasped his hands together on his protruding abdomen.
“My wife said she saw a face through the glass up there,” Nigel replied.
Wagner followed his gaze. “A face? Up there? That’s impossible!”
“I know what I saw, Andrew! It was hideous, not human at all!”
The commissioner turned his attention to her. He looked sympathetic for a moment then sighed. “I’m sure there’s nothing up there, ma’am. We’re on the tenth floor, and sometimes the light from other buildings can play tricks on your eyes,” he said reassuringly. “Or it may have been caused by a distorted reflection of the clouds.”
Murmurs moved through the crowd as they absorbed what he said.
“What if it was that horrible Central Park Creature?” one woman asked.
Her conjecture was met by an outburst of gasps and nervous whispers.
Wagner lifted his hands to quiet them. “All right, settle down everyone!” He had to raise his voice to be heard. “That is highly unlikely. So far there’s been no actual proof that this Central Park Creature exists.”
Mumbles of agreement filled the room and he continued. “I assure you that there’s no reason for alarm. Now, if I’m not mistaken, there’s a buffet over there that’s just brimming with food and fine wine. So, why are we all standing around looking up at the ceiling?”
Laughter erupted and the crowd began to disperse. Alexandra stood where she was, unable to move for fear that she wou
ld miss a glimpse of the gargoyle’s face. She had no doubt that the creature was up there, looming somewhere in the darkness. All the hairs on her nape were standing on end and an uncanny sensation coursed through her. She needed to know for sure; she had to see him with her own eyes.
She wasn’t aware of Inspector Cantrell excusing himself or of April approaching.
“Alexandra, you okay?” April’s gentle touch on her arm forced her to look away from the skylight.
“Uh, yes. I’m fine,” she replied with a distant look in her eyes.
The expression on April’s face told her that she wasn’t convinced. “You don’t think that creature is really up there, do you?” she asked softly.
Alexandra gazed at the skylight again. “I don’t know.”
“Well, you can take that look off your face. You’re not going up there.”
She smiled innocently. “I wouldn’t dream of it.”
“Good. Now where’s Bradley?” April shot a look around the room.
Alexandra motioned toward the dance floor. “Over there. He nearly danced me into the next life and I had to get rid of him.”
They both turned to look at him as he perfected his moonwalk on the dance floor.
April laughed quietly. “This date, I’m sure, you’ll never forget.” A strapping man dressed in a tuxedo joined them then. “Oh, you remember Detective Beckford from the fundraiser, don’t you?” she asked with a smile.
Alexandra extended a hand to him. Of course she remembered him. How could she forget? He was a tall, dark chunk of rich chocolate, just dripping with sensuality. He was also the captain of the NYPD Special Missions Squad. With his muscular frame, chiseled features and a smooth bald head, he seemed ideal for the job, too.
Detective Beckford accepted her hand and smiled, displaying perfect teeth. “How do you feel about being rescued from all this? April and I were thinking of going to that new lounge, the Fluid Palace. Want to join us?” he asked in his deep voice.
Alexandra’s gaze strayed to the skylight again. “Sure, why not?” She offered them a smile.
April’s eyes lit up. “Great. There’s a live jazz band playing there tonight. It’ll be fun.”
“Yes, but we’d better see Bradley home first.”
April nodded. “You’re right. I’ll tell him it’s time to leave.” She turned and sashayed her way to the dance floor, no doubt knowing full well that Detective Beckford’s eyes would be on her.
Alexandra shot the man a glance, and sure enough his gaze was locked to the ripe curve of April’s backside in the long red strapless gown. Alexandra took that moment to inch around him and out the wide, arched entryway. She had absolutely no intention of going anywhere. Agreeing to go to the lounge with April and her date had been a necessary distraction to get her friend away from her long enough so that she could slip away.
She entered the hall and looked for a stairwell to the roof. She spotted the small black and white sign above a doorway at the end of the hall. She paused when she stood before the door. Her heart drummed against her breasts as fear mounted within her. She wanted answers, and the only way she was going to get them was by confronting the gargoyle.
It was dark save for the subtle glow of the hexagonal-shaped skylight. Marius remained silent as he watched Alexandra ease open the door to the roof. His keen gargoyle senses had alerted him to the footsteps ascending the stairway, and he’d concealed himself within the shadows. He wanted to know why she was coming to him when others would have fled.
Even in this dim light she looked radiant. The wind was in his favor as it swept around her, unpinning her long hair and raising the tail of her dress to allow him small glimpses of her slender legs. Desire rammed through him as he remembered how she’d spread those legs for him. Never had he seen a woman so passionate, and to think she’d been asleep. To have her twisting in his arms, alert and receptive to every heated kiss, every caress and every hungry thrust would certainly be satisfying.
“Who are you?” she asked. “Why are you following me?” She couldn’t conceal the trembling of her hands.
The wind whipped long, black tendrils of hair around her face and shoulders. It carried her fragrance—that sensual odor that was hers alone. His nostrils flared as he inhaled it deep into his lungs. She was moving closer now, so close that if he reached out, he could snap her neck with one swift movement. Or he could force her into the shadows and satiate the lust that was burning in his groin. Either way, no one would hear her screams.
“I read about your kind,” she continued. “It’s said that gargoyles were once men who were cursed as punishment for crimes they committed.” She waited.
So she’d done some research. It was a pity her books didn’t speak of an ancient curse or its end result. Had she learned her true identity and the fate that awaited her, he was certain she would never have come to him.
When no response came, she moved a few paces forward. “But it’s believed that they can regain their humanity by performing good deeds—like protecting others.”
Lightning flashed then and Alexandra froze. She blinked. Marius knew that she’d seen him in the brief illumination. He could hear the frantic pounding of her heart as she waited for another flash that would confirm what she’d just glimpsed.
It came, and the ensuing rumble of thunder masked her gasp of fear. She stumbled backward. “Why are you following me?”
Slowly, Marius left the shadows and came to tower above her. She was a fool if she thought she could communicate with him or trust him not to harm her.
Alexandra retreated a few more steps when he advanced. “What do you want from me?” she breathed.
His fiery gaze seared a path down her slender frame and he wondered if she wore anything beneath the satin dress at all. He felt himself swelling with desire at the thought of stripping the gown from her and sinking into her tight body.
His slow strides forced her back another few steps. He would have reached for her, but the door to the roof suddenly swung open and April and her date raced through, both coming to an abrupt halt when their eyes fell upon him. April screamed loudly, drawing Alexandra’s attention.
Alexandra sent them a desperate look. “You have to get out of here!”
April’s eyes were wide and she looked frantic. “Oh my God! Get away from that thing, Alexandra!” she cried.
The tall man at her side reached into his coat and pulled out a handgun. “Back up!” He aimed his weapon at Marius. “If you move one muscle I’ll blast your brains out!”
Marius eyed his new opponent. He knew of guns and the damage they could inflict. While his brothers favored such weapons, he preferred the old ways. He reached one muscled arm over his shoulder and drew his broadsword. His grip flexed on the hilt and a growl escaped him. He didn’t respond well to orders, and he didn’t like being threatened. Yet he knew that this was neither the time nor the place for a decapitation. The last thing he needed was to be hunted. He had one purpose in the city and that was to kill the Descendant.
His gaze zeroed in on Alexandra. In a few days the moon would be full and then he would be able to complete the final step of the Lunar Ritual. The time didn’t matter yet, for he wasn’t quite ready to end her life. There were a few things he wanted to do to her first.
April’s companion had eased his way to Alexandra’s side. “I said back the hell up!” he shouted, his gun still aimed at Marius.
Without taking her eyes from Marius, Alexandra stepped to her right. “Beckford, put the gun down,” she pleaded. Lightning flashed.
He shook his head. “If this thing moves, I’m blasting it away. Now you women get inside and get help.”
April was too frightened to leave her post at the door. “Alexandra, let’s go!”
Marius realized that he would have to continue this another time. There were too many witnesses. Already what had transpired was enough to start a manhunt. With an irritated growl, he leaped into the air and took flight. There was a clicking sound
as the gun was cocked.
“No!” Alexandra screamed, lunging at the officer just as he fired. The loud bang echoed over the sound of the traffic and Marius noticed the stream of blood on his left bicep before he felt the sting. He’d been wounded, but the bullet had passed all the way through. The injury caused him no concern, for not only had the curse enhanced his family’s senses, speed and agility, but is also enabled them to heal quickly.
Out of range at the top of an adjacent skyscraper now, he gazed down at the scene he’d just left. He couldn’t fathom why Alexandra would try to save him. Had she been trying to return the favor? Or was all he’d sensed in her before—a kind heart, a gentle nature and honesty—true? Strangely, he felt the need to learn more about her before he did something he would regret for many years to come.
Chapter 8
Alexandra listened intently to the distraught young woman before her, and a great wave of anger and sadness tore through her. She knew this woman. Her name was Vivian, and Alexandra cared deeply for her. But Vivian had been disgraced and now she sought Alexandra’s help in avenging her honor.
“I hate him!” Vivian spat, her beautiful face streaked with tears. “You must help me.”
She moved to sit next to Vivian, who was curled in a fetal position on the bed. “Be still, child.” She placed a comforting hand on Vivian’s shoulder. “He will pay for what he has done. Ask it of me and it shall be done.”
Vivian sat up slowly, her sobs momentarily abated. “I want him dead,” she gritted out. “I want his entire house dead.”
She stared at Vivian in disbelief. Never had she harmed another, let alone taken a life. And here she was being asked to terminate an entire household.
Vivian must have read her reluctance, for her tears began anew. “How can you not do what I request after this man forced himself on me, filled my belly with his spawn then took that peasant whore to his marriage bed?” Vivian gripped the lacy folds of her dress, ripping it as she emitted a tortured wail.
The look in Vivian’s eyes was unlike anything she’d seen before. Hazel pools flashed with an incensed madness, and the woman’s chest heaved as she fought for breath. There seemed to be only one way to heal Vivian’s wounded heart. She knew what she had to do—exact vengeance upon this man and his entire household. She wasn’t one to take a life, but she would see to it that his sin caused him an eternity of grief.
Heiress to a Curse Page 7
