by Ciara Graves
I followed her gaze then glanced at the Feds who arrived. They unloaded from the SUV, and I spotted the Chief.
“I see Nor.” It seemed she’d seen him, too.
“You can go talk to him. I’m going to head up to the top, see if I can find anything.”
“Be careful.”
She winked as she tugged on her long, black coat. “Aren’t I always?”
“Really?”
She laughed then picked her way through the rest of the debris to the apartment building.
I stayed where I was until she disappeared inside. After another glance at the missing chunk of the building, I made my way to Nor.
“Evening, Rafael. Sorry for the late call.”
“Not a problem, Chief.”
“Where’s Mercy?”
Beside him, Iris stiffened but kept her mouth shut.
“She’s checking out the scene up top. Are the witnesses still at the scene? And whose apartment was it?” Nor asked.
“Haven’t gotten that far yet, but the witnesses are over there. Agents who interviewed them, said they’re all saying the same thing.” I planted my hands on my hips. After everything I’d seen recently, I shouldn’t have been surprised that gargoyles suddenly made a return to our world, but I was.
And for so many people to say they saw the same thing, either it was a damned powerful spell, or they were in on it together.
Or they really saw gargoyles.
“I’m going to talk with them.”
“I would expect nothing less. We’ll deal with the circus.”
Nor growled in annoyance. He hated reporters and marched off to take care of them.
Iris lingered a few seconds, gave me an annoyed, worried look, then left to join him. If she wanted to be pissed at me for being with Mercy, that was on her.
For the first time in years, I was content. For the most part at least. The gaps in my memory bothered me, but if the witch said they would return, I trusted her. I hadn’t a chance to ask Mercy anymore about this Envy character, but we’d get to that once we handled this new situation.
I spoke to the five witnesses separately. Each one said the same thing. They were walking on the other side of the street when they heard a horrible sound, like thunder. Except the sky was clear tonight. Several massive shapes blocked out the stars, and the next thing they knew, the creatures slammed into the building. There were people running around and screaming, then those same shapes took off again, as if they’d never been there at all.
I looked into their eyes as they spoke, analyzing. There was no hint of magic anywhere around them, and the fear on their faces was real. One warlock thought he saw three. A vampire said four. Either way, it was worrisome. Why this building? Who the hell lived up there that gargoyles would want to kill? There were no deaths on the scene. I guessed whoever they were after hadn’t been home which meant the gargoyles were not finished.
I thanked the witnesses then took the same path Mercy had, to the top floor of the building.
“Mercy?”
“Here.” She waved.
I entered the apartment to find the ceiling and two outer walls torn away.
“If there weren’t witnesses, I’d say a mage did this,” she said.
“I’d have to agree with you. Find anything?”
She motioned me to the crumbled wall and pointed. “I usually don’t get nervous, but these are not doing much to make me feel better.’
There were four claw marks carved into the stone.
The grooves were deep, and they were all over the area.
I ran my fingers over them. “Shit.”
“One way to put it. What did the witnesses say?”
“Three or four gargoyles attacked the building then took off.”
“That’s utterly unhelpful.” She squinted then moved around me to the opposite wall. She drew her dagger and slammed the tip into the wall.
I wasn’t sure what she was doing.
She tore away something and held it in her palm. “Gigi might be able to do something with this.”
“Claw?”
“Bit of one.” She shoved it in her pocket, shaking her head. “I don’t like this.”
Extinct creatures coming back to life, hell-bent on destruction was not good news, but the way she was studying the hole made me think she was worried about something else.
“Do you sense any magic?”
“No. But there’s something here.” She held her hand out before her, spinning around slowly. “Like a current. It’s weird.”
“Can you tell where it’s coming from? Or who?”
She shut her eyes. Her breathing slowed.
I moved closer on, guarding her back in the sudden stillness that surrounded us.
Her hand glowed briefly, but the gold and white flames died out, as if they were snuffed. She gasped and yanked her hand into her chest as if burned.
“Mercy?”
“I’m fine. But whatever did this doesn’t want to be found.”
“Mage?”
She closed her eyes again and held the same hand out.
I took her hand in mine.
Her eyes shot open. “What?”
“You’re pushing your luck.”
“Look, I realize we’ve got something going on now, but please do not turn into an overbearing demon? I already have one of those in my life. I don’t need two. This is my job. Let me do it or leave.” Her tone said this was not up for discussion.
I scowled, but let her hand go and backed away.
She shut her eyes again and held out her hand, feeling around the air. Her boots sifted through the debris as she moved closer to the edge, as though following something.
Unease twisting my gut, I stayed within a few feet of her.
The ledge was coming closer and closer, but Mercy was still walking, her hand covered in flickering gold and white flames that danced and moved as if they’d caught a draft. There was no breeze at all tonight, meaning it had to be coming from the magic. She was a yard from the edge, and I was making ready to snatch her back when her eyes opened, and the flames died.
“Huh.”
“Bad huh or good huh?” I forced myself not to pull her back from the edge anyway. We made a breakthrough recently in our relationship. I hated to tick her off so soon afterward.
“This magic is old. Very old. I’ve sensed it before though.”
“You have? Where?”
She fidgeted nervously as she turned her back to me. “Liam’s place.”
“Liam? When were you at his place?”
She blew out a breath and rubbed her forehead hard. “While you weren’t exactly yourself, alright? But it doesn’t matter.”
“The hell it doesn’t. Why were you at his place? He’s dead.”
“Yeah he is, but I needed answers.”
“And you went there alone?”
“Never said alone,” she murmured.
I wracked my mind, willing those missing memories to come back and suddenly I saw her in the Underground watching me, a worried look on her face. That same face of hers had been bruised and cut up.
“You were attacked there, weren’t you?”
Her shoulders tensed, and she refused to meet my eyes.
“What were you doing in Liam’s place?”
“It’s a long story, alright?”
“Long story that you need to tell me about.”
“Not that easy.”
“Then make it easy.” I knew there was more to the story than her simply chasing down Envy. He was the one who hurt her; she told me so, at least. “Does this have anything to do with the Blood Moon papers I saw at your place? Or that place we were at?”
“We can’t do this here.” She stomped away from the ledge toward the door.
I threw out an arm to stop her.
“Rafael, please.”
“I’m going to remember,” I said quietly.
She hung her head.
“Tell me what I need to
know before I do.”
“I can’t.”
“Yes, you can.”
“Why? So you can really hate me?”
I groaned and stormed away from her. “Why do you think I’d hate you?”
She said my name, then there was nothing else.
I spun around, waiting for her to give me a reason, any reason for not being truthful.
Except, she wasn’t looking at me. I started to speak, but she held up her hand, cutting me off.
“Listen.”
I assumed she was trying to distract me from what I took as our first argument as—well, as whatever we were to each other. But then I heard it too.
A scraping sound, like stone on stone.
Mercy reached for the gun in her holster.
I did the same for the one at my hip.
We cautiously moved toward the opening in the wall. She was completely out in the open, and as I reached a hand to pull her back, a sound like thunder resonated around us.
A massive shadowy shape broke away from the roof overhang and landed in the apartment.
“Mercy—” I shouted.
Screams erupted below us, but I only cared about one person at that moment.
The gargoyle spun around. His wings slammed into me, throwing me back into the apartment and knocking the air from my lungs.
Mercy yelled, and her gun went off, but her shots never made contact. She ducked under his reaching arm, trying to get to me.
He snatched her by the ankle and dragged her away, out of my grasp.
She kicked and punched, but the gargoyle acted like she hadn’t even touched him. Horns curled around his head and his face appeared carved from stone, hard-set in a furious scowl.
I threw myself onto his back, wrapping an arm around his throat. “Mercy, get out of here.”
I grunted, fighting to hold on as those clawed hands reach around to yank me off.
Instead of listening, Mercy grabbed an end table and bashed it into the beast’s torso. He stilled suddenly and then rushed backward. With me still on his back.
We crashed through the wall into the bedroom.
The hit dislodged me, and as I righted myself, the gargoyle stalked toward Mercy.
Why wasn’t it coming after me?
the gargoyle picked her up as though she was nothing more than a toy doll.
Mercy shouted my name.
I’d already dropped to a knee, poised to lunge.
His wings spread wide, and he turned to the opening in the ceiling.
As he was about to fly away with her in his grasp, I threw myself off the ledge and grabbed hold of his leg.
The gargoyle snarled and kicked. trying to loosen my hold, but I dug my claws in harder, dragging it down with my weight.
Mercy bashed it in the face, and then we fell back to the apartment. I snagged Mercy’s arm to tug her back to me and safety, when a large fist the size of my head slammed into my chest. I gasped for air as my head hit the far wall.
Gunshots split the air.
Blood gushed from the gargoyle’s midriff and chest.
I blinked, shaking the dizziness from that hit.
Mercy screamed again.
The gargoyle spread his wings and as he flew off, blocking Mercy from my sight.
She yelled. Then there was nothing.
The gargoyle was gone, and I couldn’t see Mercy.
I rushed to the ledge. “Shit, Mercy.”
She was holding onto the crumbling bricks, legs dangling over nothing but air.
“Hold on.” I lay on the floor and leaned over as far as I could, straining to grab hold of her hand. “I got you. Just give me your hand.”
She glowered up at me. “If you drop me, I’ll kick your ass.”
“Just take my damned hand, woman.”
She lifted one hand, but the bricks under her other one fell apart. She slammed her free hand back into the building. Fear filled her eyes.
I leaned over further. “Mercy, on the count of three, push off the wall and reach for me.”
“I face down monsters and evil effing mages, and I’m scared to let go of this freaking wall.”
“Mercy,” I growled her name sharply, and she looked up at me. “Count of three. You can do this. Do you trust me?”
“Yes.”
“Then, on three.”
The bricks crumbled even more as she worked at placing her boots against the wall.
Below, everyone looked up, watching the scene unfold.
“One, two, three.”
She pushed off and lunged upward.
I grabbed her arm and hauled her up with me to safety. She landed right next to me, and we looked up at the sky. Above us, the gargoyle circled, then left. Two more shadows joined him. Then they were all gone.
Mercy dropped her head to my arm. “Thanks.”
“Any time.”
“Rafael.” She sucked in a deep breath, then exhaled. “About Envy and everything else you missed… I need time, alright?”
“Time to come up with a better lie?”
She glared at me then rose and stormed off, leaving me behind. “Piss off.”
“Mercy, hold on a second.” I managed to grab her arm and stop her from exiting the apartment. “Why can’t you talk to me? What happened?”
She looked like she wanted to be anywhere but standing in front of me. “It’s not what happened. It’s with who. As I said, it’s complicated. So please, give me some time? I want to tell you. I do. But there’s so much at stake. The moment you find out everything, there’s no going back.”
“I trust you.”
“You say that now.”
“Mercy,” I tried.
She held up her hand. “It’s fine. You’ll understand once you know it all.”
“And if I remember first?”
She squeezed my hand hard. “Then I hope you’ll give me the benefit of the doubt.”
“Mercy, what did you do?”
“Rafael? Mercy?” Nor and Iris appeared in the doorway, guns drawn, eyes searching. “You two alright?”
“Just peachy.” Mercy pulled away from me the moment they arrived. “Gargoyle attacked.”
“Damn, so the witnesses are right?”
“I would say so. Now then, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to turn in. Tomorrow I’ll poke around my contacts, see if anyone in the Underground has any info on these gargoyles. Call me if you need me.” Mercy nodded to Nor and Iris, gave me a weighted look that begged me to be patient, then left.
“Something I need to know?” Nor holstered his gun as he took in the damage.
“Nothing I can’t handle. We need to figure out whose apartment this is, see if there’s any reason the gargoyles would target it, or if it was random.” I frowned, turning around slowly as I replayed the fight in my head.
“Rafael?”
“Sorry, just thinking is all,” I told Nor. “Mercy wounded one of them.”
“Bad enough to kill it?”
“Doubt it. It flew off without a problem. But during the fight, it’s like it didn’t care about me. It was focused on her.” I moved backward through the space, remembering each time I attacked the gargoyle, trying to get its attention. But all it cared about was Mercy.
“You think it was drawn to her? Maybe because of her magic?”
“Yeah, maybe.” I didn’t want to say what I thought because that would only complicate matters more. The way the gargoyle reacted was like it wanted Mercy. Had to be her magic. No other way anyone would know she would be here.
The techs came up behind us and swept the place. We found contact information on the owner and I took it with me. First thing in the morning, I’d be contacting Greg Sherwood and asking him why gargoyles would want to attack his place.
Nor told me to beat it after another hour of hanging around and I did, gladly. If I had to deal with Iris looking at me any longer, I’d start yelling at her.
Back home, I flipped on the lights inside my place and looked a
round. It felt so empty without Mercy. As I wandered into the kitchen to get some water, dizziness hit me, and I grabbed hold of the countertop. Images flashed before my eyes. Not of my kitchen, but of another.
“Mercy.”
It was her place, and we were holding each other close and laughing. Something about not having coffee mugs? The memory unfolded bit by bit, and when it was fully revealed to me, I couldn’t help but grin. I’d promised to buy her more coffee mugs. Then I’d held her, and she’d been so reluctant to leave.
After tonight, would we have a chance to be like that again? Now with my mind clear, I hoped there’d be a chance. But she was hiding things from me.
As much as I wanted to believe they weren’t that serious, everything with Mercy turned out to be life or death.
I hope you enjoyed Sins of Mercy!
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Copyright © 2018 by Ciara Graves
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