Gargoyle Redemption (The Gargoyle Redemption Trilogy)

by Bria Lexor

  “No way!” Kaitlin gasped, nearly tripping over the front steps. “I’m friends with the next big thing!”

  “Can you keep it a secret?” I begged her. “I don’t want people to know about it, just yet.”

  “I promise, my lips are sealed!” Kaitlin replied, acting like she zipped her mouth shut and threw away the key. We laughed as we stepped into a long hallway, and I stopped and looked around.

  “I’ll be right back,” Kaitlin said to me as she ran up a flight of stairs that led from the hallway. I looked around and noticed the hall had a creepy feeling to it. The walls were covered with strange paintings and the area was not well lit at all.

  Just then, I heard a door down the hall close and footsteps were headed towards me. I could see a dark figure. A man emerged and was surprised to see me standing there. He had a pointed goatee. He was well dressed in a black suit and tie, his walking stick was made of gold and had a dragon or something close to it, on the handle.

  “You must be one of Kaitlin’s friends.” The man said in a strong voice, as he steadily approached me. “Though I don’t recall meeting you before Miss...?”

  “Fox. Shinka Fox, sir,” I said feeling really creeped out by the man. He was looking me up and down like some pervert when he suddenly noticed my necklace.

  “Where did you get that exquisite necklace, Miss. Fox?” He asked with eyes as wide as saucers.

  “It was a gift from my mother, Bru Fox,” I said feeling even more uncomfortable, wishing Kaitlin would hurry so we could leave. As if reading my mind, Kaitlin came bouncing down the stairs and stopped dead in her tracks when she saw the man standing in front of me.

  “Sorry I took so long, I had to...”

  “Kaitlin, what a pleasant surprise,” the man said. “I just met your friend Miss Fox.” “Dad, what are you doing here?” Kaitlin asked cautiously as she came to my side. “I thought you had a business meeting today?”

  “I did, but it was canceled,” Kaitlin’s father replied. “So, I thought I would surprise you with a dinner out tonight.” Kaitlin’s father looked back at me and smiled creepily at me.

  “Your friend Shinka is more than welcome to join us if she likes.”

  “That’s okay, Daddy,” Kaitlin said in a pleasant voice. “We were just leaving, right Shinka?” Before I could speak Kaitlin was pushing me towards the door as her father spoke again.

  “It was a pleasure meeting you, Miss. Fox.” Kaitlin slammed the door and we walked in silence back towards her car. We drove in even thicker silence until Kaitlin pulled up to my apartment complex. I thanked her for the ride and was about to get out when she finally spoke. “I’m sorry you had to meet my father,” Kaitlin said bitterly. “It’s just that he never has time for me because of his work.” Kaitlin sighed and looked at me. “I’ll see you at school tomorrow, okay?” With that, I closed the door, and Kaitlin was gone. The streetlights were starting to come to life, and I hurried up the stairs that led to my apartment. I unlocked the door and stepped inside quickly, locking it behind me. I was starving because I had skipped lunch but decided to shower before I ate. After the half-assed shower, I had taken this morning, a real shower felt like heaven.

  I ordered a large pepperoni pizza from Domino’s, and when it finally came, I practically devoured the whole thing but decided to save a slice or two as tomorrow’s breakfast. After dinner, I finished my homework. It was nearly midnight when I finally decided to call it a night. I walked to my room and settled into my bed. It felt like I had barely closed my eyes when I heard a light rapping sound outside of my window. I opened the curtains and saw a figure dressed in all black standing there pointing something with a red beam of light at my chest. I realized it was a gun, and my mind started racing with wild thoughts. I finally decided to make my move.

  No sooner had I rolled to my right and hit the floor; shots rang out. I scrambled out of the room and down the stairs that led to the kitchen. I quickly opened the drawer that held knives. I grabbed one and heard glass shatter from above, which meant the intruder was now in my apartment with me.

  The apartment was dark since I had left the lights off. I was not stupid, I wanted to make it that much harder for them to find me. I heard a man barking out orders as I headed for the front door, and I could hear footsteps trotting down the stairs. It was only a matter of time before they caught me.

  The door suddenly swung open and banged loudly against the wall as a huge figure stood in front of me. I screamed in fear and began to slash wildly at it when I was suddenly yanked hard and led away from my apartment complex. The next thing I knew, we were running down the street or I thought we were running. I realized we were flying as more bullets went whistling past my ear.

  I screamed and held on tight. We soon landed on the rooftop of a nearby building. The creature let me go, and I quickly backed away from it. I knew whatever had saved me was not human, and it was bleeding from its left hand. I guess my aim was not off after all.

  “Do you have the Alarica jewel?” The thing asked speaking perfect English. I had to think for a moment before realizing he was talking to me.

  “W-what?” I asked, confused by the question he had just asked me. “The Alarica jewel that you wear around your neck,” he replied.

  That is when I realized he was talking about my necklace; I quickly reached for my neck and freaked out when the necklace was not there. I must have left it on top of the bathroom counter when I took my shower earlier!

  “I-I forgot it ...” I said feeling the fear rising in my chest once more.

  Suddenly, the creature pulled something out of its long flowing hair, it was my necklace! He held it out to me. I slowly walked towards him and picked it up putting it on right away.

  “You mustn’t let the Alarica jewel fall into the wrong hands,” he said to me with a serious look.

  “I’m sorry,” I said looking at his wound, I tore off a piece of my nightshirt and wrapped it around his hand. He examined my handy work and smiled. “I’m sorry I hurt you,” I said feeling stupid for jumping the gun on him. Yeah, like I knew this guy was going to be my savior.

  “You were just protecting yourself,” he said. Before I could reply, he reached for my hand. His hand was warm and soft against my cold one.

  “I should probably get you back,” he said, and I reluctantly agreed.

  “Oh, right,” I said feeling disappointed that we could not hang out any longer. He picked me up, and we were gliding in the air again. The stars were even more beautiful up close, as well as the moon. I shuddered from the sudden chill in the air, and he pulled me closer to him making me smile by his friendly gesture.

  “I told you I would see you later ...” said the creature as it put me down. I gasped as I realized that was the same thing Abel had said to me earlier that day. I was about to ask him if he knew Abel, but he was already gone. I walked back to my apartment and could see a crowd had formed, and the police were there.

  An officer saw me and pushed me to a nearby ambulance as the paparazzi started to take pictures. The flashes from their cameras temporarily blinded me. Mom is not going to like this when she finds out.

  Chapter Two

  I awoke from a restless night’s sleep, hoping it was all a bad dream. It was not. I was in a hospital room. Just as I was getting out of bed, the door opened, and my manager, Kain, walked into the room.

  “Girl, you’ve become an overnight celebrity!”

  “What are you talking about?” I asked, giving him a peculiar look. Kain handed me the newspaper, and I saw myself on the front page.

  This cannot be happening!...

  “I just signed your release papers, and you have a room waiting for you at The Hilton.” “I want to go to school,” I said climbing out of bed.

  “No way, girl!” Kain said shaking his head. “You were nearly shot last night.” “I’m fine,” I said. “I’ll meet you at the studio later.”

  We argued the whole time I got dressed. Kain had been able to pick u
p some clothes from my place for me. I walked to the elevators and pushed the button going down.

  When we were in the elevator Kain finally agreed but wanted me to be careful. As the elevator stopped on the first floor, Kain walked quickly to the main entrance and out the sliding glass doors. I could tell he was mad at me for disobeying his orders, but I was a stubborn teenager, so defiance was expected of me. I ran to catch up to him, but he had already made it to the waiting limo. I headed for the car when a figure stepped in front of me, it was Abel. My heart started to race as I looked him in the eye.

  “Crazy night, huh?”

  “Ha!” I scoffed. “You have no idea,” I said trying to step around him, but he raised his arms blocking me. I started to get aggravated with him. “Do you mind?” I said, hands on my hips. “I need to get ready for school.” Abel just smiled at me, like he knew some secret I did not know about.

  Kain turned to see what the holdup was and saw me arguing with a boy. He rushed over to help.

  “Is this boy bothering you, Shinka?” Kain demanded. Before I could reply, Abel started talking to Kain.

  “I’m Abel Lapis; I’m a friend of Shinka.”

  “I’m Kain, Shinka’s manager, and we got to go.”

  “I could be her bodyguard, sir. I go to school with Shinka, and I could keep her safe.” “How much you want for this service boy?” Kain asked rubbing his chin.

  “Free of charge, her safety comes first, sir,” Abel replied. “I like that; you’re hired!” Kain said shaking Abel’s hand.

  “Thank you, sir!” Abel said. “She’s in good hands, I promise you.” With that, Kain got in the limo and left me standing there with my mouth open ready to protest, but it was too late.

  I turned towards Abel and gave him the look; he just smiled at me. I was glad Abel had not followed me back to my apartment; I wanted to inspect the damage for myself. Plus, I still had time before school started. When I walked up the stairs my front door had crime scene tape across it so no one could go in, but my books were still in there, so I had to. I opened the door and stepped inside to see my stuff had been ransacked and everything was a mess.

  I sighed as I walked up the steps that led to my room, and it was even worse; bullet holes covered the bed and the walls. Who could have done this? I did not have time to clean up, so I grabbed my books and headed out the door. Not only had my car been totaled, now my apartment was trashed, too. What more could happen to me?

  I walked into my first period and saw Abel was sitting at his desk reading a Sci-Fi novel. Natalie and her friends glared at me as I walked by.

  “Quite the little star, aren’t we?” Natalie hissed at me.

  “Oh, no Natalie, you’re the star,” I said to her with some attitude in my own voice. I sat down, and Abel ignored me when I said hi to him. Just then, the whole class, it seemed, gathered around me, and started asking me a zillion and one questions about my near death experience the night before.

  Kaitlin squeezed her way through the crowd, rushed over to me and hugged me so hard I could not breathe.

  “Shinka, are you okay?” Kaitlin asked. “I didn’t say anything about your ...”

  “It’s okay,” I said sighing inwardly. “They were going to find out sooner or later anyway.” Lunch finally arrived, and I was starving.

  I ate my burger so fast Kaitlin just stared at me, not taking a bite of hers. “You want mine, too?” she offered.

  “No thanks,” I said standing up. “There’s something I need to do before our next class. I’ll see you later, okay?” I excused myself, threw my trash away, and headed out the door to look for Abel. I walked back to the wall where I had seen him the day before, but he was not there. I walked all over the academy grounds in search of him, but he was nowhere to be found. I was about to give up when he suddenly crept up behind me.

  “Whoa!” I said as Abel gave me a weird look when I quickly backed away from him.

  “You’re really jumpy today, aren’t you?” Abel joked shaking his head at me with an amused look on his face.

  “I wanted to ask you something.” I paused trying to figure out the right words to say. Abel just stared at me, waiting impatiently, like he had something better to do than standing around talking to me, so I just blurted it out.

  “Well obviously I’m not a creature,” Abel said sounding annoyed and a bit offended by my comment.

  “Well, why did that creature sound exactly like you then?” I asked, still pressing him for answers.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Abel said. “Just go away already.”

  “Hey,” I said grabbing him by the arm. “You’re the one who came to see me this morning, remember? I just want the truth is all?”

  “Look, Shinka,” Abel said as anger crept into his voice, “we’re not friends, so back off already. I can’t stand your scent, and if you come near me again, I’ll kill you, understand?” With that, Abel turned and stalked away. I stood there stunned and felt the anger rising in me once again. I was starting to really hate this academy!

  Chapter Three

  The next few months dragged on slowly, and I was getting very depressed. I still could not believe Abel had threatened to kill me. I had been busy recording in the studio so much I had not really been in school because of my busy recording schedule. I had a lot of rage to get out of me, so I had tons of issues to write about.

  Today was one of those rare days where I was in school; my car was still being worked on, so I walked early. It was only six in the morning, so the hallways were deserted as I entered the quiet building. I walked into my first hour, and the room was pitch black. I flicked on the lights, and to my surprise, Abel was sitting in his seat.

  “I’m so sorry,” I said reaching for the switch when he stopped me.

  “It’s okay,” Abel said shrugging his shoulders. “You can leave it on, I’m awake anyway.” I felt the fear coming as I walked slowly toward my seat. I sat down and pretended to be examining my fingernails, which I had recently painted black. Abel spoke and finally broke the uncomfortable silence that only grew thicker and thicker between us.

  “How’s your album coming along?” Abel asked casually. “Fine, I guess,” I said, avoiding Abel’s powerful gaze. “Are you still mad at me?” Abel asked.

  Was I still mad at him? Ha! If he only knew! But when I did not answer his question, he came around to the other side of my desk and found me crying.

  I covered my face with my hands the best I could, so he could not see my face. Abel crouched down to my level and gently moved my hands away and looked me in the eye as he spoke.

  “I didn’t mean to hurt you, Shinka,” Abel said in a gentle tone.

  “Yeah, well, you did,” I said feeling angry and sad all at the same time. “And I wish I’d never met you!”

  “I deserve that,” Abel said, nodding his head as he examined my necklace once more. My heart began to race, and I knew I still liked Abel, a lot. The more I tried to act like I hated him the harder the situation became.

  “Shinka, you drive me crazy,” Abel said gently as his face was inching closer towards mine. “And the more I try to stay away from you... the more I want you.”

  What was Abel trying to say? He did not actually like me, did he? “I love you, Shinka,” Abel said. At that moment, I really wanted to kiss him.

  “But... I thought you hated me,” I said realizing that Abel was the first crush I’d had in months, after being single for what seemed like forever.

  “I only said those things because I was afraid you would turn me down,” Abel said, standing up and walking back to his seat just as students started to file into the classroom. I thought it was all a joke, but Abel was serious, and it totally threw off the rest of my day.

  So much, in fact, Kaitlin finally asked me what was wrong during lunch. I really did not want to tell her what all Abel had said, so I just told her Abel was talking to me.

  “Abel Lapis was talking to you?” Kaitlin asked looking s
urprised. I asked her to keep her voice down so the other kids around us would not be so nosy.

  “What’s wrong with him?” I asked, fearing Abel might be crazy for real.

  “Well, nothing’s wrong with him exactly... He’s simply different.” Kaitlin trailed off as if she did not want to tell me anything more about him than she needed to.

  “Different how?” I pressed her, I really needed to know this stuff if anything was going to happen between the two of us.

  “Well,” Kaitlin started. “I mean, Abel doesn’t go to parties or anything. And no one’s ever seen him out after dark.”

  “Why?” I asked.

  “Beats me,” Kaitlin said. “But if I were you, I’d stay away from him ... he could be a vampire or something,” Kaitlin joked.

  I did not think it was funny, and a vampire was not what I was thinking. After school ended for the day, Kaitlin told me she could not drop me off, and I told her I would be fine. I waited until most of the students cleared out before I started the long hike back to my hotel room. I did not feel like bothering anyone for a ride, so I figured a bit of exercise would not kill me. I needed to stay in shape for my live performances.

  Just then, a black Mustang pulled over, and the driver rolled down the window and asked me if I wanted a ride. I looked to see who it was. It was Abel. I nodded my head, but before I could take a step, a motorbike flew out of nowhere and the next thing I knew, I was roughly shoved to the ground as bullets sprayed where I once stood. The bike took off as suddenly as it had appeared, and Abel helped me to my feet.

  “Are you alright?” Abel asked breathing heavily as he looked down at me with deep concern in his bluish green eyes.