Reluctantly, I dig in the pocket of my jeans and shyly produce a small swatch of purple velvet. “Uh, well, I have this.”
Cassius grins, peering closer. “What’s that?”
I shrug, still embarrassed by the urge I had to take something of Rune’s when we were in his home. “It’s Rune’s. I think it got stuck to my shoe or something.”
“Stuck to your shoe,” Mac says flatly. “Lucky us.”
Roman takes it, holding it close to his nose and sniffing. “It still has his scent.” He meets my gaze. “And yours.”
I snatch it back, tucking it into my pocket. No way I’m admitting the things I’ve done while rubbing the soft fabric between my fingers, but I’m positive Roman can tell. “Is it enough?”
“Might be,” Roman says. “Let’s give it a shot. It’s a start, at least.”
“Human realm, here we come.” Drax smiles, sliding his arm around his mate’s waist.
Mac’s eyes heat and a tendril of smoke spirals from his nostrils. Those two are so in love that it’s renewed the longing I’d thought I put out centuries ago. Gargoyles used to mate for life, but we’re a dying breed. I don’t remember the last time I heard about a mating union between my kind. That’s part of what made it so easy to join Auri’s team. I’m not with other gargoyles, but at least here, I’m not alone.
“Ready, guys?” Roman asks.
I nod, preparing mentally for the astral trip. “Ready.”
As I close my eyes and the room around me fades, I focus all my thoughts on finding Rune, praying to any deity listening that I’m wrong.
RUNE
I thinkI’m in real trouble.
Rattling the bars over the window of my enclosure, I focus all my energy on melting the barrier away, but all I get are sparks that immediately fizzle out. Whoever did this to me is beyond powerful. I never even saw it coming, and somehow my magic is being thwarted.
What I can’t figure out is why someone would target me. Sure, I have my enemies, but no one strong enough to overpower my magic. My reputation precedes me, and yet, an unknown perpetrator managed to kidnap me.
The cell is dark and damp, the moldy smell tickling my nose in the worst way. All I have is a ratty cot, a wobbly wooden chair, a small oil lantern, and a bucket, presumably to relieve myself.
I shudder. Ew. How primitive.
When I find out who is responsible for this, they will rue the day they fucked with me. I may not use the name anymore, but Delaport blood runs in my veins, and that’s something they clearly don’t know.
The sound of heavy footsteps and jingling keys reaches me, and I sit up a little straighter, refusing to look worn down by my plight. The metal door blocking my exit opens and a tall woman with waist-length black hair enters, carrying a tray with various items on it. She’s wearing a long dress with two slits from the hips to the floor, heavy knee boots with leather straps and silver buckles, and a corset type top with a mesh bodice.
Her eyes, piercingly aqua, focus on my face for a moment before she sets the tray down on the rickety chair seat. She’s beautiful in a terrifying way, but I sense no magic in her. Just muscles and fury. I could try to physically attack her, I suppose, but without my magic, I doubt I can take her.
“Are you going to tell me why I’m here?” I demand, trying and failing to keep my tone friendly. Charming her is clearly out of the question given that I’m, well,me.
The woman turns slightly in my direction, uttering something in a language I don’t understand and have never heard. Normally, I could use my magic to sort through it, but the wall around me is both invisible and powerful.
“I can’t understand you.”
She turns completely toward me, gazing at me with blank eyes. “What language?” she asks in stilted English, but not as if she’s a new learner, as if it’s something she’s read out of a book and done her best to pronounce.
“English, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, some Italian, and a working knowledge of Turkish, Hebrew, Greek, and Latin. Any of those work?”
The woman nods, seeming to sort through my words. Her head tilts awkwardly to the left for a moment before she nods again. “You stay here,” she says slowly, enunciating each word carefully. “Until the end.”
“The end of what?”
She blinks rapidly, and I’m starting to wonder if she’s even human. “The end of the war.”
I pull my head back slightly. “What war?”
