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Chapter 7
The wind ripped at my clothes and magical-growing hair as I fell from the roof of the tower. I screamed from the terror slicing at my insides. The world revolved around me as regret punched me in the chest. I should have made Dustin listen, take me seriously, made him understand how fast he had to act. How his strength and swiftness were what I needed to defeat the monster.
The ground flew toward me. Concrete arms swooped under me midair, and I landed with anoomph. I battled his tight embrace, flailing widely. “Fuck you!”
In a swift movement, we careened sideways and ascended. I squirmed for release.
Suddenly, the gargoyle arched as if struck in the back, and its wings stopped beating. My heart raced.
We dropped out of the air, and I screamed. My stomach slammed into the back of my throat.
Its grip slackened, and I shoved myself away from the creature. I landed in a line of shrubs, absorbing my impact. The creature smacked the ground. I gasped for air until I came to an abrupt stop into the shrubs.
My blonde hair sprawled over my shoulders and down my back, cascading around me like a waterfall. I scrambled up, despite my head spinning and dread squeezing my chest.
The gargoyle crawled to his feet, and a knife’s hilt stuck out of a gap between his wings. The creature reached an arm over its shoulder to take out the weapon, but it remained just out of reach.
Dustin swayed on his feet and untangled himself from the bushes catching his pants. He stood at least ten feet away. A gash crossed his brow, and blood dripped down the side of his face. Joy radiated through me that he’d survived the fall.
I grabbed the blade from my belt. “Take the gargoyle down now while he’s injured,” I yelled as I darted closer, pressing the hilt into Dustin’s palm. “Throw it into his heart!”
But Dustin shoved me away and pulled out two thinner blades from his boot and stalked toward the enemy. His shoulders curled forward like a predator’s.
I could barely take a breath.
The gargoyle screeched, making strange grinding sounds, and I couldn’t tell if that was pain or anger because he’d never made such a noise before. But this was the moment to make a change. I’d had enough of being a punching bag and treated like dirt. This ended now.
I gripped the knife in my hand and ran toward the creature.
Stab him. Kill him. Free yourself.
But the gargoyle spun on the spot, its wings flapping, chasing the knife in its back. In front of the gargoyle stood Dustin, his feet firm on the ground, his knees bent, and he hurled a knife, precise and accurate.
I froze.
The blade slammed into the gargoyle’s chest, and I cried out with joy, except the monster wasn’t falling over.What the hell?
It staggered around, and I gawked at the knife dead in the center in its chest. The creature wrenched the weapon out and tossed it to the ground.
“Stab him in the heart!” I bellowed. If I knew sheer strength would overpower the gargoyle, I’d insist Dustin turn into his bear form, but that wouldn’t help with throwing the blade accurately.
The gargoyle jerked toward me, and despite the deadness in its eyes, I swore a fiery anger stirred behind them. I recoiled, unable to inhale as terror clamped over my lungs.
Leaping forward, the creature snatched my arm with rock-hard fingers. I fought against the restraint and jammed my knife at its chest with my other hand. The bastard moved too fast. My blade hit its solid chest and skidded sideways.
It whacked a granite hand against my weapon-wielding one, and pain wrapped over my knuckles. The knife dropped from my grasp as I cried at the fiery agony encasing my arm. I dragged myself away, wriggling to free myself from the gargoyle’s hold.
“Let me go!”
Its wings beat, sending a flurry of wind into my face, and he lifted us off the ground, dragging me by the arm.
Darkness swarmed my thoughts. I’d rather die than lose again.I can’t live like this.Not again. Not fucking again.
There was movement at my side, and Dustin hurled himself between us with such strength, I was thrown backward.
Landing on my ass, my strangled cry escaped, and I dragged myself from their reach, my long hair tangling around me.
Near the tower, the gargoyle collapsed onto its side with a thud, a knife sticking out of its chest in the crevice right above its heart.
