The Conduit The Gryphon Series - By Stacey Rourke Page 0,66

him out. What’s the best way in?”

“There’s a door around back. If it is anything like the theaters back home it will lead backstage. That’ll give us the element of surprise,” Kendall reported.

“Good. Let’s go,” I said.

We averted our eyes as Gabe ducked behind the truck to strip down the rest of the way and morph into the impressive, tawny lion. Kendall expanded her wings and took on her own majestic splendor. I glanced down at my t-shirt and cut-off sweatpants. Suddenly, I felt very underdressed. If the idea of myself in a superhero costume didn’t give me the willies, I may’ve considered it. No skin-hugging spandex for me. I would make my peace with my grubby clothes.

Our odd trio—the lion, the angel and…me—came together. Cloaked by darkness we made our way across the sleeping campus with determined strides and steeled nerves. For the most part.

CHAPTER 29

Bypassing the fancy arched entrance of the theater, we crept through the trees and brush to the rear door. It was nothing more than a service entrance, which I automatically assumed would be locked.

“Do we kick it in?” I asked.

“Before we destroy property and stuff maybe we could check to see if it’s unlocked.” Kendall replied. Gabe snorted and nodded.

I held my breath as I tried the door. It opened easily and without setting off any blaring alarms. I started to expel a sigh of relief when Gabe gave a low growl beside me. “What?”

“Unnn-lllokked.” He grumbled in his menacing vibrato.

I stared into the pitch black doorway that gave away no clues as to the building’s contents. “Maybe we’re not as unexpected as we hoped.”

Gabe pushed past me and led the way into the darkness. If the gigantic lion with razor sharp teeth wanted to lead the way, I was totally okay with that. I followed close behind him. Keni brought up the rear. Gabe’s slow, shuffle—footed steps told me even his feline night vision was being put to the test against the thick, heavy darkness. With no hint of light anywhere, I didn’t realize he stopped moving until I smacked into him.

“Ooof!”

“Ssshhhhh!” Kendall shushed in my ear.

“Heeeerrrrrre.” Gabe rumbled.

Something lay up ahead that only he could see. To get up to his line of sight I placed one hand on his back and followed by touch up to his head. I grabbed Kendall’s hand to drag her along with me. A sliver of light shined through a gap in the heavy stage curtain.

“The footlights are on.” Keni whispered.

It was the middle of the night, the backdoor was unlocked and the lights were on. Combine that with the fact that it was off-season for the campus, and there was only one answer. Barnabus had lured us right where he wanted us.

“It’s a trap.” My mind clicked away at what our next move should be. Barnabus staged every element. He certainly had to know we were there. Fighting under his terms would give him yet another advantage. Running suddenly didn’t seem like such a bad idea, as long as we could snatch Alec first.

Still worried about the possibility of facing an entire army, I crept toward the curtain. I cautiously peeked around the heavy fabric. My vantage point allowed me to see more than half of the theater and the entire stage. It was empty. The space out of my view wouldn’t accommodate a horde of people. But Barnabus might be there.

I turned back to Gabe and Keni. “His army isn’t here.”

“So what do we do?” Kendall leaned in so I could hear her hushed tone.

“The odds are not in our favor.” My skin prickled with anxiety. “I say we find Alec and then run like heck. If we can get Barnabus on our turf we can give ourselves an edge.”

“Back to the mountains?” Kendall asked.

I nodded even though she couldn’t see it. “We’ve been spending so much time there, we know the area. And we don’t have to worry about innocent people getting hurt.”

“Hooowww?” Growled Gabe.

“We’ll just have to watch each other’s backs like we did with the fog monsters. Keep our eyes open and our feet moving. What do you think?”

“Let’s do it.” A rush of air indicated Keni had expanded her wings out wide behind her.

Gabe snarled his agreement.

My heart thudded in my chest as I spun toward the lights. I replaced my trepidation with determination as my foot touched the polished wood stage. Speed and tenacity was key if this was going to work. With Gabe and Kendall behind me I