“Chocolate isn’t strictly necessary for my survival, Edgar, but on occasion I’d gnaw off your hand to get some.”
He pressed the hand not covering his eye a little tighter to his chest.
“We’re going after them now?” Niamh hadn’t moved to put on pants.
“Yes. Now. They’ve had two days to come up with another plan. I don’t want to wait for them to spring it.”
Gargoyle wings flapped above the street, flying low, coming from town. They’d beelined here instead of flying over the woods like we’d agreed. They were too big to be bats—any non-magical folks who were up at this hour would probably call the cops.
“Get them inside.” I waved my arm and motioned them toward Niamh’s house, the closest available enclosed space.
“No, no, not in here! They’re gargoyles. They think they’ll melt if they take a shower.” She waved them away.
Mr. Tom puffed out his chest. “That is an old wives’ tale, and your refusal to allow them into your house is discrimination. Really, woman, in this day and age?”
“The younger ones are a little ripe,” Edgar said solemnly. “It isn’t their species, of course, but just a lack of overall hygiene. Younger guys, you know—sometimes they’d rather not bother washing up. Niamh has a large collection of doilies in her house. They tend to trap smell. Then again, should we need to burn them, I can always furnish her with more. My newest batch—”
“Fine, put them in the back.” I stepped onto the bright green front yard that Edgar must’ve made it his duty to keep up and directed them like I might an airplane. “Thanks for coming, guys. Just head back there, if you don’t mind. We’ll be with you in a moment.”
“I’m a little lost. What’s the plan?” Ulric asked.
“I can’t allow you to approach that basajaun,” Damarion said, his hand gently settling on the swell of my butt. I stepped away. Clearly we needed to talk. Now was not the time.
I felt Austin on the property, cutting through the woods and across the back lawn.
“Edgar, go get those flowers. Hurry.”
“Yes, Jessie.” He took off running, a strange sort of hunched lope with his elbows flared out, his long fingers dangling at his sides, and his head bobbing animatedly with each step.
“I hate to criticize, Jessie…” Niamh said, watching him go.
“If you couldn’t criticize, you’d never utter a word,” Mr. Tom said.
“…but you might’ve given that old vampire the gift of youth. Or even just shaved off a few years so he wouldn’t look like such a muppet when he runs. I don’t think his limbs work quite right. Look at the state of him!”
Austin loped around the house, passing Edgar, before he stopped and shifted into his human form. He stalked toward us, crossing the grass and then the street, like a predator about to take down a kill.
I put out my hand to tell him not to mess with Damarion, but I didn’t need to. He gave Damarion a wide berth, clearly pushing aside their differences because of the situation.
“What’s the plan?” Austin asked, having stopped in the place Edgar had just vacated.
“Find anything?” Niamh asked.
Austin shook his head, his gaze roaming my face and then body, probably sizing up the state of my health. His skin had the same waxy quality as mine, his freckles or sun spots also burned away, and his face looked a few years younger. Clearly we’d lost our top layer of skin and were still in process of growing a second coat, as it were. I hoped I’d never have to do it again.
“All the strangers around town have checked out,” he said. “I have people working on checking the neighboring towns. The communities are small, so we should get some information soon.”
I gave them a quick rundown about the basajaun as Edgar hurried back with the bouquet.
“I’m going to attempt to fly there.” I took a deep breath. “I might not make it all the way, though. I didn’t do great the other day.”
“It was your first flight, but you held a mountain of muscle with those tiny wings,” Ulric said, and I frowned about the wings comment. I didn’t think they were that small. “You did great.”
“I will carry you when you need it, but we should not approach that basajaun, Jessie.” Damarion moved closer. “It is—”
“I’ll follow in my other form.” Austin didn’t need to step toward me—he pulled my attention to him. Mine and everyone else’s. “We’ll be prepared to extract you