Chapter 8
At the suggestion of the cook — who tended to have his fingers in a surprising number of culinary pies — I’d picked an Italian restaurant. It had a glass - covered terrace that was heated , making it usable even in winter. The restauran t provided a very cozy, romantic atmosphere, with secluded corners formed b y potted olive trees. I also knew that the glass walls made us visible from the street, and , as it was downtown, I hoped that would guarantee the warlock bothering my woman got wind of our date. I plann ed to deal with him tonight.
Some warlocks fell easily into obsession, but once they ran into a wall they could not knock down, that usually fixed it. At least, that was the advi c e Sally the Seer had given me that morning. I hoped it meant I could be that wall for Cammy — knock the warlock on his ass so hard it shook him out of this obsession. He was a rich one, as was evidenced by the fancy suit, and a powerful one, considering the shadow golem he’d sent to kidnap Cammy last night —a ll in a ploy to get her away from me.
“This is lovely,” Cammy said as she eyed her plate of fresh pasta and rich - smelling marinara sauce. It was, though I was not even close to considering the food. The candlelight made her features glow, her freckles a temptation I wanted to lick. Her brown eyes were warm and lovely, and I wished I could see them without the shield of my ensorcelled glasses. It was not a risk I could take in a crowded restaurant like this, and I hoped I could entice Cammy to my mobile home for our next dinner.
We’d been here a while, smack in the middle of our meal, and still no sign of the warlock. I would have been disappointed if not for the fact that the conversation had been flowing easily, and every new thing I learned about my pretty woman was a delight. She was a lawyer — I knew that — but she was dying to get out of the contract stuff and do something meaningful : p rotect the rights of minorities, fight for justice. It matched so well with my gargoyle heritage — to want to protect those smaller than me, those who couldn’t fight alone. Cammy was perfect for me in every way . N ow , I just needed to figure out how she fit into my life, or how I could fit into hers.
When I talked about the places I’d been and the things I’d seen, her eyes lit up, and I realized my girl had an undying appetite for adventure. I could work with that. What bigger adventure was there than travel ing with a paranormal carnival? “Where would you like to go if you could go anywhere? Anywhere at all?” I asked her in between bites of my delicious seafood linguine. My plate was almost empty, but she’d only managed to get halfway through hers.
“Anywhere at all? Probably Paris or Prague. I’d love to see some of the old cities — feel like I’m part of history , ” she said dreamily. Reaching out, I cupped her chin and leaned in to kiss her cheek. She was adorable when she got that faraway look in her eyes, like she was already picturing herself there.
“See some gargoyles?” I couldn’t help but tease . When her wide, startled eyes met mine, I smirked. She hadn’t pieced it together yet: my ability to turn people to stone, transform myself in to stone, and those ancient ‘statues’ that so often adorn ed old buildings. “You could do that right here, with me.” I waggled my eye brows , and her laughter was music to my ears. I would have basked in the moment, but the fine hairs on the back of my neck suddenly rose without warning. Something dark was watching me — something predatory , brimming with killing intent. Thorne was here.
***
Camryn
This was , by far , the best date I’d had in years. Our chemistry was off the charts — I knew that already — but Halvard was a quick - witted, clever table companion. When we talked , it felt like I was on the same page with him, like he understood me the way only Lis did sometimes. He had a strict father who had high expectations , just like I did, but , unlike me, he’d shaken that life and carved out one of his own that he loved. I wanted to follow his example . I was ready to leap without looking after tonight —a nything to keep feeling this alive, this accepted for who I was.
When he went from laughing and relaxed to tense as stone, all my senses roared to life. Fear curled up my spine. This was it ; Thorne had found us. On t he rare occasion s when I’d tried dating shortly after I’d left Thorne, i t had never ended well — m y date always terrified, running for their life, though they never seemed to come to any true harm. For the first time, I felt like Thorne wouldn’t be able to scare my date away. It hadn’t happened last night, and Halvard seemed to relish the thought of a confrontation.
He rose from his seat, folding his napkin neatly and p lac ing it on the edge of the table. It was honestly sexy how calmly he moved as he got up and settled himself, yet I could see the watchfulness in the tight pinch of his lips. “Excuse me for a minute,” he said in a gravel l y tone that made my nipples grow tight beneath my dress. “I have to take care of something.” He smirked, a tilt to his lips that made me wish he wasn’t wearing his tinted glasses — I was certain there would be mischief dancing in his eyes.
Watching him stalk out of the restaurant made me feel like I was watching a tiger on the prowl — or more aptly, a panther. Halvard seemed to have only one color in his wardrobe: black, but it suited him. The appreciative stares he drew from the female guests made me all too aware of just how good the black leather looked. Then he stepped outside, facing something he seemed to have sensed but that I had not noticed . It had to be Thorne, and I frantically scanned the windows, searching for a sign, but I couldn’t even spot Halvard now.
This would be when a more cynical person might think they’d been walked out on and stuck with the bill. I knew that wasn’t true, but I raised my hand and flagged down a waiter. “I’d like to pay , please . C ould I have the bill?” He obliged but gave me a sort of sad, pitying look that made me want to stick out my tongue. He didn’t know a thing, and it wasn’t right to judge me . I wasn’t going to let it bother me , either.
Rising, I shrugged into my coat and hurried out of the restaurant, my eyes searching for any sign of my Stone Freak as he confronted my stupid ex, who was apparently a warlock. “Damn it, Halvard, where did you go?” I muttered under my breath . M y words formed fog in the air , but they did not mysteriously guide me in the right direction. A sound drew my attention around the corner, where the parking lot was.
I turned to ward it and almost immediately spotted the slightly banged - up truck that Halvard had picked me up in. The tan color looked even more like rust in the muddy lantern light than it had at my apartment. Something else was there too — shadows that clung to the fender and swirled beneath the car’s body. Then I heard the voices.
“I’m telling you one last time, warlock : leave Camryn Mayfield alone. She is not yours ; she will never be yours. You do not own her.” That was Halvard — there was no doubt. His voice was cold and sinister as he spoke, sounding like a threat, as though he w ere going to wring Thorne’s neck if he did not obey. Yet every word was carefully measured and perfectly correct. A shiver shot down my spine in warning, even though I knew he was on my side. He was saying those words in my defense, but they held such cold malice that even I felt the urge to obey.
I sidled around the side of Halvard’s truck slowly, walking on my toes so my heels would not click against the pavement. Prepared for a standoff, for the implicit threat of violence, I should have expected what I found. Yet i t still caught me by surprise. Halvard stood with his legs braced apart over a sprawled - out shape on the ground. A large puddle spread ing from beneath Thorne’s shoulders and head gave the impression of a pool of blood — or maybe a mirror. It was just rainwater, but I had to look twice to see that.
My ex had a busted lip, red dripping from his mouth and nostrils, while one eye struggl ed to open —i njuries that proved Halvard had already struck a few blows. Thorne was a tall, handsome man : polished and suave. He came from money, just like Lis and I did. The contrast between the two men couldn’t have been more pronounced , but at the same time, I saw a similarity too. Thorne had an edge of danger — a wolf in sheep’s clothing — while Halvard’s danger lay right there on the surface. Knowing what I did now about the supernatural, I wondered if that was what I had been sensing.
Thorne’s eyes were green like ivy, glowing brightly in his face . T hey flashed from the threat above him to me. I saw something flicker in that green that I couldn’t place, but my stomach flipped , and the back of my neck tingled with awareness. Halvard never looked my way, but when he shifted to stand protectively between me and the downed man, it was obvious he knew I was there.
I had dismissed the shadows beneath his truck as something that came from the carnival ; that’s how accustom ed I had already become to the strangeness Halvard brought with hi m. When they slithered like tentacles from beneath the chassis, I hurriedly stepped out of their way, my instincts roaring that they were wrong — dangerous. T hat quick sidestep , driven by a gut reaction before I’d even fully processed th eir presence, was the only thing that saved me from being grabbed.
Halvard, with his back turned, was not fast enough, and they curled around him — grabbing, writhing, squeezing. He groaned, but then darkness slid into his mouth. Thorne rose from the ground with a triumphant grin, followed by a macabre laugh. “Not so tough now, are you, Freak?” he drawled. As he began to circle Halvard, I knew he was going to try to grab me personally. In that instant, everything boiled over inside of me, heating to a flashpoint. I ’d had enough — enough of my ex controlling my life and threatening my date, enough of holding myself back because of what others wanted me to be.
Ducking down, I yanked my heel from my foot and flung it as hard as I could at Thorne’s face. It glanced off his sharp cheekbone, then bounced against his shoulder. He cursed but kept advancing , so I grabbed my other shoe and threw that too. That one struck him in the chest — far less painful — but he halted and looked down , confused. “Why are you doing that?” he demanded . “I am protecting you! Don’t you see that?” The nerve this fool had . P rotecting me? As if!
“I don’t need you, Thorne. Get lost! I don’t want you in my life. Leave! And let Halvard go, right now.” He blinked his green eyes, twist ing his head to look at the shadows that held my brave Stone Freak immobile. No, not quite — Halvard had gotten closer, shadows and all. His entire body was straining and fighting against whatever it was that held him, and though that fight was silent, he was making progress. It wouldn’t be long before he broke free . Thorne seemed to see it too, and he raised his hands as if to do something about it.
“No!” I snapped . “Stop it!” My stocking - clad feet were cold and wet against the pavement, but that did not stop me from leaping forward and swinging my purse as hard as I could down on his outstretched arm. I knew it wasn’t much of a blow, but it did catch his attention. His mouth dropped open in surprise as he turned back and looked at me. For the firs t time since I’d broken things off with him, I s aw a hint of the Thorne that had convinced me with suave charm to go on a date —a hint of the vulnerable man behind the power and money.
“No?” he said. His arms dropped , and he took a step back, his eyes blinking as if rousing from a deep slumber. “No,” he repeated more firmly . T hen , with a very confused expression , he looked at me. “You don’t want my protection?”
“This isn’t protection, Thorne!” I exclaimed, throwing my hands in the air in frustration. “This is obsession ! T his is stalking! We are done, and I am free to choose who I want to date! You have no say in that.” It felt good to get those words out — freeing — and it was poetic that , at that moment, Halvard shook his shadow chains with a grunt. His glasses had fallen in the struggle, and his eyes were wide and pure as they locked with mine. In them, I saw all the things I had been missing with Thorne : t he love, the protection, the desire to help me be my best self, and the willingness to support me like a true partner. Case in point , he tempered his desire to fight when he realized that I was in control of this confrontation , s imply moving to stand at my side — a silent, supportive figure.
“I don’t understand…” Thorne muttered, but he was smart enough not to look Halvard in the eye and , by extension, never raised his gaze to my face. “Not needed?” he asked, and when I nodded firmly, he shuddered. Then, without a backward glance, he turned and began walking away. Shadows skipped and warped along the ground and the walls where he went, reacting unnaturally to his presence, but the shadows beneath Halvard’s truck were normal now.