Chapter 2
Iturn up the volume and all six of us hold our breath, listening to what the news anchor has to say. Red and blue lights flash behind her, and my stomach clenches. I took the remainder of my vacation days for the year, and I don’t have to be back at work for another week. But if I were there today…
“I’ve seen this before,” Jac says slowly.
“You have?”
He closes his eyes, thinking. “It was a long time ago.”
“No shit,” I say, not meaning to snap. “Sorry.” I turn my attention back to the TV, heart beating faster and faster.
Some sort of creature “appeared out of nowhere” and started busting up cars parked on the streets, smashing in windows of storefronts and restaurants, and throwing anything it could find.
Three people were caught in the crossfire while walking down the street, right in the middle of downtown Philly.
One was killed and the others were in critical condition.
Witnesses reported a “monster” leaving the scene, with black eyes and powdery, pale red skin.
Fuzzy cell phone footage is shown over and over, warning people to stay inside and lock their doors, and to call the police right away if they see the thing.
Jac gets up and grabs his cell phone, brows pinched together. I watch as he looks something up, nodding as he reads.
“You would call them a golem.”
“Like the guy from Lord of the Rings?” Gemma asks.
“No.” I swallow hard, having just read about them in my book. It was a more recent entry, coming from the seventeenth century. “They’re basically like a life-sized Voodoo doll, right?”
“In a sense,” Jacques says.
“How do I stop it?” I ask, standing up.
“That depends on how it was made, right?” Thomas asks.
“Yes.”
“What about smashing it?” Hasan cracks his knuckles. He’s quite good at smashing things.
“It’ll slow it down,” Jacques tells him. “But it’ll repair itself. We could try burning it. That golem looks like it’s made out of clay. You know what happens to clay when it’s put in a kiln.”
“It’ll harden,” I say.
“And then I can smash it,” Hasan says.
“In theory.” Jacques puts his phone down.
I look around. “What are we waiting for? Shouldn’t we go after it?”
“You want to fight that…that…thing?” Gemma’s eyes widen.
“Well, who else is?” I counter. Hasan is already standing up, ready for a fight.
He was made for battle, and looks forward to hand-to-hand combat.
“The police won’t know what to do, and I don’t mean that in a negative sense.
I’m a cop, after all. And our training definitely didn’t cover golems.” I look at Gemma.
“You know how people are. They’re going to look for a logical explanation, and their only defense is their guns, which are pointless against a monster made of clay.
” I blink, unphased by the words leaving my lips.
There was a time when I wouldn’t have believed a word I was saying.
Now this is my life.
“You should stay here,” I press. “Let us handle it.”
“Alone?”
“You’ll be safe here.”
Gemma nods, not looking convinced. “Will you let me know what’s going on?”
“Of course. I’ll call you with an update. But we really should go.”
“Dressed like that?” Gil raises his eyebrows, reminding me that I’m wearing yoga pants, a T-shirt, and no bra.
“Let me get dressed.” I hurry up the stairs, noticing for the first time in days that my room is a mess. I have dirty laundry on the floor, the bed isn’t made, and there are three empty coffee cups on my nightstand. I really let those files drive me crazy.
I run a brush through my long black hair, pulling it back into a tight French braid. I pull on jeans and find my favorite sports bra in a pile of laundry on the floor. I put it on and pull on a black T-shirt. Grabbing leather boots, I rush back down the stairs.
The guys already have on their concealment charms, masking their wings with magic and making them look human.
“Weapons,” I say, looking at Jacques, who also put on jeans and a black T-shirt. We match, right down to the exact shade of denim, but I don’t have time to worry or even care about that right now. “You’re sure we won’t need any?”
“If it’s a golem, they will be pointless.”
“Okay. Then let’s go.”
Gemma rushes forward. “Wait!” She pulls her arms in around herself. “That’s it? You just rush off without a plan?”
“I have a plan,” I tell her, slipping my boots on. “Kill the golem.”
“Be careful.”
I nod, realizing how scared she is. Not of the golem, but of losing me or any of the guys. “I will be. And one of us will call when we can. Hold down the fort, okay?”
She gives me a wry smile. “Okay.” Then she throws her arms around me and I awkwardly hug her back. I’m not a touchy-feely person.
“I got your keys,” Thomas says, holding up my purse. “And your badge…if you want it.”
I bite my lip. I can’t really go about this as a cop. The golem is attacking people for apparently no reason. It’s already killed one person. It’ll kill again, and doing things the legal way will slow me down.
Plus, how the hell will I explain that I used magic to stop a monster that’s actually a six-foot clay sculpture? Oh, and my four gargoyles helped me take him down.
I can’t, so I won’t.
“No. Leave it. Ace the witch is going after this fucker tonight.”
Thomas beams. “I like Ace the witch better. She’s more badass.”
“You’re wasting time,” Gilbert says, pushing past Tom. “You’re not getting laid any time soon so give it up.”
“Hey now,” I say, taking my purse from Thomas.
“I’m fine with the flattery.” The guys follow me through the house, and I grab my black leather jacket on my way out.
I live on the outskirts of town, and the closer we get to the historic district, the more tense I become.
I listen to the police reports, feeling so torn.
I know what’s going on.
My fellow officers don’t.
I should warn them.
But how?
I grip the steering wheel tighter as I slow, seeing flashing lights ahead.
I feel like a big fucking fraud as we pull over and park along the street.
People are gathered around outside, gawking like idiots.
Police push them back, and I duck my head, recognizing the officer only a few yards away.
We don’t work at the same precinct, but I’ve met him before.
And his wife…who just gave birth to twins.
“Okay,” I start, turning around to face the guys. “The last reported sighting was four blocks away. Should we split up?”
“That’s a terrible idea,” Hasan spits, raising an eyebrow. “We’re stronger together.”
“True.” I nervously pull on the zipper of my jacket. I’m not scared to fight the golem, but I’m terrified I won’t be able to find it in time and more innocent people will die. I turn on my police radio, listening in on the chatter.
“Is there a way to attract a golem?” I ask Jac.
“They’re typically created with an intention. We find out what it wants, we’ll find it. But from what they reported, it seems set on destruction.”
Nodding, I start forward, and we duck into an alley to avoid being seen by the police. As I dash across the street, I see a car dented and smashed, like the Hulk angrily ran down the street, hitting anything in his way.
Holy shit.
“So, when we find this thing,” Thomas starts, hand going up to the charm hanging from his neck. With their wings concealed, they can’t fly, but the guys still have their gargoyle strength. “What exactly do you plan to do to it?”
I shake my head. “Kill it with fire.”
“That’s not exactly a plan.”
“I know. I’m thinking more like we scuffle, you guys hold it back, and I blast him with magic fire.”
“Scuffle?” Hasan echoes. “I think it’ll be more than a scuffle.”
“I know.” I give him a look. “Here’s to hoping, though, right?” I let out a breath. “We just need to find the thing first.” We make it down another alley.
“I think we found it.” Gil holds out his hand, tipping his head. The others go on high alert, able to hear something my human ears haven’t picked up on yet. I wait, mentally counting.
One.
Two.
Three.
Four.
Fi—Screaming fills the air, and in the seconds that follow, I can tell people are running. Glass shatters, and the deep, harrowing screech reverberates off the surrounding buildings.
“Yep. We found it, all right.” I inhale and hold my hands out to the sides, feeling energy sparking along my fingertips. “We need to get it off the main street.”
Hasan nods, already thinking ahead. I’m going to use magic to kill this thing. I can’t be seen. He rushes down the alley, grabbing a dumpster and shoving it forward, blocking the adjoining street. If we can get the golem to come down this way, we’ll have him trapped in a dead end.
And then we’ll have to work fast.
I run through the alley, bursting out onto the main street.
Lights shine down on us from nearby buildings and street lamps.
A crowd exits a store, screaming and crying.
A mom and dad run like hell, clutching small children to their chests.
The mom is holding a baby and has a death grip on a preschool-aged boy’s hand, and she turns around to check on him, telling him to hurry it up.
The golem crashes through the window, shattering glass everywhere. My eyes widen and my heart skips a beat.
“Fuck me.”
The thing is human in shape but void of any defining details. It’s at least seven feet tall and twice as wide as a linebacker. Its eyes are black as coal, with glowing red pupils. Its mouth is too large for its head, which only adds to how fucked up and terrifying this thing is.
It grabs a metal garbage can attached to the sidewalk and yanks it free as if it weighs nothing at all. It hurls it through the air, hitting a traffic light. The thing sways in the air, and wires start to snap. It bumbles forward and rips a door off a car, throwing it as well.
It hits the already swaying traffic light, and it swings dangerously, seconds away from crashing down.
Right on the mother with the young kids.
“Watch out!” I yell, but my voice is lost in the yelling. I push forward, trying to get past the people running away from me.
I’m too far away.
The cables are snapping and sparks are flying, raining down on the ground. The little boy falls and the mom struggles to keep a hold of her flailing baby. I can’t get to him and I know he’s going to die a terrible death, right in front of his parents’ eyes.
“Move!” I throw out my hand, fingers sparking with magical fire. “No,” I cry, mad at myself. Fire isn’t going to help this situation. My heart is racing, and I watch everything happen in slow motion. The final cable snaps and the traffic light starts to fall.
And then Jacques swoops in, wings spread, and grabs the little boy right as the light comes crashing to the ground. He pulls the boy to his chest, shielding him with his wings. I come to a stop, stunned, terrified, and grateful all at the same time. I didn’t even notice Jac pull his charm off.
He revealed himself to the entire city.
And he saved that little boy’s life.
The golem is at a standstill, and the park bench in its hands clatters to the ground.
Its eyes are glued to Jacques, and it doesn’t move, as if it has to process what just happened.
Jacques stands, aware everyone is staring at him.
He pulls the boy to his feet and gives him a gentle nudge in the direction of his parents, who are crying.
The dad scoops up the boy, holding him with one arm and a toddler in the other.
“Get out of here,” I whisper under my breath. Jac looks at me through the crowd and takes off, soaring high into the sky and disappearing from sight.
“It’s Batman!” someone calls out, and after a few seconds of stunned silence, the crowd starts to cheer.
This isn’t a superhero movie. These people need to run. Now. The Justice League isn’t going to swoop in and save the day.
We’re already here, and we’re probably fucked.
The golem looks up, searching the sky, and lets out a horrible roar. It shakes the ground and gets people moving. With its head still turned up to the sky, it blindly walks forward and falls off the curb. Bits of clay chip off of him, but he regenerates as he stands up.
“He’s looking for Jac,” Hasan says, standing close to me.
“Does he know what he is?” Thomas asks me, and I shake my head.
“I have no idea. Fuck, we need Jac to answer these questions.”
The golem keeps his eyes on the sky and continues forward, running into and crushing anything in its path.
“He said they’re sent after something,” Gil says slowly as he thinks. “And won’t stop until they find what they’re looking for.”
“He seems pretty damn determined to me,” Thomas agrees.
“You think it’s after you guys?” I raise my eyebrows, heart beating even faster. We run down the sidewalk after it. It passes by people and cars without so much as giving them a second look.
Shit.
It definitely seems like it’s located its target. Thank God the guys can fly. But they’re not the only ones who can.
The distinct sound of a helicopter grows louder and louder, and it shines search lights down on the ground. Jac is smart. He would have landed somewhere and…oh shit. I have no idea what he did with the charm, and I didn’t think to look or grab it. He could be seen.
And perceived as a threat.
Unlike the golem, Jac can get hurt by bullets. My stomach clenches with fear.
“He’s following him,” Thomas says with certainty. “Or is trying to, at least. How smart are these things?”
“I’m not sure.” I suck in air as we run down the street. People are panicking, taking shelter wherever they can as the golem runs. “I think something is controlling it.”
“Do you think they can see through its eyes?” Gil asks.
I hold out my hand in front of me, summoning the fire. “There’s only one way to find out!”