Page 6 of Gargoyle Vigilante

Dante huffed. “Thisisthe plan. Kill rogues. Protect relics. Rinse and repeat.”

Mal planted his hands on his hips yet again. “Except for the part where it’s also your duty to replenish the ranks. I’m honestly surprised your mate hasn’t shown up much sooner, seeing as you surpassed your kill quota decades ago.” Mal tilted his head. “Huh. It never occurred to me, since I’m so oblivious to the boundaries of time, that maybe it simply means he hadn’t been born yet.”

“Just my luck,” Dante grumbled. “I was hoping I had another couple of centuries left to hunt and kill before I got saddled with a family. Fuck.”

Mal punched his shoulder, and it wasn’t even close to being a friendly bro punch. “You’re a complete dickhole, you know that? I get it, maiming and killing is awesome. But your mate? Having a family of your own? How can you not be overjoyed right now?”

“Overjoyed? Really? Have you ever met me before? Ever witnessed me being overjoyed in all the millenniums you’ve known me?”

Mal poked him in the chest with one finger. Hard. “Exactly my point. Your grumpy ass needs to lighten up.”

Dante gazed down at his mate again. He couldn’t really see him that well, but not because of the dark. A gargoyle's night vision was legendary. However, with him in a fetal position andhis black, curly hair tousled all around his face, he was mostly hidden from view.

Dante tensed, fear slicing through him as he sensed the life force leaving his mate’s body. His tiny mate might possess angelic blood, but the full strength that gave him eternal life wouldn’t activate until they’d mated. This frail human wouldn’t stand a chance unless he got help fast.

Without thinking, he scooped up the young man in his arms then whipped around to face a startled Mal. “I have to go. You’ll need to be the one who stays to supervise the scene.”

Mal’s brow creased. “I’ll make sure no traces are left behind after they disintegrate. Is he going to be okay?”

Dante swallowed hard. “I don’t know. But he needs the touch of Ezekiel now. Please tell me the Reaper isn’t on another continent.”

“Count yourself lucky that our faction traveled here together when I followed the scent of your latest kill to find you.” Mal furrowed his brow. “The location of the lair is the same, but I can’t guarantee that Ezekiel’s not out on a hunt right now.”

His mate moaned, and Dante’s gut tightened. “I don’t use those ridiculous phones the humans carry around. But is that something we’re using to communicate with now?”

Mal chuckled. “Not at all. Some things haven’t changed.” He smirked. “I simply stopped sending you my telepathic thoughts because you never answered. I’ll send out a message and make sure he’s there or at least on his way.”

Dante growled. “Well, he’d better be.”

As Dante morphed then shot into the sky, he did something he’d avoided for millenniums. But he was desperate, and he didn’t possess the power to fix his mate.

“Please, Divine Spark, hear me. If you save him, I’ll…” Dante couldn’t believe he was about to utter the words. “I’ll follow your plan.”

Chapter Four

Dante cradled—dare he say gently—his wounded mate in his arms as he soared over the city. He whooshed over the low mountains separating Los Angeles from the San Gabriel Valley to the east, not daring to waste any time in reaching the Reaper. Ezekiel wasn’t the bringer of death, quite the opposite. But the nickname was a bit of a joke among their ranks.

Their fellow Slayer possessed a gift with which the angel Azrael had anointed him in the early years of the original formation. In order to truly be the Angel of Death, Azrael was forced to shed all light and life from his being. Only then would the Divine Spark agree to promote him to that position.

Ezekiel won what Azrael cast off in a card game.

The Nephilim he clung to might survive longer because of his angelic blood. However, his human side was clearly struggling. Ezekiel’s added light gave him the ability to replenish instead of depleting life, so getting him to the gifted Slayer in time was crucial.

His mate moaned, and dread settled low in Dante’s belly. He didn’t want a mate, had no interest in a family, but the thought of anything happening to this half-human terrified him. He’d forgotten what that feeling was like. He didn’t do terror.

As Dante approached the Mission in San Gabriel, he slowly circled the vicinity before moving lower. Humans might not be able to see a shifted gargoyle, but they’d have no problem spotting the floating man in his arms.

I should’ve known.

The instant he and Mal had come upon the filth stalking his mate in the alley behind the bar, he’d locked gazes with the man. The moment had come and gone in a flash, but Dante hadno doubt that this small human could see everything happening around him. No one who was fully human could do that.

Dante landed behind a hedge, once again verifying they were safe from detection. It was early morning but still quite dark. He needed to get them inside the old church right away before any workers spotted them. It had been so long since he’d been at his home base that he had no idea what schedule the priests followed. Who knew how they’d react to his floating mate drifting through the church?

Once he was sure no one was nearby, he carried his mate inside the old stone and adobe brick building, then headed down the long aisle of the majestic, rectangular-shaped structure to reach the altar. To his relief, everything was essentially the same as the last time he’d been at this location, yet the paintings and statues appeared almost new as if they’d been restored.

The details of the interior remained fresh, as if he’d been at the church only yesterday. Thankfully, the altar still boasted a hidden panel that, when opened, revealed the stairs leading to their lair, hidden deep beneath the church.

As he swiftly moved through the darkness down the winding stone steps, he nuzzled his mate’s soft curls, the hint of sandalwood combined with a muskier, more natural aroma filling his nostrils. A little sniff couldn’t hurt, right? It didn’t mean anything beyond his own curiosity. After all, regular sex wasn’t all bad. Might even make his life easier.

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