Stone Solitude (30 page)

“It’s beautiful here,” Roman murmured as they walked through the midnight woods, hearing the occasional howl in the distance. Despite his reservations, he realized it was a good idea to have as many eyes on the lookout for Isis as possible, and wolves’ eyes were even better. Daisy’s pack was amazing and he couldn’t have found a better group of wolves if he had tried. They welcomed him with open arms, making him an honorary member of the pack without hesitation or uncertainty simply because he was Daisy’s mate. It was extraordinary.

Earlier, she had taken her parents aside and together they had explained to them the situation, from Isis to the curse to the loss of his family due to the curse. Mr. Tremain was quietly furious about Roman sleeping with his daughter but his wife whispered something in his ear that made his cheeks go up in flames and he never said a word. By the end of his story, Roman knew he had gained a true ally in Mr. Tremain, a man who loved his family to distraction and by extension those his family loved. Of course, since there was a threat, the younger kids were being kept close to the house until the danger passed.

“I love it here,” Daisy said wistfully. “When I was a little girl, I looked forward to the day I could shift and run through these woods as a wolf. There’s a lake that can only be accessed by a wolf and I still dream about that secret haven, wondering what it’s like. My brothers tell me it’s the most amazing place in the world, with a lake that is so clear you can count the pebbles at the bottom of it and water so warm you never want to leave. They say it’s a little slice of paradise right here in Minnesota.

“I don’t believe them, of course,” she continued, a tight smile curving her lips, the smile one wore to keep from crying. “I mean, I’m sure it’s beautiful but it’s still Minnesota and the lake must freeze over in the winter, despite my brothers swearing up and down that it remains perfectly warm all year long.”

“During the day, I can fly you to this super-secret hideaway,” he offered, feeling her pain of not being able to shift deep within his soul. She turned her head and smiled up at him, a brilliant smile that stole the breath from his lungs and the beat from his heart. Coming to a stop, he stared down at her, at the luster of her eyes, the lushness of her lips, and he fell in love all over. “Daisy?”

“I would love that above all things,” she beamed. With a happy sigh, she wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him. “Since I’ve met you, it feels as if my life is finally moving forward again. I think I’m at peace with not being able to shift.”

“Someday it might happen,” he murmured, brushing a strand of hair from her face, loving the silky texture of it. “You never know.”

“Yeah but now I’m no longer in any rush,” she returned. “And if the lake is really as spectacular as my brothers say, then you know we’ll be spending a weekend out there.” As he tilted his head to the side in a silent question, her grin grew a little naughty as she answered, “So we can make love in this pristine lake and since you’re really, really big during the day, we’ll have to wait until night. And since you can’t fly at night….”

“A weekend camping trip,” he finished for her, the idea erotically appealing. A naked Daisy, a naked,
wet
Daisy…. “We can leave in the morning.”

“Tomorrow is Monday,” she laughed, her eyes dancing with mirth. “I have class. But we can make plans to leave Friday morning if you want.”

“Yes, I want,” he growled, grabbing her hips and pressing his erection against her belly, wishing they were in her room so he could peel her clothes off her body and run his tongue all over her soft skin. When they were sexually sated and utterly exhausted, he would coax her wolf from hiding, promising the creature anything it desired if it would only come forward. He would work at it diligently, even if it took years to tempt the beast.

In that moment, he wanted to take her home, to show her where he came from, to introduce her to his brothers even if they wouldn’t remember him. “Daisy?”

“Hmm?” she murmured, looking up at him with a languid expression that spoke of profound love and absolute trust.

“I want to take you to Rome,” he said.

Her eyes lit with excitement but she kept her voice calm as she asked, “When?”

“Over your winter break. We can fly out on Midnight Air as soon as class lets out.” Her eyes widened at the mention of the airlines that catered to nocturnal creatures and he could feel her excitement practically buzzing over her skin. “I’ll be able to show you the sights during the day from overhead and at night we can make love in a palazzo by the sea.”

“Hmm,” she hummed, closing her eyes as if picturing it in her head. “It sounds perfect.”

“There are so many things I want to do with you,” he said, excitement building within him at the realization that they had their whole lives ahead of them, a future waiting to be lived. Stopping, he took both of her hands and grinned down at her, “I want to dance with you on a moonlit beach and make love to you afterwards. I want to take you to the top of the tallest building in the world and then wait until the sun rises and fly with you back to the ground.”

A horrified laugh slipped past her lips as her eyes widened in alarm at that last idea. But she simply said, “I trust you.”

What more could a man or a gargoyle want? Wrapping his arms around her slender body, he held her to him and murmured, “I want to give you the world, Daisy. Tell me what you want and it’s yours.”

She smiled at him, a tender smile that reached into his guts and pulled them out. Placing one hand over his heart and the other hand over hers, she murmured, “As long as you’re with me, the world is right here.”

“When this is all over, we’ll buy a house in the country,” he promised. “Close enough to your family that you’ll be able to visit every day but….”

“Far enough away to have privacy,” she finished, a wicked sparkle in her eyes.

“I’ll take you flying during the day,” he continued. “Where ever you want to go.”

Lowering her lashes, her tongue swept across her lower lip and he groaned. When she looked up, she didn’t quite meet his eyes as she said in a soft voice, “When this thing with Isis is over, I want to bite you.”

Tilting his head to the side, he studied her as he let the words sink in. Color climbed into her cheeks as she rushed on, “I don’t know if it will work because I’m not a real wolf….”

“Yes you are,” he growled.

At that, a slight smile played at her lips but she shook her head and continued, “I want to claim you.”

“Why wait?” he asked. If she wanted to bite him, to claim him, he was more than willing to do it now.

Again her tongue darted out and she swallowed before she finally answered, “I am afraid.”

“Afraid? How?”

“What if my bite weakens you, even temporarily, and that’s when Isis decides to make her move?” she asked and it was obvious that she had spent some time considering the repercussions of biting him. “What if you get sick because my bite is more human than wolf? Or maybe it’s the wolf’s bite that would make you sick.” He opened his mouth to say something, but she beat him to it as she continued, “I know you’re a gargoyle and traditionally you’re immune to diseases and such, much like wolves, but a gargoyle has never been bit by a wolf. Don’t you think we should tread carefully in case there are some dire consequences of two supernatural creatures biting one another?”

“So you’d have me bite you, too, huh?” he said with a grin, the thought of biting Daisy, marking Daisy, suddenly very, very appealing.

Her lips curved upwards into a smile but her eyes were still troubled. Brushing his thumb over her lips, he kissed her forehead. “We’ll wait. But as soon as that bitch is in her place, you’re going to fucking bite me.”

Staring up at the stars while staying within view of the mansion, holding Daisy in his arms, Roman smiled. In the three weeks since they moved into the Tremain’s pool house, he hadn’t seen Isis at all. Daisy was commuting back and forth to school, like she had been before, while he was working part time at
The Black Wolf
. He helped out during the day with the heavy lifting while Daisy was in class and he was a gargoyle and during the night he tended the bar. Since the bar brewed its own beers, it was an easy gig: getting whichever beer the customer ordered. He was making friends, especially with Dominic and Daisy’s uncles taking him under their wing. And he had Daisy.

It wasn’t the life he expected to have when he was living as a gargoyle with his brothers but it was a good life and he was content. No, he was more than content; he was happy. He was saving money, Mr. Tremain was working with him on investing, and someday he was going to be able to give Daisy the world.

A deafening howl shattered the peaceful night and Daisy was on instant alert, her forehead furrowing in dread as she sat up and whipped her head back and forth looking for the source. A chorus of similar howls followed and the hair on his arms stood on end. Sitting up next to her, keeping his voice down, he asked, “What is it?”

“Danger,” she whispered, tightening her hold on his hand as she shrank into his body. “I’ve never heard a wolf howl like that before.”

A sharp yelp followed by a heavy thud startled him and he knew without a shadow of doubt that Isis had found him, that he had brought danger to Daisy’s family. After a second yelp and then a third yelp followed by heavy thuds, he was sick with guilt and fury and absolute fear. He knew better than to let his guard down but it had been so peaceful. In the back of his mind, he figured Isis no longer needed him because he wasn’t what she wanted any longer. He should have known better. Thank the gods the little ones were still being kept close to the house.

“Dominic,” she breathed. In the next moment, Daisy had released his hand and was racing into the dense woods, trying to reach her fallen sibling. It would have to be Dominic. The wolf insisted on being allowed to patrol because he had a mate to protect and he was done being a fuck up. Roman should have insisted all of the Tremain children stay close to the house.

“Daisy!” he cried out. With no other choice, he took off after her, finding her a few seconds later on the ground next to a motionless wolf. Afraid of what he might find, he approached slowly, “Is he okay?”

She looked over her shoulder, tears shimmering in her eyes as she shook her head, “I don’t know.”

Running his tongue over his lip, afraid of the answer, he asked, “Who is it?”

“It’s Dominic,” she choked out, turning her attention back to her brother, running her fingers through his thick fur. “He isn’t changing back. If he was de… dead, he’d change back.”

“That’s good then, right?” he asked, kneeling on the ground next to them.

“I don’t know,” she cried again. “He’s not moving.”

Slowly, he placed his hand on Dominic’s throat and felt the slow, steady rhythm of a heartbeat. “I think he’s just asleep.”

“Then why isn’t he changing?” she asked, her voice wavering as she became frantic. She looked up at him with shiny, silver eyes and asked, “Can you find the others and bring them to the house?”

“I’m not going to leave you alone, Daisy. That’s just not going to happen,” he said, scanning the area, his heart racing madly in his chest. His fingers tingled but he ignored it, figuring it was the adrenaline pumping through his body.

“Please,” she begged, sliding her arms beneath the wolf’s shoulders and trying to drag him back to the house on her own. “Please, Roman.”

Pushing her aside, he grabbed the inert wolf and threw him over his shoulder, grunting at the weight. As a gargoyle, he should have had no problem carrying the large wolf but he was struggling carrying Dominic. His muscles trembled as he hefted the heavy weight a little higher to get a better grip. Panting with the exertion, he said, “I’ll carry Dominic back but you’re not going to leave my side until we’re back in the house. I’ll get the others when I know you’re safe.”

Tears filled her eyes but she gave him a single nod. Keeping a hand on Dominic’s back, she kept up a steady stream of words, at once begging her brother to be okay and threatening to spill all of his secrets if he didn’t wake up. As soon as the house was in sight, she choked on a sob and Roman wanted to toss down the wolf and gather her up in his arms. It took all of his strength and the knowledge that she would be furious if he dropped her brother to push on. “We’re almost there, Daisy.”

When she didn’t answer, he spun around and discovered she wasn’t there. No longer worried about the wolf, he dropped Dominic to the ground and ran back the way he came. She had never taken her hand off him so how did she vanish without him even realizing it? “Daisy!”

As he ran heedlessly into the woods, he was peripherally aware of Isis’s soft, mocking laughter coming from all around him but he ignored it in his desperation to find Daisy. Branches ripped across his face, vines tripped him up and made him stumble, and still he kept running without having a clue as to where he was going. All he knew was he had to get to Daisy, he had to find Daisy. But he was having difficulty catching his breath. His lungs were too tight and oxygen wasn’t getting to his muscles. Blood wasn’t pumping fast enough through his veins. 

Crashing into a clearing, he froze, his heavy panting the only sound that reached his pounding head. Isis sat upon a jeweled throne in all of her magnificence, from her intricately braided hair and heavily lined eyes to her dress made with gold material and gold thread to her golden sandals. Her bronze skin gleamed in the moonlight as a blood red smile curved her full lips. “Romulus.”

Bending over at his waist, resting his hands on his knees, he tried to catch his breath while never taking his eyes off the evil bitch. After an eternity of panting heavily, he managed a ragged, “Isis.”

Her smile grew as she nodded her head in acknowledgement of his greeting which wasn’t a greeting. If he wasn’t struggling to suck air into his lungs, he would lunge across the clearing and wrap his hands around her throat until she gave Daisy back. “It has been too long, my dear Romulus.”

“Not long enough,” he panted, straightening his spine and facing her with squared shoulders even though he was still struggling to breathe through the fear that was suffocating him. “Where is she? Where’s Daisy?”

“Always so impatient,” Isis tsked, waving her hand. And suddenly Roman found himself standing in the midst of Egyptian splendor. Several large statues of Anubis lined the gilded walls, his wolf’s head and human body increasing the urgency to find Daisy. It was breathtaking and overwhelming and frustrating because while the room was large, there was nowhere for Daisy to be hidden.

“Where is she?” he ground out, knowing that Isis could kill him before he could get too close.

“She’s safe, Romulus,” Isis said with her secretive smile, her black eyes dancing with amusement. “Silly gargoyle, I never wanted the wolf, I wanted you. I’ve always wanted you.”

“You have me,” he managed to say through clenched teeth, his eyes darting around the room in the hopes of seeing Daisy, knowing he wasn’t going to see her until Isis allowed it. “Let her go.”

“We have much to discuss, you and I,” Isis said, ignoring his frantic pleas. Waving her hand, another chair appeared, a gold and jeweled monstrosity that was still not as impressive as her throne. “Sit and we shall discuss terms.”

“There are no terms,” he countered, slowly easing himself onto the hard seat. “You have me, let her go.”

“I am disappointed in you, Romulus,” she said sorrowfully, shaking her head and watching him with fathomless eyes. “You were supposed to offer her to me for a trade and yet here you are ready to sacrifice everything you’ve worked for just to free the little wolf. I wouldn’t have taken her, of course, but I was looking forward to… negotiations.”

Cocking his head to the side, he studied the goddess, her words echoing in his head, mocking him as a fool. “You know about Daisy.”

“Of course I did, you fool,” she scoffed, huffing out a sound that indicated her annoyance with him. “Who do you think arranged everything?”

“But….” Words failed him as he struggled to understand the last ten years of his life. The last two thousand. “Why?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” she asked, widening her eyes as if the world made sense. But it didn’t make sense because Isis had Daisy and yet apparently she had never wanted Daisy. “She’s your other half.”

“I brought this on her and her family,” he breathed, anguished at the thought of causing her harm.

“It’s not your fault, you know,” Isis murmured, sympathy in her melodious voice. “You were chosen before you were even born. It’s why you were born. And what you have is not so easily exchanged. In fact, it’s impossible.”

Pressing his lips together, he refused to ask the question she wanted him to ask, knowing she’d tell him anyways. Heaving a sigh, she didn’t disappoint as she explained, “You are the last piece of Osiris. Or rather, the last piece of Osiris is within you. I needed to… unlock it and that’s where your Daisy came in.”

Her words pierced through him and he clutched his chest as if they had left a physical wound. His eyes darted around the opulent room once again but there was still no Daisy. Speaking as if she hadn’t just shattered him, Isis continued, “In addition to a gargoyle’s… strength I needed a loving gargoyle’s heart to bring my Beloved back. Only love could release his heart; only love could bring him back to me. But how were you to fall in love if you were frozen the entire time? I found your other half and brought her to you. It is unfortunate that your fated mate waited so long to be born but that is life, is it not?”

It was his death. In a harsh whisper, he asked, “What’s going to happen to Daisy?”

She closed her eyes as if she could divine the future…. Maybe she could but he didn’t know and at that moment he didn’t particularly care, unless she told him Daisy would be alright. Her delicate brow furrowed as she slowly shook her head, “Strange. I cannot see her path.”

His heart stopped in his chest and when it started beating, anguish rushed through his veins, “Is she dead?”

“Goodness no,” Isis said, opening her eyes and forcing a smile to her cruel lips. “She’s no good to me dead… or haven’t you been paying attention? I don’t need your broken and bleeding heart, Romulus, I need your
loving
heart. Unless, of course, you refuse to cooperate but that isn’t going to happen, is it Romulus? You’d give up your life to keep her safe.” She smiled to herself as she added, “But you don’t have to give up your life, just your heart.”

“My loving heart,” he sneered, his stomach clenching. Would he be able to see Daisy one last time, tell her he loved her and tell her to live well and to be happy?

“Well, yes. It’s the most important part of a body.” Isis said it like it was so obvious but it wasn’t. His heart was his own even if it beat for Daisy. It didn’t belong to a long dead Egyptian god; it was
his,
damn it. “You can feel it separating from you, can’t you?”

“No,” he denied, pressing his hand against his chest as his heart thumped against his palm. Blood was pounding in his head and he couldn’t think, couldn’t concentrate. Sweat beaded along his brow and he wiped it off with the back of his arm, trying to decide whether that twinge he just felt was his heart trying to escape his body or if he was letting the power of persuasion influence him. He was frozen with uncertainty.

“It’s already too late for you,” Isis murmured and he felt that truth deep within his soul. It was too late. Isis shook her head in disappointment once again, suddenly standing right in front of him. Her long, elegant fingers traced a drop of moisture as it ran along his cheek, his throat. Her hand came to a rest over his pounding heart and she looked at him with those black eyes. “You’ve barely had a life to mourn over, Romulus. Don’t fight this and let me have my Beloved back with little fuss.

Her fingernails dug into his chest as if she was going to rip his heart out with her bare hands and he flinched backwards. If she killed him now, he’d never see Daisy again. Wrapping his hand around her slender wrist, he panicked and swore he could feel his heart tearing itself out of his chest. He kept sucking in breaths but there was no oxygen reaching his lungs and spots were starting to dance before his eyes. He was immobilized by the fear of never seeing Daisy again and there was nothing he could do about it as Isis held him in her black gaze.