"A fairy. You know, those supposedly mythical woodland creatures."Kel didn't know what was funnier, Deke thinking Whitney was a fairy or him saying "mythical woodland creatures." "What are you talking about?"Deke sighed. "I guess our parents forgot to tell us something about being a gargoyle."Kel stopped to give him his full attention. Maybe he could move this conversation along if he did. There were kids in danger. One of whom he knew well. "Go ahead.""A long time ago, the fairies and the gargoyles made a treaty. The gargoyles would protect the fairies from goblins."Sounded like a fairy tale, but Kel was a gargoyle so he shouldn't judge. "Go on.""There were elite gargoyles assigned to one single fairy. That fairy is our mate. The person we are destined to be with," Kel said. "Mate? What does this history lesson have to do with Maggie?""Well, Whitney is my fairy. The treaty has never been revoked. It is still alive today, it's just been lost in time. Until we, as gargoyles, fin

Kel longed to take Maggie away from this. Away from a world where kids were kept in a warehouse like some Amazon package waiting for one day delivery. He longed to soothe the worry he knew was etched into her face. He'd never felt about anyone the way he felt about Maggie. It surprised and shocked him how quickly she'd wormed her way into his heart.He couldn't see her, but he could feel her emotion. Was this what Deke was talking about? That they had a connection? Was she his fairy? She probably had no idea she was a fairy. She had no idea the power that she possessed. Maybe he didn't truly know either. He would have to ask his family when this was all over. What didn't they know about their heritage? He'd known from a young age that he was a gargoyle, but so much had been lost over the years. Kel would have to talk to the Foleys and see what he'd been missing. What didn't he know?That was a talk for another day. Focus on the mission. He slowed his heart rate. "You're not scared,"

Herding cats would be easier than trying to get a room of creatives organized.Beth Swanson cringed against the cacophony of the group that was full of ideas, but not as much follow through. That was her job. Her role in this acting troupe was to organize them to raise money to buy this building. Otherwise they would need to find another place to put on plays.She sighed as she raised a hand and her voice over the din. "Can we concentrate?"Several of the people eyed her. Others looked down at the floor recognizing her "nurse" voice. This was why Beth liked Intensive Care Unit for her day job. Most of the patients were quiet. They also usually listened to her because she was the voice of authority. Here, she was just another actor in the group."Go ahead, Beth," someone finally said. "Are you all ready to listen?"There were nods around the room. "You all have great ideas, but we need to hone in on a few really good ones. Otherwise, we will be stretched too thin with manpower and won'

"No.""It's how this world works baby."Beth shoved him away then ran down the hall. She was disoriented and couldn't find the stairs. She found herself outside the first room again. She paused, then poked her head around the corner. Pillar candles sat on the floor in a circle. Something odd was drawn on the concrete. That's when she noticed a person in a dark robe who began chanting. She hoped that wasn't the producer. This was too freaky. From the other side of the room two women barely dressed seemed to chant back to him. Beth decided that she would find another way to give her career a boost and ran out of the basement and the house. ***Trent pulled the door down on the truck after a successful night at Grotesque. The bar was packed up in the vehicle and he would drive it to the garage where they kept it. His bones were tired and he wished he'd spent more time convincing his partners that a brick and mortar place might be less work then unpacking and packing up this place once

Trent had to admit his hand did feel better. Even with using it to eat the food that Beth had finished making. Now he was just tired. It had been a long night and he wanted to crawl into bed. Instead he was babysitting Beth. She'd fed him and with his tummy full, he really could have used some sleep.He was no stranger to being awake for a full day, but it hadn't been since he'd been in the army that he'd done it the last time. His life was pretty simple these days and it mostly revolved around Grotesque. He sat at her breakfast bar because if he was in a comfortable chair he would fall asleep. She'd left to take a shower so he pulled out his phone. There was more real estate to look at for Grotesque and he still had to convince his partner that this was a good idea. He could float them a loan for the down payment. The money was not the issue. The fact that he wanted to take Grotesque in a different direction than they'd previously been going. A brick and mortar store would be more w