Sacrifice (Gryphon Series) by Rourke Stacey

Author:Rourke, Stacey [Rourke, Stacey]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Anchor Group
Published: 2013-03-28T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Alaina and I leaned back and peeked into the living room. Everything appeared normal. Music blared and Mom was dancing with the stripper under obnoxious red lights while Kendall and Grams watched. Okay … maybe normal isn’t the right word. Disturbing, yet on par for the evening, seems more fitting.

Alaina cocked her head to the side. “Uh, Celeste? What’s wrong with your mother’s face?”

I squinted and tried to focus through my Jell-O goggles. My mother’s peaches and cream complexion had been drained chalk white, a bluish hue encircled her formerly rosy lips.

“Why’s she staring at the stripper like that?” I vocalized the ponderings of my inner monologue.

“If I had to guess,” Bernard leaned against his cane and rested one hand on top of the other, “I’d say it’s because without the hindrance of his mirrored glasses your exotic dancing demon has the ability to hypnotize his prey and suck the life out of them using nothing more than the power of his stare.”

I whipped my head around so fast I swayed on my feet ... or maybe that was from the stupid sky-high heels Kendall had crammed on my feet. “He’s killing her?!”

“And yet you’re still standing here talking to me,” Bernard pointed out, then pulled a handful of berries from his satchel and popped them into his mouth.

I kicked off my shoes and ran into the living room just as Grams linked her arms around my mother’s waist and heaved her to the side. The hold of the demon’s glare instantly broke and Mom went limp. Grams eased her to the floor as gently as possible. The demonic stripper emitted a snake-like hiss and tried to fix his gaze on another target—Kendall. She shook her wings free, spun around, and expanded them wide to protect all of us from his stare.

“Whenever you’re ready to step in here, Conduit, by all means go ahead,” Kendall snipped. Sure, she had a point, since I was standing there doing nothing. But still—rude.

I had the makings of an idea—inklings really—and that was about it. “On the count of three, duck.” The way my voice rose at the end made it sound like more of a question than a statement. Which it kind of was.

Kendall jerked her head in a brief nod.

“One.”

Now would be a good time to figure out what you’re gonna do, I thought to myself.

“Two.”

Seriously, I got nothin’ here.

“Three!” Kendall ducked down and I leapt through the air. In a tuck position I managed two complete rotations before I landed hard right on my butt behind the demon. I scrambled to my feet as he spun on me.

Grams waved her hands over her head and screamed, “Don’t look him in the eye and for Pete’s sake don’t trash the house!”

I heeded her warning—that lady can be downright scary if you don’t—and decided to take the fight outside. I put my shoulder down and ran at him like I’d watched Gabe do on the football field more times than I could count.

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