Spirals
Chapter Nine: Unwanted Pursuit
***
Elisa Maza leaned up against the elevator wall on her way up to the castle. The last four days had been exciting, what with Brooklyn and Layne returning. However, Xanatos had begun acting suspicious. Well, more than usual.
She found Brooklyn, Layne, and Hudson in the entertainment room, watching TV. Bronx lay beside Hudson's recliner and Leviatha was curled up in Layne's lap.
"Hey guys," Elisa greeted. "Have you seen Goliath?"
Without turning his attention from the television, Brooklyn replied, "He went out on patrol, he should be back in a few hours."
Elisa sighed. "I have time to wait. Have you found out what Xanatos is up to?"
Layne smacked her forehead. "Oye! I forgot. I had a meeting with Xanatos tonight." She patted Brooklyn's thigh and stood up. Leviatha jumped down off her lap and sat on Brooklyn's foot.
After a second, Brooklyn got up as well. "Wait, hun. I'll come with you, just in case."
"Me, too," Elisa said. They said goodbye to Hudson and headed for Xanatos' office. Layne knocked and Owen opened the door.
"Mr. Xanatos is expecting you," he said.
David Xanatos sat behind his desk, his hands resting in his lap. "You're late," he told her.
"Sorry," Layne replied, adding extra attitude to her voice.
"Tardiness does not become a Xanatos Enterprises employee."
Layne rolled her eyes. "I don't work for you."
"You do now," he smiled and pushed a paper towards her. "Or rather, you will, after you sign this contract, Miss Laine."
Layne was speechless, as were her companions. Layne finally managed to say, "A job? Wha-why?"
"Think of it as a way to repay me. I could use someone with your unique talents. I'm a collector of rare items, and many of them have magical abilities. I need someone like you, who can help me research and experiment with these items."
Elisa stepped forward. "So you want her to help with your little schemes, is that it?"
Xanatos pulled a pen out of the holder on his desk and handed it to Layne. "Detective, when will you believe that I've given up my old ways? I'm not going to use anything against you or the clan. Some of the objects may be beneficial, and we can use them for good. Anything we find dangerous can be safely locked away."
Elisa crossed her hands over her chest and glared at Xanatos. Layne had taken opportunity of the interruption to read over the paper. She took the pen and signed on the bottom of the page.
Xanatos smiled. "You made the right choice, Layne. Come back tomorrow night and we can work out a schedule that won't interfere with your patrols." Layne turned away and he continued, "I was going to hire you anyway, after you had quit your job at Nightstone, but you up and disappeared on me."
Layne smirked. "I'll see you tomorrow night, boss."
Outside the office, Brooklyn finally spoke. In a calm voice, he asked, "What the hell were you thinking?"
Layne took his hand. "Brooklyn, I know how you feel, but you have to trust me."
"Of course, I trust you with my life. It's Xanatos I don't trust."
"I agree with him, Layne," Elisa added. "He's always got an ulterior motive. I don't trust him."
"I can handle it, Elisa."
"That's what Derek said."
Layne sighed and lowered her eyes. "I'm sorry Elisa. But I know what I'm doing. I may not have been around during his 'villain' days, but we both know he has changed." She could see that she wasn't convincing them, so she tried another strategy. "What's he gonna do, with the entire clan breathing down his neck? I can keep an eye on him, and maybe we can find something we can use against our enemies.
"Besides, I want to do this. This is the perfect opportunity for me. It's all I've wanted to do. I get to research and experiment with magic. I enjoy it and I'm good at it. I have to do this, to ease my conscience for all he's done." I don't need her coming back to bug me, she added mentally.
Elisa took a second to respond. "I guess if you're so excited about it. Are you sure we can't talk you out of this?"
"Would you rather Puck, or Xanatos himself do the experiments?"
Elisa shuddered at the thought. "Okay, you sold me."
Brooklyn whispered something into Layne's ear and her smiled widened. Elisa just shook her head. "I think I'll go wait with Hudson."
Once the detective was gone, Brooklyn swept Layne into a hug. "Let's celebrate!"
Layne closed her eyes and the castle hallway disappeared in a flash of light. When Brooklyn opened his eyes, they were in Layne's bedroom.
"Neat trick," he commented. Layne twirled him around the room until they fell onto the bed, a tangle of various limbs.
***
Kevin paced up and down the deserted coastline. They'd finally made it to Manhattan, but the trio had no idea where to find their Goddess. They had failed to get decent transportation, and had to glide the entire way here. Crystal was amazed by the huge city, and wanted to get out to see it. Eros couldn't keep still, his tail kept twitching with anticipation.
Kevin, on the other hand, wanted nothing more than to ignore the whole situation. He kicked a stone down the beach and wondered how his brother could hate him so much, sending him away like this.
"Hey, Kevin!" Eros yelled. Kevin looked back at the handsome gargoyle and scowled.
"What?" he yelled back.
"We're going out to search."
Kevin mumbled something Eros couldn't understand as he walked back to the cave. "I'd rather stay here. To hold the fort or whatever."
Eros looked like he couldn't decide whether he should smile or frown. "This place is very secure, no human could reach it. You don't have to stay."
"Who's in charge here?"
If there hadn't been so much tension in the air, the scene would have been funny. Kevin barely reached Eros' chin, and he stood there with his fists on his hips telling him what to do. Kevin wore his usual khaki shorts and green vest he'd stolen a few years back, and his black hair was a mess. Kevin hated Eros, as far back as he could remember they'd been at each other's throats.
Eros smirked. "Fine, Leader, stay. You'd probably just get in the way anyhow. Come on, Crystal."
The albino followed Eros up the cliff. She looked down at Kevin with disappointment, but he was already heading down the beach again.
***
Brooklyn admired the skyline, even though it was cold and overcast, he couldn't help but smile. There's no way he could feel bad after the last few hours. He looked over his shoulder at his mate.
Layne smiled back. She knew how he felt; the night was perfect, if not weather wise, then event wise. Nothing could go wrong.
That's when all Hell broke loose.
Something hit Brooklyn from above. Layne gasped as she, too, was knocked off course. Someone grabbed her and pinned her arms behind her.
"Please don't fight, Goddess," a soft voice said into her ear.
"Crystal! What are you doing? Let me go!" Layne screamed. She leaned forward suddenly and tossed her captor over her head. Layne dove towards Brooklyn and Eros, fighting on a nearby rooftop.
It was obvious that Brooklyn had taken most of the impact, and that Eros was taking advantage of it. The tan gargoyle punched rapidly, but most were being blocked. Brooklyn tried to trip him with his tail, but Eros jumped and landed a solid kick to his chest.
Before Eros could land another punch, a silver blast came out of nowhere and hit his arm, sending him spinning. He roared and prepared to attack his new opponent. When he saw Layne standing in front of Brooklyn, her eyes glowing a hateful crimson, he stopped dead in his tracks.
"My Goddess!" he exclaimed. He began to approach her with open arms. An orb of energy appeared in her hand and she threw it at his feet, leaving a small crater in the roof.
"Go home," she said through gritted teeth. Crystal landed beside Eros, looking nervously at the silver light in Layne's hand.
"Perhaps we should," Crystal whispered, grabbing hold of Eros' arm.
"No!" he yelled. "We came here to get our Goddess back, and we will."
Brooklyn moaned and attempted to stand. "Friends of yours?" he asked.
Layne reabsorbed her magic and backed up to help her mate. "Not really," she replied.
Brooklyn narrowed his eyes at the unfamiliar gargoyles. "You're from the New Jersey clan, aren't you? Why can't you just leave us alone?"
Eros narrowed his eyes as well. "You have something that belongs to me, and I want her back!" He leapt forward and took them by surprise. He grabbed Layne's arm and shoved Brooklyn into an air conditioning unit. There was a loud crack as he hit the metal headfirst.
"Brooklyn!" Layne tried to pull away from Eros, but his grip was too tight. She turned to swipe her talons across his face, but that ended up getting her other hand pinned.
"Now, my Goddess, we will pick up where we left off." He bent down and kissed her. Layne's eyes flared. She no longer felt the carnal passion she once had, only a sickening feeling in the pit of her stomach. She was unable to squirm away from him, so she brought her knee up forcefully.
Eros yelped and fell to his knees, letting Layne go. Layne stepped back, reveling in his pain a second before rushing to her injured mate. Crystal was at her friend's side immediately.
Layne knelt beside Brooklyn. "Are you alright?"
"Better than he is." Brooklyn's snow-white hair now had bright red streaks. His eyes darted from Eros and Crystal to Layne before closing. Layne checked his pulse, then checked the others. Eros wasn't going anywhere and Crystal was too busy comforting him to notice them leaving.
Eros looked up at the exact moment Layne launched herself off the rooftop, carrying Brooklyn in her arms. He tried, unsuccessfully, to follow. "Wait!" he called out, his voice a few octaves higher than normal. "This isn't over, my Goddess!"
***
By the time Layne got back to the castle she was very tired, her arms and wings ached. She landed ungracefully in the courtyard and cried out for help. Within moments, Hudson and Bronx were at her side.
"Lass, what happened?"
"We were attacked by two gargoyles from New Jersey." Layne looked up to see the rest of the clan standing around her.
"They've come to take you back," Goliath stated. Layne nodded as the gargoyle leader picked up Brooklyn and took him inside.
Broadway helped Layne up. "We're not letting them get you," he told her. She tried to smile as she followed Goliath inside.
Angela walked beside Layne. "Are you alright?" she asked.
"Yes, I wasn't hurt," Layne replied.
"I didn't ask if you were hurt, I asked if you were alright."
Layne remained silent as Goliath set Brooklyn down on the couch in the entertainment room. She sat down and set his head on her lap, running her fingers through his hair.
"There's only an hour and a half until sunrise," Lexington said. "He'll make it."
Layne nodded absently. Her face was unreadable, like all the emotion had been drained from her. Angela put her hand on her shoulder. "Come outside with me."
Layne shrugged her hand off. "I want to stay with him."
Angela leaned closer. "The other's will watch him, I need to talk to you."
Layne relented and went outside with Angela.
***
It had gotten colder, a lot colder, but Layne barely felt her feet touch the stones much less the light breeze passing through the towers.
"What did you want to talk about?"
"You. What happened to you? You've changed so much since you left. I have the feeling you aren't telling us everything about your…imprisonment."
Layne turned towards the waning moon. "I thought this was all behind us. I thought that once I left, it would all go away, and I could just forget it all. I should have known they would follow. They were so intent on keeping me there, especially Eros."
"Who's Eros? You never mentioned him."
Layne folded her arms behind her neck. "He's one of the gargoyles that attacked us, him and Crystal. They were the one's I saw the most when they had me locked up. Crystal brought me food, and anything else I needed. Eros…Eros was…"
"Who was he?" Angela asked quietly. She knew she'd hit something.
Layne turned back and looked her in the eyes. "He's the reason I almost stayed."
Angela withheld the urge to gasp and scream at Layne. But chewing out her friend would not be the best thing to do at the moment, and Angela knew that. She just waited patiently as Layne continued.
"I think, that he was assigned to seduce me, or something like that. So that I would want to stay, and forget about Brooklyn and Manhattan." Layne sighed and dug her talons into the stone wall. "And he was so tempting. I almost gave in. For one minute, it was like heaven on earth. But I knew it was wrong, and stopped before he'd gone too far. I was so disgusted with myself I almost threw up on him."
"You should have," Angela chuckled. Layne laughed half-heartedly. "I'm sorry," Angela said. "I can't begin to imagine what that was like. But you have to see that all that guilt is eating you up inside. Brooklyn loves you, he'll forgive you for this, just like you forgave him."
"It's not that simple. Eros is here, out there somewhere. He's not going to stop until he's got me. For goodness' sake, he almost killed Brooklyn tonight. He knows exactly how to get to me, break me down. The only good thing is that he doesn't know where we are. But he won't rest until he's found me, you don’t know what he's capable of. How…driven he is." She wrapped her wings around herself to keep away the cold, but the chills were coming from inside. "I'm scared, Angela. Scared of losing Brooklyn, and scared of what Eros might do if he ever got his hands on me again."
Angela gave her a comforting hug. "Could he…did he rape you?"
Layne looked up at her with tear filled eyes. "No, he didn't. But," she paused and looked down. "He…he tried, when I told him to go away, the night before I left. That's when I knew I had to do something."
"That bastard."
Both females turned to see Brooklyn supporting himself on the doorframe. His head was bandaged and the blood had dried in his hair. Broadway appeared behind him. "I'm sorry, but he insisted on seeing if you were alright."
Layne wiped the tears from her eyes and held her arms out to Brooklyn. Angela gestured for Broadway to follow her inside. They left the two lovers on the tower.
"Brooklyn, I'm so sorry I didn't tell you. I just…felt so guilty. About betraying you."
Brooklyn sat down on the ledge. "I heard what you said to Angela. Most of it anyway. She was right, I forgive you. I don't blame you, I blame him, for what he did. He almost drove us apart, and I'm not letting him do it again. Besides," he touched the side of his head. "I've got a score to settle with him."
***
Eros and Crystal returned to their beachside hideout only to find that Kevin wasn't there. Crystal searched for him while Eros recuperated.
"He's gone," she concluded. "All his stuff, too! We never should have left him here alone."
"Good riddance," Eros hissed. "He was no help."
There was a movement in the shadows of the cave. Crystal thought it might be Kevin, but the shape was wrong. Eros tried to get up, but slumped back down with a cry of pain. "Who's there?" he called out.
A female gargoyle stepped into view. She had blue skin and flame red hair, and wore a tattered white loincloth and halter. She was adorned with various pieces of gold jewelry.
"I am Demona," she said. "Who are you, and what are you doing in my city?"
***
Kevin talked to himself as he climbed up to the roof of the brownstone apartment building.
"What the hell was I thinking leaving home? I never wanted this stupid assignment. I'm going back home and kill Lance for sending me here."
He reached the roof and looked towards the eastern sky. "I hope whoever lives here won't mind me spending the day." He dropped his pack at his feet and bent to pick it up. When he looked up, a woman was standing on the roof. She had dark tan skin and black hair, dressed in jeans and a black t-shirt.
They looked at each other in surprise, and the sun rose a second later.
Elisa circled the stranger. "I should do something about this." She took the bag and went through it. Between what Goliath had just told her, and what was in the bag, Elisa had all the evidence she needed. She just didn't know what to do with it.
***