Rocked by Love (Gargoyles, #4)(17)
A few moments later, she passed him a steaming mug of dark liquid, grabbed her own breakfast, and headed for the office. “Come on,” she called over her shoulder. “This is a working brunch. We’ll eat in here.”
“I am unfamiliar with that term. ‘Brunch.’ Is it more of your Yiddish?” Dag settled in the cat’s chair once again and sniffed his coffee before taking a sip. Kylie decided to interpret his ensuing grunt as approval, given that he went right back for more.
She had to laugh at his question. “No, brunch is about as Waspy as you can get. It just means a meal you eat sometime between breakfast and lunch, instead of having either of those individually.” She took a bite of bagel and chewed while she eyed him. “You know, no offense or anything, but being a Guardian sounds like a pretty crappy job if you spend most of your existence encased in stone and never get to experience things like brunch and bagels.”
Dag shrugged, eyeing his cream-cheese-topped food with obvious suspicion. “We are not encased in stone, as you say. We become the stone. And it is the reason for my existence. If I am not a Guardian, I am nothing.”
She scowled. “That seems kinda harsh.”
“It is the truth. Guardians are neither made nor born. We enter into this world fully formed, and only because we are needed to fight against the Darkness.”
Finally giving in to the inevitable, Dag crunched into the chewy baked dough and grunted even louder than he had over the coffee. He eyed the treat again, this time with a great deal more respect. And greed.
Kylie’s expression transformed into a grin. “Told you,” she said before turning her attention to her computer monitor. Specifically, the one in the center. Her right foot began to jiggle with energy. “Okay, time to nut up or shut up.”
She got a feeling that comment only sailed by because Dag’s mouth was full, but she was already tapping away at her keyboard and picking up the thread of her months’-long correspondence with last night’s no-showing informant. So far, he provided her most likely foot in the door to the world Wynn had described to her last night.
She looked up briefly when Dag spoke again, just long enough to notice that not even a crumb remained of his first foray into bagel nirvana.
“We have not yet discussed how we will proceed,” he said, his serious expression somewhat marred by the glob of white cream cheese clinging to the corner of his lips.
Kylie bit back her smile. “You don’t think so? Then what do you call that marathon video chat we had last night? A sewing bee? We went through this with Wynn and Knox. The rest of those guys are going to concentrate their efforts on locating the remaining Guardians and any surviving Wardens they can find. I am—I mean, we are—going to take over the search for the Hierophant. I can search in ways the others just don’t have the skill set for.”
He glowered at her. You know, some more. “I remember what was discussed a few hours ago, human. I referred to the fact that the other Guardian and Warden expect the two of us to work together, and we have yet to strategize between ourselves.” He leaned back in his chair with his coffee in hand, his face somehow managing an expression of both stoicism and smugness at the same time. Impressive.
“I must wait until nightfall before I fly over the city,” he continued, “to minimize the chances that I will be seen, but while the sun yet shines I can begin to search for any trail the nocturnis have left around the city. It may take quite some time, and I will expect you to stay close to me and follow my orders. You may still be in danger after the attack on you yesterday.”
Kylie stared at him while he spoke, her brows gradually furrowing and her head tilting farther and farther to the side until her ear nearly brushed her shoulder. “It’s like you actually think you’re going to run the show here. That’s so cute.”
“Cute.” Dag’s features curled around the word as if it tasted putrid. “Female, your unthinking tongue will get you into much trouble one day. I am a Guardian. I have existed to fight this evil for more than a thousand years. I do not merely believe I will direct our actions, I know it. I will ensure it. You may have a human disregard for your own safety, but I am sworn to protect your race, and I will do this whether you like it or not.”
She waved a hand in his direction and turned back to her keyboard. “Nice speech, Goliath, but in the present circumstances, I am way better equipped to find out what we need to know than you are. You think wandering aimlessly around the city is going to get you anywhere? Yeah, maybe in a couple decades or so. I bet you cash money I can put us on the trail of these nocturnal guys in less than an hour. How much you want to bet?”
“Nocturnis. You cannot even remember their name, and yet you think to defeat them by yourself? This makes your wager not only foolish but unwinnable.”
“I never said anything about beating them up with one hand tied behind my back. I’m wily, not suicidal. I plan to stay as far away from Demons and demonic minions as I can during this whole shebang. But when it comes to finding things out, I’ve got the mad skills. I can locate these losers way faster than you can, that’s all I’m saying. I’ll point the can of whoopass, but you and the other winged warrior types can take care of opening it and spreading it around. Happy?”
Dag growled, his fingers tightening on his coffee mug until she heard the heavy stoneware begin to crack. He must have heard it too, because he abruptly set the cup down and rose to pace around the room. “Why can you not speak like a normal human? First you use your secret language, and then you insist on using words and phrases of nonsense. Even though I understand the words, your use of them together makes no sense. You deliberately attempt to obfuscate the truth with your utterings.”