Page 32 of Stone Temptation

I slammed my fist into another window, weeping, blood spilling across the frozen ground.

“I lost you,” I whimpered. “I lost you because I lose everything.”

Cold creeping in. Lights going out. Endless darkness encroaching.

Goodbye to sunshine…

“Luke…”

Snaky?

“Luke Garland. Give in to me.”

A hiss, the crashing of waves, winter’s cold kiss on my face.

Hot breath, too.

Hold on one damn second!

I came to on my back, head pounding, Snaky’s face above me.

“Hello. Shall we save Finn together?”

My fury burst like a million overfilled helium balloons. She’d said his name again, crossing the line for the final time. I grabbed her face, my hand the face-hugger from Alien.

The gargoyle magic burned her, a burst of force sending her flying into the lighthouse wall. Double dose time, my home rippling with green energy the moment she hit the white paint.

“Luke!” she roared before vanishing in a burst of green dust.

“Fuck. Off.”

I stayed on my back, reeling from the second vision and everything else. Roasting with stress heat, eyes leaking beyond control.

“I’m sorry, Finn,” I said to the dark sky. “I’m so, so sorry.”

I broke down completely, sobbing on the ground for a good ten minutes before I finally found the strength to get up, shove my key in the door, fire off a text to Tom, and pass out on the sofa.

SEVEN

Luke

Iwoke to high-pitched ringing.

My poor head.

I rubbed my eyes, everything hurting like a hangover.

The ringing stopped.

“What happened?” I wondered aloud.

Had I been drinking, haunted by alcohol-induced dreams? No. I still had my uniform on, and my neck throbbed with the memory of Seth’s attack. And I never drank to the point of blackout. Not anymore.

Which meant Seth did know about my invisibility and wanted me to steal a ring from the London gargoyle tower.

Damn. It.

The shrill ringing started up again. My phone. That had been the sound.