Page 18 of Seduced by Moonlight (Gargoyles of San DeLain #1)

WARD SENSED the disturbance in the wards like a ripple through still water. The moment the assault registered in his mind, he alerted his council and then soared into the sky.

The air rushed past him, cool and biting, but his focus was unwavering. Deep in his heart, an unshakeable certainty took root—someone had ambushed Kayden and his crew as they left his territory.

In his gargoyle form, Ward descended from the sky.

His fears were a reality. The signs were unmistakable: Scattered debris lay around Kayden’s truck and one other. The air was thick with smoke, and the once peaceful surroundings were in turmoil.

Kayden stood amid the swirling chaos, facing off with several adversaries. His muscles tensed as he moved with agility and precision, each motion a calculated effort to fend off the oncoming attackers.

Despite being outnumbered, his determination burned fiercely, his eyes sharp and focused, never wavering from the task at hand. Ward had never seen anything as beautifully terrifying.

He dropped from the sky in a swift, powerful motion, landing with a solid thud in front of Kayden. The ground trembled slightly as he settled, his massive form a barrier against the dark magic swirling around them.

His massive wings flared out, shielding Kayden from the onslaught of spells and whatever else the witches might conjure. “Kayden? Get everyone behind the wards! I’ll cover you.”

Kayden didn’t say a word, just staggered to Mika, who was helping Lance, and together they limped over to reach Matt.

Marianna and one other witch were the only ones remaining. Kayden had single-handedly caused significant destruction, leaving Ward thoroughly impressed.

Marianna unleashed a spiral of black lightning toward Kayden and his friends. Muttering a spell under his breath, Ward knocked aside the bolt of black magic that flew toward them as they hurried for the protective barriers.

From the corner of his eye, he saw Lance, his face ashen and smeared with both blood and dirt, leaning heavily on Mika. Matt had ahold of Kayden, who cast a worried glance back over his shoulder.

“Keep moving!” Ward bellowed, his voice thunderous amidst the pandemonium.

Marianna, with a chilling calmness, began chanting, her words twisting in the air like serpents. The dark energies swirled around her, intensifying into a dense orb that pulsed ominously.

Ward tried to counter the spell but missed. He roared as that ball of magic slammed into the wards just after Kayden and his friends passed through.

The energy burst apart, sending ripples through the air and casting an iridescent glow over the surroundings. Relief washed over Ward. They were safe, and the wards held. Ward turned his attention to Marianna and the remaining witch.

Marianna growled, then flung her hands outward, sending a wave of crackling energy at Ward. Then the ground beneath his feet shuddered as tiny pebbles danced into the air as if plucked by invisible fingers.

Ward dodged sideways, the energy missing him by inches and scorching the earth where he had stood moments before. He’d had enough of this. His red eyes glowed ominously.

He turned his deadly gaze onto Marianna… just as she stepped into a swirling portal of shimmering light. The surrounding air crackled with energy as the portal closed, leaving behind only a faint, lingering shimmer in the space where she had stood moments before.

“ No !” screamed the other witch.

Turning toward her, Ward channeled all the fear and anger over Kayden being attacked into the one ability that every paranormal feared. He met her gaze. That was her first mistake.

It would be her last.

Beginning at her feet, the transformation process began, a slow yet relentless metamorphosis. The lower part of her dress lay in tatters, revealing her skin as it shifted to a dull, ashen gray, reminiscent of cold, unyielding stone.

The stony texture spread rapidly, overtaking her body with the urgency of an aggressive infection, leaving behind a trail of hardened skin in its wake.

Her screams echoed in the charged air as she desperately tried to cast any spell that might save her. But it was no use. The transformation was not just physical but magical in its roots, stripping her of any ability to manipulate the spell Ward cast.

Her arms, raised defensively, were now frozen in place, gray and lifeless. A permanent expression of shock and fear was etched into her stone face.

Ward allowed himself to relax slightly, watching as the transformation completed itself with a sinister finality. The witch was now nothing more than a life-size statue, her last moment immortalized in cold stone.

The silence that followed was fraught with tension. Ward slowly turned back to where Kayden and his crew huddled behind the protective wards.

“Is everyone all right?” Ward asked as he approached. He surveyed them. Lance still leaned heavily on Mika, looking paler than before but alive.

“We’re, ah, okay,” Mika assured him, refusing to meet Ward’s gaze. “Lance just needs to shift.”

“Then please, Lance, do what you need to do,” Ward said. Of course he noticed how no one in Kayden’s crew would meet his gaze now.

“I, ah, I—”

“Just do it, Lance. You’ve never had a problem stripping before,” Kayden snapped, swiping at the blood on his face.

“I’ve never seen someone turned to stone before, so excuse me if I was a little fucking distracted, asshole!” Lance growled at Kayden.

“Bite me! And stop yelling. My head is killing me!”

“Fuck, fuck, I’m sorry. Right, shifting now.” Lance wrung his hands. “And someone needs to attend to Kayden too.”

“I’m fine.”

“The hell you—”

“That’s enough from the both of you,” Mika said. “Lance? Shift. Kayden? Sit down before you fall down. You probably have a concussion. Plus, you used a lot of power back there.”

Concern radiated through Ward. Was Kayden injured? Was he in pain, suffering in silence? “You will see Celine. She’s a skilled healer, and she’ll know exactly what to do.”

“Look—”

“Please?” Ward’s voice trembled slightly.

At least Kayden had the courage to meet his gaze. His eyes were steady and unflinching, filled with a quiet intensity as Ward scrutinized him from head to toe. Kayden’s expression was resolute, his posture confident, as if daring Ward to find something lacking.

Everyone held their breath, and the moment stretched taut between them, charged with an unspoken… something.

“She can help with anything else you might need,” Ward said. “Just tell me. I’ll make sure you get it.”

“Really, I’m fine. I just need to—” Kayden rasped, blood still trickling from his temple. He wavered on his feet slightly. “Shit. Might have spoken too soon. I, ah, need to…. Shit. I’m going down.”

A surge of terror, more intense than anything Ward had experienced in years, coursed through his veins. His heart pounded violently in his chest as he propelled himself forward with a burst of adrenaline.

He caught Kayden just in time, pulling him into the safety of his arms. Terror might course through his veins, but nothing in his entire life had felt as right as holding this man close.

Holding him steady, Ward noticed the blood dripping down Kayden’s face. “No, you’re not fine.”

While Lance shifted, contorting and twisting with a series of bone-jarring snaps that echoed in the stale air, Ward assessed Kayden’s injuries more thoroughly.

“We need to get him back to the castle. Now,” Ward declared, lifting Kayden effortlessly, as though he were no heavier than a child. The urgency in his voice spurred the others into action.

“Holy shit, he’s a fucking white tiger,” Tank said as he elbowed his way to where Ward stood.

“And I swear he’s trying to use all his nine lives as fast as he can,” Mika mumbled as he helped Lance, who now stood on trembling legs in his tiger form.

Lance head-butted Mika, nearly knocking him off his feet.

“Jerk,” Mika said affectionately as he rubbed Lance’s ear.

Lance yawned, exposing his huge pearly white canines.

“Ward, I’ll guide everyone back. You take care of Kayden,” Tank said, eyeing Ward.

Luna stepped up next to Tank. “Emmett, Scarlett, and I will clean up here. What do you want to do with the, ah, new statue?”

“Destroy it.”

Mika sucked in a breath but said nothing.

“Yes, Sire,” Luna said.

Nodding, Ward sprinted through the dark forest paths, Kayden’s head slumped against his shoulder. The rhythmic pounding of Ward’s feet on the leaf-strewn floor mixed with Kayden’s breaths.

He considered taking to the air, which would’ve been much quicker, but he was terrified that Kayden might wake up mid-flight and be frightened. That was the last thing he wanted.

Blood trickled slowly from the gash on Kayden’s head, as though it was clotting. Ward knew that head injuries often bled profusely, yet the sight of Kayden’s blood stirred something primal within him.

A darker instinct urged Ward to hide Kayden in a cave and keep watch at the entrance, ensuring no one got near him. And Kayden would probably toss his ass clear across the country if he did such a thing.

Tank must’ve called ahead because as soon as Ward arrived at the castle, Celine met them in the grand hall, her face etched with lines of concern. She guided them to the infirmary, her calmness helping to soothe the more beastly part of Ward.

“Let me look at him,” she whispered. “Put him on the gurney.”

When he had Kayden settled, Celine ran her hands right above Kayden’s body. They glowed faintly with a golden light as she probed for damage. She sucked in her breath when she got to his head.

Ward watched, helpless and tense, as Celine worked her healing magic. Minutes stretched into what seemed like hours.

Finally, Celine stepped back and sighed. “It’s not as serious as it looks,” Celine said quietly.

She left long enough to get a basin of shimmering liquid that she used to clean Kayden’s face and neck.

“Thank the gods above and below,” Ward said. He didn’t mention how his fingers itched to be the one cleaning Kayden.

“But it is serious enough, Ward. He’s exhausted. He had a pretty severe concussion. It took a lot to stabilize him.”

“He’s going to be okay, right?” Ward wouldn’t accept anything else.

“Yes, he will be. Are you okay too?”

“I’m fine. Are you sure he’s okay?”

Celine met Ward’s gaze. “He will be, but he needs rest and time. The brain is a tricky organ. And also? I don’t know a lot about his kind of ability, but he has all the symptoms of exhaustion.”

Ward balled his hands into fists at his sides. Rage and frustration bore down on him like a physical weight. Kayden had to take on those witches by himself. He’d handled it, but… but Ward should’ve been there to help.

Which was just ridiculous because Ward had no clue they would launch an attack, let alone use Kayden and his team exiting the wards as a tactic to infiltrate.

Marianna’s escape gnawed at him like an insistent itch he couldn’t scratch. It was the second time she’d slipped through his fingers. There had to be a way to prevent her from conjuring that damn portal and vanishing. The thought of her disappearing again left a bitter taste in his mouth.

“I would really like to keep him here overnight. You need to go soon too. It’s almost your rest time,” Celine said, touching his forearm briefly.

“Well, he can’t very well say no right now, now can he? And I won’t have a choice about resting either.” Ward glanced at the window. He could literally feel the sun getting ready to rise.

“I know. Thank the goddess you got him back quickly. Tank also called me on my way up here. They’re back, along with Kayden’s crew. He talked everybody into staying here for the day.”

“That’s good. That’s good to know.”

“The housekeeper is getting everyone settled. It’s okay, Ward. I’ll keep an eye on Kayden myself.”

“Thank you, Celine. I appreciate you.”

Taking a deep breath, he moved nearer to the gurney where Kayden lay. With a tender touch, he delicately ran his fingers through Kayden’s hair, feeling the strands slip between his fingers like threads of fine silk. Except where there was blood. That made him want to roar.

Kayden leaned into the gentle caress, his cheek pressing softly against Ward’s palm, and in that tender moment, an overwhelming certainty washed over him—he was completely and utterly captivated.

And he shouldn’t be touching Kayden without permission, so he stopped even though it hurt him.

He hurried from the room and headed for the stairwell that led to the castle’s rooftop. The witches had delivered a major blow tonight, forcing him to reveal the one power all paranormals dreaded—the power to turn someone into stone.

How would Kayden react now that he had confirmation of that ability?

Right before the first light of dawn painted the sky in hues of pink and gold, Ward arrived at his favorite spot. The horizon glowed softly, and as the sun’s rays gently caressed the landscape, a profound stillness overcame him.

In that tranquil moment, his body hardened and shifted, transforming into unyielding stone.