When a Gargoyle Lives (Gargoyles Book 2) Read Online Free

to take Bob for a walk.
    She supposed she could have just called Kevin herself on the house phone, but her uncle would find out, and she didn’t want to upset him too much.  Dinner was one thing.  Running up his phone bill was another.  Damnit – why did she have to be such a good girl?!
    Brenda pulled her coat around her and set out at a brisk pace.
    Her mom died when she was a baby, and her dad, deciding he wasn’t cut out to be a single parent, bailed.  She was raised by her grandma with the help of Uncle Chris.
    They all used to live in Portland.  She lived with her grandma, and Chris came over to help out as often as he could.  He was working as a homicide detective.  But six years ago when her grandma’s arthritis worsened, she decided to move to Phoenix, to live near her sister.  Which meant taking Brenda with her.  Uncle Chris visited as often as he could, but they grew apart as she got older.
    But, over summer, her grandma suffered a heart attack, and she was currently in assisted living.  So they decided to ship Brenda back to her uncle.  By now, he’d quit his job in Portland and was the chief of police in this sleepy little town, Devil’s Hang.
    Brenda missed her grandma, her friends, her boyfriend, hell, she even missed her crappy waitressing job at the Dairy Farm Milkshake Bar.
    Moving when she was twelve was hard enough, but now she was eighteen and in her senior year at school.  Not to mention Kevin.  He told her he loved her, but it was a lot harder to hear hundreds of miles apart and things really weren’t the same between them anymore.
    She knew she shouldn’t be so hard on her uncle, but she was miserable here.  There was zero excitement in this town.  She’d been there for a few months, and she was already afraid she would literally be bored to death if she stayed there any longer.
    But, she did love her uncle, and she had always wanted a dog.  Technically Bob made up a quarter of the Devil’s Hang police force, but she kind of thought of him as her dog.
    Life wasn’t all bad, it just kind of felt like it at that moment.

Chapter Four
    Kylie looked up at the sky.  She couldn’t bear to watch another fight between Amalric and Luc.  Listening was bad enough.
    The two males disagreed over everything.  She sided with Luc, naturally, but she couldn’t deny the fact that he was just as bullheaded as Amalric on all matters.  And she couldn’t help but sympathize with Amalric.  The gargoyles had suffered for hundreds of years, and now he was stuck, trapped within the Hardcastle house and grounds.  He wanted to get out and see more of the world.  Luc would not allow it.
    Tonight’s argument stemmed from Amalric or Ric as he preferred to be known, asking to be allowed to go hunting.  Luc shot him down immediately.
    Ric snarled.  “We are gargoyles; we do not cower in the darkness.”
    “We are not cowering.  We are waiting.”
    The younger male paced in agitation, his wings trembling behind him.  “So we are supposed just to stay here in these walls, too afraid to speak to any of the humans?”
    “Perhaps in another week, I will risk another hunting trip.  But no, you cannot approach any of the humans.”
    “We don’t know who can be trusted,” offered Kylie.
    Luc gave her a half-smile.  It said thank you but butt out.
    Ric bristled and glared at Luc.  “So you decide which humans we may talk to?”
    “Yes, it will be different one day, but for now, I will make the decision on who to trust with the secret of our existence.  We are fortunate as to the allies we already have, but not all humans will accept us as easily.”
    Other than Kylie, they also had her Aunt Bea, Gustave – the late professor’s manservant, Maggie and the professor’s nephew on their side.  Andrew and Maggie were out of the country, finding and arranging transportation for their newest gargoyle.
    “How are we supposed to live in this house?” snapped Ric.
    Ric was restless.  Luc was