The air was hot and sticky for June in New York City. Elisa Maza wiped the sweat from her brow with the napkin that sat on the seat next to her. From the way crime had been, the heat was putting everyone on edge. She had already been to two homicides tonight and it was only three hours into her shift. Right then she was taking a small break before she went and picked up Matt at the precinct. The city was going nuts, and they were trying to drive her there with them.
Turning the corner, she saw a black car pull up outside of the Eerie Building. Home to Xanatos Enterprises and the Manhattan clan of gargoyles, and pretty much her second home. She thought it was a little strange that Xanatos would be having a business meeting at this time of the day. She pulled up behind the car and watched and elegant woman step from the back seat. Expensive clothes and even pricier shoes, she smelled of old money and power. Just the kind of people David Xanatos worked with.
Throwing the car into park, Elisa stepped from the car. She followed the woman into the building, handing the valet her keys as she went. It was old hat. The men downstairs knew her as a good friend to the Xanatos family and they let her go wherever she wanted to.
Both her and the woman stepped into the elevator together. She punched the button to the top floor, Castle Wyvern. It used to be in Scotland, but Xanatos bought it a few years before and had it moved to the top of his Manhattan skyscraper. He did it, because of the spell that had been placed on the gargoyles that inhabited it.
The woman turned and smiled at Elisa. "Are you here for a meeting with Mr. Xanatos as well?"
Elisa shook her head. "No, I am just here to see a friend."
"Oh." The woman looked down at her manicured hands. "My name is Jenna Paris, and you are?"
"Elisa Maza, detective with the NYPD. Nice to meet you." She held out her hand. Jenna shook it. "You are way too nice to be one of Xanatos' normal business types."
Jenna laughed. "Oh, this is the first time I have ever met with him. I have talked to him on the phone, but to seal the deal, it has to be in person. He has some artwork that I have been trying to acquire from many years now. Every time I have gotten close to the pieces, they are snatched away." She pushed some loose strains of hair out of her face. "I am finally so close to getting them."
Elisa smiled. "Hopefully you get what you came here for."
"Thank you, Elisa, so do I." They rode the rest of the way in silence. The bell finally chimed stating they were at the top floor. The doors opened and Owen looked at them.
"Welcome Ms. Paris, Detective Maza." He pushed his glasses up on his face. "You know your way around Detective. Ms. Paris, I am Owen Burnett, Mr. Xanatos' assistant. If you will follow me."
"It was nice meeting you, Elisa. Have a great night." Jenna followed Owen around the corner and they were gone.
Shaking her head, she headed out to the courtyard. The twilight was approaching rapidly and she did not want to miss the clan as they awoke.
---
Jenna followed Owen to Xanatos' office in Castle Wyvern. He opened the solid mahogany doors and gestured her inside. "Mr. Xanatos will be with you shortly. Please have a seat."
She smiled at him. The man did not smile back nor did his stony face crack. "Thank you Mr. Burnett." She chose a chair right in front of the large desk. Behind it was a large wall of glass that over looked all of Manhattan. It showcased the sunset nicely.
"Sorry to keep you waiting, Ms. Paris. I had to take care of my son. Owen, can you go help my wife with him. He has been moving things around and will not stop. " The man that walked into the room looked at the blond man. "Right away Mr. Xanatos."
He walked out of the room and Jenna stood up and shook Xanatos' hand. "Thank you for meeting with me at such a late hour."
"No problem, I am a late owl myself." He walked over to his chair and sat down. Jenna did the same. "Now, Owen said something about you were interested in some art that I have in my collection. What pieces are you talking about?"
She reached into the briefcase and handed him the pictures. They were of the statues that were on the castle. "These are the pieces I wish to buy from you. I have been amassing a collection of gargoyle statues for many years now. These are the most exquisite pieces that I have seen. I was in the process of buying them when you went and bought Wyvern a few years ago. I was quite upset that you did that."
He looked at the photos. "I am sorry to tell you, they are not for sale. I could not bear to part with them. They are a part of this castle."
She smiled, but it was a harder smile. "Come now, Mr. Xanatos. Everything has a price. You name it and I will give it to you. Name your sum." She pulled a check book out of the briefcase.
"I say again, they are not for sale. They belong here at Castle Wyvern and this is where they shall stay. I am sorry to disappoint you Ms. Paris." He stood up. "And I believe this concludes our meeting. Good night." He walked over to the door, and opened it.
She took the pictures and the check book, stuck them back into the briefcase, and walked out the door. She turned and looked at him. "You have not heard the last from me, Mr. Xanatos." She walked down the hallway, and towards the elevators.
Pushing the button to recall the elevator, an idea came to her. It would not hurt just to go look at them while she was here. Make sure they were the ones she would go to war for. She slipped off her heels, so she could move quietly through the castle, and stuck them in her bag. She then slipped quietly out to the courtyard and up to the tower.
Xanatos sat in his office watching the woman move around the castle. He was amazed how she slipped in and out of rooms and knew how to get out to the courtyard. He had rebuilt Wyvern since he acquired it. Most of the hallways had been collapsed when he brought it over from Scotland. Even if she had been to it there, she would not know how to get anywhere. She had intimate knowledge of the floor plan of the castle. The thought angered and intrigued him.
"Has your guest left Mr. Xanatos?" Owen walked into the room. He closed the door behind him.
"Not quite. She has taken it upon herself to get a first hand view of the gargoyles for herself." He looked back at the monitors.
"Would you like me to alert security?" Owen walked toward the phone.
Xanatos shook his head. "I don't think that will be necessary. Let's just say this Jenna Paris intrigued me." He placed his chin on his hands. "She came here asking about the gargoyles, now has the guts to run through my home looking for them. I do not see the harm she could cause. What do you think, Owen?"
Owen took his glasses off and cleaned them. "She is far more dangerous than you think. She has an aura of magic about her, but not as strong as your son, but magical all the same."
"Then we will have to let this play out. This could get interesting."
---
The sun began it's last dip beyond the horizon. Seven stone sentinels watched it's last rays as it disappeared behind the sea. The stone began to crack and splinter. Growls began to emit from under the stone covering. Just then, the largest began to move and roar, spraying Elisa with stone shards. The gargoyles were waking up from their day slumber.
"Evening Big Guy." Elisa smiled at the lavender skinned male that she stood behind.
He turned and smiled at her. "Good evening Elisa. It is good to see you as I awake." Goliath hopped down and hugged her.
They had tried to have a romantic relationship, but it fizzled out. There was no way for a gargoyle and a human to be together, so they were both just happy to have their friendship. Elisa had just recently began dating Jason Canmore, one of the Hunters that turned good.
"Glad to see you too." She smiled at him and returned the hug. "I can't stay long. Matt and I have to go question Dracon again about a weapons shipment that went missing from the docks this evening. His goon, Glasses, was spotted down there right before the truck was hit. I know it is him, but I have to follow protocols. Sometimes it stinks."
He released her and looked down at her. "Would you like some backup? I will follow you and Matt there to make sure that Dracon does not try his normal."
"That's okay. If I need any help, I will let you guys know, but we should be fine. Like I said we are just going down there for a friendly chat." She put her hands in her pockets. "Watch out going in the castle. Xanatos has a business meeting he is in now. Someone named Jenna Paris."
Goliath nodded. "I will let the clan know. It is unusual for Xanatos to have meeting this late. He tries to keep people out of the castle after sundown."
Elisa shrugged. "Who knows, but I had better get going. If I am late Matt will go on one of his little tirades about time and being more responsible with my time. It's like working with my mother sometimes." She smiled.
"But I know you. You would not trade him for another partner would you?" Goliath laughed.
"True. I will try to stop by later tonight when I get off. I'll see you then." Turning and heading for the steps, she looked over her shoulder. "Can you send one of the boys to my apartment? I forgot to feed Cagney when I left. She is probably mad at me by now."
"I will have them go over first thing." He shook his head. "Good Night Elisa."
"Night Goliath." With that, she disappeared down the stairs and into the castle.
He looked out over the city. It was kind of quiet tonight. It was like the city knew something was going to happen, but was not going to release it's secret just yet. He took a deep breath of the night air and smiled as he exhaled.
"So, you are awake. I thought you were."
He whipped around and looked into the face of a gargoyle that he had not see in one thousand years.
I saw a mistake in my story. Sorry! I put in that Elisa was dating John Canmore, but I meant to put Jason, you know the good one. I don't know how I overlooked it. My bad everyone. I just got this computer three weeks ago, and I still figuring everything out. I went from using a Dell Insperion to using a Compaq Presario. The keyboard on this one is alot smaller. Plus, I ripped a contact when I was writting it. I have went back and fixed the issues. Sorry again!