Whispers From the Bayou

Carnage is a Gargoyle. He's also volatile, dangerous, unpredictable, and lonely. One evening minding his own business at the edge of the sanctuary he calls home, he spies a female. A human female, and she's running headlong into his swamps, with no regard for her own safety. Then he sees the reason; three men, and they're hot on her trail, torches in hand, hell bent on catching her before she can get away. He watches as they get closer and closer to her, easily following her trail. Carnage makes a snap decision that changes both their lives forever; he drops out of a tree right behind her, slaps one clawed hand over her mouth to keep her from screaming, wraps her in his huge arms and goes right back to the treetops. He shelters her while the men traverse the ground below, unable to determine why her trail disappeared. Carnage admires this little female-she was brave to run into the swamps alone. There are many creatures lying in wait for just such a meal. But she no longer has to worry about that, because now she's his. He only hopes that she doesn't fear him too much once she gets a good look at his blue-grey skin, his fangs, and his horns. Because regardless of what she thinks, or the rules of his community-he's not giving her up. Contains mature themes.

Destroy is beautiful, strong, charismatic, and charming. He is also selfish, shallow, petty, and jealous-or is he? One misunderstanding centuries ago resulted in his being labeled as not good enough, untrustworthy, self-serving. To hell with them, he knew who he really was! A strong, dependable, good male of strong character who was very pleasant to be around and even more pleasant to look at. If only he had a female or even friends to notice those things. He'd been alone for so long the bitterness had begun to seep in. Why did no one give him the credit he deserved? Why could no one see him, the real him? Other males had friends, other males had found their females-why not him? It was maddening to watch it and not be able to experience it. Then suddenly, out of the blue, there she was-all he had to do was be himself, allow her to see his magnificence and convince her that she's not evil. Her gifts are of no consequence to him. Yes, he feels her gift-her radiance, the light pouring from her. But that's not why he's drawn to her. It's because she's his, his very heart, his soul. Now if he can manage to keep her alive long enough to love him back, while he's also trying to prove that he's a male of value to his community, he may have a shot at this mate thing. Contains mature themes.