“It all started when she walked into my office.  She wore a red dress that was cut high on the leg.  I knew right from the start that this dame would be trouble, but I didn’t listen to myself, as usual.”
        “My name is Sam, Sam Canyon.  I’m a private eye.  But I’m not like most PIs here in New York, you see, I’m a gargoyle.  Some people like us, some hate us, but most hard boiled New Yorkers simply ignore us.”

        “Hey Broadway, whatcha got there?”  Brooklyn asked as he yanked the sheet of paper from the hands of his rookery brother.
        “Hey, that’s private stuff there.”  Broadway said in protest as he attempted to retrieve his writing.
        “To private for even me to read?”  Angela asked as she yanked the sheet of paper from Brooklyn’s hand.
        After a few seconds of reading the two gargoyles had completely different reactions.  The first one, worn by Angela, was of confusion, as she didn’t fully comprehend what Broadway had written.  The second, worn by Brooklyn, was of total amusement since he fully understood what Broadway had written.
        “Broadway, what is this?  I don’t understand this style of writing.”  Angela said.
        “Its pulp fiction.  Broadway is writing a detective story.”  Brooklyn said between chuckles.
        “Is this something that has happened to you?”  Angela asked, just a hint of jealousness appearing in her voice.
        “No, nothing like that.”  Broadway said as Brooklyn broke down in a new fit of giggles.  “Elisa suggested it.  She said that maybe if I wrote a detective story it would help my improve my reading and writing skills.”
        “That’s a wonderful idea.”  Angela said.
        “Well it couldn’t hurt.”  Brooklyn added, slightly dejected at the fact that Broadway was being let off the hook by his girlfriend.
        “Well I just started a little while a go, so as you can see I haven’t gotten very far.”  Broadway said.
        “How about if we leave you alone so you can work on it some more then?”  Angela said as she grabbed Brooklyn by the arm and dragged him from the room.
        “Hey no need to drag me like that, I can take a hint.”  Brooklyn said.
        Turning to face Brooklyn, Angela shot him a dirty look.
        “Oh no you can’t.  I don’t want you to hurt Broadways feelings by teasing him about this ok.”  Angela warned.
        “Ok, I won’t bust his chops about it.  Geez, what has you so worked up doll face?”  Brooklyn responded in a bad Humphrey Bogart impression.
        “And I don’t want you to tell the others either.  You got me?”  Angela continued.
        “All right, all right.  I won’t tell anyone about Broadways little secret.”  Brooklyn said.  “You’re just taking all the fun out of things tonight.”

        The dame had hired me to investigate the murder of a friend of hers.  Apparently he had several hundred thousand in the bank and was due to inherit a few million more.  Although she said they had been close friends, she never said just how close.
        As I examined the body I could see that the poor guy had not died quickly, nor had he put much of a fight.  The sheets to his bed were still largely in place as his body lay on top of them.
        “Well what do you think Sam?”  The local coroner asked.

        “I think certain young gargoyles should be on patrol tonight.”  Goliath said as he shattered Broadway’s concentration.
        Putting down his pencil and covering up his paper, Broadway looked at Goliath for a second.
        “But Lexington and I traded nights, I don’t have it until tomorrow.”
        “If that is true then I wish you would let me know about such chances.”  Goliath said as he walked away.
        Stopping at the door, Goliath turned to face Broadway before leaving.
        “Elisa told me that your trying to write a detective story, I would like to read it when you’re done.”
        “Sure, no problem Goliath.”  Broadway smiled.

        “Nice going Sam.”  I told my self as the three thugs pulled guns on me.  
        “So long gumshoe.”  One of the thugs said as he squeezed the trigger of his pistol.
        Quickly ducking behind a large table that had been knocked over, the bullet only grazed my arm.  Still the injury hurt like heck and there were three guys out there that wanted to kill me.
        Suddenly a hail of bullets crashed through the window of the nightclub and struck two of the thugs.  The third one, not knowing what was going one decided to run away while the getting was good.  But that was fine by me.

        “Hey Broadway, you missed out tonight.  Goliath and I bet up a bunch of thugs tonight.  They had this guy corned and he would have been a goner if we hadn’t helped him.  The cool thing is that it turns out that he is a private investigator, cool huh?”  Lexington said as he burst in to the room and destroyed Broadway’s train of thought.
        “Geez you made a lot of noise.”  Broadway said as he looked up from his work.
        “What are you working on?”  Lexington asked.
        “Its private ok.”  Broadway said as he pulled the sheets of paper in front of him away from Lexington.
        “If you say so.”  Lexington said undeterred.
        “So just where did you find this PI?”  Broadway asked.
        “Down by the docks.  It was like a classic moment from one of your detective movies.  You really should have been there tonight.”
        “Well maybe I will have some adventure tomorrow when I go on patrol then.”  Broadway said hopefully.
        “Maybe, well later, I’m going to go and check my e-mail.”  Lexington said as he left the room.

        The fog was heavy tonight, heavier than usual, but that was a good thing.  The heavy fog let me creep around the warehouses of the dock unnoticed, which was good considering that the people I was looking for didn’t like to be spied on.
        “So what’s the plan?  Do we sneak around all night or do we get to see some action?”  Asked the Scottish dock patrolman that Sam had recruited.
        “Keep you shirt on, we need to find out what we are up against first.”  Sam replied.
        “You lads are soft nowadays, why in my day we would have gone in guns blazing.”
        “And in your day Fred Flintstone was still around.”  Sam cracked.
 
        Turing his head in surprise, Broadway saw that the voice that he had heard wasn’t just a figment of his imagination, but had actually been Hudson reading over his shoulder.
        “Hudson, I didn’t hear you come in, how long have you been here?”  Broadway asked defensively.
        “Only for a few minutes lad.  So is this what you have been working on all night?
        “Yeah, why do you ask?”
       “Because it’s nearly sun rise lad.” 
        “It is, I didn’t realize that it was so late.”  Broadway said in surprise.
        “Aye it is lad.  Now you had better stop what you are working on and join us on the battlements before the sunrises.”
        “Alright, I’ll be there in a minute Hudson.”  Broadway said as he began to write furiously on the last sheet of paper he had.

        Awaking with a roar, the gargoyles awoke from their stone sleep to the start of a new night in New York City.  
        “Hey where do you think you are going Broadway?”  Lexington asked.  “I thought you had patrol with Goliath tonight.”
        “I do, but that’s not for another hour.  Besides I have something to finish.”  Broadway said.

        “Congratulations Sam, looks like you have finished another case.  That’s one more criminal that won’t be on the streets any more.”  The Chief of police said.
        “Just doing my job.”  Sam replied.
        “Oh, and just what is your job?  Bringing criminals to justice or solving your client’s case?”
        “Both.”  Sam replied.

        “Broadway, can I talk to you a minute?”  Angela asked from around the corner.
        “Sure Angela, but won’t it be easier to do so if you weren’t hiding,” Broadway said.
        Walking into the room, Angela moved in a slow and seductive manner in her red dress that was cut high on the thigh.
        “I have a job for you gum shoe, I’m looking for someone, do you think you can find him?”
        She was trouble from the word go, Broadway thought to himself as he slowly smiled.
        “Well if you’re looking for a private dick then you found one.”  

***

III

        “Goliath, I want to leave the clan.”  Brooklyn said to his gathered clan mates.
        The silence that followed was deafening.  After a moment everyone came out of his or her shock.
        “What brought this up?”  Goliath demanded.
        “I want to go out and explore the world, like you and Angela did.”
        “Lad, it’s a tough world out there.  Just look at how much we deal with here in New York.”  Hudson added.
        “How come you never told us you were thinking about leaving?”  Lexington asked.
        “Yeah, you should have let us known too.”  Broadway said.
        “I never told you guys because I wanted to think it over on my own.”  Brooklyn said.
        “And how long have you been thinking about it?”  Goliath asked.
        “For a while now.”
        “If you had told us then we could have helped you argue your case to Goliath.”  Lexington said.
        “That’s another reason I didn’t tell you guys, I don’t want you to come along.  This is something I want to do on my own.”
        “You can’t be serious?”  Broadway asked in disbelief.
        “I am.”
        “Buy why?  Have we done something to upset you?”  Angela asked.
        “Angela is right.  If there is something bothering you then tell us.  We are clan, we keep no secrets from each other.”  Goliath said.
        “It’s not any one thing you guys have done, or not done.  Its just that I’m tired of New York City, I want to see some more of the world.  To do things on my own.”  Brooklyn said.
        “And what of your responsibilities as second in command?”  Hudson asked.
        “Why can’t Broadway or Lexington become second in command?  That way they get a chance at the experience.”  Brooklyn said.
        “Brooklyn, there is more to this than you are telling us.  If you have been thinking about leaving the clan for a while, then why now, why tell us now?”  Goliath asked.
        “Now is as good a time as any Goliath.  Like telling you sooner or later would have changed anything.”  Brooklyn said a little defensively.
        “I think we need to have a long and serious talk Brooklyn.”  Goliath said as he walked out of the clans living area.
        Leaping to the sky, Goliath began to slowly glide away from the castle as he gathered his thoughts.
        “What is it you want to know?”  Brooklyn asked.
        “What is really on your mind?  It has been some months since I returned with Angela, so the awe of wanderlust can’t be that strong.”
        “It is Goliath, I really do want to go out and see the world.”
        “And you must do this by your self?”
        “Yes.”  Brooklyn said a bit more strongly than he intended.
        “It makes no sense to go out in to the world alone like you want.  Why don’t you want to go with your rookery brothers?”
        “I just don’t ok.  This is something I feel I have to do.”

        As the two gargoyles were deep in conversation, they failed to notice the person that was tracking them across the sky.  Loading one last tranquillizer dart in to the gun, the person took careful aim at the red one and fired.  The fast acting chemicals achieved the desired result; with in a matter of seconds the smaller of the two gargoyles began to lose consciousness.
        Diving to catch Brooklyn before he lost all consciousness, Goliath unknowingly made himself an easy target for their attacker.  The first dart landed in his left shoulder, but with Brooklyn in his arms there was little he could do about it, at least until he landed.  However, a few feet before landing a second dart struck him in his rump.  With great effort Goliath fought the darkness that was coming over him and placed Brooklyn on the ground before collapsing himself.

        Awaking with a slight groan, Goliath found himself standing up right with his hands chained above his head.  Opening his eyes, Goliath looked around to take in his surroundings.  
        The room was poorly lit and thus was dark even for a gargoyle.  The air was damp and smelled of moisture and mildew, suggesting that they were underground.  Goliath couldn’t see any windows, not that there would be any if they were underground.  Or perhaps they were hidden by the darkness, which would also explain a lack of doorways to the room.
       His eyes finally adjusting to the darkness, Goliath found the most important thing he was looking for.  Not more than five feet away and facing him from the opposite wall, Brooklyn was similarly restrained.
        “Brooklyn, Brooklyn are you ok?”  Goliath called out.
        “I’ve been better.”  Brooklyn answered.
        “Thank goodness.  I was worried for a moment.”
        “A moment?  Is that all I rate Goliath?  I was hoping for at least two minutes.”
        Chucking slightly at the joke, Goliath could see that Brooklyn was going to be fine.
        “Who do you think is holding us captive?”  Goliath asked as he struggled against his restraints.
        “Off hand, I would say Demona.  Its just her style, a sneak attack to drug us, holding us captive in this medieval looking dungeon, and setting us up where its dark so it plays with our minds.”  Brooklyn said as he too struggled against his restraints.
        “You may be right, it does seem to be her style.  But I hope its not Demona.”  Goliath said.
        “Why not?”
        “She was my mate, I shared a bond with her.  Now she is against all that I stand for and hold dear.  It hurts every time I have to face her.”
        “Hurts?  You should hate her for all that she has done.  How many innocent humans do you think she has killed?  How many lives destroyed, promises betrayed?”  Brooklyn asked angrily.
        “Probably more than I can ever know.”  Goliath admitted.
        “Your darn right.  She has betrayed my trust and her pledge to you.”
        “She has betrayed all of our trust.”
        “When she wanted to kill us, yeah.  But she is even worse than that, she is with out remorse, even when given a chance at redemption.”
        “What do you mean?”
        “She seduces the naïve with her twisted logic.”  Brooklyn said bitterly.
        “Anyone inexperienced in the world could be seduced by her logic.”  Goliath tried to consol.
        “That’s not the type of inexperience I meant.”
        “Brooklyn, I don’t understand what you are saying.”
        “Goliath, I screwed Demona.”  Brooklyn said truthfully.
        “You did what?”  Goliath asked genuinely perplexed.
        “I did the deed with her, made love with her, had sex.”  Brooklyn said, surprised that Goliath did not know that term.
        “YOU DID WHAT?!”  Goliath said again, but in a totally different tone.
        “Yes I did.  She seduced me.  And I fall for it.  I guess I was to young and naïve to know any better.”
        “But she is the enemy of the clan, how could you?”  Goliath asked in shock and disbelief.
        “Simple, I was a virgin, I didn’t know what love or sex was all about.  But now a days, these are things that I can say that I am knowledgeable about.”
        “I can’t believe that you kept this a secret from the clan.”  Goliath said in despair.
        “Well you see how shaken up you are about it, imagine how shaken up and hurt Angela would be, especially if she heard it from someone like Lexington or Broadway.”
        “I see.”  Said Goliath, “But still you kept a secret from the clan, an important on at that.  That is something that has me worried.”
        “I’m sorry Goliath, but if it’s absolute honesty you want, then I’m afraid I can’t give you that.”
        “Do you realize just what you are saying?”  Goliath asked.
        “Yes I do.  Do you realize just what it is that I am saying?”
        Taken by surprise at the statement, Goliath asked just what he did mean.
        “Simply that, I can’t be 100% completely truthful with you Goliath because I have mine own life to live.  It’s the same with Broadway, Lexington, Hudson, and even Angela.”  Brooklyn said.
        “In that case then it might be best if you did leave the clan for a while.”  
        “I hope I haven’t cause you to much heart ache, Goliath.”  Brooklyn said.
        “No more than I have seen in the past.”
        “And now you know the truth Goliath.  I guess my truth formula has taken full effect.”  Demona said as she entered the scene.
        “Now all I have to do is figure out which one of two I liked better.”  She said with a sneer.
        Before any one could say anything, there was a large explosion followed by several smaller explosions.
        “Don’t get you hopes up Goliath.  Once I have dealt with your would be rescuers, I will return to deal with you and Brooklyn.”  Demona said as she exited the room.
        Straining mightily against his restraints, Goliath was beginning to bend them when the wall behind him and most of the ceiling suddenly gave way.  By the time the dust had cleared, Brooklyn could see that Goliath had been completely buried underneath the debris.  
 
        The next evening seven creatures awoke from their stone slumber.  The first was Bronx, then Lexington, then Angela, then Hudson, then Broadway, followed by Brooklyn, and lastly Goliath.
        “Father, how are you feeling?”  Angela asked.
        “None the worse for wear I guess.”  Goliath answered as he accepted a hug from his daughter.
        “What happened?  The last thing I remember was Brooklyn and I were having a discussion when suddenly he fell from the sky.”  Goliath inquired.
        “That’s right lad.  Demona captured you and Brooklyn last night.  But with some help from Xanatos we were able to rescue you.”  Hudson said.
        “We were captured by Demona?  Brooklyn what happened to us while we were in captivity?”  Goliath asked urgently.
        “You mean you don’t remember?  You don’t remember how she had us chained against the wall, or that you were buried during the rescue?”  Brooklyn asked.    
        “No, I don’t.”  Goliath admitted.
        “That is not a good sign.”  Xanatos said as a way of announcing his arrival.  “Goliath I would like for you to come to the medical center so the doctors can examine you, just to be on the safe side.”
        “Thank you for you concern, but I assure you that I am fine.”  Goliath said.
        Placing a hand on her father’s shoulder, Angela looked him in the face and said “Please do it father, for me.”
        “Very well then, I will let the doctors examine me.”  Goliath sighed.
        Turing to face Brooklyn, Goliath said “And when I am done there we will continue our discussion about you leaving the clan.”
        “That’s ok Goliath, I think I will hold off on that decision for a while.”

***