Bound by Legend: A Bound Novel (37 page)

The next three days were uneventful and though occasionally howls rose in the distance, they weren’t the howls that announced they’d found the trail. It was still a searching sound, a frustrated one. According to Lucian, the only reason they’d found Morgan so easily the first time was because they’d already stumbled across her by accident. And when they were still in the city, their trail had been easier to find.

While they were there, Sarah easily rounded up the spruce, cedar, and pine. Near the end of the third day, she’d finally located holly. All that remained was the elusive cougar they needed. The can of cat food and calling kitty-kitty was sounding better by the minute.

True to Lucian’s word, when Morgan did permit herself a deeper sleep, no hounds or demon-possessed foster father disturbed her dreams. For the most part, she stuck to her normal—normal for her—sleeping patterns.

Deep inside, she yearned for Jake’s company. What she wouldn’t give to spend an hour or so sitting in the park with him. There was a void in the world without him. Experience told her the pain would eventually dull, but there would always be a piece of her life, her world that was missing.

A couple of times she’d reached for her phone with the intention of calling him before reality caught up to her thoughts. It was a fresh blow each time. And each time, Lucian was there for her. He became her safe harbor in the storm that was her life and Morgan found it both comforting and terrifying.

Another three days crawled by and Morgan began spending as much time as possible outside. At first, she’d kept herself busy on Lucian’s laptop, researching and reading about the Kalona. But there was only so much. The confines of the motel room, even with people to keep her company, were beginning to wear on her. In fact, being in the company of so many was starting to be a problem, too. Unused to spending so much time in one place or with so many, it all began to make her edgy and restless, almost claustrophobic.

She found herself lurking in the field behind the hotel as much as possible, enjoying the feel of the breeze as Lucy lay in the grass. It was here that Lucian found her. Though she heard him approaching, she continued to watch the puffy clouds turn golden pink as the sun set.

“I have something I’d like to do and I was hoping you would join me.”

Morgan finally turned to look at him, noticing a large brown paper bag in his left hand. “What?”

“It will involve flying, so I’m hoping you won’t mind leaving Lucy here with the others.” Lucian gave her a half-grin. “I’m not exactly equipped for multiple passengers.”

“Where are we going?” Confused, Morgan glanced at the Rottweiler who watched them with intent brown eyes.

“It’s a surprise.” Though the grin remained in place, a hint of sadness briefly filled his eyes and then was gone.

Intrigued, Morgan called Lucy to her. She wasn’t entirely comfortable leaving the dog behind, at the same time it wasn’t like Lucian to have surprises up his sleeve or to be vague. It didn’t take long to leave Lucy with Isobel and Damien. Morgan didn’t understand the sorrow that lingered in Isobel’s eyes or the way she squeezed Morgan’s hand as if offering sympathy and support.

With darkness quickly descending, Morgan stepped into Lucian’s arms as his wings unfurled. He tightened his hold and said, “Do me a favor. Close your eyes and don’t open them until I say.”

Morgan, her head laid against his bare chest and the sound of his heart beat in her ear, only nodded, happy enough to comply.

With the sun down and the moon hiding its face, the darkness was absolute behind her lids. Not that she minded, secure in Lucian’s warm arms, the scent of his skin swirling in the air around her, it didn’t matter where they were going.

It wasn’t an overly long flight before her feet touched the ground. She didn’t need to see to know where they were. Every scent, every sound was as familiar as breathing. Morgan slowly opened her eyes as Lucian stepped away.

The park where she’d spent so much time, where she’d spent her last night with Jake spread out before them. A deep ache pulled at her. Why had Lucian brought her here? She turned to him, sorrow and questioning in her eyes.

Lucian only took her hand and led her to the table where she’d sat while Jake called her an emotional chicken-shit and despite the pain, a smile tugged at her lips at the memory. After she was seated on the table, her feet resting on the bench, and a lit cigarette in her hand, Lucian finally spoke.

“Jake’s funeral was this morning.”

Morgan’s eyes stung as she pulled smoke into her lungs through her suddenly tight throat. Her friend, her rock, had been placed in the ground and she hadn’t been there to say goodbye, to tell him thank you, to tell him everything she should have said while he still lived. Grief made her unable to answer.

“I know how much you wished you could be there,” Lucian said as he opened the bag and reached inside it. “I have something for you.”

Lucian pulled a flag folded into a large triangle, stars out, from the bag. Morgan’s breath caught as she took it into her hands and ran her trembling fingers over the stitching and heavy material. “Is this…”

“Jake’s flag.” Lucian’s voice was rough with emotion. “I knew how much it would mean to have it.”

“How?” It was the only word she could push past the lump in her throat as tears of both sorrow and gratitude welled in her eyes.

“There’s a group of women who volunteer to stand in for family at the funerals of homeless vets, they accept the flag. I know a dark angel who knows a channel who knows a channel who knows one of those women. Since it wasn’t possible to be there for the ceremony sending him on, I thought maybe we could come here and toast his life instead.” Lucian pulled a bottle of Lucky Fox whiskey from the bag, the same kind she’d shared with Jake that last night, and handed it to her.

The bottle felt heavy in her hand, a multitude of memories swirled in its golden liquid. Quickly removing the cap, she lifted it in the air. “To Jake, I couldn’t have asked for a better friend.”

She tipped the bottle up and took a deep drink relishing the smooth, burning rush as it slid down her throat. When Lucian sat next to her on the table, she handed the bottle to him. He too lifted it. “To Jake, a very good man who deserved more than he got in this life.”

Two tears tracked their way down Morgan’s face as Lucian took a gulp and handed it back to her. She took another quick drink and then a long drag off her cigarette. “He was always there for me. The only one who was always there for me.”

She took another drag, unable to stop the flow from her eyes that blurred her vision. “I know I have you now, Lucian. And Isobel, Damien, even Sarah and Jameth. Even with that, I’m still not sure how to live in a world without Jake. Or maybe I’m not sure how the world can keep moving forward without him.”

Another drink and she handed it to Lucian. As he took his own drink, Morgan trailed her fingers across the stitching of the flag. “I’ve never seen a dark angel drink alcohol before. Aren’t you worried about getting drunk and having demons show up?”

Lucian handed the bottle back to her. “We can’t get drunk. We only metabolize a small amount of the alcohol. I enjoy the taste and will feel pleasantly warm. None of my senses or reaction times will be affected.”

“Must be nice.” Morgan muttered as she took the bottle back, enjoying the feel of the buzz beginning to creep up on her as she swallowed more whiskey. “I suppose I shouldn’t drink too much. It
will
affect me.”

“Drink as much as you like, I’m not going anywhere,” he said, taking another drink from the bottle when she handed it to him.

“Yeah, but my job is to handle the upper-level demons. I can’t do that if I’m drunk.” Her mind wandered to Arabrim, though alcohol hadn’t contributed to that.

“Morgan, I got this.” Lucian cocked a grin at her and handed the bottle back.

His confidence was reassuring. With her demon radar silent, Morgan grabbed the bottle and took another long pull off it.

As the burning spread in a warm wave through her body and relaxing her, Morgan finished her cigarette, lit another then took another drink. Maybe it was the whiskey, maybe it was the fact that Jake had been buried that day, maybe it just felt like the time, but Morgan found herself talking about Jake. Most likely it was the whiskey. Either way, it felt good to say his name, to talk about the things he’d done, about the revelation of the woman he’d lost, all of it.

Sometime during the long night in the park, her thoughts and words slurred together until the whiskey pulled her into sleep. Morgan didn’t resist it; no dreams would come that night. She was certain of that for the same reason Jake had often drank himself to sleep. The numb cloud she floated on made her smile as the world faded away behind a black curtain.

MORGAN WOKE IN
the bed at the motel and slowly rolled to her side. Light creeped in around the edges of the drawn curtains, making her wince. A heavy throbbing beat at the inside of her skull and she groaned. Lucy scooched up behind her and snuffled the back of Morgan’s neck.

“Lucy, stop,” Morgan gasped at the cold nose against her skin and then instantly regretted it when the throb in her head turned to pounding.

A soft rustle and Lucian sat on the edge of the bed, a bottle of water in one hand and ibuprofen in the other. Morgan didn’t know whether to be grateful for the offer or angry that he wasn’t suffering with her. She settled for a whispered, “Thank you”

It hurt to sit up and swallow the pills, but she did it. When she started to set the plastic bottle on the table next to the bed, Lucian shook his head and pushed it back toward her. “Finish it. Part of the problem is dehydration.”

Glaring at him, she grabbed it and drank the rest before laying her head back down. She peered at him through slitted eyes. “I hate you right now, you know that right?”

He chuckled quietly. “And why is that?”

“Because if you had any decency at all, you would be suffering with me. Your ability to drink without the consequences is unfair and disgusting.”

Another quiet chuckle. Well, since he wasn’t dealing with a hangover he was at least being respectful of hers. It was more than she could ask for and better than she deserved.

Lucian stood, humor still flashing in his eyes. “Now that you’re awake, I’m going to get you some food. Damien and Isobel are right next door if you need anything.”

Morgan closed her eyes and nodded. Before he left, Lucian opened another bottle of water and placed it on the nightstand. “Try to drink some of that while I’m gone.”

“M’kay,” she mumbled.

When the door closed softly, Morgan gave Lucy a pat then dragged herself from the bed. Her head was still pounding. Maybe a shower would help. It took longer than it should have to get into the steamy spray, but worth the effort. The hot water relaxed muscles she didn’t realize were stiff and washed away the fog in her mind.

The water turned cool before she finally left the warm haven of the shower and pulled her clothes on. Though it had been a good way to say goodbye to Jake, maybe it would be best to limit alcohol to no more than one drink from now on. Even if the dreamless sleep that followed most of a bottle of whiskey
was
bliss. It didn’t make her feel any better the next day.

Calling Lucy to her, she opened the door and walked down the hall to the stairs. Once outside, the dog immediately began sniffing through the grass. Morgan pulled a cigarette from her pack and wandered across the back drive to the field beyond while Lucy bounded ahead of her.

A heavy dew had fallen overnight and the morning sun sparkled off it like the landscape had been sprinkled with millions of tiny diamonds. A fresh breeze stirred lightly through the trees around the motel, combing its cool fingers through her hair. She closed her eyes and let it wash over her. A faint howl underneath the breeze marred peace of the morning.

When Morgan was done, she lingered a few minutes longer to give Lucy more time to investigate the scent trails left by whatever had crossed the field during the night then headed in. The room was still empty when they got back. With nothing to do and no interest in watching anything on the television, Morgan lifted Jake’s flag from where it lay on the table and sat down on the bed to wait for breakfast.

She leaned against the headboard with the flag in her lap as she sipped on the bottle of water Lucian had left and ran her other hand over the fabric. She stared at the dark television while her mind tried to wrap itself around the fact that Jake really wasn’t in the world anymore. She would never see his smile again, never go to him for advice, never… He was gone. Just gone.