Repercussion: The Clandestine Saga Book 3 (29 page)

              Once she released him, he asked, "What was that for?" with a serene, yet confused look on his face.

              "I'm just so happy we are finally together," she replied, holding back a threatening tear. "Not everyone gets the chance, you know?"

              He nodded and smiled at her again. "I'll get your door," he said quietly, and she sat back, content, waiting for him to open it for her, wondering what might have happened if Elliott had, had the opportunity to share his life with Amanda.

Chapter Nine

              The flight from Shenandoah to Kansas City was both short and silent. Cadence spent most of the time trying to concentrate on what she was planning on saying at the memorial later that afternoon, rather than focusing on the fact that her morning had not started out the way she expected it to; she had, once again, woken up alone--something she was certainly not anticipating, not already anyway.

              Aaron had a perfectly good explanation--he had gone to get her breakfast--which she appreciated. But when she turned over to an empty bed, panic had set in pretty quickly. He had returned within a few moments, breakfast from the local donut shop in hand, as there were no Starbucks in Shenandoah. She had not given him an opportunity to explain himself before flipping out, and he had listened to her rant for almost ten minutes before pointing out to her that his IAC was on, and she had access to it, that he had been gone for less than an hour, and that she was only awake for a few minutes before he returned. Ultimately, he had apologized profusely, and she had felt like a prude for giving him such a hard time. Still, thoughts of what she had gone through just a few days ago when he wasn't where she thought he should be were fresh, and she knew it would take a very long time before she was willing to go even a few minutes without knowing precisely where he was.

              Her parents and Cassidy were along for the ride, and they all seemed pretty impressed that he knew how to fly a plane. From time to time, her mother or father would ask a question about how the Citation operated, but Cassidy did not say a word. Cadence wondered what she would think when she saw headquarters for the first time; her parents had expressed a bit of reserved excitement at the idea. That certainly wasn't their reason for the trip, but it was an experience they had only heard about.

              Once they landed, Cadence began an attempt to prepare herself for what she was about to endure. Upon deplaning, she was momentarily jarred from her melancholy mood by the sight of a familiar face waiting for them. "Jamie!" she exclaimed, embracing her friend. "How are you feeling?" She hadn't seen the Healer since he was wounded, and it was a nice surprise that he was waiting to drive them to base.

              He hugged her tightly, and for a moment the joyful reunion slipped back into the throws of sorrow at the occasion. Eventually, he assured her, "I'm completely healed," and released her to greet the rest of the party.

              Cadence breathed a sigh of relief, finally seeing for herself that Jamie really was all right. It was one thing to have him assure her over the IAC that he was okay, but it was quite something else to be in his presence and see that he was back to his old self.

              They loaded into the SUV and headed toward headquarters. Cadence wasn't angry at Aaron anymore, though she was still fairly silent. She took comfort in his hand on her leg as they approached their destination. They had given themselves enough time to change clothes before the memorial began, but before she knew it, she would be attending an event she couldn't even fathom.
How can Elliott be gone?

she contemplated as Jamie drove them to their apartment building. Even though she'd had a few days to ponder the idea, it still seemed very surreal. It was as if she had been leaning back against a brick wall for the last six months, a solid support, completely unwavering. Now, without warning, the wall was gone—and she was tumbling backwards into nothingness.

***

              Hannah did an amazing job getting everything ready. Cadence and Aaron arrived a bit early to see if there was anything they could do to assist her, but she had taken care of every detail. The chapel was quaint, like something one might find in a Thomas Kinkade painting, and the pews would fit about one hundred people. The dais was decorated in purple and blues, with an abundance of irises, which Elliott had once mentioned weren't too awful, as far as flowers were concerned, an indicator that he might actually appreciate their beauty. Hannah had worked with Christian to make sure the memorial would be televised as promised. There was also a large screen where Cadence assumed they would be watching some sort of slideshow. Off to the side, there was a large picture of Dr. Elliott Sanderson, the same one he had used for his CDC badge, and Cadence couldn't help but chuckle a bit when she saw it. It always reminded her of a pose Will Ferrell might assume were he making a fake ID badge. To the right sat a familiar urn. It was an exact replica of the one Elliott had produced to present the fake remains of Jack Cook to his parents; Hannah had explained that Elliott once joked that, should he ever meet his demise, he wanted to be collected by the Extracto 9000, his nickname for the device they used to clean up after Vampires turned to dust, and kept on display in a trophy case in the main office. Cadence was willing to grant her friend most of his requests, but that urn would be kept in Aaron's apartment on his mantle, where it would be safe and where his memory would continue to live on for centuries to come.

              With no last minute touches necessary, Hannah directed them to take a seat on the front row, much to Cadence's chagrin, and eventually the room began to fill up. Cassidy and Cadence's parents were sitting further back, having decided to stay in Cadence's apartment for a bit longer before heading over, and Cadence couldn't help but feel her heart breaking again when she saw the overwhelming look of sadness on her baby sister's face. As excruciating as this entire experience had been for her, it was even worse to know how much Cassidy and Aaron were hurting; the latter was doing a much better job of showing a brave face, but she couldn't imagine what it would be like to lose someone who had been with him every single day for over forty years.

He noticed her staring at him and she managed a small smile, asking quietly, "Are you going to be okay?"

              He nodded. "I'll find a way," he assured her.

              "Good," she replied.

              "What about you?" he asked, squeezing her hand.

              "Somehow," she exhaled.

              "I'm really sorry I upset you this morning," he began, no longer meeting her gaze.

              "No," she stated dismissively, "don't worry about that, not right now. It's fine. I overreacted."

"You had every right to," he admitted, looking back into her brown eyes.

"It might take me some time, but eventually I will figure out a way to keep from jumping to the worst conclusions every time I don't know where you are," she replied, looking back up at the stage, seeing that Hannah was directing the pastor, someone Cadence had never seen before, that it was about time to begin.

              Aaron didn't say anything, and Cadence wondered if that was because there really wasn't anything to say or if he was anticipating the beginning of the memorial service. Either way, she sat in silence, her hand in his, trying to keep herself together for the last few minutes before Hannah cued the music and Christian, who was running the sound, began the ceremony in the most unusual and unexpected way, by playing "Don't Fear the Reaper," by Blue Oyster Cult. Like everyone else, Cadence and Aaron glanced around, confused, before breaking out in laughter. After all, it made perfect sense. The last thing that Elliott would want is for anyone to be crying on his account.

              After the initial song, the pastor, who introduced himself as Rev. Dale Dawson, whose parents were both Guardians, spoke a few words about Elliott, sharing some anecdotes Hannah had gathered from various members of the LIGHTS team. The way he was talking, it was fairly evident that everyone in the room must be aware of the Clandestine Ternion. Otherwise, the mention of Vampire Hunting would have been quite shocking.

Cadence did her best to listen, but realizing she was next to speak, it was difficult to do so. Eventually, she realized he was introducing her as "Elliott's dear friend and fellow LIGHTS team member," and she made her way to the pulpit, knees shaking, though considerably more solid than they had been when she had spoken at Jack's memorial not that long ago.

              She had no notes, no rehearsed speech, no voice in her head letting her know what to say next. She was going to completely wing it. She honestly felt like that's what he would have wanted. So, that's what she intended to do.

              "Good afternoon, friends and family of our indispensable friend, Dr. Elliott Sanderson," she began, surprising even herself at how clear and true her voice sounded. "I must admit, the last thing I ever thought I would do is speak at the memorial service of someone I was quite sure would out-live me infinitely. And it is with an extremely heavy heart that I stand before you today to talk about my friend, one of the best friends I've ever had, and to tell him goodbye.

"If you're here today, you must have known Elliott in some capacity or another. I don't have to tell you how... ridiculous he was." There were some chuckles, and she paused for a moment to consider her next words. "You just never knew what he might say next. Chances are, however, whatever it was, it would be unexpected--but true. Very true. With Elliott, you never had to worry about whether or not he was giving it to you straight. If he was talking, he was being honest.

              "And that's why I knew pretty early on that he wasn't a fan of mine." Again, the crowd snickered. "But after working with him one time on our own, when I was counting on him to keep me safe, and he had to rely on me to get the job done, it became pretty clear that we were an amazing team. From that moment on, I counted Dr. Sanderson as one of my best friends. Eventually, he became like a big brother to me. " Cadence realized a tear was running down her cheek now, and she paused to wipe it away. As she contemplated what she wanted to say next, she glanced out at the crowd and noticed a red-headed woman sitting near the back. She didn't recognize many of the faces in the crowd, and this woman was someone she had never laid eyes on before, but she knew immediately who she was, and that changed the direction she was headed with her speech.

              "The thing about Elliott is... was... if you were his friend, he was willing to do anything for you. Anything. He gave his life to protect a Hunter, something he had sworn to do, but beyond that, something he was compelled to do. He would have done it for any of us." She glanced at Meaghan, who was sitting in the front room next to Shane, her head buried in his shoulder sobbing, and then continued. "If he didn't like you, he would let you know it. But if he loved you, he'd let you know that, too. More than once, he promised me he would make sure I was happy if it was the last thing he did. It wasn't just a promise he made to me, it was one he made to all of his friends, everyday. That was just the sort of guy he was. Obviously, I didn't come up here today with a rehearsed speech. I just wanted to speak from my heart and let you all know how extremely blessed I am for having known Elliott. If I could have him back for just a few minutes, tell him one more thing, I'd let him know that of all of the friends I've ever had, I've never trusted any one more. I never had a brother until he came into my life, and the difference he made in just a few short months will impact me for as long as I live. I hope that, should I ever be called upon to make the ultimate sacrifice, I can do so as bravely as my sweet friend. He will certainly be missed and thought of fondly every single day." Cadence glanced at her sister, who seemed to be holding herself together, at Meaghan, who was not, and back at the woman she was certain must be Amanda Keen before smiling meekly at Aaron and making her way back to her seat.

              As she sat down, he said,
"He would be very proud of you,"
taking her hand.

             
"Thank you,"
she said solemnly, returning her attention to the reverend, trying to keep the distraction of Amanda Keen out of her mind. He spoke a few more words before introducing the slideshow Hannah had prepared. Most of the pictures were of Elliott making faces at the camera or tormenting his friends. There were a few of him actually in combat. And the last one was of Cadence hugging him goodbye for the last time. It was all she could do to keep it together.

              At the conclusion of the slideshow, the pastor introduced Aaron. As he got up to go, she contemplated exactly what to say in order to boost his confidence, but only one thing really made sense.
"Love you,"
she said. He didn't respond, but he didn't have to for her to know he heard her.

              Aaron had prepared a written speech, though he would be reading it from his IAC . Nevertheless, Cadence knew he would be much more concise and on topic than she had been. As he began to speak, she did her best to concentrate on what he was saying without getting emotional. She was also extremely sidetracked by the woman in the back of the room.

Cadence locked her eyes on Aaron, determined to stay focused.
How could I possibly feel the need to look away from him
--
ever
? she wondered. He was talking about how Elliott had been extremely loyal, how he could count on him to do anything, and how he had consistently led hunts for decades better than anyone he had ever worked with. He talked about how Elliott could persuade anyone of even the most ridiculous concepts, which was irreplaceable when it came to running interference. He also mentioned that Elliott was often an unbelievable pain in the ass--the kind you only truly appreciated when it was suddenly gone.