Sadness welled inside Isobel for her parents. “The house is gone, isn’t it?”
Damien nodded. “By the time the firefighters arrived it was too late. All they could do was keep it from spreading.” He shifted on the bed. “I called your parents. They took the first flight they could get and will be here this afternoon.”
“How did you get the hospital to let you in here?”
A smile filled with mischief spread across his face, showing his perfect white teeth. “They wouldn’t dare to keep your husband away.”
Isobel’s breath caught in her throat and the machine skipped a beep. “Husband? Are you proposing?”
Damien flashed her another smile. “Absolutely.” His face grew serious. “But not here, not like this.”
Isobel wanted to tell him she didn’t care how he proposed, but she could see in his eyes that he wanted to do something special. She tried to change positions to ease the ache in her joints and groaned at the stabbing pain in her side.
“Isobel, do you want me to call the nurse so she can give you something for the pain?”
She gave a shake of her head. “Not yet.” Her eyes found his again. “Xapar is gone?” When he nodded she asked, “What do I do now?”
Damien’s face grew serious. “There are more demons out there. What you decide to do is up to you.”
Tears rimmed the edges of her eyes. Though he’d said he wanted to marry her, she knew he had a greater calling. “You’re going to leave, aren’t you?”
Damien’s face softened as he shook his head. “Not without you, meae deliciae. You are my channel. I have had but one place in this world throughout the centuries and that is with you. We are sodales in aeternum.” He stood and leaned over her, gently kissing her lips before pulling back.
Isobel closed her eyes and relaxed against the sheets. Damien brushed the back of his fingers across her face. “I will call the nurse now.”
A few minutes later the nurse arrived and injected pain medication into her I.V. The pain lessened and the drug pulled her under.
When she woke her mother and father were in the room. Elizabeth was at her side the minute her eyes opened. She brushed a strand of hair away from Isobel’s face. “Oh baby, we were so worried about you.”
A golden glow shined softly around Elizabeth, and Isobel smiled, happy she was able to see it. The pain in her joints had finally subsided, and only a dull ache remained in her head. “I’m fine, Mom,” she lied. Her ribs still felt like they’d been kicked by a horse.
Her dad hovered anxiously on the other side of the bed as if unsure of what to do with himself. “If I had known about the wiring I would never have left you alone in the house.”
“Dad, it isn’t your fault.” She couldn’t tell him it was really a demon that had caused everything and not the remodeling, but she didn’t want him to feel guilty either.
He shook his head and rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m only thankful Damien and his guests helped you out of the house. I guess I misjudged him a little.”
Isobel smiled at him. “You misjudged him a lot.”
Her father’s eyes narrowed. “How would you know?”
Elizabeth shook her head. “John, really.”
“Dad—” Isobel groaned around the ache in her ribs. “Damien and I have been together all summer.”
“You love him don’t you?” Elizabeth asked knowingly.
“What?” Her dad looked alarmed.
Isobel ignored him and looked at her mom. “Yes. More than I can express.”
Elizabeth nodded, a soft smile of understanding on her face. “It’s that serious between you two?”
“It’s very serious.” She glanced warily at her father. “Maybe fiancé serious.”
Her dad gaped at her and Elizabeth’s eyes lit up as she asked, “When did this happen? Why didn’t you call to tell us?”
Isobel smiled. “It hasn’t quite happened yet. He wants to wait until I am out of the hospital so it can be something special.”
“I’m so happy for you, sweetie.” Elizabeth patted her hand.
“Have you met him?” Isobel asked.
Her mom nodded. “Oh yes. He picked us up from the airport.” Elizabeth glanced at John. “Damien is very sweet and respectful. I think he will be good for you.”
Isobel raised an eyebrow at her father. “Dad?”
“Yeah, he seemed nice.” Her father scowled as if the admission bothered him, then his face softened, and he sighed. “I’m sorry, Isa. It’s just…there will never be anyone good enough for my little girl. I guess Damien is about as close to it as I can hope for.”
A soft laugh escaped her lips followed by a groan as she pressed her hand to her ribs. What would her dad think if he knew Damien was a dark angel? She would never know.
“What are you guys going to do about the house?” Isobel asked, suddenly concerned for her parents.
“We’ll rebuild. We’re here for a week.” Her dad paused and glanced at Isobel. “You remember the Emmersons?” When Isobel nodded that she remembered the architect and his wife, he continued, “James is going to draw up some plans and then see that it gets done while I finish up the job in Dubai.”
Elizabeth took her hand and squeezed it lightly. “I was going to ask if you wanted to come to Dubai with us since the house is destroyed. I’m assuming since you have Damien you’d rather stay here.”
Isobel nodded. “I will stay with Damien.”
“I figured as much.” Elizabeth smiled. “I can stay in town longer if you would like, to help you get ready to go back to college.”
Isobel just smiled. She’d figure out how to tell them that she wasn’t going back to school later. That she was going to travel with Damien instead. She couldn’t very well tell them the man she intended to spend her life with was also her dark angel and she would be hunting demons while she traveled.
The nurse came in soon after with more pain medication. Isobel fell asleep holding Elizabeth’s hand.
Isobel woke and stretched long and slow. Beside her, Sorsha trilled a quiet meow, irritated with her for moving around. Isobel ran her hand over the cat’s soft fur as she sat up, thankful the pain in her ribs was finally gone. One glance at the other side of the bed showed Damien was already awake. Outside the window the first yellow leaves of the aspens had appeared since the beginning of September.
The conversation with her parents three weeks ago about her decision to leave school and travel with Damien had been met with the predicted responses. Elizabeth had expressed nothing but hope and happiness for her future, while her dad had lectured her about staying in college. In the end, Isobel had put her foot down. She was nineteen and old enough to make her own decisions.
Isobel pushed back the warm sheets, slid from the bed, and walked to the window. The Rocky Mountains rose up sharp and tall a short distance away. When she turned, she noticed the rose petals on the floor. They were scattered in a path that led past the open bedroom door.
She paused in the doorway. The path led down the hall and several tea light candles in little glass globes were spaced apart on either side of the hall. Isobel smiled and followed the rose petals and candles to the stairs. The petals were sprinkled down the stairs like a pink and red waterfall. Each step held a tiny candle in glass on either side. The path took her through the house to the dining room where the petals circled the table. Four tall tapered candles stood like guardians around a massive bouquet of pink and red roses.
Isobel stared at the table with tears in her eyes. In front of the roses sat a small velvet box. Snuggled in the center, a diamond ring shimmered in the candlelight.
Damien’s arms slid around her from behind, and he pulled her close. “So how about it, meae deliciae? Would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”
“Damien—” Isobel couldn’t stop the tears that trailed down her face. She turned to look into his rich blue eyes that gazed back at her so full of love. “I would love to be your wife.”
&nb
sp; He tightened his arms around her and bent to kiss her. She parted her lips and tangled her fingers in his hair. The kiss deepened and intensified until Damien eased away. Isobel smiled up at him. “I can’t believe you did all of this.”
“I can’t take complete credit. I called Amelia for some ideas. There’s more.”
Isobel stared at him, soaking up the passion in his eyes. “More what?”
“More to this. I promise, we will make time for this,” Damien trailed kisses down her neck, “later.” He stepped away and picked up the box, plucking the ring from it.
Isobel held out her hand as he slipped it on her finger. More tears trickled down her cheeks as the diamond sparkled from its place on her hand. “What else could there possibly be?”
“I made breakfast as well.” He smiled.
His smile melted her heart, and she hugged him. “I love you.”
He took her face in his hands, gently wiping the tears from her cheeks with his thumbs. “I love you too. In aeternum ac semper. Meae deliciae.”
“What was that last part?”
Damien leaned down and whispered against her mouth, “Forever and always. My love.” Then he kissed her with all the love and passion in his heart.
Throughout Bound by Time I used many things from actual history and there were a few times I stretched or reshaped it just a bit to fit my needs.
There really was a Saint Januarius; he died as a martyr at the hands of the Romans in 305 A.D.
A woman named Eusebia really did collect vials of his blood. This blood is kept in the principal chapel of Naples, Italy and there really is a festival every year where the blood goes from solid form to liquid form and is brought out of the chapel for the people to see.
Where I deviated from history is making Januarius and Eusebia channels. In actual history, Eusebia only collected two vials of blood. I changed that to five vials for the purpose of this story.
The principal chapel of Naples is indeed built on the ruins of an older chapel that in turn was built on the foundation of yet an older one. The chapel was partly destroyed in 1456 during an earthquake. Whether or not there was ever a round stained glass window in it during this time I don’t know. I installed it for the purpose of this story.
Additionally, regarding stained glass windows; the oldest recorded stained glass windows are indeed in Germany though they didn’t quite date back far enough for this story. So I stretched their history back a little ways in order to have the window where I needed it at the time I needed it to be there.
There are quite a few little islands in the web of land and waterways east of Savannah, Georgia on the coast. However, none of them are the island depicted in this book. I looked at several of the islands before beginning the story, but none quite suited my needs. So I made one up and plopped it down there.
The church they visit in Wichita, KS does not exist to my knowledge; although there are several there. I visited and fell in love with one in another town, but it wasn’t a town that would work well for the story. So I picked that church up and plopped it down on a random, unnamed corner in Wichita.
Joan of Arc (also referred to as La Pucelle both in this book and in history) of course did exist. However, as far as I know, she was not a channel, nor was the man who killed her possessed by a demon, although given his actions it’s entirely possible he was.
Poveglia Island does exist, as did many of the events depicted there during the brief mention of it within this book. However, whether or not there was ever a stained glass window there, or whether a demon had any hand in those events, is unknown to me. I added those in for the purpose of this story.
When Damien informed me he spoke Latin, I was at a loss. When I told him I didn’t know Latin, he told me that was my problem and I had better figure it out. I turned to Maria at AllExperts, a woman who is an expert in Latin language and literature, who received her PhD from Genova University in Italy and has over 25 years experience in teaching. She was kind enough to translate the various phrases for me. I found out during the process that Latin is a very precise language and online translators are often wrong because of this. The way something is said changes depending on who you are addressing and how. I give Maria many thanks for her help.
A.D. Trosper is the author of the bestselling, award-winning Dragon’s Call series. She has also written a children’s book and a paranormal romance series called Bound. A.D. enjoys writing in a variety of genres including epic fantasy, urban fantasy, and paranormal romance. An avid lover of animals, she has rescued and rehabbed horses, goats, dogs and cats. When not writing, she spends time with her family and pets. She is convinced chocolate is a necessary food group and magic is real (not always the way we think it is, but real nonetheless).
Visit the author at:
www.adtropser.com &
www.bhcauthors.com
Cover design, interior book design,
and eBook design,
by Blue Harvest Creative
www.blueharvestcreative.com
Table of Contents
About The Book
Copyright Information
Also By A.D. Trosper
Acknowledgments
Title Page
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Author's Note
Don't Miss "Bound By Legend"
About the Author
Visit the Author
Meet the Designers
Bound by Time: A Bound Novel Page 22