Redeemed in Darkness

by Alexis Morgan

  “Anyone who hurts her will face me.” Cullen gripped the pommel of his sword, pulling it out a short distance to make his point.

  Larem didn’t look impressed. “And me, as well. Remember that, human. Hurt her, and you die.”

  “Fine. We understand each other. Now let’s get a move on. I’m in no particular hurry, but you can’t afford to be late.”

  D.J. barged into Devlin’s office. “We need to talk.”

  “Not now, D.J. I’m busy.”

  “It can’t wait.” The antsy Paladin paced the floor, stopping long enough to take a knife down off the wall. After flipping it in the air a few times as he crisscrossed the room, he put it back and reached for another one.

  “Damn it, D.J., if the government could harness your energy, they could light up the entire West Coast. Quit wearing out my carpet.”

  “Fine, but we need to talk.” D.J. flopped down in one of the chairs facing Devlin’s desk without waiting for an invitation.

  Devlin looked at the never-ending mountain of paperwork that multiplied geometrically every time he left his office undefended, then sighed. “What’s on your mind?”

  D.J. leaned forward, a worried look on his face. “I can’t find Cullen.”

  Devlin gave up and set his pen down. “I haven’t seen him either, D.J. Maybe he doesn’t want to be found.”

  The other Paladin shook his head. “When he goes off on his own to work, he always checks in periodically. We’re supposed to be fine-tuning that software program we’ve been working on, but he hasn’t come in. I e-mailed him twice and tried both his cell and his home number half a dozen times. No answer.” D.J. scratched his head. “I even went by his house. No sign of him.”

  Though D.J. could be a pain in the ass at times, he wasn’t one to cry wolf. If he said Cullen was missing, he was.

  “Ask around and see when was the last time anyone saw him.”

  “Already did. No one has seen him since he picked up Barak and drove him to the tunnel. In fact, that snappy new red sports car Cullen just bought is still sitting in the parking garage, right where’s it’s been for the past day or so.”

  Now Devlin really was getting worried. Of all the Paladins, Cullen was the most levelheaded one. It wasn’t like him not to check in when he was supposed to. Besides, he was damn proud of that car. He wouldn’t leave it unattended unless something was seriously wrong.

  “Who were the last ones to see Cullen?”

  D.J. held up a hand and ticked the names off on his fingers. “You, me, Lonzo, and Trahern. Barak, of course, since he was there in the tunnel with Cullen. If anyone else saw him after that, I haven’t heard about it.”

  “Did you talk to Penn Sebastian? He’s the one who told Barak about Lacey being kidnapped. If Cullen was still with Barak at that point, he’d know.”

  “Nope, I missed him, and Laurel wasn’t letting Barak have visitors yet except for Lacey.” D.J. jumped to his feet. “I’ll go track down Penn. He may be in the lab with Barak and Lacey. If not, I’ll keep looking.”

  Devlin reached for his pen. “Keep me posted.”

  “Will do.” D.J. slammed the door behind him hard enough to rattle the weapons on the wall.

  Devlin winced, wishing that D.J. would learn how to control some of that energy. In battle the man was a whirlwind of a fighter, especially with that throwing hammer he liked so much. But the rest of the time, it would be nice if he could tone it down a bit.

  He stared at the door, hoping like hell that D.J. was wrong, and Cullen was just grabbing some downtime. He’d give his friend time to talk to Barak and Penn before calling in the troops. But from what D.J. had said, Cullen had already been missing for almost two days, and the trail was growing colder by the second.

  His concentration shot, Devlin shoved the stack of paperwork to the side. Maybe his time would be better spent following D.J. over to the lab. If D.J. was right—and Devlin had a bad feeling that he was—there wasn’t a minute to waste.

  He picked up his cell, hit the speed dial for Trahern, and waited for his friend to pick up.

  “Something’s come up. Meet me at Laurel’s lab in fifteen minutes.” He hung up without waiting for Trahern’s response. By the time he reached the outside door, he was running.

  Chapter 7

  “W hat makes your people try to leave your world? I know your star is fading, but we’ve never understood the why of it all.” Cullen sat at the kitchen table, watching Lusahn put together a simple dinner of bread, cheese, and fresh vegetables.

  She reached for the plates. “You’ve never bothered to ask that before, so why now?”

  He took the plates from her and set the table as he tried to figure out how to answer her question.

  “I guess we were too busy protecting our world to worry about it. The few who get past us go on binges of murdering anyone who gets in their way. We fight like hell to keep that from happening.” He picked up the pitcher and filled everyone’s glasses.

  She set the platters of food on the table. “We’ve seen a few instances of that on our side, but not many. Most who seek the light manage to cross the barrier. If they don’t make it on their first try, they keep at it.”

  “Why don’t you stop them? Can’t your Guild do something? Isn’t there a cure of some kind?” He didn’t mean to sound accusatory, but he’d spent his whole adult life fighting because of her people.

  She jerked a stack of bowls off the shelf. “Don’t you think we’ve tried? Why do you think we patrol the caverns? It sure isn’t for the scenery!” She slammed the last bowl down. “I do not need your questions right now.”

  Considering the dark circles under her eyes and the weariness in her slumped shoulders, he could have picked a better time. “I’m sorry, Lusahn.” He walked around the table to offer the comfort of a quick hug. “I know it’s been a tough day, and last night wasn’t exactly restful for you.”

  She leaned into the warmth of his body and sighed as his arms pulled her close. “You don’t hear me complaining about last night, do you?”

  “No, and that’s a good thing.” He pressed a soft kiss against her temple. “I know it was hard facing down both Joq and Larem. How did your patrol go this afternoon?”

  “About as usual. We made our rounds and then spent the rest of our shift doing paperwork. I swear someone invents forms just to keep us busy.”

  He chuckled. “The top Paladin in Seattle has the same complaint. Whether he’s requesting a new sword or a pack of pens, the paperwork has to be done exactly right. It takes him hours and hours just to keep up.”

  Her smile washed away some of the weariness in her eyes. “See? In some ways, we are not so different from your people.”

  He hid the urge to wince. It had been bad enough to get to know Barak as an individual he both liked and respected. But now he’d met Larem, Bavi and Shiri, and Lusahn herself. How could he look at the Others in the same way he always had—as little better than animals?

  A movement at the kitchen door caught his attention. Shiri stood there, thumb in her mouth, her big eyes curious. She seemed unsure of her welcome.

  “Come on in, little one.” He held out his hand, inviting her to join the two of them.

  When Lusahn smiled and nodded, Shiri came at a dead run, letting Cullen hoist her up between the two adults. Shiri tucked her head under Lusahn’s chin but held on to Cullen’s shirt. His heart did a slow roll as the two females settled trustingly in his arms. A surge of protectiveness washed through him. He would lay down his life without hesitation to keep the two of them safe, and Bavi as well.

  Was this what family felt like? For a few seconds he let himself pretend it was real, that he belonged to them and they belonged to him, now and forever. Then Bavi walked in, and the atmosphere went from warm and cozy to cold and angry.

  He snarled something at Lusahn, who flinched and slowly turned to face the angry young man. But she made no move to step away from him or to set Shiri down.

  “Bavi,”
she said in English for Cullen’s benefit, and speaking slowly for Bavi’s, “show respect. We are not hurting your sister, nor are we trying to turn her against you.”

  Her remark startled Cullen. He’d assumed that Bavi didn’t trust him around his sister because he was a Paladin. It hadn’t occurred to him that the boy might feel threatened for a whole other reason.

  He echoed Lusahn’s feelings. “She is your sister, son. Nothing and no one can change that. I appreciate you and Lusahn sharing her with me for a little while.”

  At least this time Bavi didn’t explode or try to drag his sister out of the room. Lusahn finally stepped away, taking Shiri with her. Cullen let them both go, knowing it was important for Bavi to know that Lusahn was on his side, that he and his sister were the important ones in this equation.

  Cullen immediately took his accustomed seat at the table and waited for the other three to join him. It felt good to relax at the dinner table, enjoying the simple fare and the company of the three Others.

  He frowned. The word Other jarred his conscience. They must have a name they called themselves that had more meaning than the one some nameless Paladin in the past had dubbed them with. Later, when the kids were asleep and Lusahn slipped downstairs again, he’d ask her. Well, not right away. He had other plans for them, ones he’d been working on since she’d left his bed during the early hours of the morning. But afterward, when they were both sated and weary, they could talk.

  To get things moving in that direction, he picked up the bowl and passed it to Bavi.

  Cullen was plotting something. She could see it in the way his eyes followed her every movement and how he managed to brush against her whenever he found an excuse, slowly setting her skin on fire. She ached in places that didn’t bear thinking about, since she had chores to complete and children to get off to bed.

  The star had barely set, too early to shoo Bavi off to his room. He’d suspect something was going on for sure. He was just beginning to tolerate Cullen’s presence in their home; she didn’t want to disturb the fragile peace for her own selfish needs.

  But as soon as the children were both asleep for the night, she was going to extract her revenge. She hoped Cullen had conserved some of his strength after their strenuous hike up to the east tunnels, or he might not survive the night ahead.

  Right now he was sitting at the table with Shiri, watching as the little girl struggled to build a tower of cards. He said it was supposed to be a house, but it didn’t look like any building she’d ever seen. Still, it was fun to watch the two dark heads so close together as they celebrated each success and laughed at each failure when the cards came tumbling down.

  Even Bavi had hung around, occasionally trying his hand at some of the fancy shuffling that Cullen had shown him. The boy was quick with his fingers, so he enjoyed a greater degree of success than his sister did. Cullen’s teeth flashed white against the dark color of his whiskers, which looked scruffier every day he spent in her world. She liked the way his beard softened the sharp angles of his warrior’s face.

  She couldn’t wait to rub her face against his whiskers, liking the way it felt against her skin, and not just on her face. Her body went warm and liquid, remembering a few particular moments from the night before.

  Some of what she was thinking must have shown in her expression, because Cullen gave her a heated look and an impudent wink before looking away. Her favorite bowl slipped through her fingers, only luck and quick reflexes saving it from shattering on the stone floor. Naturally Cullen noticed, but he’d pay for that bit of laughter later—although he might just enjoy the punishment she had in mind.

  He’d gathered up his cards and began spreading them out on the table in some sort of pattern. Bavi was watching over the top of his book whenever he didn’t think Cullen would notice. He’d underestimated the Paladin.

  “Bavi, would you like to learn this game?”

  Cullen kept his eyes on the cards, giving the boy a chance to consider his answer without being pressured. For a man who had no children of his own, he had a surprising natural ease with them. Shiri, who was generally shy with strangers, had taken to Cullen immediately, and now he was slowly winning Bavi over.

  When Bavi glanced in her direction, she gave him an encouraging nod. It was nice to see him willing to risk trusting another adult. Her only concern was that Cullen would be gone in a handful of days. He’d settled into their routine so seamlessly that it was hard to remember that he hadn’t always been there, and it was painful knowing that he would never do so again.

  She immediately turned back to drying dishes, planning to do some laundry next. Anything to keep from thinking about the future. When she left the room, Bavi was sitting next to Cullen and listening carefully to the rules for playing something called solitaire, a game for one person. Maybe she should learn the game herself. It would help while away the hours once the barrier went down and Cullen Finley returned home.

  His lady was sad. Cullen wasn’t sure what had put the sorrow in Lusahn’s eyes, but he hated seeing it there. One minute she’d been giving him looks that almost had him panting; the next, she had walked out with such a sad expression on her face. Her kids seemed fine, so he had a sneaking suspicion that whatever was bothering her had to do with him.

  “You catch on quickly, Bavi. Why don’t you finish that game by yourself and then deal another one? I’ll be back shortly in case you have any questions. I need to tell Lusahn something.”

  The boy nodded and pointed to a card for Shiri to move, who giggled at being able to help her big brother play.

  It wasn’t hard to find Lusahn. She stood at a window, staring out at the silver-white moon in the dark sky. Her arms were crossed over her waist, her shoulder resting against the wall. He paused, unsure of his welcome. After the day she’d had, she might want a few minutes to herself.

  She was a warrior, though, and always aware of her surroundings. “The moon is beautiful tonight,” she said.

  “Yes, it is.” He eased closer until her scent filled his senses and he could feel her warmth. “So are you.”

  “Flatterer.”

  But he could tell she was pleased. He closed the small distance between them, liking it when she relaxed back against him. The gentle press of her body had a predictable effect on his, but he wanted to offer comfort, not make demands.

  “What’s wrong, Lusahn? Is it something I did?”

  She shook her head. “No, not exactly.”

  When she didn’t go on, he pushed a little bit. “What does ‘not exactly’ mean? I can’t fix it if I don’t know what’s got you down.”

  She sighed and snuggled closer. “I was thinking how good you are with Shiri and Bavi. That’s a good thing, because they need reminders that adults can be trusted. It seems so natural to have you sitting there with them. Then it hit me how soon you will return to your own world. Shiri will have a hard time understanding where you’ve gone. I don’t know how much she remembers about her parents, but it can’t be good for her if the adults she loves keep disappearing from her life.”

  He buried his face in the dark silk of her hair. “It’s no comfort, but it will rip my heart out to leave the three of you behind.”

  She turned in his arms. “It is some comfort that you will be leaving your heart here, since you will be taking a big piece of ours with you.”

  He caught her chin with the side of his finger and tilted it to the perfect angle for a long, slow kiss, one meant to soothe. But holding her, kissing her, even making love to her, wasn’t going to be enough to heal the gaping wound that would be his life once he went home.

  He couldn’t stay without endangering her and the children, even if his honor would allow it. So he’d go home—but he wouldn’t be the same man who had so naively crossed the barrier such a short time ago.

  When she broke off the kiss, she whispered, “You are only part of what’s wrong. I’m upset about Joq, as well as the members of my Blade. I’m angry that someone is robbing
my world and my people for something as shallow as money. And I worry about the children. I can’t really replace the parents they had.”

  “I’ve said this before, and I mean it: you’re a terrific mother to them. Remember, the parents they had deserted them.” He let some of his anger show. “And I keep thinking I might have been the one to kill them.”

  She laid a finger across his lips, shushing him. “Once the madness strikes our people, they are already gone. Nothing will stop them from trying to cross into the light of your world.”

  “What causes them to act that way? Is it some kind of sickness?”

  “Not exactly. All we know is that the victims live normal lives up to that point, gradually becoming more and more sensitive to both cold and darkness. Then one day they snap and are driven to try to escape our world. Once that happens, there is no turning back.”

  That scenario sounded all too familiar: different symptoms, different cause, but the same outcome. Paladins fought the battles they were born to fight, dying over and over with no apparent change in their physiology, until they died one time too many. When that happened, they awoke as ravening monsters, intent on killing anyone who got in their way.

  He knew that the Paladins shared a few common genes with the Others, so it was only logical that some form of the same malady would afflict both worlds. Son of a bitch! Why hadn’t someone made that connection before now? Or if they had, why hadn’t someone told the Paladins?

  The answer was obvious. The Regents probably thought it was imperative that the Paladins think of the enemy as monsters, to keep them fighting the Others without question. Maybe the Others were monsters once they crossed the barrier, but they certainly didn’t start out that way. He had the proof right there in his arms.

  “Did I say something to upset you?”

  Lusahn’s soft voice jerked him back from the dark path his thoughts had taken. He gave her a soft squeeze and nuzzled her hair, soothing his spirit with her feminine scent. He couldn’t do anything about his questions until he returned home, so he wouldn’t allow them to cast shadows on the short time he had left here.