Lore

by Sandra R Neeley

  Carolena turned back around to see what he looked at and stopped dead in her tracks. Her mate, her husband, her Gargoyle was running toward her, tears in his eyes and a huge smile on his face.

  “Oh my gosh! Carnage!”

  “Leenah!” he said again.

  Carolena’s eyes raised as she tilted her head back to get a good look. She couldn’t believe her eyes. And Carnage was thrilled. He turned around and peeked at her over his shoulder, over his wings. His huge, pale grey wings that were very clearly growing out of his back, directly from his wing bed, where the horrible scarring had been before.

  “Carnage! Your wings! Your wings are glorious!”

  He turned around and ran the last few steps to Carolena, hugging her tightly to him.

  “I’m so happy for you!” she told him over and over again while kissing his face.

  “Winns!” he said, excitedly, pointing over his shoulder at his own wings.

  “They’re amazing!” Lore called out from where he still sat with Boon.

  Lily had run to her Papa’s side and was squealing happily.

  Murder approached, and Carolena stepped back, so Murder could congratulate him. “Carnage! They’re massive! And so beautiful and strong! Congratulations!”

  “Tank ‘eww!” Carnage said, grinning.

  “Turn around again. Let us see!”

  Carnage turned his back and spread his wings for everyone to see.

  “I don’t know how this happened, Carnage, but I’m so happy it did. If I’ve had one regret, it’s that I didn’t get there in time to save your wings,” Murder said.

  Carnage turned back to his family and friends, embracing Murder, and shaking his head. He patted Murder’s cheek, then kissed the same cheek. “No ‘grets,” he said looking into Murder’s eyes.

  Murder only nodded, clearly emotional at his old friend receiving a new set of wings.

  Then Carnage turned to Carolena again, grinning.

  “I’m so excited for you! Can you fly again?” she asked.

  Carnage looked surprised like he hadn’t even thought of it yet. He shrugged his shoulders and lifted his wings and flapped them in one single, strong movement. His feet left the deck, and he flapped his wings twice more and found himself high above his home. Gracefully he rode the currents down until his feet landed gently on the deck again.

  Lily was jumping up and down. “I want to fly! Me first, take me first!”

  Carnage picked up Lily, and with one flap of his huge grey wings, they lifted into the air.

  “This is amazing,” Lore said, laughing at watching his old friend playing with his new wings like a new toy. “I’ve never in all my life seen anyone, no matter who they were, have wings that regenerated. I just… I can’t explain it.”

  “Now, Lore — tell the truth — it was you, wasn’t it? You arranged this,” Carolena said.

  “I give you my word, Carolena, I had nothing to do with this. Not that I wouldn’t if I could have, but it wasn’t me. I can’t heal, I can’t regenerate body parts. I honestly don’t understand it.”

  A soft female voice spoke quietly. “An answer to an Angel’s prayer, maybe?”

  Lore whipped his head around at the sound of the oh-so-familiar voice. Slowly he stood, his eyes focused now on only one thing. “Evangeline,” he whispered.

  Evangeline smiled and just barely shrugged her shoulders. “I missed you.”

  Carolena had turned at the unfamiliar voice, and on seeing it was Evangeline, hurried to take Boon, so Lore could go to Evangeline.

  “I missed you, too,” Lore said, getting to his feet, but standing in place making no move to go toward her.

  “I’m sorry it took me so long to remember. I’ve been having these dreams, and I wasn’t sure for the longest time if they were just dreams or memories. Turns out, they were memories. I dreamed them all — everything, over and over again. And finally… I figured it out,” Evangeline explained shyly.

  Lore glanced at Lucitari, who hovered there, beaming happily at them both, before turning his attention back to Evangeline. “You dreamt of me?”

  Evangeline wasn’t sure if she’d made the right choice. Lore wasn’t rushing to her side as she’d envisioned. He was just standing there, looking at her.

  She nodded. “I did. But if you’d rather I go, I can. I know it’s been a while. I shouldn’t have just thought everything would be like I hoped it would.” She took a step back, intending to move back toward Lucitari, so she’d take her away from here before she managed to embarrass herself any more than she already had by assuming Lore still wanted her. But she got no further than that one step.

  Lore was there, beside her, behind her, in front of her, all around her. “No! Don’t go! You are here. I cannot believe you are here! You came to me!”

  She smiled at him then. Her arms lifting to press her hands caressingly against his chest as he held her about the waist. “I couldn’t get you out of my head, when I was asleep, anyway. And then after a while, when I was awake, you were in my head as well. I just… I had to come to you. If you’ll have me, I want to stay.”

  “Yes!” Lore shouted. “Yes! You are mine! You have always been mine! And I’m yours. Only ever yours, Evangeline.” Lore kissed her lips, lifting one hand to tilt her chin up, so her face was lifted to his. “I love you,” he whispered, after kissing her softly.

  “And I you.”

  “You dreamed everything?” Lore asked, his stomach falling a bit, wondering if she truly remembered everything. Because if she didn’t, he needed to tell her. No secrets, not even about the parts of the past he was ashamed of. He looked up at Lucitari, hovering just above and behind Evangeline. “Dreams?” he mouthed.

  Lucitari winked at him and wiggled her fingers, causing her dark blue mists to wisp about.

  He grinned at Lucitari, realizing she had caused the dreams that gave Evangeline back her memory.

  “Everything,” Evangeline insisted. “They weren’t all pleasant dreams. But, they’ve brought us to where we are now.”

  “And you forgive me?” he asked quietly.

  “I forgave you long before the day I claimed you as mine in that little chapel you turned into our home.”

  Lore pulled her in tight for a hug. She remembered all of it. And she’d come to him anyway. “You truly are an Angel to be able to forgive me all my shortcomings.”

  “Not anymore,” she confessed. “When I left to come to you, I was made human. That’s all I am now. Are you disappointed?”

  Lore shook his head. “You are my mate. You are my soul. That is all we were truly ever meant to be, and now we have the rest of forever before us! I don’t care what labels we wear, as long as we wear them together.”

  Lore and Evangeline embraced again, Lore feeling the hopeless empty chasm where his heart and soul once were, filling, taking their first breath of peace in so many years he didn’t care to count.

  Carnage landed on the deck behind them with Lily squealing happily in his arms.

  With Evangeline still held tightly against himself, Lore turned so that they could see Carnage, still happily flapping his wings about. Lore looked more closely at Carnage’s new wings. Yep, there they were. Tucked sporadically into the grey feathers here and there throughout his wings were several snow-white feathers.

  Lore realized that, when holding Evangeline to him, her wings were not beneath his hands. “Those wings were yours,” Lore said. “You didn’t just pray for him to have a new pair of wings — you gave him yours.”

  Evangeline looked up into Lore’s very happy, very sparkling, luminescent eyes. “They said if I chose to leave them, I could not remain an Angel — and I’d have to give up my wings. As they started the ceremony, I realized I knew someone who needed them and would appreciate them more than even I ever did. So I said a little prayer and asked for a favor.”

  “How did you know he’d lost his wings?” Lore asked.

  “I remember everything. I know it was him there saving me i
n the fortress. I know he was with us the second time when you came to take me from the Dark One. And I know he’s a Gargoyle without wings. I was losing mine. He deserved them.”

  Lore kissed her soundly.

  “I’ll never be able to thank you enough,” Carolena said, her voice full of emotion.

  “I need no thanks. He saved me, more than once. It was the least I could do. And the look on his face makes my heart smile,” Evangeline answered.

  Carnage had been playing with Lily and speaking with Murder, but he’d been listening, too. He walked over to Evangeline and scooped her up, taking her right out of Lore’s arms. “Winns?” he asked, in his gravelly voice.

  “Yes. They look much better on you, I think,” Evangeline answered, grinning at him and hugging him back.

  “Can I have my mate back, Carnage?” Lore asked, more than a little perturbed that Carnage had snatched her right out of his arms.

  Carnage raised his eyebrows and shifted Evangeline, so he could hold her off the ground with one arm. With his other hand he pointed at her and looked at Lore. “’er?” he asked, knowing full well that Evangeline was Lore’s mate.

  “Yes, her!” Lore snapped.

  Carnage grinned at Evangeline. “Tank ‘eww!” he said in his most heartfelt voice. He crossed his arm over his chest and pounded it twice.

  “Anybody else I’d have removed from the damn deck already!” Lore grouched because Carnage still held Evangeline in one arm.

  Carnage laughed, a deep boisterous laugh. Then he shoved Evangeline toward Lore and hurried over to an also laughing Carolena. He lifted her into his arms, careful not to smash Boon, who was still gnawing on his mostly soggy toast while perched in his mother’s arms. He kissed her lips. “Hahppeee,” he said, kissing her face, kissing Boon.

  “Me, too. I’m so happy,” Carolena answered, looking lovingly at him.

  “We have a lot of time to make up for,” Lore said, looking down into Evangeline’s eyes.

  “Can we start now?” she asked.

  “I’ll have to find us a place to live or create one. I didn’t think you’d ever come to me — I’m afraid I didn’t prepare very well.”

  “I know of a perfect home. Maybe a little dusty, but if it’s still standing, I’d like to live there.”

  “Yes!” Lore started gathering his mists to carry them away. “The chapel! It is still standing. I go there often just to feel closer to you. Even your paints are still there, but I doubt they’re still usable, I’ll get you fresh ones. We can paint everything!”

  “Can we go now?” Evangeline asked excitedly.

  “Anything you wish, sweet,” Lore answered, using the pet name he knew she loved.

  “Forever?” she asked.

  “Forever. Never apart.”

  “Thank, goodness!” Evangeline said, taking Lore’s face in her hands and kissing his lips as his mists began swirling to take them to their home in the chapel they’d lived in so long ago.

  “Wait! I need to speak with you, Lore,” Murder shouted, taking a step toward him.

  The mists dissipated, and Lore turned to Murder. “Of course, Murder. Forgive me. I forgot you came to speak with me. What is it?”

  “I need your help, Lore,” Murder insisted.

  “Anything. Name it and it’s yours. If I’m able to provide it, it’s yours,” Lore promised.

  Murder appeared very agitated. He was clearly not himself, and Lore was not the only one to notice.

  “Murder, there is nothing you can ask that I won’t try to provide. Ask,” Lore encouraged, sensing the hesitance in Murder.

  Finally, Murder raised his eyes to Lore’s. “You know I’m struggling. I am lost. I have no will to do anything more than stay in my home with my drapes drawn and lie in darkness. I’ve thought about it, and I can make no sense of the confusion I find myself in other than one simple explanation.”

  “And what is that? Anything, my friend. You have stood by my side for decades, without question. Tell me, I will not let you down,” Lore promised.

  Murder nodded. He looked at Evangeline, knowing what he was asking would throw a wrench into Lore’s and Evangeline’s plan to hide away in their home for a while.

  “Phrygia — she’s my mate.”

  “Phrygia?! The Demon guard?” Lore asked, startled.

  “Yes. Phrygia, the Demon guard. I can’t be here without her. I can’t be anywhere without her. I have this emptiness… Surely, it must be her.”

  “Are you sure, Murder? Perhaps you just feel obliged to her because she tried to help you while you were held captive?” Lore asked.

  “I’m sure! I felt it then. I tried to ignore it, thought it was a trick of my circumstances. But it was apparent, even then, though weak, it was still apparent,” Murder answered.

  Lucitari still hovered just above the deck, but now she was in a kneeling position, speaking with Lily, teaching her a few of her own tricks.

  At Murder’s admission, her head popped up, and her deep blue eyes flashed in his direction. She watched him, for any sign he had a doubt of what Phrygia meant to him — he seemed to be teetering between confidence that she was his mate, and not understanding why he felt empty, but he wasn’t drawn to Phrygia as strongly as he thought he’d be. Lucitari said nothing as she watched him coming to terms with who he thought his mate was in front of his friends.

  “Are you sure, Murder?” Lore asked.

  Murder looked down at his wrists. They still bore the faint scars from the manacles he’d been chained with while in Hell. He ran his thumbs across the marks.

  “Yes. I’m sure. I think.”

  “I don’t think she’s a Demon, Murder,” Lore confided.

  “Why not?” Murder asked.

  Lore shook his head. “I’m not sure. Just something about her — she seems so familiar to me.”

  “Doesn’t matter, Lore. If she is meant to be mine, I don’t care what she is. I am losing myself. I have to do something. I can’t just waste my life away hiding in the darkness of my living room.”

  Lore looked at him for long moments, saying nothing, just looking into Murder’s eyes, as Murder stared back into his own.

  “Tell me what you want from me,” Lore finally said, knowing only too well exactly what Murder was getting at.

  Murder nodded, took a deep breath, then asked for the one thing he wanted. The one thing he had to do in order to save the woman he believed to be his mate. The one thing he knew Lore may not grant him. “I need you to take me back to Hell.”

  From The Author

  Thank you for purchasing this book. I hope that my stories make you smile and give you a small escape from the daily same ole/same ole. I write for me, simply for the joy of it, but if someone else also smiles as a result, even better. Your support is greatly appreciated. If you liked this story, please remember to leave a review wherever you bought it, so that more people can find my books. Each review is important, no matter how short or long it may be.

  See you in the pages of the next one!

  Sandra R Neeley

  Other books by this author:

  Avaleigh’s Boys series

  I’m Not A Dragon’s Mate!, Book 1

  Bane’s Heart, Book 2

  Kaid’s Queen, Book 3

  Maverik’s Ashes, Book 4

  Bam’s Ever, Book 5

  Whispers From the Bayou series

  Carnage, Book 1

  Destroy, Book 2

  Enthrall, Book 3

  Haven series

  Haven 1: Ascend

  Riley’s Pride

  Riley’s Pride, Book 1

  About the Author

  My name is Sandra R Neeley. I write Paranormal, SciFi, and Fantasy Romances. Why, you may ask? Because who doesn't love a good romance, and the lack of reality in the story lines — because, well, normal is highly overrated, so Paranormal it is. I’m 55, I have two kids, one 33 and one 13(yes, God does have a sense of humor), one grandchild, one husband and a menagerie of animals. I lo
ve to cook and am a voracious reader, though since I started writing I don’t get as much time to read as I once did. I’m a homebody and prefer my writing/reading time to a crowd. I have had stories and fictional characters wandering around in my head for as long as I can remember. I’m a self-published author and I like it that way because I can decide what and when to write. I am by no means a formal, polished, properly structured individual and neither are my stories. But people seem to love the easy emotion and passion that flow from them. A bit of a warning though, there are some “triggers” in them that certain people should avoid. I’m a firm believer that you cannot have light without the dark. You cannot fully embrace the joy and elation that my people eventually find if you do not bear witness to their darkest hours as well. So please read the warnings supplied with each of the synopsis about my books before you buy them. I’ve got four series published at this time, Avaleigh’s Boys - PNR, Whispers From the Bayou - Fantasy PNR, Haven - SciFi Romance, and Riley’s Pride - PNR, several short stories, and much, much more to come. I’m always glad to hear from my readers, so feel free to look me up and say hello.

  You can find me at any of these places:

  authorsandrarneeley@gmail.com

  https://www.sneeleywrites.com

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  https://www.sneeleywrites.com/blog

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  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/15986167.Sandra_R_Neeley