In The Dark

by Sarah K. Jensen

  “You don’t know that he’s a jerk, honey. He could be a perfectly respectable man who truly loves Memphis. Don’t judge until you learn more about both of them and their situation.”

  “And then what? Step back and let him have her?”

  Lydia laughed. His mother actually laughed at him. “Sweetie, if she’s your soulmate, then things will work out. Be patient and take this slow.”

  She was right about that too. Though knowing that didn’t do much to take away the gnawing in his stomach, or the ache in his chest.

  He forced his shoulders to relax, unclenched his jaw and fists, and knocked lightly on the door. “May I come back in?”

  Memphis looked at him, held up a finger, and whispered into the phone. She wiped tears from her eyes, which he pretended not to notice, and waved him inside.

  “Sorry. I’m usually not such a basket case. Anyway, I’m good now and am ready to work on helping prove Shane’s innocence and hearing any plans you may have on trapping Kyrell for me to kill him.”

  “Kill? You mean send him back to Hell? You can’t kill an immortal.”

  Memphis raised a beautifully arched brow. “Yes. Kill. Eliminate him. Take him out of existence.”

  “There’s only one way to kill the Oíche Scáthanna. But that way has been lost to us for over a hundred years,” Regan Craig said from behind Laif.

  Laif hadn’t noticed his father come in, but when he heard his voice, he looked over his shoulder. Regan stood just inside the door with his mother, his brothers, Bryson and Fisher, and his brother-in-law, Tiegan.

  “Lost to you maybe, but the McLoughlin women have had the ability for hundreds of years. We are direct descendants of Síofra, daughter of Áinle and Caoimhe. When Áinle fashioned the Swords of the Guardianship, they had been for his daughter, but history says Áinle married Síofra’s wet nurse a few years after Caoimhe’s death and had another child, a son.

  “If your family had one of the blades Áinle forged, then you are a descendant of Nuadha and that would explain why the men in your family can see the Oíche Scáthanna.”

  Laif looked from Memphis to his father as his family worked their way into the small hospital room. What was Memphis talking about, and why, if any of this were true, had he never heard it?

  Before he could ask questions, his father said, “I know very little of the history of the Guardians. My father did not want his gifts and only fought when he had no other choice. He had learned from his uncle, who died when I was a wee lad. He taught me da that white sand blessed by a holy man of God could send them back to the Underworld. He gave some of this sand to me and my brother, Ewen, and then told us of a priest that would bless more for us, whenever we came across any.

  “When I followed Lydia to Texas, I met a Navaho medicine man, Born Elk. He blesses the white sands from New Mexico for us and instructs us in the ways of the Oíche Scáthanna. He has a great ability to know things that will aid us.”

  Memphis seemed confused. Laif knew he was. He’d heard all this about his father and grandfather, who up until the day he died, denied any knowledge of his heritage. Laif remembered nothing about a sword to kill Night Shadows.

  “So, you know nothing of how the Guardians began?” Memphis sat up a little higher in the bed and looked around the room. “Do you know how the Oíche Scáthanna came about?”

  Laif nodded, glad for a part he understood, and said, “Yes, hundreds of years ago, it’s said that a powerful Druid called banished souls from the Underworld. Some kind of rift was made, and they still come through.” He sat down in the stiff hospital chair by Memphis’s bed and forced himself not to take her hand. He’d try to back off. At least until he knew who Callan was.

  Memphis smiled at him. Just a quick lift of one corner of her lips. Very kissable lips. And the punch to his gut sent waves of desire throughout his entire system. A rush of air left his lungs, blew gently across her cheek. Her smile deepened and he thought for sure he’d die if he couldn’t kiss her soon.

  “That is a basic background. The evil Druid was Áinle’s father. It’s said that his mother was fae. It’s also said that Caoimhe was fae and that she risked life and limb to be with him.”

  Laif snorted. “Fae? You can’t be serious.”

  His father thumped his ear. He hated when his parents did that. He was thirty years old, dang it, too old to be thumped. “You think I told you of the fae just for fun. I’ve told you they were real and left us with some magic.”

  Yes, for fun was exactly what Laif had always believed, and by the looks on his brothers’ faces, so had they. They, of course, didn’t say anything. Tiegan, however, covered his face with his hands and shook his head. He’d probably given up years ago trying to understand the Craigs.

  Memphis acted as if she hadn’t been interrupted, well, except for the scowl she gave Laif. “Caoimhe and Áinle had met because she was curious about our world and followed her brothers here. They fell deeply in love and had to hide from Áinle’s father and the Tuatha De Danann.”

  Her fingers twisted in the blanket and it was all Laif could do to not link his fingers with hers.

  “See, if anyone found them, they would be put to death. The Tuatha De Danann had forbidden the fae to fraternize with humans since it was human Druids who had betrayed the fae and used the magic they’d given them to try and rule the world. It didn’t matter that it was only a small handful of Druids. The Tuatha De Danann do not give second chances. They destroyed those who had betrayed them and took the powers from those left that they knew about.”

  Memphis had been looking around the room, not glancing once at Laif during that story, but now she caught his eye and seemed to be telling the rest to just him.

  “There were a few Druids who had escaped, and most of them were decent men. But one of the grandsons wasn’t so good. When he came into his powers, he found some ancient texts that had a spell that would unlock the gates of Hell and allow the Oíche Scáthanna to come and go from the Underworld to earth without any barriers. So, of course, he opened it.”

  Memphis’s eyes twinkled. Laif wondered if she believed all this. He figured she had to have bought some of it, but how could she buy it all? She moved her hand to the edge of the bed, and Laif debated for about three seconds the wisdom of taking her hand before he did just that. Was she seeking comfort? Friendship? Or maybe something more? Maybe this Callan guy wasn’t as huge a hurtle as Laif thought he was. She let her thumb trail a soft circle on Laif’s wrist and he had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from moaning.

  “Áinle found the book of spells his father used and hid it in a cave somewhere near his home, along with a book of Tuatha De Danann spells that Caoimhe had one of her brothers bring her, in order to help Áinle defeat his father.”

  “How do you know all this?” Fisher asked.

  Laif could have kicked him for taking her attention away from himself. Although, it was a good question.

  Memphis lifted an eloquent right shoulder in a subtle shrug. “The histories of the Guardians have been passed down to our children since the beginning. I have my grandmother’s written account in her journal and found a few more that she’d collected from her grandmother and great-grandmother. They are all the same story.”

  “And you’re sure they’re accurate?” Fisher asked again. Laif could hear the skepticism in his voice and didn’t blame him for it one bit.

  Memphis didn’t seem to care one way or the other. She simply looked him in the eye and said, “I am positive.”

  Reagan cleared his throat. “Let her finish.”

  She gave him a regal nod and went on, “Áinle told Síofra the history, but not where to find the spellbooks, just that they were safe. He forged three blades for her, a bastard sword, a broadsword, and a dagger. When Nuadha was old enough, Áinle taught him how to use the broadsword. He had the blood of his Druid and fae father, but Síofra had the true power because her mother was pureblood fae. She had special abilities.”

  �
�So, you are a many-time great-granddaughter of Síofra, and you think we are descendants of Nuadha,” Regan said and sat on the foot of her bed, totally enthralled.

  Laif noticed that his brothers had pulled over other chairs from the room and that Tiegan stood behind Fisher, his hands resting on the back of the chair.

  Memphis beamed at Regan and Laif was surprised at the surge of jealously. He focused on getting rid of the ridiculous feeling.

  “I think,” Memphis said, obviously enjoying the attention, “that is exactly right. There is a legend in Kerry County Ireland that says when the children of Áinle merge, there will be a child that will find the hidden books to close the gate to the Underworld and that the child will be able to read the books, where no one else will be able to translate the ancient text.”

  Memphis chuckled. “Now, that legend is not in the oral histories passed down through my family. My grandmother found it written in a book on Irish legends she discovered in a library in Listowel.

  “When I went to live with my gran in Cloghane after my mother died, she’d take me to the library in Listowel once a week. She told me she thought that particular legend would one day be important to me and wanted me to learn everything I could about it. We didn’t find any other mentions of that specific legend, but I think I read every book on the fae and magical realm they had before I turned fourteen. Grams said that since all Guardians are descendants of Áinle, it was important to know his history as well.”

  “But you thought you were the only one left,” Laif said.

  “I had hoped to find others, that there truly was a way to close the door to Hell.” She shrugged. “I’ve never met others until now, so I wasn’t sure, but I hoped.”

  “I wonder how many Guardians there are in the world and how Born Elk is truly connected?” Bryson asked, rubbing his hand over his clean-shaven jaw.

  “So, how’s our patient today?”

  Everyone turned to the woman standing in the doorway. Bryson sat straighter and Laif noticed the dumbstruck look on his face. He’d met Dr. Begay once before when she’d come in to check on a sleeping Memphis.

  “Dr. Begay.” Lydia took a step towards her and extended her hand. Dr. Begay shook it and stepped further into the room, closing the door behind her. “It’s good to see you, and I’d like you to meet in person, our Sleeping Beauty.”

  His mom smiled, but it was the gleam in his eye that caught Laif’s attention. “She’s someone I believe you have a lot in common with.”

  “Nice to meet you, Memphis.” Dr. Begay shook her hand. “You’ve caused quite a stir around here with the nurses and doctors. First, they talk about your beauty.” Memphis visibly winced. Strange, Laif thought. Most women loved being told they were beautiful. “Then they jabber on and on about how quickly you seemed to be healing. I think it best you be sent home soon.”

  Dr. Begay wheeled the blood pressure cart over and hooked the cuff around Memphis’s arm. “Do you have someone to stay with you for a few days to make sure you have everything you need and to do things for you?”

  “Yes,” Laif said. “I’ll be staying with her or she’ll be staying with Bryson and me.”

  “And I have no say in this?” Memphis asked, glaring at him.

  “You will be protected. By me. And there is no point in arguing about it. I am giving you the option of where that will be, but that’s the best I can do.” Laif was ticking her off and blowing his chances with her, but he couldn’t seem to stop.

  Her eyes went cold. Good going, idiot, he thought, but couldn’t make himself take any of it back. He had to protect her. Had to do whatever was necessary to take care of her.

  Memphis looked to Lydia and Regan. “I appreciate all of you wanting to help me, but I will not allow your son to take over my life, just because he thinks he can.”

  She waved off a protest Laif was sure his mother would make and continued. “I do understand why y’all think it necessary, but I have been hurt pretty bad before and have always taken care of myself. Kyrell has never found me at home. There are protective spells on the building, and I am very careful when I go home to make sure no one is following me. Plus, I can sense the Oíche Scáthanna. No one knows where I live, so I will be fine alone. And I’m not in much pain, so I can open a can of soup or make a bowl of cereal and feed myself.”

  She finally turned her cool stare back to Laif. “So, your knight in shining armor routine isn’t necessary.”

  She was dismissing him.

  Just like that.

  Like he didn’t matter. Like he hadn’t spent the last few days by her side worrying about her. Like he wasn’t her other half, her soulmate.

  He needed some air.

  Quick.

  Or he might do or say something that would push her away for good. Laif pushed back his chair and rose. Without a word to anyone, he eased past his brothers and left the room.

  The room went deadly quiet.

  Memphis shouldn’t feel bad for what she’d said, or how she’d said it, but she did. Laif had looked not only furious—but hurt. He barely knew her, but he truly seemed to care about her.

  “I didn’t mean…” What? She had meant to cut him off and not let him bulldoze over her. However, she hadn’t meant to push him away to the point of him walking away from her.

  Memphis squirmed at the scrutiny on all the faces staring at her. “It’s just that he’s pushy and acting like he’s in charge of me. He can’t just take over. I have a life and he doesn’t know anything about me. What makes him think he’d even like being around me? He probably wouldn’t, you know. I don’t even have cable.”

  Great, now she was babbling but couldn’t seem to stop herself. She understood that he might find her attractive, men did, but that didn’t mean anything. Men thought just because she was pretty—she hated the word beautiful—and had big breasts that she was stupid or incapable and weak or something. They thought that they should protect her, or rule her, and she refused to ever let a man control her life again.

  Gary Fellows had done that to her mother, and Callan’s father had taken over her life for a few short weeks. She’d allowed it because, at the time, she’d needed to feel loved. She’d already lost everything she’d had, and Jacob Riley had seemed so loving and mature. At fourteen, the older boy had been just what she’d thought she’d needed.

  “I just think Laif would get bored really fast. He might see me as a woman that needs taking care of, but I’m not. I’m not stupid or anything. He’s not going to move in with me and take over. No man is. Ever again. I won’t feel guilty for not letting him push me around. I won’t.”

  Memphis wasn’t sure what all the grins meant, but she didn’t like to have people laughing at her. She needed to get away from everyone. Not wanting to rip any more stitches, she sat up carefully and started to remove the monitor tabs that remained and slid to the side of the bed.

  “What are you doing?” Dr. Begay asked.

  “Going home. Will you take out the IV?” Memphis looked around. “Where are my clothes?”

  Lydia smiled tentatively. “They were cut off you in the emergency room and then given to the police as evidence. If you’d like, I can bring you something in the morning, when we discharge you.”

  The urge to cry nearly overwhelmed Memphis. She didn’t move other than to drop her head and stare at the floor. Her attempt to exit with dignity was ruined and now all she could do was sit in a room full of strangers and listen to their suggestions on her life.

  What was worse, she wanted Laif to come back and stay with her. He’d been gone less than ten minutes and she felt wretched at the loss of his presence in the room.

  “What’s happening to me?” she mumbled. How could she feel so strongly for a man she knew so little about?

  “Memphis?” Mr. Craig knelt in front of her. She hadn’t even felt him get off the bed. “This is a difficult time for you and Laif. It will become more difficult before it gets easier. I know that if you two will talk, it will be
much better. Tell him your fears and what you want. He’s not a bad man and he will take care of you. It’d be better if you just allowed it and didn’t fight him on something so important. Something that should be important to you as well.”

  He lifted her chin with his large hand. “Don’t let him push you around, but don’t just argue to argue. Listen to each other and work things out.”

  “We don’t even know each other,” she whispered and stifled a sob when Laif’s dad wiped a tear off her cheek. How could she be crying? Especially in front of his family.

  “You know each other. You may not understand how you know each other, but you do. Trust your feelings and trust each other.”

  Trust him?

  Trust him? Just like that? Because his daddy says to?

  How could she trust anyone with her life? With her son?

  But she had, hadn’t she? She’d trusted Shane and Joan. Granted, Shane knew nothing about her life as a Guardian, just that there were people out there that wanted to hurt her, and that they’d use Callan if they knew about him.

  Joan on the other hand, she’d known she could trust her immediately. Within the week Memphis had allowed Joan to know about Callan, and it had only taken another month to allow her to know about her nightlife. She’d been so accepting. So understanding.

  But she was a woman. She could never hurt her the way Laif could. Jacob had really done a number on the young girl that she had been, but Laif…he could destroy her. Already her heart ached because he was angry with her.

  If she gave him a chance, allowed him to get to know her, in the next two weeks, before Callan came home, she would have to tell him everything. She could at least try a relationship with him. Maybe she owed herself a chance at true happiness with Laif. Could she have true happiness? Was that something she even deserved?

  Looking around the room, Memphis saw caring in the eyes of each person there. They cared about her. For some reason, she knew they cared, not just because she was a Guardian but for her herself.