Broken Butterflies (25 page)

Damon parked the car and walked around to open Ilisha’s door. Sitting on her porch was John. He stood up from the swing as soon as he saw them.

“I have some information,” John said as they walked up the stairs.

“Come in,” Ilisha said trying to smile.

“Thank you.”

Ilisha got him a glass of lemonade and set it on the kitchen table. John gripped the glass with both hands and sat down.

“I know one low level angel from the facility. His name is Compton.”

“How do you know him?” Damon asked leaning against the counter.

“I mentored him; that is until he turned rogue.”

“I need to know where your loyalties lay, John.”

John looked up at Damon’s overwhelming stature from the table. “With you, Majesty.”

“I hope that’s true for your sake. You’re not to tell anyone I’m here.”

“Yes, of course, I understand.”

Damon pushed himself away from the counter and took the chair beside John. “I need you to question Compton, find out what he knows.”

“They’ll have me killed if they find out what I’m doing.”

“I have faith in you. You’re a smart man. If you really are loyal to me you won’t have a problem creating a bond.”

John’s mouth fell open and he quickly closed it. “No, of course not.”

Damon reached inside his jacket and pulled out a dagger. Ilisha recognized it from the vision he shared with her. It was the same one that killed his father. She cringed as he drug the blade down the inside of his wrist. He cupped his hands under the wound to avoid a mess and put the dagger on the table. John took his outstretched arm and drank. Ilisha felt like she might gag and her face said as much. Damon chuckled.

“Can you get me some wet paper towels?” Damon asked when John was done.

Ilisha scrambled and wet the towels and handed them to him.

Damon didn’t use them to put pressure on the wound; he wiped any leftover blood off his arm. The cut was healed. John wiped some drops of silver blood from his face with the same towel and Ilisha tossed it in the trash.

“I’ll know if you find trouble. Remain loyal and I will protect you,” Damon said.

“Thank you majesty,” John said as he gave a slight bow.

John left and Ilisha dumped the glass of lemonade out. “At least you were nicer this time.”

“Glad I pleased you.” He smiled sinfully. “Several times,” he added.

Ilisha grinned, and then sighed.

Damon leaned into her. “What is it?”

“Are you going to turn out to be someone else I need to survive, because I really don’t think I’ll make it. I lost my dad, then my grandma died, now this crap with Bram.”

“You’re my world.”

“Can I be honest?” she asked putting her hands on his chest.

“Of course, I would expect nothing less from you.”

“Why did you have to send me away after you killed the king?”

“He had loyal followers, they would have made a move on you. I did the only thing I could do to protect you.”

“Did we have sex before we were married?” she asked wondering why Bram had suddenly made such a big deal out of it.

“Yes, we were already partially bonded. Why do you ask?”

“That’s how Bram got me to marry him. He said that it was important and he was doing things wrong.”

“He’s partially right. Bram had no blood bond to you. Once you make that bond it can’t be broken. It’s loyalty and love, so you were already mine. He didn’t have you, so he needed that marriage bond.”

“He could sense me though.”

“Yes, he was your guardian angel. It was his job to know if you were in trouble. It’s still different.” Ilisha felt confused, so he added more. “You feel the difference between our bond and the one you had with Bram, right?” She nodded. “There are different bonds for different purposes. He clung to the one he knew he needed in order to try and make you his. He is going to pay for that betrayal.” Damon’s words were absolute.

Ilisha’s mind drifted and she stared at nothing across the room.

“Your silence is killing me,” Damon said snapping her out of it.

“Sorry, I’m just trying to get a grasp on all this. Bram said he needed to marry me or he could no longer have sex with me. It seemed important so I relented. My mom knows him and now he’s gone and you’re here. On top of all of this, you’re my husband. How in the hell am I going to explain this?”

“Ilisha,” Damon paused and let out a breath. “I can’t handle any more talk about you and Bram having sex. As for your mom, you don’t need to tell her we’re married or the whole story behind it. I do know she will know what I am.”

“Yes, she almost died and Bram healed her.”

“I know. That I can’t blame him for; I would have done the same thing, though he didn’t really heal her.”

Ilisha and Damon walked over to Dena’s house. She was dressed and had makeup on, which was a great sign to Ilisha.

“Hey, honey.” Dena opened the door and Ilisha came in. When Damon followed Dena looked him over quizzically.

“Mom, this is Damon.”

“Hi, Dena, nice to meet you.” As soon as their hands touched in a shake Dena recognized he was an angel. Her mouth fell open and her eyes widened. She continued to shake his hand until he forced her to let go.

“Ilisha, can you help me in the kitchen for a second?”

Rolling her eyes at her mom’s lack of subtlety she followed her mom into the kitchen.

“Who is that and where is Bram?” Dena asked as soon as the door closed behind them.

“Bram is gone. There’s a lot going on and it’s complicated.”

“He left you?” Dana asked appalled.

“Yes. He didn’t even say goodbye.”

“Well good riddance. How do you know Damon?”

“It’s a long story, mom.”

“Okay, I know you think I’m prying.”

Dena loaded a tray with glasses and a pitcher of tea. She added a plate of cookies and carried it to the living room.

“Thank you,” Damon said taking a glass and a cookie.

Ilisha could tell that this wasn’t his thing. He sat awkwardly on a chair. Unlike Bram, Damon was not addicted to human food. Dena had loved Bram’s appetite.

Damon took a bite of the cookie. “Very good.”

Ilisha bit her lip and tried not to chuckle. Damon looked like a sexy version of the Terminator trying to blend in with normal folks.

“I need to pee, I’ll be right back,” Ilisha said standing up. She looked down at Damon, who looked like he may be attacked at any moment. His eyes begged her not to leave him alone.

“You need to excuse yourself, honey,” Dena corrected.

Ilisha rolled her eyes. “I’ll be right back.”

She listened to the muffled conversation as soon as she closed the bathroom door. When she was finished she opened the door silently and listened for a second.

“Did you know Bram?” Dena asked.

“Unfortunately.”

“I don’t know you, so don’t take this wrong—don’t hurt my daughter. I think she’s been through enough.”

“I would never hurt Ilisha,” Damon responded.

“Her dad died a few years back and recently her grandmother, now this thing with Bram has happened.”

Ilisha flushed the toilet and hurried out.

When she sat down she gave her mother a stern look telling her to shut up.

“Mom, do you need anything?”

“Oh no, honey.”

“I think we should go. Are you ready Damon?” she said.

His shoulders relaxed a little at the prospect.

“It was nice to meet you,” Dena said at the door.

“You too, Mrs. Morrison.” Damon leaned down and kissed her cheek.

“Well, that was really awkward,” he said when they were a block away.

“You looked like you would rather have your eyes gouged out.” Ilisha chuckled.

“Yeah, that pretty much sums it up. Don’t get me wrong it wasn’t your mom. I’ve had about enough talking about Bram.”

Damon took her hand as they walked. “If I ask you something will you be honest?”

“Yes.”

“Why haven’t you asked me to break our marriage bond like you did Bram?”

“Bram deceived me. I would think that should be pretty self-explanatory. As for you, I feel things so powerful that I can’t explain them, and quite frankly it scares the crap out of me.”

“What you feel is through our bond, but that doesn’t mean it’s not real.”

“It’s too strong to
not
be real. I guess I don’t understand why I didn’t feel it before.”

As soon as they arrived at Ilisha’s house, Damon scooped her up and carried her inside and up the stairs. He laid her down on the bed and found a spot beside her. His fingers gripped the zipper on her jacket and he slid it down.

“You didn’t remember anything about me. Now I’m here helping you remember, so it’s only natural you would start to have the same feelings as before.”

She slid out of her jacket and tossed it across the room. Ilisha turned onto her side so she could continue the conversation. “It still doesn’t make sense. I believe that distance would not erase memories of such a close bond, to the point that I would not remember anything until I saw you again and instantly fall in love.”

“Are you saying you love me?”

“I… no… I mean.”

Damon chuckled. “I know you do, you don’t need to tell me. This is also a different situation. If you break up or move away from someone who was your lover you still remember them. The reason for the breakup will always be part of your memory. With us we’ve been together for so long and loved each other so deeply that time doesn’t change that.”

“So far you haven’t betrayed my trust. And what I’ve seen of our past makes me long and burn for you. As long as something doesn’t change I don’t see why I should walk away from you or break our bond.” Ilisha rolled onto her back as she spoke.

“I took a big chance coming here. You could have rejected me. I’m glad you didn’t.” Damon blew out a sigh.

“Sadly at the moment I’m kind of leaning on you,” Ilisha confessed.

“I’m your husband, that’s what I’m here for.”

“Thank you for not thinking I’m weak.”

“Ilisha, you’re the strongest person I know.”

Ilisha smiled at the compliment.

Damon’s hand slid under her shirt and down the waistband of her jeans. She bit her lip and smiled as his long fingers explored. It only lasted a minute and she wanted more. Damon smiled and stuck his middle finger in his mouth.

“You will remember everything without my help if you drink my blood again,” he said leaning on his elbow.

Ilisha made a face. “I don’t think I can do that.”

“You’re thinking of how your own blood tastes, coppery, or metallic. Angel blood tastes very sweet. That’s why my breath smells so good to you. Drinking my blood would also restore you to a full angel.”

“What, I would all the sudden have wings and powers?”

“Yes.”

Ilisha thought of all her designer clothes she would ruin if wings burst from her back.

She sat on top of him. “I don’t think I’m ready to make such a drastic change right now.” Her hands ran up his chest and over his arms, sliding his jacket off.

Damon smiled. “I understand, but it would make things easier. It would also take a load off my mind knowing you can defend yourself.”

“All the things you’re naming are the pros, what are the cons?”

He flipped her over on her back and came over her. “If you were a weak minded person and your brain received that much of a shock, it would be disastrous. And, let’s face it, you are hardly weak minded.” He pushed his pelvis into her.