Darkness Wanes (17 page)

“Melena’s back.” He yanked open the vehicle door.

“What? How do you know?” Micah asked, following closely behind as he rushed up the front steps.

“The bond.”

He entered the foyer and paused, narrowing down her location. Lucas stepped into the dining room and his blood turned cold. Melena huddled on the floor, gripping a photo frame in her hand. Her body was covered in cuts and burns, and her clothes were damaged beyond repair. They’d fought battles together, but he’d never seen her like this. When she lifted her head, haunted blue eyes stared up at him. He could hardly find a hint of his little sensor within their depths.

“Lucas…where’s Emily? Is she okay?” Melena asked in a cracked voice.

He took a step closer, unable to believe she was truly here. Could he be dreaming? “Emily is fine. There was an incident, but she wasn’t hurt. Kerbasi will be coming back with her shortly.”

“Good. I was worried when—” Melena ran her gaze around the room. “What happened here?”

He could only imagine what she must have thought. “Humans. Nothing we couldn’t handle.”

She set the photo frame down, giving it one last graze with her finger. “Nik and Josslyn are in the den. We saved them from a forest fire.”

Another one? Lucas was beginning to wonder about their unusual frequency of late. He turned to Micah, who’d come to stand beside him. “Go check on them.”

His brother hesitated for a moment, anguish twisting his features as he stared at Melena. He might not have approved of her when they first met, but he’d come to care about her since then. Lucas would normally appreciate that if he didn’t need some time alone with his mate.

Ajax came from the living room. “These vampires are going to need blood soon.”

Lucas met the shaman’s gaze. Ajax gave him a subtle nod that said he’d keep Micah busy for the time being.

“I’ll take care of it,” his brother said and gave Melena a final look. “I’m glad you’re back.”

She nodded. “Thanks.”

As soon as Micah walked away, Lucas hurried toward his mate. He wanted to take her into his arms, but he didn’t see a way to do it without hurting her. There were simply too many wounds covering her body. The best he could do was crouch down next to her and rub his thumb along her unmarred jaw. “I’m sorry I wasn’t here when you arrived. We expected you tomorrow evening.”

“There was a forest fire. They let us come home a day early.” Melena coughed. Her body shook as she attempted to clear her throat.

“Not soon enough.” Unable to watch her suffer a moment longer, he used his fingernail to cut his wrist. “Take my blood.”

She shook her head. “You’re weak. I can feel it.”

“Drained, perhaps, but I am uninjured. Now drink.” He held his wrist to her lips.

She hated ingesting blood. It was always a battle to get her to do it whenever she was wounded, but Melena was practical. After a moment of hesitation, she pressed her lips to the open gash he’d created. As long as she kept drinking, it wouldn’t close. Lucas might not be a vampire, but his blood would help enrich her body. He only regretted that he’d drained so much of his power dealing with the humans that it wouldn’t provide more nourishment.

At least it gave him some satisfaction to know he could do something for his mate. If only their bond had warned him she was coming home, he could have saved her from being injured in the first place. It pained him to see her this way.

Sable padded into the room and nudged him in the shoulder. He gave the cat a stern look. “It is about time you showed up.”

Melena pulled away from his wrist and wiped at her mouth. “She found me in the forest. My eyes got burned and I couldn’t see well so she helped lead me out of there.”

“She’s been missing. I believe she may have been searching for you.”

Melena rubbed Sable’s head. “She had good timing.”

Lucas observed his mate, watching as some of her more superficial wounds began to close. Many were too severe to heal right away even with his blood, but at least she was beginning to look and sound stronger. Within four or five days, he expected her physical condition to improve greatly. It was her mental trauma he worried about the most.

“What exactly happened?” Lucas asked, rubbing a bit of ash from Melena’s nose.

She was quiet for a moment. He waited and gave her time to process her thoughts. Considering his own experiences in Purgatory, Lucas understood she needed to integrate back into the world slowly. He would be patient and do whatever it took to help her recover her strength.

Melena took a deep breath and began. “Apparently, Remiel ordered that Bartol and I get released early. The guardian in charge—who, uh, sort of hates me—waited until the last minute to let us go. When we came out of the portal, there was a forest fire nearby. We ran to escape it, but then we came across Nik’s place.” She swallowed. “I couldn’t just leave him and Josslyn there to burn.”

Lucas frowned. “Bartol was with you?”

“Yes.” She nodded. “He’s in the kitchen.”

How had he not noticed? The nephilim in question stepped into the doorway. Bartol had come through the forest fire with fewer wounds than Melena, but his clothing only appeared marginally better. Several burns pockmarked his hands and arms and soot covered him. The two of them had come from the horrors of Purgatory only to face an inferno in the Alaskan forest.

Bartol didn’t quite meet his gaze. “If you could show me a place where I might wash up, I will be happy to take my leave.”

Once again, Lucas felt guilty for not being at the portal for their arrival. He should have been waiting for his mate and friend—if Remiel could have provided a warning. What was wrong with the archangel that he could order their release, but not update Lucas about it?

“You are welcome to stay here as long as you need,” Lucas said, managing to catch Bartol’s haunted gaze. “Micah can give you anything you need and provide you with a place to rest. He’ll meet you in the foyer.”

He opened a telepathic link to his brother.
Bartol is here and requires your assistance as well. He needs a shower, change of clothes, and a place to rest. My office should suit him.

I’m glad he’s back. I’ll be there in a moment.

They’d already planned to give Patrick the guest bedroom, but the office next to the den would suit Bartol better anyway. It was quieter in there, and it had a private bathroom. All they’d need to do was add a cot for him to sleep.

“Thank you.” Bartol nodded and left.

“Lucas,” Melena said, struggling to her feet.

He reached out, intending to help, but her knees buckled. She fell into his arms, crying out in pain. Lucas searched for someplace safe to hold and pulled her a little closer. Melena buried her face into the crook of his shoulder and let out a shudder.

“I’m sorry,” she said.

He massaged the back of her neck—one of the few places that didn’t appear injured. “What for?”

“Causing so many problems,” she mumbled, bringing her knees into his lap. “It’s one thing to mess up my life. I shouldn’t have dragged you and Emily down with me.”

He withdrew just enough so that their eyes could meet. “I knew exactly what I was doing when I chose to mate with you. Do not apologize for being the woman I love.”

“But I screwed up everything.” She blinked back tears. “First with your brother and then with getting us all punished. I left you with Emily. You didn’t sign up for that.”

It killed him to see her this way. Melena took too much responsibility on herself for things that were not entirely in her control. Not to mention he wasn’t perfect, either. “I could have saved you from all of this if I’d stopped you from coming to Fairbanks several years ago. Do you know how many times I have considered that?”

“But then Aniya would probably be dead, Nik would still be under a sleep spell, and I wouldn’t have found Emily. Who knows what would have happened to her? Not to mention we’d probably still hate each other,” she said, lifting her chin.

Lucas couldn’t help the smile forming on his lips. He’d worried Purgatory had broken her, but all it took was a bit of stoking to rekindle her fire. This was the Melena he remembered.

“Exactly. You can question your decisions all you wish, but if there is one thing I’ve learned, it is that you always act with the purest intentions. More often than not, they work out for the best. Do not linger on the difficult path you’ve taken to arrive at this point.”

She cocked her head. “How did you get so wise in the three months I was gone?”

“Watching over a teenage girl has aged me far more than all my centuries combined,” he replied, not wholly exaggerating. “I’m at a loss for how you’ve managed her all this time and handled the myriad of problems we face on a regular basis.”

“Did you try banging your head against the wall at least once a day?” she asked.

He lifted his brows. “Does it work?”

“As long as Kerbasi isn’t around to question you about it,” she said, swinging her head around. “Speak of the devil. He and Emily are pulling up—along with another sensor. Who the hell is that?”

Lucas inwardly cursed. He’d hoped to ease her back into their life, but it appeared that would not happen. “Emily has recently reunited with her father. That is the man you are sensing.”

“What? How can you be sure he’s her real father?” Melena stood so fast he had to leap up and hold her to keep her from falling again.

“I questioned him thoroughly. I assure you I will explain everything later and it will be your decision whether he stays or goes,” he promised.

Her expression turned panicked. “But he might try to take her away.”

“Over my dead body—and he knows it.”

Emily raced into the house. “Melena!”

The teenager leaped forward and wrapped her arms around her adopted mother. Melena winced as the burns on her back were squeezed too tightly, but she didn’t make a sound. She simply closed her eyes and let out a sigh of relief.

“I missed you, Em,” she said, her voice cracking.

“Oh, crap,” Emily let her go. “You’re hurt!”

Melena gave her a reassuring smile. “I’ll heal.”

“Look what the cat dragged in,” Kerbasi said, sauntering into the room. He kneeled down to pet Sable, who growled at him.

Patrick came inside next. “Is that…?”

“Later,” Lucas interrupted. “Let me help you get those bags upstairs. Kerbasi will help.”

“Wait, what happened to the lasagna?” The guardian dashed around the table, lifting dishes as if he’d find the missing food underneath them. “It should have still been here.”

Emily rolled her eyes at him. “Mel was probably hungry when she got home.”

“But surely she couldn’t have eaten all of it, and I was the one who saved it from the fire,” Kerbasi argued.

Melena said nothing, but Lucas thought he caught a faint hint of amusement in her eyes. She knew exactly what had happened to the lasagna.

“Do not concern yourself with that. Let’s go—now!” Lucas commanded. Though it was difficult to leave, he wanted to give Melena and Emily a moment alone. He’d get his time with her once they got Patrick settled.

“I will find out who ate that lasagna,” Kerbasi grumbled, giving up his search for the missing food. He paused at the doorway and turned back. “Oh, and it is good to see you again, sensor. I strongly recommend a shower at your earliest convenience.”

Melena grabbed the nearest plate and tossed it, striking him on the back of his head.

Chapter Fifteen

Lucas

Morning light filtered through the bedroom window. It highlighted Melena’s thick auburn hair where it curtained her face, seemingly protecting her from the world. She lay on her side so that all he could see of her features was her pert nose and a hint of pale cheeks. One of her bandaged hands reached out to clutch her pillow, each fingertip protruding from the gauze seeming far too fragile.

Every few hours, he changed the dressings covering her body with fresh, moist ones. She wasn’t healing as quickly as he’d hoped. Melena’s injuries were far too extensive for her weakened body to cope with, including several cracked ribs, countless cuts and scrapes, and third-degree burns across her back. Severe malnourishment and exhaustion didn’t help. It would take more food and rest for her to regain her strength. For the life of him, he couldn’t figure out how she’d gotten out of the forest on her own two feet, but the shaman had sworn she’d managed it.

Melena had been sleeping restlessly for about eight hours now. Like a precious gift he feared might be taken away, Lucas had been unable to take his eyes off of her. It was still difficult for him to believe she’d finally returned home. Despite being alive for more than twenty-five hundred years, he’d begun to realize his life didn’t begin until Melena. If he could wrap her in a cocoon and protect her from the world, he would—not that she’d ever allow it.

Emily had joined them during the night. Lucas had taken one look at her stricken features and forfeited his side of the bed, relocating to a chair by the window. The teenager had settled as close to Melena as she could without disturbing her and drifted off in minutes.