Chapter 34

Chapter

Thirty-Four

KEIR

The morning of our wedding,Mom was running around like a maniac. The day of her wedding, she’d been cool as a cucumber, leisurely moving from one activity to the other and even scheduling a massage for Lenny that morning.

Lake had graciously offered to do Mom’s hair and makeup, and only my mother would laugh and ask her, “Do I need to lie down?” The two of them had a great laugh at that.

The bell for the receiving bay sounded at nine-thirty, and since Dash had gone to get ready at Clegg Cycles, I went downstairs to see who it was. The camera was wonky, so I needed to check it anyway.

When I arrived downstairs and walked through the mortuary to the receiving bay, I stopped in my tracks. There in a hooded black wool robe was a huge spirit with a scythe in its right hand, though I couldn’t see the hand because it was covered by the robe’s sleeve.

“How can I help you?” A shiver slid down my spine at the sight of the creature. I was alone in the house and wasn’t sure what to do.

The spirit held out a hand to me, but I couldn’t move. I’d never been so scared in all my life. It seemed my breath was being squeezed from my lungs as I stood there staring. It was as though I was in a coma but wide awake.

Suddenly, the robe dropped onto the garage’s concrete floor, and I blinked slowly. When I opened my eyes, there stood a huge demon with horns and hooves.

I’d seen it before. “Erebus?”

My mouth went dry, and I was weak in the knees. “What do you want?”

Suddenly, the garage door opened, and Jay stood there with his massive black wings spread and a triumphant expression. “Out, now. You and me, jackass. Let’s take this somewhere else so we don’t wreck the place. Wanna bet who’s gonna come out on top this time?”

It felt as though my body was released from a vice. I rushed the monster, unable to stop myself. Of course, he was ready for me, almost as though he knew I was coming for him, and he grabbed my neck, plucking me from my feet and holding me in the air.

Jay took flight and tried to pull me from Erebus’s grip, but he was swatted down without effort from my captor. I heard a woman’s scream, and I glanced down to see my mother running from the receiving bay, shrieking to the heaven’s and reaching for me, though she couldn’t begin to touch me.

There was a flash of lightning, and my mother fell to the ground, her face stricken with fear. My heart shattered. I never wanted to see that look on my mother’s face. It reminded me too much of the night my father died.

My body filled with anger. How dare that thing scare my mother. I began thrashing in its grip, feeling its claws dig into my body, but the pain gave me power. I didn’t care if it ripped the skin from my bones. I wouldn’t allow my mother to be hurt.

From nowhere, something flew at Erebus, striking it in the right eye. The demon dropped me, but I didn’t crash onto the concrete ramp outside the receiving bay. I fell to the ground like a feather riding a gentle breeze.

Mom crawled over to me and cradled my head in her arms. “Keir, my boy, my boy. Please, be okay. Please!” Her voice was agonized, and I wanted to assure her I was fine, but my ribs were burning, and I couldn’t suck air into my lungs.

There was a kick from Erebus’s huge hoof, and Mom and I took flight, holding each other. I was sure neither of us would survive that fall, but then, I was caught.

“Nooo!”

Suddenly, Beelzebub was there. He held me until we fell from the sky. Once I was safe, he went after Erebus. From the corner of my eye, I saw my mother in my father’s arms as he carried her toward where I was sitting on the grass.

Dash’s SUV screeched into the driveway, and he was out of it before it stopped moving. He ran over to me and dropped to the grass beside me. “Oh, god, what happened?”

“It was Erebus. He came here, but I don’t know why. I’m not sure if he was going to kill me or kidnap me, but he...” I lost the air to speak.

My beautiful Dash eased me back onto the grass and ripped my shredded shirt so he could see my injuries. “Oh, my baby.”

He swiped his tongue over the worst gash, and within seconds, the blood stopped, and the wound closed. He repeated his ministrations until I was no longer bleeding.

I stared at his face, seeing a few drops of my blood on his lips before he licked them. His eyes danced as he leaned forward and kissed me. The coppery taste of his mouth wasn’t exactly my cup of tea, but his sexy moans were setting me on fire.

“Keir, son, are you okay?”

I glanced up to see my father and mother standing next to me. Dash helped me to my feet and held me close. I was a little light-headed, but I was getting better quickly.

“Dad, where did you come from? I thought you were waiting for me to ask you to come.” It had been hard to decide the best time to ask him to come back, but I couldn’t find the one perfect event. How did he know we’d need him?

Dad held Mom’s hand and smiled. “I heard the rumor that Mephistopheles was up to his usual bullshit. He was telling everyone that— It doesn’t really matter, but his plan was for me to have to choose between you and your mother. We had an altercation, he and I, and he can’t seem to let it go that I bested him.”

Dash smacked his leg. “That was the freak who cornered me, wasn’t it? The morning we were going to Monterey.” Dash then turned to me and kissed my temple, which gave me pause. He was suddenly my exact height.

“Are you growing?” It couldn’t be happening, could it?

Beelzebub appeared from the side of the funeral home with Jay Frick walking next to him. They were actually laughing as they approached us.

“Where’s Erebus?” I didn’t think my heart could take another scare like that.

Beelz laughed, his voice booming. “That wasn’t Erebus. That was fucking Meph, and Dad’s gonna have his nuts when I get done telling the story. Oh, and— “he turned to Jay— “you got fired from your job and your boss suggested you take some anger management classes."

Jay reached out and punched him, and then the two of them began fighting right there on the front lawn of Dearly & Son. I was living in a hell-infused buddy movie.

“Hey you two! Act your ages.” They both stopped and stared at Mom, who’d used her mom voice.

“Dad, since you’re already here, can you stay for the wedding?” I truly hoped he could.

“I wouldn’t miss it for anything. I have twenty-four hours up top. I’m thrilled I get to be here for this.”

I glanced at Mom, and suddenly saw the problem. “What about her?” I tilted my head toward Mom.

“Oh, Dash, you’ll have to do something about that, son. I’ll change my appearance for the wedding because I don’t want it to be awkward for Lenny.” Dad then hugged me. “You did a good thing with Lindsey. Your mother deserved to have her perfect day.”

“Thanks, Dad. I’ve really, really missed you.” We made our way back to the receiving bay, and Dash took Mom upstairs, where he persuaded her to forget what had happened earlier. I got to spend time with my dad in the mortuary like I used to when I was younger.

It was the best wedding gift I could have ever received.

“You may now kiss your husband.”

Everyone cheered as Dash dipped me and planted a searing kiss on my mouth. Many of those in attendance were others, as Dash called them, but there were also some humans, aside from my mom and Lenny.

“God, his mouth was made to kiss mine.”

It was Dash’s voice, but his lips were occupied with mine. Why could I hear him?

Barry, Winnie, Dahlia, and Violet Singletary were there, along with Amelie and Trent. Vale was there and so was everyone from Clegg Cycles.

Quinn had been Dash’s best man, and I’d had my father, who I’d introduced as an old friend from college. Many of the spirits I’d met, including all the women who were resting in our garden, were in attendance along with Danny, Dash’s brother.

Dr. Leann Cook, the minister who performed a lot of the services at Dearly & Son, performed our ceremony, and while it was cold outside, it was a beautiful wedding. We had a brunch buffet in the hospitality room, and many guests had left by two in the afternoon.

We were sitting in the hospitality room with Mom and Lenny, who were leaving at seven to spend the night in LA before going on their delayed honeymoon the next morning. Amelie and Trent sat with Scotty, Jay, Vale, and Jonas. The six of them spoke in hushed tones, for which I was grateful. I was sure whatever they were discussing would freak out the rest of our guests.

Barry and Winnie were chatting with Lake and the folks from Clegg Cycles while Dahlia occupied Jamie, who was enamored with baby Violet. Dad was sitting on one of the couches talking to Beelz and Adonis.

“When in the hell are all these people getting out of here? Don’t they know we just got married? We need time alone.”

I glanced at Dash, who was across the room staring at me. If I heard him, surely the rest of those people could hear him. Nobody was moving. I winked at my new husband, and he smiled. “We were made for each other.”

Dash got an odd expression on his face before my dad touched his shoulder and the two began speaking.

It was truly surreal, all the people and others who were now part of my family. The weight of all the secrets I carried was heavy, but as I looked around to see how beautiful my life had become, I had a feeling we would prevail when any storms hit our shores.

I wasn’t sure what was coming at us, but if what we’d encountered earlier in the day with a random demon was a glimpse at the future, we were in for a harsh fight. We would need all our otherworldly allies to fight beside us. It sounded like Nyx was gathering her minions, and the mere thought scared the hell out of me.

One surprise from earlier had been finding out Dash had another vamp gift from Lilith—the ability to heal my wounds. I wasn’t sure what else would develop for him, which made me wonder if we’d be changed at the end of the fight.

Would we be the same men we were now, or would we be completely different? Would the changes affect our love for each other, or would they only solidify our commitment? Those questions were troubling, so I put them out of my mind. It was our wedding day, after all.

Lilith and Jay Frick stood from the couches where they’d been sitting. Jay clapped his hands, and Amelie and Trent hurried out of the hospitality room, only to come back a few seconds later with chilled bottles of French champagne.

“These are from Dash’s Aunt Josephine who couldn’t be here. She wanted you both to know she and other friends of hers you’ve met are very happy for you and wish you an eternity of love and bliss.”

Scotty then walked to the main counter and began opening a few bottles while Mom went into the storage closet and came out with a large tray of fancy champagne glasses I hadn’t seen before.

Once the glasses were filled, Amelie and Trent handed them out and poured two glasses of sparkling cider for Dahlia and Jamie. My father, who didn’t look like himself, stepped next to Dash and me, putting his hand on my back.

“A toast then. Here’s to Keir and Dash. May they hold each other close through the good times and the bad, and may they always remember the love they’ve found can’t be broken by man nor beast.” The humans in the room gave him an odd look as though he’d lost his mind, but the others knew exactly what he meant.

“Cheers!”

Everyone drank, and then there was the sound of knives tapping against glasses. Dash turned me and looked into my eyes. “I love you yesterday, today, and forever.” He then kissed me, sending a current of electricity through my body like none other.

“Keir, can you hear me? Tap my back twice.” His lips were still touching mine, but I could hear his voice as though he were whispering in my ear, so I tapped his shoulder where my hand was resting.

"Yes. Can you hear me, too?"

"How fucking cool is this? We can hear each other without words. I still love the sound of your voice, but this will definitely work in an emergency. How do we get rid of these people so I can take my new husband to bed?”

I started laughing, which caused us to break the kiss. We both laughed hard after that. Once we calmed ourselves, I turned us toward our guests. “Thank you all for coming to celebrate with us, and happy new year!”

I took Dash’s hand and walked around the room, hugging everyone. I stopped in front of my father. “We’ll be⁠—”

Dad laughed. “I’ll be here when you come back. I’ll help your mother and Lenny clean up. Go!”

Dash and I ran up the stairs to the apartment. He carried me over the threshold at our bedroom door, which had both of us laughing, and when we stopped outside our bedroom, he held my face in his hands.

“I feel like I can take on the world with you by my side.” I couldn’t have said it better myself.