Chapter 17

Chapter

Seventeen

KEIR

“If you can dropoff whatever you’d like him to wear for the funeral on Tuesday morning, we’ll be set for the visitation and funeral on Wednesday. Would you like me to arrange for a minister to give the eulogy?” They didn’t want to have their priest perform the mass, neither did they want to have a mass at their home church. I didn’t pry. It was their business, not mine.

“We don’t have to bring a suit, do we? Brian wasn’t really a suit kid. Now, soccer? Can we bring his jersey and have him buried in that and a pair of slacks?” It was Brian’s father, Sergeant Rashad Eads. He was an Army man and had just returned from deployment in the Middle East. He happened to be home when his son died. It was a horrible turn of events.

We all stood, and Mrs. Eads began clearing the cups and saucers from my desk. “Mrs. Eads, I’ll have my husband clean it up. It’ll be his punishment for scaring you earlier.” That poor woman had been seven shades of gray when she’d returned to the office after seeing Dash slug Lilith and her aerial antics.

“Mr. Dearly, could we have a Pride flag in Brian’s casket? He came out about two months ago.”

As I started to say yes, her husband turned to glare at her. “No, Reggie. He was confused, not gay. No disrespect intended, Mr. Dearly. My son was too young to know his sexuality.”

I didn’t have to wonder what might be behind Brian’s overdose. Family acceptance is important, and it seemed as if Sergeant Eads wasn’t there yet. Unfortunately, Brian would never know if his father ever made peace with it.

“Rashad, that boy was twenty. He knew his sexuality as well as you know your own.” She then turned to me. “A flag or a plaque in the casket with him, please. He was supposed to volunteer at an LGBTQ+ teen shelter over the summer, and I know he was looking forward to it.”

“Of course, Mrs. Eads. Do you know the name of the shelter? We can ask for donations in lieu of flowers if you wish? I have plenty of beautiful silk arrangements we can use for the viewing and service if you’d like.”

Sergeant Eads huffed a little but nodded. “Brian was supportive of my service, Mr. Dearly. Is it possible to also have an American flag?”

“Of course, sir. Thank you for your service. It’s because of your defense of our country that I’m allowed to be married to my husband.”

The two of them shook my hand, and I escorted them out. Once they were gone, I jogged up the stairs. “Dashiell?”

He appeared at the top of the stairs with a concerned expression. “Did they quit you?”

I wanted to make him worry, but he looked so sincerely sorry. “No. The funeral’s on Wednesday. I’m going to go pick up Brian. Come with me?”

“Sure. Let me change my shirt. I’m sweaty.”

His scent had my dick taking notice. “How about I help you? Jonas said he’ll meet us there at any time if I give him a ten-minute warning.”

Dash took my hand and led me into the bedroom. I let him apologize for that stupid stunt with Lilith twice before I had him clean up the dishes in my office while I showered. The man was damn earnest—and thorough—in everything he did.

First thing Tuesday morning,Sergeant Eads dropped off Brian’s soccer uniform, including the cleats and a lovely medallion with all the LGBTQIA+ flags represented. It could be pinned into the pillow on the lid, so I ordered two bouquets of Pride-colored roses to put at each end of Brian’s casket. It was from Dash and me as a reminder that it could have been either of us had we not had the love and acceptance of our parents.

“I talked to Reggie, and she asked if you knew someone who could maybe sing a couple of songs. I’m sorry if I offended you on Sunday. I don’t understand much in the LGBTQ community, but I’m planning to learn.”

That was as much as I could ask of Sergeant Eads. When we know better, we do better, or so I’d been told. I hoped he found some peace and compassion on his journey.

“I wasn’t offended, Sergeant Eads. We all walk our own paths. I hope you and Mrs. Eads find the healing strength I’m sure Brian would want for the two of you. I promise, sir, I’ll do my very best for your son.”

What else could I say?

Dash and I had gone to Sacramento to the coroner’s office the previous afternoon and picked up Brian Ead’s body. Joachim had only done a blood test to confirm the young man’s cause of death because the situation in which his body was found didn’t leave much doubt it was drug related. Joachim found a lot of heroin in the young man’s system, and based on his appearance, he’d been using for a while.

I had to wonder if he’d been close to his mother, and if so, how had she missed the sunken cheeks and dark circles under his eyes? But then, who was I to judge anyone’s situation?

I carried the garment bag downstairs and put it in the supply closet. When I came out, Brian Eads was standing in the mortuary with an older woman who looked a lot like his mother.

“Hi, Brian. I’m Keir Dearly. Can you speak? It’s okay if you can’t.”

The woman with him stepped forward. “I’m Maevis Jones. I’m his grandmother. Your father said to tell you he loves you.”

I so loved my dad for continuing to send messages to me through the spirits I encountered. It touched my heart more than I could ever say.

“Thank you, Ms. Jones. I so appreciate hearing that. Brian, I’m going to take care of you.”

“Tell my momma I love her, and I didn’t mean to die.” I saw the tears streaming down his cheeks as his grandmother led him away.

At least he was with someone who loved him. So many didn’t have that love to surround them when they left the Human Realm.

I went to the walk-in to check on Brian’s body, glad to not find Brian hovering over it as so many did. The compressor wasn’t glowing, so I could rest easy that night.

Climbing the stairs to the apartment, I had no idea what Dash had been doing. We’d been having breakfast when Sergeant Eads arrived, and I’d quickly put my plate in the sink and carried down my coffee. I wasn’t sure if he was home or not.

When I opened the door, I heard the upstairs speakers playing classic rock music, which I knew was Dash’s favorite. His parents had been hippies, and he loved listening to the songs they used to play when his father was a biker.

I walked to the peninsula and looked over the top to see my husband on his hands and knees scrubbing the kitchen floor with a scrub brush. He was wiggling his ass in time to the music, which was so damn cute.

“That’s a nice sight to see,” I said over the music.

Dash turned to look over his shoulder and smirked, shaking his ass even more. It was tempting as hell, but I had things to discuss.

“Tell me what you learned from Lilith. I know she gave you some insight into the future, so don’t keep me in suspense.”

“It’s going to be tough. We can’t kill Nyx. All we can do is banish her back to her corner of Hell, but first, we gotta get someone to convince Lucifer to unseal it so she has somewhere to go.” He backed out of the kitchen with his brush and bucket, wiping his forehead with his forearm.

It was almost spring, and it was warm outside. I went over to the windows in the living room and opened them to let some fresh air inside. We’d turned off the furnace the previous week, but I wasn’t ready to turn on the A/C.

I took the bucket to the hallway bathroom and dumped the dirty water. “So, how do we banish her?” I returned to the dining room and put the bucket on the floor under the peninsula.

Dash stared at me for a moment before tossing the brush inside to clean up later. He took my hand and led me into the living room, relieving me of my suit jacket and pushing me down on the couch.

When he straddled my lap, I saw the worry, immediately.

“Can you hear me? I don’t want to say this out loud and put it into the universe.” His voice was loud and clear in my head, so I nodded.

“You’ll have to banish her back to Hell, and that means you’ll have to touch her. I don’t like this at all, but Lilith didn’t give me any alternatives. Our allies will fight with me to clear a path to her, but you have to be the one to banish her back to Droh.”

“Where’s Droh?”

“Somewhere in Hell. There’s not exactly a map that comes with being an employee, apparently.” His tone was off, which grabbed my attention.

I put my hands on his hips and slid him closer. “What’s going on that you’re not telling me.”

“I just found out our life forces are now joined. If one of us goes, the other goes too.”

I wasn’t surprised by that news. If something happened to Dash, I wouldn’t want to live without him. “Okay. Why does that bother you?”

“Doesn’t it bother you? Doesn’t it put a weight on your chest that if something happens to you through no fault of your own, I’ll die too?”

It upset him a lot more than me. “Love, if something happened to you, I wouldn’t want to go on without you.”

“Dearly, we’re talking about having kids. Who would take care of them?”I shared his worry, but there was a way to take it off his shoulders.

“Okay, we’re not going to have kids until after this shit comes to a head, so that’s not a concern for me. My concern is, what are you leaving unsaid?”

“I’m currently not completely human anymore. I’ll have to renounce my powers to go back to being human, but Lilith told me the battle we’re about to fight isn’t the only one that’s ever happened. Someone’s always fighting for control. There’s a chance we’ll have to keep going through this until the next Gatekeeper and Key are born.”

“Seriously? That’s daunting.”I guess it hadn’t occurred to me that this wasn’t the first time there’d been a power grab. Then a thought crept in. “But if this keeps the peace for a while and we have a happy life, then it’s worth it, right?”

“I suppose. Anyway, Lilith says I’ll need her blood to be strongest for the fight, so she’s going to come by and get you to take some of hers that I can have if she’s not around.”He gave me a sweet kiss on the forehead.

Unfortunately, I still heard what he said. “What?”

“Oh yeah. About that—I’ve been having a hard time not drinking your blood. I guess I must have some of her vamp DNA in me, which is why I’ve changed so much. I don’t think I’m a vampire like Adonis, but I have a few tendencies. I’ll control them, I promise.”

I was still trying to take in what he’d said. He wanted to drink my blood? “Do you want to drink anyone else’s blood?”

Dash leaned forward and brushed his plump lips against mine for a moment before our tongues swirled in a magical dance. My body reacted to him immediately, reminding me how much we loved each other.

“Nobody but you and I’d much rather suck your cock.”That was a relief to hear.

I pushed him back to signal that he should get up. I quickly unbuttoned my pants and lowered my zipper, pulling my dripping cock out. “Don’t let me stop you.”

And he didn’t.