Chapter 25
Damian
“What’s going on?” Lincoln eyes us warily when he walks in the door to find us all waiting for him on the couch.
Kat texted him to come right home after school, but didn’t tell him why.
Maybe we should have given him more of a heads up.
I feel bad for ambushing him like this, but the sooner we can find out what we need to do, the sooner we can protect him and fix Kat’s memories.
She’s already forgotten me twice since we saw the High Priestess last night. Once because she chose to take a shower alone. The other time as we flew back, even though we were right next to each other.
“Am I in trouble or something?” Lincoln slowly sinks into the armchair across from us.
“No, kiddo. Of course not.” Kat’s smile is bittersweet in a way that makes my heart hurt. She’s doing a good job covering up her fear, but it’s clear she’s trying to keep from crying. “There’re just some things we need to talk about.”
“I already told you, I’m good with this.” He waves a hand between the three of us, his gaze hanging on me a little longer.
“Yeah, you did.” Kat’s smile is more genuine as she lifts her eyebrows at him. “So… yesterday, we flew to the high temple and spoke with the High Priestess.”
“It sounds like you were playing some kind of video game.” Lincoln chuckles. “I can’t believe this is my life.”
“Neither can I.” Kat sighs, but some of the tension drops out of her shoulders. “The first thing you need to know is Damian isn’t just the dragon mate I rejected and forgot. He’s—”
“My dad,” Lincoln finishes for her with a shrug.
“You know?” Kat asks.
He looks down at his lap and fidgets with the hem of his shorts. The move is clearly subconscious and so similar to the way Kat fidgets that it makes my chest constrict.
“It was kinda easy to figure out,” Lincoln says.
I reach for him, maybe to take his hand, maybe to pat his knee, but he’s too far away and my hand falls awkwardly back to my side. “If I’d known…”
“Yeah.” Lincoln stands up and crosses the room to the kitchen counter where one of his sketchbooks filled with dragons sits flopped open. He rolls the corner of one page through his fingers. “It’s fine. I get it.”
“It’s not fine.” I stand up and go over to him. This time I don’t hesitate to put a hand on his shoulder and turn him to face me. “I should have been here for you. Even if your mom didn’t remember, I could have been there for you somehow. If I’d known, I would have.”
He won’t meet my eyes, keeping his on the sketch of a red-scaled dragon spread across two pages. It’s a remarkable likeness of Kat’s dragon form, but with a lot more red in deeper, darker hues.
He shrugs off my touch. “It’s fine, man. Really. We can’t change the past. And Mom and I have done pretty well on our own.”
“You have. And you’re right. We can’t change the past.” I step back, giving him space. “But we can change the future. And for that, we’re gonna need your help.”
“Come here, baby.” Kat pats the open space I vacated on the couch.
Lincoln sits next to his mom, a curious look on his face. Otto gives me a reassuring smile. That didn’t go as horribly as it could have, but it’s clear it’s gonna take some time to build a relationship with Lincoln.
Kat takes both Lincoln’s hands in hers. “The High Priestess said there’s a way to get my memories back and stop forgetting Damian.”
“How?” Lincoln asks, gaze swinging from his mom to me.
“We have to complete some kind of challenge that only you can give us,” Otto says, leaning around Kat so he can see Lincoln.
I stay at the counter, observing my son’s reaction from afar.
I still can’t believe I have a son. A half-grown son.
He looks a lot like my dad now that I’m looking closer.
He has the sharp chin I inherited from my dad, though mine is now covered with a short beard.
His hair doesn’t curl as much as mine, but it’s just as thick and dark.
He wears it longer, so it flops in his eyes, and he’s constantly brushing it back off his forehead.
“So… I’m just supposed to give you some arbitrary challenge, and then everything will be fine? How’s that work?”
“Not arbitrary,” I say, my tongue feeling heavy in my mouth. “The High Priestess said you’d know what it’s supposed to be.”
“How?” He shakes his head, leg bouncing up and down.
He’s always moving. I think the longest I’ve seen him sit still was during dinner the other night.
There’s something endearing about it, but it also makes me want to wrap him in a hug and hold him steady.
Kat doesn’t try to stop him, so neither do I.
He drops his head into his hands. “I’m sorry, but I have no idea what she’s talking about. Shit. Mom’s never gonna remember.”
My insides drop and roll. The stakes are much higher than that. If he doesn’t know what the challenge is, then we won’t be able to attempt it. And my son—a kid I’ve barely gotten to know—will die before he reaches twenty-three.
We all agreed we wouldn’t tell him that part, but it sits heavy on my shoulders. “Fuck,” I mutter, digging a hand into my hair and pulling hard.
“It’s okay.” Kat’s voice chokes with tears. Our eyes meet across the room. Despite all that’s between us and the years apart, I understand the question she’s silently asking me. Should we tell him?
I shake my head adamantly. No kid needs to live with that hanging over his head. This is ours to carry. Not his.
“Hey, don’t worry about it.” Otto reaches around Kat and pats Lincoln’s knee, sounding more cheerful than the expression he wears. “You’ll figure it out. We’ve got some time. Just think about it, okay? Maybe it’ll come to you later.”
“In the meantime, your mom and I will just need to stay together,” I add as casually as I can. He doesn’t need to know that she might start forgetting even when we’re together. Not yet, anyway.
“Oookaaay,” Lincoln says, dragging out the word. “Um, yeah. I guess I’ll just let you know if I think of something.” His voice is so unsure. I want to wrap him in a hug, but I stay where I am. His knee starts bouncing again. “I should go do my homework.”
“Do you want any help?” I ask.
“Nah, it’s not math.” He stands up. “Just some reading for history.” When he’s nearly at the hall, he stops and turns around. “Can I stay at Matt’s again tonight?”
“His mom’s not sick of you?” Kat tries for a teasing smile, but it’s half-hearted.
He gives her a deadpan look. “She adores me, and you know it.”
Kat laughs. “Everyone adores you.”
My chest tightens with regret. I’m glad to hear that there are people around him who love him, but it hurts that I haven’t been one of them.
“I’d rather have you home,” Kat says, her eyes misty again.
Lincoln gives her a wry look. “And I’d rather not hear my mom having sex with two men.”
“We’re not going to—”
He raises his eyebrows. “It happened twice the last time I was here.”
“You heard.” Kat covers her face with her hands.
Otto chuckles and pats her back. I watch Lincoln. He grimaces, but the corners of his lips twitch.
“Stay with Matt,” I say, digging a hundred out of my wallet. “Pay for dinner so his mom doesn’t have to, and call us if you think of anything about the challenge.”
The words are out before I realize I’m totally overstepping. I quickly look at Kat, but she doesn’t seem upset or offended.
“We’re gonna have to soundproof the walls,” she moans into her hands.
“No, we’ll just move into Damian’s place.” Otto shrugs. “He’s got a penthouse downtown,” he adds in explanation for Lincoln. “Plenty of room there to spread out, so you won’t hear a thing.”
Lincoln shudders, then takes the money I hold out to him with a quiet, “Thanks.”
Once he’s out of the room, I sit down next to Kat. “What do you want to do tonight, love? Can I order us some food or something?”
“I’m not hungry.” She shakes her head. “I need a distraction.”
Otto gives me a look and raises his eyebrows. I know exactly what he has in mind. It might be a stretch for Kat, but it’ll definitely keep us from overthinking for a few hours. I give him a quick nod.
He claps his hands with a wide grin. “Sounds like we’re going to The Black Wing.”