Chapter 28
Baylan and Alex were still sitting on the roof together when Baylan asked his brother, “Can you spare an hour?”
Alex nodded. “I can. What’s up?”
“Can you come with me and Maddy? Blake and I were going to her house to collect more of her things yesterday, but things happened, so I want to take her today, but Blake is busy.”
“Yep, count me in. Where is Maddy now?”
“Just there,” he says, pointing.
Alex looked down and saw her playing with the others. “We should probably get Ares and Jason to do the same for Kieran.”
“That’s a good idea and one I hadn’t thought of,” Ares said from behind them.
They turned and looked at him. “We didn’t either, but Maddy asked us the other day,” Baylan told him.
“I’ll get Jason, and we can both talk to Kieran. Be safe, and if you need help, call.”
“Wait, you’re letting us both go together?” Alex asked, surprised.
Ares laughed. “I think you’re both mature enough to protect yourselves.”
“Aww, shucks brother, you do care,” Baylan teased.
Ares grinned. “Naw, I’m just used to the two of you now,” before they could respond, Ares vanished.
“I’m glad he’s found his sense of humour and fun again,” Alex said.
“Me too. Come on, let’s go.”
Alex looked at Gargoyle Tudor. “Be back soon, sweetheart.”
Baylan, Alex and Maddy appeared in the living room of her house. The place had been trashed and smelt of decay.
Maddy was holding Baylan’s hand, her other hand clutching his arm. “Those men did this when they were looking for me,” Maddy said, sniffing.
“Maddy, which rooms were your parents killed in?” Alex asked softly.
“The kitchen,” she replied.
“Okay. Do you and Baylan want to go upstairs and pack, and I’ll sort out down here?”
“We can do that, can’t we, honey?”
Maddy nodded.
“We’ll be down later,” Baylan said.
Alex nodded and walked out of the lounge and into the kitchen. He found Maddy’s parents lying where they died. No way did he want her to see the state of their bodies. He used his magic to send them to the room of the fallen, in the hospital where the slain dragons and gargoyles had lain.
He pulled his phone out and texted Ajax, letting him know. They could hold a funeral for them later.
Next, he used his magic to clear the smell and tidy the downstairs up, making sure everything was back in its place.
Then he started going through draws and cupboards, looking for any paperwork that Maddy would need in the future. He found a safe and called everything that was inside it to him.
Baylan walked into Maddy’s bedroom, which, like everywhere else, had been trashed. Clothes and toys were thrown everywhere. The clothes were ripped and toys broken. The furniture had been upended, draws thrown on the floor.
Maddy looked at the mess and started to cry.
Baylan pulled her into a hug. “I can fix this, honey,” he said softly and, using his magic, fixed everything in her room. He made sure the other rooms up here were also tidied. “See, honey, all sorted.”
Maddy lifted her head and looked around at her now perfect room. “Thank you, Baylan.”
“You’re welcome, honey. Now let’s start packing your clothes and toys. If you want your furniture, we can arrange a van to collect it.”
Maddy wiped her face on her sleeve. “Okay.”
Ares and Jason pulled Kieran away from the playing children and took him over to the garden table and sat down.
“What’s up?” Kieran asked.
“We wondered if you wanted to go home and collect your things and bring them here,” Ares said softly.
Kieran’s eyes filled with tears and he shook his head. “No, my family all died there; their bodies are probably still in the house.”
“I can go and bring your family here. We can hold a funeral for them if you want, and they can be buried by the chapel ruins,” Ares said.
Kieran wiped his eyes. “Please, I’d like that.”
“I can bring your things here as well if you want.”
Kieran nodded. “Please, Ares. Thank you.”
“Sorry, Kieran, we should have thought of this sooner,” Jason said.
“I should have asked, but I was trying not to think about what happened,” he said, sniffing.
Jason pulled him close and hugged him.
“I’ll go now and be back soon,” Ares said and vanished.
Kieran cried into Jason’s shoulder as Jason hugged him tight.
Ares looked around the kitchen diner he had just appeared in. Considering the kidnapping, the house was relatively tidy.
He found four bodies: Kieran’s parents and two brothers.
In the state they were in, he was glad Kieran hadn’t come.
He made the bodies look better and sent them to the room of the fallen back at the hospital.
He messaged Ajax to let him know. Using his magic, he pulled out all the important paperwork that Kieran would need and then took himself to Kieran's bedroom.
He smiled as he looked around. This room was pure Kieran. Using his magic, he packed everything in the room into boxes. He then found his way into his parents’ bedroom, and again using magic, pulled his parents' jewellery and put it in another box, along with the paperwork.
Finally, he walked around the house, collecting photos and everything else he thought Kieran would want. He could always come and collect anything else later. He would also have to ask Kieran what he wanted to do with the house.
Ares looked at one of the pictures he had collected. It was a family portrait, all five of them smiling happily. “I promise, as Ares, God of War, that Jason and I will always protect Kieran and raise him to be the wonderful man he is meant to be.”