Chapter Forty-Three
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PLEASED THAT THEY’D made it through the day without getting shot at, Monica had never been so glad to have the gift of the gab before.
In the past, she’d used it to persuade clients to buy hair products they needed.
Now, she was using it for a far greater purpose.
“I’ve always wondered why people listen to me and let me persuade them so easily,” she said as they neared their base.
“Perhaps it’s a secondary talent,” Nazab said. “Some cambions have more than one skill. They would have used it for evil in the past, but you’re utilizing it to aid our cause.”
“I could have sold things to my clients they didn’t really need,” Monica mused. “But that would have made me feel horrible, so I never did it.” She was glad she hadn’t now, because it probably would have stained her soul.
Nazab was driving and parked the truck near the house. They climbed out and her sense of danger became overwhelming. Strangely, her senses didn’t pick up on any intruders as she scanned the house.
“Something’s wrong,” Nazab murmured.
She turned just in time to see the two black bears racing straight towards him.
“Look out!” she shouted, but it was too late.
Huge claws raked her knight’s left side, then he was knocked to the ground.
She felt teeth latch onto his right calf and screamed when one of his bones snapped. The other bear clawed his chest open.
Nazab called on his sword, since his rifle was trapped beneath his back. He stabbed one of the bears and it collapsed on top of him, pinning him down.
Monica fumbled for her rifle, but she knew she wasn’t going to be fast enough.
The second bear was already swiping a gigantic paw towards her warrior’s head.
Her magic engulfed the animal and she siphoned its energy out.
Its paw slammed against Nazab’s face, digging furrows in his cheek and jaw, but the blow wasn’t as strong as it would have been without her intervention.
Sobbing in anguish and feeling his pain, Monica blasted the bear with her gun until her magazine was empty. Nazab had passed out and she could sense his life ebbing from him. She dropped her weapon and staggered over to pull the heavy carcasses out of the way.
“Don’t die, Nazab,” she begged, horrified by his injuries. “Don’t leave me,” she pleaded as she infused him with the energy she’d stolen from the bear.
Nazab’s eyes snapped open, but his wounds were healing too slowly. She took his hand and he feebly squeezed her fingers. Then his gaze moved past her and his face lit up. “Amaros and Kochab!” he croaked.
Monica turned to see three strangers had appeared behind her. The two knights were accompanied by a beautiful blonde woman. She was a cambion, just like Monica.
“You’ve looked better, my brother,” Amaros said gravely. “Qiana is a healer and she’s going to fix you,” he added.
Desperate hope filled Monica as the tall blonde crouched next to her warrior. “You’ll be as good as new in a second,” she promised, then put her hand on his chest.
Monica sensed power well up, then she saw and felt Nazab’s horrific wounds vanish. Not even a scar remained and he was flawless again. Her tears turned from horrified to relieved, but they didn’t stop. She knew how close she’d just come to losing the man she loved.
“Brothers, this is Monica Yamil, my mate,” Nazab said proudly as Amaros helped him up.
Qiana assisted Monica to stand, then did a double take. “Is that a prosthetic leg?” she asked.
“How did you know?” Monica asked, trying to regain control of her emotions.
“I just scanned you and sensed part of your leg is missing,” the healer explained. “Also, your left shoe is larger than your right one and the colors don’t match.”
Nazab exchanged hugs with his brothers, getting their shirts bloody. “I thought I was never going to find you,” he said with a grin.
“You were getting closer,” Amaros said and pointed at the mountain range. “Our base is just up there,” he said.
Kochab examined the bears and shook his head. “Zoe said Anarchy was about to send someone to kill you, but we didn’t know they were bears.”
“That’s why we sensed danger,” Nazab said. “Anarchy was watching us through his puppets.”
“Can we get the hell out of here?” Monica asked. The danger was gone, but she never wanted to see this house ever again.
“Do you need to bring anything with you?” Amaros asked, glancing at the house and the truck. “We have clothing, food and beverages.”
“We’re good to go,” Nazab said. “Do you have somewhere I can get washed up?” he asked hopefully.
“Brother, we have everything you could possibly want or need,” Kochab said. He put his arm around Qiana, then Amaros teleported them to their base.
Monica lost her balance and staggered and her prosthesis came loose. Someone caught her as she fell, but it wasn’t Nazab, his brothers or the doc. “Holy crap, you’ve got a metal leg!” a cambion who looked about fifteen or sixteen exclaimed in shock.
“Grace,” Amaros said in a chiding look.
The kid looked abashed as she bent down to pick it up. “Sorry,” she said sheepishly. “I’ve never met someone with a prosthetic limb before.”
“I’m not offended,” Monica said with a grin. Grace steadied her as she reattached the device. “I’m Monica,” she said when she was done. “This is Nazab, my knight,” she added.
“I hereby dub you Mon and Naz,” the teen said with a grin. “Naz needs to get cleaned up. I’ll take you to the north wing so you can choose a bedroom.”
Feeling a bit bemused, Monica glanced at Nazab and he smiled at her. “I’ll find you when I’m done, female,” he said.
“What happened to Naz?” Grace asked as they walked down the hallway to a short passageway.
“He was mauled by two black bears,” Monica said with a shudder. “He would have died if Qiana hadn’t turned up just in time.”
Grace gave her a wide-eyed look. “I bet that hurt,” she said in commiseration. “It kind of sucks that the cambions and knights can feel each other’s pain.”
“It’s not just us, then?” Monica asked, relieved that they weren’t abnormal after all. She could sense a bunch of cambions and knights in the main building.
“All of the couples have been the same so far,” Grace confirmed. “There are four spare bedrooms here,” she said. “Our kids will live across the hall from us,” she added. “We have two babies so far, but I’m sure more will come along eventually.”
This was a lot to take in and Mon felt like she was dreaming.
They walked past doors that had carvings of birds and animals on them.
She chose a room near the end that didn’t have anything engraved on it yet.
From the way the carvings moved, they were magical.
“This room will do,” she said as she glanced inside it.
The rug had a picture of a huge strawberry in the middle of it.
“It matches my hair,” she said with a laugh.
“You have really beautiful hair,” Grace said enviously. “Mine looks horrible now.” She batted the split ends with her fingers.
“Is that an ensuite?” Monica asked when she saw a walled off corner with a door.
“Yep,” the teen said. “We all worked together to turn this shabby old base into a home. It was just a shell when Amaros, Zoe and I first arrived. Now we have everything we need.”
“How long have you been here?” Mon asked. She crossed to the ensuite and opened the door.
“We found this place not long after the Rapture,” Grace said. “So, we’ve been here for over ten months now.”
Monica washed her face and hands, glad her tears had stopped. Another cambion was standing next to Grace when she left the small bathroom. “Hi, I’m Zoe,” she said, smiling and holding her hand out.
Taking her hand automatically, Monica felt power sweep through her. “What did you just do?” she asked curiously.
“Zo just scanned your memories,” Grace explained. “She does that to make sure none of us are harboring secret evil in our hearts.”
“My mate scanned you when he first met you, as well,” Zoe said. Not just pretty, she had a kind face and seemed wise for someone so young. “We both welcome you to our family.”
“Thanks,” Monica said, eyes almost welling up again at the warm sense of belonging. Zoe left and she sensed Nazab coming.
Her knight was dressed in clean clothes and his hair was damp when he entered the room. “Amaros said young Grace here will give us a tour of our new home,” he said.
“I love this part,” Grace said with an infectious smile. “I’ll show you guys around, then we can eat dinner.”
Mon’s stomach growled and they snickered together as they embarked on the tour.