Chapter 16 #2
I looked at Seir who shrugged. “Perhaps.”
Phin closed her eyes, shoulders sagging. “Safe to assume you never asked?”
A surprised laugh bubbled out of me. “Yes, that’s right. As I explained, there are rules. Lots of paperwork restricting the use of portals to and from Heaven from the crossroads. But I could ask, if you want me to. Seir—”
“I’ll speak with Keplar,” he responded immediately, knowing just what I was after. “Surely there’s a codex somewhere with rules about inter-planar travel that include information beyond just Hell and Earth.”
“Thank you.”
Ramsey whined and Phin looked down at her, relaxing noticeably as she used her free hand to pet the hound’s fur.
“Merry, do you happen to have any spirits?” Phin asked quietly.
“Spirits? Like ghosts or—”
“No. I … I’m sorry to be so rude, but I could really use a drink.”
“Oh! Absolutely.”
Our hostess dashed into the kitchen and returned with a bottle, passing it and several small drink glasses around the table.
“Oh, I’m not sure that one’s a good idea, that’s stone kin home brew, it’s—” Coltor tried to warn her, but it was too late.
Phin locked eyes with me again, just as she gulped down a solid two fingers’ worth of the clear, potent grain alcohol Merry had provided her with. She grimaced, inhaled through the burn, and then coughed. I patted her back, but she indicated she was alright.
“Bottoms up.” Merry took her own drink, though barely a sip in comparison, smiling encouragingly at Phin as she picked up her fork.
Dinner progressed as normally as any meal could after a revelation like that.
Between Ramsey and I, we made sure that Phin ate most of the contents of her plate as well as the pie Hailon had made for dessert.
Despite that, by the time she’d finished a third drink I was certain I’d be carrying her home and that she’d be in bed most of the next day.
None of which bothered me one bit. She was welcome to have whatever reaction she thought was appropriate to help her process what she’d learned.
I could only assume she felt the same way, because through the rest of dinner, the conversation, the goodbyes and promises to see one another soon, she never let go of my hand.
“Do you need to visit the bathroom? Or did you want to change into something else?” I flushed hot, unsure what I would do if she actually said yes.
“No, I’m ’kay.” Phin sighed deeply, already half asleep as she snuggled into the bed fully dressed. I pulled her blankets up around her, torn between relief and worry that she might have to stumble in there later anyway.
“There’s a pail just here”—I lifted her arm, making sure she touched the small bucket I’d put next to her bed with her fingers— “if you feel unwell.”
“’Kay.”
She was going to, I could almost guarantee it.
She’d only made it a handful of treacherous steps across Merry’s porch before I’d scooped her up and carried her back through the glade to the portal.
The bond had been very pleased by the weight of her in my arms, the smell of her hair so close to my nose.
She’d leaned in and kissed my cheek again, and I’d stopped breathing for several steps.
Even my demon, lately agitated and restless because of the unfulfilled bond, seemed settled thanks to the close contact.
I very much liked being useful to her, a safe presence she’d been comfortable enough to lean on.
I craved more of it, in fact. Infinitely more.
“There’s water on the bedside table, and a vial of medicine. If you wake in the night, you should take it. Drink as much water as you can.”
“Mmm.”
“Ramsey will be here with you. And I’ll be either in my room or the great hall.”
Phin patted the bed and the hellhound put her nose where she could feel it. A faint smile crossed her face and she relaxed fully, her breathing too slow to be anything but deeply asleep.
I looked away from my mate to the hound. “Do you want to speak in here?”
We should leave her to rest. I’ll come back when we’re finished.
I bobbed my head in agreement and we exited Phin’s room, leaving the door open like she preferred.
Out of habit, I walked straight past the living area and into the great hall, beginning my routine checks as Ramsey kept pace right beside me.
Do you not rest, Watchman?
I paused, glancing around as I initiated the transfer of control overactive doorways back to the crossroads from Hell.
The shift in energy as they came back to life around me settled my nerves.
“Perhaps not as often as I should.” She sat in the middle of the walkway, eyes fixed on mine. Has Phin acknowledged your mate bond?
The breath I’d taken stalled in my throat. “You are very straightforward, Ramsey.”
I don’t often have time or energy to waste on frivolity, demon. Does she?
I shook my head. “We have not discussed it, but no. I don’t believe she’s even recognized it as a possibility yet.”
But you do.
“Yes. From the moment I saw her, I knew.”
Her head tilted. This doesn’t bother you? Is it not painful?
“It is often bothersome, yes. But I have her near me. She is fed, comfortable, safe. I cannot and will not ask for more unless or until she’s adequately prepared. Mate bonds are eternal. That shouldn’t be entered into lightly.”
The potential length of eternity between a demon and a Nephilim was genuinely endless. The idea that she could change her mind or regret our bond was beyond paralyzing. I had to eliminate as much possibility of that happening as I could.
Your stance is wise.
I waited, unsure if I should be requesting her blessing or expecting further questioning. The hellhound remained quiet.
Unable to stand it any longer, I asked, “Could I be so bold as to ask what it is you’ve been looking for in your travels?”
The people hunting my mistress have been doing so for far longer than she knows. While her trips to Heaven were indeed for her benefit, they were not just for her education, nor for her father to perform his duties. I have been hunting them, in return.
I straightened. “Have you found something? Is that why you were able to seek her out now, after such a long time?”
I believe I have. You and the other demon and the stone kin, you were discussing activity in dormant doors. That is almost certainly connected to the trio I’ve been following. Every time I catch up to them, they manage to slip away. Their skill with the portals rivals that of any hellhound.
I didn’t care to hear that one bit. “Trio?”
Angels. Two men, one woman.
My mind flickered to Father Morton telling Phin about the people that had been in the village. “They were looking for her in Vincara not long before I brought her here.”
Yes. I tracked them there as well. It was torturous to be so close to her and not be able to reveal myself, but it wasn’t safe for either of us.
“I’m sorry. This kind of separation must have been very difficult for you both.”
I am very anxious for a time when I can be at her side again.
“When you are able, you’re welcome here, for however long she wants to stay.”
Do you anticipate her wanting to leave?
“I am mindful of all possibilities. It is not guaranteed that she will either recognize or accept the bond, and once she is no longer in danger, she may choose to live a life elsewhere.”
Ramsey tilted her head. My mistress has stumbled into very unusual circumstances yet again, it seems.
I bit my tongue, though I was dreadfully curious about what else the hound’s again implied. That was twice she’d mentioned something from Phin’s past that was almost certainly both very important to understanding who my mate was and so personal it was closely guarded.
“My brothers and I, as well as the stone kin, are already looking into several mysterious disappearances. All couples that the respective councils forbade to be together. All parents of unique, magically talented children. It is too much of a coincidence for none of the cases to be related. There may even be some resources in Hell willing to assist in checking on suspicious activity, old doorways, things like that.”
That is very helpful. I will return as soon as I can.
I promised her I would, and I meant it. I’m ready to be done wandering, being away this long was never the plan.
Especially not after … She sneezed, as though allergic to whatever had happened in the past. I need to be with Phin.
Too many times, she has been left alone.
“She never will be again, if I can help it.” It was a vow, and hung on the air between us, though not with the extra sparks that had come along with the one I made with Father Morton in the old language. “Are Phin’s parents still alive, Ramsey?”
I believe so. I think I would know if my former mistress died, due to our connection.
I am tied to Phin now, but some link to Terra will always remain.
That knowledge and a faint draw to wherever she is has kept me hopeful that I might find her all these years.
Her head swiveled the direction of the bedrooms. I’m going to go rest. You should as well.
“I will as soon as I’m done,” I agreed, though there were no minutes or even hours I could assign to when that might be.
The hellhound disappeared from my sight, and I resumed my tour of the doorways, thoughts consumed by possibilities and an acceptance that visiting my brother’s collegium was in my very near future.