In The Dark (The Guardianship Trilogy Book 1)

by Sarah K. Jensen

  Laif swallowed his apprehension and smiled. “That’s always a great idea. I’ve done a little of that myself these last couple of days. I also realize I’m a little ahead in the whole-knowing-you-longer-aspect too. I’ll let you have the time you need.”

  She smiled. “You stayed with me the whole time I was in the hospital. I saw it when we kissed. I’m sorry that was so hard for you. But I hope you know how much comfort you brought me.”

  He lifted her hand again and kissed her palm. “It was hard, knowing you’d been hurt. But there was nowhere else I could have been. I couldn’t leave you.”

  “I know.” She leaned in to kiss him, but he shook his head.

  “Memphis, if I kiss you again, I won’t go home and I need to get home. And I think our next date should include a chaperone. Think Callan would like to go to the movies with us tomorrow night?”

  He glanced at his watch. “Um, tonight? I heard that The Violet Crown is playing that new Vampire and Werewolf movie. Callan’s old enough for that, don’t you think?”

  At her nod, Laif went on, “We can grab a bite to eat and then stuff ourselves on popcorn and soda. What do you say?”

  Memphis all but beamed at him. “I think that you’ve got yourself a date. With chaperone.”

  He wanted to kiss her again but decided it best to keep his lips away from hers for at least the rest of the night, so instead, he kissed her hand. “I love you. And Callan. I’ll see you tonight around five.” With that, Laif stood to leave.

  “Laif?”

  He looked down at her.

  “I love you too.” When he started to lean over her, she laughed and pushed him back up straight. “Go home, Laif.”

  He nodded and did just that.

  Memphis all but floated toward Laif. Callan stood at his side, looking handsome and so grown up in his white tuxedo. Laif’s tux, also white, almost glowed against his olive completion. If Laif would only kiss her, she’d be able to fly.

  Suddenly, a ringing started up and wouldn’t stop. She looked around, noticing the changes in the atmosphere. Clear blue skies turned red and seemed to drip onto the ground. Understanding just how wrong the scene was, the ringing became clearer and Memphis finally realized the sound was a ringing phone.

  Half asleep, she reached for the phone on her bedside table and answered with a sleepy, “Lo?”

  “Memphis? Are you all right? I’ve been so worried about you. You were asleep when I went to the hospital to see you and you haven’t been answering your phone or your door.”

  Memphis sighed and sat up. She’d napped half the day away and should get up anyway to get ready for her movie date with Laif and Callan.

  “I’m okay, Shane. I’ve been spending time with Callan and haven’t thought to call you and let you know how I was. Please forgive me. I haven’t been thinking clearly since I was—” she caught herself just in time. Reminding him that he’d shot her had not been her intention.

  “I’m so sorry for what happened. I don’t understand it. I’d only had a little to drink, wasn’t even drunk, but I must have blacked out and—” She heard the anguish in his voice. Knew the pain he was in. Shane was a good man and would never hurt anyone on purpose. Never.

  “I know. But that’s why I can’t be around people who drink, Shane. I told you that. Sometimes horrible things happen when people drink, and I can’t take those risks. Especially with Callan. You understand, don’t you?”

  “Yeah. I get it. I won’t drink again. Suz left me, Mem. She’d told me that night while you were doing the piercing on that girl. She told me that she’s in love with someone else. I didn’t even know. Did you know she was with someone else?”

  Memphis shook her head and rubbed her temples. She’d wondered a few times if she was cheating on him, but had never said anything, had never asked Suz what was going on with her and Shane.

  “I didn’t know. I guess I’d wondered a few times. I’m sorry that she left, honey.” And Memphis was sorry. Shane had loved her, even though he’d held out for a long time to actually commit to the relationship, and she guessed he’d waited too long. “So, you didn’t ask her to marry you?”

  He laughed, but Memphis heard no mirth in the sad sound. “Oh, I asked. That was when she informed me that she was no longer in love with me. She’d decided I wasn’t worth waiting for since I took too long to figure out what I wanted. She said that she’d been dating some guy named Mark for the last three months and that she loved him now. They’re getting married in six weeks. She was sorry to hurt me, but if I hadn’t taken so long, things might have been different.”

  He snorted in disgust. “Yeah, like us being engaged would have stopped her from jumping into this Mark guy’s bed. Marriage certainly didn’t keep Joanna from stepping out. Why is it I can’t find a woman who is capable of keeping her clothes on around other men?”

  Joanna, Shane’s ex-wife, had cheated on him after only two years of marriage. They’d been high school sweethearts and had married just after college when she’d gotten pregnant with their daughter Mindy.

  After her betrayal, Shane hadn’t dated for years. Then he’d met Suzanne and had decided to give relationships another try. Mindy had loved her, and at eight, that was quite the accomplishment. Memphis had liked her too, at least up until the last few months.

  The fact that Shane hadn’t wanted to commit to marriage after three years wasn’t unusual, given his history, but it had hurt his relationship with Suz. That, and the fact that he didn’t want to have any more kids.

  Joanna had custody of Mindy and had moved to Boston for work four years ago. Shane got Mindy every other holiday and for a month during the first of the summer. He simply hadn’t trusted Suzanne enough to not hurt him the same way.

  Of course, Suzanne should have told Shane the truth instead of cheating, but maybe if Shane had trusted her…. Memphis didn’t know what to say, so didn’t offer anything but another, “I’m sorry.”

  “I need to see you, Mem. I need to know you’re okay. Are you comin’ back to work?”

  She hesitated and he said, “Please. We’ve been friends for a long time. I swear that I will never drink again. I swear it. Please let me come over. I’ll lock up, it’s not exactly busy right now, and I can be there in twenty minutes. Please.”

  “Of course, I want to see you. Twenty minutes is fine.”

  Laif would be over in a little over an hour to pick up her and Callan for dinner and a movie. Callan had been happier than Memphis had seen him in a long time, and he was generally a very happy boy.

  Memphis knew Laif wouldn’t be happy that Shane was there, but Shane had been a part of hers and Callan’s lives for so long, and Memphis didn’t abandon friends because they made mistakes. That would make her a hypocrite.

  “Thanks, Mem. I’ll see you in a bit.” Shane hung up.

  As she pushed the end button, Callan spoke up from the entrance to the hallway. “Maybe we should let Laif know that Shane’s coming over. I think he’ll want to be here.”

  Memphis stared at her son. She hadn’t heard him come out of his room and watched the apprehension on his face. Sighing, she said, “Honey, Shane’s been our friend for a long time. Laif will understand.”

  Callan cocked his head. “You don’t think he might be a little upset that the man who shot you is here when he gets here?”

  “Shane loves us. You know that it wasn’t really his fault. I explained to you what happened. Laif knows too.”

  The look on Callan’s face suggested that she was clueless in the man/woman relationship way of things. That he, an almost twelve-year-old boy, obviously knew more than she did. Of course, she wasn’t much older than he was then when she’d had her affair with Jacob, and she hadn’t had a date since then, so maybe he did know more than her.

  “Mom. You know I love you, but sometimes I wonder if you pay attention at all. Laif got so upset at the thought that you had a kid, and that meant you’d had sex—”

  “Callan! What in the w
orld?”

  Callan laughed. “You taught me all about sex a couple of years ago. Did you think I wouldn’t figure out that you’d had sex when you were a kid? That that was how I came about?”

  Memphis wanted to cry. Her little boy was growing up so fast and she’d wanted him to stay hers’ for a while longer.

  “Hey, Mom. Don’t be upset. I know you’re stressed with everything that’s happened in the last few weeks, but Laif is part of our lives now and if you don’t tell him that Shane’s coming over, it’s going to bother him.”

  “Arrg. I hate it when you’re right and I’m wrong.”

  He laughed. “Yeah, well, get used to it. I’m right a lot. You raised a pretty smart kid who pays attention to those around him.”

  She had, hadn’t she? And usually, she paid attention as well. But with Laif, it was a little more difficult.

  “Okay, champ. I’ll give Laif a call. Maybe you can go to your room and finish your comic strip on Night Shadows. I think, one day, you’re going to be big-time with that comic.” She loved that he drew so well and had the mindset to put his talents to use in a way that made him happy.

  With a nod, Callan went to his room and Memphis picked the phone back up and dialed Laif.

  It went to voicemail.

  “Hey. Um, I thought I’d call and give you a head’s up.” She paused. “Shane called and… you remember Shane? Of course, you remember Shane. How could you forget? Anyway, he called, and we’ve been friends for a long time and he’s coming over to talk. He’ll probably still be here when you get here, but even if not, well, Callan thought it would be best if you knew he was coming over. So, I’m calling to let you know. I guess I’ll call your house now and see if you answer. Don’t be mad, okay. Just…well, don’t be mad.”

  She clicked the phone off and threw it beside her on the couch. That had to go down as one of the worst voice messages in the history of voice messages.

  And now she had to call his house and do it all over again. Sighing, Memphis grabbed the phone and dialed Laif’s house. When he didn’t answer, Memphis left a much simpler message. “Hey. I left you a voice mail on your cell. See ya when you get here.”

  Well, neither message would win her an award for cleverness, but, whatever. It was done and now Callan could feel better about not leaving Laif in the dark. And Laif couldn’t accuse her of hiding things from him. If indeed he would have done that in the first place. Now all she had to do was wait for Shane to show up.

  Bryson stepped into the hallway and watched as Laif dried his hair with the towel. “Big date with Memphis and Callan?”

  Laif smiled. “Yep.”

  “You ready to be a dad? Because that’s gonna happen if you marry Memphis.”

  The towel stilled on Laif’s head. He glanced over at his brother and sighed. “I’ve thought about this a lot. I’ve only met the kid once and only for a few seconds and we’ve talked on the phone for a few minutes. But that’s all it took.

  “When I saw Memphis the first time, I thought she was something special, and in the hospital, I knew she was the only one for me. Once I got over the hurt feelings of not being Memphis’s first, I knew Callan was meant to be my son, just as Memphis was meant to be my wife. So, yeah, I’m ready to be his dad. If that’s what he wants.”

  Bryson nodded and headed to the kitchen. Seconds later the answering machine came on and Memphis’s voice rang out. “Hey. I left you a voice mail on your cell. See ya when you get here.”

  Laif figured he looked like an idiot; the grin on his face was so huge. He went to the kitchen, grabbed his cell off the counter, and dialed voicemail. He loved that she sent him a personal message where no one else could hear.

  He skipped the first message from a guy at work, an engineer that was helping with the Governor’s summer home project on the Gulf of Mexico. The next was from his mom, and finally, Memphis’s voice sounded like heaven in his ear. That was until he heard what she was saying.

  “Are you crazy?” he asked the woman still babbling on about Shane the drunken idiot. “What is wrong with you?”

  “What happened?” Bryson asked.

  Laif shook his head. Frustrated. “Shane’s going over there to see her.”

  Bryson laughed. “If you head over there and cuss at her, she’s going to send you home. She doesn’t seem like the kind of woman who takes crap from anyone, even you.”

  Dang. Bryson was right. “What do you suggest I do? Just let the guy who shot her hang with her and Callan?”

  “You could,” Bryson said, “I don’t know, trust her. Go over there when you’re supposed to and take her and Callan out like planned. Ask how Shane’s doing. Treat her with love and respect. Do unto others and all that stuff.”

  “What would you do in my shoes?” Because Laif knew Bry would be spitting mad.

  Again, Bryson laughed. “Act like an idiot. But since it’s not me, I can see how it should be handled. And hopefully, you’d tell me the same if the roles were reversed.”

  Laif thought about it. He could be mature. He vaguely remembered how.

  So, on the twenty-minute drive to Memphis’s, he took deep breaths so that when he arrived, he’d not act like an idiot.

  Callan watched as his mom tried to assure Shane that she still loved him. That he was family and always would be. He just needed to stay away from booze and things could go back to the way they were. At least with Shane.

  But could they?

  The knock on the door told him it wouldn’t be long before he found out.

  Great, he was sweating, and his heart raced so fast it might explode. He wanted Laif to like him. To want him enough to want to be around. To want to be his dad. He’d prayed for years that his mom would meet someone who’d make both of them happy. And he knew, somehow deep down inside, even if he didn’t totally understand it, that Laif was it. Theirs. But would Laif know it?

  He stood in the living room/kitchen door as his mom got off the couch, smoothed her hands on her thighs, and went to the door. She smiled at Laif and let him in.

  “This is Shane.” Her voice sounded way shaky. She was scared too. Wow. It wasn’t often his mom got scared. He knew it was real if she was showing any kind of fear. His mom loved Laif. He knew it. Please let Laif love them like his mom said he did.

  Shane stood, chest puffed up, like some hard-core guy. Like he could take Laif if he needed to. Callan knew that he loved his mom like a sister, that there wasn’t any attraction between them, but did Laif know that?

  “We’ve met,” Shane said. “Told me I had no business seeing you and Callan.”

  Oh Shane, why bring that up? You shot her idiot. Laif knows that too.

  Laif didn’t move for a second, but then extended his hand and shook Shane’s. “We weren’t formally introduced. I’m Laif Craig. Memphis and I are seeing each other, and I’m sorry about not letting you stay until she woke up, but under the circumstances, I expect you understand.”

  Wow. Laif was acting so cool. Callan stared at his face, his eyes. Maybe he wouldn’t freak. Holy cow. That was so not what Callan expected.

  Shane clearly didn’t expect it either, because he relaxed and said, “You were right to not let me in. Memphis is like a sister to me. I’m not sure what happened. There’s no way….”

  He stopped, rubbed his hand through his hair. “I wouldn’t hurt her for the world. I don’t understand how I could of….”

  He sank back onto the couch like his legs just couldn’t hold him up anymore. “And the police dropped the investigation. I almost went down there and told them to lock me back up. How could they just drop it like Memphis getting shot wasn’t huge?”

  Laif looked at Memphis, touched her cheek carefully, and said, “If he’s going to be part of our lives, he has to know what we are. He has to be all the way in, otherwise, it’s too dangerous. If he’s really like a brother to you, then he has to know. My brother-in-law and sister-in-law know. It has to be that way. What do you say?”

  His m
om looked like she was about to kiss Laif, and Callan almost gagged, more than a little uncomfortable. It was one thing to know his mom had kissed and stuff like that a million years ago. It was different seeing her looking at Laif the way women in movies looked when they wanted to kiss. So totally gross. He had to do something before they started kissing, since Laif had a goofy look on his face too.

  “I think it’s a good idea. If I get a vote. Of course,” Callan said, “I wanted to tell him a couple of years ago, that way I could spend the night with him on occasion. I mean, Joan knows.”

  Shane stared at everyone like they’d all lost their minds.

  Memphis took Laif’s hand, dragged him to the couch, and tugged him down beside her. She looked over at Callan, “Baby, come over here and you can help us explain.”

  Callan liked that his mom didn’t treat him like a baby, even though she still called him baby about half the time.

  For the next hour, Laif, Memphis, and Callan told Shane all about being a Guardian and how demons could come to this world because of some stupid Druid from like gazillion years ago, who was supposedly related to them because the idiot’s son wasn’t so stupid and put a stop to the Night Shadows taking over the world.

  Well, kinda. They still came through the crack between earth and Hell all the time, but because his great grandmother, times however many greats she was, had given her earthly life so that his great grandfather, the same many times back, could forge the sword and dagger his mom used to fight the demons.

  There was another one that was lost, and if the legend was right, some chick would find it and use all three to close the crack for good. But whatever. All Callan cared about, as far as the whole demon thing went, was that he’d soon be twelve and he could go out and fight them too. Right now, he’d continue to practice like the world depended on it. ‘Cuz, crud, it just might.

  Chapter 19

  The Isle of Éire, 1458

  Ian paced outside the crofter hut where his youngest sister was just inside, giving birth to his niece’s niece or nephew. That sounded strange, even to him. Gael had felt the pull to follow him to Ireland, even though he’d explained the consequences of her coming half a dozen times.