Curse of Shadows and Light

by Penelope King

  I give her a small wave, and Vincent nods.

  Suddenly my insides are a wild flurry of nerves, but I quell them immediately. I don’t recall having that kind of control over my emotions before, but I’m still caught off-guard by how much I like being in Vincent’s presence. It just feels so damn right.

  “You clean up nice.” I run my hand lightly over his cashmere sweater. It accentuates his muscular build nicely, but without being too obvious.

  He grins. “When I’m not neck deep in bloody demon carcass, I’m quite the dapper guy.”

  I laugh. “Yes, you are! Actually, you looked pretty good then too, but in an entirely different way…”

  His gaze locks on mine, and we fall into a hushed silence. I feel myself growing warm as I remember the last time I was with him… kissing him, holding him. And him kissing me back with such tenderness, such longing. I had thought it was going to be the last thing I ever did. I never expected to actually see him again.

  Not that I’m complaining.

  But all this is so much to take in. Everything is changing – and fast. My whole world has exploded and is being rebuilt from the charred remains. Like a phoenix from the flames.

  Maybe it’s time for a fresh start. A new beginning.

  Vincent moves closer and reaches for my hand. “Hi,” he says, his voice low and intimate. His warmth travels from his hand right into my chest.

  “Hi, yourself,” I whisper.

  “It’s nice to see you again. It’s been far, far too long.”

  “Tattie says I was only sleeping for five days. You really missed me, huh?” I nudge him playfully.

  He clears his throat and looks at me. “Believe me, it’s been much longer than that. And yes, I did.”

  I look up at him, not sure I understand, and he graces me with a rare smile. He gently places his hand on my abdomen. “How are the little ones doing?”

  I feel an excited flutter in my belly and I laugh. “They’re great. I think they like you.”

  He nods, his brown eyes sparkling. “Good… That’s good. I’m happy to see you’re okay. You’ve been through so much. How are you dealing with everything?”

  I hear the sincerity in his voice. This isn’t just idle chit-chat. He genuinely cares. But the nearness of his body and the memory of our passionate kiss is almost more than I can stand. Still holding his hand, I lead him over to a fallen log next to a brook, and we sit down.

  “It’s kind of strange…” I begin. “I’m not gonna lie. I mean, it was the hardest, most insane thing I’ve ever had to do. I truly thought I was going to disappear and be no more. But instead of dying, I became stronger than ever.”

  Vincent nods. “I’m not gonna lie either… you had me really worried there for a bit!” He chuckles softly, and my skin hums and tingles some more. “I wasn’t sure what was going to happen. I’ve seen a lot in my day… a lot… but I’ve never met anyone who even remotely compares to you.”

  I look away. “I’m kind of a drama case, huh?”

  He puts his hand beneath my chin and gently guides my eyes back toward his. They twinkle, and he gives a little grin. “Nah. Nothing that I can’t handle.”

  I catch my breath as suddenly the flurry of nerves returns. “You’re pretty amazing, you know that?” I say quietly. “I don’t know where you came from, or how I got so lucky to know you. But I need to say something to you, and I hope I won’t sound too crazy.”

  Vincent chuckles again and raises his eyebrow. “Sweetheart, after all we’ve been though, I think the bar has been raised pretty high on the concept of ‘crazy’.”

  I smile with him. “Good point. I guess… I guess what I want to say is, well, I remember us kissing, and I want to let you know that you’re off the hook if you want to be. I mean, we both thought that was kind of the end of the line for me, so I understand if you don’t—” I pause, searching for the right words.

  “Don’t what? Want to do this?” Before I know it, his lips are on mine. My body reacts instinctively, and I pull him close. His arms are around me holding me tight, and in this moment I hope he never lets go. He feels so good. So right.

  Finally we pull away. My lips tingle, and my skin feels warm and prickly. He looks in my eyes and brushes a loose strand of hair from my cheek. “Just so we’re perfectly clear and there’s no room for confusion, I want to be on the hook,” he murmurs. “Haven’t you realized yet that you are meant to be with me? I’ll follow you to the depths of Hell and back. And now that I’ve found you again, I am never letting you go.”

  My head is delirious as he kisses me again.

  But his words trigger a memory. When we finally come back up for air, I squeeze his hand and lean my head against his chest.

  “You never told me how you did find me… found us.”

  “Huh?”

  My question has obviously caught him off guard.

  I scoot back a little and look him in the eye. “Me and Corrine. How did you find us? First you and Demetri show up when we’re being held in the middle of God knows where. And later you show up in the Belith prison. I mean, it’s not like we were just right around the corner or something. Both places were heavily enchanted. Do you have other powers you haven’t told me about? Are you some special kind of powerful bounty hunter or something?”

  He slowly shakes his head, and I feel my stomach begin to twist into knots as I realize he’s totally keeping something from me. Of course he is. I’ve always sensed he wasn’t being completely open with me. I just didn’t want to admit it.

  “What is it? What are you not telling me?” I press. Better find out now before I get in any deeper. “No one else seemed to find us, but you could… why is that?”

  When he still doesn’t answer, I stand up with my hands on my hips. “Look. I care about you and want to be with you. But I can’t do that if I can’t trust you. Please tell me what you’re holding back from me. Please. We need to be honest and real, or we can’t be anything.”

  Vincent takes another deep breath. He stands up, his body mere inches from mine, and I can feel his tension.

  He gazes down on me, his loving eyes deep and full of promise. Slowly he raises his hand to my face, and gently traces the side of my cheek, down to my neck. My pulse quickens and I catch my breath as his hand wraps around my Boumeaux.

  “I found you because of this,” he whispers.

  “My Boumeaux? What do you mean? It’s like a supernatural lo-jack or something?” Somehow I almost feel a little disappointed.

  “It is to me.”

  My breath catches in my throat, and suddenly my entire body is on fire.

  “Why?” My voice is barely audible.

  He leans closer, and I can feel his breath on my cheek.

  “Say it,” I gasp.

  “You already know,” he whispers.

  I shake my head. I can’t even think it… I want it so badly… but it’s impossible. I can’t allow myself to believe. I can’t lose him twice.

  “You have to say it,” I whisper, my voice trembling. Oh, God… please let him say it!

  His breath warms my cheeks. “The reason I can always find you if you are wearing this, is because—“

  I close my eyes.

  “—I’m the one who gave it to you.”

  Chapter 37.

  Thank goodness Vincent has fast reflexes because that ground was coming up awful fast. He sits me back down on the log. “Are you okay?”

  I stare at him. “I’m okay,” I murmur. “Just got a little dizzy.” Then I shake my head. “Actually, no. I’m not okay. I must be crazy… high-bar crazy.”

  “You’re not crazy.”

  Tears fill my eyes. “Bones gave me this.”

  He doesn’t respond.

  I look up at the sky as the tears fall freely down my cheeks. He gently turns my head and looks into my eyes. And I see it.

  I see him.

  “Yes,” he whispers.

  I choke back a sob and throw my arms around him, buryin
g my face in his neck. His powerful arms wrap around me, pulling me tight. The energy, the scent, the essence… all unmistakably Bones. How could I not have known?

  I hold him, not wanting to let go, as I try to grasp the reality of it. Vincent is Bones. He is alive. He is here in my arms.

  “But… you died. I saw you die!” I sob. I pull back to look at him again. It’s Vincent’s body, but all I see is Bones.

  “Yes, that is true.” He frowns, and a shadow flits across his handsome face. “That form of me you knew as Bones was destroyed. Illegally, I might add.”

  I wipe my tears and stare up at him, still stunned. “How are you here then? I’m so confused… did you hijack this guy’s body or something?”

  He chuckles and shakes his head. “Nah… He’s all mine.”

  “You need to explain this to me. Break it down, like I’m really, really stupid.”

  He places his hand on mine. “You’re not stupid. Far from it. Your soul recognized me right away… I could feel it. But your mind rationalized it away as being impossible.”

  “But how…?”

  He clears his throat and sits up straighter. “Actually, I’ve had this form as a shifter for many centuries. But it was never of much use other than as the occasional messenger, which I already explained to you. In fact, I hadn’t even been able to access it for several decades. I spent all my time either being a Hellhound, or as Bones. That’s how it was supposed to stay. Forever.”

  I let his words sink it. “But you never mentioned anything to me…”

  He laughs. “With all due respect, love, there are a lot of things I haven’t mentioned to you. Remember, I’m a few millennia older than you are, so you’ll have to forgive me if there are some insignificant details that I don’t remember to share.”

  “I wouldn’t call this insignificant!”

  He cocks an eyebrow. “That’s true. I admit I was quite shocked to wake up in this form again after such a long time. Hellhounds are not designed to be in Guard mode full time unless assigned by the Legionare to do so. But I guess since my Bones body was destroyed, the only other option left was this one.”

  I quickly check him out top to bottom. I would never have believed there could ever be a man as deliciously irresistible as Bones if I wasn’t sitting here staring at him right now.

  “Nice back-up bod,” I mutter, and he smirks.

  “Yeah? Ya like?” He flashes a movie star grin and raises an eyebrow suggestively.

  “Oh, puhleeze!” I laugh and playfully hit his arm as he starts flexing his bicep. But my light mood quickly turns somber. “Why didn’t you tell me sooner? You let me think you were dead. You let me mourn you.” I wipe away the tears again with the back of my hand, surprised to realize I actually feel some anger toward him right now. Thinking he was dead, and that it was all my fault had shredded me up inside.

  He clenches his jaw and looks away. “I thought it was for the best,” he says quietly. “I always seemed to cause you such anguish, never being who, or what, you needed me to be. And with your condition, and only half of you loving me but both of you loving Kieron… I… I just thought I was doing the right thing. I thought you’d be happier with me out of the picture so you could just focus on him and have a happy life.”

  I turn around and whap him on the arm again, hard this time. “Happy?! You think any part of me is ‘happier’ with you out of my life? Are you insane?! I love you, you idiot!” I whack his arm again and he grabs it, laughing.

  “Okay, Okay… I’m sorry. Gee, I’d hate to see what you’d do if you didn’t like me.”

  I stand up and stomp my foot on the ground. “Ugh! This is why I fell for Vincent so fast… why right away he was all I could think about. All I wanted. Even more than Kieron!”

  He raises an eyebrow. “Oh, really? Tell me more…”

  I glare at him. “This whole time.”

  He gives a beguiling smirk that’s classic Bones. “It’s really only been about a month… and you were asleep for the last week of it.”

  His words stop me cold. “Really, that’s all it’s been… really?”

  He nods, and I get a sudden lump in my throat.

  “Because it seems like much, much longer.” My voice breaks. I reach out to him and he moves closer, pulling my hands to his lips and covering them with kisses.

  “I missed you so, so much…” I whisper. And then I look into his eyes. Bones’s eyes. “But now I know why I didn’t miss you even more. You’re right. Somehow, deep down, I must’ve known. I just didn’t realize it.”

  He places a hand on my abdomen. “They knew.”

  My belly flutters happily under his touch, and I melt into him again. I put my hands around his neck and look into his eyes. He holds my gaze as our souls reconnect. Then he lowers his mouth to mine, and kisses me with unbridled passion.

  Cursed as I was, I had never really expected to find my happy ending. But now my heart is overflowing.

  And as Bones kisses me and I sink further into his embrace, and with our babies growing strong in my womb, I know this is the moment I’ve been waiting for my whole life.

  I am healed. I am whole.

  And I am loved.

  ********

  Hand in hand we make our way back toward the cabin where the others are waiting.

  I look over at him, and I can’t help but admire the way the day’s last rays give his skin a tawny, healthy glow. “So what do I even call you? Now that I know you’re Bones, it seems weird to call you Vincent. But it’s weird to call you Bones when you look like someone else.”

  He glances back with a half-grin. “You can call me King Sexy if that makes it easier for you.”

  I roll my eyes and laugh. “Ugh. I’m being serious.”

  He squeezes my hand. “You can call me whatever you want. I promise I’ll always answer.”

  “Well… I’ve known you as Bones my whole life, but I’ve only known Vincent for a few weeks. Even though you look different, I can still see you… Bones. To me, you are Bones.”

  “Then Bones it is.” He turns to me. “Guess I could be asking you the same question.”

  I stop in my tracks. He’s right. “I… I don’t know. I mean, both Lucky and Liora feel right. I don’t know which to choose.”

  “Well, you were Liora before your split. Lucky came later.”

  “Yeah, but she’s… I’m here now…”

  He shakes his head and looks at me, and my heart turns to butter. “We don’t have to figure everything out right now. When the time is right, you’ll know.”

  I nod, transfixed by his eyes… his voice… his lips… Suddenly another thought hits me, and my jaw literally drops.

  “What?” he asks, amused.

  “I just realized what this means… what I think it means.”

  Puzzled, he cocks his head.

  “You’re no longer an incubus, are you.”

  He gives a sexy chuckle. “Not in this body.”

  I grab onto his sweater and pull him close, and look him in the eye. “Any more secret identities floating around out there I should know about, mister?”

  “What you see is what you get, darlin’. Unless I go native, of course.”

  “Of course.” Being a Hellhound will always be a part of who he is. “So you’re really all mine?” I tilt my head up to him and give a wicked grin, and he matches it with one of his own.

  “I’ve always been yours. But no, I don’t have to mate with virgins anymore. In fact…” He bites his lip and looks away, almost as if he’s embarrassed.

  “What?”

  “Well, technically, this body is a virgin. As ironic as that may seem.”

  “Wait, what? Are you trying to tell me that you… Bones… King Sexy, Lover of Legions, the Taker of Fair Maidens… you are a virgin?” I cover my mouth with my hand so as not to laugh. The thought is just too ridiculous.

  “I said this body is. I’m sure as hell not. I am still me, remember? Believe me, I know exactly what I’
m doing.” The devilish spark in his eyes makes me want to rip off his clothes right then and there just to make him prove it.

  But I refrain. There’s plenty of time for that later. Plenty. Instead I stand on my tip-toes and plant a soft kiss on his mouth, while running my hand along the side of his chiseled torso.

  “Oh, this is gonna be so much fun,” I whisper.

  ********

  We’re greeted by the delicious aromas of spices and freshly-baked bread, and my mouth waters. “Yum, is that pepperoni?” I ask, eying the cheesy pie. I take a huge slice and Tatiana laughs.

  “I see the carnivore side won out over the vegetarian,” she says, referring to the fact that Lucky would never eat meat.

  “I must’ve not realized it would taste this amazing.” I pop some sausage in my mouth. “Gah, this is so good!”

  Demetri turns to me with a grin. “Thank you. Pizza making is one of my many hidden talents.”

  I stop chewing and stare at him, then I look at Bones pointedly. “So, is he someone I know too?”

  Bones nods. “You remember Alik?”

  I gasp, and even Demetri looks shocked.

  “I told her the truth,” Bones tells him. “She knows.”

  “Alik, that’s you? This whole time?”

  He recovers and smiles at me. “Nice to see you’re doing so well.” He turns back to chopping up some tomatoes, while Corrine looks at all of us, totally confused.

  “It’s about time,” Tatiana says with a smile from her position on the couch.

  I turn to her. “You knew about him?”

  She picks up her knitting. “Of course, dear. Remember, I see things quite differently than you do. I don’t use my eyes.”

  “Yeah, even a blind woman can see more than I can, apparently,” I say with a laugh.

  Corrine stares at us like we’re all insane. “Care to let me in on the joke?”

  I put my hand on Bones’s chest and beam at her. “Corrine… this is Bones. Turns out Vincent is just one of his shapeshifter forms. But he is Bones. My Bones.” I can’t get over the thrill of hearing myself say those words. I slip my arm around his waist, and he pulls me close.