Immortal Flame (The Excalibur Duet Book 2)

by Kim Loraine

  This might break him. The loyal knight who so fiercely loves us both. To sacrifice the man he loves to save the world, might drive him into madness. I run my palm over his forehead and whisper soft words. “You did what he wanted. You stopped the apocalypse.”

  “But, Brooks…” he trails off as he sits up and stares at Brooks’ body.

  “We’ll take him home. We’ll care for him and lay him to rest.” This eerie sense of calm is so different from the storm I felt when I saw the blade sink into Brooks’ chest. When the blood welled, and the seal closed.

  “I’m sorry, Gwen. Can you ever forgive me?”

  We stand and slowly make our way toward my coven. “There is nothing to forgive. My heart is broken, but without his sacrifice, we would have no world to look forward to.” Inside, I want to break down into a million tiny pieces and truly grieve, but I can’t. I look back and see Helena and Tamiel standing over Brooks’ form.

  “I’ll take care of him,” Helena says. “He’ll be at home when you get there.”

  She kneels and takes Tamiel’s hand as he does the same. Then the two of them vanish along with Brooks.

  “He’s part angel. Maybe they’ll be able to bring him back to us,” Lance says. His eyes brighten and he smiles, excitement in his expression. “And he was wearing the scabbard. He’s supposed to be able to survive mortal wounds with the power of Excalibur combined with the scabbard. I witnessed that more than once when he was Arthur.”

  I want to believe, to have faith, but I’ve looked into Lucifer’s eyes, I’ve seen the face of absolute evil triumph after he cut off Gabriel’s wings. He wouldn’t have left if there was a chance he’d get his hands on Brooks’ heart.

  “That’s not how this works. You drove that sword through his chest so far I saw it poking out his back. He’s dead. He’s gone and he won’t come back. We’ll be better off if we let ourselves grieve him rather than wish for a miracle.” The words taste bitter on my tongue. I don’t believe them, but I have to convince myself they’re true.

  We walk together in tense silence, my outburst obviously causing him pain. But in truth, I can’t hold out hope for Brooks to come back. I saw him dead in my vision and now I know, that’s the future, that’s where we all end up sooner or later. Brooks sacrificed himself for us all.

  I take Lance’s hand and kiss his wounds, wishing for all I’m worth that he won’t have scars to remind him of this day. We’ll have enough etched on our hearts. “Izzy should be able to help heal these. She’s got a healing gift.”

  “As you have the sight?”

  I nod. “Mine was given to me by the angel Sariel when all this started, before the fall of the angels.”

  “And Izzy?”

  “Hers was inherent. She was born with this and has been in every one of her lives.”

  “What about Helena?”

  I sigh. “She’s a warrior. I don’t know if that’s a gift or not, but she’s the strongest of all of us.”

  “I’m not sure about that.” Lance presses a tender kiss to my knuckles. “You told Lucifer his cock was the size of a Vienna sausage. I remember those being in the cupboards in the flat in London. It takes a warrior to tease the devil.”

  Does it? Or was I just being reckless in hopes of finding another way out of the apocalypse without Brooks having to die? I start shaking before I can stop myself, the adrenaline of everything we just went through finally catching up to me. Nausea rolls my stomach and I lurch to the side, vomiting in the bushes that line the brick path to the house.

  Lance’s hand rubs gentle circles on my back as he holds my hair away from my face with the other. He doesn’t speak, he just waits for me to pull myself together. When I finally stand straight, I’m still trembling, cold and exhausted and heartbroken.

  “Come, let’s get you warm and into bed. Perhaps it will look different in the morning.”

  I shake my head. “I’m still going to be a pregnant widow, but at least we’ll have the possibility of a life to live rather than the end of life as we know it.”

  He murmurs under his breath, “Perhaps. I still believe in miracles even if you don’t.”

  We walk into the house and I see Izzy, Helena, and Tamiel all crowded around the bed. I’d spent last night wrapped in the arms of the two men I love in that very same bed. Now, it’s holding the body of my husband.

  “I didn’t…I didn’t expect you to bring him here,” I say, my voice choked.

  “Where else would they bring me?” Brooks’ words nearly break me.

  Lance and I run to the bed, both frantic to see if we’re having some kind of shared hallucination brought on by such a magnificent loss. But Brooks is there, Excalibur at his side, blood still staining his shirt, face pale and eyes pained.

  “You’re alive,” I whisper.

  “Barely.” Izzy’s single word tells me a great deal. She worked hard to bring him back. “If that sword hadn’t been enchanted, there’d be nothing left of his heart.”

  “As it is, he’s got a long road to recovery.” Tamiel’s statement sobers me instantly. “His heart was shredded by the blade, but the scabbard’s magic knit it back together. Once we thought to put the sword in his hands, he woke. Technically, he died for a few minutes, but his soul never left his body.”

  I look to Lance, who is smiling like a kid on Christmas morning. He was right. My faithful knight. Without a care for who is watching, I crawl onto the mattress and settle myself next to Brooks, pressing kisses to his jaw and carefully wrapping my arm around him.

  “And the seal?” I ask, looking to my sisters.

  Helena nods. “Closed.”

  I heave a sigh of relief and a stray tear escapes, trickling down my cheek and onto Brooks’ shirt. “Thank you for your help.” Looking around the room, I realize Ruby isn’t with us. “Where is Ruby?”

  A dark look passes between Tamiel and Helena. “With Gabriel. He’s…in a bad way. She won’t leave his side.” Helena’s voice holds such sadness. “I don’t know what can be done for him.”

  Tamiel puts a hand on Brooks’ shoulder and I watch as a golden glow spreads from his palm into my husband’s chest. Brooks turns his head and offers a questioning expression.

  “Some of my grace. To speed along your healing. Some wounds can’t be healed this way, but yours can.” He removes his palm and steps back. “I can’t help my brother, but I can help you, Nephew.”

  It’s so strange to think they’re all related. Even Lucifer.

  “We’ll leave you now,” Izzy says. “I’m certain I’ll have a very angry mate waiting for me to bring him and Kenzie back.”

  “I’m sorry you had to do that,” I whisper.

  “I’m not. The man would have run straight to his death if he knew what we were facing. I’d rather face his wrath now, with him alive.”

  Izzy takes my hand and squeezes, then she releases me and goes to Lance. “Give me your palms, Knight.”

  He does as she instructs and she inspects the red burns and blisters. Her fingertips dance over them and he winces, but she closes her eyes and whispers a few words. His eyes widen and he gasps as his palms return to their normal state. Healed. Perfect. “Thank you,” he says.

  She nods. “It’s the least I can do. The three of you saved us. Now, go see to healing your heart.”

  The four of them leave us and I sit up, inspecting every inch of Brooks. “Are you…did Tamiel’s grace help?”

  He moves slowly, but props himself up on his elbows, wincing with the action. “My chest hurts, but I can move.”

  The mattress dips as Lance sits on the bed, his head in his hands. He’s silent but for the shaking of his shoulders. Brooks looks at me and mouths, “Go,” as I’m already heading for Lance.

  I get off the bed and kneel at his feet, sliding my hands up his arms until I reach his face. I pull his palms away and press a kiss to his forehead before he wraps me in a fierce embrace. He nestles his face against my neck and holds on for dear life as the stress and he
artbreak of the last hour rolls through him.

  “You were right,” I whisper. “You were ever-faithful.”

  “I almost didn’t do it. I almost failed.”

  But you didn’t, I want to say. I know those words go without saying. He needs to voice every fear he had before he’ll be able to move on from this.

  The bed shifts and from the corner of my eye I see Brooks sitting on the edge, face pale with pain. I pull back and open my mouth to scold him, but he holds up a hand. “Lancelot, I need you to look at me and look well.” Our brave knight does as his king bids. “You did exactly as you should’ve. Even if my death had been permanent, I wouldn’t have had it any other way. The greater good is always our mistress. Don’t forget that.”

  Lance straightens his back, rights his shoulders, and lifts his chin proudly. “Thank you, my king.”

  Brooks shakes his head. “I am not your king. You are not my knight. We are equals. As it should be.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  Lancelot

  Seven days have passed since I drove Excalibur through Brooks’ chest and stopped the end of the world. Still, I wake in the middle of the night gasping for breath, reliving the feeling of pushing the steel past skin and bone, plagued by the memory of his eyes pinching with pain and fear. This moment is not different.

  I’m gasping and trembling as I sit up in bed and try to calm myself before I wake one, or both, of my sleeping companions. As always, Gwen lies between us, her hair braided to one side, long slender neck exposed and graceful. She’s angelic in her sleep, with the moon shining in from the open curtains.

  “A nightmare again?” Brooks’ voice catches me off guard. I feel like a child, begging for attention.

  I settle back into bed, curling on my side to face him and Gwen. She’s still sleeping peacefully, her growing pregnancy taking much of her energy. “I can’t stop them. I know you’re here, alive and well, but I keep reliving your death at my hand.”

  He sighs. “I don’t think I can do anything to help you get past that. All I can promise is that I’m here. Both of us are, and we’re yours.”

  I rest my palm on the soft curve of Gwen’s belly, letting myself revel in the knowledge our baby lives safely inside her. “Do you remember what you said before the fight? About the handfasting bond?”

  “Of course I remember.”

  “I think…I think if I’m connected to you both, maybe I’ll feel more at ease about what happened. I wake every night with terror gripping my chest because I don’t know if what I saw was real or a dream. I can’t feel you the way you can sense Gwen.” I stare intently at him, his dark eyes burn with some unnamed emotion. “I need to feel you. Both of you.”

  “I think that can be arranged.” He smirks and I think back to our first kiss in the Lady’s house. The passion between us sizzled like a bolt of lightning.

  Gwen hums and shifts in her sleep, murmuring something about sandwiches. Then she slides her hand down my boxers and I realize she’s not asleep any more at all. I groan and buck into her touch.

  “So it’s that way, is it?” Brooks asks, dipping his head to kiss her neck.

  “You two are such chatterboxes. I’m trying to sleep. I suppose I’ll have to give you some way to relax.” She quickens her pace and I hear Brooks moan as well. Looking over at him, I see she’s stroking his length in time with mine.

  He doesn’t stop kissing her throat, her jaw, her lips, and I’m jealous. Not that he’s got his lips on her, but that I’m not tasting her as well. I roll on my side, not breaking the contact of her hand on my body, but giving me access to the other side of her neck and the soft skin there. I lick and nibble, coaxing moans from her.

  “Oh, God, I love you,” she whispers. “Keep kissing me.”

  We do. Eventually she lets go of us and we both get to our knees, pulling her up with us. She kisses first me, then Brooks, her hands in our hair, tugging and directing us to where she wants our attention. When her lips are on mine, tongue dancing and delving in my mouth, Brooks dips his head and tugs her nightdress down until her nipple is at his disposal.

  I break our kiss to watch him pull the tight bud into his mouth, loving her surprised cry of pleasure. “Oh, fuck,” she says. “It’s so sensitive.”

  “Can you come like this?” I ask between kisses.

  “I…I don’t know.”

  Her breaths are harsh and fast, my kisses interrupted by moans and pleas for more. I pull her into my lap, her naked pussy brushing across my hard cock. Then she positions me at her entrance and sinks down onto my shaft. I throw my head back and groan, but Brooks is there, his lips on mine, his tongue in my mouth, swallowing any sound I make.

  Gwen rocks her hips over and over while Brooks fucks my mouth with his tongue, and I’m lost to them. I spill my release inside the woman I love while Brooks pulls my hair and devours my mouth.

  I come back to the moment with the two of them wrapped around me, their love surrounding me. Brooks’ forehead is resting on my shoulder, while Gwen settles her cheek on my chest.

  “I think we should break the handfasting bond,” he murmurs.

  “What?” Gwen asks, concern in her tone.

  “I don’t want to live a life where Lancelot is excluded in any way. He is just as important to our bond as the two of us are. The world has been saved, your vision has come to pass, and now, it’s time for us to break that spell and cast a new one.”

  “I’m not sure I can break our bond,” she says softly. “It was created in Avalon on the eve of Beltane. You felt the power that flowed through us both. It was stronger than it should have been.”

  “You married him in Avalon. Marry me here.” My words are strong and sure.

  “Is that what you want? Really?” Her eyes lock onto mine.

  “I want to be joined with you in every way I can. I want you to be my wife.”

  Brooks clears his throat. “If you’re marrying her, you’re marrying me too. I already said this. You are not only hers, you’re mine.”

  I nod, swallowing hard. “Tomorrow. I want to do this as soon as we can.”

  Gwen hugs me tight. “I’ll plan it with my sisters. We can have the ceremony in the garden.” She presses a kiss over my heart and nestles against my chest. “Can we go back to sleep now? I’m exhausted, and apparently, I’ve got a wedding to plan in the morning.”

  A warm chuckle rolls through Brooks and vibrates against my arm where he’s pressed against me. “I’d be willing to bet our knight is going to sleep much more soundly from now on.”

  I slip under the blankets, already drifting off. But this time, it’s me in between them, Gwen curled up on her side while I spoon her, Brooks behind me, holding us both.

  Gwen

  It turns out, a poly amorous wedding isn’t as hard to plan as I’d thought it would be. I told my sisters over tea and breakfast this morning. Izzy nearly jumped for joy, while Helena kept herself composed, but even she couldn’t hide her smile.

  Ruby was another matter. Gabriel still hasn’t woken, and she fears he never will. I wish there was something I could do to help her.

  I’m sitting with her at his bedside, holding her hand as she prays quietly, asking for someone to save him.

  “Darling girl, I’m sure he just needs time. Izzy’s healing salve is helping his wounds, I can see that,” I say, thinking of the angry slices across his back where Lucifer cut off Gabriel’s wings.

  “It’s not just his wings that are gone. Tamiel said that’s where most of an angel’s grace is. Lucifer took more than his wings, Gwen. He took everything that made Gabriel an angel.”

  Gabriel stirs and moans, calling out Ruby’s name. She stiffens and takes his hand, falling to her knees beside him. “I’m here, Gabe.”

  But he doesn’t respond. He’s lost in a fog of pain.

  I place a gentle hand on her shoulder. “The ceremony is starting soon. If you don’t want to leave him, I’ll understand.”

  She looks from Gabriel to me,
then back to him. “This is important to you.”

  Dipping her head, she whispers in his ear, “I’ll be back for you before long. I promise.” Then she rises and takes my hand. “I’m so happy for the three of you. Finding love is a rare gift. Getting to keep it is even more precious.”

  As we leave the room, she casts a glance back at the angel in our spare room. I have to admit, he doesn’t look good.

  We walk together down the stairs and into the front room where the rest of my sisters wait. They’re dressed in beautiful gowns of deep blue silk, their hair braided with roses, and both wear genuine smiles.

  “Ready, Gwen?” Helena asks.

  I look down at my yoga pants and t-shirt. “Not remotely,” I say on a laugh.

  “Close your eyes,” Izzy says.

  I do as she says, but I can sense my coven forming a circle around me. They whisper together and my whole body warms as a breeze swirls through my hair.

  “Okay, now you’re ready.” Izzy’s voice is filled with emotion, and when I open my eyes and look down, I see a gown of ice blue skimming down my frame. A white velvet cape covers my shoulders, and I know without seeing it, that my hair is braided just as Lancelot likes.

  “Here,” Ruby says, holding out a delicate sapphire headband. She places it in my hair and then changes her own clothes into a dress to match our sisters.

  The four of us walk outside, the newly fallen snow crunching under our feet. I’m not cold, though. I’m too excited to let the freezing temperature get to me.

  I see them before they see me. Lance is dressed in a fine suit with his hair slicked back, that beard of his trimmed and tidy. Brooks matches him, filling out his own suit so well, I wonder if he might have had a career as a male model if he hadn’t been destined to save the world.

  When they both look at me, my heart nearly stops. I’m marrying these men, they are marrying each other. The three of us are going to be a family. It’s everything I could have ever wanted, and nothing is going to take them away from me.