Dark Secrets Absolved (The Children Of The Gods Paranormal Romance Book 46)

by I. T. Lucas

“That’s because of the tourism,” David said. “The town might be in the middle of nowhere, as you say, but this is a very famous nowhere. It’s located in the middle of the Grand Circle area that is home to the Grand Canyon, Bryce Canyon, and Zion National Park. I won’t be surprised if you can find a good selection of hotels in this tiny town.”

  Magnus chuckled. “A Holiday Inn is the best we can hope for.”

  “A bed with clean linens would do,” Sari said. “Are you and Bowen going to stay with us, or are you going home?”

  “You tell me. We are at your service.”

  Sari nodded. “I’ll let you know after we find out what the doctors have to say.”

  “Fair enough.”

  The nurse came back. “Mrs. Clarke is ready, and she is anxious to see you.”

  17

  David

  “Mom!” Lisa ran into the room and hugged their mother. “I thought that I lost you.” She started sobbing.

  “Oh, baby.” Ronja stroked Lisa’s head. “It’s a miracle, but I’m still here.” She lifted her eyes to David. “Come here and give me a hug too.”

  She looked even worse than he’d expected. Ronja had always looked young for her age, but after the ordeal she’d suffered, the years had caught up with her and then some.

  He walked over to the other side of the bed and leaned to embrace both her and Lisa. “How are you feeling?”

  “I feel as bad as I look, but I’m glad to be alive. I thought that we were going to die out there, and that no one would ever find our bodies.”

  David straightened. “How did you end up stranded in the middle of nowhere?”

  “I’ll tell you everything in good time.” His mother cast a curious glance at Sari. “But first, introduce me to your friend.”

  “This is Sari, my fiancée.”

  “Fiancée?” Ronja’s eyes widened, and so did her smile. “Oh, dear. That’s a most pleasant surprise.”

  “Hello.” Sari stepped closer. “I wish we’d met under different circumstances. But I’m glad that we found you in time.”

  “How did you find me? The guy with the helicopter said that he was sent to look for us. Who sent him? And how did they know where to look?”

  “You’re not going to believe it.” David walked over to the door and closed it. “A friend of ours had a vision, and she drew a topographic map of the area. Another friend ran it through a computer program and found a match on the map. Sari’s brother hired a local helicopter operator to search for your car, and that’s how we found you.”

  “Who’s the friend with the visions?”

  “Sari’s brother’s wife.” David took Ronja’s hand. “But that’s a story for another time. What I want to know is how you and Frank ended up on a dirt road in the middle of nowhere in Utah.”

  Ronja sighed. “It’s even more unbelievable than you finding us thanks to a vision. When we left Vegas, there was a traffic jam, so Frank asked the GPS to find an alternative route. I have no sense of direction, so I had no idea where we were actually going. Frank didn’t say anything, and I thought that everything was okay and fell asleep. I woke up when the car veered off and tipped to the side. Frank was slumped over the wheel, and when I shook him, he mumbled that he couldn’t feel the right side of his body. I’ve lived long enough with your father to know what it meant. I knew that Frank had suffered a stroke and that I needed to get him to a hospital. But there was no reception, and we were out of gas. Frank must have been confused leading up to the stroke, got lost, and kept driving until the car just stopped because the tank was empty. Or maybe the GPS malfunctioned, and Frank got frustrated, and that’s why he had a stroke.”

  “Did no cars drive by?” Lisa asked.

  Ronja shook her head. “It was a dirt road in the middle of nowhere. We were stuck there for over three days. Luckily, we’d loaded on water and snacks before leaving Vegas. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have made it.” She looked at David. “We barely did. Can you check on Frank? All they are telling me is that he’s stable. That’s doctors’ speak for we don’t know if he’s going to make it.”

  “I will after they kick us out of here, which is probably going to be soon.”

  “In that case, tell me how did you and Sari meet and when. The last time we talked on the phone, you told me that you weren’t seeing anyone, and that was only a couple of weeks ago.”

  “That’s also an unbelievable story, and it has fate’s fingertips all over it.” David ran a hand over the back of his neck, buying himself a moment to think how to tell it while omitting incriminating details. “Sari’s cousin, who is a friend of mine, offered me a free trip to Scotland. We stayed on the family’s estate, which is run by my very wise and competent Sari.” He took her hand and kissed the back of it. “It was love at first sight. In fact, I called home to invite you to our wedding, and that’s how I found out that you and Frank were missing. Sari and I flew over right away, and her brother, who heads the family business in the States, organized a search party. Thanks to his wife’s vision, he knew where to send the helicopter to look for you, and when you were found, he sent another helicopter to bring us here. I owe Sari and her family a huge debt of gratitude.”

  “You are part of the family now, and you don’t owe us a thing. We take care of each other.”

  Ronja’s eyes misted with tears. “Thank you, Sari. And thank your brother for me too. At first, I thought that my son was blindsided by your beauty, but you are so much more than your looks. You are one of a kind and precious.”

  Lisa snorted. “You have no idea.”

  When David glared at her, she waved a hand. “I mean, Sari is awesome. I couldn’t have asked for a cooler sister-in-law. They just don’t make them like that anymore.”

  18

  Sari

  The unit’s glass door slid open, and a nurse entered with an apologetic smile. “I’m so sorry, but you need to leave.”

  It wasn’t the same one as before, and Sari was tempted to thrall her into allowing them to stay a little longer. But when the nurse started checking the IV bags, it became clear that the woman was kicking them out because she needed to take care of Ronja.

  “We will come back tomorrow.” David leaned and kissed his mother’s cheek. “I’ll call you when I find out what’s going on with Frank.”

  “Thank you.”

  Lisa hugged Ronja. “If you get lonely and just want to talk, call me. We can gossip about David and Sari.”

  Her mother kissed her cheek. “I think I’m going to nap now. I’m tired.”

  “Okay. But if you wake up and want to talk, call me.”

  “I will.”

  When they walked out of the room, David took Sari’s hand. “I’m going to check up on Frank.”

  “We will wait for you in the cafeteria.”

  Lisa cast David a pleading look. “Can I come with you?”

  “Frank is unconscious, and I’m just going to ask his doctor a few questions. Go with Sari and get something decent to eat.”

  Obviously, David didn’t want his little sister to hear what the doctor had to say, which indicated that he expected bad news.

  Lisa rolled her eyes. “As if there is anything decent in a hospital cafeteria.”

  “Come on.” Sari wrapped her arm around Lisa’s shoulders. “We’ll find something.”

  In the nearly deserted cafeteria, a meager selection of prepackaged offerings was arranged in rows behind a glass display. It didn’t look appetizing, but the smell of freshly brewed coffee held some promise.

  The only customers aside from the two Guardians were three female nurses, and all of them were stealing glances at Magnus. The way he was dressed, the women probably thought that he was a doctor and wondered why they hadn’t seen him before. Then again, he was a handsome man, and he looked a little like that actor whose name Sari couldn’t recall, so maybe that was the attraction.

  Lisa walked over to the Guardians’ table and sat down next to Magnus. “Did you find anything edible in
there?”

  “The tuna sandwich is okay.”

  “I hate tuna.”

  “The cheese melt is good,” Bowen said. “They have a toaster oven you can stick it in.”

  “I’m not hungry.”

  The Guardian put his hand on her shoulder. “That bad, eh?”

  “No, I mean, my mom looked like crap, but she seemed fine. I’m worried about my dad, and David didn’t want me to come with him, which made me even more worried.”

  “You can worry and eat at the same time.” Sari walked over to the display. “Do you want to choose, or do you want me to choose for you?”

  “I’ll take the cheese melt and a can of coke, please.”

  After paying for the items she’d collected, Sari brought the tray to the table. “Did you find us a place to stay?”

  Magnus nodded. “We have three rooms at the Holiday Inn. Two of them have a connecting door.”

  “David and I will stay in one and Lisa in the other.”

  “That’s what I thought. Bowen and I will share the third.”

  “You don’t need to share a room. Why didn’t you reserve one more?”

  “I did. Charlie is staying in it. That’s all they had available for tonight.”

  “Oh, wow. I forgot about him. I must be really tired.”

  “Rough times, eh?”

  Sighing, Sari leaned back. “You could say that. First, it was David’s transition, and now this. I haven’t slept more than an hour or two in days.”

  “Then tonight, you will sleep like a baby.”

  “I doubt it.” Their troubles weren’t over yet, and she was too strung up to fall asleep.

  Besides, she had different plans for their first night in the hotel. David had slept throughout most of the flight from Scotland, so he should be up for some stress-relieving activities, and after they exhausted each other, she might be able to catch some sleep.

  Lisa rose to her feet. “I’m going to the bathroom.”

  “I’ll come with you.” Sari started to get up.

  “I’m fifteen, not five, and I don’t need a chaperone. So, unless you need to pee, you can stay here.”

  Sari sat back down. “Is it safe? I heard that sometimes young women get attacked in bathrooms.”

  “And sometimes people get run over by buses. If you keep worrying about everything that could happen, you’ll never leave your couch.” She chuckled. “Not that you have anything to worry about, right? You are super strong.”

  “I worry about the people I love.”

  “Oh, Sari.” Lisa put a hand over her heart and sighed dramatically. “I love you too. But aren’t we rushing into things?”

  Bowen chuckled. “If you keep standing here, you are going to wet your pants. Go already.”

  Lisa blew him an air kiss and pivoted on her heel.

  “The kid has an attitude,” Bowen said.

  “She’s actually a very smart and sweet girl,” Sari defended her future sister-in-law. “She’s just flexing her independence muscles like we all did at her age.”

  Magnus nodded. “Parker is the same. He’s an awesome kid, but he gets snappy when he thinks that Vivian and I are treating him like a child.”

  As David walked into the cafeteria, his expression told Sari all she needed to know. “How bad is it?”

  “It’s not good.” He pulled out a chair and sat down next to her. “Where is Lisa?”

  “She went to the bathroom.”

  David put his hands on the table. “Frank is not going to make a full recovery even in the best-case scenario. If he makes it at all, he will face a long and difficult rehabilitation.” He ran a hand over the back of his neck. “What am I going to tell Lisa? Should I lie and give her hope? Or should I tell her to prepare for the worst?”

  “You can give her hope without lying,” Magnus said. “You just need to phrase it in the right way. Tell her that there is a small chance of partial recovery. That will give her hope and prepare her for the worst at the same time.”

  19

  Eleanor

  As Eleanor’s phone rang, her heart made a little happy flip.

  She knew it was Greggory before even checking the display, simply because no one else ever called her. Although that might change if Turner got Kian to okay her participation in the mission. There would be briefings, and training sessions, and all the other fun stuff that went into planning a cult infiltration operation.

  Snatching the phone off the nightstand, Eleanor sat on the bed and accepted the call. “Hi, handsome.” She smiled as his face appeared on the screen.

  “I have great news. We are moving to the village much sooner than was planned.”

  “How come? Your houses are not ready yet. Not that I’m complaining.”

  “Rufsur called and told Phinas that they are shortening their stay in Scotland because of some emergency with Sari’s mate. But that’s not why he told us to start packing. Jacki is pregnant, and Kalugal wants Bridget to supervise her pregnancy. That’s why he is suddenly in a rush to move.”

  “Wow. Jacki is pregnant.” Eleanor pushed a strand of hair behind her ear.

  Why the hell did that make her jealous?

  The girl was so damn lucky. She married a handsome billionaire, a freaking demigod, and now she was pregnant. Why did all the good things happen to others?

  “Yeah, your clan doctor said that it shouldn’t have happened so soon after Jacki’s transition. That’s why she wants to keep an eye on her.”

  “What about Kalugal’s artifacts and his cars and all the stuff you were telling me about?”

  “He’s leaving several men behind to take care of that. The rest of us are coming with him and Jacki. Until our section of the village is ready, we are going to stay in the same houses we stayed in for the wedding.”

  “That is fantastic news. Just make sure that you are not one of those who are left behind to pack.”

  Greggory was not the assertive type when it came to asking his boss for favors.

  “I already did.” He surprised her. “I asked Phinas to put me in the first group that moves into the village, and he approved my request.” Greggory grinned. “We are finally going to be together.”

  “No more phone sex?”

  “Not for a while. I want you under me, on top of me, and every other way I can have you.”

  Eleanor’s lady bits were so on board with that. “Are you going to have roommates?”

  “Yes, you. I want you to move in with me.”

  “Are you getting a house all to yourself?”

  “No, but I’ll have only one flatmate, and each of us gets a room. With the door closed, you and I will have all the privacy we need.”

  “What if your housemate doesn’t want to share?”

  “Then I’ll switch him for one that does. This is not negotiable, Eleanor. We’ve been apart for too long. I want to go to sleep with you every night and wake up next to you every morning.”

  Damn. He was so excited. How was she going to tell him that she might be leaving on a mission?

  “What’s wrong? Why are you frowning? You don’t want to move in with me?”

  “I do, it’s just that something came up that might interfere with your honeymoon plans. I might have to leave for a few days.”

  “Leave? Are you even allowed out of the village?”

  “Nothing is finalized, but I was offered the opportunity to participate in a rescue mission. My compulsion ability might come in handy to get a young woman out of a cult. Kian didn’t okay it yet, so I don’t know if I’m going or not, but if he does, then I might be gone for a few days, or maybe even longer.”

  “Can’t you decline the offer?”

  “I can, but I don’t want to. After Turner told me about it, I read about cults and how they operate. I have a feeling that compulsion is involved, and I want to find out if I’m right. Besides, it’s my chance to prove myself to the clan. If I do well on this mission, Kian will start trusting me, and I might get sent on mor
e. Perhaps I could even become a Guardian one day.”

  “Is that what you want?”

  “Maybe.” She chuckled. “I didn’t decide yet who I want to be when I grow up. Kri says that I’m perfect for the job. I’m cunning, athletic, and ruthless.”

  Greggory didn’t smile. “I don’t want you to get hurt. It’s a great honor to be chosen for the Guardian training program, but it’s not just about training. Eventually, you will go out on missions.”

  “Not dangerous ones. Kian is a damn chauvinist, and he doesn’t allow Kri to participate in any combat missions that involve Doomers. She has to stay behind, and she hates it. He’s probably not going to allow me to do anything dangerous either.”

  “Infiltrating a cult is dangerous enough.” He shook his head. “I can’t believe that I’m finally moving to the village and you are leaving. I’m majorly bummed out.”

  “I’m sorry, but I had no idea that you were coming when I agreed to help Turner.”

  He arched a brow. “Would you have given him a different answer if you knew that I was?”

  “Probably not.”

  “That’s what I thought.”

  “Look, Greggory. Right now, I’m a prisoner here, and most people regard me with suspicion. This is my chance to change all that. You can’t tell me not to do it.”

  He sighed. “I’m not. But that doesn’t mean that I have to like it. Don’t expect me to cheer you on.”

  “I kind of do. If you were given an opportunity to prove yourself, I would cheer you on.”

  “Even if it was dangerous?”

  “Yes. I would worry and stress over it, but I would support your decision.”

  He narrowed his eyes at her. “Are you telling me the truth, Eleanor? Or are you scheming to use the mission to escape the clan?”

  Damn, that hurt.

  “What kind of question is that? I just told you that this is my opportunity to prove myself. I meant to prove my loyalty, not that they were right about me all along.”