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

by I. T. Lucas

  “It must have been something that Richard put down in his questionnaire.”

  Doubtful.

  It hadn’t been Stella’s intention, but somehow the program had designed the perfect test for Richard. She now knew for sure that she could trust him with her secret. He would never betray her.

  What the program hadn’t done, though, was to give Richard enough clues to guess what her secret was, like she’d hoped it would.

  Thinking back to the questionnaire she’d filled out, Stella wondered which of her answers had resulted in the strange adventure. She’d put down that she was a mother, and she’d put loyalty at the top of her list of her chosen partner’s desirable attributes. Honesty had been second, and bravery had been third. Perhaps that was it. Most females would have put intelligence, good looks, and charm as the top three, but for her, those were less important than the ability to trust her partner completely.

  “All done.” Beverly used a moist towelette to clean the sticky residue from Stella’s skin. “Just one more thing. William wants you to fill in the post-experience questionnaire.”

  “Can I do it later today? I need to talk to Richard about our adventure.”

  “Naturally.” Beverly gave her a hand up. “Are you steady on your feet? Some people are a little dizzy after they wake up.”

  “I’m good. Thank you.”

  As Stella pushed the curtain aside, her heart did a little flip upon seeing Richard. He was talking with William, but as soon as she took a step toward him, he turned to her with a face-splitting grin.

  “Excuse me, William.” He put a hand on the guy’s shoulder. “We will have to finish this conversation later.”

  Richard strode toward her, took her in his arms, and lifted her off the floor. “I love you.” He kissed her softly.

  “I love you too.”

  “We need to talk.” He put her down.

  Swallowing the lump in her throat, Stella nodded. “Let’s get out of here.”

  Holding hands, they walked out of the lab, neither saying a thing until they cleared the pavilion. The place was under construction, but somehow the mess was kept to a minimum.

  Richard led her to the deserted playground. “Is here good?” He pointed at a bench. “Or do you want to go home?”

  “I can’t wait. I need to hear what you thought about our experience.” She walked to the bench and sat down. “Where do you want to start?”

  Sitting beside her, Richard wrapped his arm around her waist and scooted closer, so their thighs were touching. “It wasn’t what I expected. Did you add the pregnancy element?”

  Stella shook her head. “I was surprised by it too, but when I thought back to the questionnaire, it made sense. I put loyalty, honesty, and bravery as the top three desirable traits in a love partner, and I also put down that I was a single mother. The program took those elements and designed the perfect test of loyalty for you.”

  “How did I do?”

  Richard was fishing for compliments, but since he deserved them, she didn’t mind. “Perfectly. In fact, if I wanted to design a scenario to test you, I would have chosen something easier. I never would have believed that any male could accept me so unconditionally. Not only was I pregnant with a child fathered by a despised enemy, but that enemy was an alien, and I also refused to abort it. Most males would have walked away.”

  “I’m not most men.” He kissed the top of her head. “That’s not true. I would have walked away from anyone but you.”

  “Cilia wasn’t me. She didn’t even look like me.”

  “I must have known subconsciously that she was you.” He put a hand over his heart. “I felt the love in here. Do you think that the program could have made me feel like that?”

  “I don’t think so because I felt love for you as well. But I think that you would have done the same for any woman you loved.”

  “I’ve only ever loved one. You.”

  “Same here. I’ve never loved any man other than you. And Vlad, of course. But that’s a different kind of love.”

  “What about Vlad’s father? I know that he wasn’t a random hookup. There is a story there, but for some reason, you are afraid to talk about it.” Richard hooked a finger under her chin. “You must realize now that I would never betray your trust.”

  “I know that you won’t, but I vowed never to reveal his secret. I swore on Vlad’s life.”

  “What if I guessed it? Would that count as you breaking the vow?”

  “I don’t think so, but I don’t think you can.”

  “Our adventure gave me some clues. Perhaps the Fates want you to unload that secret that has been holding you hostage for all those years.”

  Stella frowned. “I wasn’t taken advantage of, if that’s what you think. It was consensual.”

  Given Richard’s confused expression, that had been precisely what he’d thought. She wanted to guide him in the right direction, but that could be considered as breaking her vow, and she couldn’t risk it. The most she dared to do was to either confirm or deny his guesses.

  “Okay, so if that’s out, let’s think about the other components.”

  “I’m scared to tell you anything other than yes or no.”

  “I can work with that.” He chuckled. “Was the father an alien?”

  That was as close as he was going to get, but she couldn’t answer with a yes or no. “Sort of.”

  “I’ll be damned. Was he a Doomer?”

  “No.”

  “But he was an immortal?”

  “Yes.”

  “Oh, damn. Was he a member of your clan? Not that I care, but I know that your people would consider it incest.”

  “He wasn’t.”

  Richard let out a breath. “That’s a relief. So, he was an immortal who wasn’t a Doomer and not a member of your clan. Was he some random immortal you bumped into?”

  “Yes.”

  “That’s not a big deal. Why did you vow to keep it a secret?”

  “It is a big deal, but I can’t tell you why. That’s the secret.”

  “Okay.” Richard rubbed a hand over his jaw. “Did you know that he was an immortal when you hooked up with him?”

  “No.”

  “That’s strange. Can’t you smell male immortals?”

  That was another question that she couldn’t answer with a yes or no, but she could answer it with a generality.

  “Not all immortal males smell the same.”

  “Did you discover that he was an immortal when he bit you?”

  She’d found out when his eyes blazed crimson a moment before he bit her, but she couldn’t tell Richard that. The bite had come next, so she could go with that.

  “Yes.”

  “And you freaked out?”

  “Yes.”

  “Did he know that you were an immortal before he bit you?”

  “No.”

  “So, he didn’t know what an immortal female smelled like either.”

  “Not all immortal females smell the same.”

  “I see.” Richard smoothed a hand over his jaw. “Let’s sum up what I’ve learned so far. He was a different kind of immortal, and you didn’t recognize his scent, right?”

  “Yes.” He was so close already.

  “You met him somewhere in the Orient, true?”

  “Yes.”

  “Did he look Asian?”

  “Yes and no.”

  “Did he have some Asian features?”

  “Yes.”

  “Was he very tall?”

  “Yes.”

  “I’m starting to get a picture. A tall, different kind of immortal with some Asian features. That brings Jin and Mey to mind. They both fit that description. Come to think of it, I don’t know how I didn’t see the connection before. Vlad and the sisters have a lot in common. The height, the hair, his trigger-happy fangs, them having fangs at all.”

  Stella’s heart was pounding. For some reason, she hadn’t made the connection either, but Richard was onto somet
hing.

  “The guy wasn’t a lone immortal, was he?”

  “No.”

  “Did he belong to a group?”

  “Yes.”

  “They don’t want anyone to know about them.”

  “Yes.”

  “He made you vow never to reveal their existence.”

  “Yes.”

  “Did he know that he got you pregnant?”

  “Yes.”

  “And he let you go only after you vowed never to tell anyone about the child’s father?”

  “Yes.”

  “It must have been a pretty strong vow to make you so scared to break it. Did he force you to swear on your unborn child’s life?”

  “Yes.”

  The sense of relief at finally telling someone was mingled with dread. What if what she had done counted as breaking the vow? What if she had put Vlad’s life in danger?

  “Don’t be afraid.” Richard clasped her hand.

  “I can’t help it. I thought that letting you guess was a loophole, and that I wouldn’t be actually breaking the vow. But what if I’m wrong? Vlad’s life is at stake.”

  “You believe in the Fates, right?”

  “As much as the next immortal. I’m not a devoted believer.”

  “What other divine power do you believe in?”

  “I believe that the universe is conscious in some way, and that it is aware of all the information floating in its vastness.”

  “Does the universe listen to your thoughts?”

  “It hears them.”

  “Do you think that it cares about your vow?”

  “It doesn’t care about anything. It just is.”

  Richard smiled. “So, who is going to retaliate against you and hurt Vlad?”

  He had a point, but fear was irrational, and vows had power. “I don’t know.”

  “The Fates are not going to be angry at you for sharing a secret with the mate they chose for you, right?”

  “I guess not.”

  “And your secret is safe with me. I wish you would tell Kian about it, but I’m never going to pressure you to do that. Do you know why those other immortals don’t want to be found?”

  “He told me that their survival depended on their anonymity, which is the same line we use. Perhaps their position is more precarious than ours because they don’t live in a democracy.”

  Richard chuckled. “Your people are as much in danger here as those other immortals are in China, or wherever they are hiding in the East. Do you think anyone would care about your so-called human rights if you were caught? The only thing your captors would care about is that no one else finds out about you. Your fate wouldn’t be any better just because you live in a democracy.”

  “You are right.” She sighed. “I don’t know how many of them there are. It might be just a small group.”

  “Or it might be a community much larger than ours. Kian should know about them.”

  “I can’t tell him. And neither can you.” She pinned him with a hard stare. “You promised.”

  “And I’m going to keep that promise for as long as you want me to. But if you change your mind and let me tell Kian, it’s not going to count as you breaking your vow. You’ve never actually told anyone, right?”

  “I’ve already taken a great risk letting you guess and answering your questions.”

  “There is no rush, my love. You’ve kept this secret for over twenty-one years, so you can keep it for a while longer. Just give it some thought, okay?”

  Stella let out a breath. “I will. But not today. I want to go home and take a nap. I’m exhausted.”

  Smiling, Richard tilted his head. “Can I take a nap with you?”

  “Of course.” She leaned her head on his arm. “You are my mate. I think it’s time that you move in with me. I don’t want to sleep alone anymore.”

  53

  Kian

  “I wish Lokan was here.” Carol threaded her arm through Syssi’s. “I’m excited to see Kalugal and Jacki, but it would have been nicer if I was welcoming them with Lokan by my side.”

  Kian nodded and smiled, but he was conflicted on the issue. On the one hand, Lokan had been playing with fire for far too long, but on the other hand, Kian wanted him precisely where he was, with his finger on the Brotherhood’s pulse.

  Rufsur and Edna joined the welcome committee just as the bus entered the parking structure. Richard and Ingrid were there as well, and so was Eleanor. The three had an entangled past, and even though they did their best to appear friendly, not enough time had passed for them to be really comfortable around each other.

  The bus pulled to a stop, and a moment later, Okidu opened the door and stepped out. “Welcome to the village.”

  While his passengers spilled out, he opened the storage compartment and started pulling out suitcases.

  Kian shook hands with Kalugal’s men, welcoming each one to the village, and then Ingrid and Rufsur took over, distributing notes with house numbers on them and tags for the luggage, so the Odus would know where to deliver it.

  The last to come out were Kalugal and Jacki.

  “Welcome to your new life.” Kian shook Jacki’s hand and then Kalugal’s.

  “How was your trip?” Syssi asked.

  “I napped,” Jacki said. “Pregnancy is tiring.”

  Syssi rolled her eyes. “Tell me about it. I haven’t taken so many naps since I was a baby.”

  “Stop complaining.” Carol pulled her sister-in-law into her arms. “You look fantastic.”

  “Thank you.” Jacki kissed her cheek. “Don’t you want to join the preggers club?”

  “I’m considering it. It would force Lokan to finally leave the Brotherhood and move into the village.”

  “So, how are we going to do this?” Kalugal turned to look at his men. “Are we going straight to our new temporary houses? Or do you have something planned?”

  “We have a buffet-style lunch ready for you in the village square. The Odus will take everyone’s luggage to their houses.”

  Kalugal fell in step with Kian. “Frankly, what I would have liked to do is to relax with whiskey and a cigar. I’m afraid you are a bad influence on me, cousin.”

  “I beg to differ. I’m a good influence. You are learning to relax.”

  Kalugal arched a brow. “From you?”

  “Good point. Would you like to see the progress we’ve made with the pavilion?”

  “We are heading up there anyway, so why not?” Kalugal looked over his shoulder at Richard who was helping Ingrid with the men. “Thank you for recommending him. He’s done a superb job of keeping me informed and also with the selection of fixtures and appliances.”

  “He’s a good man.” Kian glanced at Eleanor and Greggory. “I approved Eleanor’s participation in Turner’s mission. I hope it’s not a mistake.”

  As they entered the elevator, Kalugal held the door open for the ladies. “She’s not going to run. Eleanor and Greggory have a good thing going on, and now that he’s in the village, she has an added incentive to come back home.”

  “They should move in together,” Syssi said.

  “I agree.” Kian wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “I’ll tell Ingrid to prepare a house for them.”

  Kalugal chuckled. “Did you catch the matchmaking bug from me? Let them decide if and when they want to take their relationship to the next level.”

  “Oh, wow.” Jacki leaned on his arm. “You’ve come a long way since we met.”

  Kalugal arched a brow. “What do you mean?”

  “After hooking David up with Sari, you are talking about relationships like an expert.”

  He smirked. “I’m a fast learner.”

  As the elevator doors opened, they walked out into the pavilion, and Kian led their group on a tour of the construction site. “We had all the glass panels covered as a safety precaution. Most of the glass wall is going to remain in place, and the exhibits will be sandwiched between the inner wall and the outer one that we
are building.” He pointed at an opening. “Those who want to take a closer look could exit through here and take a walk along the exhibits.”

  “Clever. But only a small selection of my artifacts will fit in there.”

  “It would be a revolving exhibit, with the artifacts changing every month, so it never gets boring.”

  “Sounds good in theory, but it’s going to be difficult logistically. I will have to assign a crew just to that.”

  “You said that you don’t have enough work for your men. That should keep at least some of them busy.”

  54

  Eleanor

  Nervous butterflies flitting around in her stomach, Eleanor waited for the bus door to open.

  Even though she and Greggory had been meeting every night over a video call, seeing him in person was different.

  Had he changed?

  And most importantly, how was he going to react to her?

  In her fantasies, she saw him jumping out of the bus before it even came to a full stop and rushing to her. It was silly, and girly, and she knew he wasn’t going to do that. But it was fun to imagine.

  Greggory was reserved around other people, and she didn’t expect him to do more than smile at her or maybe take her hand while his boss and Kian were watching.

  She needed to get him alone.

  As the bus door hissed open, Eleanor’s breath caught in her throat, but when Greggory wasn’t the first one out, she released the breath in a loud whoosh.

  Kian’s butler, who was also the bus driver, walked down the steps and then turned around and announced, “Welcome to the village.”

  Greggory wasn’t the second or the third, either. And when he wasn’t the fourth or the fifth, she started to fear that Phinas had assigned him to the second or third group due to arrive, or worse, left him behind to pack Kalugal’s stuff.

  When he finally appeared at the opening, her heart leaped, and she took a step forward.

  “Over here.” Eleanor smiled and waved.

  Gregory seemed surprised to see her. “Hi.” He walked up to her and leaned to chastely kiss her cheek. “I didn’t expect you to wait for me in the parking garage.”