Between the Bleeding Willows (The Demon Hunters Series Book 1)

by Roach, D. A.

  Lena crossed at that moment and met Jackson and Casper in the clearing. They talked for a brief moment before she ran toward Killian. “I felt something was wrong. What the hell did she do to you?”

  “Nice to see you too, Sis.” Killian stood with the help of Lena. “Why aren’t you back at the Clan?”

  “Everyone is stable and Sean has the med unit, so don’t worry about that.”

  Hank, Lena, Killian, and myself loaded into one of the cars and headed to my house. “I’ll arrange the car pickup with the Junctures,” Lena informed Killian.

  “Who are the Junctures?” I asked.

  Lena opened the passenger door for Killian and began explaining, “They are former Clan members who either lost their powers or chose to stay in the Human Realm. They help connect us with things we need…medicines, cars, weapons. In exchange, we offer some of our reserved angel blood for spells and potions. We’ll need to get a few items after we get Killian situated. You can come meet a Juncture if you’d like.”

  “Shouldn’t we take him to the hospital?”

  “They ask too many questions and we are not supposed to draw attention to our kind. Besides, we’ve treated wounds like this in the Clan before. The main thing is trying to keep it from getting infected.”

  Lena handed me the keys to the car as she and Hank piled into the back.

  At home, we helped Killian inside. “Do you want him in a bedroom or the couch?”

  “Couch,” Killian groaned.

  Lena went to the main level bedroom and grabbed two pillows from the bed while Hank searched for drinks in the fridge and poured some orange juice for everyone. I sat in the wingback next to the couch Killian lay on. His face was whiter than usual. He’d lost a lot of blood along with his layer of arm skin, and he shifted uncomfortably in pain.

  “Hey, how did you know I was in trouble?” I asked him curiously, but also hoping to distract him from his pain.

  Killian turned his head to face me. “I felt something was wrong. I didn’t feel bonded to you anymore.”

  I pulled my sleeve up to reveal the faded tattoo. My fingers trailed along the inked skin. Killian watched me with sad eyes.

  “What happened to it? Did you do something to make it fade…break our bond?”

  “No. Tyler did it. He covered it with his blood and the bond broke.” He looked away, irritated by my story. “Wait, he did it because I was dying, Killian. He said he had no other choice.”

  Killian turned back and grabbed my other wrist firmly with his good hand. While holding me, he used a finger to peek beneath my sleeve cuff. “And this? You’re bonded to him now?” He released my arm and pinned me with his intense stare. Was I supposed to feel bad that I bore a new tattoo from Tyler? “What kind of magic is in you? Do you even know? Think about it, Cass, his dad hangs around with Rya…which would make Tyler a…?”

  Killian was pissing me off. Was he suggesting Tyler was a demon? Tyler had saved me from death and helped us in the cemetery. How dare Killian act like he was something evil! “Why does this bother you?”

  “Because I care about you.” He held my gaze a moment longer and I could see what he meant in his eyes. Then he closed them and turned away.

  Lena returned with the pillows and a blanket. “We better head out, Cass, you should change. And if you have a spare hoodie I could borrow, that’d be great.”

  I changed and grabbed the hoodie for Lena. When I returned, Lena encouraged Killian to be nice to the person caring for him. I figured she sensed the tension between us. He grumbled in protest but then quieted.

  “Here, Lena.” Tossing the navy blue hoodie at her, I grabbed my car keys and purse so we could leave.

  Lena navigated, taking me through neighborhoods and side streets till she finally parked in front of a tall narrow three-flat. She opened the door to an entryway, then walked to a wood door and pushed the decrepit doorbell. The sound of heels clicking on wood flooring grew louder as they approached, followed by a series of clicks and clacks as various locks opened.

  The door opened, and there stood a woman in her mid-forties with blonde, curly hair, heavy makeup, and bangles covering her wrists. She wore a gauzy white shirt that sat at her shoulders with a short brown pleated miniskirt and brown tights. Her high-heeled boots came to her knees. She looked exotic, like a modern day gypsy.

  “Serena, good to see you again.” Lena gave the woman a hug.

  “Lena, you look great! Fully healed?”

  “Yes, thank you for asking. By the way, this is Cassidy. She has recently been introduced to the Demon Realm.”

  Serena smiled a warm smile, then took my hand in hers and lifted both my sleeves. Her fingers traced the edges of both tattoos. “Bound to both Heaven and Hell—yet not at the same time. Interesting.” Her eyes met mine. I could tell she was reading my energy. Her gaze was intense, and I struggled to not look away. “Very good energy.” She turned toward Lena and said, “She’s a keeper. Be sure she’s on your side when the final battle comes.”

  “We’ll do our best. Anyway, Serena, Killian was injured. Rya pulled off his tattoo.”

  “Skin only or did she get the tissue beneath as well?”

  “Skin. I’ll need you to come tattoo his other arm or lend me the equipment to help him heal. Also, we’ll need tinctures and herbs to heal his arm and fight infection.”

  “I’ll send my tattoo kit with you. Just let me know when it’s ready for pickup, and we’ll arrange things.”

  “Thank you, Serena,” Lena said.

  With a nod, Serena gestured we follow her. “This way, loves. I need to make an herb paste for Killian’s arm. I won’t be but a moment.”

  There were two oversized chairs near the large floor to ceiling bay window. Serena had a bar at the opposite side of the room with shelves of herbs and bottles of different sizes and labels. She was like a backwoods pharmacist.

  “She’s like you,” I whispered to Lena.

  “No, she is a pro. I am a novice.”

  “The Clan could use someone like her.”

  Lena looked at me. “You know, at this point in time, we really could.”

  Serena added an ingredient to what looked like Crisco with herbs and berries in it. Next, she added a powder as black as soot and sprinkled it along the ingredients lying before her. Smoke rose from the paste, and a campfire smell filled the air. With a small spatula, she incorporated the ingredients together. When she finished, she grabbed a white plastic jar, scooped the concoction in, and replaced the lid.

  She held up a vial of green opaque liquid. “Two teaspoons twice a day with this one, by mouth. Change his dressings, apply a single layer of new gauze.” She held up a roll wrapped in yellow packaging. “This one first because we don’t want it to stick to the wound. Then, apply the paste on top of that, then wrap with the other gauze. A saline rinse once a day is fine, but no washing the wound until we have some skin growing on there. Everything else I give you is once a day. Oh, and if he gets a fever, you must call me right away.”

  I nodded in understanding.

  “Good.” She put all our goods in a bag along with extra gauze and walked us to the door. “Lena, good seeing you again. Don’t worry about settling up until your colony is back in order and you are not in battle or on the run.”

  “Thank you. You know, Serena, the Clan could really use someone with your expertise.”

  “Thank you for the kind compliment, Lena, but you understand why I left years ago.”

  “I do. Just know that you are always welcome to return.” Lena hugged her and started toward the car.

  Serena grabbed my hand. “Cassidy, wait…your ring…” I wasn’t wearing it; how did she know about my ring? In fact, Killian had it and I didn’t recall telling Serena about it. She continued, “It has great power, whether you know it or not. It will save lives and maybe even win the war…but it will also make you the most hunted person. You need to be strong if you chose to wear it. But beware, if you wear a Clan or demon tattoo al
ong with the ring, your body will become gravely ill in the Human Realm, as it has once before. The potent healing properties of the combined magic will continue making new cells, and…like a cancer, it will eventually kill you. You must only wear it for short increments here. But in the other realm, it will give you great powers—powers of necromancy, the ability to control life and death, with no negative consequence.” She put so many puzzle pieces together for me. She released my hand. “I shall see you again, Cassidy. Well wishes to you and Killian.”

  “Nice to meet you, and thank you, Serena.” She hugged me tight before closing the doors and setting the locks. Lena was already in the car looking through the bag of goodies.

  Taking a deep, calming breath I asked, “Are all Junctures like her?”

  “What? Intense?” Lena turned to me and smiled. “Some are. She is pretty powerful though, maybe more intense than most.”

  “She mentioned leaving the Clan years ago, what made her leave?”

  “She had a little boy who died when two demons breached the Center. She crossed over after his celebration ceremony and has been a Juncture ever since.”

  “Think she’d ever come back to help?” It would be advantageous to have Serena helping.

  “I think we’d have to have worse odds before that would ever happen.”

  I couldn’t imagine it getting much worse.

  We made a stop for some groceries so I wouldn’t have to leave Killian alone in the first few days. Then we headed home and brought in our bags.

  Hank was put to the task of putting the groceries away and preparing a meal of soup and sandwiches. Lena asked me to boil two cups of water. When the microwave finished, Lena added salt to the hot water and stirred the mixture, then set it in the refrigerator.

  Lena and I washed our hands, then retrieved the salty water and returned to Killian. She helped me take off the makeshift dressing of Casper’s shirt, which I tossed into a grocery sack to throw out later. Next, Lena laid out the gauze, jar of ointment, and a towel. “Hold this towel under his arm, Cass.” I did as she instructed. “This saline solution is just two cups boiling water plus one teaspoon of table salt, make sure it’s cooled enough and use a spoon to drizzle it over the wound. Got that?” Rya only removed the outermost layer of skin, but the bloody tissues beneath were gory, and I felt my stomach turn.

  “Keep it together, Cassidy. He needs you to do this for him.” I set down the pink saline- and blood-soaked towels and took a few deep calming breaths. “Now we need the gauze…the yellow one.”

  “Doesn’t he need a skin graft or something?”

  “We are not set up for that, and only the outermost layer or two are gone. I think with what we have, he’ll regen his own skin and recover. Now get the gauze.”

  I grabbed the yellow roll of gauze.

  “Now, Serena said no washing the wound till there is some skin. This next part that you will do, will need to be done twice a day. Start by wrapping the gauze once around lightly.”

  I began at his elbow and wrapped his intact skin, then carefully made my way down his arm. He clenched and winced with pain. My hands begin to shake.

  “He’s okay. You got this.” Killian looked at me and nodded. Lena handed me the paste. “Apply this with very light pressure.”

  Killian focused on breathing.

  “If I hurt you, tell me okay?” I asked.

  He nodded and resumed his careful breathing. I dunked two fingers into the paste and began spreading it from his elbow down toward his wrist. My fingers became numb, either from nerves or the ointment. When I finished, Lena told me to wash my hands thoroughly with soap and water. They felt so strange, unable to differentiate between hot or cold water. Scrubbing the entire surface helped, and slowly, my nerves kicked back to life. I returned to the living room pinching my thumbs and forefingers together.

  Lena giggled at me. “Looks like Serena put a numbing agent into the paste to help Killian’s pain and make it easier for you to bandage. Feels weird, doesn’t it?” I nodded and pinched once more. “Okay, last round of gauze.” She handed me the roll, and I went to work covering the strange paste.

  Next, Lena measured out each tincture and set out four medicine cups for Killian to drink. “After this, you get some real food.” She turned toward me. “One teaspoon, once a day for the tinctures, except the green one is two teaspoons twice a day.”

  “I’m not hungry,” he protested.

  “You’re going to eat and I don’t wanna hear it. You need your strength to get well.” Lena handled that nicely and Killian remained quiet.

  Hank brought over bowls of tomato and vegetable soup, along with grilled cheese sandwiches. It smelled delicious and looked wonderful.

  As we ate and force-fed Killian, I asked Hank about his story. “So Hank, who are you and how did you get involved with these guys?”

  “The short answer…I’m your dad and they found me in a cabin in Union Pier, Michigan.”

  My eyebrows shot up in surprise. “Come on, tell the truth.” My brain was trying to do the math to determine if he was old enough to be my father or not.

  Killian sat up. “Cass, it’s true. Angeline tracked you to two locations. I sent a team to Winnetka, while I took a team to Michigan and found Hank. He’s the last survivor of the Great Battle that happened over twenty years ago. I believe he is your father.”

  I didn’t know what to say, so I said nothing.

  “Of course, you are probably wondering how I met your mom. She was a stunning woman and from the moment I met her, I couldn’t stop thinking about her.” He looked at my face and smiled. “You have her eyes.” He set his bowl on the table and continued. “Anyway, I met Clara at a bar a few months after the Great Battle. I had been laying low so that the demons would believe that no warriors survived the fight, but more importantly, I had Rya’s ring and was hiding it.

  “But I got lonely, living out in a cottage. Occasionally I chased away the blues at the local watering hole. Clara worked every Friday night waiting tables and was the kindest being I had ever met. She’d smile and chat with me, and I enjoyed her company. I started coming in on other days of the week just to see her.” He smiled at the memory. “One night, I walked her home and we kissed. Everything changed after that. We became more…intimate. And we were both happy. But she grew attached, and I feared for her safety. I knew I had to walk away from her or she’d be in danger.” He shook his head at the memory. “But I couldn’t tell her why I had to leave. So when that day came, I gave her Rya’s ring. I didn’t know for sure if she was pregnant…The possibility existed, but it was too early to tell and she never mentioned it. Still, I hoped the ring would help in some way, since I knew it had healing properties. Maybe help her through the pregnancy and delivery. Plus, by giving it to Clara, the ring would be buried within the human population and Rya would have no idea where to look for it. I mean, what would make her think that a human had her ring?”

  “Why did you never come back around, you know, to check on her? On us?” I wiped a tear out of my eye before he could see it.

  “I couldn’t. I needed to hide away. From the ring, from your mother. I needed to not be a beacon for Rya to find the woman I cared so deeply for.”

  “But what if Rya found the ring, wouldn’t my mom be in danger? Seems like a crummy plan.”

  “I don’t know why, but Rya cannot track the ring, especially in the Human Realm. If she could, she would already be in possession of it. And I guess I felt that if I could not be here to help Clara with the pregnancy, at least the ring could help in some way.”

  “Guess it didn’t help. She died in childbirth.”

  Hank’s face saddened upon hearing this. “I don’t know what to say. Maybe she took it off in the delivery room. Or maybe it had enough healing powers to save you but not your mom. I guess we’ll never know. I’m sorry you didn’t get a chance to meet her.” Another tear fell from my eye. “I’m sorry, Cassidy, sorry you grew up without either of your parents.”
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  I nodded but had no words. I did not know this man, and yet he was my dad. I needed a hug but I didn’t think one coming from him would be comforting.

  Killian interrupted the moment. “So what will you do now, Hank? Go back to Michigan or crossover?”

  Hank cleared the emotion from his throat and turned to Killian. “If the Clan can use me, I’ll help out.”

  “Good man. The Clan most definitely can use you.”

  After we finished eating and said our goodbyes, Lena went over the treatment schedule once again and reassured me that he would heal well. Lena planned to return in two weeks to check on us. Hopefully, by then, Killian would be ready to return to the colony and help rebuild it. Lena carefully hugged her brother, and Hank shook his uninjured hand, then I escorted them to the car. Lena drove while my dad waved from the passenger seat. My dad…so strange to say that.

  I entered the back door off the kitchen. The fragrance of Hank’s soup still lingered in the air. It had tasted great, and there was enough for leftovers. Under the kitchen sink, I stored old empty food containers. Grabbing the large cottage cheese tub, I began ladling in the soup. The soup pot would need to soak in soapy water so the oils from the soup could dissolve. I filled it with water and squirted in enough Dawn to make it extra bubbly.

  I’d started wiping the counters when I heard a sound from the living room. I froze to listen better. There it was again. Whistling. I had no idea Killian whistled; he had never whistled while I was around. I finished the counter and hung up my wash towel.

  Tired from the busy day, I wanted to pour myself a Diet Coke and sit with my feet up for a while. “Killian, do you want anything to drink?” I shouted from the kitchen.

  There was no reply. Maybe he didn’t hear me. I peeked out into the living room, there he sat on the sofa, softly whistling and staring off into space. The tune was familiar, but I couldn’t place it. I walked over to him and placed my hand on his shoulder. He turned slowly to face me and stopped whistling.

  “Killian, did you want anything to drink?”

  He smiled and said, “No, thank you.”