[The Watchers 20.0] Dominion - Enduring

by SJ West

  The door to the bedroom opens, and Malcolm strides in with Lucifer by his side.

  “I heard we had some visitors,” Malcolm says cheerfully as he walks directly up to Lilly, lifting her up in his arms and twirling her around like a child would a doll.

  Lilly giggles and hugs Malcolm around the neck.

  There was a time when I might feel jealous watching Malcolm with Lilly, but not now. All I feel is happiness for my husband as he’s reunited with one of his best friends and the woman who helped show him how to find his true self again.

  “Like we wouldn’t want to meet your children,” Lilly admonishes as Malcolm places her back on her feet. “We had to come see the miracle babies. Tara is probably having a fit in Heaven right now because we had to leave her behind.”

  Malcolm turns to Caylin and gives her a hug. “I sort of thought you would have come down with Aiden when he was here.”

  Caylin smiles. “That’s what Anna said. Like I told her, I wanted him to have all the time he needed to bond with Liam. You know how devastated he was when he thought Andel died that day in the Guf. I can’t tell you how overcome with emotion he became when God told him the truth. I just wanted him to concentrate on Liam while he was here and have some time to cope with the fact that Andel is still alive through him.”

  I see Lucifer walk over to my mother, who is still holding Liam. He gives her a kiss on the cheek and places an arm around her shoulders as they both gaze down at my son.

  “He’s perfection,” my mother whispers to him.

  “That he is,” my dad agrees, smiling faintly.

  “Malcolm,” I say, unable to hold my tongue any longer, “since you knew we had guests, I assume you saw Jess before you came up here.”

  “Yes,” he says, coming to stand by my side. “She told us she had to go see Brutus about something but didn’t say what exactly. She just told us that you would fill us in on the details.”

  I quickly explain what we learned about the rattle and the reason Jess was going over to Brutus’ house at such a late hour.

  If one person could mirror the light of the sun on his face, Malcolm did in that moment. He quickly pulled me into his arms and held me tightly to him.

  “I told you my father would have a solution,” Malcolm whispers to me.

  “I know,” I say, feeling a pang of guilt for doubting his words. “I just hope He has a plan to handle Helena too.”

  “I’m sure He does.” Malcolm kisses me softly on the side of my neck before letting me go. “We just have to have a little faith in Him.”

  I nod, knowing he’s right.

  “How are things in Stratus?” I ask, wanting to know the answer to my question but at the same time dreading to hear it. “Were the War Angels able to help get things under control?”

  “Yes,” Malcolm says before letting me go, “but there were still a lot of civilian casualties. The War Angels are still there trying to help the wounded and taking care of the dead.”

  “I’m surprised Lorcan is allowing them to stay,” I say, wondering why the Emperor of Stratus isn’t pitching a fit over my men cleaning up the mess Helena has caused in his city.

  “Kyna’s father pretty much told him to get the hell out of the way so they can help people,” Malcolm tells me, sounding amused.

  I’ve only met Kyna’s biological father once. His name is Barclay Stewart, general of the Stratus Imperial Army. Apparently, Kyna’s mother had an affair with the Stratus general when she was younger. No one talked about her infidelity openly, and Kyna’s mother never confirmed the rumor about her alleged affair with the handsome general. But considering the striking resemblance between Kyna and Barclay (most notably their red hair and green eyes), everyone in Stratus assumed the affair occurred. After Kyna left Stratus and married Brutus, she confided to me that she began corresponding with her real father on a regular basis. Now that she is no longer under Lorcan’s tyrannical hold, she’s free to acknowledge Barclay as her kin.

  “So Barclay knows it was actually the rebellion angels who attacked Stratus and not our War Angels,” I say.

  “Yes. He knows that now, and he’s offered to come to Mars tomorrow to testify on your behalf,” Malcolm tells me. “If he does that, we might have a chance of convincing the world that you also had nothing to do with the bombing in Virga. Barclay’s an impartial witness. We have no direct ties to him, so what he tells the others should be believed.”

  “Do you think Lorcan will even allow him to testify?” I have to ask.

  “He isn’t going to tell Lorcan what his plans are. He’s just going to show up and do it.”

  “That’s probably the smart way to go,” I agree. “The less Lorcan knows, the better.”

  “Exactly,” Malcolm says.

  We hear a gurgle come from the bed. Liana is waving her arms around like she doesn’t want to be left out of the gathering. Malcolm leans down and picks her up, gingerly cradling her in his arms. For the first time, I don’t envy how quiet she is with him.

  I know I’ll be able to hold my little girl soon and build a relationship with her that will last a lifetime and beyond.

  Our Heavenly guests stay with us for a little while longer, but eventually they have to leave. I hate to see them go, but I know Malcolm is right when he tells them I need to get a good night’s rest. The gathering of the royals at the Mars pavilion the next day will be stressful, to say the least. I’m not totally convinced I will be able to sleep. To help me relax, Malcolm goes down to the kitchen and brings me back a cup of warm milk. I know he means well with his thoughtfulness, but the action makes me think of Cade. He’s the one who always brought me warm milk at night, but now he’s being forced to stay with Helena because of their bargain.

  Or is he?

  When we last saw Cade before Lucifer attacked Helena at the party, he seemed happy. For me, finding joy around Helena seems like an impossibility, but I’m not her soul mate either.

  After Malcolm hands me my cup of milk, he summarily lifts the covers off my body and begins to pull up my nightgown.

  “Uh, what are you doing?” I ask him, finding his actions odd since the children are in the bed too.

  “Desmond gave me that miracle lotion to put on your belly,” he explains, pulling out a small black plastic vial from the front pocket of his pants. “I know you’ve been wanting to use it.”

  “I could kiss you right now,” I say, grinning from ear to ear.

  Malcolm leans down until our noses are almost touching. “And what exactly is stopping you?”

  After I kiss my husband for his consideration, he spreads a liberal amount of the lotion onto my still-swollen belly.

  “How long will it take to work?” I ask eagerly.

  “He said you should notice a significant difference by morning.” Malcolm sets the now half-empty bottle on my nightstand.

  As I continue to sip my milk, I look down at the babies lying on the bed. I long for the moment when I can hold Liana and show her just how much her mommy loves her.

  “Do you think it will take Brutus very long to make the bracelet for Liana?” I ask.

  “I don’t think Brutus will sleep until after it’s finished. In fact, I wager it will be complete before we leave for Mars tomorrow. I told Jess to bring it back as soon as it’s made and to wake us up if she has to.”

  “Good,” I say, feeling better knowing we’ll get the bracelet as soon as it’s available.

  The milk seems to do the trick and relaxes me enough to yawn.

  Malcolm takes the empty cup out of my hands and tucks me underneath the covers. After kissing me quickly on the lips, he says, “Go to sleep, my love. Get some rest.”

  As soon as I close my eyes, I drift off to the land of my own dreams. The next thing I know, Malcolm is gently shaking me awake.

  “Anna, wake up. Jess is back.”

  I instantly sit up, which turns out to have been a very bad idea. I end up bumping heads with Malcolm, causing us both to say, “Ouch!”


  “Good grief, woman,” Malcolm complains, but I hear a touch of laughter in his voice over the incident. “I knew you had a hard head, but I didn’t realize it was lethal.”

  As I’m rubbing the soreness from my forehead, I look around and see Jess standing a couple of feet away.

  “Don’t just stand there,” I whisper urgently, not wanting to wake the babies. “Put it on her!”

  Malcolm shifts down some to give Jess enough room to walk over to my side and lean over to put the little silver bracelet on Liana’s right wrist. The bracelet isn’t anything special. It’s a simple thick band of pounded metal.

  “Brutus asked me to tell you this bracelet is only temporary. He knew you wanted it as soon as possible, and something plain was the easiest thing to do. He also told me to tell you that he can make you anything you want as she grows. He can melt down the metal at any time and make her new pieces of jewelry as she gets older.”

  Once Jess has the bracelet on Liana’s wrist, I feel hesitant all of a sudden.

  What if it doesn’t work? What if she wakes up and begins to cry again?

  I’m not sure my heart can take having my hopes and dreams dashed with such finality. This is my last chance at finding a solution to the problem Helena created.

  “Pick her up, Anna,” Malcolm encourages me. When I look up at him, all I see is his confidence in our plan. “It’ll work, my love. I know it will.”

  I take a deep breath, steeling myself against the possibility of Liana rejecting me yet again. I slide my hands underneath her and cautiously lift her into my arms. As I watch her face for any reaction, I see her little eyelids flutter open. She looks at me and proceeds to yawn. Her eyelids close again, and she falls back to sleep.

  My eyes fill with tears as my dam of caution breaks down and a flood of relief courses through my body.

  My daughter didn’t reject me. She didn’t cry or fuss. She simply trusted me enough to fall back to sleep in my arms, allowing me to hold her during her slumber.

  “I don’t think I can let her go,” I say tearfully as I look up at Jess and Malcolm.

  “Then don’t,” Malcolm tells me. “We have a few hours before we need to go to Mars and deal with the mess Helena has caused. Just enjoy the moment, my love. Enjoy your happiness.”

  I bend down and kiss Liana on the forehead. “I love you very much,” I whisper to her. “Mommy won’t let Helena take our home away. I refuse to let her win.”

  I’m not sure how I’ll keep my promise to Liana, but I know I’ll do everything within my power to make it come true.

  Chapter 16

  I end up falling asleep with Liana still cradled in my arms. When I finally do wake up again, I find my daughter staring at me as if she’s seeing me for the first time in her life. She reaches out with the arm that has the bracelet on it and presses her little open hand against my cheek. We stare into each other’s eyes for a long time, simply getting to know one another in that moment. I watch in wonder as her little mouth twitches into a small smile.

  “I wish I could tell you just how much that little smile means to me,” I whisper to her. “One day, when you’re a little older, I’ll tell you about this moment and how happy you made me.”

  I feel Malcolm’s weight make the bed dip slightly behind me. He reaches over and tickles Liana underneath her chin with his index finger, causing her to let out something like a laugh.

  “I don’t want to move,” I tell him, completely captivated by my daughter. “I just want to stay in bed all day and cuddle our babies.”

  I hear Malcolm sigh, and I know he wishes we could do just that too.

  I force myself to sit up to look at him. “How much time do I have before we need to leave?”

  “Not long enough,” he answers with a wan smile. “A couple of hours. You have plenty of time to get ready. Are you hungry? Would you like to eat something before we go?”

  I shake my head. “I don’t think that would be wise. I would hate to lose whatever is in my stomach if I get too nervous.”

  “I’ll be there with you,” Malcolm says, sliding his hand across the mattress to cover mine. “We’ll make it through this together. Hopefully, with Barclay there to back us up, we’ll be able to convince the others that you had nothing to do with the attacks on Virga and Stratus.”

  “I hope so,” I say, not exactly feeling confident the word of the commander of the Stratus Imperial Army will be enough to exonerate me in the eyes of the world.

  “I’ve prepared you a bath,” Malcolm tells me. “Why don’t you have a good soak before we have to start the day? I’ll take care of the babies, so take your time in there.”

  I lean over and reward my husband with a kiss for his kindheartedness.

  It’s not until I begin to undress in the bathroom that I remember Malcolm said I should be able to see a difference in my figure from Desmond’s miracle cream.

  When I toss my nightgown to the floor and look down at myself, I can’t help but exclaim, “Oh my God!”

  Malcolm rushes into the room, looking ready to defeat whatever foe has caused me to call out his father’s name.

  I turn to him in profile and say, “Look at me! My stomach is almost back to normal. That cream does work miracles!”

  Malcolm finds amusement in my excitement. “If bad things come in threes, do you think that means good things come in threes too? If it does, I think that bodes well for the meeting on Mars today.”

  “From your lips to God’s ears, I hope,” I tell him.

  I have to admit that I do feel a bit more confident now about attending the meeting with the other royals. Surely there has to be a way to make them listen to reason, even if the supposed facts seem stacked against me.

  I take Malcolm’s advice and allow myself to soak in the tub for a good half hour. I lie in the warm bubble-filled water, listening to Malcolm sing to the babies and tell them the story of how we met. Of course, he doesn’t tell them how stubborn he was in refusing to admit that I was his soul mate. Oh no. He tells them that I was the one who played hard to get, but that he won me over with his irresistible charms.

  “You may have been irresistible, but you were far from charming!” I call out to him from the tub.

  “Anna, Anna, Anna,” he says to me from the bedroom, as if he’s disappointed in my rebuke, “I believe I’m the one telling this story, not you, my love.”

  “Well, at least tell a correct version of it!” I demand jokingly, unable to prevent myself from smiling.

  “I’m telling it as I remember it,” I hear him defend himself as his voice gets closer to the bathroom. I watch as he leans a shoulder against the doorway, crosses his arms in front of his chest, and gazes at me with a playful twinkle in his eyes. “And I remember a certain someone unable to stop throwing herself at me, so, obviously, you found me irresistibly charming.”

  I squint at him, saying, “Then you’re remembering it incorrectly. From what I recall, you were a stubborn brute who refused to admit he couldn’t live without me.”

  “I’ll have you know that I remember everything in exact detail,” he says, leering at me lasciviously as I lounge in the water. “I distinctly remember you were unable to keep your hands off of me.”

  “Well, look at you,” I reply, eyeing him from the tip of his shoes to his long dark hair before meeting his eyes again. “How was I supposed to keep myself from wanting you?”

  Malcolm pushes himself off the doorframe. “If we had more time, I would show you just how much I want you right now.”

  I smile. “Oh, I can see just how much you want me,” I tell him, allowing my gaze to drop just below his waist. “Will you need to take a cold shower before we meet with Helena on Mars?”

  “No,” Malcolm says derisively as the passion dies in his eyes, “just the mention of her name is enough to do the trick. Besides, it’s time you got ready. We don’t want to be late. If we are, I’m sure she’ll find some way to use that against you.”

  “Y
ou’re probably right,” I agree. When I stand in the tub, a blanket of bubbles covers my body, slowly sliding down my curves as they make their way back into the water.

  “Really, Anna?” Malcolm moans as the heat of desire warms his expression again. “You couldn’t wait a few seconds more for me to turn around and leave before tempting me?”

  I shrug and give him a playful grin. “As you said, we don’t have time for that right now.”

  Malcolm turns his head to look back into the bedroom toward the bed.

  “The twins have fallen back to sleep,” he informs me, taking a large enough step into the bathroom to close the door behind him. “I think we can find a little time.”

  I shake my head at Malcolm, but I also can’t help but smile at him.

  “Don’t ever stop wanting me,” I tell him. “I’m not sure my heart or my body could take that.”

  “You may have many things to fear in this world, but my desire for you should never be one of them,” he declares as he walks over to me. In one swift motion, he wraps an arm around my waist and lifts me out of the tub.

  “I’m getting you all wet,” I tell him as our bodies press together. “You’ll have to change your clothes again.”

  “I have plenty of clothes,” he murmurs, lowering his head to kiss the side of my neck while he wedges his right hand between us to find the sensitive center that’s throbbing for his attention. “But I only have one wife.”

  I wrap my arms around Malcolm’s shoulders as he uses his mouth and fingers to give me pleasure.

  “Malcolm,” I moan, tilting my head slightly to give his lips better access to the tender flesh his lips are teasing, “this isn’t our dream world. I don’t think I’m supposed to make love so soon after giving birth.”

  “I know,” he whispers. “That doesn’t mean I can’t bring your body pleasure. As you mentioned, I’ll have to change my clothes anyway. I’ll just take a quick cold shower before I do.”

  “I would argue,” I say as I take an unsteady breath and close my eyes, selfishly enjoying the play of Malcolm’s fingers against me, “but I’m afraid I’m in no position to do that right now.”