Restitution (Haunted Series Book 17)

by Alexie Aaron

  “All I want is you,” Mia said honestly.

  Ted handed the diary to Cid. “Read it, and if there is anything Mia should know, tell her. Right now, gentlemen, I would like the house and my wife to myself. So please excuse us.”

  Cid and Murphy left. Ted got on his knees in front of Mia. “There is no deeper sorrow, yet you shared it with me. I don’t want an ingénue. I want you. The woman who took this virgin and showed him how to make love to her... To let me find my own way and to appreciate what joy I can give you. Sure, I would have liked to be the one who rescued you in Chicago, but fate had other ideas. Orion feels that we fallible types are the best people to raise Brian. He must see something worthwhile in us. Let’s go upstairs and gently find each other. If you don’t want to make love to me, that’s fine. I’ll just hold you. But I want to hold you, Mia. Show you how much I love you. And yes, make you forget everyone else.”

  Mia laughed. “That’s going to take some doing, Martin.”

  Ted scooped her up and charged up the stairs. He tossed her on the bed.

  “I thought you were going to be gentle?” Mia asked, her eyebrow raised.

  “I lied. You’re going to walk funny for a week, Cooper, after I’m done with you.”

  Mia patted the bed and smiled. “Well, you better get started then…”

  Neal

  Cid was tired. He would leave the unpacking for later. Mia and Ted would pick up Maggie tomorrow. He didn’t even go into the office. He climbed the stairs and unlocked his room. The warm air wrapped around him, drawing him inside. He walked over and pulled a beer out of the refrigerator before he sat down and opened Neal Hanson’s diary.

  The doctor thought that I could make use of this diary. He said to write my anger out. There are neither enough pages nor ink that will ease this hate from my very cells. I have to go home tomorrow. I dread seeing my mother cripple herself with my care. I’ve talked to my father about living in the old house in the orchard. He didn’t say no. He said he would think it over.

  My father said he looked at the orchard house. He and Chuck feel like they can make it work for me. He said I would have to have live-in care because it’s too remote to be up there in my condition by myself.

  Fly in the ointment, there is a bum living up there. Chuck is supposed to relocate him. I’m still at home. My mother cries a lot.

  The place has been ready for over a week, but still my father delays. I’m angry and hurt. I called him a liar, and he looked as if he would smack me, but instead he left the room in tears.

  My father came home today. He said he found a housekeeper. I said, I didn’t want no old woman caring for me. He had a twinkle in his eye. He said her name was Wilhelmina, and I would be doing her a favor by taking her on. She was a picker who fell from one of the apple trees and broke her arm. Chuck says she’s a hard worker and speaks real nice.

  Wilhelmina is a tiny, feisty, good-looking young woman. She has a large cast on her left arm but doesn’t shirk any of her duties. When I try to help her out, she says no. I yell at her, and she says no. I yell some more, and she says fine. I fuck it up, and she fixes it without a word.

  We have ghosts in the farmhouse. I sent Will to the library for some books.

  Disaster strikes. I went to church with parents. I was approached by an old woman. She said that someone had to die for me to have that old farmhouse. I was so upset, I stumbled off the path. The ground was uneven, and I fell. I’m worse off than before. I now have to use a bedpan and have my ass wiped for me. Will didn’t treat me any different than before. She suffers my tantrums. Sometimes I catch her running outside. I asked her if she was smoking out there. She lifted an eyebrow and said, she didn’t know she could.

  Will has started to massage my legs twice a day. I cursed at her the first few times, and then my legs seemed to respond to her treatments. We’ve been playing checkers. I like to see the fire in Will’s eyes when I beat her and take her hard-earned wages. I should be kinder. She doesn’t deserve the crap that I give her.

  Last night we lost the electric, and Will moved me into the kitchen where there was a wood fire blazing. We heard a stomping upstairs. Will poured salt around my bed. I asked her why, and she said she’d read that it kept ghosts from touching you. She then grabbed Grandma’s old presser and headed upstairs. There was a commotion. Will was asking (what she told me later was) a mean ghost to leave. It wouldn’t leave, but it did calm down. Will says I’m never to go upstairs by myself. I couldn’t get to the stairs, not even when I thought she was in danger. She slept in my bed to keep me warm. I can’t tell you the wonderful feeling to hear her little snores when I wake in the middle of the night.

  Will told me she loved me. My heart melted. Is there a future for us?

  My bed is back in the parlor, but Will still sleeps with me. I’ve taken to her. I like to rile her up from time to time, but the little tiger cat has found a special place in my heart. I asked my father if I could marry her. He said, “Son, that’s up to her, but I want you to consider, what do you have to offer her? You can’t give her a child or take care of her womanly needs.” I told him that I understood I was being selfish.

  I write this quick as Will has only just stepped out for some air. I asked the nurse if I was able to have relations with my wife. She asked if I had movement down there, and I have, especially when Will is around. The nurse said she was going to talk to Will and leave some information for us to read.

  Last night we made love. Will let me touch her, and she touched me. When I was hard, she got on top of me when I begged her. She thought she was going to hurt me. I can still see her bare body and beautiful face above me. It was successful.

  It’s been a few months, and Will is throwing up in the morning. I suspect I have planted a baby inside of her. My father will have his heir. He will be so proud.

  Will came home with the news. We are having a baby! She is so happy. I told her that I loved her, and she said, “I know.”

  That was the last entry. Cid found within the diary a picture of Mia that someone had taken when she wasn’t looking. She was a frail, thin little thing. Cid thought about her and how she had loved a man who himself knew he was not worthy. Cid cried for their child. When he was through, he worked his way back and took notice of two entries:

  Fly in the ointment, there is a bum living up there. Chuck is supposed to relocate him.

  I was approached by an old woman. She said that someone had to die for me to have that old farmhouse.

  Could this explain the vengeful ghost? He wondered if Mia would be able to identify the ghost if Cid was to get a picture of the bum, but he didn’t want to put her through any more strife. He would talk to Murphy about it in the morning.

  Chapter Twelve

  The morning light pushed through the shear curtains. Ted turned over and looked upon the face of his sleeping wife. Mike’s hateful words crept into his mind, “Imagine my surprise when you couldn’t fuck her into submission?” Is that what he had done last night? She had done things with him she had never experienced before. Ted felt guilty for pressing her. The night was so erotic, and they totally enjoyed each other. He lay back and thought about his motivation.

  Mia moved, turned, and lay her head on his chest as she curled up into him. She was so strong, and yet so vulnerable. Her young life should have made her hard and mean, but instead, she was kind and happy. She had accepted her fate and made the best of things. The only thing she fought for was their marriage. She fought for him and Brian. He thought about her crawling up the stairs, broken, to save Neal. That was Mia in a nutshell. She was too weak and inexperienced to take on that brutal entity and paid the price for it, but she fought for love.

  Mia moved again and yawned. She sat up and looked down at Ted and smiled. “Good morning, Teddy Bear,” she said and yawned.

  Ted looked at her matted hair and sleepy face and thought she was the most beautiful woman there ever was.

  “What are you staring at?” Her hand wen
t to her neck.

  “What’s the matter?” he asked.

  “I don’t know how or why it happened, but I’ve got a new mark,” Mia said quietly.

  “I don’t see anything,” Ted said, sitting up.

  Mia got up and walked over to the wall mirror and raised her hair. She frowned and then tapped her neck, and her face clouded more. She walked back, sat down, and lifted her hair to show Ted. There, resting just under her hairline on her right side, was a small, gold eternity symbol with a silver S intertwined in it.

  “It’s not ugly. It’s kind of nice,” Ted said, letting her hair drop. He pulled her to him. “I expect it’s a tattoo like units in the army get.”

  “I didn’t agree to it, and I’m tired of people using my body as a billboard,” Mia said. She tapped her neck, and it disappeared. “I feel like a piece of property.”

  “You didn’t enslave yourself to Sariel, you agreed to be his shield maiden. I expect that’s more to raise Angelo’s ire than anything else. Technically, I own you.”

  Mia smiled.

  He was surprised. This kind of statement would normally be rewarded with a sharp word or a punch in the arm. Instead she smiled. “Mia, I didn’t mean it.”

  “I know, but I like the idea though. The people and entities we deal with are old world. Santos’s advice was spot on. In their eyes, I am yours, Ted. In my eyes, you’re mine.”

  “Last night…”

  Mia blushed. She put her finger to Ted’s mouth. “Last night was special. Any chance you can keep it to yourself?”

  He nodded.

  “Ted, I need to make restitution.”

  “To the demons?”

  “Yes. I can’t have this darkness hanging over our heads and our marriage. I need to find out where I stand and, hopefully, get them to release Lobo, Billy and Yann’s souls. I don’t know what I can do about Neal. I think I’ll let that lie. Revenge isn’t the right way of handling things, I know, but I was hurting and too immature to know what I should have done. I’m going to have to consult with Father Santos and Wyatt Wayne. I’d like to do this before Brian is brought back.”

  “I’ll go with you.”

  Mia’s face softened.

  “Don’t be surprised, Mia. I’m your husband, and I’m your friend. I may not have feathers or be able to walk through time, but I am very resourceful.”

  “I know you are. Do you know the Council of Women says you are the most valuable ally that I have?”

  “Me?”

  “Yes, my grandmother said for me to listen to you and let you help me to be better at what I do.”

  Ted smiled. “I am good.”

  “You’re the best. I mean that,” Mia said, staring into his eyes.

  “Thank you for loving me. Thank you for forgiving me,” Ted said, pulling her to him.

  “It’s me who should be thanking you, Teddy Bear,” Mia said. She kissed him gently as if asking permission.

  He kissed her back and then let love and lust take over.

  ~

  Mia and Ted stood at the door of the Wayne mansion. She had called ahead and received permission to call on Wyatt. Mia explained to Ted that Wyatt was more than what he would like the world to know.

  “He was one of the first to fall,” she said. “He is probably the most dangerous demon we’ll ever meet. For some reason, he likes me.”

  “Everyone likes you, Mia,” Ted said.

  “Not everyone, but I can live with that,” she said, squeezing his hand.

  The door was opened by the butler, and he led them to the library. “Mr. Wayne will be in shortly. I have taken the liberty of setting out coffee.”

  “Thank you, sir,” Mia said.

  The butler blushed. “I’m Nordin, ma’am.”

  “Thank you, Nordin,” she said.

  Ted looked around the room while Mia fixed his coffee. She liked doing this for Ted. She had started when they were doing investigations, and it became a way of her sending him a silent, “I love you.”

  Wyatt walked in to see the tall human male looking at a volume of folklore. “That’s a good entry-level book to understanding the little people. Mia, I do believe I saw an early relative of yours in there,” he teased.

  Mia shook her finger at him. “Wyatt, this is my husband Theodore Martin.”

  Wyatt nodded to Ted. Ted did the same before he sat down.

  “Wyatt, can I pour you a cup?”

  “That would be most gracious, Mia. Milk and three sugars, please.”

  Ted looked at the elderly man. Mia warned him that it was just a ‘meat suit’ the demon wore. She suspected the demon himself was too harsh for them to comfortably see.

  Mia walked over to his chair and handed him the coffee.

  Ted was amazed at the ease with which Mia dealt with the demon. She’d only known him since the Old House investigation, yet they had an air of familiarity as if they were family.

  “I visited with a friend of yours, Mia. He is well and thought mistakenly that I was your father.”

  “I don’t know what it is with Sticks. He asked the same of Murphy and Angelo Michaels. My father is an interesting person; I should have him stop by if he is in New Orleans.”

  “I think the young Sticks is a little daft, but they all are at that age,” Wyatt said. “Now what brings you here today?”

  “A memory vault has opened up in my head. Upon reliving the memories, I believe I owe restitution. I would like your help in doing so.”

  “A memory vault?”

  “I had a rough five years. I sealed them away and forgot about them until the seal cracked.”

  “Come, Mia, let me read you.”

  Ted gripped the arms of the chair. Mia had warned him this would happen and that he wasn’t to interfere, no matter what.

  Mia took off her gloves and handed them to Ted before she crossed the room. She held her hands out to the seated demon. He grasped them in his strong gnarled hands.

  Wyatt released her, stood up, and quickly caught her falling form. He carried her to Ted. “I’m sorry, she was so weak to begin with. Let her rest while I think.”

  Ted cradled Mia to him.

  “Ted, how do you feel about your wife being tied to an archangel?”

  “I try to support her. Honestly, it worries me.”

  “It should, but this Sariel seems to be a decent one. Now if it were Gabriel or Raphael, I would instruct you to take her away. Mia is a strange creature. So forgiving. She fought an elemental dragon to free you, sir. She loves you more than is healthy. You need to mark her.”

  “I beg your pardon.”

  “Just as Sariel has marked her. He has chosen the right side to say that Mia is his shield maiden. You need to mark her left side to say that Mia is your mate. We can’t proceed with restitution until she is protected. She has had two demons claim her without her understanding that this has happened. Her restitution could involve binding her to the demons that she stole from unless we stop this with your claim.”

  “I understand. I will do so under the condition that I am marked also as hers.”

  Wyatt looked at the man with newfound respect. “I suppose you want to ask her first?”

  “Wyatt, if you’ve read her mind, then you know how royally I have fucked up my marriage. What do you think?”

  Wyatt nodded. He waved his hand, and Mia woke up.

  “Whoa, sorry about that,” Mia said. She smiled up at Ted. “Did I miss anything?”

  “Yes, Minnie Mouse. Wyatt and I were just getting to know each other,” Ted said.

  Mia got on her feet and returned to her own chair.

  “Mia,” Wyatt started, “I fear that I will need to research this situation you got yourself into. In real time, it was a few years ago, but as you know, demons live their own timeline."

  “I understand,” she said.

  “I’m going to insist on you taking care of something in the meantime. One, you have to camouflage Sariel’s mark. Two, you have to carry your husba
nd’s mark permanently on your body. If you protest, I can’t help you. These demons are old world. In their eyes, you are Ted’s property.”

  “Where?” she asked.

  “Anywhere you would be comfortable displaying it, as long as it is on the left side of your body.”

  Mia turned to Ted. “Do you have a mark in mind, husband?”

  “Something mutual. I’ll carry the same mark, Mia.”

  Her face softened. “Then I’ll leave it to you.”

  “My shoulder.”

  “My face,” Mia said.

  “No! I can’t have you mar yourself for me, Mia,” Ted said, cupping her face in his hands. He looked at her wrist, and the feathers moved there.

  Mia pulled off her shirt and pushed her bra over. “Here, over my heart,” she insisted. “It’s on the left side of my chest.”

  “Wyatt, there is a Native American symbol for eternal love. It is supposed to represent two hummingbirds. They are the fiercest protectors of their mates,” Ted told him.

  The demon smiled. “I know it. But it will only adhere if your love to each other is true,” he warned. “Mia, ready yourself. Ted…”

  Ted took off his shirt and pulled Mia onto his lap. He held on to her tightly with his right arm. He had a feeling hers was going to hurt more than his.

  Wyatt walked up to the couple. He realized at that moment that he, a fallen angel, was being trusted by these humans. It was an honor. He took his hand and gently cradled Mia’s left breast while holding on to Ted’s shoulder with the other. He called for the spirit of love to bind these two lovers, to make them one, forever.

  Mia gasped, as it felt like a hundred needles pressing into her chest. Instead of screaming, she said, “I love you, Ted.”