Connor’s phone rang and he looked at the screen, seeing that it was their mother.
“Hey, Ma,” he said.
“Connor, how are you doing? I missed your call earlier.”
“I’m doing well enough,” he said, clearing his throat. “I was in the neighborhood and…”
“Well, you should have just stopped by. I was at my afternoon book club, you know the one I go to, and I would have come home and seen you.”
“I’ll stop by next time.”
“Look, Connor, I know the last month has been hard, but I’m really proud of you. And you don’t need to say nothing, I know how you get embarrassed when I start complimenting you. But what you did was hard, and yes, you caused a lot of trouble, that’s for sure, but that’s okay. I think everything’s going to work out better now. People fall and the good ones get up.”
“It’s hard to believe that sometimes.” Connor bent forward and pressed the spacebar on his laptop to stop the movie he’d been watching.
“Your father would be proud of you; I’m sure Lucian would be proud of you as well. He’s probably watching down on you right now, so happy to see that you are doing better.”
“It’s weird, you know,” Connor said, suddenly looking around the room and right through Lucian, who now stood before his older brother, still holding Danira’s hand.
“What’s weird?”
“Being in his old apartment. It’s been freshly painted and they put new carpet down, but sometimes I still feel like he’s here. I don’t know. I don’t think he’s haunting the place or nothing, I just feel like he’s here. I wish we had kept some of his furniture too. That would have been smart.”
“You need some furniture? I’m sure I can ask the church ladies if they have anything extra. Everyone has a garage full of things they don’t need.”
“Nah, I’ll be fine, Ma. I need to do this on my own.”
“You don’t have to treat yourself like that,” she said. “We all make mistakes, and sometimes it feels right to just wallow in your mistake, and sometimes that’s fine, but you still have a support system. I don’t want you to forget that. And maybe you and Sam will find a way to make it through this. I don’t know.”
“It doesn’t feel like it,” said Connor.
“You broke her heart, Connor, what did you expect? And I’m not saying that in a malicious way, more of a point of the matter sort of way. I know she still loves you, and Jen does too. This was probably just too much. And I don’t know what to tell you about that, how to deal with it. That’s not really my realm of expertise. We can get you help on that too.”
“I’ll be fine.”
“Are you hungry? I was warming up something here, a meatloaf that I made the other night. I made way too much. I’m still used to cooking for three boys,” she said, referring to Lucian, his brother, and their late father.
“I just ate something. But tomorrow. Let’s have dinner tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow? Tomorrow it is then. I’ll put it in my planner. I was thinking of making a chowder anyway. Andrea at church gave me this good recipe. She claims it is an award winner, some recipe from a restaurant in Old Saybrook. Do you know where that is?”
“I don’t.”
“Connecticut. Or maybe she said it won an award in Portland. I can’t remember. Somewhere here in New England!”
“Good to know. I’ll be over for chowder then,” said Connor.
“Great, and pick up some fresh bread while you’re at it. You know the bakery I like. You know what? It doesn’t have to be fresh. They also have good day-old bread just as good as the fresh stuff. Cheaper too. Just bring some bread. Anyway, good night, Connor, I love you.”
“Good night, Ma, love ya too.”
Danira squeezed Lucian’s hand. “I can leave,” she said respectfully as Connor hung up the phone.
“No, you don’t have to leave. Let’s both leave.”
He pressed his thumb and his pinky finger together, Lucian and the fallen angel appearing in Old Death’s world, the two star-crossed lovers standing in front of the glimmering lake. The sun had already set, but the sky was still pink and blue, a few twinkling stars above them.
Lucian and Danira moved to a pair of chairs along the shoreline, a bottle of wine and two wine glasses appearing on the table between them.
He poured Danira a glass and handed it to her, pouring himself one as well.
The table disappeared and their chairs pressed closer together, the armrests melting away so they could sit next to one another. She draped her legs over Lucian’s, his arm going around her waist.
Lucian and Danira clinked their wine glasses together. They sipped from their glasses silently as they stared out at the rippling water, watching their crows chase after one another.
The end.
Back of the Book Content
Reader,
Not a lot to say this time, just an epic thank-you for finishing this one and leaving a review for it.
I hope this series hit home,
Please take a moment to review Death’s Mantle Book One if you haven’t already. That’s where the story starts, and it’s the first thing people see when they look at the books. If you are a fan of listening to books as well, the narration, performed by Andrea Parsneau, is something to behold. It moved me so much that I momentarily forgot that I’d written the book (dumb, I know).
It has since won an award.
So grab the audio if you’d like.
Thank you for the continued support, for reading my ramblings and reviewing my books.
Yours in sanity,
Harmon Cooper
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Other Books by Harmon Cooper
I have written over fify books. Here are some of the highlights!
https://geni.us/Way-of-the-Immortals
My first cultivation novel about a monk, a bird and a drifter from Massachusetts karmically fighting their way through a world based on Bhutanese, Mongolian and Tibetan landscapes and literature.
Hate your job. Win the lottery. Get a superpower. House of Dolls.
https://geni.us/HouseofDolls
My best-selling Superhero Harem Adventure about a sci-fi writer and the superpowered women who are trying to kill him. Fun content, adult read!
https://geni.us/CherryBlossomGirls1
A fantasy harem adventure inspired by Pokemon Go!, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, and the Persona family of video games. Check out this Amazon best seller!
https://geni.us/MonsterHuntNYC
What if Ready Player One was a multi-part epic? Gritty LitRPG action, gamer humor, fantastic fantasy worlds, and a killer MC.
(This one is related to Monster Hunt NYC)
https://geni.us/TheLoop
If you love dark fantasy, RPGs, Witcher, Punisher, or Mad Max, you'll love this powerful gamer trilogy about a man and his wolf companion.
https://geni.us/LastWarrior
Tokyo, Japan meets online fantasy gaming and South Park-styled humor. Yakuza, goblins, action, intrigue - add this book to your inventory list!
(This one is related to Monster Hunt NYC)
https://geni.us/FICK
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