Falling for Kindred Claus: A Kindred Tales Novel (Brides of the Kindred) Read online

  “Warrior, I forgive you,” the Goddess said. “I know your reasons for rejecting my gift at first. This time only I will excuse it. But do not let it happen again.”

  “No, I swear it will not!” Asher exclaimed. “Oh Goddess, please—”

  But he broke off for he felt Lisa stirring in his arms.

  “Asher?” Her voice was thin and weak but it was there—she was there! She was alive, Asher realized. Really and truly alive!

  “Lisa!” He crushed her to him, breathing in her sweet, warm scent, holding her as though he could never get close enough.

  “Asher?” she said again, her voice somewhat muffled against his chest. “What…what are you doing here?”

  “I came for you.” He pulled back, looking into her eyes. “Gods, I’m so sorry I didn’t get here sooner, Lisa. I never should have let you go—I love you!”

  And then he pulled her close again and Lisa held on to him tightly. Both of their chewchies came scampering over and Asher felt the one that was his climb lightly up his shirt to perch on his head. Lisa’s made its way to her shoulder and suddenly the emotions he was feeling were doubled—no, quadrupled.

  Love and caring and relief and gratitude to the Goddess filled him until he felt like a cup filled to the brim, unable to hold any more. He swore to himself he wouldn’t take this second chance for granted—that he would bond Lisa to him and spend the rest of his life protecting and loving her and making her happy.

  “Thank you,” he whispered over and over again. “Thank you. Thank you, Goddess. Thank you.”

  Chapter Forty-nine

  “So you’re back—I knew you wouldn’t stay away for long. But I didn’t expect to see you in this part of the Mother Ship.” Liv frowned in a worried way as she finished examining the finger-shaped bruises that circled Lisa’s neck—which was still pretty sore. It felt like Cameron had tried to twist her head off—and had very nearly succeeded.

  Asher had brought her back up to the Mother Ship and straight to the Med Station, which was apparently the Kindred equivalent of the ER back home. He waited anxiously by the side of her bed as Liv examined her, a troubled expression in his green eyes.

  “Will she be all right?” he asked Liv for probably the fourth time since the exam had started five minutes ago. “Is there any permanent damage?”

  “I don’t think so, Commander Asher.” Liv cleared her throat. “Look, why don’t you go talk to Sylvan for a minute. He has some questions to ask you about what happened.”

  “If you’re certain it’s all right for me to leave her…” Asher still looked worried but just then Commander Sylvan himself came into the exam room and asked him to step outside.

  The minute the door closed, Liv turned back to Lisa.

  “Well, it looks like the two of you are back together?” she made it a question, raising one eyebrow at Lisa as she looked into her eyes with a light.

  “Yes,” Lisa said simply. “That is, I think so. He told me over and over how sorry he was for pushing me away. And for not getting to me sooner.”

  She shivered when she thought of what she’d been through. Of how Cameron had—but she didn’t want to think about it right now. If she did, she knew she would start shaking and crying and she didn’t want to go there. Right now she needed to feel strong—not weak.

  “I take it you were attacked?” Liv said quietly. “Do you need me to get a rape kit, Lisa?”

  Lisa realized this was what she’d been waiting to ask until she could send Asher away.

  “No.” She shook her head firmly. “No, Cameron was much more into using his fists than…anything else,” she finished and swallowed hard—which hurt her bruised throat.

  “Cameron?” Liv frowned and raised her eyebrows. “Who’s that?”

  “My asshole abusive ex who I was running away from,” Lisa explained. “He, uh, finally caught up with me tonight.”

  “But Asher got to you just in time?” Liv asked.

  “You know…I’m not sure he did.” Lisa frowned. “I remember Cameron choking me and then he lost his head…”

  “You mean he went crazy?” Liv asked.

  “No—I mean his head literally came off.” Lisa made a slicing gesture with one hand across her throat. “I think Asher cut it off with his laser knife thingy,” she added and shivered again. “He’s, uh, really handy with that thing. It’s how he saved me on Helios Beta too.”

  “Okay, sounds like they’re going to need a cleanup crew down on Earth then,” Liv said. She didn’t seem at all surprised that Asher had killed Lisa’s abusive husband. Maybe it wasn’t unusual for Kindred warriors to go a little berserk when they thought their woman was threatened. Hadn’t Asher said something about that when he talked about going into “Rage?” Lisa couldn’t remember.

  “Anyway,” she went on. “After Asher, uh, cut off Cameron’s head, I couldn’t breathe because his hands were still wrapped around my neck and everything went black. And then…” She swallowed again even though it hurt. “And then I saw this golden light in the darkness. It seemed like a long way off but I could hear…”

  She trailed off, shaking her head.

  “Hear what?” Liv asked gently, squeezing her hand.

  “I could hear my Dad calling me,” Lisa whispered, looking up at her friend. “But, Liv—he’s been dead for years! I could hear him though—faint but very clear, calling my name. So I started to walk towards him—towards the light.”

  “Oh my God!” Liv whispered. “Lisa, that almost sounds like you were, you know…”

  “Dead? Yeah, I think I was for a minute.” Lisa nodded, feeling strangely calm about the whole thing—though she was sure she would probably be upset later. “Anyway, I was halfway down the long dark tunnel thingy—halfway to the light—when this warm, female voice said to me, “Not yet, daughter.” And then I found myself flying backwards down the tunnel again.”

  “The Goddess!” Liv said excitedly. “You were talking to the Goddess—or she was talking to you.”

  Lisa frowned. “You mean the Kindred Goddess? Is she a, uh, real thing?”

  “She’s real all right,” Liv said confidently. “It sounds like she’s the one that sent you back.”

  “Well, someone certainly did.” Lisa shook her head. “The next thing I knew, I was floating above myself and looking down on my own body. Asher was holding me and rocking me and his eyes…” She bit her lip. “His eyes were filled with tears. I could feel his grief—it was so strong it was coming off him in waves and I could feel it all around me.”

  “And then what?” Liv whispered. She had settled down on the side of Lisa’s bed and was gripping her hand tightly. “What happened next?”

  “Somehow I was rushing down, into my own body like I was an iron filing being pulled by a magnet,” Lisa said. When I landed, it was like falling backwards onto a mattress. Just thump—you know?”

  “No, I don’t know and I’m glad I don’t!” Liv exclaimed. “But that’s amazing.”

  “I’m sure I’ll think so too, tomorrow,” Lisa said tiredly. “Right now I just feel exhausted. Though of course I’m glad to be home—er, back in my body, anyway. I don’t know where to call ‘home’ now.”

  “You’re going to call the Mother Ship home,” Liv said firmly. “You and Asher are going to settle down and start making babies like the rest of us, I bet. And if you don’t want to make babies, well, that’s okay too. As long as you’ll hang out with us and join our little group.”

  “I’d like that.” Lisa smiled at her shyly. “If that’s what Asher wants.”

  “Honey, he almost lost you,” Liv said. “At this point, he’s going to want whatever you want. You’d best take advantage of it.”

  “All I want right now is to sleep for about ten hours straight,” Lisa said. “And I’m sure you want to get back to your family too. It’s…” She looked at the chronometer on the wall, “it’s almost three in the morning. And you’ve got young kids so you’re going to be up early.”