Page 24 of January Blues
“Do you think he’ll want to meet me?”
“I know he will. Children are just as precious there as they are here. He likely knows about you and is just waiting for you to find him.”
“What makes you think that?”
I knew that what I was about to say would hurt him. I’d vowed since our bonding not to be a source of pain. Not telling the truth wasn’t an option. “He was probably part of the sealing of your powers.” Cody went to interrupt. “He’s also probably why they came out the first time you had contact with demon magic, too.”
That stalled him. He sat petting Hela for a while. “Do you think they made him seal that part of me away, but he put the seal in place with a way for me to find out, just in case I needed to protect myself?”
“Yes.” I said simply.
“Why do you think that?”
“Because that’s what I would do. If he was earth-side, he was likely contracted. Most likely to someone in your mother’s family, or someone close. Unless she was the target.”
“It would explain a lot. Thank you, Toth, for making this easier to deal with. I’d be lost without you. It would be like that January after they left.” I let him talk about his past, guilt filling me that I’d been about to push him back into that mindset. Fate had saved us both from something I would have regretted for the rest of my long life.
“Let’s go, then. Don’t forget to tell Damon where we’re going. I’d like to meet him officially soon.” I wasn’t lying, either. The affection Cody had for his friend didn’t threaten our bond. He was mine, and I was his. Until we found his father, Damon and his coven were all the family that he had. “Perhaps you should tell your coven, too. You don’t want them to hear it from the gossip.”
“Good idea. Thank you.” He took Hela back to the bed with him as he made his calls. I could hear what he was saying, but gave the illusion of privacy. Damon wanted to meet for dinner the next day, which was fine. I heard no judgment in his voice. If anything, he appeared to approve of our bonding, offering his congratulations.
“You seem happy, sweetness. That’s all I want for you. Good luck finding your dad!”
“I want that for you, too. Maybe there’s a guy just waiting for you to notice him around the corner.”
Damon’s scoff was loud, but he said goodbye with an “I love you.”
Cody’s coven leader, Poppy, was also happy for Cody, yet in a quieter, more reserved way. Like she was holding off judgment. “We wanted to say you showed signs of having demon magic during your testing. Oak has been checking the archives for days for records to explain it. I’m just glad you’re okay. Are you safe? Are you happy, Cody?”
His whispered, “I am,” hit me straight in the heart. I heard him tell her we were going to look for his dad and hang up.
“I’ve packed some things for you. We will need to stop by my place first. Are you ready to go?”
“Can’t wait!”
January 20th
Cody
Thedemonrealmwasamazing! We portaled in late afternoon, stopping at a hotel with our stuff and to have some lunch. Straight away, I was struck by how warm it was. It felt like a Mediterranean country in summertime, which was lovely after the cold January winds in Northarbor. The sky was red, otherwise I would have thought we had traveled to another country instead of another realm.
Just like in the human realm, there were tall buildings, roads, vehicles, everything I would expect, even the food was the same! Yet it was all powered by magic that was a low buzz through everything. It electrified the air. “You won’t need to feed often here, unless you use a lot of magic,” Toth informed me as he took me on a tour around his home and farm. Despite his job being finished for Austin, Basil had him locked him out of his castle still.
My mate owned a freaking castle!
“The air is soaked with ambient magic. Can you feel it?”
I nodded at him. It was easy to call magic to me here. It wanted to be one with me. “Does it always feel like this?”
“Like what?”
“Like it’s welcoming me home?” It was the only explanation I had for the way the magic was acting. It was almost as if it was sentient.
“Earthside, you have a goddess you worship, correct?” At my nod, he continued. “Demons don’t have a deity. Magic is the closest we have to that. It has a presence of its own. Perhaps not quite aware, but near to it. It plays favorites and incubi, like yourself, are ranked highly among the royals of our realm.”
“You have royalty here?”
“We do. There are two incubi princes that I can think of offhand. At least one hellhound shifter prince. There are the elemental princesses. The Sins, of course, are also princes and princesses. Our kings and queens have lived for many millennia and produced countless heirs. They are the source of all demonkin. Not all the princes and princesses currently in court are the immediate sons and daughters of the sources. It is a title handed down based on favor or great acts. We consider their children as the heirs to their parent’s titles.”
