Chapter 31: Chapter 31

“Imara! Slow down. Baby, please wait for me!” The cool forest air bit at his lungs as he ran along the dirt path after Imara. No matter how hard he tried to reach her, she was always a few steps ahead.

Once he got past the tall stone guardians at the gate, he followed her scent down a cobblestone road to a harbor. She sat on an old wooden dock with her feet dangling in the water, watching the ships sail off into the fiery sunset beyond the horizon.

A gust of wind caught her hair, the scent of warm apple pie slapped him in the face.

“Imara!” Ben shot up in bed and looked around the room lit only by the stormy Savannah morning that awaited him on the other side of the curtains.

“No, not with this ugly mug, I’m not.” The familiar Norwegian accent cut through the darkroom before he switched on the lights.

With his eyes shut, Ben shook his head and collapsed back to his pillow. “Haldir? Of all the faces I have to see when I wake up.”

The Immortal screwed the cap back on his flask, then stuffed it in his shirt. “Welcome back to the land of the living.”

As he clutched at the pain in his chest, Ben rocked himself up to the side of the bed. “Where is she?”

The old man lit a cigarette, then threw the match in the ashtray as he puffed. “Up in bumfuck West Virginia somewhere with Thorin waiting for us. You ready to hit the road or what?”

After he shook out his hair, Ben pushed his fingers through it and searched the room for his clothes. “How long have I been here?”

As he blew out the smoke from the side of his mouth, Haldir squinted and shrugged his shoulders. “A couple of days, maybe. I found you in Imara’s bedroom bleeding all over the goddamn place. You really need to pick another way to come back next time.”

Dark eyes rose to meet Haldir’s as Ben shook his head. “There won’t be the next time.”

“That’s good.” Haldir raised his eyebrows quickly as he pushed out his lips and pulled another drag. “You seem to be in a better frame of mind. We got a lot of work to do before we face that prick again, and it’ll be a whole lot easier if you don’t start a lot of drama straight out of the gate.”

A duffle bag flew across the room, and Ben caught it without even looking. The cigarette smashed against the ashtray, then Haldir pushed his hands against the arms of the chair and lifted himself up. “Get dressed. I’ll meet you outside.”

***

While Ben watched the world pass him by on the interstate, he shook his head, then sank his teeth into his BigMac. “This shit is crazy. How the hell long was I gone this time?”

Little bits of orange ashes spread across the air behind them as Haldir threw his cigarette butt out the window. “Fifty years on the nose.”

“A hundred years this shit’s been going on.” Ben pressed his elbow into the windowsill and covered his mouth with his hand as he laughed. “I promised Shaw that even if it took me a hundred years, I’d kill Selvin.”

“Hmm!” A huff of air came from Haldir’s nose as he glanced at Ben. “You’re going to be late, you know.”

With narrowed eyes, Ben shook his head and tossed the balled-up burger wrapper in the back seat. “Yeah, thanks for that, Haldir. You always did know what to say to make me feel better.”

The clunk-clunk-clunk of the turn signal made Ben open his eyes and lift his head from the window. “Are we there?”

“Uh-huh.” A freckled hand pulled the steering wheel right down a long gravel driveway lined in thick Sugar Maples that opened up to Thorin’s home. “His car’s gone, though.”

The immortal brute slammed the car door shut and rolled out his shoulders as Ben ran to the porch. As soon as he caught the scent of Imara on the note taped to the front door, he took the staircase in a single leap and snatched it from the glass. His fingertips vibrated when he flipped it open. ‘Thorin took me shopping. Go on in and make yourselves at home. I love you.’

The little scrap of paper stuffed into Ben’s back pocket as Haldir turned the doorknob. “Not quite the mansion you lived in last time, is it?”

His dark eyes swept over the house as he closed the door behind him. “No, it’s perfect. I bet Imara loves this place.” He felt the doorframe and smirked. “She’s going to be really disappointed when I tell her I can’t build one just like it.”

The tick-tick-tick of the clock that hung above the door made the empty house sound so much more so, and Ben leaned back on his stool to check the time. After he wrapped his lips around the beer bottle, the wolf’s ears caught the sounds of stones kicking across the driveway and the old-timey music playing on the radio of Thorin’s Cadillac.

Like he did when he stood on Imara’s front porch that first night he came to call on her, Ben blew out a long breath and pushed his fingers through his hair, then shook out his arms. Haldir swallowed his beer and wiped his mouth with his sleeve, then nodded to the door. “Don’t worry, Prince Charming, you look good.”

The door swung open, and he saw her fiery hair in the sunlight as Thorin helped her out of the car. “Imara!”

A squeal of a giggle came from underneath the fingers she pressed against her mouth as she ran to him, then she jumped up into his arms and wrapped her legs around his waist. “I’m sorry, Ben. Please, forgive me.”

With one hand on her ass and the other on the back of her head, Ben dropped to the edge of the porch. “No, Baby.” His hands slid to her cheeks, and he pressed his lips to hers. “I should have taken better of you.”

Her head shook back and forth under his palms, and she wrapped her fingers around his hands. “I never should have left you all alone. I’m so sorry.”

He followed his fingertips all over her skin, then brushed them over her lips. “How much do you remember?”

Her cheek rubbed against his, and she melted into his neck as her fingers moved through his hair. “I remember everything, Ben. Everything.”

Thorin opened the trunk and wrinkled his nose when he saw all the bags. “Would you mind prying your hands off of her and helping me with these bags? She made up for the fifty years of shopping she’s missed on our little excursion today. I believe I single-handedly saved that little town financially.”

He continued to mutter to himself as Ben reluctantly let Imara go. “Maybe they’ll build me a statue. Prince Thorin, the savior of small-town America.”

While they carried the bags inside, Imara hugged Haldir as he sat at the counter. “I hear you had a run-in with a friend of mine.”

Her hand rested on his shoulder as she watched him take a drink. “Oh, yes. Your friend Daniel is just the sweetest man, Haldir.” After choking on the beer in his mouth, Haldir managed to swallow. “Is that so?”

Her hand wrapped around his arm. “Didn’t you ever notice his resemblance to Ben before?”

After hearing his name, Ben glanced up from the bags he set down by the door, and Haldir nodded. “Yeah, I can see it, I guess. They both kind of have that tall, dark and handsome thing happening for them.”

Her fingers pinched his shirt and tugged at it. “Well, he said that he and Ben are relatives.” Her fingers snapped. “Oh, wait a minute. I don’t want to have to do this twice. Thorin!”

Thorin kicked the door closed behind him and set the last of the bags down. “Yes, Sweet Girl.”

Imara patted the counter. “Come sit down so I can tell you what that nice man said.”

As Thorin sat down beside him, Ben pulled Imara against his leg. “Well, the strangest thing happened. I just appeared in this library, and Mr. Darke was there waiting. He said he brought me there to give Haldir a message and a gift.”

“What gift?” Haldir’s eyes shot to Thorin, who raised his brows and pushed the leather case across the island.

“Mr. Darke…”

Haldir held up his hand to Imara as he examined the knives. “His Majesty.”

Imara pressed her fingers into her lips. “Oh, dear. He must’ve thought my manners were awful. Well, His Majesty Daniel told me that these knives carried the death curse. He said that we would need them to kill Selvin.”

Even though he and Daniel had been friends for hundreds of years now, Haldir knew the Darke King was singularly focused on one thing only. Unless it served his purpose, he wouldn’t bother with a couple of Earth witches like Ben and Imara. “Was there anything else, Imara?”

“Well, yes.” Her finger tapped against her lips as she tried to recall everything. “He said to remember the vision you showed his wife. That’s why it was important to end this because Ben and I are needed there. He said that he and Ben are kin and that he wanted you to bring him there as soon as this business was all settled.”

Haldir picked up his knife and brought it in front of his face while reading the inscription. “Well, this certainly fucking changes things, doesn’t it?”

Ben snuggled his lips against Imara’s cheek. “But he’s still coming for us, Baby.”

She turned into his arms, then slid her hands up his chest. “I’m not afraid anymore, Ben.” Her forehead pressed against his. “You’re going to kill him this time. I believe it. You need to believe it too.”

He pushed Imara’s hair behind her ear and shook his head. “I don’t want you to suffer anymore.”

“That’s what this whole curse is about, making us suffer. We’re going to live our lives and be happy no matter what. He can kill us, but he can’t wipe those memories away from us. You don’t have to be afraid of losing Eliza and me. We will always, always come back to you.” She glanced at the knives and shook her head before looking at Ben. “That means old man doesn’t know what’s waiting for him this time.”