Soul Bond: Part 14

Okay, so I thought this was going to be the last episode.  But it turns out there's actually one more!  Tune in tomorrow for the very last episode of Soul Bond

Enjoy!

14

            Liam hadn’t been expecting this.  He’d never actually been a part of a circle that had pulled an astral projection of another person.  The drain on his power was immense and he felt weak and shaky. But even still, it had worked.  The ghost like figure before them proved it.  And, despite the fact that he wanted to throttle the living day lights out of her, he was kind of glad she sounded amused and not pissed. Despite his big talk, he really didn’t want to be on the shit list of someone with that much power. 

            Kelly scowled and answered Morgan’s question, “You weren’t answering, Morgan.  And this has gone on long enough.  Jared has recovered his memories.  We know what happened.”

            Liam was proud of Kelly for standing up to the woman.  He knew his friend respected the hell out of Morgan.  The feeling was fleeting though, as Morgan quickly turned her attention to Jared and Liam had to stop himself from stepping between them.

            “Really?  Well done, boy!  So they did the soul bond and it worked?”

            Jared just nodded and gave a meek, “Yes, ma’am.”

            Liam turned to study his lover and examine their bond.  His angel was feeling weak and shocky, the drain on his power great, and Liam just wanted to bundle him up and help him replenish his magic.  He didn’t like to see Jared like this and he just wanted to fix it.  But this was his idea and he was going to see it through.  He’d take care of Jared once this was over.

            “Good, I’m glad they broke the block.  I’m guessing you bonded with Liam, hm?  Considering how protective he is acting toward you right now.  I had thought it would be Kelly but…” She trailed off and shrugged a shoulder.  “No matter.  It worked, the trap has been released and we can get all those memories and take care of the nasty business that’s been going on in Caribou, right?”

            “What the hell, Morgan?” Kelly asked, his tone playful.  Liam fought to keep the scowl off his face.

            “Yeah,” she said in the same tone, apparently knowing exactly what Kelly was asking.  “I was digging ‘round his brain and I triggered the lock down.  Didn’t know what else might happen because it was delayed reaction and I needed him safe.  So I sent him to you.  Hunter’s coven was closer, but I couldn’t have sent him there and you know it.  The man is a pretty good leader but he’s also a homophobic prick.”

            “Okay,” Kelly agreed and his voice clearly held a hint of “good enough for me” that Liam really did not like.

            “What the fuck is your game, Morgan?” Liam ground out.  The ensuing silence following his outburst almost made him blush. Fuck.  He hadn’t meant to say that out loud.  But now that it was out there, there was no way Liam was taking it back.  “How about you stop with all the cryptic bullshit and just tell us straight.”

            “There’s no game, Liam dear,” Morgan said, very seriously.  “I’m cleaning house.  The Tribunal, as whole, still works and works well.  But there is a bit of corruption and I’m rooting it out. Things have been slipping through the cracks, innocents have been losing their lives, the guilty have been getting away with it for far too long.  This incident tipped the scales.  I've gotten aggressive and I will do whatever I need to to clear out the bad.  Kelly and this coven, is one of my safe places.”  She paused for a moment and turned to Kelly.  “Speaking of which, I’m sending you a packet soon—“

            Kelly cut her off, warning, “Morgan—“

            She interrupted him right back, holding up a placating hand.  “Not that kind of packet,” she assured.  Then cocked her head to the side and appeared to think it over.  “At least, I don’t think it’s that kind of packet.  You take a look and see.”

            And then suddenly, she was gone.  Owen drew a shuddering breath and nearly collapsed. He would have hit the ground hard if Alex hadn’t been right there to catch him.  As it was, now that the power was released, everyone sagged a bit.  If it hadn’t been so balls numbing cold, Liam would have sat down on the hard ground himself.  Kelly started herding people inside.  As long as everyone rested, they could regain some of their magic and strength. They were still in close enough proximity to the alder for that magnificent tree to help them mitigate the bruising and fatigue.

            “Well,” Jared said softly, his voice verging on sleepy. “That explains that.”

            Liam couldn’t stop the growl that escaped his throat.  “Are you kidding me right now?  You’re okay with the fact that she used you like that?!”

            “You don’t understand,” Jared said softly, pleading.  Like he was about to given an argument.  But Liam wasn’t hearing any of it.

            “You’re goddamn right I don’t understand!  She used you like you were nothing and you don’t care?!”

            “Liam,” Kelly said, sternly as he nudged Jared and Liam toward his office and out of earshot of the rest of the coven.  “Calm down.”

            “I don’t think he should,” Liam heard Jason say from somewhere behind him.  “I think Liam has every right to be pissed.  I know I sure as hell am angry.  She used you again, Kelly!  With no thought to you!  Her only concern is her damn agenda!”

            “Both of you, stop.  Right now.”  Kelly’s voice was harsh. 

            “Don’t you see, Liam,” Jared tried, his voice softer and cajoling.  Liam forced himself to take a deep breath and focus on his lover.  “Morgan wasn’t being malicious.  She may have used us both, but she’s doing it for the greater good.  And that makes it okay.”

            Liam opened his mouth to retort angrily until he caught a tendril of Jared’s anxiety.  He was making this worse on his angel after he promised to take care of the man.  He was being shitty, taking his anger out on people who didn’t deserve it.  The thought was enough to cool his temper.  He organized his thoughts before he spoke again.

            “I’m not going to agree with that, angel.  Not when she could have just explained what was going on.  She could have brought you here herself.  She could have said ‘hey, I was digging around in his head, I triggered a trap, I’m not sure what’s going to happen so I need you to keep him safe.’  What’s so hard about that?  But no, she had to be all cryptic.  She had to scare you and that is unacceptable to me.  She had no right to do that to you.”

            Jared stared at him wide eyed and his tongue slipped out to lick at his bottom lip.  Liam felt it then.  Jared’s was suddenly aroused.  Really turned on in fact.  His pupils were blown and Liam could feel that Jared was barely keeping himself in check from jumping Liam right then and there, audience be damned. 

            As always, Jared’s lust fueled Liam’s and he, for one, didn’t care that Kelly and Jason were in the room.  He pulled Jared into his arms and proceeded to kiss his face off.  Jared fed him the little whimpers that never failed to light his blood on fire, and it raced south, filling his cock.

            “My eyes!” Jason wailed, overly dramatic.  “I need brain bleach!”

            Liam pulled back but didn’t take his eyes off Jared even as he lifted his hand and gave Jason the finger.

            “Want to tell me what got you fired up so fast, angel?” Liam murmured.

            Jared colored prettily, looking slightly bashful. “You.  What you said.  You must really care about me to feel so strongly about this.”

            Liam shook his head.  “I don’t just care about you.  I love you.”

            Everything went still for a moment and then shock and surprise as well as immense pleasure flooded down their link.  Liam could feel the love, too, even though Jared didn’t seem to be able to make the words come out, no matter how many times he opened and closed his mouth.  Finally, the man shook his head.

            “Isn’t it too fast?” Jared whispered.

            Liam shrugged.  “What’s ‘too fast’?  That’s something the two people in the relationship decide on.  With our bond, emotions are heightened and maybe it makes us move faster than we normally would, but that doesn’t mean it’s not real.  Right?”  He knew he was repeating things they had already discussed but Liam felt it was necessary for Jared to hear them again.  Sometimes, his angel needed to be reminded so he could sort things out in his own head.

            “Speaking of the bond,” Kelly interrupted as tactfully as possible.  “I did give you my word I would break it once this was resolved.  And we know what Morgan’s doing now and you’ve got you’re memories back.  I’d call that resolved.  If you want me to break—“

            “No!” Jared interrupted fast, his voice a shout in the small room.  He blushed again and continued in a more normal tone of voice. “No, thank you, Kelly.  We don’t want you to break the bond.”

            Liam knew his surprise showed on his face.  “Are you sure about that, angel?  We don’t need it to stay together.”

            “No, I know that,” Jared said softly, his eyes roving all over Liam’s face.  He gave a small smile. “But I don’t want to lose it.  I don’t want to lose that connection to you.  I love it.”

            Liam frowned, just a little.  “I don’t want to lose it either.  If you change your mind at any time, you say the word.  Hear me, angel?  You say the word and I’ll make certain the bond is broken.”

            Everything in Jared’s face and body softened and he sagged in relief again Liam.  Liam held him close, loving the feel of Jared’s body against his.  Damn but he wanted to take his man home and show him just how much he loved him.  It didn’t matter that Jared hadn’t say the words back.  He didn’t need the words.  Not when he could feel it so clearly.

            “Christ, I love you,” Jared murmured.  Liam felt the shock Jared felt for just a second, then Jared pulled back, a wide grin on his face.  “I do.  I do love you.  I really do.”

            Liam gave him an indulgent grin.  “I know you do.”

            “You two are so sweet you’re making my teeth hurt,” Jason said with a sniff.

            “Jay,” Kelly said in that warning tone he did so well.

            “Shut up, kid,” Liam muttered, not caring that Jason was impinging on his moment.  Without looking up from Jared’s face, Liam said, “Kelly, I’m taking my boyfriend home where I’m going to fuck him till he screams and then hold him tight.”

            “Have fun,” Kelly said with a chuckle.  “Come on, sweetheart.  Let’s check on the rest of the coven and let these two be on their way.”

            A few hot and heavy kisses later and Liam finally managed to get Jared out the front door and into his truck.  Once Marvin and Jezebel were settled, and Liam checked to make sure Jared was buckled in, he put the vehicle in gear and headed off toward home. He held Jared’s hand firmly in his own.

            “Liam?”

            “Hm?”

            “I don’t have a job here and I hadn’t planned on staying forever and there’s still my apartment back in Caribou and we’re jumping into this kind of fast and we haven’t talked about anything.”

            Liam felt Jared’s anxiety ratchet up with each word that tumbled out of his mouth.  Liam was quick to send calming feeling back down their link.  Almost instantly, Jared’s anxiety ebbed and Liam was grateful he didn’t have to command the man to stop with a bit of will behind it.  He loved their bond just as much as Jared did, but he didn’t want to force Jared to do anything if he could help it.

            “Hey, angel, relax.  Tomorrow, we’ll have that talk.  We’ll figure everything out.  Tonight is about us and our love.  Tomorrow we’ll work out the details.”

            Jared gave a happy sigh.  “You really do have a gooey center don’t you?”

            Liam gave him a mock scowl, “Only for you.  And don’t go spreading that around.”

            Jared giggled and then sighed again.  “Tomorrow?” Jared asked, Liam knew, just to be sure.

            “Tomorrow,” Liam assured with a nod. 

            “So, about this fucking me till I scream thing?” Jared inquired, his tone dipping into sultry.  Liam was pretty sure the man was pushing his lusty feeling at him through their link.

            Liam didn’t respond.  He simply pressed a little harder on the gas.  The sooner they got home, the sooner the next chapter of their lives would start.

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