Den of Sorrows

Page 48

 
 
Sally couldn't stop smiling. Maybe she shouldn’t be smiling, but she couldn't help it. Here, in their room, sitting on the floor with her mate, was a precious little boy. Because of an awful twist of fate, the boy had lost his parents and nearly his life. But they had saved him and he had walked into Sally's arms the moment he'd seen her. She remembered the words he'd whispered to her as he'd wrapped his arms around her neck, burying his face in her hair.
"She said you would come," the little voice broke through Sally's fear and horror. She slowed her breathing so she could better hear him over the growling and crying of those around them.
"What was that?" she asked him.
He pulled back a bit, just enough so that he could look at her face. There were dirt smudges all over his cheeks and his hair was matted with filth. Bite marks marred his neck and wrists, and it took everything in Sally not to scream in anger at the injustice of it. He shouldn't have had to go through something so horrible. He should have been looking for bugs and crying over fallen ice cream cones. He patted her face gently and smiled; he was the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen.
"The lady with all the light, I think she was an angel. She told me you were coming. She said a beautiful lady with brown hair, brown eyes, and a bright light all around her was coming for me and that she would be my new mommy. And she showed me a man with a happy smile too. I asked her what happened to my old mommy, and she said that she and my daddy loved me very much, but that they couldn't take care of me anymore. But you will take care of me, right? You and the man with the happy smile?"
Tears streamed down Sally's face as she nodded. "Yes, sweet boy, we will take care of you."
"Sally, mine?" she heard Costin’s voice and shook her head to clear her mind of the memory. She looked at her mate and then at Titus who was holding out a piece of paper to her.
"I colored it all by myself. It's for you." He smiled proudly at her.
Sally took the picture and looked at it. It was three stick people, each of them un-proportionate—a longer arm here and a larger foot there. But all three of the stick people faces, misshapen though they may be, were smiling happily.
"Thank you, Titus. It's the best drawing anyone has ever given me."
"Really?" he asked, his smile getting even bigger.
Sally nodded.
"I will get better," he said, his face suddenly falling.
Costin scooped him up and hugged him close. "You already draw better than me."
Titus looked at Costin, narrowing his eyes as if trying to determine if Costin was being truthful. Then the smile returned. "I can help you," he said just before a yawn forced its way out.
"I bet you can, little warrior. But right now I think sleep is what you need. You have to get your rest so you’ll have the energy to help me."
Titus looked around, suddenly very nervous. Sally stood and smiled up at him. "First, we need to brush teeth, okay?"
They'd already given him a bath and he'd handled it really well, though Sally knew her soothing magic was mostly responsible for that. She wasn't consciously trying to calm him, it was just instinct.
Costin and Titus emerged from the bathroom, discussing in-depth just how long a three-year- old should brush his teeth. Sally had pulled back the cover and sheet on their bed and was sitting on the side when the pair came walking in together, hand-in-hand.
She slid off the bed onto her knees and sat back on her heels. Sally opened her arms and Titus went without hesitation. "What will make you feel—" She paused, unsure what she should say. Did she say safe or best? Titus saved her.
"Safe?" he asked.
Sally nodded.
"I'm not a baby, but could a light stay on? And could daddy—" He stopped and looked up at Costin. "You're my new daddy?" He looked unsure and Sally could feel the seeds of fear and doubt creeping into his mind.
Costin knelt down next to him. "I am if you want me to be. I would like that very much."
Titus gave a matter-of-fact nod and she felt a little of the doubt slip out of him. He looked back at her. "Could daddy stay with me?" He quickly added, "You can stay too, but daddy is bigger."
Sally smiled reassuringly. "He makes me feel safe too," she whispered to him.
Costin lay on the bed next to a now sleeping Titus. It hadn't taken long for him to succumb to his exhaustion. His arms were wrapped around a brown, stuffed puppy that Jen had brought him, claiming she'd found it among Thia's toys. Titus had smiled up at her as though she'd just handed him the most precious thing ever. Jen had knelt down and told him that the puppy needed a name and a friend. Titus had nodded and told her he would be a good friend to the puppy and that he would have to think of a good name for him. Once Jen had left and they'd climbed back into the bed, Titus had looked at him and told him he couldn’t name the puppy until he got to know him better.
Costin smiled. He hadn't been around children so he didn’t really know, but Titus seemed to be very articulate for a three-year-old.
"Everything okay?" Sally asked him. His smiled widened. His mate had asked him that every five minutes for the past hour.
"Yes, beautiful, everything is good," he said just as patiently as he had the first time. She wanted to be there with him and Titus, but one of them needed to attend the meeting. Since Titus had specifically requested Costin’s presence, the job fell to Sally.
She was keeping the bond and her mind wide open so that Costin could listen in on the meeting and not miss anything important. Upon hearing Vasile and Peri’s plan to travel to Phoenix tomorrow, which he knew had been inevitable, he felt his chest tighten at the thought of leaving Titus. There was no way they could take the boy with them. And he knew that Sally had to go. Technically, they could alter the memories of the children they found without Sally. But Peri said having Sally there made things much quicker and easier. Costin knew that she would go if they asked her to, but he also knew she'd stay in a heartbeat if Titus said he needed her also. And although extra warriors were certainly needed on the mission, his little healer was crucial. And neither he nor Sally would leave Titus alone, not when the child was still so fragile.
This led to one inevitable conclusion. Sally would have to go without him. He would have to entrust her safety to the others. She would be out of his reach and out of the shelter of his arms. The thought made his gut clench. But as he looked down at Titus who was curled up against his chest, he realized for the first time what it felt like to truly understand that there was something more important than his own comfort, happiness, or desires.