Bound by Light (26 page)

“No, I saved all that up for you and your
T-shirts.”

He chuckled. “Maybe you did, but it’s mine
and my T-shirts’ privilege to take some of that pain from you.
Don’t doubt that I consider it an honor.”

“Thane,” she rasped as new tears started.
“You make me sound amazing.”

“You are amazing, sweetheart. And I think
the fact that you are, means you’ll find it in your big heart to
give grace and mercy to a woman who doesn’t have a clue what
happened to her life.”

She groaned. “I see what you just did there,
mister movie star.”

“Do you now?”

“I hate you so much right now.”

Thane laughed. “I wouldn’t be doing this
right if you didn’t.”

She lay in his arms silently for several
minutes before letting out a ragged sigh. “I’ll think about meeting
with her, but I’m not promising anything.”

“I’m not expecting you to.”

“Really?”

“Really, love. I’ve said my piece. I’ll
support whatever you decide.”

She nodded into his chest. “Thank you.”

“How about we order out for delivery.”

“Mmm. Chinese?”

“Sounds perfect,” he said, and kissed her
gently before climbing off the bed.

She slid from the mattress and gave him a
tired smile. “I’ll just wash my face.”

“Okay, love.” Thane kissed her again. “I
love you, Sydney.”

“I love you too.”

He left the room and headed for the drawer
full of menus. A knock sounded at the door and he opened it in
surprise. Wallace stood on the porch with a box in hand.

“Wallace?”

“Sorry sir, I hope I’m not disturbing you.
Sydney’s uncle received this this morning. It’s addressed to her.
We’ve scanned it and it’s safe to open.”

“Thank you, I’ll let her know,” Thane said
and took it from him, closing the door. “Sid?” he called.

She walked into the room, pulling her hair
up into a bun. “What’s that?”

“Wallace brought it by. It was delivered to
your uncle this morning.”

Sydney read the shipping label. “It’s from
my mom’s school. She taught art there.” Tearing at the packaging,
she pried open the flaps. She pulled out several small canvases
painted in her mother’s signature style.

“Those are lovely, sweetheart.”

Sydney blinked back tears as she sifted
through each one. “She was amazing.”

An envelope floated to the floor and Thane
scooped it up. Just one word, “Sydney,” was written in her mother’s
handwriting on the outside.

Sydney set the painting down and ripped open
the letter, unfolding it gently as she began to read:
Oh, my
sweet girl, how I hope and pray you never see this letter. If you
do, it means I’m gone and you’re having to deal with all of this
without me. I hope you’ll lean on your Uncle Cary. He loves you
like he loves Lucy and Antsy, and I trust he’ll take care of
you.

There are some things you don’t know about
your father, and if I could take them to my grave, I would, but I
now think he might have done something worse than cheating on us.
Yes, honeybun, he cheated. He has two children with another woman,
and I found out just before he went into hospice. I stayed because
he was dying, and, believe me when I say I wanted to help him cross
over into the next life much faster than he did, but we both
decided to shield you from it. I wonder if it was the right thing
to do, but it’s done, and I pray you are okay and that you know how
much I love you.

I got a strange call a few weeks ago about
an insurance policy in my name, and I haven’t been able to find out
much more. I think now it might have been a mistake. But (as you
know since you’ve walked in a few times), I have been getting
threatening phone calls as well, and I wonder if this is far worse
than we could imagine. The police are involved but nothing’s been
found out yet. Please don’t be angry or hurt that I’m shielding you
from this. I feel as though the less you know the better.

Sydney Roslyn Warren, you are the very
best thing I’ve ever done... ever. You are the most remarkable
young woman, and I don’t credit myself or your father for that,
it’s you, honeybun. You are loving, smart, and beautiful all on
your own merit. Never stop listening to your inner voice, never
forget you are loved deeply, and always remember to follow your
dreams, even if you’re ninety-two and want to take a pole-dancing
class...
Sydney giggled through the tears...
you never know,
honeybun, stripping in your elderly years might be your only
option. But I hope and pray that you’ll find a man who worships the
ground you walk on, because he’s the only man who will be worthy of
you. I love you more than the stars in the sky and I know that one
day we’ll see each other again. I’ll make sure my mansion’s
sparkling and tidy when you arrive. I love you, beautiful girl.
Always. Love Mama.

Sydney dropped the letter as Thane wrapped
his arms around her. She sobbed into his chest and he held her,
saying nothing as the sadness washed over her. “She thought she was
in danger.”

“I know, lass. It’s okay, I’ve got you.”

Sydney let him comfort her this time,
relishing the peace he provided. When she was sure she was all
cried out, she decided to take a shower while Thane ordered
dinner.

Walking out into the living room, she found
Thane on the phone and he held an arm out to her. She slid into his
embrace and leaned against his strong body.

“Aye. Oh, ’tis?” He chuckled. “Aye, Fi.
That’s quite accurate. I appreciate it.” He chuckled again. “Aye,
on so many levels. Right. Thanks. ’Bye.” He hung up, slipped his
phone in his pocket and pulled Sydney closer. “That was Fi.”

Sydney smiled. “Yeah, I picked up on that.
Who’s Fi?”

“Fiona. She’s the king’s sister and she’s
become the unofficial expert on all things human-slash-Cauld Ane. I
gave her a ring because I think your ability might have been
recorded somewhere at some point and if anyone would know, she
would.”

“
And
?” Sydney ground out, and smacked
his chest.

Thane chuckled and took her hand, guiding
her to the sofa, and pulling her down beside him. “You are an
empath, which is quite common among human and Cauld Ane alike.
Where you’re special... in an abilities way, not in the general
sense of the word, since, to me you’re the greatest gift I’ve ever
been given—”

“Oh my word, get on with it, man!” she
retorted.

He grinned and kissed her quickly. “You are
what we call
ljós sannleikans
.”

“Which means?”

“Truth revealer. You provide the light of
truth.” He raised her hand to his lips. “That part’s not so common.
In fact, there have only been six recorded Cauld Ane truth
revealers in the past thirteen hundred years. It’s why your eyes
turn green and your emotions become overwhelming.”

“And the green haze?”

“Aye, you’ll see that in your
peripheral.”

“Why do your eyes turn red?” she asked.

“All Cauld Ane men have that, ah...
reaction, shall we say... when we’re angry.”

She rolled her eyes. “Wow, that’s so
bizarre.”

“It’s actually quite amazing, love.” He
smiled. “And now that we know, we can work together to figure out
how to handle it.”

“Right now, can you handle feeding your
mate?”

He nodded. “It’s been here for ten
minutes.”

“Then you better dish it up there,
buddy.”

Thane laughed and went about feeding his
mate.

* * *

Three days later, Thane drove Sydney down to
Scotland Yard where Zach’s mother and sister were supposed to meet
them. They weren’t sure if Beth would make it, as she’d been rushed
to the hospital the night before and no one knew why or how long
she’d be there.

Sydney gripped Thane’s arm as though it was
her lifeline as they made their way into the building. After
separating briefly to go through the metal detector, she once again
attached herself to him.

It’s going to be fine, love. I’ve got
you.

She nodded, but couldn’t find her voice,
internally or externally to respond. She felt like her emotions
were on ten and her nerves were settled on the surface of her
skin.

Let me help.

She bit her lip and glanced up at Thane.
“Please.” He smiled and within seconds, she was calm. She let out a
relieved sigh. “Thank you.”

He raised her hand to his mouth and kissed
her fingers. “I love you.”

“I love you too.”

“Ready?”

She nodded and forced a smile as Thane
opened the door for her and waited for her to precede him
inside.

“Mr. and Mrs. Allen,” Officer Smith said,
and reached out his hand. “Thank you for coming.”

Sydney thought it was interesting how the
majority of the people who met them assumed they were married in
the traditional sense and that she’d taken Thane’s name.

It’s going to happen, baby... and I am
wearing your ring even though it’s not “official.”

I know. It’s just funny.

He smiled.

“Right this way.” The officer led them to a
large, bright conference room.

A slight and nervous-looking Asian woman sat
with a stunning young lady who did not look well. But she did look
as though she’d made a monumental effort to look better than she
felt. Both of them stood as Sydney and Thane walked in the room,
and Sydney gripped Thane’s hand again.

Deep breaths, love.

“This is Mei Wu and her daughter Beth,”
Officer Smith said.

Beth reached out her hand with a gentle
smile and Sydney reluctantly shook it.

“I’m so sorry we have to meet this way,”
Beth said.

Sydney nodded and everyone took a seat as
Officer Smith left the room.

“My mother doesn’t speak much English, so
please don’t think her rude if she doesn’t answer you,” Beth said.
“I’ll translate, but I’m having a difficult time with my breathing,
so I might have to take some breaks.”

I want to be sick.

Thane squeezed her hand.
I’ve got you,
love.

“I’m not sure why you wanted to meet, to be
honest,” Sydney said.

“That was my idea, actually,” Beth
confessed. “I wanted to meet my sister. I think I was about seven
when my parents split up, and I didn’t know about you until I was
thirteen, so you’ve always fascinated me. I’m sorry if this makes
you uncomfortable, but if I could see our father just once more, I
think I’d beat him with a pipe for what he did to us.”

“It does make me uncomfortable,” Sydney
admitted. “Can I ask what’s wrong with you?”

Beth nodded. “Ovarian cancer. I just
finished chemo about two weeks ago, so I’m in a little bit of
trouble for traveling.”

“Then why did you?”

She sighed. “Because I wanted you to know
that we are not these people. What my brother did is reprehensible.
He has some mental health issues and for the most part, he’s great
provided he’s on his meds, but we discovered he’d stopped taking
them... right after he called to say he’d moved to London.” Her
mother said something to her and Beth responded in Chinese and then
frowned at her before facing Sydney again. “Sorry. My mother feels
we should keep this private. What she seems to forget is that it’s
already about as public as it can get and you deserve some
answers.”

“I appreciate that.”

“Zach’s sick,” Beth continued. “Not that his
illness excuses anything he’s done. We will support whatever the
courts decide to do, but he’s not right. If he was, he would have
never done this.” She blinked back tears. “I don’t really know who
he is anymore. We’ve always been close, but this... this isn’t
something I can push past right now.”

“I’m sorry, Beth,” Sydney whispered. Thane
ran his thumb across her fingers.

“No. I am.” She nodded towards her mother.
“And so is Mom. I know it’s just words, but if she’d known about
you and your mom, she would have never married our father. She
would have never even gotten involved with him.”

“I appreciate that.”

“We’ll do whatever we can to help,” Beth
said. “I don’t really know how any of this works.”

“I don’t either,” Sydney said. “Does your
mother know that Zach used her money to hire the man who killed my
mom?”

“We found out this morning. A check
bounced.”

“Oh,” Sydney whispered.

“I’m so sorry, Sydney.”

“You didn’t cause any of this, Beth. I don’t
blame you.”

“I appreciate that.” Her mother said
something again and Beth nodded. “I should really go back to the
hotel and rest.”

“Of course,” Sydney said.

Officer Smith returned to the room and
smiled. “We have the paperwork ready for you, Mrs. Allen.”

“Thank you.” Sydney rose to her feet and
Thane followed.

“Don’t get up, lass,” Thane said when Beth
moved to do so.

“I can’t imagine what I can do, but if
there’s anything, will you please let me know?” Beth asked.
“Officer Smith has my information.”

Sydney nodded and led Thane out of the room.
She didn’t speak much as she read over and signed the charges
against Zach, and she didn’t speak much as Thane took her home. By
the time they walked into the apartment, she was emotionally
shattered. “I’m going to lie down for a little bit.”

“Hey.” Thane pulled her against him. “You
okay?”

She nodded. “I just need to process.”

“Okay, baby. You process. I’ll check on you
in a little bit.”

“’K.” She pulled away and headed to their
bedroom, stretching out on the bed and quickly falling asleep.

* * *

Thane checked in with Sydney every few
minutes. He felt her lose her battle with sleep, so he knew he
could relax for a little while at least. He decided to make a
call.

“Sir?”

“Wallace, I need you to do some background
on Mei Wu and her daughter Beth.”

“No problem.”