The Seeker Ch. 09 - Final

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A not quite happily ever after.
7.6k words
4.81
18.3k
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Part 9 of the 9 part series

Updated 06/09/2023
Created 09/27/2018
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Dear readers,

First off, I apologize for uploading the wrong chapter. I realize I frustrated many of you, and I'm very sorry! I hope you give this last chapter another try.

I am completely, eternally grateful for your continued support. The fact that so many of you have followed along and encouraged me to keep up this story is overwhelming, truly. When I started this, I never would have imagined that I would have gained so much support along the way.

I apologize for making you wait so long for this final chapter. I struggled for a long time on how I wanted to leave Laiyla and Venlen, and I ended up making several changes before I came up with a resolution I was happy with. I felt I owed it to Laiyla to give her a measure of peace and chance at a normal life, and I couldn't decide how to go about doing that while keeping them together.

Some potentially bad news: This is the final chapter for Venlen and Laiyla. As such, the following is nearly all plot, with a very, very small amount of steamy action. So I apologize for those of you who had hoped they would go out with a very smutty bang... They do not.

For those of you following my other story, I've just started to include songs that have inspired me along the way, so if this story had a soundtrack, it's listed below. Finally, I've included an epilogue at the end that starts off Adrika's story. Please let me know if you'd like to read more, as I plan to come back to the unfinished pieces of this story and begin working on hers. After, that is, I finish Ivy and Hunter's story.

Thank you again, and I hope you enjoy!

*****

Soundtrack

Bundy, by Animal Alpha, from album Pheromones

Bleed It Out, by Linkin Park, from album Minutes to Midnight

The Way You Like It, by Adema, from album Adema

Inside the Fire, by Disturbed, from The Studio Album Collection

The Noose, by A Perfect Circle, from Thirteenth Step

Gone Away, by The Offspring, from Ixnay on the Hombre

Hemorrhage (In My Hands), by Fuel, from The Best of Fuel

(Don't Fear) The Reaper, by Blue Oyster Cult, from Agents of Fortune

Exorcism, by Clairity, from Alienation

Wolves, by Down Like Silver, from Down Like Silver

Shadow of the Day, by Echos, from Shadow of the Day

Beautiful Girl, by Junge Junge, Kyle Pearce, from Beautiful Girl - EP

Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This), by Marilyn Manson, from Smells Like Children

...

Coming awake was like breaking through the surface of warm, black water. There was no pain, and for a moment, Laiyla wondered if the good Goddess had taken her life after all, despite what Eila had said to her in the autumnal clearing she somehow knew would be her final resting place. But then a cool cloth was placed on her forehead, and thin, feminine fingers brushed through her hair and down her cheek. They were not the thick, calloused fingers she had expected, and her eyes fluttered open in confusion.

She blinked. She couldn't process the reality of the gentle face smiling down at her, framed by golden hair the color of sunflower petals. "Mom?" her voice came out as a croak, rough as sandpaper, and she coughed. But of course, it wasn't her mother. It was the Fae who had raised her when she had been hidden away, far from the clutches of Lystra, her malevolent grandmother, a Seeker like herself.

Vanessa beamed. "There you are." Her voice was silken honey, and it coated Laiyla's skin in liquid warmth. Laiyla couldn't help but smile back. "Am I... is this... Am I dreaming?" Speaking hurt her throat terribly, and a cup was lifted to her lips. She sat up and took it, tilting it back until water dribbled out the corners of her mouth and ran down her chin. It was sweet nectar. Laiyla drank until her stomach hurt.

"No honey. You're not dreaming. How are you feeling?"

Laiyla thought about the question. She felt strangely good. Nothing like the weak, bloody mess she had been when she...

"Oh God," the words a strangled sob as memories flooded her. Damien, what he had done, how her body had been ruined and wrecked and...

Her hand flew to her belly, relief flooding her senses when she felt a small fluttering beneath the tiny swell there. "She's fine," Vanessa breathed, adding her own hand over Laiyla's. "You're both going to be just fine."

"Mommy!" a little voice cried happily, a miniature combination of Vanessa and Len, her adopted father, barging through the thick wooden door and running into her mother's arms. Vanessa hoisted the girl onto her lap, brushing back strands of golden red hair. "Braelen," Vanessa crooned. Eyes the color of fire, and just as fierce, lit up as the girl smiled at Laiyla. "Meet Laiyla. Laiyla, meet Braelen, my other daughter." She emphasized the words other, and Laiyla didn't miss the meaning. Blood or not, she would always be Vanessa's daughter.

"We took care of you while you were sleeping," Braelen told her proudly. "Me and Patrick. We took good care of her, didn't we mama?" She looked up at Vanessa's loving face, snuggling into the crook of her arm. "You did," Vanessa told her approvingly.

"Thank you," Laiyla smiled. "I feel wonderful, so you must have done a very good job." The girl beamed.

"Go help your father with dinner," Vanessa said, putting her down gently and patting her behind before Braelen ran off. Vanessa looked after her for a beat before turning back to Laiyla, smiling.

"How am I here, Vanessa? The last I remember," she frowned, trying to think, but it was all such a blur, such a nightmare. She never would have imagined she would wake up here. "I thought I was dying. Did you come looking for me? Did Len find me?"

Vanessa shook her head. "You were brought here. He didn't think you'd want to wake up in that awful place. He wanted you to feel safe." She trailed warm fingers down Laiyla's cheek. "Loved."

"Who?" Laiyla asked, but she already knew.

Venlen. Venlen had brought her here.

Vanessa peered at her with knowing, sad eyes. She reached down and took Laiyla's hand in hers, rubbing her thumb lightly over the inside of her wrist. "He carries such guilt. I don't know what he did to you, but I will never forgive him. I'll never forgive either of them."

Laiyla looked down at the bare skin Vanessa was brushing her fingers over. Bare skin.

"But he's trying." She gave Laiyla a small smile.

Laiyla groped around for the familiar feel of his presence, but there was nothing. She felt relief. Relief, and a tiny, almost imperceptible measure of regret and loss. "The bond. He broke it." God, her voice sounded so small. Vanessa nodded.

"Where is he?" she willed strength into her words, afraid of the answer but determined to face it.

"Not here." Vanessa squeezed her hand. "He'll come back, but Len will meet him first, at the edge of town. If you're not ready, he'll stay away. For a while." She looked pointedly at the swell of Laiyla's belly. "Not forever."

Laiyla's hand flew to it protectively. "I won't go back there." She hated the quiver that crept into her voice. "I won't bring her back there."

"No," Vanessa said thoughtfully. "No, you won't. Even if he would try it, and I don't imagine he would, none of us would allow it."

"Us?"

Vanessa gestured to the closed door, and Laiyla registered the sound of voices in the room beyond. She swung her legs over the side of the bed, and with an arm wrapped around her middle, Vanessa helped her up and led her to the door, pushing it open in front of her.

Laiyla gaped. It seemed as if all the women of the village were gathered together in the small, cozy living space. The room fell silent as a sea of smiling faces turned toward her, kind, understanding eyes filling with tears. A memory flashed through her mind, of these same women gathering around her, combining forces to send her to another world. At the time, Laiyla had felt like she was being banished. Now she understood, knew better.

It had been the ultimate act of love.

...

Venlen sat on the roughened edge of a boulder, tapping his foot impatiently. He was waiting for the male Fae, Len. Sensing his apprehension, the chestnut gelding whinnied and stomped beside him. Wind, Laiyla had called him. He rubbed the horse's mane absentmindedly when the giant thing nudged him in the shoulder. He was early, he knew he was early, but it didn't matter. He was done waiting. Done waiting for Len. Done waiting for her.

He had promised he would stay away, if that was what she wanted. After nearly a week without her, he knew it had been a promise he was unwilling, and unable, to keep. He wouldn't be able to stay away. God help him, he knew he should, knew she needed time and space, but after six, endless days without his fierce little Fae nestled safely in his arms, he couldn't stand it another second.

He had hated leaving her. Hadn't wanted to let her out of his sight. Severing the bond had crushed him. For three days, he hadn't spoken to a soul. Amlen had brought prisoner after prisoner before him, men and women who had helped Damien commit unspeakable, horrendous crimes against his pregnant Fae, and piece by piece, inch by inch of flayed and scorched skin, he fed his inner monster and helped quiet the demons raging inside his mind.

Except for Malich. He had arranged something special for the guard who had collared and chained her. After discovering the motherfucker's propensity for taking pre-adolescent boys and girls into his rooms, Venlen had severed the man's dick, had made him watch while he filleted the lost appendage and had made him eat it, bite by forked bite. Afterwards, he had watched, grim satisfaction reverberating deep within his bones, as his dogs had torn the rest of him to bloody shreds and licked his bones clean.

Venlen spotted movement on the path ahead. Fucking finally. He stood and untied Wind from the thick branch next to his perch. He moved them both forward and met Len in the middle. Len's face was a study in placidity. He could read nothing.

They stopped several yards from each other, each man carefully regarding the other.

"Well?" Venlen asked, impatience creeping into his tone. Len was silent for another moment.

"She has the protection of the entire council. If she changes her mind, or if you even look at her in a threatening way, you'd have to kill every one of us before you'd touch her again."

Thank Christ.

"I don't need your threats, old man. I'm the one who brought her here, or don't you remember?"

The male Fae was silent. His black hair gleamed in the moonlight, eyes like blue crystal flashing momentarily. His features softened the smallest bit. "Let's go then," he sighed, turning his silver-white mount back toward the direction of the village.

It was a two-hour ride back to the small cottage where he had left her. They travelled in silence, listening closely to the night sounds as they went. The deadly, pink-eyed creatures still plagued the woods outside the city. Venlen had gotten nowhere trying to discover what they were or where they had come from. He'd had more important issues to consider, but he knew it was something he'd have to handle, and soon. Amlen still held a stronghold on the castle and the city beyond in his absence, but he suspected an attack from the south was imminent.

He saw a line of smoke ascending into the night sky before the cottage came into full view and felt a flutter of excitement at the sight of the lighted windows. Close. He was so close, he could feel her, even without the bond.

"Wait here," Len instructed before dismounting and climbing up the rickety steps to the heavy door. He closed it behind him, and Venlen sat seething at having been made to stay behind. He gripped the hilt of the longsword at his belt, itching to eliminate anyone standing between him and his Fae.

Finally, the door opened, and there she was. The light from inside the cabin silhouetted her momentarily before the door was gently closed, and she was gently bathed in moonlight, her honeyed skin nearly luminescent in the charged air around them.

She was so small, so fucking vulnerable. Even as her green eyes stared him down fearlessly, he could see the damage there, the thing his bastard of a brother had taken away, something she would never get back. Her sense of safety, the belief that the world was ultimately a good place, was gone forever. All the healers in the world would never be able to fix that, to heal that wound.

But he could try, couldn't he?

"Laiyla," he said softly, and reached out to touch her. She flinched back, as if expecting him to strike her, and he backed up a step, frowning. He hated that look on her face, hated that he had helped put it there. Had made her fear him.

"I'm so sorry," he breathed.

She glared at him. He watched her eyes darken and start to glisten.

He never could have expected the next words that came out of her mouth.

"Thank you."

He tilted his head in question. "What?"

"You didn't have to bring me here. You didn't have to..." she trailed off, her fingers lightly touching the inside of her wrist. "You didn't have to. But you did. Thank you," she repeated.

He nodded. "It's over. You know that, right? It's over, keonai mouv."

She nodded, and he watched as a single tear fell down her cheek and clung to her chin. She swallowed. Opened her mouth. Closed it. "I won't go back there," she said, her voice shaking.

He shook his head. "I won't ask you to."

"Then what?" She sighed deeply and crossed her arms over her chest. She was wearing a dress the palest shade of green. It clung to her curves and fell just past her knees. He looked down. She was barefoot.

He shrugged. "Stay here. Come back to the city. Wherever you go, you'll be provided for. Food, shelter, clothing. A job, if you want. My men will watch you, from a distance." He paused. "I prefer to have you close. But Laiyla," he said, his voice deepening. "No matter what, you are mine, and she is mine." He looked down at where her palm cradled the soft curve of her belly. "I wish I could, but I can't let you just walk away. I won't hurt you. But I'll be with you. As often as I can."

He watched as her throat worked. She swallowed hard.

Shit. Did that really need to be said?

Yes. Because she had to know. He wasn't a good man, and she should have no illusions about that fact. He had severed the bond. That was about as much as he was willing to give, as far as he was willing to go. It didn't change the fact that she belonged to him.

"Do you understand that?"

She nodded, silent.

"Good girl." He stalked forward, backing her up until she was against the stone wall of the cottage, boxing her in with a hand on each side of her head. Without giving her a chance to think about it, or to say anything, he leaned down and crushed her mouth with his, satisfied when her lips opened to his probing tongue. He wove his fingers through her dark hair and pulled, lifting her face to his. His palm cupped her cheek, his thumb grazing along her jaw. His knee pushed between her legs, the thick length of his cock pressing into her hip. He caught her lower lip between his teeth and tugged gently as his hand slid up her thigh under the thin material of the dress and cupped her sex.

"You're already wet for me," he whispered against the delicately pointed shell of her ear, slipping a finger through her slick folds. He felt her shudder and tried to turn her head away.

"No," he growled, gripping her chin to turn her face back to his. "You will not hide from this. Do you hear me?" Her breath hitched as his thumb circled her clit. "You won't hide from me."

It was like igniting a fire, like bringing her back to life. She brought her hands up to his chest and shoved, and out of sheer surprise, he stepped back. "What-"

"You did this to me," she seethed, her flat palms moving to shove him back another step. "You brought me back here. You practically handed me to that sick fuck, and then you left me there to fucking rot! I hate you." Her lips curled up in a snarl, fierce viridian eyes narrowed and trained on him like a wolf on her prey. "He broke me, Venlen." Her voice cracked, a strangled sob caught in her throat. "He fucking broke me, and you let him."

He shook his head, holding his palms out to her in surrender. "I'm sorry," he said softly, as if afraid he might spook her. "I'm so fucking sorry, Laiyla."

"You don't get to be sorry, Venlen," she retorted, the fight already seeping out of her. He stepped closer, and she didn't move away. She shrugged. "I'll go with you. But it's only because I have nowhere else to go."

He nodded, snaking an arm around her shoulders and his other behind her waist, drawing her to him. She rested her forehead against the solid wall of his chest and took in a shaky breath. She was unraveling, and part of him wanted that, wanted her to come undone in his arms, so she would know that she could, that he would be there, that he wouldn't leave her again. Her little hands grabbed fistfuls of his shirt and clenched and he felt the first of her tears soak through as he stroked his fingers through the length of her dark hair. He pressed his lips to the top of her head, holding her tight as she sobbed against him, until she reached the bottom of her well of desperation and finally fell silent.

"Go say goodbye," he told her. "I'm taking you home."

...

"You'll come back," Vanessa told her, a statement instead of a question. "After she's born. You'll come back so I can meet my granddaughter."

Laiyla bit her lip, fighting the hot tears that threatened to escape. Hadn't she cried enough already? She nodded, not trusting herself to talk. Vanessa grabbed her hand from across the wide oak table and squeezed. "I always knew you were meant to do something special. Something important." She smiled sadly. "Your mother knew it too."

Braelen squirmed and shifted in Laiyla's lap, the girl having taken to her instantly. She'd imprinted on her, apparently. The little Fae with fire in her eyes had been stuck to her like glue.

"She's special too," her little voice said, putting a small, sticky hand to the swell of her belly. Her mother had made cinnamon bread, and crumbs stuck to the side of her lips as she smiled up at Laiyla. Something wise beyond her years looked out at her from behind the bright amber red of her pupils. "You keep her safe, aunt Laiyla," she said seriously. "She's important." She said each syllable slowly, her tongue curling around the word. Laiyla stared at her, transfixed.

"I will, pumpkin." Braelen regarded her carefully for a moment, then nodded once, apparently satisfied. "Good."

Vanessa chuckled and Laiyla tore her gaze away from the flames to look back across the table. Vanessa was looking over her shoulder, where Venlen sat on the sofa across from Len, seemingly in a staring contest.

"Is he a good man?" she asked, turning back.

Laiyla shook her head. "No."

"But you'll still go with him."

"Yes."

Vanessa just nodded, seeming to understand. "You always have a home here, honey."

Laiyla looked around the little room, still crowded with the women from her village who had gathered to see her off. Since that first morning, there had been a steady rotation of what Vanessa had called Watchers. They took turns weaving familiar pearlescent energy into her still-healing body, and Laiyla wondered more than once if Eila had belonged to the same group of powerful women. Most of them held steaming mugs of tea, chatting and casting not-so-subtle glances Venlen's way.