Bound by Forever (True Immortality 3)

Kiyo gripped Conall’s hand tighter. “You honor their memory, Alpha MacLennan.”

Conall’s gray eyes turned piercing and he shook Kiyo’s hand with a firm fierceness. “Stay safe, Kiyo.”

They turned from one another, Conall’s eyes alighting on Niamh as she stepped toward him.

“Thank you again.” She held out a hand.

He took it, covering hers with both of his and he smiled. “No. Thank you.”

Kiyo assumed he referred to Niamh’s vision of the bright future he and his mate had ahead of them.

“Give Thea my love,” Niamh offered.

“I will. And you have hers. You have our loyalty, Niamh. You know where to find us if ever you need us.”

Watching as Niamh fought tears of gratitude, Kiyo felt frustrated. She had no one now. No family. And she wasn’t like him. She wasn’t built to survive without someone to love. Days ago, he would have sneered at her for the weakness.

Now he felt powerless in the face of her loneliness.

They watched Conall stride through the airport, drawing stares from almost everyone who passed him. He disappeared up the escalators toward security, and Kiyo turned to Niamh.

“We should call Bran.”

“Who were Caelan and Lennox?” she replied instead.

Still uncomfortable with Niamh knowing about his curse, he hesitated before replying. “Conall’s father and grandfather. I knew them before Conall was born.”

To his gratitude, she left it at that.

“Call Bran.” She sighed heavily, crossing her arms over her chest. “Our only lead is Tokyo. So let’s go there. As safely as we can.”

Kiyo nodded, glad to have a plan and to get her the hell out of Paris. Although she was acting calm and collected, there was a strain around her eyes and the color hadn’t returned to her cheeks. The problem was definitely Niamh’s guilt over her brother’s death. With that hanging over her head, she was a ticking time bomb, and Kiyo wasn’t sure how to broach the subject or if he even should.

Leaving his concerns behind for the moment, Kiyo contacted Bran and got him up to speed. Minutes later, Bran had checked the security tapes in the airport and cross-checked all passengers logged on flights in and out of Paris in the next few hours with the names of members of the Blackwood Coven and The Garm. No names came up. They seemed to be safe, so Bran booked them on a flight to Tokyo using the false passport information he’d given them back in Sweden.

Kiyo had wandered off a bit to talk to Bran. When he hung up, he collected his and Niamh’s tickets from a self-service machine and turned to find her. Niamh leaned against the wall near the entrance doors, her eyes closed. She appeared suddenly very young and lost.

He knew what it was like to lose the one person who kept you anchored. Home wasn’t a house or a building somewhere. Home was a person. Kiyo knew that better than anyone. Ronan had been Niamh’s home, and without him … Tamashii ga nuketa. She was a lost soul.

Striding toward her, his eyes fixed on her, his pulse leapt when she opened her eyes to meet his gaze. Ignoring the sensation, he slowed to a stop before her and held up the ticket with a wry smirk. “Bran booked us first-class tickets to Tokyo.” It had been awhile since Kiyo had traveled first class anywhere. It wasn’t that he couldn’t afford it; he’d just already been through what he considered the extravagant, indulgent phase of his life in the ’80s. He grew bored with it quickly. It wasn’t him.

“That was nice of him.” She took the proffered ticket. “Did he say anything else?”

“Just that we seem to be safe.” He explained Bran’s security checks. “Our flight leaves soon but we have time to eat. Why don’t we head to the first-class lounge and get something there?”

Niamh nodded docilely and fell into step beside him. He kept looking at her out of the corner of his eyes, worry niggling at him.

She frowned at her feet. “Why did it take you so long to come to the apartment?”

He frowned in return. “Considering the situation, I think Conall and I got there pretty fast.”

“But weren’t you following me in Sèvres? When I was following Meghan?”

Kiyo drew to a halt. “No, I wasn’t.”

Niamh stopped with him.

“You were followed?”

She searched his face, his worry reflected in her eyes. “I can’t say for sure. But I’m rarely wrong. I felt like I was being followed. I was so focused on the witch and I didn’t feel any danger, so I just ignored it. Then when you and Conall showed, I just assumed it had been you following me.”

“You didn’t feel any danger?”

“None.”

Shit. Kiyo did not like mysterious subplots. He glanced around them, searching the crowds for anything out of the ordinary. “You sense anything now?”

“Not at the moment.”