See How She Runs (The Chronicles of Izzy #1)(69)

“What are you thinking, Izzy?" Kennan grumbled out, drowsily.

“That this is perfect. It was worth everything that I have been through. If I had to do it all over again, I would," I said, and realized it was the truth. It had all brought us together and I would not change a second of it.

He bent over and kissed the top of my head and continued to trace my body making my flesh rise under his touch.

“Not perfect yet, but it will be,"he said, and I was confused. I wondered if I had done something wrong. I looked up into his face and saw concern there.

“What’s wrong?"

“I just keep thinking about the way your body looked strapped to that machine. I keep thinking about that night in the recovery room. I was not strong enough to help you then. I hope I am now," he said as his brows furrowed.

I turned onto my stomach so that I could look at him. I brushed my fingers across his furrowed brow trying to smooth it out. I planted gentle kisses all along the face that I loved so much.

“Well, we have to sleep soon because I really am exhausted. If you want to wait and try tomorrow, I will understand. If it gets too bad, just go find Molly. She can usually break into my thoughts and pull me from the dream." I hated putting any pressure on him.

“No, we are going to do this together. So you just rest and if it happens I will be there," he said, pulling me in for a kiss before I snuggled back down.





**********





THIRTY





I laid my head against Kennan’s chest and let his heartbeat lull me to sleep. I felt myself slip into the dreaming even as I clung to the present. I could not stop it no matter how hard I fought. It always managed to drag me under.





**********





I was in a car dangling off of the edge of a bridge that had collapsed. I knew the bridge. It was a favorite of my tortures. This was the very bridge I had stopped from collapsing. That did not change the fact that it was gone now.

I looked down and saw water rushing below. I looked back toward the back of the car and wondered if this time I would be able to make it out of the car. I unbuckled my seatbelt and started to crawl toward the back of the car. I hoped that I would be able to put more weight on the back and keep it from falling.

As I moved the car began to slip, just like it always did. I looked back down through the windshield and saw remnants of cars that had fallen before me. I tried to get in the back more quickly. I made it and went to open the door. The doors seemed to be welded shut.

The only way out was blocked. I was trapped and I was going to fall. Just as the car began to make its final slip off of the bridge, I felt a strong hand grasp my arm and pull me out. As soon as my feet touched the ground the car fell from the bridge.

“I’ve got you, Izzy. You are safe," Kennan said as he pulled me against his chest. I breathed out slowly as everything went black and I was sucked into oblivion.





**********





I spent the rest of the night sleeping peacefully for the first time in more than a month. He had kept his word, he had come for me. The next morning I woke up feeling more like myself than I had in ages. I was still wrapped in Kennan’s arms and I looked up to find him watching me.

“Thank you," I mumbled against the sheet.

“What? I can’t understand you with sheet in your mouth, Iz.”

I turned my head away from his and said it again.

“Thank you.”

“What are you doing?" Kennan asked, bemused.

“I have stinky breath. I am trying not to kill you," I said into the pillow.

He pulled me so that I was looking at him and I tried to keep a sheet or something between us so that I did not murder him with my swamp breath.

He just pulled me closer and gave me a firm, closed-mouth kiss.

“I love you, you strange and glorious girl," he said into my hair as I tried to hide my face again.

I squirmed out of the bed and went to the bathroom to brush my teeth. I looked at myself in the mirror and noticed that some of the swelling had already gone down under my eyes. I also had a spark back in them that had been missing. I was not back to being one hundred percent myself yet, but I knew with Kennan’s help I would be just fine.

I returned to the bed and threw myself on him. I ravaged him thoroughly before we left for the second Council meeting.





**********





We got to the meeting and took our seats. I noticed that there were far fewer people present at this meeting. I knew we did not have to be there, but I felt like I wanted to take in everything I could. I wanted to gather all of the information I possibly could so that I would be able to figure out what to do next. I knew that there was something amiss. I could tell from the look on Kennan’s face that he felt it as well. Molly and Ian joined us just before the meeting started.

“You look better, Izzy," Molly whispered as she sat with a knowing twinkle in her eye.

I blushed violently as the room was called to order. The meeting passed with little excitement. There were interviews conducted of all of the Guardians. They pretty much regurgitated one another’s story. It was utterly boring. I had gotten absolutely no useful information from any of it. As we were released, the old crone leader smiled down at me.