Scarred

Chapter 26: Arrivals

Here's the next chapter - yay! Little longer than usual, but I think it should hold okay on Watt formatting. If you have trouble with it, let me know and I'll split it up like I did last time.

Enjoy! And please don't forget to vote!

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Michael woke from his doze, his arms wrapped securely around Lucienne still sleeping on his lap. He quickly did a mental scan of the area, knowing that something had brought him to full alertness. He recognized the presence silently approaching him, and mentally shook his head at the assassin's approach.

"Silas, are you attempting to test my skills again?" he asked his Made with amusement.

"Fucking hell! I didn't even get through the first fucking perimeter of security," Silas replied, irritation and wounded pride in his tone. "You're the only fucking person I've never been able to sneak up on, Michael," the man paused and then went on in a cajoling tone. "You're the only one good enough for me to practice on."

"If you wish to use me as a test subject, might I suggest that from this point forward, you ascertain whether I am alone, first. My Ruach is currently with me. Had you succeeded, you may not have enjoyed my reaction," Michael cautioned, knowing his Made would understand the warning.

"Aww fuck. Sorry Michael, Elijah mentioned you'd found her and it's fucking sloppy of me not to have accounted for that. And you're bonded already?" Silas asked with surprise, sensing something different about his Maker.

Michael shook his head in amusement, knowing he'd taken Silas very off guard for the man to be cussing so much. "Yes, we have completed the bonding, and she has agreed to make the Alpha meeting her first official appearance as my consort."

"Hence calling in me and Kate, got it. She turned yet?" Silas asked, his mental voice turning professional to get the details he'd need.

Michael chuckled softly, "There has not yet been the time to devote to a turning," he replied. "Our first outing together was less than a week ago."

Silas went silent, shock echoing down their mental link. "How long have you known each other?" he asked, and Michael knew what his Made was really asking.

Ruach bonds were tricky things, and he'd not exaggerated the potential danger when he'd explained them to Lucienne. Normally a vampire spent just as long as humans in getting to know their Ruach and almost every human partner was turned long before the bonding was ever attempted. Michael and Lucienne had broken almost all the rules of a typical bonding. But then, our bonding is hardly typical, he thought to himself with amusement while softly brushing his lips against her hair.

"I first laid eyes on her not quite three weeks ago," he admitted to his Made and almost laughed when stunned silence was his only reply for several minutes. "Our bonding has been quite unique," Michael added mildly. "An early bond had already occurred and we'd exchanged memories, though neither of us were aware of what had transpired at that time. They remained locked in our subconscious until the bond grew stronger, which admittedly did not take long," he finished with another mental chuckle.

"Fuck," Silas finally replied, and Michael's lips twitched with a smile that his Made was cussing again. "You know there's fucking unique and then there's you. Nothing around you is ever normal, Michael. Boredom will never be a problem," Silas finished with a mental laugh.

Michael marveled at himself when he realized that Silas' blunt words didn't trigger pain or anger the way they would have before. It's due to Lucienne, he realized with a start. Even unintentional references to his scars or how he got them would have him upset before. Now they apparently held no emotional attachment for him. I am truly blessed to have been gifted with her, he thought to himself.