The Legacy: A Custodes Noctis Book (3 page)

Chapter Two

Galen pulled the truck up behind his building, bringing it to a rattling stop. He grabbed his first aid kit and jumped out of the truck, walked around it and wrenched open the passenger door. “We’re here, can you help?” he said to Rhiannon. She opened her eyes with a wan smile and nodded, swinging her legs out of the truck and putting an arm over Galen’s shoulders. He helped her the rest of the way out and up the stairs to the apartment, dropping her gently on the couch before flipping on the lights.

“Time for the whammy?” she said, her eyes trying to focus on him.

Galen nodded, kneeling by the couch and rubbing his hands together before laying one on the wound on her shoulder and the other over her heart. He let the light flow, her eyes drifted close as he felt his hands heat up. Galen let his eyes close as he focused on the movement between his hands waiting until he felt the black poison from the blade recede. He pulled away and dropped back on his heels.

Rhiannon opened her eyes. “All fixed?”

“Mostly, the wound isn’t knitted, but it might need to drain a bit.”

“You know best, doc,” she said, pushing herself into a sitting position.

“I’m not a doctor.” Galen stood and wandered into the kitchen. The healing left him a little light-headed, as always. He pulled a sparkling water out of the fridge and took a long drink.

“That fancy piece of paper on the wall says doctor.”

“It says Ph.D. not M.D.,” he said with a laugh, grabbing another water and walking back to the couch.

“I remember when you got into grad school, Parry was bursting with pride.”

“He was a little embarrassing about it sometimes,” Galen laughed. “He and Bobby both. Even though…I still went and…I think they were a little sad, too,” Galen said suddenly. “It was a little symbolic of the break, that I continued even after what happened.”

“He was proud, he and Bobby both. They were planning such a party…” She stopped herself, looking at him. “Sorry.”

“Five years ago, right? I know. Right before my birthday, right before It came for me again.”

Rhiannon smiled gently. “It is today isn’t it?”

“One in the morning,” he said quietly. Memories were crowding in, pressing against him.

Rhiannon put a gentle hand on his shoulder. “Galen?”

He looked at her. “Yeah?”

“What happened to Parry and Bobby wasn’t your fault.”

“It was though, they were protecting me. Shit, the Emrys line of Keepers ended that night, five years ago.”

“The line isn’t ended, Galen.”

“It is,” he snapped out. “And Dad and Uncle Bobby died defending that end. Defending me.  It came for
me,
Rhiannon. I…I couldn’t even save them.” Galen sighed and got up again.  He walked to the cupboard, and dug out two shot glasses and a bottle of tequila. “Since it is today.” He poured them both a shot and held one out to her.

“To Parry and Bobby,” she said, clinking her glass against his.

“When will we get there, Galen?” The bright smile beamed from the passenger seat.
Galen took a deep breath, a lump forming in his throat, the loss suddenly fresh. “To Rob.”

“To Rob,” Rhiannon acknowledged quietly. “Galen? In all these years, I’ve never really asked, but do you want to tell me? How it began?”

“You were there.”

“About halfway through the beginning.”

“The beginning of the end?” He heard the bitter note in his voice. Galen poured them another shot. Suddenly the need to talk materialized as the old wound in his chest gave a hard twist.

“Galen?”

“It’s okay…” He took another slow breath, the past crowding him. “You know that as
Custodes Noctis—
Keepers—we’re raised by adoptive parents until we’re thirteen?”

“Yeah, you told me. And always brothers.”

“Brothers.” He sighed. “Five years apart. Always the same birthday. Like Dad and Uncle Bobby. At thirteen, we come to live with the older Keepers, to learn about what we do, to train for our lives as
Custodes Noctis
.”

“Protecting the world from the night?”

He nodded, they went over it every year, a familiar ritual, comforting. “
Custodes Noctis
, Keepers of the Night, the ancient line, keeping the world safe and protected from those things that the creatures of the night fear.” The words flowed off his tongue almost as a chant, a lesson learned and repeated hundreds of times.

“And ten years ago you…”

“I went to pick up Rob from his adoptive parents. Down in California. It was supposed to be a three-day drive. We were taking it in easy stages. We had gotten to know each other over the years, he came here for weekends and part of the summer, but that was the big move and I went to get him, the way the older brother always has, since the
Custodes Noctis
began.”

“A hero’s journey,” she said gently.

“I don’t know about that,” he said. He could hear the bitterness in his voice, the old emotions consuming him as the tequila loosened his tongue. “It was our second day on the road…”

Past

Ten years before

Day One

Afternoon was moving into early evening, the traffic thinned after they passed through the last town and the radio had given way to static. Galen was trying out various music choices, most met with disgusted grunts from the passenger seat. He finally gave up and slammed “Jupiter” into the tape player.

“When will we get there, Galen?” Rob asked after several minutes of Mozart. Galen looked over. His nearly thirteen-year-old brother smiled at him with a bright, carefree smile.

“When are we going to get where?”

“You know.” His brother rolled his eyes.

“We’ll be there tomorrow night,” Galen said and Rob sighed. Galen waited for a minute or two, but couldn’t stop himself from smiling at his brother’s repeated dramatic sighs. “Don’t worry Rob, we’ll be there in time for our birthday.” He knew Rob was asking about more than just their birthday.

“Promise, Galen?”

“Yeah, Rob. I promise, like I did yesterday and the day before…”

“And the day before,” Rob finished for him. He grinned at Galen. “And it’s a big day all around, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, you start your training with me the next day.” He grinned back at Rob.

“The formal training to make me
Custodes Noctis
, right?”

“No, the training to make you shut up sometimes,” Galen said, giving his brother a little shove.

“Yeah, right.” Rob shoved back. “At thirteen we leave our first family, begin our training with our brother and we learn how to use our Gift. We take the first steps into the night, the place others fear, but we walk. Right?” Rob had repeated most of it in a little sing-song. A lesson repeated many times over the years.

“Right. Our family has been Keepers since before Rome, since before the stone circles. We have protected people from the night and the things even the dark fears,” Galen went on.

“Always brothers, always of the same family.”

“Right.”

“We get to get stay at a hotel again tonight, don’t we?” Rob changed the subject with a sly grin. The trip was a huge adventure for him, and he was making the most of time with just the two of them. It had been sparing in the past, except for late nights talking in the privacy of one or the other’s room. The time had been filled with lessons and the first of their training.

 
“Yeah, we’ll get to stay in a hotel tonight, Rob. We’ll pull off for dinner first, how’s that sound?”

“Can I pick, Galen?”

“Sure, what do you want tonight?”

“Burgers? We had pizza last night and tacos the night before.”

“Keeping track of everywhere we eat?”

“Yep, I don’t want to repeat until after our birthday,” he said, smiling at Galen. He took every chance to remind Galen their birthday was just around the corner.

“What happens if we repeat?”

Rob shrugged. “I don’t know. Just seemed fun, you know.” Rob’s smile faded just a tiny bit. Sometimes leaving his adoptive family hit him, and a slight sadness crept into his voice.

“Sure, something different is always good.” Galen smiled at him. Rob’s smile brightened again.

“Can I have dessert, too? A sundae?”

“Yeah, Rob, sure.” Galen noticed exit signs coming up. “Want to stop here? Or later?”

“Now? I’m kind of hungry now, Galen, if it’s okay?” His brother still sounded a little sad, Galen could sense the edge of Rob’s uncertainty.

“Wouldn’t have asked if it wasn’t.” He followed the exit down to a small town. “What do you think about Pat’s Burgers?” Galen said, pulling into a diner alongside the road. “Hey,” he said, putting a hand on Rob’s arm before the other could get out.

“Yeah, Galen?”

“I know it’s not quite our birthday, but I thought you might like this.” Galen pulled a small package out of his pocket and handed it to Rob.

His brother took it with wide eyes. “Can I open it now?”

“That’s why I gave it to you,” Galen said, smiling.

Rob ripped the paper off and carefully opened the box. His eyes lit up as he reverently pulled the copper, silver and bronze bracelet out. He laughed happily, a joyous sound. “This makes it official, doesn’t it?” he said with a proud grin.

Galen grinned back. “Yeah, Brat, it does.” Galen slid the bracelet over his brother’s left wrist. The design remained unchanged from the first ones made millennia before, the badge of the Keeper,
Custodes Noctis.
Each design was unique to a given family line. “There’s more.”

Rob pulled the cotton aside and gave a low whistle. He pulled the small knife out of the box and smiled as he slid the blade out of the scabbard.

“Brother to brother,” Galen said with a gentle smile. “Happy birthday. What?” Rob was grinning at him. His brother handed him a small package, carefully wrapped in the Sunday comics. “What’s this?” Galen asked.

“I’ve been doing my homework,” Rob said, a little shyly. “Brother to brother,” he solemnly repeated the formal phrase.

Galen smiled a little quizzically. He opened the package, a small silver-hilted knife rested on the bright paper. A Celtic knot wound its way down the hilt and scabbard. It was almost identical to the one he’d given Rob
.
He was silent for a moment as he held the gift. “You have done your homework, the traditional gift for when we start training together.”

“Do you like it?” Rob asked quietly. Galen looked up, questioning eyes met his, unsure. “I saved up for a long time to get it.”

“It’s perfect.”  He smiled at Rob.

 “Oh, good,” Rob said with an exaggerated sigh.

 “We’re a good team already, Rob.”

“Really?” Rob beamed at him. “And I’ve been reading the sagas. I know the ones about the First Emrys and the Legacy by heart now, Galen.”

“You do?”

“Sure I do! In modern English, Latin and Anglo-Saxon. I was planning to start on the Old Norse and Irish, but I didn’t have time. I didn’t know if I’d get quizzed by Dad and Uncle Bobby on that. The sagas pretty important to the family.”

“More than just pretty important.”

“Will they ask me about the Anglo-Saxon?” Rob said eagerly. “Will I get extra points?”

“I’m not sure. They never asked me.”

“Ah, shit.” Rob looked over at him with a quirked eyebrow.

Galen laughed at that. “Ready to eat, Brat? And you might want to watch your language around Dad.” He tucked the two knives carefully into the glove box.

“Yeah, right. How’s it look?” Rob held out his wrist, the cuff bracelet sparkled in the streetlight. He held it next to Galen’s arm, looking from his bracelet to his brother’s.

“Looks good.”

“Yeah, it does.” Rob pulled the sleeve of his sweatshirt back down. The day had cooled as the sun set.

They got out and went into the restaurant. It was bright and faux-fifties. Galen shook his head when Rob declared it “Kinda awesome.” They were seated at a booth in the back; a pretty, young waitress came over to take their orders. “What do you want Rob?”

“Cheeseburger, and can I have a milkshake, Galen? It’d be a nice treat before my birthday,” Rob said with an innocent smile.

Galen laughed. “Okay, I’ll have a burger and coffee.”

“Wow, it’s going to be your birthday? We’ll get you that milkshake for free,” the waitress, her name tag said Ashley, said. “How old will you be?”

“Thirteen, day after tomorrow.”

“Really? That’s interesting. There’s a full moon that night, too.” The waitress smiled at Rob and Galen felt the hair on the back of his neck rise.

“Rob,” Galen said with a frown.

“Yeah?” Rob pulled his eyes from the waitress, he had been staring at her. He caught Galen’s look and just smiled at Ashley-the-waitress until she left.