Battle With Fire by K.F. Breene

Epilogue

The shadows lengthenedacross the cracked pavement and crawled up the walls of the cemetery. Smokey waited in his usual spot, watching the goings-on in the street. His gaze swung right, and he tensed. Confused, he looked at me.

The door opened in the house next door. Mikey stepped out and closed it behind him, his shirt freshly pressed, his jeans new, and a great-smelling aftershave wafting toward me. He glanced my way and scowled so hard I nearly warned him that his face would get stuck like that. Though I didn’t want to give him ideas.

“When are you moving?” I asked as Smokey went back to watching something down the street.

“Fuck you,” Mikey spat, leaning against his freshly replaced railing. A gold watch glittered on his wrist—a Rolex.

“Millionaires do not live in this neighborhood, Mikey. You’re in the wrong place.”

“You’re a millionaire and you’re still here,” he said.

“No, my boyfriend is a millionaire. He doesn’t live here.”

He pointed at me with perfectly clipped and buffed nails. “I’m still not talking to you. You’re dead to me.”

“Why are you blaming me? The Red Prophet told you to invest in those stocks, not me.”

“I bet she told you I’d have the cops swarming all over me, didn’t she?” He crossed his arms over his chest. “I bet she told you that I’d spend a month worried I’d go to prison for a white-collar crime. Do you know what they do to guys like me who get pinched for white-collar shit?”

“Nothing, because you’d beat them senseless if they tried.”

He huffed and looked over at Smokey, who had taken the whole thing much better. He’d endured the investigation into insider trading with few words and a habitually pale face. But they’d made it, just as the Red Prophet had said they would, and now they were filthy rich. The guys who were actually guilty of insider trading were currently awaiting trial.

“Where’d she go, anyway?” Mikey asked. “She brought the heat on me and then disappeared, is that it?”

I shrugged, watching the quiet street. It had been three months now since the battle, but no one had heard from her. Romulus was still looking, as a matter of fact. He didn’t like that she’d been missing for so long. Karen refused to use her Sight to track her down.

“It was hell, but…I guess I should at least say thanks, know what I’m saying?” He scratched his head. “I don’t like talking about it, because it’s nobody’s business, but I heard Smokey tell you, so I’ll just say it…” He rolled his shoulders. “I’m set for life. I don’t never have to work again. If I have kids, they probably won’t have to work, neither. Though they will, because they need to learn that life ain’t easy. But still…” He turned his face away and then put his hands on his hips. “I should at least say thanks, you know?”

“If I ever see her, I’ll tell her to stop by. If you’re gone by then, I’ll tell her for you, how’s that?”

He nodded and leaned against the railing. “What’s your plan?”

“I don’t know.” The words rode a sigh. “Probably go meet my dad tomorrow.”

He pointed downward and lifted his eyebrows.

“Yeah,” I said.

He nodded. “I liked that guy better than the fanged fuckers. He seemed more like one of us. More down to earth, you know?”

A slight figure sauntered into view, all hips and breasts, even with her dainty frame. I squinted at the sky, the last of the sun’s rays finally disappearing. That was why Smokey was confused, most likely. A vampire, walking in the failing sun.

“Did you turn back into a human or something?” I asked Ja as she stopped in front of my house.

“At my age, the dying sun is merely an aggravation.”

She was aiming for dramatics, then.

She was wasting her efforts on me.

“Fuck that.” Mikey jogged down his stairs and started away. “See ya around, Reagan,” he called.

I crossed a heavy boot over my leather-clad knee as Ja approached, not bothering to get up. “To what do I owe the annoyance?”

“You won, as I knew you would.”

“I thought you were supposed to be on my side when that happened?”

“I was on your side. Delayed in the Underworld, but on your side.”

“Hmm.” I chuckled. “You tried to mess with Darius, then me, and you helped my father…but you were somehow on my side?”

She fixed her long blond hair, a change since I’d seen her last. “You know enough about vampire politics not to equate…my information gathering with sides. I helped your father contact you, that is all. I would’ve done more to protect you had I not been the subject of…scrutiny in the Underworld.”

That had another meaning, but I didn’t much care what it meant. “Fine. What do you want?”

“You will need strong allies when you take your place within the Dark Kingdom. I am here to remind you that none are stronger than me.” She held out her hands. “I have a long history in the Underworld. I would be an incredible asset.”

“Maybe. And if my father gives me a job, my first order of business will be to make Darius an ambassador so that he can deal with you.”

“Remember who helped you,” she said softly.

I laughed. “Remember who helped you.”

She opened her mouth to reply, but instead I tossed my hand. Air gathered and fire coalesced. In a moment, she went tumbling down the street in a ball of flame. It wouldn’t kill her, but it would certainly ruin her day.

“How’s that for dramatic?” I murmured as Smokey grinned and gave me a thumbs-up from across the street. Too bad he wasn’t magical, or he could visit me in the Underworld.

I squinted at him and half wondered if he’d want to become a vampire. Or a shifter. Either could be arranged…

A lime-green Lamborghini revved as it rolled down the street, cutting into my thoughts. The timing of Ja’s visit wasn’t lost on me. Darius pulled up to the curb in front of my house and got out, his hair styled just so, his suit like a coat of paint, and his whole person incredibly mouth-watering. I smiled like a dummy as he fixed his cuff link and then closed the car door. He nodded a hello to Smokey before coming around the car.

“Hello, mon ange,” he greeted me, walking up the steps. “How is your evening so far?”

“I got a visit from Ja a few moments ago. I sent her up the street in a ball of fire.”

He glanced in the right direction before taking the seat next to me. “Dare I ask what she wanted?”

“A strong connection in the Underworld.” I shared the gist of the conversation with him.

“She is disheveled, it would seem. Some things haven’t gone her way. She’s trying to gauge what options are available to her. This meeting with Vlad couldn’t come at a better time.”

A wave of butterflies overtook my stomach. “I won’t let him hurt you, you know that.”

“I am hoping it won’t come to that. He has made no actions against me. He has kept his distance, like he did before all of this started.”

“But, like…if it does come to that, I will not stand aside while you two brawl. He won’t be allowed to hurt you.”

Darius reached for my hand. “I understand.”

A crummy older Honda puttered up the street. It pulled in front of Darius’s car. The sound of an old handbrake being applied preceded Vlad exiting the car. He nodded to Smokey before coming around the hood to the sidewalk.

“You don’t match,” I called, still holding Darius’s hand. “That incredibly expensive suit does not match that car.”

Vlad didn’t glance at his wheels, but instead stopped at the bottom of my porch steps. “May I come up?”

“Sure, yeah.” I motioned him on.

“I like to blend into neighborhoods like this,” he said, stopping near the banister. “It annoys me when I walk out to discover my car has been boosted.”

“No one would steal your car in this neighborhood,” I replied.

Vlad looked at me before turning to the rest of the street. “No, likely not.”

I stood and opened the front door. I’d taken the ward down for this meeting.

Darius waited as I entered, gesturing Vlad in after me.

“Please,” Vlad said, repeating the gesture. “I insist.”

I took a seat at the kitchen table. Darius had mentioned beforehand that we’d keep this meeting casual. Vlad took the chair opposite me, and Darius set about collecting drinks.

“Congratulations,” Vlad said to me, his perfect smile matching his perfect face. Though, unlike Michael, Vlad at least had a whole lot of menace just below the surface. “You achieved your goal. Your method was unorthodox, but the end result is all that matters.”

“Yeah. Maybe I’ll nearly die the next time I need something, too.” I leaned back. “Sucks you didn’t think of it.”

“Indeed,” Vlad said.

Darius delivered a cognac for himself and Vlad and then set a whiskey in front of me. He took his chair and then my hand.

“Ja visited us in the shifter compound. I’m sure you’ve heard,” Darius started.

“A few times, it seems.” Vlad took a sip of his beverage. “She is going to be a problem.”

“Agreed. She filled me in on the part you played, regarding how I was made.”

“Yes, I heard. I did not bring my pistols, sadly. How do you plan to settle this?”

Darius’s eyes glittered. Vlad was clearly making a joke, but the sentiment didn’t reach his cold, calculating eyes.

“Why did you never tell me?”

Vlad sat back, studying Darius. “You are a changed vampire since Reagan. Dare I say a changed man? You would not have treated the matter with such indifference back in the day. For a long time, that woman was a sticking point for you. You were not rational about it.”

Darius slowly took a sip. “It is true, then? You orchestrated everything?”

“No, as a matter of fact. I did not plant her. My driver would have run her over had I not stopped him. No offense, old friend, but she was a nobody.”

Darius didn’t comment.

“That was the first time you came to my notice,” Vlad said. “Quite gallant. Large for the time, strong frame, ease of movement… I looked into you then. You know what I saw.”

Darius inclined his head. Vlad would’ve seen his fortune, basically. His land. All of his assets. He also would’ve figured out that a man so adept in keeping his fortune had a keen business sense and intelligent mind.

“I did coax her toward you and seed her foolish notions about vampires, of course,” Vlad said.

“Were you fucking her?” Darius asked, and a flash of cold washed through me. I wasn’t even sure what had caused that emotion. I guess I just hadn’t expected Darius to ask. Maybe I hadn’t expected him to care?

Maybe I’d hoped he wouldn’t…

As if hearing my thoughts, he stroked his thumb across my skin.

I merely want everything out in the open, he thought.

“No, I was not,” Vlad said. “In those days, I would’ve tied blood with sex. I couldn’t take her blood, for obvious reasons.” Namely, it would have given her a different “vampire” to fear. “I doubt I could’ve seduced her, anyway. She was quite religious. Fanatically so.”

“Of course,” Darius said, his thumb still stroking my skin. “Reagan was amazed you went through the effort.”

Vlad slid his gaze to me. “Yes. Times have changed.”

“That’s what I told her. Have you experienced what the Underworld has to offer?”

“Will we race to sire a brood?” Vlad asked with the briefest of smiles.

Cold ran through me for a different reason, and then sparklers flared in my stomach. This time, Darius’s grip on my hand tightened.

“No,” Darius replied. “We are in no hurry. Reagan needs to decide what she’d like to do in the present before we look to the future.”

“But it’s in your plans?” Vlad asked.

Darius looked at me, his beautiful eyes soft and bright. “Yes, someday. If Reagan wishes it.”

I did wish it, but…not yet. Darius had his finger on the pulse of the situation. I needed to settle down and live my own life for a while. Only when that was going steadily could I think of creating another. I was thankful he understood.

That didn’t mean we needed to wait forever for…well, forever. Emery had wasted no time proposing, and he and Penny had wasted no time in tying the knot. I’d honestly expected Darius to ask when we were in Rome. It had been plenty romantic.

“Speaking of the present,” Vlad said, thankfully changing the subject, “I hear Roger is a lot more amenable to vampire activities in the Brink.” Just like that, I knew they’d put the issue about Darius’s making behind them. It was a small thing, obviously, in the face of much bigger issues, like Ja and the changing of the worlds. I was happy it had proven so anticlimactic.

I did wonder why Darius had wanted to have their meeting here, though. That seemed odd.

“Yes. I’d hoped to get your help there.” He turned to me. “Reagan, this will be vampire politics. You are welcome to stay if you want or—”

“Nope.” I let go of his hand and pushed my chair back. “I’ll make myself scarce.”

Darius and Vlad both stood when I did, gentlemen from a different era. Vlad would keep up the manners even if he was plotting to kill me, I knew. Which I definitely doubted, given my new standing.

I tried not to smile. But honestly, it was seriously cool.

“I wondered, actually,” Darius said before I could get away, “if you’d do me the honor of putting on one of the dresses upstairs and getting ready for dinner? I have a very important meeting to attend, and I’d hoped for your company.”

I paused at the edge of the kitchen. It wasn’t like him not to warn me about that kind of thing. Then again, he might’ve been worried this evening would go horribly wrong with Vlad. It was always hard to tell with him.

“Yeah, sure,” I replied.

Reagan, Vlad thought, and I paused again. They couldn’t have said all of this before I left the table? I know if you’d asked, Lucifer would’ve delivered me to you. I can only assume that would’ve been to kill me, which we both know is in your power.

I nodded, waiting for more.

He gave me a slight bow. There was a time when you might’ve leaned on that power, out of spite. Maybe for a joke. There was a time Darius would’ve demanded it. I am in your debt. Darius will know what to do with that information, if you don’t.

I stared, wide-eyed and mute. I hadn’t expected that admission, even if we both knew it was true. Since when were vampires so forthcoming in putting themselves at someone’s mercy?

When that someone was connected to Lucifer, maybe. This was probably Vlad’s way of sucking up.

I inclined my head instead of bowing, and headed upstairs.

Three dresses awaited me, although I had no idea when they’d been put there or by whom. Then again, I was getting used to that sort of thing.

“Hello—”

I sent a burst of air and slammed Marie to the wall. She grinned mischievously and waited for me to release her.

That explained how the dresses had gotten in here.

“So powerful,” she purred, slinking closer. “Darius is a lucky vampire.”

“What are you doing here?” I asked, turning back to the dresses.

She gave the answer I was expecting. “I will help you get ready. How are these selections? I have others in the car, if you’d prefer.”

She must’ve snuck in the back while we were talking to Vlad. Darius was being very sneaky. This dinner had to have be important.

I shrugged and crossed the room to my chair. “Don’t care.”

She selected a frosty-blue number with sparkly strips across the neck that looked like diamonds. It had a plunging neckline and a swooping back. The bottom would hit the floor but not impede my steps. It would make me look graceful and gorgeous, glamorous and elegant.

It would also put my knockers on display. You’re welcome, Darius.

Marie left the room and returned with a high chair and standing lights. I sat dutifully and let her work her magic on my face and hair. There was no point in resisting. Besides, I’d rather save myself the trouble.

That done, I undressed myself, because she could get handsy, and accepted barely there lingerie. The dress skimmed down my skin like a waterfall and clung to all the right places. She attempted to offer me very pointy shoes, and I pushed for flats instead. She relented because she probably knew my next suggestion would be boots. This wasn’t our first rodeo.

Darius waited in the living room, another book in hand. Action adventure this time. He closed it when I walked in, his eyes taking me in.

“Beautiful,” he said. He stood gracefully and dropped the book to the coffee table. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” I said, smiling. Vlad had clearly left.

His lips curved up at the corners as he drifted closer, his suit and poise and movements blending together to create an impression of elegance.

“Shall we?” He held out his arm, and I took it.

“Dare I ask where we’re going?”

He opened the door when we reached it, stood aside for me to pass through, and then closed it behind him. Apparently Marie would see herself out.

“You can ask, if you’d like.” He held out his arm again, and I noticed his Lamborghini was gone, replaced with a black sedan with a grumpy driver in the front.

“But you won’t be filling me in.” I waved to Smokey as Darius opened the door. “You are very predictable.”

“I enjoy surprising you.”

“Do I need to be on my best behavior?” I asked as I got in. He closed the door and crossed to the other side.

“No, not for this.”

Moss’s hard gaze appeared in the rearview mirror, trained on me, but his brows lowered when I noticed him. Without a word, he looked back down and we were on our way.

I expected to head downtown or to the airport. That was where Darius usually took me for one of these things. This time, though, Moss drove to the highway heading away from town.

“Why bring Moss if we’re driving?” I asked. “I mean, don’t get me wrong, his surly silence really complements any long and tedious car journey, but usually you take a faster mode of transportation.”

“I met you through one of your bounty hunter contracts,” Darius said, entwining his fingers with mine. “Do you remember? You nearly stole the mark right out from under me.”

I furrowed my brow, digging through my hazy pre-bond memories. I wondered where he was going with this.

“Yeah, I remember. You needed to send a bunch of your vampires after me to get him back. I lost out on that contract because of you.”

“Yes. You intrigued me, which does not happen easily. I’ve been alive for nearly a thousand years. I’ve seen all manner of creatures and learned to expect the unexpected. I did not think I could be surprised by a mere human, magical or otherwise. Most shifters are not even fast or strong enough to combat a vampire of my stature. Only Roger would give me pause, and I knew he wouldn’t be able to get there in time.”

He took a deep breath and glanced out the window.

“And then a beautiful, if somewhat disheveled, woman waltzed in and stole my prize right out from under me. I couldn’t believe the audacity.”

“I recall that you were quite arrogant back in the day, yes.”

“Still am, actually. Just not with you.” He smiled and then leaned over to kiss me. “Your speed took me by surprise. Your affinity for violence. The menace you oozed, as if it were a birthright.” He shook his head, his smile growing. “Your smell enticed me. Your grace in battle. Your fire. I wanted you that night.”

“You had a helluva way of showing it,” I said with raised eyebrows. “You seemed incredibly put out by the whole thing.”

“Of course I did. An elder vampire does not show reactions to trivial things.”

There was that arrogance I remembered.

“I couldn’t stop thinking about you after we parted. It hadn’t happened in…a great many years. So many I can’t think of the last time. I was unsettled, and so I cornered you into a meeting. When Vlad met you, he had a similar reaction.”

“And so you cornered me into a new contract.”

“Exactly,” he said, and I knew for a fact he didn’t feel even a little bit remorseful. He looked over at me, warmth seeping into me from our bond. “The surprises continued. How your magic was so incredible and unique. How the unicorns reacted to you. How you handled people, refusing to let them handle you.” His gaze dipped to my lips. “How you pushed back when I tried to steer you or manipulate you.” His pupils dilated. “How your blood called to me. When I think back on it, I realize the signs were always there. I started to fall for you that very first night. You have been on my mind ever since. I didn’t know what it meant at first, but your influence on me was a constant pressure until I had no choice but to give in. I may have tried to trap you in the beginning, Reagan, but you were the one who really trapped me, and I’m glad for it.”

He kissed me again, and I fell into it. His tongue claimed my mouth, deep and sensual, but all too soon he pulled back. He wasn’t through with his confession.

“When I found out what you were, I was blindsided, to say the least. The first thought that would’ve gone through most elders’ minds was the advantage of such an asset. They would immediately start thinking of ways to use you or leverage you for a better position. But I didn’t think of that. Instead, my first thought was about protecting you—guarding you—against those who might seek to use you.” He put his other hand over our joined hands. “What truly blindsided me wasn’t what you were, but the way I reacted to it. The effect you had on me. In the days that followed, I became aware of the feelings I was developing for you. Feelings that vampires are said to be incapable of. But there they were, against all odds. And they were deep and true.”

I blinked back moisture. It was official. He’d turned me into an incredible sap. Moss better not tell Penny, or she’d make fun of me.

“Moss is driving today in remembrance of how we met. He’s driving to give homage to the start of our journey together.”

“And if we could go back in time and pick literally anyone else…”

There came those dark eyes in the rearview mirror again. I grinned wickedly at Moss and tightened my hold on Darius’s hand.

It was then I became aware of where we were. I’d been so engrossed in what Darius was saying that the scenery had passed by without my noticing.

A scowl creased my face as we turned off the main road. I recognized the little red house on the corner, and the town was just as sleepy as I remembered. A couple of people ambled along the sidewalk, one with groceries and another with coffee.

I turned my head as we passed, watching them. A pit formed in my stomach, and sorrow rose to choke me. At this point, I expected the next turn, and the two that followed. I didn’t utter a word as we took the long driveway deeper into the trees and then stopped in front of the tiny house I’d grown up in. That my mother had died in.

“Why are we here?” I asked in a wooden voice.

Moss turned off the car and pushed open the door, getting out. He shut the door after him and moved away from the car.

“I thought you might like to see it again,” Darius murmured.

Tears clouded my vision, and I clenched my jaw, looking out through the window at the woods where I’d learned my magic. Half of my magic, anyway. Memories of my childhood flashed through my mind. Of playing hide-and-seek with her in those woods, and of my explosions of anger when I couldn’t harness the power I knew was there.

I remembered the stack of bills on the kitchen table, none of which I could afford to pay after she passed. The slip of paper tied to the door, telling me to evacuate. The debt collector turning up with the cops and forcing me out.

“I tried to earn enough money to buy it back, but it had already been sold.” I stared at the two-room paradise that held so many happy memories. Its dark windows served as an unneeded reminder of what it had been like at the end, when all I could feel was pain.

Pain that still reverberated through me.

“I never had a chance to buy it back. So I moved on. I have the memories—that’s what counts.”

“This house hasn’t been lived in since you left,” Darius said. “An investor bought it from the bank. He planned to tear it down and build a country club of sorts on the land. He envisioned it as a destination spot for city dwellers.”

I snorted, leaning into him. “Out here? He’s dreaming.”

“Yes, he was. He had big ideas about what to do with his family money and ended up squandering most of it. He gave the property back to the bank. It’s had no takers since.”

“And you bought it so you can play savior.”

I didn’t mean to sound so bitter. This was just one thing I would have preferred for him to leave alone. He’d bought my house for me, fine. He’d remodeled it, okay. He’d bought out the person behind me so he could add space and started building upward—whatever. I wasn’t attached to that place like I was to this one.

This house had been my world, and I’d let it go. It had been my inheritance, and I hadn’t been able to hold on to it. My mother had worked so hard to keep a roof over our heads, and I’d lost everything. To hear that Darius had just handed this to me, like he’d given me everything else… It was a tough pill to swallow.

Not that he could’ve known that. This wasn’t his fault.

“Is there actually a dinner?” I asked, hating the emotion that clogged my throat. The car ride had been so amazing. I looked amazing; he looked amazing. I didn’t want this situation—my past—to dampen the present.

“No, there’s no dinner. Not just yet.” He pushed open his door and got out.

I waited a moment, composing myself, reminding myself again that he meant well. Not many men would care this much about a girl’s past. Not many men were sentimental. I was incredibly lucky to have him.

I took a deep breath and wiped my eyes.

“Big-girl pants, Reagan.”

With another deep breath, I pushed away the confusing rush of pain and anger and got out of the car. Darius met me there and held out his hand. I took it and allowed him to lead me to the front door, which he unlocked with a wave of his hand.

It felt like the world came crashing down as we stepped inside. The dim interior showcased our heavily used gray couch, the color much darker than it had started. The coffee table was covered in dust, but it still had duct tape wrapped around the joint of one of its legs. I couldn’t believe the vase of fake lilies still stood on the end table next to the secondhand armchair. Darius made a beeline for the books in the particle-board bookcase against the wall.

Dust motes swam through the air. The done-in wood floor hadn’t gotten any nicer or fancier since I’d left.

“Wait,” Darius said in a hush, barely interrupting the silence. He had a knack for reading the mood of a room.

I turned toward him as he stepped back from the bookcase. He gazed at me with intense eyes.

“Six of these books are in your shelves at home.”

“Obviously. Everyone needs their own copies of the greats. Jane Eyre, Pride and Prejudice, Wuthering Heights—some books need constant re-reads.”

“Shadows?”

I shrugged in embarrassment. “I was a member of John Saul’s fan club back in the day. In my teens I probably read every book he ever put out. I loved fantasy-horror. I found that one at a thrift shop, signed. You don’t throw away signed books by your favorite author.”

“Yes, of course.” He looked back at the bookshelf. I will read every one of these books, he thought, and I knew it wasn’t a comment for me. He just wasn’t shielding the thought.

I rolled my eyes and couldn’t help a soft smile, my heart glowing despite the circumstances. He’d do it because he wanted to learn more about my past in a way he knew I loved. And I’d read along with him to share the moment.

“I hate you,” I said, just because it was a nice change from saying, I love you.

“Ditto,” he replied, coming my way, playing along.

He gave me a poignant look as he took my hand.

Here we go,I thought, and made sure to keep a very tight lockdown on my emotions. He was blameless. He deserved none of my ill mood.

I pushed through the door-less frame into the teeny-tiny kitchen, the countertops a relic from the sixties, the cupboards not big enough to hold half the food Darius’s people brought to my current house. Everything looked as I’d left it, except for the badly worn circular table.

My mouth dropped open.

A stack of gold bricks covered the four-person table, arranged in the form of a pyramid, reaching up toward the ceiling. I could still see dirt clinging to their edges.

The sliding glass doors leading out to the garden were covered with heavy drapes, and the kitchen window barely let any light past the hanging sheet that we’d meant to replace with actual shades for years. I couldn’t tell if it was real gold.

“I’ll explain that in a moment,” Darius whispered into the hush. He tried to pull me toward the sliding glass door.

“Is that…gold?” I asked, trying to get closer and peer through the gloom.

“Yes. Please, let me explain in a moment.”

I let him pull me along, craning my head to stare at the table.

“Who… Did you put that there?” I asked softly. “Was that left by the guy that was going to tear this place down?”

“Neither.” He waved his hand and then reached into the drapery and pulled open the sliding glass door. Fresh air fluttered the fabric, washing across my face. “Come.”

I frowned and followed him out. This was not like him. He might subtly stuff my bank account with funds or leave money out where he knew I’d find and likely steal it, but he did not leave stacks of precious commodities out for me to deal with. He’d think it lazy. If he wanted to give me gold, he’d establish a safety deposit box or something, furnish me with the key, directions to it, and probably a market report on the price of gold.

Actually, come to think of it, nothing about this was his normal way of doing things. I wasn’t surprised he’d kept the old furniture—he’d understand my sentimental need for it to be the same—but it wasn’t like him to leave it dirty.

Perplexed by his behavior and his choice to leave the drapes closed, I nonetheless stepped through with him. A face full of dust and a musty smell that broke my heart later, we stepped onto the creaky back porch. The boards should’ve been changed out years ago. Years and years ago. It was a safety hazard at this point, not that it mattered.

A thatch of gnarled bushes rose just beyond the porch, choking the backyard. They looked unchanged, other than their size. This had never been the part of the yard my mother had cared about.

He sauntered with me to the edge of the porch, apparently not worried that one wrong footfall might send him plummeting through the boards. The stairs at the side had crumbled away, leaving gaping holes of jagged wooden teeth hellbent on breaking an ankle.

“Get us down?” Darius asked.

“Why are we here?” I asked again, hovering us to the weed-covered dirt.

He didn’t answer as we strolled along the little path toward the tree line. A million memories pushed to the forefront of my mind, jockeying for position. My mother and I strolling down this very path, similar to what Darius and I were doing. Sometimes bickering about what was going wrong with my magic. Me running and tripping, skinning my knee and crying. Mom hadn’t kissed it better and cooed—she’d made me walk into the bathroom and then sit still while she applied stinging antiseptic.

“She never coddled me,” I said as we wound along the path. It seemed strange that the overgrown bushes hadn’t impinged on the path and crowded our progress. “She never babied me. As far back as I can remember, she was mostly indifferent to my cuts and scrapes. She patched them up like a doctor and marshaled me on.”

“She probably knew you’d need to be tough for the life ahead of you.”

A lump formed in my throat. Hindsight, as they said. Even while hiding me, she’d been training me for the life that she knew I was bound to walk into. I wondered if she’d known how special my magic would be. Or that I would be adaptable to the Underworld.

Maybe she’d prepared me just in case. She’d been a planner—genes that had skipped me.

We turned a corner in the brush, right before the trees, and an explosion of emotion stopped me short.

The unruly brush cleared away, and a scene plucked from my memories rose before me. The garden was so similar to the one I’d seen in the Underworld, only this one was perfect. The white lattice, a little worse for wear because of the weather, arched high above us, crawling with fragrant, blooming roses. It extended over the pathway, blue sky peeking through the tops even though it wasn’t day.

“How…”

Managed but still unruly plants lined the sides of the path and a swarm of flowers blanketed the grounds. Beautiful chaos, enhanced to make the biggest possible impact.

The emotion welled up into small sobs.

Romulus had been here.

I couldn’t pinpoint the proof, but wasn’t that proof in itself?

The little gaps in my mind had been filled in with the kind of beautiful details only achievable by a master. I remembered all the colors, for example. The scents. But I didn’t remember exactly which flowers he’d used. My father had filled in the details, and it had been similar to what I remembered—a mess of color.

This wasn’t a mess. Although the flowers were everywhere, they gave the impression of a sort of soft, beautiful design leading the eye along until it ended at the repainted and repaired gazebo beyond. The bushes on the sides were natural, not magical or altered, but healthy enough that their vibrant colors showed through. They had been trimmed, I saw now, but not groomed. Not at all. The branches still stuck out in all directions, shaggy and shabby, but of a height that lent a certain youth to the garden. A freshness. It looked like it would’ve in my childhood, not like a place that had been abandoned to years of neglect.

I couldn’t speak. This wasn’t like in the Underworld, where Lucifer’s garden had made me steep in memories of my mother and pushed me toward Cahal. This time love thrummed through me, coloring everything I saw and stripping away the pain of her passing.

“This is perfect,” I croaked out, clutching Darius. My eyes moved over those beautiful flowers, an explosion of color and fragrance. An environment where plants could proliferate and thrive without rules or restrictions. This was probably what she’d been trying for.

“Romulus nailed it,” I said, bowing with emotion. “My mother would’ve absolutely loved this. She would’ve lost her mind over it. I wish she could see it.”

“Ah. You’ve ferreted me out. I should also mention that we are trespassing.”

“You didn’t buy it?”

“No. I didn’t know how you’d feel about that.”

Tears dripped off my jaw line. “How the fuck do you always manage to be so perfect?”

“I’m a vicious beast that exists because of stealing blood from mortals. I hardly think perfection is one of my attributes.”

“I’m not mortal.”

“Are we sure about that?”

“Yes. I overheard a conversation between Lucifer and Tatsu and pieced together the gist. I was dying like an immortal.”

He flinched. “Please don’t mention that again. My guilt is hard to bear.”

We wound around to the gazebo.

“You did all this, but didn’t buy it? Why the restraint?”

We stepped up into the enclosed space and looked out at the flowers for a moment, the beauty arresting me. He turned me to him, his hazel eyes like liquid gold. He slowly lowered to one knee.

“Reagan Somerset, you are my everything. I cannot contemplate an existence without you in it.” He pulled a black velvet box from his pocket and opened it. Two bands twinkled up at me, one inlaid with rubies alternating with diamonds, and the other with sapphires. He was paying homage to the two halves of my magic in a way that would allow me to punch someone in the face without worrying about ruining the settings. “Would you do me the honor of marrying me?”

I smiled and maybe cried a little and possibly tried to sink to his level. He stood so that I would too.

“Yes,” I said, allowing him to take my hand and slip the rings over my finger. They fit perfectly. Of course they did.

“I love you,” he said, and kissed me so deeply it dried up all the air in my lungs.

Sometime later, we sat on the gazebo bench and looked out over the flowers. “When I was in the Underworld, I wished you could be there with me to experience the garden Lucifer had made. It was nothing like this. Close as far as the overall layout, but Romulus gave it something that…” I shook my head, tears swimming in my eyes once again.

“I’ll explain that gold now. I’m from a different time than you—”

“Understatement.”

“During my time, marriages were typically arranged, but when they weren’t, it was customary for a man to ask permission from the father of his intended.”

I pulled back and studied his face, seeing nothing but love, a sentiment mirrored through our bond. “You asked Lucifer for permission to marry me? The same guy who suggested I sex you away the day before he planned to go kill you?”

A smile tilted his lips. “I asked for his blessing, not his permission. If he had said no, I wouldn’t have mentioned it.”

I blinked at him for a moment. That was a lot to unpack. “You asked Lucifer, the man that was going to kill you—”

“That seems to be a sticking point with you.”

“And he said yes?”

His smile was flawless and my heart was going too quickly.

“He did. He also refused my plans to furnish you with a bank account solely in your name that you can manage yourself. Instead, he thought it fitting that you should have the stones he stole from the path leading to the elf castle. He’d planned to give them to you anyway. He was laughing when he said it. He thought this was a good occasion, whether you said yes or no to me.”

“Perfect,” I said, laughing. Maybe still crying. Today was starting to be too much.

“Yes. As soon as he said it, I knew that it was the perfect solution.” He took my hands. “I want you to be independent of me. If you need to leave at a moment’s notice, or if something should happen to me, I want you to have enough assets to help you disappear. I do not want you to rely on me for money. I don’t want anyone to be able to corner you into taking a job, or something else you don’t want to do. I will help you set up that gold to ensure it is so. In addition, once we are married, I’ll put your name on my solid assets—the ones that are sure bets. The less…solid issues will come when you are either up to speed with them or they stop being risky.”

“What kind of risky?”

“‘Someone showing up and wanting compensation for a deal gone wrong’ kind of risky. Or ‘the government putting a lien on your assets’ kind of risky. I am not always…by the book in my endeavors.”

“Heard. Just the gold is fine.”

“No.” His eyes took on a severe cast. “I want you to be a part of me in every definition of the word. You will take half of my assets or more. You will be the mistress of all my holdings and estates, provided they won’t come back and bite you on the ass.”

I just nodded. We could fight about that later.

“I probably don’t have to tell you so, but with that gold, you can buy this house from the bank. You can do with it as you wish.”

I nodded again, needing to process that and wanting to store it away for later.

He nodded back, as though catching that thought, before standing. “Would you like to see what comes next?”

“There’s more?” I asked, a little afraid to stand with him.

“Yes.”

We enteredthe Underworld at a different place than before, this section actually quite orderly. No walls separated the creatures from one another, and the stalls for trading and commerce were open, the energy calm. I was a little disappointed.

The steps lit up as we started down, and Darius stopped a few steps in, looking back at me.

“What?” I asked.

“You aren’t skulking this time. You aren’t hiding. You’re coming home.”

I scanned his expectant face and felt a grin bud.

I dug into the magic around us, deciding to have a bit of fun. The area strobed, disco-style, a couple of times before the stairs lit in flame. I ensured the flame was low heat but high volume, just to look cool.

Darius and I descended hand in hand, like royalty, and I felt like a douche. Still, appearances were important. I needed to put on some sort of show to get a buzz going about my arrival. Or at least to let them know that I had enough arrogance to match Darius. Nearly.

At the bottom, the various creatures gawked before bending. If they didn’t bend? I made them. Because I could.

The smile grew on my face.

I knew this. I was comfortable with this. Forcing my hand. Being an ass. I could do this in my sleep and, moreover, it was damn fun. Way more fun than chasing shifters.

Well… Okay, it was fun in a different way. I missed chasing shifters. I wanted another go at Cole. That were-yeti was so fun to infuriate.

The beach before the river was mostly the same, just newer. A few embellishments from when Lucifer or whoever had had to rebuild after our crew’s last visit. One exception, though: rose petals littered the ground in a path leading away right.

“Please.” Darius gestured me that way, taking my hand again.

We followed the path, and I legit felt like a princess. I’d never much wanted to be a princess, but right then, with Darius by my side, doting on me and enjoying my reactions to each thing he’d obviously planned, I couldn’t imagine feeling more special. I felt treasured.

The roses led to a dock, also covered in petals. Within, the boatman was wearing a rose wreath, devoid of thorns. It was very odd, but I didn’t comment.

“Hello, your heinous,” it said to me, and I wondered who had reprogramed this sucker. “Hello, Darius, most treasured and welcomed guest.”

I frowned at Darius.

“Lucifer is making it clear that my station will only be elevated through your good humor,” he told me.

“But aren’t you guys moving your lair down here?”

“Yes. The details haven’t been arranged.”

“Ah.”

The river journey was just as awful as I remembered, with flat-looking water and little bumps and whorls that signified it was a lie. At least there hadn’t been any random splats of water on my head. I didn’t know if that had been fixed or I’d gotten lucky.

When we disembarked, Archion was waiting on the other side of the river.

“Hey!” I ran a hand along his leg. “Good to see you again.”

Did you say yes? he asked as I hovered Darius and I onto his back.

I did.

Good. That vampire is good in a bind. He’ll protect you when I can’t.

Why is everyone suddenly worried about protecting me?

It gives us something to do. Otherwise it’s just females doing all the work.

I laughed as he lifted into the sky.

“I wonder if vampires can find dragon companions,” Darius said as we flew over the kingdom.

I looked down with pleasure, having missed this place. Wanting to get more familiar with it. Wanting to be part of it. What a change from all of the time I’d spent hiding, trying to avoid coming down here.

I passed the question on to Archion.

I have never heard of a vampire bonding a dragon, but I’m young. I don’t see why not. They are tamer than some of the demons that develop a bond.

They are probably more conniving than those demons though, I replied.

I’ll speak to Tatsu. She’ll know how to go about it.

I probably should’ve excluded Darius in that comment about vamps, in the spirit of openness, but…it was still true.

Archion landed in front of the castle, and Tits McGee walked out to greet us, followed by a host of attendants.

“Good…time, your heinous,” Tits said, its boobs as ridiculous as ever, its voice deep and sonorous. The huge beard was a nice touch, equipped with insects.

Good time? Darius thought.

“Slang is tough for them, but…that one I’m not sure of.” I looked at the dawning sky, lighting gradually.

“I was going to say good morning,” Tits said, “but I wasn’t sure what time it was where you came from. I didn’t want to confuse the heinous.”

“Ah. Well, I think we’re in about the same time zone.”

Tits nodded and turned, walking up the steps at a measured pace. I glanced at Darius, and he jerked his chin. I was supposed to follow.

The way through the castle was the same. My floor was the same. The doors to my rooms stood closed and locked with such an intricate weave of fire and ice that it could only have been done by my father. Only the two of us could break it, which meant he’d kept this place for me.

I might’ve smiled. Or laughed. Maybe cried again. It was really hard to understand the happiness that was drowning me. It was making me very unpredictable.

With some work, I pulled down the spell and kicked in the doors. They slammed against the sides. I grabbed Darius’s hand and yanked him in after me, heading to that one window. That view.

Once in front of it, I stopped, winding our fingers together. His shoulder grazed mine.

I took a deep breath and let my gaze roam the beautiful scene.

“This is very you,” Darius said softly, once again reading the moment. “There’s air now, too.”

“I did that when I was here last. My dad obviously chose to leave it.”

“Hoping you would return.”

“Yes,” Lucifer said, and although his voice made me jump a little, his entrance didn’t surprise me.

I turned to him, keeping hold of Darius’s hand.

“Hey, Pop,” I said.

“Hello, Reagan.” His gaze dipped to my joined hands with Darius. “You said yes, then?”

“What was your first clue?”

“Hm, him still being alive cemented it.” His gaze cut to Darius. “And that loose thread? Is he still alive?”

“Her previous vampire lover has been extinguished,” Darius answered. “By demons, it would seem.”

Lucifer tilted back and laughed. “Guilty. My informant”—he put his hand to the side of his mouth—“Ja, obviously… She told me about that whole situation. She’s not half as good at intrigue as she seems to think. My new hobby will be fucking with her. Vampires can be horribly arrogant, present company occasionally excluded.” He winked at me. “That ex-lover vampire seemed like a sticking point with you, and for no reason, really. I figured I’d just take care of it. What’s one more infraction against me, right?”

I couldn’t help but chuckle and shake my head. “Yeah, I guess.”

“So.” Lucifer came to stand beside me, encouraging me to turn and look out at the view. “What’s next?”

I took a deep breath and felt utterly confident in what I was about to say.

“I learn how to rule a kingdom, and we make this the best damned kingdom in all the worlds.”

Lucifer nodded and then laughed. “Welcome, daughter. Welcome home.”

I felt a mix of contentment and excitement.

Home. That’s exactly what it was. It had taken me a very long journey to find my home, which wasn’t a place—it was a feeling. It was me. I would buy my family home and fix it up in a way that my mother would’ve loved, I’d keep my NOLA home for when I wanted a place to crash in my favorite city in the Brink, and I’d learn this new role. This new purpose. I’d find balance, and with Darius and my father on my side, we would indeed make this place the best place to live in all the worlds.

The angels could suck it.

***

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