Chapter 757: Unhappily Ever After
One thing was absolutely certain: Fate sucked.
And I couldn't wait to get a chance to tell her just how much.
Anger returned with the beginnings of my recovery. A lot of it. So much I worried about the nugget growing inside me, at times, and did my best to shield him from what how I felt.
Him. Yup. I guess I shouldn't have been surprised.
In the meantime, I decided to start with Max. Took a quick trip to Demonicon and the drach peak, only to find it empty.
And no amount of searching the veil turned up his traitorous ass or any of his people, either.
Just wait until I got my hands on his dragon hide.
As for Fate, the way to Center was closed to me. I could only imagine she was terrified I was coming to kick her scrawny ass all the way around the veil.
Sure, Syd. That was it.
Iepa's sorry little soul was hiding from me, too. Bunch of cowards.
If this was what it meant to be maji, ducking and covering while other people suffered? I'd have to find a new line of work because hell freaking no.
Just. No.
At least it was nice to see the empty plane flourishing at last. My trip to the stronghold to check for the drach turned into a happy moment of deep breathing in the scent of flowers and the freshest air I'd ever breathed.
Not so empty anymore.
The stronghold was happy to see me, sad for my loss, but excited and chatty about his own possibilities. I spent far longer with him than I intended, just soaking up happy.
I needed it, because this teetering between grief and joy wore me out.
And with the Enforcers back in control, I worried less about anyone-like Ameline-looking for a way to take advantage of the power still stored in the stronghold's heart. She might have Cian's soul inside her, but she was missing demon power yet, and with Ahbi on high alert and my sister sworn to Demonicon for the time being, Ameline's ability to become maji again had gone down the toilet.
Into the sewer. Where she belonged.
I worried I hadn't heard from Demetrius and searching for him proved fruitless, too. Yes, I could track people through the veil, but sorcery didn't leave much of a trail. Which meant Rupe and Belaisle evaded me, too.
I tried to trust the fact Demetrius was whole again and could take care of himself. Kind of tough to do these days. My sense of protectiveness for those I cared about had taken a giant leap into obsessive, so much Shenka had to sit me down and tell me to back off when the coven complained they couldn't take a shower without me poking my nose in.
Okay then. Sheesh.
Not like they weren't all up in my business.
Not exactly fair. They were kind and loving and made sure I was okay. Which I was. Most of the time. When I let myself stop and think about Liam, not so much. But the growing peanut in my belly went a long way to pulling me free of my funk.
The Brotherhood was pretty much non-existent these days, all the sorcerers the drach captured turning up imprisoned in the stronghold for the Enforcers to find. Mom and her Council Leader friends were ruthless. I stayed out of it.
I doubted they needed me around, suggesting violent means to kill the sorcerers.
Eva Southway did report a swell in recruitment to the Steam Union, which made me nervous. Mom, too. What if the Brotherhood members-as I was sure they were-who remained outside the last battle were only seeding themselves inside the good sorcerer order?
Eva assured us both she was keeping a close eye.
Lot of good that would do if Liander Belaisle popped up out of nowhere and poked it out.
Still, none of my business. She made that clear to me before leaving Mom's Harvard office after assuring us she'd keep us posted.
Okay then.
My Ameline search came to an abrupt halt when Mom found out I was pregnant. I knew it was going to happen, did my best to hide the wee spark from her, but my mother was a master of deceit and trickery herself.
Grasped onto me the instant she uncovered the truth and refused-absolutely refused-to let me go.
And then betrayed me to the family. Shenka, Charlotte, Sassafras. And effectively pinned me to the ground with their focused attention.
Yes, I could have ignored their need for me to pull back, protect myself. But Mom made an excellent point.
If Ameline found out I was pregnant, we had no idea what she would do. Would she try to hurt the baby in an effort to hurt me?
Hurting her was one of my priorities. Naturally, I had nightmares of Ameline coming after my nugget.
Growl, snarl, howl.
Just. Let. Her. Try.
And so, I settled in to Wilding Springs after that, with my growing belly and my overprotective family hovering around me like I was going to spontaneously combust at any second.
And you know what? They were right. My son was the most important thing to me now. Even killing Ameline, even restoring Gram-as hard as it was for me to admit-nothing, no one came before my baby.
There would be time to rip her in half and drink her blood when my son-our son-was born.
Why wasn't I surprised how excited Sassafras and Mom were over the pregnancy? And, to my relief and happiness, Gram. The three of them followed me around in various pairings, worse after Mom relocated herself to the house for the duration of my gestation. The first time I felt them feeding the baby power, I laughed and opened to it.
Because, even though I knew they'd made me the way I was-all messed up and loyal and crap-and would do the same to my son, I knew they made me the way I was.
All messed up and loyal and crap.
And I wanted my son to have the benefit of their love.
Galleytrot was a bit of an issue, though. He literally glued himself to my side, sleeping next to my bed, furry body pressed against me when I walked anywhere, to the point I got tired of tripping over him and opened my mouth to tell him to back off.
Only to see the hope and need in his eyes.
And sighed. Let him be.
And accepted this wasn't just my son I was growing.
Honestly, the best part of this was seeing Gram blossom again, almost back to her old self. Even weakened, only a fraction of her power left, she bounced around the house like a kid, fuzzy socks firmly in place, hugs and kisses and smacks with her favorite spatula all making me laugh.
If she fed me one more pancake with the goal of "fattening me up for the baby," I was going to explode.
Liam's bones went to the Hayle family vault, safely stored there with my family. I didn't go with Mom when she interred him, choosing to remain at home, focused on the baby. Not because I didn't love him anymore, but because I wanted to remember Liam as I'd seen him last-in Fergus's smile.
My only moments of worry for the baby came when I felt the Sidhe power in him flare from time to time. But a quick check in with Thalion answered my fears about Cian and my baby's Sidhe soul. Had Ameline stolen it when she'd taken Liam's through some father/son connection? Turned out Cian split himself so long ago, there were parts of him in every Gate, in every Gatekeeper. Which meant my child had his very own part of the Gate creator.
His Sidhe soul was safe.
My hitchhikers were hilarious, cooing and talking to the boy all the time. Shaylee was the worst, all smug how her Sidhe power connected to him so easily. I was happy to feel the other girls and the family magic linked with him only two months after he was conceived, as though it was meant to be that way.
Shaylee pouted briefly, but got over her exclusivity and went all happy auntie/alter ego again.
It was nice to hear from Sebastian after his transformation. He contacted me shortly after Liam's funeral to tell me how deeply sorry he was for my loss. Even as he did, I felt the breathless excitement in my vampire friend and was happy for him.
Sebastian was still trying to figure out what I'd done, how I'd changed him, but didn't regret a moment of it and left my mind with an embrace and a kiss of power that felt like me.
Piers showed up at the house about a week or so after-I started thinking in terms of before Liam and after Liam and wondered if that was normal-to share his sympathy, apologize a few more times, and reassure me his mother wasn't going to open up the Steam Union to disaster. I believed him over her and accepted his determination.
He was enough like me I knew he'd never let the Steam Union fall.
At least not without a massive fight.
Over the next few weeks, he continued to show up, finally offering to be there for me if I needed him. Sadly, but kindly, I finally sent him away.
Too soon, way too soon. And yet, I knew once my baby was born, I'd have to start thinking about it. Because a son, Liam's son, was a wonderful thing, but I really needed a daughter.
Coven rules.
Sigh.
Piers left at last, once his offer was made, but only after telling me he'd traded posts with his sister, Clover, and was now in our territory full time.
Varity hovered, spending more time with Gram than ever, offering help so frequently I finally had to tell her in no uncertain terms she'd done as Fate demanded and to stop being a freak already. Worked. She hugged me, forgave herself. At least, didn't seem so desperate to prove her loyalty or make up for my loss.
Wasn't her job, anyway.
Charlotte spent more time with us, too, rather than her usual half time at home, bringing me baby clothes and cute toys, cooing to my belly in her wolf voice until I giggled. Made me wonder if she was considering the whole marriage thing in a new light.
Alison's disappearance and hopeful destruction made me sad, though it probably shouldn't have. There was no sign of her, but I'd lost track of her before and failed to find her. Refused to just let it go in case she'd managed to survive after all.
She'd had the combined powers of Ameline and I pour through her. Who knew what that did to her if it didn't kill her at last?
Though those closest to me didn't approve, I spent every other night, as promised, sleeping in Liam's bed in the cavern, and the alternate at home, in mine. It was so hard to see the boxes set aside next to my closet, waiting for Liam to appear and unpack them, but it was months before I let Shenka take them away.
I guess I really wasn't ready to let him go, just yet.
His scent stayed a little while, but not as long as I would have liked. Mom finally showed up one night with Galleytrot and a set of fresh sheets, a new quilt.
It just wasn't the same after that.
But I understood. The cavern was so quiet now, just me and Galleytrot. And the nugget. I took a lot of comfort from the place, knowing how much Liam loved it, but knew, now his presence was almost completely gone, I'd have to move on.
Especially since sleeping there made me cry every single night.
Had to be the pregnancy, right? All those hormones?
Sure, Syd. Sure.
I could blame it on the peanut. He didn't mind a bit.
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Dedication
As in the beginning, so in the end. For ever and ever,
these books are yours, Syd. Thank you for letting me tell your story.
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