by JJ King
Murmurs of agreement filled the room and Katherine’s eyes filled with tears.
“Hope is what makes life worth living, especially when you live as long as I have,” Ida chuckled. “Which is why I’m so happy to be the one to tell you who the elders have chosen to lead the territories of North America.”
“What?” Ronan stiffened behind her and gripped her arm for support. “I thought…”
Katherine stared at Ida in shock. Conclave hadn’t been completed since they’d taken down the Alpha Council before it had a chance to finish the process. She’d assumed the whole ordeal would begin again at some point, or another, less vicious, method of choosing an Alpha would be enacted. At no point did she ever consider the new Alpha would just be chosen by the Geliget.
It made sense, though, they were Guardians after all. They’d watched silently for time immemorial and now they were coming forward to help guide the growth of a new future. Katherine turned to her brothers and reached out to touch their arms, silently buzzing with anticipation for each of them.
“After much deliberation, we have decided,” Ida paused for drama, “that the Alphaship of the American states will be split evenly among the late Alpha, Pierre LaFlamme’s, three sons, Anthony, Ronan, and Teagan.”
Katherine wanted to explode with cheers and laughter, but it seemed inappropriate to cut off the elderly woman when she obviously still had more to say. So, instead, she grinned like an idiot at her three stunned brothers, who seemed unable to move after the announcement.
Ronan was the first to snap out of it. His eyes huge, he opened his mouth to say something and stopped dead when Ida continued in a loud and joyful tone, “And the new Alpha of Canada, alongside Jacob Littlefoot, will be Sylvie LaFlamme.”
Bright lights exploded in Katherine’s mind and she wondered for a split second if she’d had a stroke. Then they dimmed and she was left with an utterly euphoric sense of peace and acceptance. She swallowed hard, past the pride that pushed thick against her heart, and knew her father was with her, with them, at this very moment, and he was so proud.
Unable to hold back any longer, Katherine squeezed her brothers’ hands and called out, “I’m so proud of each of you,” as she pushed her way through the crowd to her mother and threw herself into Sylvie’s waiting arms. A moment later Anthony, Ronan, and Teagan joined in.
Katherine savored the moment and tried to commit it to memory since she knew it would go down in history. She pulled back to give her mother room to breathe and noticed Rose standing nearby, with tears of joy shining in her eyes. Katherine turned and caught Sylvie’s eye, nodding almost imperceptibly towards her sister.
Sylvie opened her arms again and Rose flew across the space between them, burying her face in Sylvie’s hair.
The celebration was delightful. Katherine thanked a server who magically appeared with a serving tray of champagne flutes and accepted one for herself and her mother. She passed Sylvie her glass and silently raised hers in salute as tears filled both their eyes. More toasts followed, from Quinn’s family, her family, and Jacob’s family. Katherine tried her best to commit the names of all Quinn’s cousins, aunts and uncles to memory but gave up after the twentieth person hugged her tight.
Katherine lost sight of Eve halfway through the party, but it never occurred to her that her daughter could be in any kind of danger. When she realized that, Katherine paused and took a deep breath, closing her eyes to focus on the moment when she first realized she was safe. They all were. There would be troubles ahead and hardships, any life worth living included those, but for now her family was safe and happy. Katherine wiped a tear from her cheek and sent a silent “I love you Daddy,” to the Old Ones to pass onto her father. Then she opened her eyes and set off with Quinn, who’d made his way back to her, to find their rambunctious little girl.
They found Eve sitting on the lap of a woman she hadn’t met yet. She noticed that Eve was sniffing at the woman’s stomach, nuzzling the space above her belly button.
Katherine’s mind went straight to the impossible. She swallowed, but was it impossible? The prophecy had said she would bring about a new generation of Guardians. Katherine made her way to the couch and sat next to the woman, leaving room for Quinn behind her. “Hi, I’m Katherine. This is Quinn. I think your new best friend might belong to us.” She laughed and inhaled deeply, trying to get a sense of the woman’s scent. She’d always had an exceptional sense of smell, a fact that she’d often lorded over her brothers when they were pups.
“I’m Deborah. Quinn and I grew up together,” she smiled at Quinn and lifted Eve up, snuggling the squirmy pup into her neck, giggling at the licks that came. “This one is just precious.”
It took a few tries, but on the third inhalation, Katherine caught it. The scent was faint, almost non-existent, but it was there. Emotion washed over her, making it hard to stave off the tears that were already so near the surface. She sniffed and sat back, leaning against Quinn who seemed none the wiser, and watched Deborah play with Eve, already so maternal and warm. Quinn’s arms came around her as he pressed a kiss to the back of her neck and whispered, “I love you.”
Katherine turned her head and caught Quinn’s gaze, and the events of the past two years rushed through her mind. Every twist and turn, the ups and downs, the new loves and the losses; she saw them all run as if on fast forward through her thoughts.
There was no way to take back what had been done, no way to erase the bad without erasing the good, and there was so much good. Katherine knew she would always miss her father, that his loss would stay with her for eternity, but she also knew that he’d want her to move on. Katherine smiled at the other half of her soul and brought her lips to softly touch his, “I love you, too.”
KEEP WATCH for the continuation of Daphne’s and Keme’s story in a new trilogy, coming soon!!!
Thank you for taking this amazing journey with me!
I started writing Blood of Eden back in 2008 and, at first, I thought it was going to be just a stand-alone novel, my first ever written. I was so proud of myself when, at 30, I’d completed an 83,000 word manuscript. But, it wasn’t polished, it needed work, so I put it aside and went on with my life. Then I met some amazing people including Candace Osmond, one of my favorite people in the entire world, and my passion flared back to life. A few months later, Blood of Eden was published.
The passion remained. I wrote, edited, and published My Brother’s Keeper in five months, and the final book, Sins of the Father, took a year more to complete. It’s been a long journey from “Chapter One” to “The End,” but here it is and let me tell you, it is beautiful.
It’s a little overwhelming actually. I’m happy to have completed my first trilogy, it’s a huge accomplishment, but I’m sad that it’s over.
Don’t worry, though, there’s always more to come. I promise. Thanks for starting and finishing this journey with me.
JJ King xoxoxo
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
JJ King is a Bestselling Author with a love for Paranormal and Contemporary Romance. Born and raised in Newfoundland, she draws inspiration from her family, her friends, and her home.
Also by JJ King…
The Guardians Trilogy
Blood of Eden ~ Book I
My Brother’s Keeper ~ Book II
Katherine LaFlamme Short Stories
Eyes have seen
Number the stars
Rocky Coast Romance Series ~ Evernight Publishing
Finding the right words
Northern Wild Series ~ Evernight Publishing
The scent of his woman
Masterclass Series ~ Evernight Publishing
Epic Love
Theoretical Love
To find out more about author JJ King and all her available titles, check out JJKING.CA
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s of the Father