Carl interrupted me, holding out his mobile. “It’s Emmett,” he said. “Talk to him.”
The phone was in my hand before I could protest. The sound of Emmett’s voice instantly had me welling up.
“Are you okay?” he asked. “Is it over? Can we come home now?”
“I’m fine,” I said. “The first fight is over, but I still have a few more things to do. I hope you’re enjoying yourself.”
“It’s okay. I miss you.”
“I miss you, too. I—”
“Ava?”
“Peter.”
He sighed heavily. “Carl told me what’s been happening. I’m sorry I—”
“I have to go.”
“Wait,” he said harshly. “Just wait a minute. I need to say something first.”
I blew out a sigh. “What?”
“I need to say… to say thank you. Thank you for helping me be the man I always meant to be. For helping me be the father Emmett needs. I couldn’t have done it, couldn’t have walked away, if it wasn’t for you.”
“No problem,” I squeaked out. “I need to change my bandage. Give Emmett my love.”
I hung up before he could argue. I threw the phone on the table. It slid, went over the edge, and landed on the floor, the screen cracking.
“Sugar,” I hissed. “I mean, shit! I meant shit!” With a little scream of rage, I swept my arms across the table, knocking everything to the floor. I took joy in the destruction, in the way everything cracked and shattered like my heart had been threatening to do since Peter and Emmett left.
When there was nothing left to break, Carl wrapped his arms around me and held me close.
“I can’t,” I whispered. “I can’t do this right now.”
“You have five minutes,” he said. “And then I’m getting a barbeque started outside. We’re all going to eat together and celebrate the fact we won the war against the beast. We’re going to relax and joke and remember everyone who isn’t here. We’re going to be with friends and family and remind ourselves how lucky and happy we are.”
He held me as the tears poured, as all of my hopes swam away, and then he shoved at me. “Now clean this mess while I fire up the grill.”
I calmed down as I cleaned. I swept up every cracked shard, kept them all together, and threw them away. I breathed a heavy sigh of relief and went outside where Carl attempted to use up some of the food Phoenix had brought us. I secretly thought that had been sweet of Phoenix, to do something kind for people he didn’t trust, but everyone else had formed a very different opinion of the fae royal.
“Does this mean that Lucia and Lorcan are a princess and prince of sorts?” Kate asked innocently as we all ate on the street in front of the houses.
Lorcan snorted. “Disowned royalty? Not sure that counts.”
“If Fionnuala and Phoenix both died, I think the fae seat would go to the twins,” Esther said, screwing up her nose. “There’s some kind of birthright clause on the fae seat.”
“So all we need to do to get on the Council is murder Fionnuala and Phoenix? Sounds easy,” I said snarkily.
Lucia wrapped her arm around my waist, and I flinched, but the image was of Phoenix, covered in blood, but alive, taking the werewolves home. I exhaled loudly, glad that he would live.
That served as a reminder that someone on the Council would soon die. The question was how?
“I think you can get him on our side,” Carl said. “I think he wants to be pushed. He came here with a gift. He came here even though he didn’t believe what you told him. Those aren’t the actions of a man with complete disbelief, a man who isn’t willing to listen to the idea it might be true. Maybe he’s lonely. Maybe he wants a family.”
“I think he is a little lonely,” I said. I recognised in him what I saw in myself, and I was beginning to think that was why we got along. “He treats the werewolves like family. Icarus is a werewolf he took care of from birth. He’s warm with them. Different. When he’s around Fionnuala, he’s as ice-cold as she is.”
“Which only means he’s capable of putting on an act,” Lorcan said.
“He reminds me of you,” I said. “That can’t be an act. That’s you growing up like him. Like the good parts of him. It gives me confidence.”
“You always clutch at straws,” he retorted.
“That was mean.”
“I’m feeling mean. He deserted our mother, and she died after living a life alone. I don’t know how to get over that. I don’t know why we should.”
“You need to get Dita a dog,” I called out to Anka, desperate to change the subject. “Lots of scraps.”
She came over, Dita following still upset.
“Maybe she would do well with another little friend,” Anka said, patting Dita’s head.
“Hey,” I said. “It’s okay, chicken. Dita, Lorcan’s mad at his dad. What do you think he should do?”
Her face lit up at being involved in the conversation. “Family is important,” she said shyly. She had a kid crush on Lorcan.
“So are friends,” Lorcan said, nodding. “And sometimes it’s hard to forgive.”
“You’re the only one you hurt when you don’t forgive,” she said. “That’s what Mama always says.”
I grinned at Lorcan.
He shifted uncomfortably. “You’re probably right, Dita. So how do you think Emmett’s getting on in the sun?”
“He’ll forget his sun cream and get burned,” she said. “And then he’ll come home.”
“He may like it there,” I said. “He might want to stay there forever. Maybe you could visit him sometime for a holiday.”
“I’d love that. Do you think so?” she asked her mother.
“We’ll see,” she said noncommittally, glaring at me. “Dogs and holidays. Are you crazy?” she muttered under her breath when Dita ran over to Leah. She had latched on to the teenager since Emmett left, and I was glad they both had someone relatively normal to talk to.
Some of the people began to sing, and someone brought out a guitar. Carl joined in, revealing a decent voice, as I had always suspected.
It felt like a party, but there was something mournful, and I realised it was more like a wake. We still had to say goodbye to Mrs. Yaga. We wanted a better goodbye for Folsom. We were starting down a dangerous path.
“I think it’s time to say goodbye to Mrs. Yaga,” I told Anka.
“She wanted to be burned,” she said. “We should let most of the ashes go free. There is one place she loved. A private orchard of hers. Her solicitor told me about it.”
“Her solicitor?”
“Yes,” she said, frowning. “Who do you think prepared her will? She told me once to call him if anything happened to her. So I did. He said that when she’s been burned, I should call him again. He’s the executor of her will.”
“Oh, crap,” I whispered. “She could give the houses to someone who will sell them. We might have to leave.”
“It’s true,” she said. “I have no idea what would go in her will. I mean, she is one of the older creatures. She had a long time to accumulate and possess. I don’t know who she would pass any of it down to. She had no family that I know of. She was the last of her kind, too.”
“Maybe we shouldn’t burn her then.”
“I think we’ll be okay until the deeds change hands,” she said. “And also, I was thinking about Phoenix. If he’s the one who created the sanctuary, wouldn’t his being alive be protection enough? He stole that space, and he entrusted it to Folsom, but now that the goblin is dead, wouldn’t it revert back to Phoenix?”
“I have no idea. I’ll need to talk to him about that when he gets back.”
“Let’s say goodbye to Mrs. Yaga,” Margie said after eavesdropping. “It’s a perfect night. The danger is away. This is our best chance for a peaceful goodbye.”
I hugged her. She had been good to me and everyone, despite not being part of our fight. “Anything you say, Margie.”
We all mutually agreed to burn Mr
s. Yaga’s body. We took her to her final resting place, holding candles, although some of us remained on alert. Constant vigilance was a necessity.
Anka led us all in a song that I recognised as the one Mrs. Yaga had requested on her deathbed. I thought of Folsom, of Mrs. Yaga, of Helena, too. We all thought of the loved ones we had lost, whether by death or distance. I let a tear fall for each of them, Emmett and Peter, too. I doubted they would ever return to me, and I couldn’t blame them, but I missed them with everything I had left.
Carl, Esther, and the twins stuck close as if sensing I needed them, and as the flames lit the night sky, we all turned for home. The biggest, most dysfunctional family on the planet.
Epilogue
A drug dealer, a policeman, and an angel walked into a bar. Specifically, Gabe’s bar. He led them to the counter during happy hour. Finn, the fae bartender, poured them all drinks, but he looked miserable. Neutral ground, but he could tell something unusual was going on, and that had gotten his back up. That, or the fact nobody would tell him what exactly was going on. Then again, the garda and the drug dealer didn’t know either.
“Let’s get a comfortable seat,” I heard Gabe say, and he led them both to the table in the corner. I shifted over, so they could sit down. Lorcan, Lucia, and Carl were with me. Esther and Val were back with the others, providing the best protection we had.
“What’s going on?” Moses asked as he took a seat. Shay seemed as though he wasn’t going to sit, but he finally did.
“I’ll leave you to chat,” Gabe said.
“Seriously,” Moses said as Gabe walked away. “What the fuck is this about?”
“War,” I said. “And picking sides.”
Moses and Shay exchanged glances. “Thought the war was over,” Moses said. “Was on the news and everything.”
“That’s a different war,” Carl said. “Next one is a little more underhanded.”
Lorcan cleared his throat. “Who helped you with the beasts? Who told you about them?”
“Ava,” Shay said in his soft lilt. “She told us. She helped us. You know this already.”
“That’s kind of the point,” I said. “I’m a nobody. Technically, I’m a rebel now, I suppose. Kind of like the sound of it.” I smiled at Carl, and he grinned right back.
“The supernatural governing bodies and their version of the police did nothing to help anyone. Not humans, not others,” Carl said. “They hid underground and let us deal with it. If it wasn’t for Ava blabbing…”
Shay nodded. “A lot more of us would be dead.”
“You would have lost the war,” Lorcan said.
“You’re English,” Moses said. “How come you’re on our side then?”
“He was a slave,” I said in a quiet voice. “A slave to English vampires. When he and his sister were kids, they were sold to a slave market. Just like Peter’s son. Just like a lot of people. Months ago, I forced the Council to come with me to… um, Hell to take the children home. Instead of giving them to their families, the Council kept them for themselves. They even spoke about forcing the children out to fight against the beasts. We’ve been protecting people who are being persecuted by those in power. Gabe over there is part of the Council, but he’s willing to help us.”
“Help you do what exactly?” Shay asked.
“Take down the Council. Create a new ruling power. Change… everything.”
“You know our story,” Moses said. “Someone owns us, just as much as they own the kiddies in those slave markets.”
“Yeah, and we think that person is on the Council,” Carl said. “We think that person is involved with the slave markets. The police, too.”
“You’re saying that, at the root of everything, is a powerful, but corrupt, being,” Shay said, closing his eyes. “And you want to shut them down.”
“Exactly,” Lorcan said. “But we need help. Support. We need to know that if we do it, people will work with us.”
“We want humans and supernaturals to work together for good,” I said. “The Council let vampires have their choice of humans. The vampire who consulted for the Council turned sides, even though the Council were letting him kill a virgin every month. Imagine what they’ll offer to get him back on their side.” I didn’t know if they would do anything to get him back on their side, but I didn’t care.
“I don’t know if I can risk it,” Moses said. “If they come after us—”
“You’re not running scared, are you?” Carl scoffed.
Moses glared, his mouth twisting into a cruel smile. “This from a posh D4 head who was probably born with a fucking platinum spoon in his mouth. Some of us have to graft for what we have. Some of us don’t have a life of luxury. We’re not even fucking free.”
“And I’m not even from Dublin four,” Carl protested. “And what difference would that make anyway?”
“Yeah, yeah, you and your wannabe Yankee accent,” Moses retorted, but his eyes glittered with humour.
Carl’s face, neck, and ears turned bright red. “The drug dealer is giving me grief over my accent? I can barely understand you and your thick, common as muck—”
“Is this actually happening?” I asked Shay.
He grinned. “I can arrest both of them if you like. I’d rather fill out the paperwork than listen to this.”
“I’ll shut up if the dealer does,” Carl snapped.
Moses grinned at me. “Go on. Keep convincing me, woman.”
I raised a brow. “You know deep down that you’ll never really be free if nothing changes. Listen, you’re all human. The twins and I are only part-human, and we’re despised. Hated. You’re at the bottom of the pile, even lower than us. The Council don’t rate you highly enough to hate. It’s time to take back our place. To stop being food for older beings.”
“But what can we do?” Shay asked. “How can we possibly change anything?”
“One person can make a difference,” Carl said. “But if we can work at getting support, so that when the time comes, we’re all on the right side…”
Shay inclined his head. “I know a lot of my crowd aren’t happy with the way things are. Everything we’ve ever gone through looks different now we know the real truth of this world. We’ve been talking about the night those monsters came. How few of you helped us. We saw clips on the news, of the so-called major battle. Where did all of those people come from? Why couldn’t they have helped us? And, Ava, we’re all pissed at being used to set you up like that. I swear to God, none of us knew what was happening.”
“I know,” I said. “But that’s what they do. They use people and act like nothing happened. I could easily have blamed you lot, but I know what they’re like. Aiden set me up to get me away from his sister.”
“Who’s his sister?” Moses asked.
“Esther. You remember her, right?”
He grinned sleazily. “How could I forget?”
I thumped his arm, and he laughed loudly. “Ah, come on. Give a man a break.”
“The point is, even his sister is disgusted with how they act on top. She’s witnessed some horrible things. She’s against the people she used to work for. One of them is risking his business and life to help us. And even the main one’s son is acting as though he wants in on our side. They have money, big houses, all kinds of shit, and when the country needed their help, they hid underground and let us all suffer. Except we didn’t. We dealt with it by teaming up.”
“Never back down,” Moses said under his breath. “Where do they get the money?”
“I’d say some of it comes from criminal activity,” Shay said. “Too many big crimes go unpunished for it to be a coincidence. Word comes from above, and it all goes away.”
“Live to scam another day,” Moses added.
“I reckon some of it comes from the people they chase into hiding,” Lorcan said. “A lot of the people with us came from families that were once rich or powerful. Families that were taken down by the Council, one way or another.”
“It’s not just the money and power,” Carl said. “They hate mixed races like Ava and the twins here. They’re terrified of them. They wanted to kill Ava as soon as she popped up on their radar.”
“But they’re not all bad,” I admitted. “It’s just they’re so old and unwilling to change.”
“We need, like, a backer,” Moses said. “I mean, if I get involved.”
I cleared my throat. “Well, we have one. Only problem is that he might be worse than the Council if he got some power.”
“So we double-deal,” Moses said lightly. “Make sure he never gets any of the power.”
“That’s what I’m hoping for,” I said. “But with this one, we need to cover all of the bases. He’s a Keeper of Gods, for starters. He has power from them that he’s refusing to give back. He has a way of trapping souls to him, using their power. I don’t know what for, but we need his support right now.”
“He sounds scarily dodgy,” Shay said.
“Yeah, but it’s easier to shift change when everything’s already in an uproar than it is to change centuries of rules and laws. Don’t forget—those children are still kidnapped. Missing children, just like Emmett.” I knew that would appeal to Shay.
He raised his eyebrows. “So we could take them home to their families?” he asked. “Close the cases?”
“Of course,” I said. “But I should probably mention that these children are special in some way. That’s why the supernaturals want them. We might need to work with them for a while once they get home.”
“Have a support system,” he said. “Community liaisons. Simple.”
“So let me get this straight,” Moses said. “You want us to pretend to work with a scary supernatural so he’ll help us get rid of other scary supernaturals?”
“Pretty much,” Carl said. “That’s the basic plan, anyway.”
“So when the cards fall, who gets the power? Who’s in charge?”
I shrugged. “Whoever wants it enough, I suppose. Maybe a big committee of people. Different races, different backgrounds. The people who have been stood on and disregarded all of these years definitely need a choice. Those in power now can’t keep getting away with bleeding the country dry. We have to fight. We have to stand together. Yeah, I know it won’t be perfect. We kind of have to learn to live with the beings who feed on humans, while enforcing our own rules, too. It could get complicated, but fighting back and standing up for what we all believe in is important. Individually, we’re the smallest pieces on the board. Together, we stand a chance.”
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