Epilogue
Two months later
"So your birthday is tomorrow. Are you doing anything fun?" The therapist was a nice lady with gray hair. Edith had been visiting her twice a week since she returned home, but the lady couldn't figure out why. Edith's mother thought talking to someone else would help Edith be more open with her. She couldn't share most of the issues with the therapist, but the woman did help Edith work through some of the issues she had with her mom, though, and for that, Edith was grateful.
Edith shrugged. "Probably not. Maybe I'll get lunch with Dana or something."
The woman nodded. "Dana seems like a nice girl. I would like to meet her sometime."
Edith quirked an eyebrow. "Yeah, all right. I'll bring her in next week if she wants to come."
Inside, Edith laughed a little. Dana had changed dramatically after their return. She quit the cheer squad and spent most of her spare time with Edith either in the library catching up on schoolwork they'd missed or walking around town. They avoided the other students. Rumors spread about where they had disappeared to, but they couldn't combat them. How do you explain to people that you've been in an alternate dimension saving their lives?
"Well, time is up. It's been nice talking with you, Edith. Happy birthday."
"Thanks." Edith stood and left. She spent the rest of the day in her room, reading or staring at the wall. The dark closed in and she dozed off.
***
"Wake up, my love." She was dreaming about Charles again as she did every night. It felt so real, like he was there, shaking her gently. "Edith, come on, wake up."
She opened her eyes. Someone was standing over her. She sat up quickly and flicked on the light. Her heart skipped several beats.
"Charles? Is it really you?" She climbed up onto her knees so she was face to face with him.
He smiled at her and nodded. "It's really me. I'm sorry I've been gone so long. I've really missed you."
She leaned closer. A bright red gash cut across his cheek. She brushed it with her thumb and he winced slightly. "You're hurt."
He slipped his arms around her. "I'll be fine. And I'll look more manly with this awesome scar." He wiggled his eyebrows and she giggled.
They kissed, a soft kiss that left them both wanting more.
"Edith." He looked away, inhaling deeply. "Do you have the key?"
She nodded and pulled it from under her shirt.
"Good." He frowned slightly, as he stared at it, then he raised his eyes to her. "The only one missing now is the Seventh Key. The others have been taken care of."
She narrowed her eyes at him. "What do you mean?"
"We've hidden all the others. The doors are locked forever, never to be used again. It was the only way to keep your world safe."
She stared at him, trying to grasp the enormity of what he said. Their two worlds would be separated for good.
"We have to seal this door too."
Tears sprang to her eyes. "No," she whispered. "No."
He took her hands in his. "We have to. But..."
He paused, searching her face. "But?" she asked.
"Come with me." His voice was shaky and his hands vibrated in hers.
"Come with you? To Alaesha?" Her heart pounded in her chest as she spoke the words.
He smiled. "Yes. Come with me to Alaesha. Be with me. Forever."
She gazed into his eyes. Her mind raced through her life, through everything she had done and seen, to her mom, to Dana. Would she give it all up?
"Okay."
His smile grew so wide she thought his face would split in two. "Really?" He gripped her hands tightly, kissing them.
She nodded, laughing. "Really."
She threw some things into a bag and followed Charles out through the hall. Her mother was asleep. Edith left her a note. She didn't want a tearful goodbye or an attempt to change her mind.
As they were walking out the gate, Edith paused. Charles looked at her, eyebrows raised. “What is it, sweetie?”
“I'm just curious. What is your true form?”
He smiled at her and cupped her cheek. “This is my true form. I feel more comfortable like this. I have not taken my other form in centuries.” He wrapped his arms around her. “Maybe someday I'll show you, but for now, this is me.”
She smiled and kissed him softly. “That sounds like a plan.”
They stopped at Dana's on the way to the diner and snuck in through her bedroom window. Dana cried and pleaded, but in the end she understood.
"You'll always be my best friend," she told Edith.
"And you'll be mine too." They hugged for the last time and Edith departed.
***
Edith stood in front of the door staring at it. Charles put his hand on her shoulder. "Are you okay? Are you sure you want to do this?"
She nodded and turned to face him, slipping her arms around his waist. "I've never wanted anything more." She glanced at the door. "But the last time I tried to come here, it wouldn't let me through."
He nodded. “Sometimes the door knows what's best for us, even if we don't.”
She slipped the key into the door, apprehension sitting heavily in her stomach. It began to glow and the door opened, just like it was supposed to. They walked through the tunnel hand in hand. After opening the other door, Edith reached up to take the key. Before her fingers touched the smooth metal, she paused. She looked to Charles. He was watching her carefully. She pulled her hand away and shut the door behind her, leaving the key in the lock. They left the sitting room for the last time, and Edith didn't look back.
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Series By Samantha Warren
Blood of the Dragon – An Epic YA Fantasy
The Iron Locket – A Paranormal Romance
Massacre at Lonesome Ridge – A Zombie Western
Jane (The Vampire Assassin series) – An Urban Fantasy
Space Grease & Pixie Dust - A Sci-fi Steampunk Serial
The Alaesha Legacy – A YA Urban Fantasy
Zombie Juice (Coming Soon) – A NA Zombie Serial
About the Author
Samantha Warren is a speculative fiction author who spends her days immersed in dragons, spaceships, and vampires. She milks cows for fun, collects zombie gnomes, and dreams about the day she’ll meet Boba Fett. Her love is easily purchased with socks and her goal in life is to eat a Beef Wellington cooked by Gordon Ramsay.
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The Third Key (The Alaesha Legacy Book 1) Page 17