by Jessica Gunn
I looked up at Chelsea and shrugged. Her head did a little dance, wavering back and forth as she thought it over. “Next summer? After the tour?”
Sarah gasped. “Or during the tour. Can you say destination wedding in Greece?” Her voice squealed on the last word.
“No,” we all said. Greece meant Athens, which meant Atlantis, and no. Just no. Everyone laughed at Sarah’s confused face, although none of it was funny.
“Maybe during the tour at Vegas, though,” I offered. “It could be a fun story in the end.”
Chelsea’s lips puckered. “We’d have to make sure all the parents get invited, though, or someone’s bound to be sore about it.”
“I’ll take care of the details!” Charlie declared, high-fiving Sarah across the table.
Josh scooted away from the table, rolling his eyes. “All right, kids. When you all get hyped over weddings, that’s my cue to leave.”
“Us too,” said Erin for her and Weyland. “You want to come with?” she asked Sophia.
Sophia nodded. “Oh, yes. I think they can handle it from here.”
The rest of us laughed. Eventually, Sarah left, too, and only the four of us remained.
“So what now?” Chelsea asked.
“Now you go kick the world’s ass as lead singer of Phoenix and Lobster,” Charlie said. “Have I ever told you I’m a massive fan? Because I am.”
Chelsea chuckled and lifted her drink to cheers. “Why, thank you.”
“Now the rest of us have to find jobs again,” I said dryly.
Captain Marks had offered to help us be placed in other positions, far away from any new sea satellite projects as possible, but we’d all declined. We’d all seen enough of the ocean and everything that might lay beneath it for a lifetime or two. I knew I’d find something. Valerie too. Engineers were always in demand, but I was hoping to go back to school for video game design while Chelsea toured. Classes by day, her concerts by way of teleporting at night. And Charlie…
“Do you need like a publicist or something?” Charlie asked Chelsea. “Because I definitely did not finish school before”—she flailed her hands around her head—“you know, all that happened. But I was in marketing. I know that’s not really close, but—”
“Done deal,” Chelsea said. “You’re hired. At least for this tour, and then I’m not sure what’s happening.”
“What do you mean?” Valerie asked. “I thought the band was your endgame?”
Chelsea shrugged. “Yes and no. There’s plenty of time off between tours and recording, and although that’s fun, it’s not my real passion.”
“You didn’t tell her?” I asked. I was surprised Chelsea had kept it a secret at all.
Chelsea shook her head. “No. I hadn’t told anyone. With the funeral and all, I… didn’t think it was right.”
“Girlie,” Valerie scolded. “What are you holding back on?”
“I got accepted into grad school,” Chelsea said. “I’d applied while I was teaching at the camp. And while my sudden leave of absence didn’t do wonders for a recommendation, I got in. I’ll be doing a master’s-direct-to-PhD program starting in the fall.”
Valerie’s eyes lit up. “That is awesome! Why didn’t you tell me?”
Chelsea frowned. “Like I said, it just didn’t seem like the right time.”
“A little bit of hope in the dark never hurt anyone,” I told her. She smiled down at me, her molten ocean eyes looking straight through to my soul. I loved her more and more every day.
“What’s your program in?” Charlie asked. “Archaeology?”
Chelsea smirked and I couldn’t help but do the same. Irony had a funny way of working things out.
“Nope. Museum curation. Looks like I’ll be watching over artifacts for the rest of my life no matter what I do.”
Both Valerie and Charlie gave her deadpan looks.
Eventually, even Charlie and Valerie left as night turned into morning. Pink and orange danced across the sky as Chelsea locked up the Franklin’s front and side doors. We made for the back exit, the door that’d changed everything so many years ago.
“I can’t believe the tour kicks off right here in a few weeks,” she said as she slid the key into the lock and twisted it. A click resounded through the air.
“After everything, it’s almost perfect,” I said.
She nodded and stepped into the alleyway, her gaze on the sunrise in the sky. “Yeah. I know Sarah worked a lot with Jesse O’Malley to get the kick-off at the Franklin. Did you know that the first time we saw Red Tide was right here?”
I shook my head. “No.”
Chelsea grinned as she shoved her hands into her jacket pockets. “Yeah. It was our first concert when we were teens. Our parents hated Red Tide. We snuck out and went with Lexi’s parents. Looking back now, I guess we hadn’t really gotten away with it.”
“Lexi, getting you into trouble for over a decade,” I said dryly. I held my hand out to her and Chelsea took it.
“Yeah, I guess so.”
We made our way down the alley, feet wobbly on the uneven cobblestone after an impossibly long few days. But the sun had risen again and that was all we could ask for these days. If it still got up every morning, so too would we.
“You know, I’ve been thinking,” she said as we walked slowly.
“About?”
“Maybe changing the band’s name.”
I stopped, pulling her with me. “What? Why? You’re about to go on the biggest tour of your life.”
She grinned. “Life so far,” she corrected. “And… it reminds me too much of what’s happened. You know? I didn’t just stop playing with the band and retreat to New Hampshire because singing songs led to me crying about you.”
My brow furrowed. “Why would a story about a phoenix and a lobster bother you that much?”
“It’s us, Trevor. The war kept us apart for so long, and now that it’s over, now it feels wrong to…” She shook her head and looked away. “I don’t know. It’s stupid. Never mind.”
Except it wasn’t. I’d known she used to think about us being the phoenix and the lobster in her and Sarah’s high school story, but it didn’t apply anymore. “I think they got a happy ending.”
Her gaze swept up to mine. “What?”
“The lobster and phoenix,” I said. “I think the lobster learned to walk on land. I think he adapted. And she did, too. And they lived happily ever after.”
Her lips twisted in a half-smile and she weaved her arm through mine. “Maybe you’re right.”
“Maybe I am.”
We began walking again, but not for long before she stopped again and, pointing at the alleyway wall, said, “But one of us needs to get filthy rich in this happily-ever-after so I we can afford to fix those damn holes for the Franklin.”
I followed her finger. She was pointing at the dents she’d punched into the Franklin’s brick wall on two separate occasions.
“I hate this damn wall.”
I laughed and, together, we walked out into the City of Boston, the sun of a new day shining on our faces.
The End
I hope you enjoyed the conclusion of the Atlas Link Series, and thank you! Thank you for not only going on this journey with me, but for your enthusiasm and support throughout. I couldn’t do this without you readers. So from the bottom of my heart, thank you!
If you’re interested in more of my books, please check out my Hunter Circles Series!
Also by Jessica Gunn
The Hunter Circles Series
The Hunted
The Traitor
The Changed
The Hero
The Power
Novellas in the Hunter Circles World
The Hunter
The Healer
The Atlas Link Series
Gyre
Landlocked
Driftwood
Riptide
Countercurrent
The Hunted
Book One of t
he Hunter Circles Series
Bound by duty. Marked by fate.
I’m Krystin Blackwood, and I’ve only ever been good at one thing: killing demons of Darkness.
But at twenty-four, I’m about to face my toughest challenge yet: shifting from working alone to joining a team of three other Hunters. Newbie Hunters. They don’t know their magik, they barely know their place in the world, and when they find out the secrets I’ve been carrying, they’ll definitely decide it’s safer if they don’t know me.
But unfortunately for them—and me—Darkness has other plans. Lady Azar, Darkness’s heir, stole my new team leader’s son two years ago. Now, she and her lackeys are rallying to exchange Ben’s son for me because of the power I wield. I’m one-half of a prophecy to save an ancient city the Powers of Good lost centuries ago. And if I fail or die before that happens, the destruction of that city will be felt across all planes of existence.
If we can’t find Ben’s son before All Hallows’ Eve and somehow save him without putting my life at risk, that existential explosion will absolutely happen. But it’ll be nothing compared to the destruction wrought if Lady Azar changes Ben’s son into a demon… and her minion.
Because the only thing more dangerous than me with a blade is a father’s wrath.
Join the world of the Hunter Circles today!
About the Author
Jessica Gunn is an avid science-fiction and fantasy fan. Her favorite stories are those that transport the reader to other, more exciting worlds. When not working or writing, she can be found binge-watching Firefly and Stargate, or feeding her fascination of the ancient world’s many mysteries. Jessica also holds a degree in Anthropology.
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www.jessicagunn.com