‘I know,’ she said, feeling proud but surprisingly emotional.
‘Marytown will be liberated and you will be standing right there in the thick of it when that day comes.’ He paused, smiled widely. ‘I have to admit, I am a little envious.’
‘I couldn’t have gotten this far without you.’
He did not acknowledge that compliment but of course he never would. They both knew every little thing that he had done for her since the day he pulled her out of that hellhole. There was no need to get into specifics because they had never kept score. They had been unequal at the beginning; a young, broken girl and the strong, stalwart nephilim that had saved her but they had eventually become comrades, partners. Perhaps they had even become friends.
‘So, that’s it?’ she asked, staring at the dark wood table that lay between them.
‘That’s it,’ he confirmed. ‘You already have everything that you need and you are to report to me if you require anything or find something that you believe we should act upon.’
Martha sat there for a long time in complete silence before finally saying what had been running through her head, hanging on the edge of her tongue, even though she knew that Stefan wouldn’t particularly appreciate it. ‘I’m really going to miss you.’
‘I will not be far away,’ he stated, tactfully. ‘You know where to find me.’
She shook her head. ‘It won’t be the same.’
‘No, it won’t,’ he finally agreed. ‘But you are going to be brilliant, Martha Valentine. I know it now as I always have… And I’m never wrong.’
No, he wasn’t. She got to her feet and resisted the urge to avoid making eye contact, even though hers were filling with far too many emotions and his never would, because he was the ultimate professional. As she walked away, she thought that she heard him mutter something that sounded like ‘Take care’ but she did not stop to clarify it. Her new life awaited her, beyond the border and in the town where she was raised by a family who had mostly meant the world to her.
Home. What a sentimental concept.
It was a good thing that Martha Valentine had a hell of a lot to be sentimental about.
Sins of the Father (Bloody Marytown Book 1) Page 24