Charity had a bedroom in the house her father had been assigned, but she hoped she wouldn’t need it. She hoped Devon had left for her own good—that he’d attempted to sacrifice his own happiness so she’d have a chance at a better life. She hoped, but part of her feared he’d left to free himself up. That his history as a ladies’ man and player had finally come to bear, and he didn’t want to be chained down.
She was about to find out. He’d get a thumping either way.
The truck pulled to a stop, and Steve glanced at her with a crooked smile. “Nervous, huh?”
“No, mad,” she half lied.
He nodded and somehow affected a lounging position in the driver’s seat. He’d been one of those chosen to pick everyone up from the portal. “What do you want me to do with your entourage?”
Charity glanced back at Hallen and Kairi, two people who would apparently be her shadows. Her father had politely, and very respectfully, threatened her with a beating should she try to evade them. She didn’t want to be on the other end of that particular politeness. It hadn’t worked out well for those elves.
“I guess just drop them off? I can call an Uber if…things don’t go well.”
“Oh, they won’t go well. At first. Your dad’s crew will need to make the alpha a bunch of new tables. But you won’t need an Uber. You’ll be staying the night.”
She let out a shaky breath. God, she hoped so.
She pulled the handle on the door but hesitated a moment. Maybe a little nervous, yes. “You’re still calling him alpha—does that mean you’re still in his pack?”
Steve chuckled and leaned his big arm against the window. “I figure I better stick around for a while. If you and yours are joining up, I’ll get more chances at a certain little fae that enjoys rejecting me.”
“It is not a rejection,” Kairi said with humor. “It is only that I would miss the sun whilst standing in the shadow of your enormous ego.”
Steve leaned in closer to Charity with a sly smile. “One day she’ll succumb, just you watch.”
Kairi laughed delightedly. She enjoyed the game, clearly. As did Steve.
Charity rolled her eyes and stepped down from the SUV. Mental note: don’t ask.
The late afternoon sun flared in the windows at the front of the house. The trees gently waved around the property. With some attention from her father, this place could be just as beautiful as the Flush. Maybe more so, with the crystal-clear blue sky and the pleasant sea salt on the breeze.
She’d missed it. She really hoped her dad could be happy here.
She really hoped Devon would let her stay.
“It is a beautiful house, Miss Charity,” Kairi said softly, reading Charity’s mind. She followed her to the house. “It reminds me of the Flush. Your wolf has chosen well.”
“It’s well situated within the nature,” Hallen added, although it was clear the compliment annoyed him.
Charity reached the door and paused with her hand on the handle. Butterflies swarmed her belly. This was the moment of truth.
She pushed into the house, immediately greeted by the comforting smell of air fresheners and a scent that was uniquely Devon. Her gut pinched even as her heart surged. She hurried to the front room, desperate to see him again, to lay her eyes on the face she’d missed. It had only been a couple of days, but it was the longest they’d spent apart since they met. She’d hated it.
The house was soaked in a deep hush.
“What is that?” Hallen asked. “What is all this?” His wide eyes darted to the lamps, the laptop on the coffee table, and the fan on the ceiling.
“Get a hold of yourself,” Kairi muttered out of the side of her mouth. “We’re in the Brink. It’s different. We’ll figure it out later.”
Hallen’s mouth snapped shut, but his eyes still flew around the room.
Charity checked the kitchen, and again Hallen gawked. She checked the second living room Devon used as a meeting space, then the back bedrooms. All were clean and tidy, and his smell lingered, but he wasn’t here.
Her heart aching, she found her way to the sliding glass door—the one that had been repaired after she’d tossed Devon through it.
“It will be okay, Third.” Kairi placed her hand on Charity’s shoulder. “He will provide you many strong children to carry on your muddied but powerful fae line.”
“Goodness gracious,” Charity murmured. “That’s a bit much.”
“He will be more powerful than the Head Alpha one day,” Hallen said, mostly grunting. “He has more potential. He is a good ally for the fae.”
“Something it must pain you to admit,” Kairi said with laughter in her tone.
Charity ignored them, sweeping the backyard with her gaze.
“The Second will find this garden abominable,” Kairi said. “Even I can see it is all out of—”
A huge black wolf pushed slowly through the foliage, its brown eyes rooted to Charity. Magic washed into her middle and then back out again, Devon’s surge answered by her own. Apparently, after the link was broken, close proximity was needed to reconnect. She’d have to talk to Penny about that, but right now, she barely stopped from fluttering her eyes, his magic still so reassuring. It still felt so good. Lord, how she’d missed it.
He walked forward with his head held low and his hackles raised, a predator seeing someone unexpected in its territory. Someone he didn’t want there.
Kairi and Hallen fell in beside her immediately, wary and alert, ready to draw their swords should the need arise.
A burst of green magic surrounded Devon before his human form rose from a crouch. She couldn’t help but feast her eyes on his cut and powerful body.
“Why are you here?” he asked, his tone rough.
Uncertainty flared within her. Anger rose to mask it. “You didn’t say goodbye, you prick.”
He took a step toward her, his muscles popping, as though he were keeping himself from rushing her.
“Charity, the Flush is your future,” he said. “You’re an Arcana. You’re fit to rule. You belong there.”
She steeled herself and took a chance. If she was going to get rejected, it wouldn’t be because she was vague about what she wanted.
“I belong with you,” she said.
His chest deflated, as though he had just lost a battle. “Karen, the Seer, said I had to leave,” he said, taking a few steps toward her before stopping himself. She could see it took him effort to do so. “I would’ve done it anyway. You deserve to be in that beautiful place with your people. You deserve a crown, Charity. I’d just hold you back.”
Her heart broke and tears came to her eyes. Kairi had been right—he hadn’t wanted to leave her, and it had cost him dearly to do so. She could see the pain vibrating through his body. Wow, had the tables turned from when they’d first met.
“Go inside,” she said to Hallen and Kairi. “Go figure out the electronics.”
“The what—” Hallen grunted, probably because Kairi had elbowed him.
They backed into the house, leaving Charity and Devon alone.
“Remember when we first met?” she asked, smiling through her trembling lips. “You thought I would hold you back. And yet you let me stay. You helped and protected me, even though I was a huge pain in your ass.”
“It was my duty,” he said, taking another step. “And I quickly saw it was worth it.”
“It is still your duty. Is it not still worth it?”
He shook his head. “My duty was to leave. To walk away so that you could have a life.”
Like a puzzle getting its last piece, it all clicked together. She laughed and looked at the blessed blue sky overhead.
“Your duty was to drag me out of the Flush, and the fae with me,” she said, blinking through the tears. “Are we positive that Karen doesn’t work for Vlad? Or that Roger wasn’t resorting to Vlad’s tactics?”
Devon shook his head, his eyes roaming her face. His hands balled into fists, clearly his attempt to keep himsel
f where he stood.
“Do you know what the Seer told me, Devon? She said, ‘When you find your true home, you will know. And with that home you must stay.’ When you left, you took my home with you. You gave me no choice but to follow you.”
“I don’t…”
“Understand?” She stepped toward him, all her uncertainty melting away at the longing on his face. The blind hope he clearly didn’t think he had a right to. “You are my home, Devon. You are the walls that protect me. The roof that keeps the elements from reaching me. The person who grounds me and assures me that I have a place in this world. The Flush was ugly and empty without you. The Brink would be, too. I was living a temporary life when I met you, chasing a future without putting down roots. You’ve changed that. I have found my purpose within your pack. I have finally found my people.”
He took another halting step, as if he couldn’t help himself. “But what about your father, Charity? What about your status and your position?”
“He came with me. I’m still the Third, and my father and his people are currently figuring out how to order takeout in their borrowed homes downtown. They’ve also picked a fight with the elves, I think. They killed a few of them on the way.”
Devon’s eyes widened and his mouth dropped open.
“I know, right?” she said. “My father didn’t seem worried about it. I think Emery nearly shit himself with glee. He’s always been really aloof, but not after that. Suddenly, he was on Team Fae. Given he and Penny are the most powerful mages in the world, and Roger is one of the most powerful shifters, it seems my father is already connecting us favorably in the Brink. It’ll make it easier for them to stay for a while.”
A smirk pulled at Devon’s full lips. He took another step forward, nearly reaching her. “You’re already thinking like a princess.”
She shook her head. “I’m no fae princess. I’m a half-fae, half-human in love with a shifter. I’m an anomaly. I know you were trying to do what was best for me by leaving the Flush, but Devon, you are what’s best for me. I don’t care where I am, as long as I’m there with you. I love you,” she whispered, tears streaming down her cheeks. “Please don’t ever leave me again.”
He rushed her, wrapping her into his arms and holding her tightly. “It nearly killed me to leave you.” His breath was hot against the shell of her ear. The warmth of his body comforted her. His power and strength grounded her. “It tore me up. Please forgive me.” He pulled back, and his beautiful brown eyes, the green and gold specks dancing, showered her with deep, heartfelt emotion. “I lost Dillon, and then I thought I’d lost you. Two of the most important people—”
His voice hitched, and he clenched his jaw to keep the emotion at bay. Her heart broke all over again. Sobs welled up for Dillon. For what Devon had gone through—what he was still going through.
“I’m sorry about Dillon,” she said, putting her palms on either side of Devon’s face. “I’m so sorry. I should have realized. Macy left me a note.”
He nodded, his eyes glassy, clearly not trusting his voice to speak.
She didn’t know what else to say. He wouldn’t accept her guilt, she knew, and it wouldn’t make anything better. So she simply wrapped her arms around him and held him tight, feeling him tremble against her. He’d been hurting but with no one to lean on. It was lonely being at the top.
Except now he had her. He was her protection when she needed it, and she was his comfort when he couldn’t brave life on his own. Together they were each other’s support through this crazy magical world. She said as much.
“I love you, Charity,” he said, and captured her lips with his. “I love you so much.”
She deepened their kiss, losing herself in the feel of him. In the thrill of his magic and his touch. In his wildness. “Take me to bed.”
He swung her up into his arms and stalked across the yard to the back door. “I’ll take you for forever.”
Epilogue
The soft evening light filtered through the clouds as Charity stepped from the large SUV. Macy and Andy followed her out, annoying Kairi and Hallen, who were supposed to be right behind her in all dangerous situations.
Charity held two notes in her trembling hands, her teeth gritted against her rising emotion. Both notes had been written by Vlad, the second having been delivered by a courier shortly after she’d settled in with Devon. Vlad had lived up to his word—possibly—by giving her the address of her mother as well as an invitation to travel there in his private jet.
She’d declined his invitation immediately. Any half-sane person would. But it had taken her much longer to decide what she wanted to do with the information he’d given her. She had a good thing going at the moment, and she just wasn’t sure if she wanted to hear why her mother had left her and never looked back. Her father had insisted it was her choice.
Devon had asked her to move in permanently. She was no longer in a temporary housing setup; now she had a solid foundation with a man she adored. This was made infinitely more special when her father had exchanged Realm gold for Brink dollars and purchased a few houses for their people. He was already hard at work on the gardening, and Halvor was hard at work kicking Charity’s ass in the guise of training.
The only thing that was still on the fence was how the warrior fae would coexist with the shifters. Roger had offered Charity her old job back, and Devon had mentioned that his people would be happy if she fought for the beta role, but after a word with her father, she’d declined both offers. First, Dillon’s passing still tore her up inside. She’d had a good cry with Macy, and although no one blamed Charity, it would seem wrong to fill a hole she’d created.
Most importantly, though, she was an Arcana of the guardians—or custodes, if she wanted to be formal about it. She had duties to her people, and her people apparently had duties to the Realm. They could not join a pack, they were a pack, and the two peoples needed to communicate regarding the best way for them to join forces. Something the Red Prophet, who was staying with the guardians at the moment, kept muttering about. Well, that and her need to meet her nemesis.
After a couple of months, having missed the summer quarter and not long before classes started for fall again, Charity had finally given in to temptation with regards to her mother. Ultimately, it was simple—she just wanted to see her again.
She wasn’t the only one.
Her father stepped out of the SUV parked beside hers as their backup, mostly shifters, emerged from cars, trucks, and SUVs, all massed together in the dusty parking lot in front of a large white building stretching out across browning grass. A sign arched over the front entrance.
Brackner’s Home for the Terminally Ill.
The feeling left Charity’s legs. She dropped like a stone, nearly hitting the ground, before Devon’s strong arms wrapped around her and hoisted her back up. Her father looked down on her with concern.
“She’s dying,” Charity heard herself say through numb lips.
“Or she is a nurse,” Devon said. “We won’t know until we check.”
“Yes, Charity, the Alpha Shifter is correct. We do not know the situation until we gain more information.” Romulus put his hand on Charity’s shoulder. “She might not be here at all. This could be an elaborate trap by my cunning elder vampire pen pal. He plans his strategies the same way I plan my gardens, I think. He aims for all the flowers to bloom at once. Night flowers, in his case, no less beautiful. I half hope he will meet us here. Why else would he recommend we come near sundown?”
Vlad was trying to woo Charity’s father into his way of thinking—casting doubt on the elves and their dealings in the Realm. Letters were left in Romulus’s yard, or in Halvor’s pants, taunting them with what Vlad must’ve known the fae would deem their faulty security. He was silently telling the fae that they were rusty, and Vlad was…not.
Romulus refused Devon’s offer to erect a ward. Charity had taken up nagging as a new pastime. It wasn’t getting her anywhere. Apparently, the warrior f
ae had a problem with hardheadedness.
Roger waited at the edge of the parking lot in his tearaway sweatpants and loose white shirt. His people spread out around the vehicles, on full alert. The sun sank slowly toward the horizon.
“Shall we?” Romulus put his arm out for Charity.
They walked out from between the SUVs, Charity surveying the large white building in front of them. It stretched across the expansive property in the small Nevada town.
Emery and Penny drifted in behind Charity, having offered their help.
“This isn’t a trap,” said Reagan, who had not been invited but was apparently unwilling to be left behind. She stood a little removed from everyone, looking out over the grounds. “This is an offer of goodwill. He has nothing to gain by waging war on someone whose help he wants. He won’t snatch Charity, either, and risk upsetting the Arcana.” Her thick boots crunched on the dirt. “No, he sees what’s coming, and he’s working on his allies.”
“What’s coming?” Roger asked.
“Haven’t you heard the red-haired nut?” Reagan grinned. It didn’t reach her eyes. “War. The elves have been unchecked in their brutality for far too long. There’s unrest. And if there is anyone to capitalize on unrest, it’s Vlad. He’s planting his garden, so to speak. When it blooms, it’ll be a helluva show.”
“A hallucination says I’ll play a key part in that war,” Charity murmured as they neared the building’s large, scuffed, and scraped doors.
“We’ve talked about this, darling.” Romulus patted Charity’s arm. “It was not a hallucination; it is your birthright. One that will grant you much status. Now, let’s turn our attention to the matter at hand. We have all the time in the world to discuss the coming war.”
A shiver arrested Charity. She somehow doubted how much time they had, number one, and she didn’t want to talk about it, number two. She didn’t want any part of it.
She forced the situation from her mind.
Alder jogged forward to reach the door first as Roger fell in behind them, taking the back. His people moved in around Charity’s party, covering the fae, who covered her. It should’ve been a cluster of chaos with so many people filing up at the entrance, but somehow, it worked seamlessly. If they’d needed any proof their two peoples could work together, this was a good example.
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