Epilogue
Pax
“ You can’t just stop in the middle of the sidewalk, Big Guy.” Thea says, playfully nudging me in the back. She steps around me and sees what’s caused me to halt in my tracks.
My parents are here. Together . I haven’t been keeping up with what’s been happening with them, but the last thing I expected to see was them hanging out in the annex.
“ Ah. ” She chuckles. “Mr. and Mrs. Federal charges. You wanna go say hi?”
“What are they even doing here? Together ?” Finn asks.
Thea laughs even louder, unbothered by the looks she’s getting. “Oh, didn’t you hear? Mr. Sexy Sullivan says they’re stuck together. If they divorce, they lose the spousal immunity in their individual criminal cases.”
I look down at where Thea’s slipped her hand into mine and give hers a gentle squeeze. All those jobs I did, thinking they were for The League, and they weren’t. I’m still having a hard time coming to terms with knowing my mother was pimping me out for her lover, and that my father was a part of locking people away in Rockridge, and ordered Felix Lazarro to torture them until they agreed to his demands. They almost ruined my life.
Thea pushes onto her toes and kisses my cheek. “They don’t matter, Big Guy. They can’t hurt us anymore.”
The investigation is ongoing. I’ve been interviewed by the FBI and local law enforcement, who are all fighting over who has jurisdiction over the case. Parker warned me it could be years before this goes to trial. In the meantime, my parents can’t leave the state, which means there’s always the risk of seeing them around town.
I exhale, pushing thoughts of my parents to the back of my mind. Thea doesn’t judge me for what I’ve done. She doesn’t think less of me because of it, or turn her nose up at me for the number of women I’ve been with. She loves me. Accepts me, and she’s right, they don’t matter. They can’t hurt us. We’ve already exposed what they were up to, and The League isn’t protecting them.
Even if the high council wanted to get involved, they wouldn’t. They’ve got their own problems to deal with, with Thea establishing herself as the head of the Adrianakis bloodline. There are a lot of assets in league and historian vaults and in possession of certain legacy families that belong to Thea and Scott Hughes. Not to mention, she’s supposed to be the head of the guardian program.
My official placing is fifth, and rightfully so. My grandfather graciously volunteered to give up his spot on the council, even though he insists he didn’t know what my father was doing. Of the two bloodlines that merged, none of the descendants are willing to uproot their lives and join The League, which means a challenge is still in play for the fourth bloodline.
Thea sent out a petition to have the Cox family name formerly recognized in that spot. When I asked her why she would do that, she said no matter how much of Coxsucker I am; she believes my grandfather is a straight up kind of guy, because he never tried to bullshit her, and we shouldn’t be demoted for something we had no control over.
Holden pulled me to the side and expressed a different theory. He thinks our grandfathers knew the truth and were waiting for Scott to have a son that they could bring into The League, so they left the fourth spot empty.
That never happened, and then Thea showed up in town. My dad thinks he was the catalyst for letting women pledge, as part of his plan to overthrow my grandfather, but Holden thinks it was our grandfathers, or someone in their circle, who planted the idea first. That made total sense to me, seeing how a lot of accommodations were made to keep Thea around.
There’s been two league meeting this month, a mixer and a mini challenge, just to see how the prospects function amidst the upheaval. One of Eloise’s buddies filed a grievance against Thea. I guess the idiot calls himself being in love with Eloise and was fighting for her family’s honor or some shit.
Thea happily accepted the challenge and stepped into the cage. It was a beautiful thing watching her promptly knock him on his ass. She finished up with her signature move of wrapping her legs around his neck to choke him out. I was less happy about her legs being around him, but overall thoroughly entertained by the match. My favorite part was when she asked, “Is anyone else interested in taking an L for believing in Eloise’s fairytales? ”
No one spoke up, but we all suspect there will be a few more brave souls down the line. It’s just the way it goes. When you’re in a power position in The League, someone is always looking to take your place.
Thea’s working with Deacon, his grandfather and Phoenix agents on revamping the recruitment and training process for The Guardian program, and how it’s run. There’s still a lot of shit to do to purge the old leadership, and any guardians affiliated with Sherman’s cartel. It’ll take time to find them all, but her decision to break ties with Andor Reese was a good start.
The government withdrew their military contracts with the company, too. There won’t be much left standing in that organization when the criminal cases are done. Anyone who’s not incarcerated and wants a job will have the opportunity to apply and go through a rigorous interview and background check.
Thea steps through the door of the restaurant. Finn and Holden are behind us, as we follow the hostess past my parent’s table to the area reserved for the luncheon Thea’s arranged.
I shake Roger Kinkaid’s hand before taking my seat. In all the years I’ve gone to school with Austin, I’ve never actually taken time to talk to his old man. Being with Thea puts me in situations where I have to talk to people outside of my usual circle of friends, and I’ve been enjoying interacting with new people. These last few months, I’ve been learning a lot about myself and the world. The biggest thing I’ve learned is that I didn’t know shit about surviving in the real world without wealth and privilege opening doors for me.
My parent’s assets have been frozen but my trust fund is secure, because my grandfather never released it to my father. Last year, my grandmother made my grandfather include a marriage clause on my trust. Getting that money before I turned thirty was what the push to marry me off to Eloise was all about. My father most certainly would have deemed me incompetent if grandfather would’ve signed the initial contract my father submitted.
Thank god, he didn’t. Or I should say, thank my grandmother he didn’t. She had a short list of women she wanted me to marry. Eloise wasn’t on it, and my grandfather wasn’t in a rush to piss her off.
Thea’s on the other side of the table, leaning in close, talking to her grandmother, Van. Whatever they’re talking about has the both of them giggling like teenagers. I love seeing her happy like this. Her phone rings and she holds up her finger, pulling it from her back pocket.
Her brows pinch as the gets to her feet, saying into the phone, “LJ? No, of course not. I’m sure that’s not what she said.” She walks by and squeezes my shoulder before stepping away from the table. “Well, that’s damn sure not what I said.”
LJ’s been absent from campus. Thea has her locked away in some super secret location that she won’t even tell us about, but they talk all the time. Wherever she’s being kept is driving LJ crazy. Or rather, the bodyguards are driving her crazy and Thea refuses to tell them to stand down.
Deacon suggested that maybe LJ needed some space, and that Thea should understand, since she has a fit whenever she spots her guards. But my girl won’t budge. She says LJ’s safety is more important than hers. Of course, that led to an argument because none of us agree with that shit. Not when that psychotic doctor and Felix Lazarro are still out there. Arguing that point just reinforces Thea’s. She says those two men are the reason she has LJ under heavy guard. She doesn’t want to give them any chance to restart the outpatient drug testing they were doing on her. The boyfriend, Damon, and his cousin were using some fake as beet powder to deliver the drug.
When Thea returns to the table, Austin asks, “Everything good with LJ?”
“Nope. Everything’s awful to hear her tell it. She’s ready to come home.”
“She’s been gone a long time.” He says. “It’ll be nice to have her back.”
“Yes, it will, but we don’t want to rush LJ’s recovery. When Dr. Sagebrook tells me she’s dealing with her trauma in a healthy manner, I’ll make arrangements to bring her home.”
The conversation around the table stops. It’s so quiet you could hear a pin drop as we all stare incredulously at her. “What? Why are ya’ll looking at me like that?”
Finn snorts. “Pet, I love you. But you’re absolutely the last person who should be commenting on people needing counseling and how to deal with trauma.”
“I’ve gone to more counseling sessions than all of you at this table combined. Except for maybe Sexy Daddy.”
“Don’t call him that.” Holden groans.
She smirks at Holden’s discomfort. “I’ve been going to therapy since I was a kid, and I’m in therapy now. That makes me qualified to speak on it.”
Holden arches a brow and asks, “How many of those therapists did you actually talk to?”
She shrugs dismissively. “Just the two who knew what they were doing.”
Deacon chuckles. “You mean the two who gave you permission to be violent?”
“The two who got to know me, and gave me tools I can use in difficult or overwhelming situations.”
We all laugh again, because her current therapist gave her tools, alright. She sent Thea a pair of ninja spikes that she wears in her hair when she goes out on missions with Delta Team or league challenges.
“Laugh all you want. But I’m doing the right thing for LJ.” Turning to Austin, she says, “I miss her too. But she’s not ready to come back and be around people yet. The best place for her is exactly where she is, and when that’s no longer true, I’ll be the first one to pack her up. Okay?”
“You trust the people running this facility?” He asks.
“It’s not an institution like that. Think of it as an all-inclusive resort.” She gives him a reassuring smile. “And I’ll be sure to tell her you asked about her.”
Three Months Later
Thea
LJ tenses as Connor and Austin take their seats. I see the way Austin’s face crumbles. I feel bad for the guy. I hope he knows her reaction isn’t personal. She’s been through a lot and it’s going to take a lot to get her comfortable around the male part of our species again.
She sits quietly, pushing her food around her plate. LJ was already a quiet girl, unsure of herself in certain social circles, but she’d started coming out of her shell. That prick Damon broke her down so badly that she’s back to shrinking away from life, conforming to Canyon Falls’s bullshit norms, and she’s uncomfortable around men. He must’ve done a whole lot of gaslighting if she can’t even let her guard down and interact with her guy friends.
My attention drifts to the other side of the courtyard where Damon’s cousin sits. She was the little fucking spy he had drugging LJ to make her more compliant, and susceptible to suggestions. She’s sitting next to Finn, a smug look on her face, because he’s agreed to tutor her in Japanese.
We staged a public argument to make her think Finn’s dismissing my wishes for him to steer clear of her. I bite back my smile, knowing she’ll be walking away with more than a new language by the time he’s done with her. I can’t wait to see how she likes having her mind toyed with. Her free will taken.
“Thea?”
I clear the images of her upcoming demise from my thoughts, turning back to the people at my table. “Sorry, I got distracted. What did you say?”
Connor answers, “I was asking about the end of summer barbecue this weekend. Are you coming?”
“It sounds like fun, but LJ and I were talking about having a girls’ night in, since it’s the last weekend before the fall semester starts.”
LJ says in a small, tight voice. “You can go if you want, Thea. I’ll be fine at home alone.” Her home is now the condo that I no longer occupy. There was no way I was letting her move back in with her mother.
“I know you will, but I’m not sure I’ll be fine hanging out without you. You know I don’t like but ten, maybe eleven people in this town, that I’m not related to or fucking.” I nudge her with my shoulder. “And you happen to be my favorite.” Looking at Connor, I ask, “Who’s on the guest list, and will there be more girls than guys there?”
Austin rushes to answer. “It’s the football team hosting, like always, and it’s going to be on the open beach. You know how these things go. There are always more girls than guys. The Lady Lions were even talking about bringing a portable screen and playing a movie.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I see LJ perk up a little at the mention of the Lady Lions. Ciara, the president of the sorority, has stuck to her word so far. They still extend invites to LJ and are ready to welcome her back whenever she’s ready.
“Hmm. If there’s a movie playing and some s’mores to go with it, and it’s completely chill -meaning no pressure to do stuff other than swing in my hammock chair with a fuzzy blanket- then I might be interested in coming out.”
He assures me, “It’s as low pressure as it gets. Just some barbecue and maybe beach volleyball or ultimate frisbee, and everyone doing their own thing.”
I shrug, “Like I said, I got girl’s night planned with LJ so we’ll see.”
“If we go, will there be security around?” LJ asks.
She’s slowly coming around, but I know she’ll be more comfortable being back here and spending time out in public, when I can assure her the doctor and Lazarro are no longer walking this planet. I shift closer, keeping a slight distance between us. She leans into me, resting her arm against mine, then digs into her food.
“Just the usual suspects.” I dip a fry in cheese, wiggling in my seat, as I put the perfectly fried carb in my mouth.
She shakes her head, no, when I ask, “Why? You wanna request someone specific?”
The seat where Finn usually sits creaks as the boycott drops into it, and says, “Hello, princess.”
I stop chewing, arching a brow at the way he’s staring at LJ, then ask, “What do you want?”
“Oh nothing, just here to walk the princess to class.”
LJ turns in her seat to scowl at me. “Hey, don’t look at me. The list I got this morning didn’t have his name on it.” She’s become more comfortable with the idea of guards being around, but we both prefer them to be invisible.
To the boy scout, I say, “You wanna explain to me why I’m seeing your face when there’s no immediate threat present?”
“Because I’m not here in an official capacity. I’m touring the campus, since I’ll be starting my grad school program on Monday.”
“Well, congratulations on your acceptance. Now kindly fuck off before you interrupt the op I’m running, and Finn comes over here and threatens to cut you.”
He climbs to his feet, his exit quieter than his arrival, and slips out the side door. Beside me, LJ mutters, “I knew I should’ve changed schools.”
What a ride, right?
This wraps up Thea’s storyline, but the overarching story about the history of Canyon Falls and the different branches of The League of the Daggered Raven will continue.
There’s still a lot more to be discovered about this world, the families who inhabit it, and the villains pulling the strings.
I hope you’ll stick with me as I delve into the Guardian and Historian family trees.