Epilogue
My mom wasn’t in the Silver Quarter, but Marcie was there to fill us all in now that she had been made aware of the plan herself.
The female angelic I’d met, Charla, was also in attendance, along with a few gargoyle bodyguards.
Lucas had indeed returned to the Silver Quarter after the Bogs had stolen the rest of us away, and he was pretty pissed that we refused to tell him what had occurred in the time between.
Fortunately, the meeting hall was a full house, thanks to Lucas going ahead and telling everyone we would show up as soon as we were able.
There were werewolves and fairies, and even a few nymphs.
There was Elizabeta and Lilith, and most surprisingly, Varian.
The same Varian who’d tried to steal our celestial magic to create a new pathway to his realm.
He watched me with pursed lips, but made no move to attack.
Marcie assured us he was on whatever side would grant him a pathway without endangering his realm, but I couldn’t quite bring myself to trust it.
Mistral took my hand, and I couldn’t help my smile.
It was surreal being with him outside of the Bogs, and even stranger to be within the Silver Quarter together.
The angelics had offered their domain as a neutral meeting ground, and apparently they meant it, as so many of us were standing here now.
I tensed as Elizabeta stalked toward us, Lilith in tow. Even though Elizabeta was a full head shorter than me, dressed in a yellow cardigan and dress that made her look like a preschool teacher, she was likely the most dangerous creature in the room.
She stopped before me, looking me up and down like I might be good to eat. “I should kill you for disobeying me.”
Since I had disobeyed her a whole lot, and wasn’t sure which one she meant, I stayed silent.
Her brow twitched. “My spies saw you travel in the Bogs. I warned you that you would be unable to hide.” Her eyes drifted to Mistral, taking in his expression.
“Do not be too disappointed in your people. Vampires can be highly persuasive.” She looked at Lilith, and they both enjoyed a good chuckle.
It had been Lilith who set up the meeting between my mom and Elizabeta, calling on their old friendship one last time.
“Well it’s good we’re on the same side now then,” I said cautiously.
Elizabeta’s eyes flared for just a heartbeat, but then she nodded. “You should have told me what you were trying to prevent. A few small pathways are far preferable to healing them all at once.”
“Well I did try.” I bit my tongue at her sharp look, but then she simply nodded to each of the guys, then sauntered away, taking one of the assembled chairs.
Lilith remained behind a moment, fluffing her black curls.
Her lacy black dress would have fit in at any goth club.
“It was good to see your mother again, although I could hardly believe some of the truths I learned about our dear little Evelyn.” I blushed as she regarded each of the guys.
“Who knew celestials could have more fun than vampires?” With a coy little smile, she glided away to join Elizabeta.
“Well at least that explains those particular watchers,” Sebastian sighed. “We should have known.”
We still hadn’t heard from his sister on the contract, which was a bit worrying, to say the least. Especially now that we had plenty of help against my grandfather. I wished we’d never offered Penelope our deal.
Now that we were alone, the nymphs approached us.
I hadn’t noticed Aaliyah standing with them because she was so much smaller than the others.
She beamed at me now, her loose white dress flowing around her small frame.
“I hope you don’t mind that I spilled your secret. I knew some of us would want to help.”
I glanced at Sebastian, but he seemed just as perplexed as me.
“Eva, you are the reason we have our place in the city. No longer bound to an outside realm, we are far more powerful. Earth is where we belong.”
It was heartwarming, to say the least, but, “You do realize this is all going to be incredibly dangerous, right? You could get hurt.”
Aaliyah only laughed. “Eva, I can pop into a puddle at the first sign of danger. I want to help. I—”
I wasn’t sure what else she would have said, because everyone fell silent as the final arrivals filtered in, Rian amongst them.
I didn’t recognize the other elven nobles, but Marcie had assured me they were here with King Francis’ blessing.
While they had been trying to figure out why their king was protecting a half celestial, it was with the intent of encouraging his plan, not thwarting it.
They wanted to go home. Though they were on our side.
I might have had to have a little talk with Rian, only once I’d charged my watch I had seen Dawn’s text.
He had asked her on a second date. This time, they would finally have that tea.
Crispin sidled closer, bumping against my elbow. He had a large box in his hands, containing the vortex. With my great grandfather able to travel anywhere he pleased, we couldn’t leave it unguarded. “Varian keeps looking at me,” he muttered. “I’m pretty sure he knows what’s in the box.”
“Then he’d better stay on his best behavior so we don’t feel compelled to roast him,” I muttered back.
He leaned closer, his lips near my ear giving me a little shiver. “We’ll have to figure out how to use it first, Eva.”
“Shh.”
Everyone looked toward Marcie as she ascended the little dais. She started to speak, but the five of us already knew the plan. Instead of listening intently, I leaned back against Gabriel’s chest. Sebastian rolled his eyes at me, but I ignored him.
So I was dating three guys and married to another. What, like that’s weird?
It was almost morning when we left the Silver Quarter, and I recognized a familiar face waiting for me outside the open gates. I broke away from the guys, running full tilt until I reached Braxton, then practically tackled him with a hug.
He picked me up and spun me, his leather jacket crinkling. By the time he let me down, we were both laughing, and I punched him in the arm. “Glad to be on the same side again?”
He raked his fingers through his brown curls. “Damn, Eva, we were always on the same side. We just had a few things between us.” He waggled his eyebrows. “I’ve come with apologies from Harry, but I guess I missed the meetup.”
“You didn’t miss much,” I assured. “If you have time, we’re going back to the apartment to pack up a few last things. I can tell you on the way.” We had time before the plan would be enacted, and Marcie had simply told us to lay low, and she would find us.
All of us, even Sebastian, jumped at a little flash of darkness. As it cleared, the imp clacked its claws together, eyeing us with its beady little eyes. Once it had our attention, it flourished one paw, making the contract appear.
“It seems my sister has agreed to join us at just the right time.” Sebastian plucked the contract from the imp’s claws, his eyes skimming the first few lines.
“Okay, why do you suddenly look pissed?” I asked, nervous.
He lowered the contract with a huff. “Penelope was the one who told your grandfather about you. She’s the reason he has come out of hiding.”
I furrowed my brow. “Did she write you a letter or something?” I tried to see the contract, but he had turned it inward against his leg.
“No, but her waiting so long to sign it makes perfect sense. After the debacle with the lantern, she must have sought him out. If she could not use us against him, she would use him against us. Then I go and offer her a contract.” He shook his head.
“She waits to see how her plan plays out, having already told your grandfather where you’d be—hence the kidnapping occurring outside the park.
She bides her time while he tries to kill us, and when he fails, she signs the contract before I can figure it out.
My entire life, she has always been one step ahead of me. ”
My jaw fell open.
“It is to be expected, when working with devils,” Mistral said simply.
Sebastian crossed his arms and looked away in reply.
Braxton grabbed my elbow to get me walking. “Okay, now you really gotta fill me in.”
“Of course,” I laughed as we moved away from the gates. “But be careful with how you grab me,” I eyed his hand on my arm. “I’m a married lady now.”
“What!”