Epilogue #2
He slips out from under my dress with a grin on his face. “As gorgeous as you are, you’re moonlight, and I’m all about Sunshine.”
“King, the poet, ladies and gentlemen,” Blade mutters.
Another knock on the door has me turning, just as Theo pokes his head in. He takes me in and gulps. “Jesus, you look like a princess.”
“What are you doing here?” I whisper, feeling a tear slip down my cheek.
“I’m your something new.” He smiles, lighting up the whole room as he takes my free arm and kisses my cheek. I smile right back, feeling his love wrap around me.
“I guess that makes me your something old,” Blade grumbles, making me crack up with laughter.
“What does that make King then?” Theo asks.
The man himself looks at us before answering deadpan, “I’m the fucking flower girl.”
And a flower girl he was indeed. I have never seen so many stunned men in my life as I did walking down the aisle with King in front of me, tossing rose petals to the ground.
For Kruger, though, it was like everyone else in the room disappeared. His eyes drank me in, moving over my dress as I walked toward him with Theo on one arm and Blade on the other.
I saw the exact moment he realized that my dress was actually made up of the letters he wrote to me and every worry I had faded away at his look of astonishment.
I watch a tear roll down his cheek as he struggles to hold back his emotions, which in turn has me tearing up again.
Theo and Blade both kiss my cheeks before handing me over to Kruger.
“You wrapped yourself in my words.”
I cup his face as he wraps his arm around my waist and dips me.
“I’ve been wearing them since I read that first letter. They became my armor, and you became my shield.”
He growls, kissing me hard, like I’m every single one of his dreams come true.
“You’re supposed to wait until the priest tells you to kiss her,” Theo tells him, exasperation clear as everyone around us laughs.
“Fuck that, I’ll kiss my girl any damn time I please.”
“Well, if you let the priest do his job,” I tease, “you won’t be kissing your girl, you’ll be kissing your wife. And your wife wants to watch a video with you, one she found on her phone, featuring her soon-to-be husband.”
He smirks as he pulls me up and turns us both to face the amused-looking priest.
“So what are you waiting for?”
Two weeks later, we trade the church for the courthouse, and my nerves are shot to hell once more.
The judge, who was thankfully not the same one who sent Theo back to his parents, sits on his throne reviewing the file that will determine all our fates.
The silence makes me fidget, so to keep myself distracted, I look around the room.
The benches behind us are filled with our Raven Souls family, and the gantry above us is full of friends.
I spot Don and Carl, and even John and Marie—who closed the ice cream parlor to be here.
I feel so overwhelmed by the love and support everyone has shown us that I’ve done nothing but cry on and off all damn day.
“Theo Hains? Can you approach the bench, please?” The judge asks. Theo looks at me, his face pale.
I cup his jaw and smile. It’s probably a little shaky, but it doesn’t mean it’s any less real. “You’ve got this.”
“I’ve got this,” he agrees with a nod. He gets to his feet and walks toward the judge.
“No need to be nervous, Theo. I just want what’s best for you.”
“All due respect, your honor, the last time a judge tried to do what’s best for me, I was beaten black and blue.”
The judge looks sad but nods. “I understand, Theo, and I’m truly sorry for what you went through. Can I ask you how you feel about Mr. and Mrs. Washington?”
Mr. and Mrs. Washington. I still get a thrill when I hear myself getting called that. I hope it never gets old.
Theo takes a deep breath and holds his head high. “The first time I met Delphi, I pulled a gun on her,” he admits to the gasps of the room. I silently curse, wishing he hadn’t said that, especially considering which damn gun it was.
“I’d been hurt real bad. I knew the next time Josh got me, he was going to kill me. I’d told my teachers what had happened and reported it to CPS. I’d even spoken to a cop who came to school and talked to me with the guidance counselor, and nothing changed. I stopped trusting adults after that.
“I was hiding out in the apartment above her shop while it was empty, and she turned up. I wasn’t expecting anyone, and I panicked. I thought she’d call the cops, and they’d take me back. I thought she was just another adult who didn’t give a sh…damn about me.”
“What did she do?”
“She proved me wrong. Somehow talked me into putting the gun down and hugged me. I can’t even remember a time before that I was hugged.”
And cue the damn tears again.
“She changed my life in that moment and in every moment that followed. She gave me Kruger, someone who showed me what it was to be a real man, a protector and not a predator. She gave me a family filled with people who would walk into a burning building just to pull me out of it. She never gave up on me, and she never gave in when the system failed me. She was always there, and there wasn’t a moment that went by where I doubted that for a second. ”
I turn my face into Kruger’s chest and let him hug me as I sob quietly.
“I was just trailer park trash when she came along. I was born into nothing, and I’d die as a nobody.
I’d never achieve anything because life taught me there was no point reaching for the stars when someone was always ready to stomp on you.
She taught me to reach, anyway. She showed me that we are not defined by the actions of others, and nobody gets to determine my worth but me. ”
The judge looks at me, and I swear I see a shimmer of tears in his eyes. “She sounds like a great woman.”
“She is. She’s the best, and she makes me want to be the best version of myself too. Same with Kruger. We’re better men because of her.”
“Here, here,” Kruger calls out, earning a glare from the judge that’s ruined by the twitch of his lips.
“I’m smart, your honor. Really smart. I know things other kids my age don’t because I like to read, and for a long time it was my only escape.
It was the same reason why I worked hard at school.
But everything got messed up because my attendance was rubbish, thanks to having chunks of time off to recover from beatings.
Teachers thought I wasn’t applying myself because I didn’t hand in my homework.
They didn’t know that Josh had destroyed it, and I didn’t tell them because I figured they wouldn’t believe me.
They told me I was acting stupid, and I heard a lot about how dumb I was at home.
Eventually, I started to believe it. But Delphi never did.
I’m not dumb, your honor, but I didn’t know I was smart until she told me. ”
“Jesus Christ, this kid is killing me,” Probe hisses from behind us.
“Do you wish to be adopted by Mr. and Mrs. Washington? Adoption isn’t like fostering. It’s permanent. Mr. and Mrs. Washington would become your mom and dad.”
“They’re already my mom and dad, your honor. I’m just waiting for the rest of you to recognize that too.”
Forty minutes later, we walk out of court in a daze with the request for adoption granted. I look from Theo to Kruger. “We did it. He’s ours.”
“Well, duh,” Theo teases, making Kruger laugh as I yank Theo in for a hug.
When a cell phone rings, I pull back and look over to see who has forgotten to turn theirs off. Ambros is staring at the screen of his phone, his face pale.
“Kruger.”
“I see him. I’ll be right back.”
“What’s going on?” Theo asks.
“I don’t know.” But I’ve got a bad feeling I actually do.
Five minutes later, Ambros tears off toward his bike, Havoc and Dice hurrying after him, as Kruger comes back over.
“His sister has slipped into a coma. They’ve told him he should come say his goodbyes.”
“Fuck,” Theo curses, and I can’t find it in myself to correct him for it.
“Come on, let’s go home.”
“No. Let’s go to the hospital. Ambros needs his family now more than ever,” Theo declares, catching the attention of everyone around us.
Crane nods. “You heard the kid. Let’s get our asses to the hospital.”
We all head to our respective vehicles and head toward the hospital. It’s a quiet affair, none of us knowing what to say. It might be one of the happiest days of my life, but it’s about to be one of the worst for Ambros.
By the time we get there, Raven Souls have taken over the family room, which is overflowing.
We all sit, drinking shitty coffee as we wait for news.
An hour and a half later, Ambros stumbles into the family room, his face devoid of color.
Neveah gets up from her seat beside Amity and walks over to him, wrapping her arms around him.
He stands frozen, and I swear all of us sit there holding our breath.
I look toward the doors when they glide open. Havoc walks through with a little girl in his arms. I frown, having no idea who she is. Havoc steps aside, and I see a woman just behind him who is a carbon copy of Nevaeh.
“Holy shit.”
Neveah turns and gasps, pulling away from Ambros. “Citi?”
But Citi only has eyes for Ambros. His gaze lifts to hers, then he crumples. In the next second, Citi is on the ground with him, her arms wrapped around him tightly as he sobs into her shoulder.
“She’s gone. My sister’s gone.”
“I know,” she whispers, tears running down her face, mirroring mine and every other woman’s here.
“But I’m here, Ambros, and I’m not going anywhere. I’ve got you.”
I look at Kruger and take a deep, shaky breath. I have no idea what their story is, but I hope she’s right. Something tells me he’s going to need her now more than ever.
“He’ll be okay, chestnut,” Kruger murmurs as I watch Ambros melt into Citi. She holds him tight with a determined look in her eyes. I’m inclined to agree. I think only a fool would write this woman off as weak.
But I guess only time would tell.