Epilogue
Kainda
“ H ow on the goddess’s green earth did he talk me into this?” The words ripped out of me in a snarl as Hida pulled the string of the corset backed dress tighter.
Evin laughed as she poured more magic wine into the two glasses lined up on the bathroom counter in my suite. “I’m not sure, but I’m kinda loving this right now. It’s still hard to believe that one, mostly human man has you so wrapped up in him that you’ll do whatever the fuck he asks of you.”
“Ha!” Hida barked out a laugh. “You’re more delusional, or possibly drunk, than I thought if you truly believe that. Elijah didn’t talk her into anything. This was a compromise I had to convince her was in her best interest. You really think he knew what a Handfasting Ceremony was?”
The ebony haired witch just shrugged, not a care in the world, as she handed me one of the wineglasses. “I don’t call him the professor for nothing. If he’s not eating, sleeping, or fucking this crazy bitch?—”
“I’m going to kill her.” I growled, reaching for one of my knives sitting just out of my reach on the vanity counter as she just kept on talking like she hadn’t heard me.
“—then he’s in that library, nose shoved in a book reading about anything and everything supernatural. It’s fucking weird.”
Hida snorted as she smacked my hand as I tried to reach for the knives to start tucking them back on my person or stab Evin with them— Goddess, I felt naked not being armed. She pulled a flask from her pocket uncapped it, took a long, unhealthy swig of what I knew to be Fae liquor as she rolled her eyes at Evin. Where exactly did she get Fae liquor? Just another one of those Hida mysteries that no one knew the answer to.
“Is it really necessary for you to say the work fuck at least once per sentence?” Hida asked, looking at the younger woman with a hint of disdain and judgment.
Evin gasped as her hand flew to her heart. “You just don’t appreciate the value of the word or the impact it imparts. Fuck is the perfect word. It’s one of the best activities, it’s the best curse, perfect for all occasions. Fuck is a verbal comma and the ultimate punctuation for the spoken word. You’re just too much of a simpleton to grasp its harsh beauty.”
“Do you think she realizes she’s up to her eyeballs in bullshit?” I asked Hida before downing my entire glass of wine.
Hida shook her head. “She lives in a constant state of bullshit. I know she was raised by a pack of wild, insane demon hunters, but I don’t think any of them ever used the word fuck as often as she does. Honestly, I think she’s broken some sort of world record, and she’s not even in her thirties yet.”
A knock sounded at the door before Evin could carry on any further as Devanna called from the other side. “Are you all about done? We have to leave in a few minutes and Hida still needs to cast the spell to open a portal.”
“We’ll be done when we’re done, you overgrown tabby.” My animosity toward the cougar shifter hadn’t lessened in the year that she’d started living here.
A growl shook the door, so it rattled in its frame. “Have it your way, witch. I’ll meet your human at the altar and tell him that you got cold feet. He’ll be crushed for a bit, but he’ll realize you were a mistake and marry me.”
“I’m going to have that bitch stuffed and mounted on my wall with a gold plaque.” The words came out in a snarl as I pushed Hida to the side and grabbed one of my knives before heading toward the door.
Evin’s eyes popped out as she saw me charging her way. “Oh, fuck! Devanna, you might want to run, she’s armed.”
“I thought the crone was taking her weapons away at Elijah’s request?” The words came out on a feline hiss.
Hida threw her arms up at our antics as I waved my blade at the other witch. Evin, smart woman, moved out of my way, hands held where I could see them. I yanked the door open, but the shifter was no longer there. Wearing this ridiculous dress, I couldn’t exactly chase after her either. If that flea bag didn’t quit trying to make moves on E, I would not be responsible for my actions.
“He’s mine!” I shouted, throwing my head back, which caused my recently styled hair to shift and strands to slip from the grasps of the bobby pins holding it in place.
Smack! The sharp sound of flesh hitting the faux marble counter top was loud in the small space. Hida fumed as I turned back to look at her and immediately regretted it. “Can you just not? I spent an hour working on your hair, you ungrateful, child!”
Evin pretended to be fascinated by the surrounding air before she looked in the mirror and messed with her nose ring. “I’ll just go get everything ready for you to cast the portal, Hida.”
“Sorry.” I said to Hida as Evin shot passed me and out of my apartment. “I just can’t stand that shifter.”
Hida shook her head at me. “She’s just trying to get your goat, and you fall for it every time and let her. And it’s not like Elijah has eyes for anyone other than you. That boy is so in love with you, it's a little sickening. He’s living in a building full of beautiful women, but he might as well be living in an empty box for all the attention he gives to any of us. Now, let me fix your hair, so we can get this ceremony over with.”
Elijah
“Relax, dear.” My mother said, patting my arm. “She’ll be here shortly, the ceremony will start, and then she’ll be your wife.”
I took a deep breath. Holy shit! It was finally happening. I almost couldn’t believe it. When I’d asked Kainda to marry me a few months ago, her answer wasn’t what I’d wanted to hear.
Human marriage is overrated. You do know most marriages end in divorce. We’re magically fated, we don’t need to get married.
That had seriously stung, and I hadn’t been myself in days when Hida finally asked me what was bothering me. When I told her, she’d laughed but assured me it would all work out. The next morning I’d gone into the library to find a book on the conference table opened with a note sitting on top of the open page. Read this, if this is an acceptable compromise, I will help you get your little witch to say yes.
I’d spent the rest of my day reading everything I could about Handfasting Ceremonies. Similar in concept to human marriage, some humans even used the ceremony, mostly Wiccans and Pagans, but historically it was quite popular among whole regions and eras. Definitely an acceptable compromise, but I had strong doubts that Kainda would agree to this either. But I found Hida that evening and told her that I agreed. She’d just smiled and patted my hand, saying, ‘leave it all to me.’
When I’d come down with Kainda the next morning for breakfast, the common space unusually empty, save for Hida sipping her coffee at the table. She gave us a smile and waited while we got our coffee and food. We sat down around the table, Kainda giving the ancient woman a head nod since she hadn’t had enough coffee yet. Hida and I made some small talk as we finished our breakfast.
As soon as Kainda’s coffee cup was empty, Hida’s smile went mischievous. “So when are you going to ask me to officiate your Handfasting Ceremony?”
“Um, I wasn’t aware I was having one?” She looked at me, and I just shrugged like I had no idea what the other woman was talking about.
Hida huffed indignant. “You’re a witch, and you’ve met your magically fated partner, why wouldn’t you have the ceremony?”
Kainda grabbed her empty mug and plate, carrying them to the kitchen. “I’m not opposed to having one, I just didn’t realize there was some invisible timeline on when it needed to occur.”
“There isn’t one, but why wait? Compared to me, you’re both living on borrowed time, as humans say ‘life is short.’ So when is the ceremony going to be?” Hida crossed her arms, giving my badass a stare-down.
She tossed her arms up in the air. “Alright, for the gods' sake.” Turning, she looked at me. “Do you know what ceremony she’s talking about?”
“I’ve read about it in a book in the library while doing my research. If it’s something you want to do, then it’s fine with me.” I found it difficult to keep the smile off my face. I had to admit, Hida was scary good at manipulating those around her.
Kainda looked back at the older woman, “Okay, so we’re having a Handfasting Ceremony. When can you work us into your busy schedule to perform it?”
“I could do without your sarcasm and attitude. But for Elijah, I can take some time on the next full moon.” With that she stood, patted my shoulder, and left the room.
Kainda pointed a finger at me as she stalked back across the room. “That was such a set-up. I can’t believe I fell for that, but good for you on enlisting her help. Better be glad I love you.”
She grasped my jaw, gave me a quick kiss, before leaving in a huff. I couldn’t do anything but smile. The next few weeks passed quickly, and now here I stood in the yard of the cabin where it had all started a few years ago. My parents had come, as well as my adoptive brother and sister, Ian and Kimmy. We waited on the team and Kainda to show up. Kainda’s surprise had already arrived and waited for her.
“And just to remind you one more time, don’t ask them what they are. It’s rude and offensive. If they want you to know, then they’ll tell you.”
My sister rolled her eyes. “How on earth has that not driven you crazy? You’re the definition of curiosity killed the cat.”
“Well, after all the studying I’ve been doing since I started living with them, I’ve learned to use that knowledge to identify some species. Not everything is passable to humans, but a lot is, but if you know what you’re looking for you can tell or at least guess.”
Before the conversation could continue, I felt a shift in the air pressure, and the afternoon sounds of the forest went silent. The portal had opened and they’d arrived. I took a deep breath because this was it. Energy vibrated through me and I wanted to run laps around the house. Instead, I took a deep breath, held it for a moment, let it out, and repeated the process.
Evin came walking around the side of the house, more dressed up than I’d ever seen her. Her shoulder-length black hair piled up on top of her head, she had a gemstone adorned headdress, and a navy blue dress that went to her ankles. Shockingly, her feet were bare. She held one end of a large trunk.
“Damn, she’s hot.” Ian said, nudging me with eyes locked on the foul-mouthed witch. Oh, this was going to be interesting.
Her smirk went a little evil. “She can hear you, human. And she’s not interested in skinny, pretty boys with no manners.”
Serena held the other end of the trunk. She used a glamour to disguise her true appearance and not freak out my family. This particular glamour was one of her favorites. Long sandy blonde hair in soft waves, held back from her face with pearl hair clips. A golden tan gave her skin a sparkle. Thankfully, this glamour, she’d remembered to give it clothes. She often forgot, as sirens generally don’t wear clothes, as it can slow them down in the water. Her dress an ocean, blue-green color with more pearls on the straps at her shoulders.
Following behind them, Brielle had dressed in her ceremonial Amazonian attire. Her pale blonde hair braided down her back, a gold and red helmet atop her head, a gauzy cream dress held at her collar bones with circular bronze broaches, and brown leather Roman style sandals wrapped around her feet. I fully expected to see her with one of her weapons or her elaborately decorated shield. But none of them were present. I wasn’t expecting her to wear so much makeup, though it suited her.
Devanna brought up the rear of the group. Her tawny hair up in a ponytail, and she wore a jewel tone green dress. She carried another trunk, using her shifter strength to move it without help. Her smile friendly since Kainda wasn’t around. When my wife was around, Devanna’s smile became flirty. The cougar shifter loved to mess with my witch.
The group of them came over to us, setting the trunks off to the side of the porch. “Everyone, this is my mother Grace, my father Bill, my brother Ian, and my sister Kimmy.”
Evin stepped forward first offering her hand to my father. “My name is Evin. It’s nice to meet you all, and thank you for hosting the ceremony.”
She moved down the line until she reached Ian, who she gave the middle, one fingered salute with a sweet, misleading smile. All I could do was shake my head as the idiot smiled right back, thinking he would get somewhere with her.
“This is Serena.” I said when she stepped forward. She shied away from speaking around new people because she wasn’t sure how they’d react to the sound of her voice. With a nod from her, I continued with my introduction.
“She’s given me permission to disclose her origin. Serena, is a siren. If you suddenly see someone you don’t recognize, it’s her. She likes to change up her glamour fairly often. And don’t think she’s rude if she doesn’t speak to you. Because of her species’ abilities, she doesn’t want to expose you to her voice until she knows you better.” Evin and Serena picked up their trunk and moved to the far side of the clearing to begin setting up for the ceremony.
I looked at Brielle and felt a little lost on how I should introduce her to my family. And kicked myself for not having asked her the proper way beforehand. Now I just looked like an idiot. If I introduce her by her title, then I’m technically outing her race to my family. But if I don’t introduce her by her title, am I going to offend her? As Evin would say, fuck!
She took pity on me, but decided to give me shit in the same breath. “You don’t know how to introduce me, do you?”
“Yeah, no clue. Want to help me out or keep embarrassing me?” I gave her a pointed look, while my mother looked at me like she couldn’t believe I was so rude.
She shrugged but helped me anyway. “Respectfully speaking, you should use my title to introduce me, but we’ve not exactly used normal rules prior to this. Goddess, could you imagine having to use my title every time you needed to get my attention or refer to me. Yikes!”
“Everyone meet Queen Ptolema’s youngest daughter, Princess to the Amazonian throne, Brielle. The youngest Amazon to ever reach the level of Valkyrie.” I swept my hand out to her like some sort of showcase girl.
Her smile brightened and lighting up her young face and started shaking hands with my family. “While all that is true, please call me, Bri or Brielle.”
Devanna burst out laughing. Tears formed in her eyes and she clutched her stomach. She laughed so hard she started wheezing. Brielle rolled her eyes and walked off with a quick, ‘excuse me.’ I just waited for the cougar shifter to collect herself. Finally, she straightened up and gently wiped her eyes. It was a good thing she hadn’t worn makeup, or it would’ve run all over her face.
“Sorry for my behavior. His face was absolutely priceless. Nothing much catches him off guard, and it’s obvious he’s not used to not knowing the correct answer for something. My name is Devanna?—”
My mother gasped and place her hand on Devanna’s arm. “You’re the one who save my son?”
The shifter sobered and gave mom a solemn nod. “Yes, ma’am.”
Mom threw herself at Devanna wrapping her in a big bear hug. “Thank you! Thank you! We can never thank you enough for what you did for Elijah and our family.”
“Grace, give the woman some space. She can’t breathe with you choking the life out of her.” My father said, placing his hand on mom’s shoulder, giving her a little tug.
Mom let go and straightened up with tears in her eyes. “Of course. My apologies, dear, I’ve just wanted to thank you for so long.”
“I was happy to do it, Mrs. Henry. And as I’ve gotten to know him this last year plus, I’m glad I did. He’s a great man. You and your husband did a wonderful job raising him. It’s nice to finally meet you all.” She shook hands with dad and Ian before hugging Kimmy. “If you’ll excuse me, I need to help them finish setting up for the ceremony.”
Hida came around the corner then, wearing a charcoal gray dress with silver thread embroidery all over it. “Hello, Henry's! We’ll catch up after the ceremony. I’ve got to get everything settled.”
Kimmy turned and looked out at the clearing. “Oh, wow! They work fast. Is all this stuff even necessary? What is this all for?”
“The colored candles are elemental candles placed at the cardinal points of the circle. Witches use circles in nearly all their rituals, ceremonies, and spell work. Circles are used to contain energies, keep out unwanted energies, and to protect those inside or outside depending on the circle. The little dishes Evin is place around the boundary contain black salt. It’s used for protection and containing strong energies. The white candles next to the elemental candles are used as anchor points for protection. Those are quartz crystals, and they’re used for protection.”
Ian stopped me, holding up his hand. “What exactly are you all doing that requires so much protection?”
“Hida is going to lead the ceremony, and she will be invoking the god and goddess for their blessing of our union. When you call on energies that strong, they need to be contained as well as shielded from things that would be attracted to that kind of power. Trust me you want them to use all that protection but none of us are in any kind of danger. And some of it is symbolic. The witch religion, Wicca, is very symbolic.”
Dad just looked bored by the whole thing. Ian watched Evin like a hawk. Kimmy and mom chatted about all the new people they’d met. I stood there trying to calm myself down and hoping I wasn’t a sweaty mess by the time Kainda joined me at the altar. Thankfully, the team worked together like a well oiled machine, and they finished quickly.
Hida motioned to get our attention, “We’re ready to set up the chairs. You guys can bring them over, make sure you don’t knock over a bowl of salt. We’ve cut a door so to speak in the uncast circle.”
The door consisted of a gap in the candles, crystals, and salt bowls. Everyone grabbed a couple chairs, and we had that set up quickly. They took their seats while I went to stand by the altar. Evin lit a bushel of sage to use as a smudge stick to cleanse us and the area. She slowly moved the smoldering herbs around herself before passing it to me. I’d done this a few times before, so I knew the routine. When I finished, I handed it off to Brielle.
“What’s that for?” Ian asked Evin when she walked by him as she finished setting up the space.
She looked at him like one would a pile of dog crap: gross and unwelcome. “It’s a smudge stick. We use it to cleanse people, spaces, and things. When it’s handed to you, slowly move it over your body from head to toe in a left to right motion. Hold it for a few seconds at each of the chakra areas. You specifically need to take it extra slow.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” He cried as she walked off, not giving him another glance.
Shaking my head I walked over to him putting my hand on his shoulder, “I’m only going to say this once, don’t go there. She’s not a witch you want to mess with.”
“We’re about to get started, Elijah.” Hida called, motioning me back to the altar. “Stand here.
Evin took the smudge stick back from the last person and went to wait at the door of the circle. Then I saw Bronwen step around the side of the cabin, arm in arm with Kainda. The whole world narrowed until all I saw her walking toward me. All the breath in my lungs left me in a silent whoosh. Right now, I’d never seen her look so beautiful.
Her long red hair piled up on her head in some complicated looking up do. A few pieces of hair had come loose and framed her face. The smirk she wore was one I knew well. Her eyes looked me over from head to toe. It felt like she undressed me with her eyes, and I felt my cheeks heat.
That dress, perfect, it fit her like a second skin. The gold color of the dress reminded me of champagne and looked fantastic against her pale skin and red hair. Made of delicate looking lace, and a long train trailed along behind her. Every step she took, one small barefoot would appear. Given the way the dress fit her, I was almost certain she was unarmed. It would be a first for her since I’d known her. Not that she was ever truly unarmed given her magic.
At the door to the circle, Bronwen kissed her daughter on the forehead and took the smudge stick. Evin removed a vial of oil from a pocket on her cloak. She uncapped it and poured a small amount into the palm of her hand. Dipping her finger in it, she drew a sigil on Kainda’s forehead. Then my badass demon hunter took the smudge stick from her mother and cleansed herself. Bronwen joined Hida and I at the altar.
As soon as Kainda finished with the sage, Evin took it and tossed it into the air. She used her magical fire to burn up the tiny bit that remained. Kainda joined us at the altar while Evin place the items needed to connect the two ends of the circle before coming to stand beside Hida and Bronwen. I held my hand out to my girl, and she took it, giving it a good squeeze. Bronwen gave me a smile before stepping toward the gathering of our friends and family.
“Merry meet! Thank you all for coming to witness the joining of Elijah Henry and Kainda Lane. We shall begin the ceremony by calling the corners and casting the circle.”
Hurry up! I felt Kainda’s thought brush my mind, and I couldn’t help but smile wider. It took a lot of effort not to laugh. She’d never considered doing this before, never imagined she’d have a relationship before me. She did this for me, and I couldn’t love her more for it. I pulled her a little closer to me and she met my gaze. We got lost in each other’s eyes, and I’d never felt so happy in my life. In a few short minutes, she’d be my wife. For the first time, I was grateful I’d survived and that the whole awful ordeal had led me to her.
Leaning down, I whispered, “I love you.”
You better. I love you too, E.