Chapter 21
Elyse
Elyse and Killian, now dry thanks to Elyse’s magic, stood outside Mrs. Southwick’s house, facing the front door.
Their fingers were intertwined, for which Elyse was grateful.
Being back in Sevhella, especially at Killian’s home, had brought on another wave of emotions that threatened to smother her.
She took a deep breath, inhaling the scent of the little yellow potted flowers that adorned the front porch.
It smelled like home, like belonging—a smell she craved but didn’t deserve.
Killian gave her hand a gentle squeeze. “Ready?” he asked, both a question and an encouragement.
Elyse lifted her chin. “Ready.”
Still holding her hand, Killian opened the front door. A quiet conversation on the other side stopped abruptly, paired with the sounds of chairs scraping the floor. Killian went first, and Elyse trailed a step behind, trying her best not to tremble.
Everything was exactly as she remembered.
The knickknacks, the bright colors and worn furniture, all of it so warm and inviting.
Across the main room, beside the small dining table, stood Manny and Sera.
Their feet were planted firmly, their expressions wary.
A shield of hard air shimmered around them.
“It’s just us,” Killian said gently to his friends.
Manny still held his hand out, projecting the shield. Elyse waited for him to drop it, for his face to morph from worry to relief, but it didn’t.
Elyse’s heart sank to her stomach. Her friends were afraid of her. They were gauging her behavior, deciding if she’d gotten what she’d needed and would now dispose of them, or if Killian had failed and now she would retaliate.
Sera’s lilac eyes lowered to Elyse’s hand, still enveloped by Killian’s, and back up to her face. A look of surprise flashed across her features for the briefest moment before she was running.
Manny barely had time to drop the shield to keep Sera from colliding with it.
She sprinted forward, her dark hair flowing behind her.
She crashed into Elyse, knocking her backward hard enough that Elyse had to drop Killian’s hand.
Killian laughed, but Elyse barely registered it.
All she knew was the feeling of Sera’s slender arms crushing her, and the soft sound of her friend’s sobs.
“You’re back,” Sera gasped against Elyse’s hair.
“I’m back,” Elyse confirmed.
After a long, bone-crunching embrace, Sera finally pulled away. Silvery tears streaked her cheeks, but she smiled brightly.
“You’re not mad at me?” Elyse finally gathered the courage to ask.
Sera’s eyes narrowed in confusion. “Mad at you?” she breathed.
“For…” Elyse began but trailed off. “For everything.” For being a bitch, for abandoning them for weeks, for leaving them to die…
Sera pulled Elyse into another hug. “I’ll forgive you if you promise never to leave us ever again.”
Elyse laughed, and damn if it didn’t feel good. “I promise,” she agreed as she nestled her head against Sera’s shoulder.
When they finally parted, Manny was there to take Sera’s place. “It’s good to have you back,” he murmured in Elyse’s ear as he hugged her tight.
“Thank you for taking care of her,” Elyse whispered back.
Manny pulled away and met Elyse’s eyes. Always, his gaze seemed to convey.
Sera gasped so loudly that Manny and Elyse both whirled to face her. “Is that it?” she asked, a hand covering her mouth. Her other hand was extended, her finger pointed at Killian’s belt.
Killian frowned as he stared at Sera’s accusatory finger, then looked down at his belt.
“Ah,” he said, his face snapping back up to meet hers.
He smiled as he reached for the knife at his belt.
With sheer pride, he freed it from his hip and held it out for Manny and Sera to see its curved, silvery blade.
“The Blade of Hanael,” he announced.
Manny and Sera both rushed to inspect it. Manny picked it up immediately and began flipping it around while Sera stared between the knife and Elyse, her jaw wide.
“How did you—But your soul?” she sputtered. Then, “You’ve got a story to tell.”
Killian swiped the Blade back from Manny, who was pretending to stab an imaginary enemy. Elyse could tell he was trying to suppress his smirk and failing miserably.
“You tell them,” Elyse said to him, letting her pride in him ring clear. “It’s your victory.”
“Wait—” Sera said, and rushed off to the nearest cabinet. “Where does your mother keep the wine?”
Killian chuckled and escorted Sera to the cabinet over the mantle while Manny and Elyse settled into chairs at the table. Elyse watched with amusement as Killian and Sera debated which bottle to open, but a prickle at the back of her neck told her Manny was focused on her.
She turned to face him and was surprised to find his features far more serious than she was used to. He stared at her for a moment before leaning in to say, “Thank you.”
Elyse couldn’t help but shake her head. “What are you thanking me for?” Perhaps Manny had lost his mind.
“For bringing him back,” he said with a glance toward Killian.
Elyse bit her lip to keep it from trembling.
That had been the start of it all: Killian dying and Elyse trading her soul to save him.
Beneath all the emotions and memories that had been unfurling in her since the moment she’d regained her soul, that one had been buried at the bottom.
It was too deep to touch, too dark to face.
One day she would have to explore that pain, but not today.
She understood Manny’s gratitude, though, and his need to express it. She gave him a nod that she hoped conveyed everything she couldn’t speak—that it had never been a question, and that she would do it again, or worse.
Manny gave her a half smile, like he understood.
“Here you are,” Sera said as she plunked down the mismatched glassware, each with a generous pour of red wine. “Killian, the floor is yours,” she added with a flourish of her hand.
Elyse listened attentively to Killian’s story. She was eager to hear his version of the events, even the parts where he teased her bluffing skills. When he reached the part about striking a bargain with Death, Sera’s jaw fell so low it nearly touched the table.
“Damn,” Manny breathed when Killian had finished. He leaned back in his chair and downed the last of his wine, then held the glass out for Sera to refill. She was too busy topping off her own glass to notice.
Killian headed to the mantle for a second bottle. “I know,” he sighed, as if he was still in disbelief. He handed Manny the bottle and sank back into his chair.
“So what now?” Manny asked as he unplugged the cork.
“We drink,” Sera said, lifting her glass in a toast.
“We find a way to kill Lazarus,” Killian corrected gently.
“And where he’s going to attack,” Manny added. “Wherever this ‘big show’ is.”
Elyse nodded along and sipped absentmindedly, until she realized all her friends were staring at her, waiting for her input. Elyse lowered the glass and peered at them, at the people she loved most in the world, who had stood by her through the worst.
“We find a way to kill Lazarus,” she repeated, “and where he’s going to attack.” She lifted her glass toward the center of the table, and willed her voice to be strong. “But tonight, we drink and savor our friendship—something Lazarus can never take from us.”
“Hear, hear,” Manny called as they each tilted their drinks forward.
The clinking of glass had never sounded so beautiful.