Epilogue
Rickon
Three months later
Things were back to normal—well, as normal as they could be in the White House. I was now head of Ellie's Secret Service detail, a promotion that surprised no one who witnessed my dedication to her. Not to mention the fact that her entire former detail was either dead or under arrest.
We were keeping our relationship secret for now, both of us acutely aware of the complications that would arise if anyone discovered the truth.
But every night, once the last of the White House staff retired for the evening, when only a couple of guards patrolled the hallway outside the private residence, I would slip away from my small apartment a few miles away and launch myself into the darkness.
The flight to her window had become my favorite part of each day.
That moment of pure freedom in the skies, my wings slicing through the cool night air as I flew toward the female I loved.
I'd been right that the anti-aircraft surveillance systems didn't register organic matter.
They were calibrated for metal, machinery, for threats that came with heat signatures from engines and fuel.
But I'd overheard more than a few worried conversations among the night guards about the massive bat they'd spotted circling the grounds after dark.
I probably should have felt guilty about that, but I couldn't bring myself to care.
Ellie's head rested against my shoulder, the warmth of her skin seeping into mine as her fingers traced lazy, meandering patterns across my chest. My body still hummed with the aftershocks of our lovemaking, every nerve ending alive and singing.
The scent of her, fresh and floral and something uniquely Ellie, clung to my skin, mixed with the musk of sex and sweat.
I still tasted her on my lips, still felt the phantom sensation of her body wrapped around mine, taking me deep, the way she'd gasped my name.
I loved this part almost as much as the act itself. The quiet aftermath, when the urgency faded, and all that remained was her soft weight against me, the steady rhythm of her breathing, the gentle exploration of her fingertips across my skin. It grounded me in a way that nothing else could.
I pressed a kiss to the top of her head, breathing her in, committing every detail to memory.
The silk of her hair against my lips. The warmth of her breath ghosting across my chest. The way her body fit perfectly against mine, like she'd been made for me.
I felt content to lie there all night, savoring the feel of her against me, but the comm unit had other ideas.
It buzzed, sliding across the top of her nightstand, a low, thrumming vibration that shattered the peace and made my stomach drop like a stone.
The Prime never called unless it was urgent.
I stretched across the tangled sheets and reached for the small device, my fingers closing around the cool metal.
Ellie sat up beside me, pulling the sheet around herself, and tucking it beneath her arms. Her eyes found mine in the darkness, already clouded with concern, the sharp intelligence I loved sparking to life.
The holographic projection flickered to life above the unit, casting a blue glow that painted shadows across Ellie's face and the rumpled bedding.
The Prime's face materialized in the dim light of the bedroom, her features sharp and defined, her dark hair pulled back in its customary intricate braids.
Even through the distortion of the projection, I noticed the tension carved into every line of her expression.
The tightness around her mouth, the hard set of her jaw, the way her golden eyes held a storm of barely contained fury.
"Rickon, Madam President." Her voice cut through the silence, clipped and professional. "We have a problem."
"What happened?" I asked, though part of me already dreaded the answer. The Prime wore the expression of someone delivering a death sentence.
"Declan Hewes' prison transport was intercepted three hours ago. A Romvesian royal ship ambushed them en route to the prison planet."
My blood went cold, ice flooding through my veins, freezing everything in its path.
"Is he...." I couldn't finish the question.
Death was too easy for that bastard. I wanted him to suffer, to spend decades toiling on a prison planet, breaking rocks under an alien sun until his body gave out and his mind shattered from the monotony and pain.
"They took him. Alive." The Prime's jaw tightened, a muscle jumping beneath her skin. "The Romvesians are claiming jurisdiction. They say they want him for crimes committed against their people."
"Do you believe them?" Ellie asked, leaning closer to the projection, her shoulder pressing against mine, her warmth a contrast to the chill spreading through my chest.
The Prime's gaze shifted to Ellie, and I watched something flicker across her holographic features—acknowledgment, perhaps even respect.
"No, I do not." Her words were measured, deliberate.
"The route his ship took to Planet Palaydium was classified at the highest level.
Only a handful of individuals knew the transport schedule and trajectory.
" She paused, letting the weight of her next words settle over us like a shroud.
"Yet the Romvesians knew exactly where to intercept him. Down to the parsec."
I felt Ellie's fingers dig into my arm, her nails pressing crescents into my skin. We both understood what the Prime was telling us, what it meant.
"He still has someone on the inside of the Alliance," I said, the words tasting like ash.
"Yes." The Prime's expression hardened further, if that was even possible, her features transforming into something carved from stone.
"Someone embedded deep enough to access Level Omega intelligence.
" She leaned forward slightly, the blue light of the projection intensifying, casting stark shadows across her face.
"And now that Declan is in Romvesian custody, he'll have the resources and freedom to coordinate whatever he's planning next. "
"He won't return to Earth. He no longer has any power or assets here." Ellie's voice remained steady as she spoke, but I felt her pulse racing against my side, a frantic rhythm that betrayed the calm exterior she projected.
"I agree," the Prime said with a curt nod. "Whatever he plans, whatever revenge he's plotting, will need to be carried out through his associates within the Alliance."
"We need to find a way to flush him out," I muttered, my mind spinning through possibilities and discarding them just as quickly. I should have killed the bastard and been done with it, should have ripped his throat out when I had the chance.
Ellie's grip on my arm tightened. "I've got an idea.
" Her eyes centered on the holograph with a look I recognized, the one that meant she was already three steps ahead of everyone else.
"You know when the US finished seizing Declan's assets, we found a dozen or more residential properties, most of them containing abducted women. "
My wings flexed involuntarily, the anger surging through me making them twitch and strain against my back.
"I am aware," The Prime said dryly.
Ellie drew in a deep breath before she continued. "And you recall one of them is Cullen's daughter. Agent Chloe Blackwood. She was working undercover with the FBI when she got too close to Declan's operations and he grabbed her."
The memory of that day crashed over me, Ellie's hands trembling as she'd opened the comm channel to Cullen, her voice shaking as she delivered the news that his daughter was alive.
I'd watched the storm of emotions cross his face through the holographic projection, each one hitting him like a physical blow.
The initial disbelief, the surge of rage that made his jaw clench and his hands ball into fists.
Then the overwhelming relief that had nearly brought him to his knees and made his voice crack when he'd tried to speak.
The mix of fury and gratitude in his eyes had tugged at something deep in my chest, something raw and painful.
I knew with absolute certainty that I would never see my daughter's face again until I joined her in the heavens.
I could not fathom what he must be feeling, to have his child returned from death.
"I am aware," The Prime said, and I watched distaste flicker across her normally impassive features like a shadow passing over stone.
"The details of her captivity...." Ellie paused, and I felt her body tense as she searched for the right words.
I'd been with her when she'd read the full report on what Declan had done to Chloe. I’d watched the color drain from her face as she'd scanned page after page, her hands shaking harder with each paragraph until she'd barely made it to the bathroom before she vomited.
She'd emerged pale and hollow-eyed, her skin clammy, insisting through gritted teeth that Cullen be told nothing beyond the fact that his daughter had been found alive and well.
"Declan kept extensive records. Video surveillance.
From what we've learned, she was his favorite. His greatest prize, as he called her."
The Prime's gaze narrowed, her eyes glinting like molten gold in the blue light, dangerous and sharp. "Cullen and I planned to visit Earth within the next few rotations so he could visit with her."
"What if we send Chloe to you?" Ellie suggested, her voice gaining strength as the plan took shape in her mind. "Declan is an egotistical bastard. I think he'd jump at the chance to reclaim her, especially after all he's lost."
"It would be effective bait," the Prime agreed quietly, thoughtfully, her mind already working through the possibilities. "If Declan believes Chloe is vulnerable, accessible…."