22 Scarlett
"Yesterday I thought I was losing everything. Instead, I lost the person I used to be."
I wake up tangled in Asher and for a few blissful seconds, I forget.
I forget the farmhouse and Thomas and Celeste.
I try to forget about the light and the fact that I have the blood of an angel and some ancient supernatural guardian running through my veins.
It doesn’t last long though and reality comes crashing back.
My eyes open and the room is flooded with soft morning sunlight.
Asher's arm is draped across my waist, his chest rises and falls steadily behind me.
He is alive, my throat tightens. I almost lost him yesterday, I did loose him yesterday.
I roll over slowly and stare at him and stare where the scar that should be there isn't.
The wound is gone, like it never existed.
My fingers brush lightly across the spot and Asher's eyes immediately open. The man sleeps lighter than a damn cat.
"Morning, Red." His voice is rough from sleep and I smile.
"Morning."
His eyes study me.
"You okay?"
No, not even a little. But somehow...here is his arms I know that I will be. We will figure it all out.
"I'm trying to be."
He reaches over and brushes a strand of hair behind my ear. "That's good enough."
I lean forward and press my forehead against his. Neither of us speaks, but we don’t need to, I feel like after yesterday we are connected in a way that we weren’t before. A knock interrupts us.
"Go away."
The door immediately opens.
"Rude." I groan.
Roman grins.
"Breakfast."
"Not interested." Asher says.
"You should be." Something in his voice makes both of us sit up.
"Grant got ahold of Luca. He'll be here in an hour."
My pulse picks up. The one person who seems to know almost as much as my mother and grandfather did. Asher swings his legs off the bed.
"What did he say?"
"He said he has the last journals."
"Did he say anything else?" Roman looks directly at me. "He said your grandfather left instructions."
"What kind of instructions?"
Roman shrugs.
"He wouldn't tell Grant over the phone."
Of course not. Nothing in my life can ever be simple.
Ten minutes later we're downstairs. The atmosphere is completely different than it was yesterday. The difference one day can make is terrifying. Everyone is waiting. I sit down while Asher grabs us each a plate of food.
“How is Hannah?” I ask.
Everything that happened yesterday had pushed it to the back of my mind, but now that things have settled, the guilt comes rushing back.
She got shot because of me all because she happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
The room immediately grows quieter and Grant looks toward Roman before answering.
“Declan checked in from the hospital last night and again this morning.”
My stomach twists. “And?”
“She made it through surgery.”
I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding. Thank God.
“But she's still in the ICU.” The relief immediately fades.
“How bad was it?”
“The bullet caused more damage than they originally thought. Bennett said she lost a lot of blood.”
Harper reaches over and grabs my hand. “She’s going to be okay, Scar.”
God, I hope so.
“Has she woken up?”
Roman shakes his head. “Not yet. They've been trying to get ahold of her emergency contact, apparently, she doesn't have much family listed.”
“What about her parents?”
“According to the hospital, both passed away years ago. She was raised by her grandmother, and she passed away last year.”
Now I feel even worse. No wonder Hannah was always alone and why she always buried herself in books and tutoring.
“Who is with her?” I ask quietly.
Roman smirks. “Declan.”
“Has he left at all?”
“Not once.”
Harper immediately perks up. “Oh my God! I knew it!”
“Harper,” I warn.
“No. Absolutely not. Are we all just ignoring the fact that Mr. Grumpy hasn’t left the hospital at all?”
Roman laughs and Grant rubs a hand over his face.
“Harper...” I can't help but smile, because for all of Declan's quiet seriousness, I think Hannah somehow managed to sneak right past all of his defenses.
“He really stayed all night?” I ask and Grant nods.
“He refused to leave.” My smile grows.
For some reason that makes me feel better, knowing she isn't alone and knowing someone is there waiting for her to wake up. I glance over at Asher.
“After this meeting, I'd like to go see her. If that's alright?” His eyes soften immediately, like they always do when he looks at me.
“Red,” he says quietly, reaching over and taking my hand. “I'll take you anywhere you want to go.” I lace my fingers through his.
“Then after we finish here,” I say softly, “let's go bring Hannah some flowers.”
The guys get an alert that someone is coming through the front gate. Roman goes over and opens the front door finally. Luca Morleti walks inside carrying an old wooden box. Whatever is inside that box is the final piece. The thing my mother spent eighteen years trying to protect.
"You look just like her." My eyes instantly burn.
Luca sets the box on the table and carefully slides it toward me.
"Your grandfather made me promise that one day, only when you were ready..." His hand rests on the lid. "...I would give you the truth."
My hands shake as I lift the lid. Inside are three journals and a bundle of letters and photographs.
There is a sealed envelope with my name written across the front in my mother's handwriting.
A sob catches in my throat. For a moment, I can't bring myself to touch it.
It's ridiculous. After everything I have faced lately, being attacked, being kidnapped, watching Asher die and discovering my entire life was a lie.
Yet somehow this envelope terrifies me more than all of it, because this is my mother. Asher's hand settles over mine.
"You don't have to do it right now."
I look up at him, then at Harper and then to everyone else. These people are my family. They may not be the one I was born into, but they are the ones I chose and the ones that chose me back. I take a shaky breath.
"No." My fingers slide beneath the seal.
"I think it's time."
Carefully, I open the envelope and inside is a single folded letter, the paper worn from age. The tears come immediately.
My Sweet Scarlett,
If you are reading this, then it means two things.
First, I am gone.
Second, you finally know the truth.
If I could have chosen differently, I would have stayed.
I would have watched you grow up.
I would have told you every story myself.
I would have been there for your first heartbreak, your first love, your first impossible decision.
But life rarely gives us the choices we want.
So instead, I am leaving you the only thing I can.
The truth.
You were never a mistake.
You were never unwanted.
You were never difficult to love.
You were the greatest gift I was ever given.
Your father loved you before you were born.
I loved you from the moment I knew you existed.
And your grandfather loved you enough to spend his entire life protecting your future.
Never let anyone convince you otherwise.
There will come a day when you must decide what kind of woman you want to be.
Not what the Seraphines want.
Not what the Guardians want.
Not what anyone else expects.
You.
The blood inside you does not define you.
Your choices do.
Remember that.
Always.
The company belongs to you.
Everything your grandfather built belongs to you.
Not because of blood.
Not because of destiny.
Because he believed you would use it to help people.
Do not let bitterness turn you into someone you aren't.
Forgive when you can.
Fight when you must.
Love with your whole heart.
And live.
Please, Scarlett.
Live.
Love,
Mom
"There is one more thing."
Everyone looks up and he reaches into the box and removes a small leather folder. This is the original will of your grandfather. I was told not to open this box, only you. That is why I couldn’t find it.
"I will inform the board. That effective immediately..." He slides the document toward me. "...you are the sole owner and CEO of Vale Enterprises. The shares held by Thomas will be revoked under your grandfather's contingency clauses."
Harper immediately jumps up. "I vote we turn Thomas's office into a library"
"I don’t want the house. Sell it. That place only holds bad memories for me"
I look at Asher and he smiles.
"Whatever you want, Red."
For the first time in my life the future doesn't feel terrifying. It feels open with possibilities and full of hope.
Luca leaves and we all take some time to go through the journals.
They told the history of the Guardians—sentinels tasked with protecting the boundary between life and death and preserving the balance of the universe.
Unlike the Seraphines, there could only ever be one Guardian in each generation.
When one died, another would eventually rise.
My grandfather was the last Guardian. The journals described abilities that awakened over time: heightened senses, enhanced strength, accelerated healing, the ability to sense disturbances in the balance, and in rare cases, powers that had not been seen for centuries.
What truly caught everyone's attention, however, was the section dedicated to the union of the two bloodlines.
According to the journals, a child born from both Guardian and Seraphine ancestry had never been documented.
The writings suggested such a person could possess abilities neither bloodline could access alone, making them something entirely new.
Unfortunately, the journals offered no clear answers about what those abilities might become, only repeated warnings that power without guidance could be just as dangerous as any enemy.
So we agreed that we would keep watch and anytime I notice the slight change I need to let Asher and his brothers know.
They are going to keep training me, they are going to try to teach me to control my abilities.
I want to help them, use them to help others, if I can.
A few hours later, we arrived at the hospital.
We made a stop on the way to the pharmacy, because after everything that happened yesterday, we almost forgot to stop and grab me the pill.
The last thing we need right now is an unplanned pregnancy.
We're standing outside Hannah's ICU room.
Declan hasn't moved from the chair beside her bed, he is asleep but wakes the minute we walk in.
I notice Hannah's eyes open when she hears us and she looks weak and tired but she is alive.
Declan's entire face changes when he sees her awake.
Yea that man is absolutely in love. Hannah turns to us standing in the doorway, tears immediately fill her eyes.
"Well," she says weakly. "You all look terrible."
Harper gasps. "Excuse me?"
Hannah smiles, the first one I've seen since before everything happened.
"I’m the one that got shot and you all look like you went through hell." I can't help laughing and neither can Hannah. The laugh immediately turns into a wince. Declan is instantly leaning forward.
"Don't."
Hannah blinks. "Don't what?"
"Make yourself laugh. You can pull your stitches. Or worse.”
Something soft passes between them. Something neither of them seems to realize everyone else can see. Harper catches it immediately; her eyes widen and mine do too. Declan notices.
"Don't."
"Didn't say anything," Harper says innocently.
"You were about to."
"I was absolutely about to."
Hannah looks between all of us. Confused.
"What am I missing?"
"Nothing," Declan says immediately.
"Everything," Harper says at the exact same time.
I start laughing and Roman groans from the corner.
"Please don't encourage her."
Harper walks over and carefully hugs Hannah.
"You scared the hell out of us, you know that?"
Hannah's smile fades slightly. "I'm sorry."
"Don't apologize." My voice comes out stronger than I intended. “It wasn’t your fault. It was mine. All of this was because of me. I should be the one apologizing to you.”
Everyone looks at me and Harper immediately shakes her head.
"No, it’s not. It is their fault. You can’t blame yourselves for others shitty actions."
Hannah reaches out and squeezes my hand.
"I'm just glad you're okay."
Even lying in a hospital bed after surgery, she's worried about everyone else.
Harper wipes at her eyes dramatically. "I swear if anyone else almost dies, I'm charging for emotional damages."
That earns a laugh from the entire room, even Declan.
Hannah catches it, and the way her eyes light up when she sees him smiling tells me everything I need to know.
As I stand there surrounded by the people who fought for me, protected me, and stayed…
. I finally understand what my mother was trying to tell me.
The power, the bloodlines, the destiny, none of those things made me who I am or make me who I am going to be.
All of this is what will, the family I found, the people I love and the choices I make.
Asher slips his hand into mine, and places a kiss to my cheek.
“I love you Asher, thank you. Thank you for rescuing me that night, and every day since. Thank you for giving me everything I never knew I needed.”