Epilogue
Four years later
“Six giant meatballsubs and four pastrami cheesesteaks with extra bacon!”
Mae finished texting Nikolai and raised her hand. “Here!”
She slipped through the crowd packing the diner and took her order from the deli guy. He smiled as he handed her a couple of large carry bags.
“You’re looking a bit peaky, doc. Everything okay?”
“Yeah. I just finished a nightshift.” Mae arched an eyebrow. “And you know what they say about those.”
Almost the entire diner roared, “Nightshifts suck!”
Mae laughed and waved at familiar faces as she made her way to the exit. A blustery wind cooled her cheeks when she stepped outside. Autumn had come to New York.
When do we eat, my witch?Hellreaver whined where he hung around her neck.
“When we get home,” Mae said firmly.
Brimstone huffed beside her as they crossed the road. He is nothing but a glutton, my witch.
Mae glanced at Hellreaver. “You think he’s gotten chunkier too?”
Hellreaver flinched.
Mae bit back a smile and headed for the garage where she’d left Betsy. She stopped at a red light for the ambulances that were reversing into bays next to the emergency department, her thoughts turning to the future.
With the end of her surgical residency at Grandview in sight, she needed to think about what she intended to do in the coming years.
You can always just be the Witch Queen, Na Ri said quietly. It’s not too early to start training the army we will need at the End of Days.
Mae wrinkled her nose. We have decades left before that happens.
An army does not get strong overnight.
Mae sighed and stepped off the curb. Alright, I’ll think about?—
A panicked shout made her stiffen.
“Rose, no!” a woman yelled.
Movement opposite drew Mae’s eyes.
A black ball of fur bolted across the road toward her. A little girl dressed in pink followed on its heels, heedless of the ambulance about to turn the corner.
Magic sparked through Mae’s veins as she and Brimstone dashed toward the girl standing in the path of the oncoming vehicle with the puppy she’d just picked up.
“Shield!”
The ambulance slammed into the invisible wall of magic she’d raised ten feet to her left. The eyes of the paramedic driving it rounded as the rear tires rose off the ground. The vehicle smashed back down on the asphalt, suspension groaning.
Mae stooped, snatched the little girl up in her arms, and reached the sidewalk where a woman stood shaking, her trembling hands covering her mouth.
Mae carefully handed the girl to her mother.
The woman reprimanded her daughter sharply before shuddering and squeezing her tightly to her chest, the puppy yipping between them.
Mae stared. “Samantha?”
The woman startled. Recognition flared on her face. “Mae?!”
Mae smiled. Samantha Bale used to be Steve Hodge’s assistant. They’d been friends when they’d worked together in the autopsy labs.
“I haven’t seen you since you went on maternity leave.”
Samantha slowly relaxed. A weak smile stretched her lips. “I got pregnant again straight after, so there wasn’t much point coming back.” Her eyes twinkled as she glanced at the surgical scrubs under Mae’s coat. “I’m glad to see you’re back where you belong.”
Mae returned her smile. She became aware of an inquisitive stare. She looked down at Samantha’s daughter. Her breath caught when she registered the little girl’s features for the first time.
Gray eyes the color of a summer storm sparkled brightly as they studied her from under a pink, fluffy hood that framed a pretty, chubby face.
Mae’s chest tightened. “Rose?!”
Samantha’s expression turned sad. “Sorry. I ended up naming her Rose after all.”
Mae blinked and looked at Samantha jerkily, conscious she’d misunderstood her. “Oh. Yes, of course.”
Samantha stood the little girl on the sidewalk. “Say hello to my friend, Rose. Her name is Mae.”
Mae squatted, her pulse racing as her gaze roamed Rose’s face.
The little girl beamed. “Mae!”
Emotion clogged Mae’s throat. She blinked.
It’s Rose!
Yes, my witch, Brimstone said softly. And that is not just a puppy.
Mae startled, her gaze finding the dog in Rose’s arms.
The creature panting and beaming at them wore the eyes of a familiar they had last seen on Brooklyn Bridge, four years ago.
“Balkin,” Mae breathed.
Rose grinned toothily. “Baki!”
She presented the puppy to Mae proudly.
Balkin’s small, pink tongue darted out to lick Mae’s nose, his kiss full of the gratitude of the noble wolf reincarnated inside him.
Mae laughed. Her breath hitched. Tears blurred her vision.
Thank you! Thank you for bringing them back to me so soon!
“Mae?” Samantha said worriedly. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah.” Mae smiled and wiped the tears from her eyes. “I’m more than okay.”
She unclasped the pink sapphire bracelet on her left arm and tied it around Rose’s wrist.
Samantha blinked. “Isn’t that?—?!”
“It’s alright. I want her to have it.” Mae took the little girl’s hands. “This used to belong to a friend of mine. Her name was Rose. Will you accept it?”
Little Rose watched her solemnly for a moment. Something flared in her pupils.
Mae, Na Ri whispered.
My witch, Brimstone murmured in a voice equally full of wonder.
Hellreaver trembled on her chest. They have magic!
Mae’s mouth went dry when she detected the tiny cores inside Rose and the puppy, and the bright bond that tied them. “Oh.”
She almost fell back when Rose slammed into her. Her arms closed automatically around the little girl.
“Rose, be careful!” Samantha warned.
The little girl ignored her mother, her chubby arms locked tightly around Mae’s neck.
“Mae!” she whispered tremulously.
Mae squeezed her eyes shut, the familiar warmth of the soul belonging to the woman she had long considered her sister filling her with peace.
When Rose let her go, she looked like a little girl again, and Balkin a mischievous puppy.
Mae watched the mother and daughter leave after they parted ways, confident this would not be the last she would see of Rose and Balkin.
A man approached as she stood lost in thought, the carry bags she had dropped in her haste in his hands. “Here, I believe these are yours.”
“Oh.” Mae took the bags and smiled. “Thanks.”
“Did you see what happened to that ambulance?” The guy scratched his head. “It was the weirdest thing, wasn’t it?”
“I totally missed that, I’m afraid,” Mae lied.
She thanked him again and resumed her walk to the garage, her pulse still racing and her chest light.
Wait till I tell Nikolai and the others about this!
Mae’s stomach grumbled a moment later, reminding her that it was well past her breakfast time. A grimace twisted her mouth when she peered inside the carry bags. Their contents were slightly flattened and had started to grow soggy.
“We better eat these the minute we get home,” Mae muttered. Her hand froze. She stopped abruptly. “There are four giant meatball subs in here. Where’d the other two go?”
A gulping sound had her and Brimstone’s gazes switching suspiciously to Hellreaver.
The weapon quivered innocently against her chest. It’s a Christmas mystery, my witch!
Mae scowled. “Okay, first off, it’s not Christmas yet. Second, you should wipe that cheese off your teeth before you tell a barefaced lie, you sandwich thief!”
Hellreaver vibrated self-consciously. Dammit!
* * *
Thank you for being part of the final journey in the Seventeen Universe. It has been an incredible privilege to bring these stories to life for you. All good things must come to an end, so that new adventures can begin. A brand new A.D. Starrling series begins this year! It’s funny. It’s snarky. It features one of the most hilarious animal sidekicks I’ve ever written and a cast of characters that will leave you howling. Literally.