Lyra and Lucas cheered. “Elysian!” they called, and even I was surprised to see him duck down so they could rub his nose affectionately.
I guess he’s already met them.
Raiya came up to me as all of our kids gathered together around Elysian. Lyra and Lucas recognized them, and they began to play and fight like only brothers and sisters could.
“Where’s Rosemary?” Raiya asked.
I nodded to where Rosemary had been leaning just a moment before. “I think she’s dead,” I said.
“You didn’t have to ... ”
“No.” I shook my head. “She fell.”
I could hear the sirens as they sounded out below, and I finally made myself go over to the ledge and look down. I watched as a team of EMTs came out of an ambulance and picked up a dangerously limp and broken body off the ground.
Raiya took my hand and squeezed it. “Justice has been done,” she whispered.
“Are you sure?” I asked. “I mean, it might be possible—”
“You can rest assured, Rosemary is dead.”
Raiya and I flinched as Dante suddenly appeared behind us.
“She’s dead,” he repeated, as if to make sure we understood.
It took me less than a minute to respond accordingly. I punched Dante in the face. He howled and swayed, and I prepared for another round.
“Stop that!” he snapped. I could see a small smear of blood just under his nose, before he wiped his face with his sleeve.
“Why should I?” I asked. “You hurt my family earlier. And you let Rosemary capture my children.”
“I know it hasn’t always seemed like it,” Dante replied with a scowl, “but I’ve always been on your side.”
“I find that extremely hard to believe,” I muttered.
“I haven’t always been able to show it, but I have always been on your side. I can prove it to you,” he said. “Now that Rosemary’s gone, I’ll give you what you want. You want a new life, free from SWORD? It’s yours.”
“I want it in writing. Good writing. Writing so well done that my own mother wouldn’t be able to find a way to fight it,” I told him.
He smirked, making his bruised face look extra twisted. “I’ll have SWORD’s legal associate write it up,” he said. “And I’ll personally deliver to Cheryl myself. I owe her an apology for earlier, too.”
He walked away from me, pulling his weapon down by his side once more. He shot me a cryptic smile. “Always a pleasure doing business with you,” he said.
“We’re not finished,” I shouted.
“For now, we are ... Although, I did want to remind you of our earlier deal. Don’t forget to take pictures of Mikey and Gwen’s wedding for me. I’m looking forward to seeing them.”
I fumed as he walked away.
“Thanks for everything, Wingdinger,” he said. “Believe it or not, I’m indebted to you.”
A feeling of betrayal welled up from within me. I recalled what Rosemary said; she had enough rounds for me and my kids. There had been nine shots, meaning someone else shot at her, sending her over the edge.
SWORD would need a new leader. One who could deliver on Dante’s promise to leave me and my family alone.
Suddenly, I had to wonder if Dante had set all of this up to begin with.
As he left, I realized I had no proof, no knowledge of how much he’d actually known, and what was actually true; I only had circumstantial evidence.
Anger and frustration swirled around inside of me. My hands began to shake, and I tasted blood. I nearly jumped when someone took a hold of my hand.
Lyra appeared beside me, battle weary but triumphant. “Everything will be alright ... Daddy.”
I nearly jumped at her words, but luckily—or maybe skillfully—I remained calm. Even as the temptation to push Dante off the building after Rosemary was strong, I knew what was really important. I knew what mattered, and what had meaning.
My hand tightened around hers. “You’re right,” I told her. She gave me a smug look, one that mirrored my own at her age.
“Hamilton?” Raiya asked. She came up beside me as Dante disappeared into the shadows. “What is it?”
“He says this is the last we’ll see of SWORD,” I said. “But I doubt it’s the last we’ll see of him.”
Raiya shook her head. “We’ll be ready when he comes back,” she said. “It’s all we can do for now.”
I grunted, but I was saved from further unpleasant speculation as I heard cries of “Mommy!” calling out.
Gladly, I watched as all of our children—all nine of them—gathered around and began to hug each other, celebrating and playing and singing. I watched as Raiya opened her arms and all of them came barreling after her. She was so happy to see them and hold them, at last.
I glanced down at my wrist, wondering if the Emblem of the Prince would disappear this time, seeing as we’d managed to save the day, overcome the bad guys, and thwart evil’s victory. I wasn’t surprised or displeased to see it remained, somehow shining more brightly than ever.
I still had a calling. A destiny, a purpose. A job to fulfill, a life to live, and a light to shine. A leader to serve and a friend to walk beside.
You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.
Yes, I did. And he did, too.
Elysian came down beside me, watching the scene alongside me. “I remember that look,” he said. “If you’re wondering how long you’re going to have to deal with the evil that comes your way, the answer’s still the same as it was before.”
“I was worried about that,” I said as I reached up and hugged him again. “I guess the good news is that I’m no longer the same as I once was.”
I felt that push behind my heart, and I knew it was true. I had a lifetime ahead of me that would require the battles of the heart to be fought. That didn’t mean I would have an easy life, choosing to do the right thing, to stand up for what I believed in.
Elysian nuzzled my hand with his nose. “The good news,” Elysian told me, “is that you have an army behind you ready to help. And more help will come, too.”
“St. Brendan?” I asked.
“Eh. He’ll be coming for you guys in a few days to pick you up for your honeymoon. Don’t get too excited; Starry Knight still has to give Alora back her fabric. But Alora will return your youngest kids to their proper time,” he said with a teasing smirk. “As for the help, I was thinking more along the lines of other fallen Stars.”
I brightened at the thought. With SWORD’s setback, chances are more Stars might find a way to cross paths with me and Raiya. Hopefully in a good way, but as far as that went, I could only hope.
“I suppose by now I should have quite the reputation among the ones who are left,” I mused aloud.
“Ugh,” Elysian groaned. “I did not miss your ego, kid.”
“Boss,” I corrected him.
“Daddy!” More of the kids came clamoring around. I picked them up, one at a time, and kissed their foreheads and asked them questions.
When I came to the last one, Ian, I saw he hesitated. “What’s wrong?” I asked.
“I’ve missed you.”
“Oh, Ian,” I said as I plucked him up into my arms, thrilled to be holding onto my oldest son. Like the other kids, he had a good mix of me and Raiya, and possibly some of Mark and Cheryl, too. “I’ve missed you, too. But I’ll be coming up to see you in the Celestial Kingdom soon,” I said.
He curled his head down into my shoulder, clasping his arms around me. Ian was about half of Lucas’ size, though, in all fairness, Ian was technically more than five years older.
“I’m so glad to see you,” Ian said. “I thought you didn’t want to be with us.”
My heart ached at the thought of his misery. “There’s nothing further from the truth,” I assured him. “I’d give anything to be with you, all the time.”
I shot Elysian a teasing look. “I know we only have stolen moments on this side of Time. So while you’re
here, let’s teach you how to ride a dragon.”
As my children, relentless in their enthusiasm, began to climb on him, Elysian shot me a hard look. “You’ll pay for this later,” he said.
I was tempted to tell him that I had a feeling I’d already paid enough.
But instead, I just laughed and enjoyed the beauty of the moment, knowing that despite what problems might arise later, there was no price I could pay that could possibly match how much I would treasure the time I had with my family, all of us together at the same time, in the same place.
☼22☼
Onward
Thankfully, it wasn’t the last time I got to see them. Nor was it a long time before I got to see them again. Elysian was true to his word, which, considering he had been reborn, I shouldn’t have been so surprised about, and St. Brendan came the following week.
It was early New Year’s morning when Raiya and I, along with Lyra and Lucas, boarded the Meallán. It was so nice to see St. Brendan again. I think he missed us, too—he picked me up into a hug so fierce I thought I was going to be squeezed in two.
We went up through space, heading up to Polaris, where Alora resided. She was still in the heart of her castle, in her pool of Time, but she was very happy to see us—even Raiya.
My children, from Aria down to Lee, were attending to the care of her castle. All of them played in the Gardens of Time as we visited.
Aleia welcomed me just as enthusiastically as St. Brendan, and I felt my heart truly regenerate at their kindness.
Raiya was my home, but these were friends I had missed more than I realized.
Elysian, the new river guardian and one of Alora’s protectors, also came down to give his welcome. I was, like always, as happy to see him as I was to fight with him.
When the fighting calmed down some and we made our way to Raiya’s Star to patch up the hole in Time’s power, he asked me how Mikey and Gwen’s wedding was.
I told Elysian the truth; I honestly didn’t remember a lot of it, other than all the red and green party favors, because a week later, I married Raiya. At last, she was mine, in all senses of the word.
Hearing this, rather than his congratulations, Elysian gave me his largest, most soulful eyes. “So you didn’t bring me any of Rachel’s cookies?”
I laughed and promised him I would bring him some next time we came to visit. That seemed to settle him some, even if I saw him moping about it later as he complained to Alora.
We fixed the fabric of Time, placing it back where it belonged. Somehow, as the tear mended itself with the help of our power, I felt—just like that—the pieces of my life had come together, and everything clicked into place.
It was a miracle, a miracle made out of many small and seemingly inconspicuous miracles as much as larger ones, with nothing short of divine providence guiding me home.
☼Epilogue☼
Bedtime and Beyond
“And that,” I say, as I tuck the bedcovers around my young children while they lie in their small beds, “is Daddy’s story, about how he not only found truth, and how he found Mommy, but also how he fell in love with her again and again and again, and how he fell in love with so much more.”
Their eyes flutter shut as I kiss them goodnight. I realize how much time had passed, and it was much later than I thought. But I let it go. Some stories are well worth the time they take, both in the making and in the telling.
Soon after I turn off the lights, I hear Lyra’s gentle breathing and Lucas’ quiet snoring, and I know sleep has taken ahold of them.
“Don’t you think you overdramatized it just a little?”
I turn back to see my beloved as she leans against the door to the kids’ room. I know Raiya had been standing there for a good while as I told our kids their favorite bedtime story, the one which happened to be my own.
I grin at her. “Come on, you enjoyed it. And what’s wrong with a little poetic license here and there?”
There is a small pause before she answers. “I suppose I’m the last person who should be saying something about that,” she finally says.
“I love it when you argue against yourself,” I tell her, heading over to kiss her forehead and hug her. “Anyway, they’re young. I don’t think they’re ready for the more graphic version at their ages. Two and four are a bit young for all the violence.”
“I thought you did pretty well with that part.”
“Then what was the overly dramatic part?”
She puts her arms around me, welcoming me with the same rush of affection she always had. “We knew—we know—everything is going to be okay in the end. There was no need to make it sound so dark and hopeless at some points.”
“It’s close enough,” I say. “Remember? ‘You just can’t live with some decisions?’”
“It might scare them. I don’t want them to have nightmares.”
“Fear is the beginning of wisdom,” I remind her.
“Fear of the right things, Hamilton,” she says. “The right kind of fear only comes when we understand it properly.”
“We may never understand the prince properly.”
Raiya frowns, but when she remains silent I know I’ve scored a point.
I laugh. “You can tell the story next time. Or you can take that one up with the prince if you’re worried about it.”
“I have nothing to be worried about,” she says as she leans in and kisses me. I pull her in close, breathing in the smell of her hair as my hands run down her back. Beneath her nightgown, I can feel the strength of her heart above the softness of her belly, where the marks my children have left on her remain, making her all the more strong, all the more beautiful—all the more mine.
“It’s late, and we have a busy day tomorrow,” she says. “Your parents are expecting us for dinner. Adam’s going to be there with his new girlfriend.”
“Yeah, I know. Mikey and I are going to meet up later on, too,” I say. “He has some big news, apparently.”
“Hopefully, it has nothing to do with his father,” Raiya mutters, and I heartily agree. Dante, along with SWORD, had dropped off the map, and we were nothing short of grateful for that.
Pushing the matter aside, I reach over and kiss her, and then kiss her again. “Let’s go to bed,” I say.
She smirks at me as she takes my hand. Without another word—shocker, I know—I follow her.
*☼*
Years Later ...
The tender morning light echoes off her face as I silently, peacefully watch. All these years, and I still wonder at the thought that she belongs to me.
I’ve watched her as she walked down the aisle on our wedding day; as she graduated from college; as her belly swelled with our children, first Lyra and then Lucas; at every Christmas, where she laughingly makes cookies with the kids and me; as the silver fairylights pop up in her gingerbread hair, even as my own begins to gray.
It’s hard for me to believe she’s the same girl I hated, sitting behind me all those years ago in Mrs. Smithe’s class.
After everything that has happened, I wonder at all the normal routines of our life. How she yells at me for leaving my socks on the floor. How I growl at her for leaving the toothpaste cap off. How she reads to the kids every night before bed. How I kiss her deeply each morning before work.
When she farts I laugh at her, and when I pick my nose she scolds me.
We give to charity. We pay our taxes. We have a house near the ‘Burgh, and I find it’s nice to know my neighbors and have their kids play with mine.
Raiya goes to work at the nearby hospital—fitting for her, a natural healer. I teach law at the university, always careful to emphasize ethics and morality, though even they are not popular.
I periodically recognize my own depravity. What I would’ve missed if I’d stayed in a world dedicated only to myself. I think of how life is so awfully wonderful, and how I don’t deserve anything I have.
When I have fears at the thought of losing Raiya again, or even
my children, now that I see how reckless they truly are—I think of the one who reigns over all the realms, how he both subdues and transcends death. He promised to keep me safe when I promised to trust him, and I make sure I keep believing that he will. In the many conversations we have, this is a reoccurring theme.
My life has been speckled by the supernatural, and on this world I will get both the good and the bad. But I am able to see beyond this life’s troubles to the overhanging picture of grace, love, and joy which awaits my fuller scrutiny on the other side of Time.
This doesn’t mean I have an easy life, or even a normal one.
“Hey.” She looks at me now, her violet eyes glowing like springtime violets.
“Hey,” I say back, smiling.
“It’s too early to be that contemplative,” Raiya tells me with a teasing smile. “What’re you thinking about?”
“How our crazy children are going to ruin the pretty morning picture you make,” I say matter-of-factly. I hush Raiya’s whispery giggle with a kiss. She snuggles in closer to me and takes my hand.
As if on cue, something smashes to the floor, and the pitter-patter of our offspring can be heard running in the opposite direction. We laugh, even though we know we will both be yelling shortly.
“Shall we face this fate together then, my love?” she asks me quietly.
My answer is ironic and immediate, born out of habit and continually renewed by love. “My pleasure.”
C. S. Johnson is the author of several young adult sci-fi and fantasy novels, including The Starlight Chronicles series, the Once Upon a Princess saga, and the Divine Space Pirates trilogy. With a gift for sarcasm and an apologetic heart, she currently lives in Atlanta with her family. Follow her on Twitter at @C_S_Johnson13.
AUTHOR’S NOTE
Dear Reader,
Praise the Lord, the God of our fathers, and his son Jesus Christ, in whom we find everlasting redemption. As this series comes to a close, I pray you will see that it never truly ends.
Redemption and fatherly love are no small matters in this book. I started writing this book series as a way to channel my pain over my high school experiences. I wanted revenge when I left. Now, only a clearer vision of redemption remains. I was an innocent idealist, and then a failed idealist, and now I am a redeemed idealist. What had hurt me, I now see led me to great healing. Where I saw pain, great pleasure now flourishes. The scars on my heart have become symbols, both of the past and providence, pointing to a greater story even as it tells my own.
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