by Keri Arthur
On and on and on it went.
Nuri was shuddering, her breathing so harsh it filled the air with her pain. Inevitably, the first earth firewall fractured, its brightness fading as it floated away in long, wispy lengths.
The wall at our back—the one that protected Central—was close to doing the same.
As was her halo light. It was pulsing and losing strength.
“Hang on, Nuri,” I shouted. “You have to hang—”
A vampire reached through the fading circle of light, hooked its claws into my arm, and yanked me sideways, away from her, away from the light. I was flung like meat into the air, and vampires leaped after me, desperately slashing at my body. I hit the ground on my back but somehow thrust upright, only to be sent sprawling again as a vampire threw himself at me. I somehow shoved the shattered knife between us and impaled him. With a huge whoosh, his body erupted into flames, setting my clothes alight in the process. I screamed, tossed him aside, and reached desperately for the vampire half of my soul.
But even as the change started, something whistled through the air and light exploded around us. The vampires screamed and died. Then a hand grabbed mine, hauled me upright, and ripped the burning clothes from my body.
Jonas.
And he hadn’t come alone.
There were men everywhere. Men and light.
Because even as more bombs went off, the lights in the city came back online, one street after another, until the darkness was banished. The UV towers lining the walls began to glow, but their light was not so instant.
It didn't matter.
The vampires were running.
Reaction set in, and I began shaking so badly I could barely stand. Jonas took off his coat and carefully wrapped it around my shoulders. I hugged it closer, licked my lips, and somehow said, “Nuri—”
“I know.” He kissed me quickly—fiercely—and then released me and ran over to her.
I didn't move. I couldn’t. All I could do was cry as I watched Jonas kneel down beside her, and touch her shoulder with a gentleness that spoke of how much he cared.
Light began to rise from her body, a light that reminded me of shields that had protected the city.
But it wasn’t earth energy.
It was her soul.
I didn’t say anything. I couldn’t.
For several seconds, neither did she.
Then she smiled, and it was as if the sun had just come out from behind the clouds. Do not grieve for me, Tiger. It was my time, and there was nothing you could have done to alter my fate.
I don’t agree—
Because you have never believed in giving up—and that is the reason I can leave without regret, because Central now has you to look after her. She hesitated, and glanced down at the man still holding her body. As has he.
And with that, she moved on.
Jonas dropped his head and howled in anguish.
Central was safe.
Jonas and I were alive.
But Nuri was no more.
Epilogue
Two days later, I once again stood in front of the dais in the Hall of the Lords. Though much of the bomb damage had been cleared, the gracefully arched windows were still boarded up, and there were many seats empty—evidence of the destruction Dream had wrought.
Both Karlinda and Julius stood on the dais in full formal regalia, but this was not a trial, and I was not alone.
Jonas stood beside me.
Cat and Bear hovered either side of us.
While no one in this room would be aware of their presence, they’d played a major part in bringing down Sal, Cohen, and Dream, and they deserved to be here at this ceremony.
“This city owes the two of you a debt that can never truly be repaid,” Julius was saying, “You’ve saved this city not only from a heinous plan to use our children as guinea pigs to gift both the wraiths and vampires light immunity, but also from an attack the likes of which has not been seen in over a hundred years.”
He paused as a smattering of polite applause ran around the room. A smile touched my lips. We may have saved them, but Rhea forbid they show too much emotion in this place of rule and tradition.
Applauding is generally frowned upon. Jonas glanced my way, his green eyes glinting brightly in the warm light filling the room. So it’s as overt as you’ll ever get here.
“Jonas Galloway,” Julius continued, “in appreciation for your actions, your status as outcast has been struck from the records. You are—and will forever be—a full citizen of Central City, with all rights as a retired general restored.”
Jonas bowed. “Thank you.”
Julius’s gaze switched to me. “Catherine Lysandra, your deep involvement in rescuing the missing children, in exposing those who would have brought this city to its knees—even at the possible cost of your own freedom and life—and in calling forth those who have long been vilified by this city to protect the very same city, has created a debt I doubt we can ever fully repay. So I ask you to name your price, and we shall endeavor to match it.”
I glanced uncertainly at Jonas. Is he serious?
Very, he replied. So what is the one the thing you have always wanted, Tiger?
“Home,” I said out loud.
A place for me and for my ghosts—somewhere where we no longer had to fear discovery. A place where we would always be safe.
A hint of a smile touched Julius’s lips. “I think we’ll need a bit more information than that.”
My heart raced and my fists were clenched. Hope and excitement surged, but I also feared to unleash them too fully. Feared that the one thing I really wanted was the one thing they would not risk.
I licked my lips and said, “If you are truly serious, then what I desire is the old HDP museum and the grounds around it.”
Julius’s eyebrows rose. “But that is outside Central’s walls, and considered unstable ground besides.”
“I'm aware of that, my lord.”
“It is also, by your own statement, haunted by the ghosts of the déchet who died there,” Karlinda said, a touch of horror in her voice. “I could think of nothing more... unsettling.”
“Those ghosts will not harm me,” I replied evenly. “But they will visit hell on any vampire who dares step foot in that place.”
Julius shared a glance at Karlinda, who simply nodded.
“Are you sure we cannot offer you something more befitting your station?” he said. “An apartment in the mid-districts, perhaps?”
I shook my head. “The museum and the surrounding land is payment enough, and all I desire.”
“So be it then.” His gaze moved past me. “Lord Renison, please ensure the transfer documents are processed as a matter of urgency.”
I blinked against the sudden sting of tears.
I had a home. We had a home. A place where I could live with my ghosts and raise Raela in complete and utter safety.
For ever and ever? My two ghosts said together. It can never be taken away from us?
Never, ever.
They danced in excitement, their joy so fierce that, for just a second, the air around us sparkled.
“And Nuri?” Jonas asked softly.
“Will be posthumously returned to full citizen status, and her name restored to the halls of her ancestors.”
“And she will be given a full state burial,” Karlinda added, “as befitting someone of her station and her courage.”
Jonas nodded. “Again, thank you.”
“Lords, ladies,” Julius said. “Please offer your thanks to these two courageous people.”
And with a more robust round of polite applause, the ceremony ended. Each lord and lady then stepped up to personally thank us; inevitably, Charles’s turn came around.
“I will forever regret that my lack of trust almost caused this great city to fall,” he said. “Can you ever forgive me?”
“You did what you thought was right, Charles,” I replied evenly. “I can forgive that, now that the dan
ger has passed and we are all safe.”
“Ah.” His quick smile was edged with a sadness that told me he’d caught what I hadn’t said. “I will miss you.”
I placed a hand on his arm. “I enjoyed our time together. Please believe that.”
“I do.” He leaned forward, kissed my cheek lightly, and moved away.
I would not, I knew, ever see him again.
Once the remainder of the lords had thanked us, we were escorted out of the House and into Government House, where we were again officially thanked.
It was close to five by the time we were free. Dusk was still an hour away, but there was already a steady flow of people coming in through the gates—the attack was still too raw a memory for anyone to risk being caught on the platform near dusk.
“So, what happens next?” I asked, as we made our way toward the gate.
“That depends,” Jonas replied evenly.
I raised an eyebrow. “Meaning what, Ranger?”
“Meaning,” he said, “I would very much like permission to move into that run-down bunker of yours and help you restore it to some sort of order.”
“Would you now?” I kept my tone light. “And why would you want to do something like that?”
“Because I have grown somewhat fond of your ghosts, and have found myself missing them these last couple of days.”
“So it’s just the ghosts you’ve missed? Because I’m sure I can arrange for Cat and Bear to visit you on a daily basis—”
He laughed, caught my hand, and tugged me into his arms. “Damn it, Tiger, you know it’s not just the ghosts. I’ve missed you. I missed being with you. I want to explore what lies between us, and I want to help you raise little Raela.”
I didn’t immediately reply. I just stared into his eyes, seeing in those green depths an echo of all the emotions that were tumbling through me.
Emotions my creators had thought me incapable of.
“I believe I could agree to something like that,” I said softly.
“I’m glad,” he said, and kissed me.
It was both a promise and a commitment, and it made my blood race and my heart sing.
This man—this ranger—was mine.
“Shall we go home?” he said eventually, and offered me his hand.
I smiled and twined my fingers through his as the two ghosts raced ahead of us.
Ever since I’d been created, all I’d ever wanted was to be accepted for who and what I was.
I had that now. Central City would no longer be a place I had to sneak into. I could come and go as I pleased, whenever I pleased, even if the identity by which I was now known was not truly my own.
But I also had something far more precious—for the first time ever, I had a home.
I had someone who cared and—between the ghosts and little Raela—a family of my own.
For the first time ever, I belonged.
About the Author
Keri Arthur, author of the New York Times bestselling Riley Jenson Guardian series, has now written more than thirty-nine novels. She’s received several nominations in the Best Contemporary Paranormal category of the Romantic Times Reviewers Choice Awards and has won RT’s Career Achievement Award for urban fantasy. She lives with her daughter and two old dogs in Melbourne, Australia.
for more information:
www.keriarthur.com
[email protected]
Also by Keri Arthur
in series order
Blood Kissed (Lizzie Grace Series, 1)
City of Light (Outcast Series, 1)
Winter Halo (Outcast Series, 2)
Fireborn (Souls of Fire Series, 1)
Wicked Embers (Souls of Fire Series, 2)
Flameout (Souls of Fire Series, 3)
Ashes Reborn (Souls of Fire Series, 4)
Darkness Unbound (Dark Angels Series, 1)
Darkness Rising (Dark Angels Series, 2)
Darkness Devours (Dark Angels Series, 3)
Darkness Hunts (Dark Angels Series, 4)
Darkness Unmasked (Dark Angels Series, 5)
Darkness Splintered (Dark Angels Series, 6)
Darkness Falls (Dark Angels Series, 7)
Full Moon Rising (Riley Jenson Series, 1)
Kissing Sin (Riley Jenson Series, book 2)
Tempting Evil (Riley Jenson Series, 3)
Dangerous Games (Riley Jenson Series, 4)
Embraced by Darkness (Riley Jenson Series, 5)
The Darkest Kiss (Riley Jenson Series, 6)
Deadly Desire (Riley Jenson Series, 7)
Bound to Shadows (Riley Jenson Series, 8)
Moon Sworn (Riley Jenson Series, 9)
With Friends Like These (Stand Alone Novel)
Destiny Kills (Myth & Magic Series, 1)
Mercy Burns (Myth & Magic Series, 2)
Circle of Fire (Damask Circle Series, 1)
Circle of Death (Damask Circle Series, 2)
Circle of Desire (Damask Circle Series, 3)
Beneath a Rising Moon (Ripple Creek Series, 1)
Beneath a Darkening Moon (Ripple Creek Series, 2)
Memory Zero (Spook Squad Series, 1)
Generation 18 (Spook Squad Series, 2)
Penumbra (Spook Squad Series, 3)
Dancing with the Devil (Nikki & Michael Series, 1)
Hearts in Darkness (Nikki & Michael Series, 2)
Chasing the Shadows (Nikki & Michael Series, 3)
Kiss the Night Goodbye (Nikki & Michael series, 4)
Lifemate Connections: Eryn (Novella)
