by Ali Winters
She had to steel herself, but who knew how long that would take.
She had to give him time. Couldn’t force her presence on him. After all, they had the rest of eternity. There was no rush. A short time apart at first would be nothing in comparison.
KAIN
Three days later…
Kain zipped the suitcase Azira had given him and took one last look around the apartment. It had been odd to go through some of the boxes and look through things that he knew were his, but it still felt like they belonged to a stranger.
Nivian hadn’t been by once in the three days he’d been there. He knew why, though the selfish part of him wished he remained ignorant to that fact.
Without her company, the place felt less like home and more like he was invading the space that had once belonged to two happy strangers. And his presence had managed to dissolve whatever joy had been there.
Kain had known he’d hurt Nivian before he admitted his memories hadn’t returned—right after she’d kissed him… and he kissed her back. He never meant to, not when he was still so unsure about his feelings for her.
When her face fell—though she tried to hide it, shaking it off as if it were not something she’d been hinging her hopes on—it had crushed him. He had given her hope with that kiss. And though he suffered for what he’d done, her pain had been worse.
But he couldn’t lie to her, not about this, even if he thought it might spare her feelings. Nivian didn’t deserve that pain. Not after everything she went through, not after what she did for him. He’d seen the cuts on her hands and arms, saw the tattered state of her clothes when they were in the Underworld.
From the moment she realized he had no idea who she was, all she wanted was for him to remember. Not to tell him who he was. She didn’t want to decide that for him, didn’t care about trying to rid him of whatever faults he’d had in his first life.
Nivian had agreed to come before he left. Kain checked his watch. Azira would arrive in a few minutes to take him to Hunter Corp for… well, he didn’t know how long they expected him to stay, and even though this place didn’t feel right without Nivian, he wanted to hang around to see her when she finally arrived. To make sure she was all right.
A soft swirl of power caressed his own, like a gentle breeze. He closed his eyes, savoring the feeling. Kain turned to face Nivian standing in the shadow of the doorway. She hung up her cloak and though she walked with her head down, she headed straight for him, stopping only a few feet away.
Nivian lifted her eyes to meet his and the change in her was instant. She lit up from within. And he didn’t know if it was his imagination or if it were real, but even her skin seemed to glow with an inner light.
Shadows followed her, playing and swirling around her. The grace, the power of her station fit her. If she was death itself and not just the agent of its hand, there was not a man alive who wouldn’t beg for her to claim them, just for a single moment with her.
“Kain,” she said his name, merely a breath upon her lips, but it struck him in his core in a way a million other words would never come close to. It made him want to remember her for no other reason than to feel what the other Kain had felt for her.
His heart squeezed and he was surprised to find himself jealous of the man this body belonged to before. He was jealous of himself.
The same body. The same soul. But despite those two essential things, without his memories he didn’t feel like the same man. He didn’t exist before the moment she had found him on the rock in the middle of the lake staring out at Elysium and waiting for something, ignoring the call.
For this life, she had been there all along. Nivian had ripped him from the fingers of death and the Underworld and had given him an impossible life with more promise than anyone deserved. She had given him everything without holding back.
All because she loved him, all in the hopes that he might regain his memories, only to learn they were gone for good.
She’d saved him. This Reaper, this… woman had gone through hell and back, risked herself, risked a half life, risked everything… for him. To bring him back. She deserved better than the empty shell of the man he was.
One memory from this short time stuck out to him above all others. Nivian’s blue eyes, soft with everything in her heart shining through. And while he still knew so little about her, a thread tugged in him, drawing him toward her.
And he wasn’t inclined to ignore it a second longer.
It didn’t matter where he was at now. He knew where he’d end up. Denying it felt like wading in mud up to his neck. But the second he’d first considered giving in to the pull, it was as if he could breathe for the first time in his life. It just… felt right.
Kain stepped up to her, stopping so close it would take almost nothing to touch her.
She looked up at him, hope shining in her was eyes, always hope. And love, unfiltered and raw and eternal. She would wait until the end of time for him. And it didn’t matter that she was practically a stranger to him, he knew he would wait for her… because his heart was hers. He’d known that since the moment they met in this new life of his.
“Hello, Nivian,” was all he said, his voice low and rough.
She smiled then looked around at the apartment. Her hands twisted and untwisted a strand of hair, her gaze stopping on a stack of empty boxes.
“Sorry about all the boxes. I’d started to unpack but I wasn’t sure I ever believed you’d really be back.”
Kain clucked. “Don’t worry about it. It gave me something to do.” He paused, then added, “It’s not nearly as entertaining here without you."
Perhaps he had never stood a chance at following a path that didn’t lead to her, but Kain doubted he would take it if given the choice. Because this… this is what he wanted. Since the moment she’d first taken his hand in hers, some small part of him had known.
“You didn’t come.” Disappointment sounded in his voice, stronger than he’d expected.
“I know, I just…”
He could never pay her back for all she had done for him. Not if he lived a thousand lives.
“I wish you had.” Then Kain wrapped his arms around her, letting his hands slide around her small waist and pulling her to him.
She stiffened for only a fraction of a second, surprised at his unexpected touch. Kain slid one hand up her back and over the soft skin of her neck before gently tangling his fingers in her hair.
Kain held her tightly. He’d only planned to talk to her, but having her in the same room after three days, he only just realized how much he’d missed her. Needed her. His need to touch her stronger than anticipated.
Nivian lifted her face to peer at him through long, dark lashes.
“When...” She swallowed, almost choking on her words. “When do you go home?” Nivian's voice wavered, thick with emotion.
He started down at her, studying her face, chewing on the question. Home… she’d meant back at the Hunters’ head office. And while it was the central hub for Hunters, there had been nothing about the place that had felt even vaguely like home. At least what he could tell from the few minutes he’d spent there. It was only a strange and interesting place to work.
He’d asked her to meet him here, in a nearly empty apartment, save for the few belongings he owned and the ones she’d brought over long ago, which didn’t feel the slightest bit familiar to him. This empty place was still more of a home to him than anywhere else, simply because of her presence.
No, the Hunters were not his home.
He cleared his throat, knowing what he wanted to say, needed to say. There was so much going on in his world, complicated by the missing memories, but there was one thing he could do to clear a part of it up. To have some small piece of his life feel uncomplicated and… normal.
“I am already home,” he said. “This… is home. You—” he stopped talking as a silver tear slid from each of her eyes. Nivian swiped at them with a hand.
She was a s
tar in the sea of black that was the night.
“You are home. I’ve been drawn to you from the moment we met, like I’ve felt like we’ve known each other far longer than I’ve been alive.”
She pulled in a shuddering breath, a small squeak escaping. “You’ve said that before…”
“Come with me,” he said, almost demanding. He’d meant for that to come out as a request.
“What?” Her lips parted.
“Come with me to Hunter Corp. for as long as you can. I want you to be there with me while I figure this out.”
Nivian’s throat bobbed. “Okay.”
That simple acquiescence was all he needed. It made him happier than he had a right to be.
He pressed his lips to her forehead, then once over each eye. “It seems impossible and much too fast, but I can feel—I know—deep down that there are a thousand paths I could take but… you’re it for me.”
Her fingers lifted to his wrists and gripped him tight. But she made no move to push him away.
“I have known since you pulled me from the hand of death. It just took me until now to figure it out.” He shook his head and pulled back a little. “I don’t understand it, I might never understand it.”
Nivian bit down on her lip. “Oh, Kain...”
“I—”
She pressed her mouth to his, effectively shutting him up. Keeping him from babbling on, which was fine with him. The second her lips touched his, all words and thoughts fled from his mind.
They had both lost so much since the beginning but, together, they would start anew.
There was a familiarity in that kiss. Her breath skipped across his lips. A sense of belonging. Of forever.
Of home.
Of absolution.
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THE END
Author’s Note
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Also by Ali Winters
The Hunted Series
The Reapers
The Exodus
The Moirai
The Fallen
Flirting with Death (A short story)
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Stand Alone Titles
Army of the Winter Court
Sound of Silence
A Sky of Shattered Stars
Favor of the Gods
Cast in Moonlight (A Havenwood Falls High novella)
Acknowledgments
When I first planned this book, I wanted to release it a year earlier. I’d just started drafting this book when my sister passed away. It hit me hard and it took a while for me to feel like writing again, especially a book like this.
But I knew this series was a story I wanted to tell no matter what. I wanted resolution for my characters, for readers… and myself. So I gave myself some time to focus on family and what had happened. I knew this book would be a struggle, but I also knew that I wanted to dedicate this to her. So it seemed fitting that the release day would coincide with her birthday.
Like all sisters, we had our good times and bad times, but she was always supportive of me following my dreams.
So, Janet, this book is for you. Happy birthday, and thank you for being my sister.
I can’t end this without thanking my support team. Michelle Fritz, for your constant support and positivity, for beta reading and encouraging me, for letting me come to you with questions and ideas, and just when I needed to work through something.
My editor, Kristine Schwartz for being an amazing friend on top of all your hard work.
My book club, Jon Morgan, Tiki Kos, Trish Beninato, and April Wood. I am lucky to call you friends. You are the type of people everyone should have in their lives. Thank you for sprinting with me, for being part of my life and the ups and downs.
Erin Cristofoli, for your friendship, encouragement, and for kicking my butt when I needed it.
Thank you to Katie Harder-Schauer for being there for me in a pinch! It made a huge difference!
My husband for being on board with my crazy goals and deadlines and encouraging me to get back to it when I got distracted.
And as always, thank you to my parents for everything. I could write a book on why I am lucky to have you both as my parents.
About the Author
Ali Winters is the USA Today bestselling author of The Hunted series, as well as an amazon and international bestselling author. She was born and raised in the Pacific Northwest where she developed her love of nature, animals, and all things green.
For as long as she can remember, she’s been mesmerized by the extraordinary world of books and fantasy. There has never been a time when stories were not begging to be told, either by drawing, photography, or writing.
With encouragement from one of her favorite authors, she jumped in, head first, to pursue the career that had been calling to her since the day she opened her first book.
She has a deep love for coffee, tea, warm blankets, dogs, creating art in any medium she can get her hands on, and family.
Connect with Ali online
www.aliwinters.com
