Authors: SM Reine
Others thought it was a demon conspiracy. A lot of people outright denied that anything had happened at all.
The truth was so much stranger.
“You brought me back,” Rylie said. “You brought Seth back.”
“I brought back everyone that I was capable of bringing back,” Elise said. “Everyone whose souls hadn’t been recycled yet.”
The bridge of Rylie’s nose wrinkled. “Recycled.”
“It’s hard to explain.”
She would have brought back everyone else, if she could have. The McIntyres and Neuma and everyone who had served her among the werewolves and former slaves.
But just as Nathaniel hadn’t been able to resurrect his mother, Elise couldn’t work miracles.
She had saved everyone she was capable of saving.
It hurt that she couldn’t do more, but that was just how the world worked, and even Elise hadn’t been able to change that rule. Her friends had been lost. They’d be reborn as entirely new people someday, unrecognizable as the people they had once been. Recycled. As good as gone.
Elise cleared her throat. “You and Seth were preserved in obsidian. Not just your bodies, but your souls. That’s why I could resurrect you both long after you died.”
“Me, Seth, and this little guy.” Rylie’s finger smoothed over the little head resting on her chest, making the soft curls spring back. “There’s so much to thank you for, Elise. Not just for me and the baby, but most of the pack, and…everything, I guess.”
Elise shrugged. What was she supposed to say?
Rylie shifted her grip on the baby. “Want to hold him for a minute? I need to adjust my pillows and get a drink of water and stuff.”
James started to reply. “No, I don’t think she—”
“I’ll hold him,” Elise said.
James couldn’t have looked more surprised if she’d announced her plans to join a knitting circle. “Really?”
Rylie grabbed a baby blanket, wrapped her newborn, and lifted him. Elise ignored James’s expression and collected the infant. She thought it couldn’t be that bad—she’d hauled her sister around a lot when she was a baby, not to mention the McIntyre girls, and this thing wasn’t going to be nearly as squirmy as those two.
It was still incredibly awkward to pull Rylie’s son to her chest and figure out how to hold him.
After making an entire universe, it was still sort of terrifying to take a brand new baby. He looked like a doll and felt like a droopy bag of rice.
Elise took a close look at him, one hand under his head, the other under his butt. The blankets fell open to show his face and the dry, wrinkled hands curled against his chest. Dense black curls were matted to his scalp. His skin was surprisingly dark, considering that Summer and Abram were fairly light-skinned.
“Not bad,” Elise said. There wasn’t much else to say about him. He was a pretty normal-looking baby, after all.
Rylie grinned. “So maybe you and James might…?”
“No,” Elise said.
James looked thoughtful. “Well—”
“Never.” She put extra emphasis on the word.
“Never,” he agreed dutifully.
“I was actually going to ask what you thought about being godparents,” Rylie said, closing her nightgown around her chest and carefully getting out of bed. “But okay.”
Elise’s upper lip curled. James tried to hide a smile behind his hand as he replied. “I’m terribly flattered, but regarding my history with the werewolf pack, I don’t think anyone would think very much of my involvement with your offspring. Don’t take this the wrong way, but I’m surprised that you’d even ask.”
“My Aunt Gwyn has some pretty strong feelings about forgiveness. And gratitude. She rubbed off on me.” Her cheeks turned pink. She didn’t look at them as she grabbed another bottle of water and set it on her bedside. “I thought it was a nice idea.”
“Does Abel think it’s a nice idea?” James asked.
“Gwyn’s not the only one with strong feelings about gratitude.”
Elise frowned at the baby in her hands. His face flexed in sleep, nose wrinkling, lips twisting.
“You can take time to think about it,” Rylie added.
“Yeah, sure,” Elise said. “Godparents. Fine.”
The Alpha giggled. “You sound so enthusiastic.”
“I planned on keeping an eye on him anyway. Might as well attach a name to it.”
Rylie immediately stopped laughing. “You’re keeping an eye on him? Are you worried about him? Why? What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” Elise said. “You have a very healthy baby. He’ll grow up fine. I guess you could say I have strong feelings about duty, just like you do about gratitude.” She held him out. “You want him back?”
“In a second.” Rylie crawled back into bed and shifted her millions of pillows around. James helped fluff the ones behind her head. “Are you guys staying for very long? I have so many questions about what’s changed and why.” She looked embarrassed. “Secretary Friederling has been calling me.”
Amusement twisted James’s lips. “Has he, now?”
“The OPA is starting this new council. They want to write a new treaty between angels, demons, humans, and I guess gaeans. Since werewolves are the biggest gaean species, and I’m the Alpha…” Rylie rolled her eyes. “Well, you know. I’m supposed to get involved.”
“You could do well at politics,” James said.
Elise nodded. “Better you than me.”
“But you’re the one who knows everything,” Rylie said, almost desperately. “I mean, you set it all up.”
“The fewer people who know that, the better. Besides, I’m not gaean. James and I are both human now. Normal people. They’ll need someone special like you to help.” Rylie looked like she wanted to keep arguing, but Elise cut her off. The baby was starting to squirm. “Can you take him back now? I’m done holding him.”
Mischief sparked in Rylie’s eyes. “It depends.”
“On what?”
“Can you talk to Secretary Friederling? Just, like, give him an anonymous phone call and answer a few questions?”
Elise lifted her eyebrows at Rylie. Was the Alpha actually using Elise’s discomfort with babies to try to talk her into dealing with the OPA?
“Please, ladies. Infants aren’t methods of advanced interrogation.” James took him from Elise, settling the baby easily into the crook of one arm. “Rylie, we’ve decided that we prefer to lay low for now. We’d appreciate your respect in this matter.”
She sighed and sagged against the pillows. “Yeah, okay. I wouldn’t mind a little more information, though. Maybe just a bullet point list of the ‘nudges’ you gave the universe when it was remade?”
Elise sighed, stepping to the window. A yellow moon was cresting over the trees. “I’m not sure what I did. I don’t remember everything.”
“Really?”
“I can tell you that there are no more gods. No higher power watching over everyone. Nobody to go crazy and take it out on the entire universe, and no more geneses. This is it.” Elise turned from the window. “The less intervention, the better.”
Rylie considered this for a moment. She nodded slowly. “That’s actually kind of a relief.” After a beat, she added, “And don’t worry, I won’t give Secretary Friederling your phone number. Assuming you even have one.” The unspoken question hung between them.
They seemed to have lost James in the conversation. He was swaying, watching the baby sleeping in his arms. “We do have an answering machine.” Elise plucked a business card out of James’s shirt pocket. It was plain white with black numbers stamped in the center. “If you need me, just leave a message.”
Rylie took it. “Thank you.” She set it on the side table then tilted her head to the side to give Elise a long look. “You know, I think I liked you better with the black hair.”
Elise touched the thick braid hanging over her shoulder reflexively. She kept forgetting that she looked human again. Even after so many months walking around in her old skin, she was still shocked every time she looked in the mirror. “You’re probably the only one who thinks that. But thanks. I miss it.” She swallowed hard. “I miss a lot of things.”
Judging by Rylie’s expression, she understood completely.
“Just so you know, I’m happy for you,” Rylie said. “Really, really happy. You deserve a break.”
“You do too.” Elise sat down on the bed and rested her hand on Rylie’s. “I’m sorry I didn’t turn you human when I brought you back. I could have, but it didn’t seem right.”
“I’m not sure I would have been all that grateful about it anyway.” Rylie smiled tremulously. “Someone needs to keep the pack in line, right?”
“And all the other shifters to come,” Elise said.
Before Rylie could ask what she meant, the door opened. Abel stepped inside. He was still wearing his tuxedo, but the jacket was gone and his tie was undone. Considering that Seth and Anthony had been trying to drain an entire keg into him, he looked pretty well put together.
Elise tensed, but Abel’s usual temper was nowhere in sight. He didn’t seem surprised or bothered to see them visiting with Rylie.
“Hey,” he grunted. “You done yet? Rylie needs to rest.”
“I think so,” Elise said, stepping back to let James pass the baby over to Abel.
Rylie looked like she wasn’t done at all. Elise could practically see all the questions caught on her tongue, and those questions were only going to multiply in the coming years.
Why did you do everything you did? What’s going to happen? What am I supposed to do with all this responsibility?
“The wedding was lovely,” James said. “Thank you for having us.”
Another grunt from Abel. Once he was holding his baby, it was like nobody else in the room existed.
Together, Rylie and Abel seemed to glow.
Elise headed for the exit. She didn’t need to see them together like this. It was a private moment, a family thing, and she didn’t belong in the room.
James lingered a few steps behind her, slightly more reluctant to leave. “By the way—what did you name your new son?”
Elise kept walking. She didn’t need to wait for the answer because she already knew it.
James knew his name, too, but he just couldn’t resist asking.
Rylie’s soft response drifted through the doorway as Elise headed out of the cottage.
“We named him Benjamin.”
The reception didn’t
end so much as spread out through the sanctuary. Judging by the werewolves’ good moods, Seth thought it was probably going to be days before the pack stopped celebrating.
Summer and Nash had gotten married. The Alphas had a new baby. The world still existed.
All things considered, it was a pretty decent week.
Seth hung out in the pavilion long after everyone else had moved on to enjoy the party elsewhere. Voices were raised in song throughout the sanctuary, the surrounding valley, the whole damn forest. It was a warm night. The waxing moon was bright, only two nights from full. He nursed another beer and watched the band continue to play for the few remaining couples on the dance floor.
“Well, today was some major fairytale stuff,” Brianna said, dropping into the chair next to him. “Water breaking at the altar. Babies and marriage and happily ever after. Almost enough to make me throw up.” She actually did look a little sickly. She pressed a hand to her mouth. “Maybe that’s the beer.”
“Probably the beer,” Seth agreed.
Anthony staggered over. He hadn’t had nearly as much to drink as most of the other wedding guests, but he also didn’t have a werewolf metabolism. He pulled his suit jacket over his face and slumped in the chair. “Wake me up when I’ve already gotten through the hangover.”
“Nice try,” Seth said. “You’re still doing at least a quarter of the driving back to Vegas tomorrow.” They were taking Abram back with them, so they’d have four people to rotate out behind the wheel of the Chevelle. Not as bad, but still a long goddamn trip.
A responding groan rumbled from underneath the jacket.
“Let’s just stay a few more days,” Brianna said. “Are you in a rush to get back? I’m not in a rush to get back. Because I don’t know about you, but I’m not in a hurry to take a cross-country trip back to hundred-degree weather.”
Seth took a long, slow sip of his beer. They hadn’t been planning to stick around for long. There had already been a few messages from prospective clients in the Hunting Club’s new email—mostly from police departments needing consultations. Considering how new their business was, they should have been working hard, not taking days off before they’d started.
He did have a new nephew. It surprised him how little it hurt to see Abel and Rylie together now, especially since Abram had told Seth the truth of his parentage.
Seth had briefly considered making trouble over it, but the emotion just wasn’t there. He wasn’t bitter at all anymore. He didn’t want to fight over Rylie with Abel ever again. That was the past, and Seth wanted to look forward to the future.
So a few extra days hanging out at the sanctuary, drinking with the pack, putting off work? “Yeah, sure,” Seth said. “I’m easy. We can wait a little longer.”
“I love you, Brianna,” Anthony said, still under his jacket.
She rolled her eyes. “Shut up.” But she was definitely blushing as she stood up. She smoothed her dress down, rearranged her hair. “Even if we don’t have an early morning, I think it’s time to sleep. Can you help me drag Anthony back to the cottage?”
“No problem,” Seth said. He was in such a good mood that he would have agreed to virtually anything, even a late-night swim in the snowmelt-flooded lake.
Together, they dragged Anthony to his feet and pulled his arms over their shoulders. They staggered down the path in a clumsy, drunken, six-legged race, although Seth was pleasantly surprised to find that he wasn’t nearly as inebriated as he had expected.
He helped Brianna dump Anthony in bed. They were all staying in the same cottage, so Seth’s bed wasn’t far away. He’d planned to sleep, too. But he felt too good to end the night yet.
Seth left them to sleep, returning to the forest outside.
He closed his eyes, tipped his head back, inhaled the scents of the sanctuary. He didn’t need a werewolf’s nose to pick up all the familiar odors drifting over the air. Pine and cooked beef and damp soil.
Although he’d moved to Las Vegas to help Anthony with the new Hunting Club and enroll in UNLV’s medical program, the sanctuary was still home.