Authors: Alicia Dean
She gripped his shoulders, kissing him back. Then, she felt him fade. Away from her hands...her lips. She almost cried out, almost begged him to stay, but it would be useless. Besides, she didn’t want his last image of her to be that of a hysterical, sobbing mess.
He turned and headed into the dark night, looking back at her briefly and flashing the smile that brought out his dimples and made his cobalt eyes glitter. She watched until his silhouette merged with the blackness and she could no longer see him. Then, she dropped to the ground, clawed her hands into the damp grass, and wept while her soul splintered in pieces.
~*~
Hours after Dimitri vanished, Audra was still pacing the floor, clenching her hair in her hands.
“It’s bullshit,” she muttered. “Nothing but bullshit.”
The tears had dried long ago, and she let anger sweep away her grief. Anger, she could deal with. The grief would destroy her.
A figure appeared in front of her and she halted. “Cassie? What are you doing here?”
Cassie wore a pair of frayed jeans and a white, Old Navy hoodie. She tucked her blonde-pink hair behind her ears, then gazed warily at Audra. “I wanted to check on you. Are you okay?”
“Am I okay? Does it
look
like I’m okay? Dimitri’s gone. So much for your miracles.”
Cassie blew a breath out between pursed lips. “This bites big time.”
“That’s an understatement.” Rage shook through her. “I mean, come on. We destroyed Gaylen. After all these years, that monster is gone, and
this
is our reward? I’d given up on love, decided it wasn’t in the cards for me. Then, I met Dimitri.”
“I told you he’d grow on you.” Cassie tried a smile, but when Audra glared at her, it faded from her face.
“Tell me, Cassie. I really want to know. What kind of bullshit miracle is that?”
“You can’t
make
miracles happen, they just do. Sometimes. But not all the time.”
Audra rolled her eyes. “Thanks for clearing that one up.” She crossed her arms and resumed pacing. “Listen, Cassie. I’m not really in the mood for company right now. Can you please just go?”
“Sure. Yeah. I just wanted to tell you I’m sorry.”
Audra nodded, feeling like an ass, but unable to work up the ability to do anything different. She knew she’d get better. One of these days, she’d learn to live with the pain. But not today. Today, agony was clawing out her insides, and it felt as though it would never end.
~*~
Cassie stormed into the church and headed to Samuel’s office. She burst through the door, relieved when she found Samuel at his desk. She would hate to waste a dramatic entrance if he hadn’t been there.
“What is it, Cassie?”
“I want to talk to you about Dimitri’s reward.”
“What about it?”
“Are you kidding me? Dimitri’s entire life has been spent in misery. Spent trying to atone for what he did as a human. I’d say he’s more than made up for it. Then, he finds someone like Audra. Someone who can finally make him happy, and you reward him by ripping them apart?”
“It’s what he wanted all along. I gave him what he’s sought all these years. To move on and be at peace.”
“Maybe he changed his mind about what he wanted. Did you ever think about that?”
“He told me that.”
“But you still let him die?”
“I had already set the wheels in motion.”
“But you can do something now.”
“I can’t. It’s done.”
“I don’t believe that. I know you’re not completely in charge, but you’re the next best thing. I know you have some favors you can call in.”
“I’m sorry. It’s best this way. Dimitri can go on to his eternal rest instead of getting involved in an impossible relationship with a human.”
“What if someone had thought you and your wife were wrong for each other? Would you have thanked them for keeping you apart?” When Samuel didn’t respond, she went on, “Dimitri saved your daughter and the woman you love, and you won’t give him back to the woman he loves?”
“You’re a youngling. You don’t understand.”
“I understand that you’re taking the easy way out. What if Dimitri had taken the easy way out, Samuel? What if he’d let you watch your wife and child violated, beaten, raped and tortured by those animals? It’s a good thing Dimitri was more of a man than you are.”
Samuel scowled, then a grin broke through. “Has anyone ever told you how annoying you are?”
“More times than I can count.” She smiled back. “That’s how I get my way.”
~*~
Dimitri stood with his eyes closed, arms outstretched, waiting for death to claim him. This time, he’d move on to his eternal rest instead of serving as a reaper.
Funny. He was finally getting what he wanted, and it was the worst thing he could imagine. He’d died once before, but it hadn’t hurt like this.
Tightness seized his flesh. His body began to shut down. He could feel the breath leaving him. Blackness crowded in. It was happening. He’d never see Audra again. What the hell was he thinking? Falling in love with a human? For nearly three-hundred years, he’d gotten by just fine without giving in to emotions. Now, he understood why he’d avoided them. Feeling was excruciating.
The blackness took him completely, and he felt a floating sensation. There was no excited anticipation about what awaited him on the other side. Whatever it was, Audra wouldn’t be there.
Suddenly, the floating sensation ceased. Cassie’s voice came to him from the darkness. “Dimitri. Hey, Dimitri. I’m here to make you an offer.”
“What?” He frowned, opening his eyes to find Cassie standing in front of him, her face alight with a beaming smile. “What’s going on?”
“You can choose to meet your destiny, or become a reaper. The sentence is a hundred years.” She gave a wink, lowering her voice conspiratorially. “But we both know it can end up being much longer than that.”
“What? How did...”
“Samuel...uhm...
decided
you should have another chance. You destroyed Gaylen, something no one has been able to do in hundreds of years. And, even though you broke some rules, they were all for unselfish reasons. To help others. You’ve beyond redeemed yourself.”
Dimitri lifted a brow. “Samuel just suddenly decided this?”
“Weeellll.” She lifted her shoulders in a shrug. “I might have said some things that made him realize this whole ‘meeting your reward thing’ was bogus.” She smiled. “Oh, yeah, there’s a third option.”
“Third option?”
“You can choose to become human.”
Dimitri waited to let the words sink in. When they did, he said, “You’re kidding, right?”
Elation budded in his chest, but he was afraid to give in to it. Afraid to believe it in case this was some cruel hoax.
She shook her head, her pinkish hair swinging back and forth. “Nope. Not kidding. Come on. I don’t have all day.” She grinned impishly. “Actually, I do. I have, like, a hundred years. But, I’m kind of anxious to hear your decision. I know someone else who will be, too. So, what’s it going to be?”
Dimitri suppressed the urge to shout with joy. Audra. He was actually going to be with Audra. He smiled at Cassie. “I think you know the answer to that.” He tweaked her chin, then placed a kiss on her forehead. “Thanks, sweetheart. See you around.”
“Yeah. See you around.” He was walking away when her voice stopped him. “Dimitri?”
Tamping down his impatience, he turned back to face her. “Yes? What is it?”
Moisture brimmed in her eyes. Her voice wistful, she said, “Enjoy being human.”
~*~
“Be careful, Sadie!” Audra cringed as Sadie crawled over the dome climber. With her heart condition, she sometimes became weak. The medications had helped, but they didn’t always keep her from tiring easily. Besides, the child was a natural-born klutz. Audra could just see her tumbling to the ground. Although it wasn’t that high up, and Gaylen was no longer around to swoop in and reap her, she could still be injured. Or killed. Audra shuddered, pushing that thought from her mind. She’d lost enough. Too much. She wouldn’t even think about losing Sadie.
Although she hadn’t slept all night, after Cassie left this morning, Audra had called Riley to see if she could take Sadie out for the day. She couldn’t be alone with her thoughts. Her heart felt weighted with lead. She needed Sadie’s sweetness, her youth and vitality, a reminder that she had something to live for. She’d brought her to the park. It was a warm day for November, typically unpredictable weather for Oklahoma. One day there might be a snowstorm, the next, spring-like temperatures.
Briefly, Audra and Riley had discussed the reaper situation. Riley hadn’t seen Steve since that first time. Hadn’t seen another reaper, so she was starting to believe she’d imagined it. Audra explained to her that, although she
thought
she hadn’t seen a reaper, it was likely she had. She wouldn’t always know if the people she saw were reapers.
Besides, what Audra had dealt with the past few months couldn’t be denied. Riley might prefer to think Audra had gone insane, but in her eyes, Audra saw she knew the truth. It would just take a while to come to terms with it. Hopefully, when it was all said and done, Riley wouldn’t lose her heart to a reaper, only to have him snatched away forever.
A movement near the closed-down concession stand caught her eye. A man walked toward her, his dark hair ruffling in the breeze. He wore a black T-shirt and faded jeans. The walk was familiar. When he drew closer, the blue eyes were unmistakable.
“Dimitri?” Audra breathed. She came to her feet and slowly walked toward him, afraid a sudden movement would make him disappear. This couldn’t be happening, he couldn’t be real, but she’d enjoy the fantasy as long as it lasted.
“Hi, there,” he said.
“It’s you? It’s really you?”
When she reached him, she lifted a hand to his face, expecting to feel the chilling electricity, or nothing, since he wasn’t really there. But, her hand met warm flesh. Rough whiskers scraped her palm.
“It’s me,” he whispered, snaking his arms around her waist and pulling her to him.
“What are you doing? You’re human now? Is this just another visit? I don’t understand.”
“Yes. I’m human.”
“But you were going to meet your destiny. Going away forever. I don’t understand,” she said again.
While this was exactly what she wanted, even if it was only for a brief moment, she couldn’t stop the flow of questions. She had to know what this meant...couldn’t deal with another heartbreak. “How long will you be here?”
“How long do you want me here?”
“Forever.”
“Okay, then.”
“Okay? Really? How is that possible?”
“You can thank Cassie. She’s kind of a pain in the ass. She ambushed Samuel, berated, shamed, and harassed him until he undid my reward.”
“Undid your reward...You mean, you aren’t going to die?”
“Actually, I will die. Someday. Unexpectedly. Like a regular, normal human being. But not today. Not right now.”
“Oh...wow.” Tears of joy choked her voice. She lifted her lips, and he touched his mouth to hers. She sighed with pleasure. There it was. Dimitri’s kiss...the one that made her pulse race, made the blood rush in her veins, the kiss she’d thought was gone forever.
He pulled his head back and looked down at her. “I’m not sure how this is all going to work. How we’ll explain me to your friends. How I’ll get a job. I have no past. No identification.”
She cocked her head and frowned. “Are you really worrying about all of that right now? At this moment?”
He smiled, his sapphire eyes glinting with amusement. “I suppose we can deal with it later.”
“Aunt Audra? Who’s that man?”
“Uh oh,” Audra whispered.
She disentangled herself from Dimitri’s arms and looked down at Sadie. Sadie’s gaze went from Audra to Dimitri, her face scrunched in curiosity.
“He’s a friend of mine,” Audra said.
“Are you going to ’vorce him like you ’vorced Jaxon?”
Pain shafted through Audra’s heart. Jaxon. She missed him so much. He was the first person she would have told about falling in love. She met Dimitri’s eyes.
Sympathy shadowed his expression. He mouthed,
I’m sorry
. Giving a little nod, she sniffed back tears.
Dimitri squatted down until he was eye level with Sadie. “We’re not getting divorced, but we might get married. And you could be the flower girl. How would you like that?”
“I would love it!” she squealed.
Dimitri rose and took Audra’s hands. “So, you want to get married? Or are you going to crush a little girl’s dream?”
Audra laughed, tiptoeing to place a kiss on his lips. “I would never, ever crush a little girl’s dream.”
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