He sets me carefully on my feet and washes the blood from my body and hair. When he gets to my hands, he examines the claws. “These are impressive.”
“I don’t know how I did it. I just heard Rylan’s voice in my head and then the magic obeyed.”
“Sometimes it happens like that. Close your eyes.” I obey, and he keeps speaking in that low, calm voice. “Envision your hands as they normally are. Not a claw or bit of fur in sight.”
My eyes fly open. “I don’t havefur.
He grins. “Now you don’t have claws, either.”
Sure enough, he’s right. I wiggle the fingers of my very human hand. They look just like normal, feel just like normal. How strange. “That was easy.”
“I did say it would get easier.”
“I didn’t think it would happen this fast.” I take a deep breath and look at the door. “They’re going to expect information and announcements and official things tomorrow.”
“Yes. But you’re not doing it alone.” He presses his hand to my lower stomach. “You have us. I meant what I said last night. We will make this place the safest spot in the realms to raise our children. Anyone—anyone—who threatens us won’t live long enough to regret it.”
There was a time when I might say that’s too bloodthirsty, but that time and that person are long gone. I nod. “Then I guess we best get started.”
“Tomorrow, Mina.”
When we leave the bathroom, clean and exhausted, it’s to find that Rylan and Wolf have gutted the house. I look around with wide eyes. How did they possibly move this quickly? The living room is completely empty except for a plain mattress with what appears to be clean sheets sitting in the center of it. “What’s this?”
Wolf saunters through the door. “Couldn’t do the whole place in the time we had, but we figured you didn’t want to be surrounded with memories of the monster.” He eyes the mattress with distaste. “This is the largest we could find on short notice.”
My lower lip quivers at the thoughtfulness of this. Idon’twant to be in this house, faced with the memory of my father, especially when it takes less than no effort to conjure how warm his blood was against my skin, how easily his flesh gave way to my claws. I shudder. “Thank you.”
“Anything for you, love.” He flops down onto the mattress.
Rylan steps into the house and shuts the door firmly behind himself. “I don’t expect trouble tonight, but we’ll keep an eye out for it.” He frowns at Wolf. “Get off those clean sheets until you’ve had a shower.”
“Right. Whoops.” Wolf rolls easily to his feet and moves past me toward the shower. He brushes the backs of his fingers of my arm and then he’s gone. A few seconds later, the shower starts up again.
Rylan comes to stand before me. “How are you doing?”
“I’m shaky and exhausted and overwhelmed.” I try for a smile. “But we’re all alive, so I’m good. Really good.” I hesitate. “Lizzie?”
“Gone. I’m sure she’ll be circling back at some point for that favor, but the Radu family will be doing what the rest of the clans are now that you’ve taken over.” At my questioning look, he gives a wry smile. “Watching. Evaluating. Traditionally, there’s a year grace period when someone ascends to head of clan, so we have that long to bolster our defenses and alliances and ensure we’re too strong to reckon with.”
“Oh,” I say faintly. I’ve never heard of a grace period, but my father has ruled for a very, very long time. He was also tight-fisted with information as a way of controlling people—something I intend to change. I drag in a breath. “I guess we need to get started on that soon.
“Tomorrow,” Malachi says firmly. “Everything can wait until tomorrow. Right now, we’re going to hold you and we’re going to celebrate the fact that we’re alive and we won.”
I find myself smiling slowly as he leads me to the bed. “I kind of like that plan.”
“I thought you might.” He smiles down at me and, for the first time since I met him, it’s completely joyful and free of reserve. “I love you, little dhampir.”
“I love you, too.”
“Forever.”
I go up onto my toes and kiss him. “Forever.”
51
FOUR YEARS LATER
Ismell smoke as I turn down the hall toward the nursery. “Not again.” I pick up my pace, sprinting the last few steps and throwing open the door, power at my fingertips and ready to quell the fire. The sight that greets me stops me short.