I come to with the sound of beeping and the smell of antiseptic burning my nostrils. Wrinkling my nose, I force my eyes open to see if I’m in the worst form of Hell imaginable. I feel like I’m still alive, and I recognize the medical facility I’m in. It’s the private hospital that the Order owns, the whole building is shielded from the mundanes, and is located a few miles outside of Boston, smack dab in the middle of a forest. I’ve only been here once, and that was to visit Billy after he and another Centurion had a bad turn with a couple of satyrs.

I wish Billy could be here right now. I’m sure he’d have something to say to make the sudden ache in my chest not feel so fatal. I’m alive, yes, but I have no idea what state Boston is in, or the world for that matter. Does everyone know about werewolves now? Is everything I know going to change? And how long before people decide they’re better off killing anyone who’s part of this supernatural world? Call me a cynic, but humanity doesn’t have the best track record when it comes to withholding violence.

Looking more closely at my surroundings, I see I’m in a ward with fellow Centurions. Chiaki is in the bed next to me, but she’s still resting. I almost want to wake her up just to thank her. I always figured she would side with the Order no matter what the situation, but she showed me a different side at the docks. I don’t think I’d still be here if it wasn’t for her and Henry. Henry…I need to know what happened to him too.

There’s an IV hooked up that should hint to me staying in bed, but I’m just bracing myself to pull the needle from my vein when I hear sharp heels coming across the tiled floor. I look up to see Carver, who looks haggard and exhausted, but no less intimidating.

“Don’t even try it, Averline,” she says gruffly.

I hold my hands up in surrender before letting them flop gracelessly to my sides. “What happened?” I ask, trying not to sound as desperate as I feel.

“Most of South Boston is gone,” Carver replies heavily.

“Jesus…” I take a few steadying breaths. “And the werewolves? Do people…know?”

“No,” Carver says. “There were people who were attacked, but given the catastrophe…well, it drew all the attention from the wolves. There weren’t that many roaming the streets as it was, Castillo must have ordered them to lock themselves up somewhere.”

I remember Castillo’s dark look when I suggested he take his entire pack out of the city, but I’m glad he compromised. At least there’s something of a silver lining, but maybe I’m only thinking that way because I haven’t seen South Boston…or heard the amount of losses the city suffered. Despite the shock of knowing the aftermath, I can’t help the underlying anger that’s twisting through me.

“We could have stopped this,” I say harshly, looking Carver right in the eyes.

“I know,” she concedes. “We should have listened to you, Averline.”

It doesn’t make me feel better hearing her say that. Validation won’t restore the city; it won’t bring back those who were lost during this case. “I don’t understand something…” I continue after a tense moment of silence. “How did you not suspect Elena? I get that she was hiding her potential while killing the werewolves and getting ready to open Paradise, but wouldn’t you have sensed her power when she first joined?”

Carver exhales sharply through her nose, eyes narrowed. “Of course, we would have. Magic is a strange thing, Averline, and no one fully understands it. It is not unheard of for a mage’s true potential to manifest later, usually after a significant event.”

I nod, following along, but still puzzled. “Then you would have sensed it after her daughter’s death, that seems the most likely trigger.”

Carver raises a brow at me and I realize she doesn’t know the story. The Order doesn’t know, I’m the only one who saw those memories. I try to piece it all together as I explain it to Carver, from Elena’s meeting with Castillo during his arrest, their relationship, their daughter, and her death. Carver looks quietly livid by the time I’m through, and I can see that her pride is wounded. She’s shrewd, not much gets by her, let alone something this big.

“This whole time…” she seethes. “She must have started channeling to conduits soon after her daughter’s death.”

Which means the death was recent, the pain both she and Castillo felt fresh. Funny how I was so vehemently against Elena when I suspected her, and now I just feel bad for her. And for Castillo too. Thinking of him reminds me of the battle in the warehouse, and my mood darkens.

“And then there were Sheldon’s demands that the werewolves be killed on sight rather than knocked out.”

“Sentinel Sheldon did what was necessary,” Carver replies. “It is not a pleasant task we’ve taken on, Averline, and sometimes what needs to be done is not always something that can be deemed ‘good’.”

“It’s going to make things worse with Castillo.”

Carver sneers. “Things were never more than ‘worse’ with Castillo to begin with. The fact he seduced one of our Incantatores has already made my opinion of him worse.”

I could tell her it wasn’t about Elena being an Incantator. It wasn’t some ploy by Castillo to weaken the Order. I could see the love they had for each other. I felt it, especially in the Common when they were with Isabella. Their love was genuine, but I don’t think Carver will ever be in the mood to hear that.

“I came here to reinstate you, Averline,” Carver returns to business, what emotion she displayed replaced with her professional mask. “You went above and beyond your duties, and had we listened…well, we would be in a far better place now. I want you working with Chief Glass, your instincts may often lead you to trouble, but that does not mean they should not be trusted.”

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

“I accept, but…” I trail off. Working with Chief Glass is a promotion, he heads the Centurions and it’s not lost on me that I’m being given a chance to prove I can fill the position when he retires. But right now I’m thinking of myself, and that version of me I saw in the vision Elena tried to use to stop me. “I need to take a leave of absence first.”

“Oh?”

“It’s time I reconnect with Dr. Franklin and continue my transition.”

Carver actually smiles, and I think it’s the first time I’ve ever seen her do it. “Very well, Averline. The position will be waiting for you when you return.”

⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽༓☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅

The clinic discharges me three days later. All of the Centurions needed blood transfusions after the amount given to the Incantatores. It’s when I see unfamiliar faces and ask Chiaki that I learn Carver called in a lot of the regional offices for backup for the case. The extra Centurions, Sentinels and Incantatores is likely what kept all of Boston from being destroyed by Elena’s spell.

The city feels different. There’s a sort of hush among the vast crowds that still go about their business, and what conversations I do hear are all about the loss of South Boston. Looking at the news, I see that it’s labeled an earthquake – rare for this area, but it’s not the first time one has happened. People are scared, they think this is the start of more to come and I wish I could alleviate their worries, but I move past them without saying a word.

When I get home, the first thing I do is call Henry from my new mobile. I pace as I wait for him to answer, still anxious about him and not daring to ask anyone in the ward about his fate.

“Hello?”

“Henry!”

“Riley!”

“Are you all right?” we ask each other at the same time.

“Come over, I’m home,” I insist.

“I’ll be there soon.”

‘Soon’ is about twenty minutes, and when I hear the knock at my door I spring from the couch and hurry to let him in. I grin when I see he’s in his full sun-blocking attire again and his shoving the wide-brim hat in my face as soon as he steps inside tells me he knows exactly what I’m grinning about.

“I’m so glad you’re okay,” I say, hugging him tightly before.

“Likewise,” he replies, returning my embrace.

We stand in the entryway like this for a few minutes, then I finally let him go and invite him into the living room. “Tell me what happened to you!” I demand.

“I helped Castillo get his wounded to his house in Back Bay, by the time we got there more of his pack was conscious and they discussed leaving the city for a little while. By that point, it seemed all of Boston would be…” he shakes his head, looking away. “I went with them, I can’t tell you where, but we waited it out and as soon as things settled, I came back to look for you. You’d been moved from the area though, there was no one there.”

“How bad is it?” I ask.

“Horrible.”

“Fuck. I should have pressed Carver more when I had the chance!”

“This isn’t on you, Riley. You did everything you could. Without you, we wouldn’t have had a chance.”

“It’s just…all those people, all that damage. And Billy…what about his sacrifice?”

“His sacrifice led you to following through on Elena,” Henry reminds me.

I sigh and lean back against the couch. “It doesn’t feel like much of a victory,” I admit. “I’m grateful we didn’t lose more of the city, don’t get me wrong. I just hoped…I don’t know, I would have kept us from losing anyone.”

“Don’t put it all on your shoulders.”

I close my eyes and take a moment, before I nod. “I’m trying,” I say. “In fact…I have an appointment with Dr. Franklin next week.”

“Really?”

“Wow, tone down the surprise, would you?”

“I just thought…well, after you said you were never going to see her again, that you were never going to see her again.”

“I’m a fickle bastard, I know.” I purse my lips, feeling nervous suddenly. “I’m going to transition, Henry. It wasn’t just grief; it wasn’t me trying to fill a hole left by what happened to us. It’s…it’s me. And I’m tired of fighting it, I’m tired of thinking it will go away. Hell, I’m tired of thinking it’s something negative at all.”

He reaches out and takes my hand. “I’ll be here to support you through every step, if you want me to be.”

I smile. “I want you to be.”

Our silence is comfortable again, before a sly smile works over my face again. “So. Another sleepover with Castillo and Brianna…”

“No. Don’t you start again.”

“Come on, either one would be a catch and you —ah!” my humorous cry of alarm is muffled by the pillow that hits me square in the face.

It’s good to laugh again, even if I’m not over all that happened. It gives me hope that I will heal, and that I will be able to help others heal in turn. We have a lot of cleaning up to do, there will be scars across the city for years, perhaps forever, but right now I’m thinking how nice it is that a Centurion and a vampire can stay so close. That Henry’s done the unthinkable and forged a bond with werewolves, when most vampires would scorn the whole species.

The thought brings Charlemagne to my mind and I frown. I nearly forgot that he was part of Elena’s memories, that he brought up Paradise to her in the first place. “Holy shit,” I murmur.

“What?”

“It was a vampire who started this,” I say. “I saw it, in Elena’s memories…I don’t know how they connected, I think she went to Charlemagne hoping he could turn her daughter and bring her back that way. But he told her…he asked her if she heard about Paradise.”

“Why would he want anyone to reach the True Source?” Henry asks.

“I don’t know…maybe he thought the whole thing would eliminate Castillo and his pack? The Order too, come to think of it.”

“I sense another step in this investigation.”

“No,” I sigh. “Not now, anyway. I think it’s safer that Charlemagne doesn’t know that I know about that bit of info.”

“Then…what now?” Henry asks.

“Now? We watch B-Horror movies. Tomorrow, I’m going to ensure Billy gets a proper funeral service. And through it all, a lot of work on myself for a change. It’s time to let go, it’s time to heal. I want to do better. For me, for you, and for Amelia. No more excuses.”

“You’re going to shine even brighter, Riley.”

“Not too bright, I hope. I know how sensitive you are to that sort of thing now.”

“Ah, so the humor remains,” Henry replies with a feigned sigh. “Very good.”

I smile and pat his knee before going to the TV stand to rummage through the stacks of movies for tonight’s showcase. I haven’t felt this hopeful in a long time, and I’ve never felt this self-clarity I’m experiencing. The future does look bright, and I’m eager to live it fully.