“Yes, but that’s not what I meant. She loved him in a way I’ll never understand. It’s tragic. After he was killed, she lived all those years afterward alone, only to die when she tried to find love again. Maybe Christian’s right.”
Niko closed his eyes. “The fates will always reunite two souls that are destined for each other. You shouldn’t weep for her death, but rejoice.”
“You believe in reincarnation?”
“What we believe matters little in the grand scheme of things.”
I frowned. “It still doesn’t make sense. If they were meant to be together, then why can’t they stay together forever?”
“We all must die. And you’re not seeing the bigger picture. Theyaretogether forever. In every life. Don’t believe everything Christian feeds you. He has too many demons to have an open mind about love. It’s not meant for everyone.”
“Maybe it is and the rest of us are just doomed to keep repeating the same mistakes. Like dating serial killers.”
He barked out a laugh. “Apologies. I didn’t mean to laugh at you.”
“Go ahead. It’s almost comical. I was attracted to a serial killer. What exactly does that say about me?”
“Maybe the fates are trying to teach you something.”
“That I have bad taste in men?”
He straightened one leg. “Someone once said that insanity is doing something over and over and expecting different results. Maybe who you think is wrong for you is really the one who’s right.”
“Well, clearly the ones who I think are right for me are mentally unstable. I think I’m done with dating for a while. I need to just focus on my job.”
“Don’t follow in my footsteps because you think it’s the right path to take. Follow your heart, Raven. If you want love, then pursue it. If you don’t, then find out what you were put here to do. It’s taken me centuries to learn what my place is in this world, so don’t think the answers will reveal themselves so quickly.”
A gust of wind whistled against the window and I shivered, hugging my bare arms. “I overheard Patrick and Viktor talking at the party. Did you know that everyone invited was a major contributor to big charities, like the Breed orphanages? That means Glass was donating his hard-earned money to help people. What kind of man can be so charitable on one hand and a coldhearted killer on the other?”
“Does it matter?”
“Maybe it kind of does,” I said quietly.
That knowledge made me question everything I knew about good and evil. Could an evil man also be good? Or did he just do good things to throw people off? I wanted to go to the Breed jail and ask Glass myself, but I had a feeling he’d never reveal the truth about his character.
Niko tilted his head to the side. “A man can save more lives than he takes, but it doesn’t put balance in the universe.”
“Does that mean that no matter how many lives I save with Keystone, I’m still nothing but the killer I once was?”
“I don’t have all the answers, Raven. Maybe this is our purgatory. If you’re only here to atone for the sins of your past, then it won’t work. Good deeds won’t clear your conscience of past sins.”
I held the heart-shaped pendant up so I could study the red facets. “What if I don’t have a conscience? If I did, I’d feel guilty about the men I’ve killed. But I don’t. Nothing’s changed. Maybe that’s why I’ll never have anything remotely close to what Penny and Lachlan had. My heart’s too cold.”
“What is it you want, a reason for your existence? What if it’s all a test, and in every life we are given the same obstacles and forced to choose?”
“If that’s true, I hope in the next life Wyatt chooses a healthier diet.”
We both laughed, and I noticed the snowflakes were getting bigger. Gem was standing just outside in a puffy pink coat, arms outstretched and mouth open as she tried to catch snowflakes with her tongue.
Niko stood up. “We have much work to do. Crime never takes a holiday.” He abruptly reached for my neck. “Do you mind? I heard someone mention a new necklace.”
“It’s just a heart.”
“Nothing is everjustanything.” His fingers discovered every facet as he rolled the stone between them. Then he felt the crown on top. “What’s this?”
“Queen of Hearts.”
He stood up. “You mean ravenheart. Keepsakes are good for the soul. I have nothing personal from my early years, so hold on to the important things. It’s a fine piece.”
