“They want to talk to you,” he says, when I’ve regained my composure a little.
I’m worried I’m going to burst into tears again when I hear either of their voices, but I place the cool metal of the cell phone to my ear.
“Ophelia?” a voice says.
It’s Cain.
“Oh, my God, I’m so happy you’re okay,” I cry. “I’m so sorry you had to… you know, deal with your father. I feel so terrible.”
“It wasn’t me, in the end, but I’ll fill you in more on what happened when we get back. We’ll be bringing someone else with us, someone I’d like you to meet.”
“Who?”
“My brother, Samuel.”
Happiness tweaks my cheeks. “That’s good.” I’m glad he still has family. It can’t have been easy for him, taking his father out that way, but ultimately, I hope it will be healing once he’s worked through the trauma and the guilt. I hope he’ll be able to move on now from what happened in the past and forgive himself, even though none of this was his fault.
“Is Malachi okay?” I ask.
“Yeah, he’s right here, staring daggers at me for not handing over the phone.”
I give a strange little laughing-hiccupping-sob. “You can hand it over to him.”
There’s a rustle, and then Mal’s voice comes down the line. “Hi, baby. We’re safe and on our way back to you now.”
“Hurry. I’ve missed you. I’ve been so worried.”
“I know, baby-girl, but we’re coming back now, okay, and we’re not going to be apart again.”
I smile. “I’m going to surgically attach myself to each of you.”
He chuckles at that. “I think that’s going to make things a little difficult to get around, but I appreciate the premise.”
I say goodbye and hand the phone back to Roman. He scoops me up against him again and kisses me, hard, right in front ofhalf the student body. I melt in his arms, wishing there was a way I could become a part of these men. I’d crawl beneath their skin and live there, if I could.
Someone wolf whistles, and Roman and I smile against each other’s lips. He squeezes me tightly around the waist and then releases me.
Though I’m overjoyed at the others being safe, and this whole thing being over, it’s impossible to shake my sadness completely. I’ve lost Daisy, watched her die right beside me, and I’ve taken a man’s life. Even if he deserved everything he got, it’s still hard not to be troubled by that event. The Prophet had haunted me for such a long time, and ruled so much of my life with an iron grip, that I’m still working hard to free myself from him completely. The fear that he’ll somehow find a way to punish me for what I did keeps trying to push its way into my head, and it’s a fear that won’t listen to rationality.
Roman leaves my side, first kissing me one last time, to go and tell everyone that the threat has been neutralized. Camile and Vani both hug me, and, across the room, I spot Mackenzie with her child on her hip. She sends me a smile of understanding.
It occurs to me that I have a new version of family now, and that family isn’t always a static thing. Its form ebbs and flows with the passing of time, and it doesn’t have to be the people we share blood with.
Verona Falls has become a home, and the people within it my family.
Roman returns to me and takes my hand. Together, we leave the cafeteria and make our way through the building to step outside. For once, we don’t have to worry about armed guards around us. We are safe. I breathe deeply in the fresh air, feeling the weight of everything we’ve been through lifting from my shoulders. Though I know I should be happy now, I can’t seemto shift the melancholy that settled around my heart at Daisy’s death.
I doubt Cain and Malachi will return here in a celebratory mood. Even though they were successful, they still had to take lives and, for Cain, it was a very personal life to take. No matter how in the wrong his father was, or the things he did, he was still Cain’s parent, and that’s a huge loss. In fact, in some ways, it can be even harder to lose a parent who wasn’t really there for us. The complicated emotions and the longing for what could have been. We all have so much baggage, and yet we make it work between us supporting each another when any one of us in particular needs it.
Roman and I return to the water tower, and I try to busy myself around the place, putting on fresh coffee and checking for what the others can eat when they get back—I’m assuming they’ll be hungry.
“Ophelia?”
Roman’s voice has me turning away from the refrigerator.
He beckons to me with the crook of two fingers. “Stop pacing around and come here.”
I shut the fridge door and go over to where he’s standing. His injuries are looking so much better now—he’s young and strong and has healed fast—though I’m sure he’ll be in pain from his jaw injury for weeks or even months to come.
