Her expression was serene, and she caught my eye and gave the smallest nod.
It was done.
“I don’t remember driving here,” Alex continued, rubbing his temples. “Last thing I recall, I was getting coffee. There was a woman, red scarf, I think, and then nothing.”
Stella leaned in, peering at him intently. “Tragic. Truly. The mind is such a fragile thing.”
“Why are you looking at me like that?” he asked.
“Because,” Stella said, straightening, “I’ve waited decades for the universe to finally give you exactly what you deserve, and while I don’t knowwhathappened, I can tell by the look on your face that it was deeply inconvenient.”
Alex scowled. “I don’t like this town.”
“Oh, darling,” Stella said, patting his shoulder with mock sympathy, “the feeling has always been mutual.”
I couldn’t help it. I laughed.
Alex turned to me, bewildered. “Maeve? What’s going on?”
I studied him for a moment. The man who’d once filled my life with noise and promises and quiet betrayals. The man who had no memory of magic, of curses, of consequences or hopping on four legs.
“You came to pick up Celeste and take her back to college,” I said carefully. “That’s all you need to know.”
Stella snorted. “And he hates every second of it.”
Alex opened his mouth to argue, then closed it, wincing again. “Why do I feel… off?”
“Jet lag,” Twobble supplied cheerfully. “From reality.”
Stella turned to me then, her expression softening just a fraction. “You all right, love?”
I nodded, though my chest felt tight. “Yeah. I think so.”
She studied me for a long moment, ageless eyes seeing far more than I’d said, then smiled gently. “Good. Because if you weren’t, I’d hex him myself.”
“Noted,” I said.
Behind me, Celeste shifted closer, her hand brushing mine. I squeezed her fingers, grounding myself in the feel of her warmth, her presence.
Alex glanced between us, clearly sensing something he couldn’t name.
“We should probably… go,” he said slowly.
Stella beamed. “You’re learning.”
As Nova gently but firmly began steering him toward the door, Alex muttered about headaches, strange dreams, and the worst cup of coffee of his life. Stella leaned in close to me.
“Well,” she murmured, “that was cathartic.”
I exhaled. “You have no idea.”
She straightened, smoothing her coat. “Now. The vampires are going to drink me dry, your ex has finally been knocked down a peg by the universe itself, and your daughter—” she glanced toward Celeste, who was still staring after her father in stunned disbelief “—has officially come into her magic.”
My throat tightened.
Stella followed my gaze and softened. “Ah,” she said quietly. “That look.”
I swallowed. “Yeah.”
