I grinned as I held out a leather case. “We wanted to give you a token of our appreciation. Thank you, Connor. You saved us. All of us.”
“I . . .” Connor took the leather case and stared at it. “I was lying there, under some rubble, and this feeling came over me.” He looked up at me. “I knew you were in trouble. And I knew I could help you. So, I sent part of myself to you. Usually, I have to be close to someone to bilocate to them like that. But you.” He shook his head. “As soon as a piece of me left my body, I saw you. You shone like a lighthouse. And then I was there.” He passed the case back to me. “I don't think it was me, Ambassador. I think Anu led me to you. I just did my job.”
“I'm sure Anu led you.” I firmly put the case back in his hand. “But it was still you who acted. It was you who wanted to help me, and you unlocked my manacles. Because of you, I'm still alive. My husbands are alive. My family is whole.” I inclined my head to him. “Thank you.”
“Thank you,” my husbands repeated in unison.
And then the entire room applauded.
Connor's pale Irish complexion went red, making his scar stand out in a white stripe. But it looked good on him. He grinned and lifted the little case to wave it at everyone. “Thanks, people. But we did this together. Everyone played their part. And someone paid the ultimate price to ensure our victory.”
The room went quiet.
“Hey!” Connor called out sternly. “I didn't say that to ruin the mood. I said it so that we celebrate harder. Not in my honor or even for the Kumihos who were avenged today. We celebrate tonight in honor of Hunter Jang Sung-ho. We lift our glasses and hearts to him tonight. I didn't know him well, but I fought beside him and that makes him my brother. We all risked our lives today. Any one of us could have fallen beneath that ax. And Hunter Jang Sung-ho knew what he risked when he joined the Wild Hunt. So, I feel confident in saying that he would not want us moping about on his behalf but rather dancing and laughing and drinking a fuck-ton of alcohol as we shout his name to the Gods!”
The room cheered.
Then Connor's gaze went from Miri, in my arms, to the rest of my children. He winced. “Sorry, kids. Don't repeat that bad word.”
“I don't think they even noticed,” Kill said.
“Fuck-ton!” Caelum cried.
“Then again,” Kill muttered.
“It's fine,” Daxon said. “They've heard bad words before. Believe me.”
“And we chose to bring them here,” I said. “That's on us.”
“Still. Sorry 'bout that,” Connor said.
Then someone shouted, “To Hunter Jang Sung-ho!”
Everyone echoed the toast and drank.
“That's better. Get the attention off me,” Connor muttered when the toasting died down. Then he looked down at the leather case. “What is this?” He set his crutch against the wall and opened the case. “Is this a scry-phone?”
“Yup,” Killian said. “We weren't sure if the Council had already given you one since you're Team Leader. But—”
“No, they haven't. We get cellphones, that's it. Scry-phones are too expensive.”
“Sorry,” Raza said. “I did offer the Human Council a bulk price. I guess I should reduce it.”
“No, it's fine,” Connor hurried to say. “We're good with cellphones. We don't need scry-phones as much as hunters do.”
“Well, if you don't need it, we can get you something else.” I reached for the phone.
“No way!” He jerked it out of my reach. “This is awesome! I love it! Even if I never use it, it's really cool.”
I chuckled and pointed at the inner flap of the case. “We had it inscribed.”
Connor read aloud, “With the eternal gratitude of the Royals of Fairy.” Beneath the gilded writing were the symbols of the kingdoms—a sun, a moon, a star, and the Earth to represent the Fairy Undergrounds. He ran his finger over the symbols, then looked up at us. “Wow. This is . . .”
“Your name is on the back,” Tiernan said.
Connor flipped the phone closed and grinned at the gold writing—Extinguisher Connor Teagan. “Thank you.” He slipped the phone into his jacket pocket. “Thank you so much.”
I hugged him with one arm. “Thank you for saving my life.” Then I stepped back and held out my hand. “Well done, Extinguisher.”
