Keep following.
—V
Chief’s standingby the police cruiser with Elle, who’s helping him cram more canned goods into the back seat. He manages to look gruff and emotional, while she’s just pure sunshine and frustration.
I know the feeling.
“I threatened to bury him in the woods if he hurt you,” he says without preamble. “Told him I knew places they’d never find a body and have friends who’d help.”
“I heard.”
“He looked me dead in the eye and said he understood.” Chief scoffs before taking a swig from his thermos. “That’s when I knew he was serious. A man who accepts a death threat without flinching is a man who knows what he wants.”
He hands me an envelope and a folded piece of paper.
“That’s from one of your letters,” he says. “One of the ones you wrote him years ago. I helped him frame it, and he carries a photocopy in his wallet. Real sucker for romance, that one.”
I unfold the paper with shaking hands and see a photocopy of my own handwriting from years ago.
I still believe you’ll find your way back to me. I’ll be here when you do. —Your Clover
The tears are falling so fast I don’t bother wiping them away anymore. But Chief does hand me a wad of tissues with a gesture that must mean I’m blowing some gnarly snot bubbles because he visibly relaxes after I clear my nose.
“Agnes is next,” Chief says gruffly. “Go on, open your letter and don’t keep him waiting. That boy is probably shitting bricks as it is.”
Opening the envelope, I read his words.
Honeybee,
You wrote that you’d be here when I found my way back.
You kept that promise for fourteen years.
Now let me keep mine.
One more stop.
—V
Agnes’spurple tent is at the edge of the fair, right where it always is, but tonight, it’s different.
The entrance is draped with fairy lights—actual fairies whose wings light up and flicker in the night. Photos are strung on golden sparkly thread, fluttering in the breeze.
These ones aren’t of our past though—they’re of our present. Valen standing between Greyson and Braxton. Me and Valen with Chief between us. Me, Madi, Elle, and Savvy surrounded by the Harrington brothers.
This is our family now, a glimpse into our future.
Madi and Agnes stand at the entrance with Pothole on a new crystal-encrusted leash.
“I told him you’d come,” Agnes says. “The cards never lie. I pulled the Lovers, the Sun, and the Ten of Cups. A perfect spread for a perfect ending.” She winks—or blinks—and when she laughs, I know she’s doing it on purpose. “Or should I say, a perfect beginning.”
Madi charges me and wraps me in a hug I can’t return because my hands are full of everything I’ve collected tonight. “I’m so happy for you,” she whispers. “Truly, seeing you shine ismore than I could’ve ever hoped for you. I love you. We all love you. Now, go put that big guy out of his misery.”
Agnes pulls back the tent flap, and I step inside.
The interior has been transformed. More fairy lights. More photos. More honeybees painted on every surface. And in the center, standing exactly where the tarot table should be, is Valen.
He’s holding a single honey-gold rose, and he’s looking at me like I’m the only person in the world.
