“I’m sorry,” she murmured into his torn green cloak, unsure if she was apologizing for scaring him or for leaving the castle without him. Either way, she embraced him just as fiercely, then drew away to glance around for Reeve and the others again. All she saw was a cathedral full of reapers, Nox, and hunters—the latter of whom made her belatedly shove Braedan behind the broken pillar and whisper, “Can you be here right now?”
A smile quirked his lips. “No one knows who I am, so as long as you don’t start calling me ‘Reaper Priest’ ”—he lowered his voice for the two words—“then I’ll be fine.”
Viri winced at the title, but shook off everything it made her feel, and said, “Still, youarea reaper.” She eyed the black veins on his blood-smeared hands. “And we’re in the middle of a hall filled with people who would lock you away without a second thought.”
“Little sis has a point,” Sage said, striding confidently into sight, then ducking behind the pillar with them. Her beige leathers were covered in almost as much muck as the night of the thunderstorm skirmish, her purple hair splattered with a sickening amount of red. To Braedan, she added, “The confusion of the battle kept us hidden—there were too many reapers for hunters to see and sense anyone individually—but we’re pushing our lucknow as they thin out. Ardin and Jonas are waiting outside. We need to go before we draw attention.” She swiveled to give Viri a surprisingly respectful nod. “Nice job tonight, hunter. Maybe you’re not as useless as I thought.”
Viri snorted at the backhanded compliment. “A pleasure, as always, Sage.” She still wasn’t sure how she felt about Reeve’s—and Braedan’s—reaper friends, but theyhadhelped save everyone, so she settled on being grateful they’d survived. She would figure out the rest later.
A quick flash of a grin was all Sage offered in reply before she tugged at Braedan’s sleeve to draw him away. But he resisted.
“Aren’t you coming with us?” he asked Viri.
“I’ll join you later,” she promised, her nerves igniting as she peered through a missing chunk of the pillar and spotted Meera heading their way. Both Braedan and Sage wore cloaks that hid most of their veined arms, and there were still too many other reapers around for hunters to sense them specifically, but even so…It would be nearly impossible to convince Meera that they weregoodreapers, not without having time to explain, so Viri hurriedly said, “Meet you at Wynter’s lab?”
“Don’t take too long,” Braedan warned, “or I’ll come find you, risks be damned.”
Outwardly, Viri huffed her annoyance, but inwardly, she was filled with warmth at having her big brother back, something she’d never imagined would be possible—or that she’d evenwant. There was a lot they needed to work through—not the least of which was him being a reaper, and she a hunter—but they had time now, and knowing that brought a sense of peace to her for the first time in seven years.
“Reeve’s still around here somewhere, using his magic to help the wounded,” Sage told Viri. Her hazel eyes narrowed in threat. “Don’t let him get arrested.Again.”
“The first time was his own choice,” Viri pointed out. “If he’s stupid enough to let it happen again, then that’s on him.”
They both knew she didn’t mean it, her gaze already doing another scan of the vast cathedral. Unlike earlier, she couldn’t see Reeve anymore, and she felt a niggle of concern, before reminding herself that he’d managed to stay clear of hunters and Nox for years. Some might recognize him now, those who had laid eyes on him during his imprisonment, but he could use his magic to defend himself, if needed. He also wasn’t at risk of being sensed by a hunter’s mark, unlike the rest of his friends. Braedan and Sage, however…
“You need to go,” Viri urged as Meera neared, and this time, the two reapers heeded wisdom, vanishing into the crowd of Nox and hunters who were slapping nullicuffs on any struggling survivors.
Viri didn’t breathe easy until she saw her brother and Sage slip out into the night. She then turned her attention to her mentor just as Meera climbed over some debris and moved around the crumbling pillar to halt in front of her. Much like Viri, she was covered in cuts and bruises, her clothes torn and her magical amulet slightly askew around her scarred neck, but there was triumph in her eyes—and pride, too.
“Looks like your half-baked plan ended up fully cooked,”Meera said, reminding Viri of her parting words in the Summit.
With a wry smile, Viri said, “Turns out it just needed a little seasoning before it was ready.”Or a lot of seasoning,she admittedto herself, as shocked as anyone by the success of the night. Her smile spread as she realized, “Darik is going to hate that he won’t have an excuse to lock me up anymore.” Shehadsaved the kids and the city, after all. Surely that was enough to earn her some grace with the difficult Nox captain. “Where is he, anyway? I assumed you’d want to question me together?”
Her mentor’s brow furrowed.“I haven’t seen—”
“I’m here,” Darik announced as he strode into view, straightening his uniform. Unlike Viri and Meera, he looked as if he hadn’t lifted a finger in the fight, his attire as immaculate as always, from his boots to his gloves, even his polished buttons and buckles. There wasn’t so much as a strand of his salt-and-pepper hair out of place, making Viri aware of just how bloody and bedraggled she was in comparison.
“It seems you have quite the story to tell us, Solace,” Darik noted, glancing toward the gathered children, where Soren and Jessy were still huddled on the ground in front of the group. “There’s obviously much to discuss.” He paused, then declared, “We’ll debrief first thing tomorrow.”
Viri started. “Tomorrow?” she repeated, unsure what she’d expected but definitely not that. Darik hadn’t said one word about her freeing Reeve from the Underlock—or how he himself had been attacked in the process—let alone how they’d broken into the Summit afterward and then vanished for days without a trace.
“Go home, Viri,”Meera said gently, though her jade eyes seemed amused by Viri’s stunned reaction.“Get some rest. We’ll see to the kids and take care of things from here.”
“But—” Viri stopped herself, unsure why she was arguing whenthe very word “rest” had her suddenly swaying with exhaustion, her adrenaline swiftly dissolving now that the danger had passed.
“Don’t worry—we have plenty of questions for you,”Meera added, a dry note in her mental voice now,“but we also want to keep our jobs, and Sarielle has been anxious enough that we might very well lose them if we don’t let you have the rest of the night off.”She jerked her chin toward the space in front of the dais, where Wynter was in the middle of what looked like a strained conversation with her mother, the firebird blazing steadily behind them despite the rest of the flames having been extinguished.
Viri was torn between wanting to huddle on the ground with Soren and Jessalyn, wanting to help Meera and Darik return the children to their families, wanting to go find Reeve, and wanting to be there for her best friend. The latter won out, so she ducked down to say goodbye to Soren, whispering that everyone was meeting at Wyn’s lab later but they’d understand if he wasn’t willing to leave his sister. He replied with a ragged “Thank you”—something she knew wasn’t in response to the information she’d shared, the depth of feeling in those two heartfelt words making her blink back tears.
With a quick kiss to his cheek, then Jessy’s, Viri stood again and started in Wynter’s direction, only to pause when Darik’s deep voice stopped her.
“Tomorrow morning, Solace,” the Nox captain reminded her—unnecessarily. “Come prepared for an interrogation. Alongone.”
Viri barely managed to resist rolling her eyes—or sighing. She chose to ignore his stern face in favor of the pride Meera still wore, infusing false brightness into her tone as she replied, “Sounds fun. Can’t wait.”
Before Darik could say anything else—or change his mind and demand answers immediately—she turned and strode away, wobbling slightly as fatigue slammed into her with every step. But her night wasn’t over yet, so she willed strength into her aching body and stifled the yawn that tried to break free as she headed toward the dais.
“Viri!” Wynter cried upon seeing her approach, running to meet her halfway and throwing her arms around her. “Thank the Elders you’re all right!”
