“Count Basil is dead, and so is the witch.” Derrick’s voice was solemn as he looked at Abe. “He sacrificed himself to protect Lucie. Even though he wasn’t her servant anymore, he ended up becoming a true friend.”
Lucie gazed at Abe. It was naïve to think there wouldn’t be sacrifices. She just selfishly didn’t want it to be anyone she was close to. She reached out and placed her hand over Abe’s as tears continued to stream down her face.
In the distance, the sun slowly began to rise, piercing the dark with the dawn. But for Lucie, this day was not a welcome one.
“Thank you Abe, and goodbye … my friend.”
CHAPTER 76
Lucie held onto his hand as he became transparent. Since he was just a soul, there was never a real body. Finally, his whole body vanished, and Lucie’s hand closed. Deep down, she was holding on to some sort of hope, which was now gone. Abe no longer existed in physical or soul form. Derrick wrapped his arms around her. She turned her head into Derrick’s chest and continued sobbing uncontrollably. None of this was fair. Abe’s life was too sad, and he deserved better.
“He knew how much you cared about him, Lucie. You showed him how much you trusted and believed in him. You made him happy.” Derrick sifted his hands through her hair.
“I feel horrible. When he first answered my distress call and they offered to break the servant bond, I doubted him.” Myra looked down at the ground sadly. “I misjudged him badly.”
“Lucie had complete faith in him. I didn’t even fully trust him like she did. He really did deserve our trust. His life willbe remembered. He protected Lucie, and for that, he will be honored.” Derrick looked up at Jasper and Justice. “How did the fighting go?”
“The werewolves came to our aid and Justice had to fight a dark unicorn. It was intense, but we all managed to …” Jasper was about to say they’d all managed to survive. But given what happened to Abe, it didn’t feel right to talk about.
Lucie gazed at the empty ground. There was nothing to show of his existence, only the memories she had.
“We will keep him alive through our memories, Lucie. And we’ll make sure our child knows about the man who gave his life to protect them and their mother. They haven’t even been born yet, and they were still someone he was willing to give his life for.” Derrick frowned. Abe died because he wasn’t sure how the potion would affect the unborn baby. Perhaps it wouldn’t have hurt the baby at all. There was just no way of knowing. But the fact that Abe wouldn’t take that chance, knowing the potion would kill him … he unselfishly threw his life away in order to protect Derrick’s two loves.
He kissed Lucie on the forehead and nuzzled his nose into her hair. He could feel her pain and wished he could comfort her.
“Baby, let’s go home. My parents are anxiously waiting for us.” Derrick stood up, bringing Lucie up with him.
“Is everyone okay here?” Jester’s voice rang out. Irene was by his side, and three other men followed behind them. Lucie recognized one of the men immediately.
“Lucie? Are you alright?” Kyle asked, taking a couple of steps closer.
“I’m …” Lucie frowned. She couldn’t fake being okay right now.
“A dear friend died protecting her. She’s shaken up over everything,” Derrick said quietly while keeping his arms around her.
Kyle nodded his head. “I’m so sorry.”
“What are you doing here?” Justice asked, bringing Kyle’s attention to him.
“I was here for a party. This wasn’t my pack, but I had to join in anyway, especially knowing our princess was out here somewhere.” Kyle turned back to look at Lucie. “I’m sorry for … the things I said. I’m sure my words against vampires were offensive. Especially now. I just didn’t think you could ever be happy among them, but I can see I was wrong.” He met Lucie’s gaze and smiled.
Lucie gave him a faint smile and nodded her head. She wasn’t in the mood for small talk and the normalization that was coming. It wasn’t normal. Normal would be having Abe there, and that couldn’t happen anymore. Her chest ached and her eyes burned with fresh tears. She couldn’t help but feel like this was all her fault.
“Lucie.” Derrick rubbed her shoulders. He looked up at Kyle. “Thank you. She does appreciate your apology. I just need to get her home so she can rest.”
“Take good care of her. She will always be our princess, too.” Kyle turned, and the three werewolves walked away together.
“Alright, let’s go home.” Derrick held her close as they walked back toward the castle.
It had beena couple of weeks since the fight. Since they lost a dear friend. The vampires were in shock over Count Basil and what he had done. Most of the vampires were not spreading rumors maliciously but in sympathy toward their prince and princess. It was one of those situations where they were talkingabout something that wasn’t any of their business. The king came down on all of them and warned them that in the future, any rumor should immediately be brought to their attention, no matter who they hear it from.
The elite soldiers were now back. They had all taken their rightful place as elite palace soldiers. Ryan had wasted no time making a move on Sabrina, who was only too eager to accept. The two of them had been casually hooking up. It wasn’t anything serious, but they became someone to pass the time with while they waited for their fated mates.
Kyle had stopped by to check on Lucie. After seeing her in the state she was in, he was worried about her. Instead of just finding Lucie, Kyle found his mate. A vampire. It was ironic, considering his original feelings for vampires. His mate just so happened to be Stella. The two were still working out the details in terms of where they would live, but they had accepted each other and seemed to be very happy.
With Derrick’s help, Lucie was healing, though she was still sad. Not a day went by that she didn’t think about Abe. She was still really heartbroken. But today wasn’t a sad day. Today, Lucie and Derrick were going to pick out a guardian for their baby.
Lucie grabbed her black pearl piece and walked over to Justice, Jasper, and Derrick. The four of them were heading to Elysia today. Her grandmother had been pestering her to come, finally sending a messenger fairy to tell Lucie that if she didn’t come today, she was going to come and pick her up in person.
