Page 50 of Crown of Ash

Trip cleared his throat, drawing everyone's attention. Beside him, Ghost held up his left hand without any particular ceremony, a plain band set with baguette diamonds, waiting for the matching wedding band catching the last of the afternoon light. "We did this in Frbruary," Ghost said, his voice matter-of-fact. "I assumed everyone knew."

"You never told anyone," Jack called from the grill, his tone teasing.

"I told Trip. Trip's the one I was asking." Ghost turned his hand over, then compared his to the matching one for Trip, examining the ring as if it were a fascinating artifact rather than a symbol of commitment. "I didn't realize it needed a press release."

Trip, laughing, pulled him in by the back of the neck and kissed his temple. Ghost let him, unbothered, already looking back at his ring as if the kiss was a minor interruption to a more interesting observation.

"Dude." Seth was staring at the ring, at Nate still kneeling, at the general chaos of the yard. He looked like a man who hadn't expected to need to do any math today. "Zain and I went to the courthouse like Four months ago."

The yard went quiet again, but this time it was a different kind of silence - one filled with surprise and anticipation.

"You what?" Nate's voice echoed in the sudden silence, a note of disbelief threading through his words.

"Went to the courthouse. Got hitched." Seth's response was nonchalant, as if he were merely commenting on the weather. "Weddings are a load of bullshit, but hey, you do you."

"You've been married for four months and said nothing?" Nate's voice rose in incredulity, his eyes wide as he stared at Seth.

"Didn't come up." Seth shrugged, his casual demeanor in stark contrast to the shock rippling through the crowd.

Nate turned his gaze to Zain, who was calmly sipping his beer, seemingly oblivious to the uproar his revelation had caused. "Who was your witness?" Nate asked, clinging to the question like a lifeline in a sea of confusion.

Zain shrugged nonchalantly. "Who knows? Some clerk. Guy signed his name, we left."

"You don't know who witnessed your own wedding?" Nate's voice was filled with disbelief.

"It's a courthouse, Nate, not a cathedral." Zain finished his beer with a final swig. "Paperwork's paperwork."

From his lawn chair, Elijah burst into laughter so hearty he had to clutch his ribs. "That's so you," he managed between gasps for breath, "that it's honestly kind of beautiful."

"Thank you," Zain responded with a nod, and Seth mirrored the gesture as if that settled the matter once and for all.

The gate buzzer interrupted the stunned silence that had fallen over the yard. Ghost, still engrossed in examining his own ring, ambled over without being asked. He returned a minute later with an absurdly large arrangement of white flowers and a keg balanced on a hand truck behind him.

"Flowers are from Bell," Ghost announced, reading the card attached to the bouquet. "No note, just his name, like we wouldn't know who sent a floral arrangement the size of a Buick."

"And the keg?" Nate asked, his voice still tinged with shock.

Ghost pulled a card off the keg, read it, and let out a sound that was almost a laugh. "'Bell is a busybody,'" he read aloud. "'Congrats to... whomever. S.'"

"He doesn't even know what he's congratulating," Andre pointed out.

"Doesn't matter." Marcus was smiling, the kind of easy, unguarded smile that Andre hadn't seen since before Drakov. "Man sent a keg on a hunch. That's basically a love letter, coming from Sovereign."

Jude, still teary-eyed and clutching Nate's hands, surveyed the chaotic scene: the towering flowers, the unexpected keg, Zain's nonchalant shrug still hanging in the air like its own strange vow. He laughed until he had to sit down.

"I don't think any of us are ever getting a normal wedding," he said, his voice filled with mirth.

"Speak for yourself," Seth retorted. "Mine was extremely normal. Fifteen minutes, forty bucks, and I was back by lunch."

The yard fell silent once more, but this time it was filled with a sense of shared amusement rather than shock. No one had a response to Seth's comment. No one really needed one.

Epilogue

The ocean, vast and indifferent, paid no heed to Drakov, or Okafor, or the six tumultuous years Andre had dedicated to maintaining the integrity of a city that seemed hell-bent on losing it. It simply continued its ceaseless dance with the shore, its rhythmic waves a soothing lullaby against the chaos of his past. Andre found himself drawn to its apathy, its sheer enormity a comforting reminder of his own insignificance. For the first time in years, he was grateful for something's complete lack of interest in him.

Marcus was sprawled in the hammock, one arm flung carelessly over his eyes as a shield against the dappled afternoon sunlight filtering through the palm fronds. His chest rose and fell in a steady rhythm, the soft snores a testament to his peaceful slumber. Andre had been observing him for the better part of an hour, watching him do absolutely nothing. It was a sight he found surprisingly satisfying, a stark contrast to their previous life of constant vigilance.

It had taken them a month to reach this haven, a month filled with necessary tasks and transitions. Lakefront's metamorphosis into an entity that could survive without Marcus's constant supervision, tying off the last lingering threads from their past in Flint, ensuring Elijah was fit for full duty and dealing with his insufferable gloating about it. But they'd made it. They'd found sanctuary in a rented house where sand stubbornly clung to every doorway and the view offered nothing but the serene expanse of the ocean, devoid of any concerns.