A Shade of Vampire 77 A Fate of Time - Bella Forrest Page 0,97

to approach or to talk to. Death creeps the hell out of me, to be honest. The Reapers, too. I know we had them as allies, but remember what the Soul Crusher said. They’re not our friends. So, bottom line is—”

“You’re just glad it’s over, and we don’t have to see them again.” Raphael chuckled. “I’m with you there, sister. All the way.”

We linked hands. It was Riza’s turn to teleport us straight back to The Shade. I braced myself for the flurry of emotions I knew I’d deal with—after all, my father had been resurrected, and my mother was dying to see me back. The whole GASP federation was ecstatic and eager to get back to work, to fix the damage that the Hermessi had done. Everyone was ready to return to living, tired of just struggling to survive against entities we’d had no control over.

“Prepare for the weepy part,” Varga warned us. “We’re about to see all the people we thought we’d never see again.”

“Oh, yeah, your grandma’s going to freak out.” Riza giggled. “You were always the apple of Claudia’s eye.”

“And I know Lenny will be happy to see me. I’m just worried Nevis will want to hug me. He might be as cold as ice—literally speaking—but I’m pretty sure he likes me more than he lets on,” Varga replied.

Herakles shot him a grin. “Or you’re just hoping he’ll hug you, because deep down you’re fond of him and you thought you’d never see him again.”

Varga thought about it for a moment and lowered his gaze. “I’ve always wanted a brother,” he admitted, prompting all of us to laugh.

What a sound this was! Pure laughter, unbroken by grief or sorrow. I’d missed it. I’d missed the nonchalance of an existence without fear. Riza zapped us out of the Amazon and straight into The Shade’s beach extension.

I felt my boots sinking slowly into the golden sand, the salty air brushing against my skin. I breathed it all in, thrilled to feel it all like this. Glancing around, the darkness of a Shadian midnight soothed my aching, tired soul. The ocean lapped at the smooth shore, its sound music to my ears.

Raphael patted me on the shoulder. “Listen, I’ll take the crew back to the grand hall. I bet the whole of GASP will go back there soon.”

“Yeah, Derek and Sofia are probably on Calliope now, welcoming back half of their family from the dead,” I said. “But they’ll definitely want to go home soon. I’ll see you all there in a bit.”

“Your mother and father are waiting,” Lumi said, smiling as she gazed at the first extension glass house. Two figures were outside, partially darkened by the night. I knew I was looking at my parents, and they were both waiting for me.

“We’ll catch up later,” I replied, giving my friends a warm smile.

Eira moved to go with them, but I caught her wrist. “You should stick around,” I said slowly. “My dad would probably love to hug you.”

Her cheeks turned rosy, a reaction I was hoping to elicit many times more in the future. She looked so beautiful when her shyness took over. What a gorgeous contradiction Eira was—a fighter, a military figure, a warrior by all accounts, yet so delicate and soft on the inside, her heart too big for this world or any other. No wonder I’d fallen in love with her.

Maybe it was too soon for an official “meet the parents” moment, even though she’d already been acquainted with my mother, and my father’s spirit, shortly before our departure to get Zetos, but after everything we’d survived, this felt like a most fitting conclusion to our adventure.

Eira gave me a faint smile, and we walked toward the glass house together. Behind us, Raphael and the others disappeared into the redwood forest. I would’ve expected them to teleport straight into the grand hall, but walking made sense, too. They wanted to take their time, to absorb every sensation around them. They certainly deserved every bit of enjoyment they could get, from wherever they could get it.

My father was the first to come down the extension’s steel steps, beaming as he caught me in a tight bear hug, breathing deeply as he held me close. I hugged him, my heart close to bursting open like a water balloon, filled with nothing but love and relief as I felt my father in my arms again. I could only imagine the joy and relief that my mother had