“You found them?” Quell...Isabella...whispered.
“They were what led me to Kas.” Gem rubbed at a tear as it rolled past her chin. “Without them, I would never have found Fables.”
“And you found Kas still there, right?” Quell dipped her head. “Jareth told me that Kas had found someone. That if he...” She threw me a shy look. “If he managed to move on that he would probably marry you.”
Gem gave her a wobbly smile, lifting up her hand and showing off her new ring. “He did. Only an hour or so ago. I’m so sorry you missed it. We did send an invite—”
“That’s my fault,” Tony interrupted. “I only gave it to her this morning. I didn’t know how she’d take it...and I wasn’t prepared to undo all the great healing she’s undergone the past few months. But then I felt guilty for not trusting her health, so I gave her the choice.” His eyes linked with mine. “You’re family, Kas, after all. What sort of man would I be if I kept your sister from your wedding day?”
My chest hurt as I accepted what he said. It wasn’t just the words he’d used but the passion behind them. He accepted that a small part of Quell would always belong to me—just like a small part of me would always belong to her. I might have been the boy who’d accepted so much pain on behalf of his daughter, but I was also the man who constantly reminded him of what his little girl had endured.
That shit wasn’t easy.
For anyone.
Standing slowly, I patted Fang on his head as the poor dog continued to whine. Grabbing Gem’s hand in my left and Quell’s in my right, I pulled both women to their feet.
I waited for Quell to flinch away from my touch—to have issues with a man being so close regardless that we knew things about each other that no one else would understand, but either she’d healed faster than I had or our bond was still intact, because she squeezed me back. That sibling connection we’d all accepted and cultivated while huddled in our dorm, gravitating to one another and loving each other because that’s all we had, was just as strong now as it was back then.
We stood awkwardly, silence cloaking us.
I couldn’t take my eyes off my wife and my sister.
My heart fisted all over again at the thought of the others. Where were Sarez, Elise, and Nyx? Had Jareth found them yet? Would they all have happy endings like me and Quell or had some of them died? By their own hands to escape or by those who played with their lives for sick pleasure?
I removed my grip from Quell and Gem, raking my fingers through my hair. I was shaking and wrung out. I couldn’t stop the avalanche of history and hurt even though I still burned with joy from marrying my soul mate.
My past had revisited me on the best day of my life, and I didn’t know how to feel when that panic faded beneath the past years worth of healing. The therapy sessions, the many walks with Fang, and the occasional pill when the nightmares grew too bad.
Thanks to Gem and our steady, safe life, I had improved.
I just hadn’t understood how much until I could stand here, staring at my lost sister, and not drown beneath absolute bloodlust. Not to go running off with the need to slaughter every man who’d touched her, every woman who’d used her, and do my best to be that hero she’d carved into her arm.
“Kas...” Quell—Isabella, you idiot—murmured.
My attention snapped to her. “Yeah?”
She shifted on the spot, glancing at Gem and then her dad. “I, eh...I came today because I didn’t want to miss you anymore. I want...I want to be close again. I’m ready to be close again. I know it will be hard...for both of us. But I think I’m healed enough that our relationship can be a good thing instead of bad. I...I’ve missed you, Kas. Every day. I’ve missed my big brother—”
I snatched her into my arms, noticing the slimness of her compared to the power and strength of Gem. My arms lashed out again, grabbing my wife, pulling her into the hug too.
Common sense told me I shouldn’t grab Quell as fast as I did. I shouldn’t force her to be so close to Gem after everything she’d endured.
I did to her what Tony had done to me at the gala.
But I couldn’t help myself.
I was fucking overwhelmed.
Drowning on emotion and gratefulness.
Fang barked and danced around our legs, his body heat pressing close.
“It’s okay, boy.” And I meant it. I actually fucking meant it and that allowed me to breathe heavily and accept everything. To accept what happened to Quell when I wasn’t there to save her. To accept that our lives had forked but had finally reunited.