Tara took the children home. Doran, Faris, and Berget left, and just me, Pamela, Milly, and Alex remained.

And a hell of a long walk home.

You didn’t think I’d forget you, did you?

My knees sagged with relief. Even with the burst of energy from Doran, I was done. “You took long enough, what’d you do, tuck yo>

The dragon roared with laughter.

No, but perhaps next time I will do just that.

Blaz dropped out of the sky in front of us, his claws digging into the earth for balance. The four of us climbed onto his back and he took off. Finally, finally we were done.

About fucking time.

Chapter 22

“What are you going to wish for?” I poked at Pamela who stared into the candles like she’d never seen them before.

“I don’t know,” she said softly, her eyes round with childlike wonder that surprised me. Though she could be a truly tough little witch, it was easy to forget her early life was far from kind. Simple things like a birthday party with friends, presents, and a cake meant a great deal to her.

I glanced at the clock above the stove. “Almost midnight, you’d better decide and then blow them out or it’s not your birthday anymore.”

We’d held the party late so Doran and Berget were able to attend. Faris decided not to come, which was just as well. I might have accepted what he’d done and how he’d got my oaths, but I was pretty damn sure Liam hadn’t.

When everything had been said and done with Ingers and the weapons, Liam showed me the two files he’d pulled from Ingers’s office. In them were details that made me shudder, and we burned them.

Ingers had been tracing the movements of several supernaturals, Faris included. Her goal had been to set up the supernaturals not only to kill one another, but come “out” of the closet.

She’d even been working with Denning—Will’s boss and head honcho at SOCA in London.

The weapons they’d been making were the first step in starting the “cull,” as they’d tagged it. But now with Ingers and her Army contact dead, that left only Denning to carry on.

And I would deal with him soon enough. For now, Will watched him, and kept tabs on everything the piece of shit did.

It would have to be enough; I needed a fucking break.

The birthday party was in full swing when Doran pulled me into the kitchen. “You said you have a young necromancer in your pack now. Be careful, Rylee. Necromancers innately hate vampires and it goes both ways. If Faris had come, and your Frank had been here, there would have been bloodshed. I have the control to hold back, and amazingly so does Berget. But not Faris. He has always hated necromancers.”

“Are you shitting me?” I whispered.

Doran shook his head. “Just be wary. The hatred goes both ways—Frank would take a shot at us too, even if he didn’t understand why.”

And of course, the whole pulling me into the kitchen to “chat” had Liam’s feathers ruffled. Despite the fact he knew Doran didn’t have a chance with me, Liam couldn’t relax around him.

Speaking of … Liam curled his arm around my waist and tightened his grip on me. Since I’d been back, he’d been particularly possessive. I couldn’t blame him; it would not have been easy on his wolf to let me wander off on my own.

< yo>< grip on p width="18" align="justify">“Ease up,” I grunted, pushing at his arm. “I need to breathe.”
He relaxed, but then Doran grinned and gave him a wink from across the room. I shook my head. They would work it out. More so than ever, this was a game to the Daywalker. No, vampire. That would take some getting used to.

Pamela finally leaned forward and blew out the candles. “Do I tell you what I wished for?”

We all shouted no at the same time, Berget included. Even Milly.

Pamela smiled and sliced into the cake, handing out pieces. Of course, Alex was first, his drool making a shallow lake on the warped floor. We were still at Giselle’s, but only for twenty four hours. Eve was on her way back with Frank, and I felt her anxiety at hurrying home. Not too long at all and she’d be at the farm.

A day off seemed like a luxury at that point. And I would take it.

Everyone brought gifts for Pamela and I eased myself back, watching the pure delight on her face as she carefully opened each gift. A book of spells from Milly, a mortar and pestle made of clear quartz from Doran, a pair of diamond earrings from Berget.

“I can’t, these are too much.” Pamela looked more than a little horrified at the fine gift. Berget stepped close and put her hand over Pamela’s.

“You took care of Rylee when I couldn’t. That is worth all the diamonds in the world, Pamela.”

Pamela, being who she was, was not tentative in the least. She wrapped her arms around Berget, hugging her tight.

The party went on for a few hours, and Pamela didn’t mention that neither Liam nor I had given her anything. Doran and Berget slipped into the basement when the sun began to crawl through the sky, and Alex and Milly had gone to their separate beds.

Liam was sprawled on the couch. “Think we should give her the present now?”

Pamela’s eyes widened. “I don’t expect anything from you, I truly don’t.”

I gave her a wink. “Well, too bad, you’re getting something anyway, kid.” I held out a long, narrow package. By the look in her eye, she knew what it held.

There was no care in her as she ripped the paper off and opened the box. A sword lay in the bottom, already edged in silver, spelled by Milly to cut deep.

“You can’t always protect yourself with magic, you’ve seen what happened to Milly,” I said, lifting the sword out. “This was Giselle’s sword, and the one I learned with before I graduated to the two I have now.”

I held it out to her and she took the handle carefully. “Thank you, this is all too much.” Her eyes filled with tears and I gave her a hug.

“Never. It will never be enough if it keeps you safe.”

Liam cleared his throat. “On that note, I have something for you too.”

From his pocket, he pulled a small black bundle that fit in the palm of his hand. I frowned; I had no idea what it was.

He unfolded it and put it on her wrist. “It’s made from my and Alex’s fur, woven using a spell Milly knew to keep it strong. It will make other wolves fear you, even if they don’t know why. They will avoid you at all costs.”