House of Ravens (33 page)

“
Thank you,” I whisper,
looking into his eyes. “It’s a story I’ve wondered about for
twenty-three years now. It’s nice knowing that you did care for
her, as simple as it was.”

“
Your mother was a
wonderful person, and I wish things could have been different,” my
father says quietly.

“
But I don’t want there to
be regrets,” I say, even though there are so many things I wish
could be different. “Because in the end, everything brought me
here. And I’m so happy. So grateful for the paths that have led to
this moment.”

I see the pain on my father’s face, knowing
he, too, wishes for things to be different than they are. But also
the pride and joy he feels.

“
I love you, Dad,” I say,
hugging myself into him.

“
I love you, too, Alivia.”
And the way he squeezes me to him, I know he speaks the
truth.

The song comes to an end and someone taps me
on the shoulder.

“
Can I steal my bride
back?”

I turn to see Ian, smiling with eyes only
for me. Without words, Henry lets me go, backing away with a tiny
bow.

Ian takes my hand in his and wraps his arm
around my waist. He smiles down at me as if I am the sun, moon, and
stars.

“
It feels like it took a
damn long time, and we took the absolute hardest, rockiest road,”
Ian says as he holds me close, that mischievous smile on his lips.
“But we got here, Liv. We did it.”

“
I love you,” I say, not
holding anything back. My joy is complete. My soul,
happy.

“
I love you, too,” he says
as he pulls me all the closer.

AN HOUR LATER, I’M
CHANGED
into regular clothes and a packed
bag waits by the front door. The House is quiet for just a few
moments, everyone well worn after the all-day party. They’re
changing, refueling.

“
I need just a few minutes
to speak to Rath,” I tell Ian before we leave.

He doesn’t ask why, and I wonder if maybe he
knows what I need to speak to him about. But he lets go of my hand
and lets me walk into the ballroom where the man, who I looked up
to like a father, stands.

“
Can we talk outside for a
few minutes?” I say as I come up behind him. He turns to look at
me, and it’s difficult to read his expression. For some time, I’ve
been afraid of alone time with Rath. Because I still don’t think
I’ve earned his forgiveness.

He nods, and the two of us walk out the back
doors. Out across the grass, to the edge of where the river drops
down. I need distance, enough of it to not be overheard.

“
I understand why now you
were so angry with me when I did what I did to Danielle,” I say,
feeling my stomach turn. The poor girl I killed when Cyrus made me
play one of his games, the girl I turned to a Bitten by accident.
“I don’t blame you for being disappointed in me.”

The look in Rath’s eyes as he looks back at
me hides nothing. He was—is disappointed in me.

“
I’m trying really hard to
be a different person. A better one.” My throat feels thick. I so
desperately want to get back to what he and I had before everything
got so twisted and deadly. “And I’m going to spend the rest of my
life earning your forgiveness, if that’s what it takes.” I squeeze
my eyes closed for just a moment, because it’s painful. I hate that
he and I are in this place. “But I have this feeling that you still
need some time and distance from me.”

I open my eyes once more, and nothing has
changed in the way Rath looks at me. There’s still anger there.
Distrust. Disappointment.

“
And I need to let you have
that,” I say quietly, hoping he can see the desperation in my eyes.
“But I have the Royal blood and audacity to ask you to do something
for me. Something important. Something that goes beyond me and
affects the Conrath name.”

Rath’s brows furrow. His body tenses. “And
what is that?”

I twist the hem of my shirt, turning my
knuckles white. A lump forms in my throat. This is a secret I’ve
protected for so long. One only my husband and my father know. But
I have to make sacrifices for it.

For her.

“
I have a daughter, Rath,”
I say quietly. I study his face as I speak, watching as all the
worry lines in his face relax, surprise taking over. “She’s a Royal
Born. I saw her father in
Roter
Himmel
, there’s no question about
it.”

Emotion stings the back of my eyes and tears
well there. I swallow hard. “She’s only four, but something in my
gut tells me…” I falter, unable to get my tongue to form the words.
“It tells me that she’s-”

“
Don’t say it,” Rath cuts
me off, raising a hand and placing two fingers against my lips,
sealing in the deadly truth that will change so much. He shakes his
head, his eyes fierce.

I swear there’s a tiny hint of yellow that
ignites in his eyes.

I shake my head in agreement, grateful that
he understands, and doesn’t make me confess my greatest fear. He
lowers his hand, staring at me with something new in his eyes.

“
This is the name of the
agency who helped me place her with a family,” I say, reaching into
my pocket and withdrawing a small piece of paper with a name and a
phone number. I hand it to Rath. He studies it closely. “You guided
and protected me when I needed you most. And I have the Royal blood
and audacity to ask you to do the same thing for her,” I repeat my
earlier words.

He looks up at me, a million things running
through his expression. Awe. Shock. Disbelief.

But no anger. No frustration. No
offense.

He looks back down at the piece of
paper.

“
I don’t even know what
they named her,” I say around the boulder in my throat. “I asked
for a closed adoption. I just know that her family lived somewhere
in Colorado, and her birthday is June second. I hope it will be
enough information for you to be able to find her.”

Rath looks back up at me, and I see
something settle into his eyes.

“
I know Henry wants to get
to know me, and that we still need a lot of time together,” I
continue. “But he removed himself from the House system long ago.
That hasn’t changed. When the time is right, I do believe he will
join you. But I need someone
now
. I need
you,
Rath, to watch over my
daughter.”

He continues staring at me for a moment,
searching over this woman he has such mixed feelings about. But
finally, he nods. “I will protect your daughter. I will guide her
when the time is right.”

I bite my lower lip, attempting to contain
all of my emotions. I take a step forward, placing my hand on his
dark cheek. “You’ve been essential to the Conrath family for a long
time. I hope you know how much I value and appreciate you. I hope
you know that I love you.”

Rath’s hand rises to cover mine, holding my
hand against his face. He stares into my eyes. He doesn’t say
anything. He’s not ready for the words yet. And that’s okay. But he
nods once, a curt, thin-lipped thing.

“
It’s time to go, Alivia,”
Ian calls from the veranda behind me.

I look back to Rath, offering him an
appreciative smile and a squeeze of the hand, before I walk back
toward the house.

I take Ian’s hand and we walk back through
the ballroom. Waiting for us in the foyer is every member of the
House. Every member of my family.

I give each and every one of them a hug.
Squeezing tight, words of love and appreciation. And I know without
a doubt, they feel the same.

Surely, no other House has become such a
tight-knit unit. Surely, no others have become such a bonded
family, made up of random, thrown together strangers.

“
Have fun,” Cameron winks
dramatically at me when he opens the front door for Ian and I. I
swing a playful punch at his arm as we walk out.

Waiting in the middle of the drive, sits the
Porsche with Henry standing just off to the side. He opens the
passenger door for me, but pulls me into his arms for one last
hug.

“
I’m so glad you were here
for this,” I say quietly.

“
I wouldn’t have missed it
for anything,” my father says before letting me go. I slide into
the passenger seat, watching as Henry hugs Ian once he’s done
putting our bags in the back.

I glance back at the house, watching as
everyone files out to watch us leave for our honeymoon. They smile
and wave, blowing kisses.

Things are never going to be smooth in our
world. Everything is at peace for right now, but there will always
be problems that will arise. We can’t expect things to be smooth
sailing from here on out. The House system is in place for a
reason. I am charged with governing our area, with taking care of
problems and keeping the vampire society a secret.

But for right now, we’ve earned our moment
of quiet and peace. I’ve earned the right to wear this smile, to
blow happy kisses back to my family.

To go on a honeymoon with my brand new
husband.

To be happy.

“
Are you ready?” Ian asks
once more as he slips into the driver’s seat, leaning across the
console for a kiss.

“
I’m ready for anything,” I
tell him, just before pressing my lips to his.

“
THAT WAS THE LAST OF the
houses,” May says as she walks back from the front door. “Nice
little family with two young kids.”

“
That’s great,” I say as I
look up from where I’m going over the budget with Libby, the woman
Rath hired to replace him as the manager of the Estate. I’m way
more involved in the details than I ever was when Rath was in
charge, and I think it’s good I learn it all.

With Lillian gone, May has taken over with
the PR of Silent Bend and the applications for the Conrath
low-income housing development. We’ve just rented out the last of
the units.

Things have normalized in the months since
Ian and I returned from our honeymoon. Silent Bend is just a sleepy
little town. The House of Conrath members are respectable citizens.
I lead with Ian at my side, and everyone else carries on as
normal.

The only thing that’s different is the
absence of Lula, who passed away just two days after we came home
from our honeymoon. With her gone, Elle is Ian’s charge and
permanently lives with us.

May walks into the library and sets a stack
of mail on the desk. I glance over at it as she walks away.

An off-white envelope with a red, wax seal
catches my attention from the top of the stack. I grab it, turning
it over. My name is written in elegant script on the front, and
there’s a subtle smell to it that makes my blood still.

Time and pine trees.

I slip my finger under the seal, breaking it
open. Quickly, my eyes scan it, and dread and ice fill my
stomach.

The phone in the foyer rings.

I hate it when that phone rings.

It’s never someone I want to talk to.

It’s never good.

I walk to the table it rests on and pick it
up.

“
Hello?”

“
Alivia, it’s good to hear
your voice. It means you’re alive and well.”

A butter smooth voice comes through on the
other end, bringing an overwhelming sense of dread and fear into my
stomach. “Cyrus,” I breathe.

I can almost feel him smile from across the
world, knowing exactly the effect he’s having on me with just a few
words.

“
I just wanted to
congratulate you on your success in taking care of that pesky
Bitten problem,” he continues. “Quite an uprising. Noriko told me
there were 582 bodies in the end on that battlefield. And thank you
for bringing to light how very much I’ve truly been letting the
situation carry on for too long. Did you receive my
letter?”

“
Just now,” I say, looking
down at it in my hand.

It will change things.

It is a declaration that from here on out,
the creation of any Bitten is punishable by death. It also alludes
that the hunting down and extermination of any existing Bitten
wouldn’t be frowned upon.

This is a genocide order.

“
Thank you for helping us
get here,” Cyrus says from the other line. “I do believe our secret
will be far safer without their wild kind running about, mucking
things up. Don’t you agree?”

I shake my head, my stomach tightening.
“Most of them are just innocent people, Cyrus. Most of them had no
choice in the matter. It’s our fault, usually, when they’re
created.”