Souljacker (32 page)

I blaze the familiar way to the Rockwell’s
place and as we stand on the doorstep, I look at Aely. She’s
shifting from foot to foot, swaying in place, her excitement
tangible. One of her hands is clamped in MaXXX’s and the poor guy
looks terrified, as if he’s afraid Aely’s parents are going to rip
his head off and eat him for dinner.

It feels weird to ring the bell after living
here, once upon a time. I hear muffled steps behind the oak door.
It swings open and a grumpy, rumpled Mr. Rockwell steps out of the
doorway, looking at us. Then the coffee mug in his hand drops to
the cement porch and shatters, liquid splattering everywhere, and
he has eyes only for Aely. She’s holding her breath, holding on to
MaXXX so tightly that her knuckles are white.

Then Mr. Rockwell’s breath catches. “Aely…
This— Is this real? I thought…” He stops trying to form the
words—he just wraps his big arms around her. She reaches up and
rubs his back, reassuring him that she’s fine. She says she’s
missed him. She barely squeaks out the last part: “Please don’t be
mad at me. I’m sorry!”

He has tears in his eyes when he pulls away,
but they’re happy tears. “I could never be mad at you, baby. I love
you and I’ve missed you. Your mother will want to see you! Come
in!”

He glances around at our group, his gaze
landing on me. His usually hard eyes are soft for once. “All of
you, come in.”

He leads us up the stairs. Aely bounds ahead
with the grace of a child, MaXXX trailing behind her, his lower lip
drawn in between his teeth. Iofiel and I climb up after them and
Mr. Rockwell knocks on his wife’s door. It swings open and I hear
an overjoyed voice cry, “Aely!”

Mrs. Rockwell’s dressed up in a white
sundress and a flowery hair pin. She smiles broadly at her
daughter, holding her out at arm’s length. “You’ve grown up so
much, my beautiful girl. God, I’ve missed you. I’ve worried myself
sick!”

“I’m okay, Momma,” Aely says, turning to
point at me. “Lucy brought me here.”

But Mrs. Rockwell’s already staring at me, a
proud and motherly look on her face. She reaches out to me and my
heart thumps a double beat. Aely nods, encouraging, and I walk into
her arms and let her encompass me in a warm hug.

“Thank you, Lucy, for bringing her home to
me. Your mother would be so proud.” At those last words, tears burn
and slide free, hot streaks down both cheeks. Mrs. Rockwell kisses
my forehead the way Mom used to when I was a little kid and it sets
me free.

I find Iofiel. He’s my rock and I lean back
against him as Aely begins to chatter a mile a minute, reminding me
so much of Caddie that it’s insane. Then she parades across the
room to MaXXX, who’s frozen in the doorway, and drags him over to
her mom. “This is MaXXX! He’s my best friend, Momma. He’s kind of
shy, but that’s okay. Deep down, he’s a good guy.”

Aely looks straight at me and winks. “He just
doesn’t know it yet.”

I touch MaXXX’s shoulder and our gazes lock.
I have the feeling that we’ll see each other again. Until then, I
think things will be just fine. It’ll be good for him to have a
family of sorts; besides, Aely will always be with him.

“Thanks, MaXXX.” My voice is soft and MaXXX
nods slowly. I take a step back and reach for Iofiel’s hand. We
slip out unnoticed while Aely begins to tell her parents everything
that’s happened, truth be damned.

Sync sits on the porch steps, her elbows on
her knees, chin in her hands. Her head pops up when we come through
the door and she stands and gives me a quick hug. “Everything go
alright? Mr. Rockwell give you crap like always?”

“Nope. They’re just happy to have their real
daughter back,” I say, feeling proud of myself for reuniting them.
They deserved to be happy, even if Mr. Rockwell did kind of make my
life there a living hell. So everyone’s gotten their happy ending.
Well, almost everyone. “Let’s go.”

“Where to?”

“Just around. Let’s visit all the places we
used to hang out. Like good old times?”

I reach for Sync’s hand, but she shakes her
head. A knowing smile creeps onto her lips like a sun rise.
“Actually, I think I’m gonna go back to Caddie’s for awhile.” The
not-so-subtle hint:
Spend some time with your boyfriend. You
deserve it, Luce.

Then it’s just me and Iofiel. I twine my
fingers through his and we just walk. We lapse into conversation
that makes no sense, but it doesn’t have to. He ducks behind a row
of houses, coming back out with a beautiful red rose, thorns and
all. He presents it with a flourish. I bring it to my nose and
breathe in the smell. “Aw, how cute.”

“Come with me, love,” he says, tugging on my
hand, and I’m happy to bound along after him like a love-sick
puppy. I never thought I could love anyone as much as I love him. I
couldn’t have done any of this without him. I wouldn’t have been
strong enough.

I feel my heart skip a beat as he leads me
through the wrought-iron gates of the Hoarfrost Cemetery, the very
place where my mother is buried. I pinch the rose tightly between
my fingers as we weave through rows of headstones, finally stopping
in front of the only one that matters.

Mom.

I look at him, bewildered. “How did you
know?”

“I told you before: I’m your personal
stalker.” He winks.

For a couple minutes, I just stand in front
of the grave, tracing the letters on the headstone with my eyes
over and over again. I touch the marble slab, warm from the
sunlight, trying to remember her face, trying to remember
everything I used to try to forget. I can almost see her, but my
memory’s hazy. But it doesn’t matter; I know she’s proud of me.

I twirl the rose between my fingers for a few
minutes, then place it gently on the grassy grave. “I love you,
Mom,” I say around the emotion in my throat that makes my voice
thick. “For making me who I am.”

Iofiel places his hand gently on my shoulder
and I reach up and touch it, holding him there against me. I turn
to him and our eyes meet and it’s like the first time we met, all
over again. Except this time, his smile is filled with so much
warmth, so much love. I take his hand in both of mine and kiss his
palm. “Thanks.”

“No prob.” He waggles his eyebrows and I
smack him gently. He pretends it hurts by wincing and I roll my
eyes.

“Let me finish.” I take a deep breath. “I
wouldn’t have made it this far without you. And I want to thank you
for sticking by my side. Even though it got rough—really rough.
Even though Lylan tried to kill you because of me.”

“Lylan was a dick. Once a dick, always a
dick. End of story.”

“But you didn’t have to stay with me. I
would’ve understood if you’d forgotten about me, especially after
he banned you from seeing me. Especially after he pretty much
electrocuted you.”

His smile is so sweet. “How could I ever
forget about you, Lucifer Swift?”

My heart swells and I realize something.

I’m no longer a monster. I just helped save
the freaking world. If anything, I should be given a halo and a
pair of wings. Though perhaps a devil’s tail
does
suit me
better…

“It’s Lucy,” I tell him around a smile. “Just
Lucy.”

Then I grab his shirt and drag him in for a
kiss.

And it’s the best damn kiss of my life.

The End

###

About The Author

Kodilynn Calhoun is a 23-year-old gal from
Indiana. She’s been writing seriously for over 10 years; her first
real novel was a 300 page fantasy-monster with little plot and
plenty of randomosity. Today, she’s mostly a writer of YA
paranormals and is a sucker for a good love story and the
fantastic: werewolves, shifters, incubi, and gargoyles? You name
it, she probably writes it (and hopes you like it)! You can follow
her on Twitter (@kodilynncalhoun),
Facebook
, or
find her online at
http://kodilynncalhoun.com

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