Page 114 of Honey Bee Hearts

In front of me, the Green River Basin stretches, perfect, safe. This place has become my home, and I never expected that. I was never supposed to be out here, never supposed to find another family, but Jinx brought me here. She’s the reason I found them, the reason I can stand here feeling more whole than I’ve felt in a long time. I wish she were here, but she can’t be.

“I’ll always be with you, Everhart,” her voice whispers in my mind.

I glance up, the image of her standing in front of me on the edge of the cliff making my throat thick.

“I miss you,” I choke out. “Every single day. I miss the shit out of you.”

She smiles but doesn’t speak.

“You were right,” I say around the tears in my throat, my cheeks growing cold when they start to fall. Four pairs of hands touch me, offering comfort. “You were right all along, about being here. About everything.” I shake my head and hold the urn in my hands. “I just wish you were here to see it.” Rhett wraps his arms around me to help hold me together. “You’ll always be my sister, my best friend.”

I can’t help feeling as if this were her last attempt at bringing me home, that she’d organized all this from the afterlife despite knowing she couldn’t have. She’s been with me the whole time, even if she really hasn’t been and this has all been one long PTSD hallucination.

“I wish you could stay with me,” I rasp. “But I know you can’t.”

Her image flickers and my heart throbs painfully. She glances at the men holding me, supporting me, and smiles. “You don’t need me anymore, Everhart. They’ll take care of you until we can see each other again.”

A sob slips from my throat as I pop the lid off the urn. “I’ll see you in the afterlife,” I choke out. “Wait for me there.”

“Of course, Everhart. I’d never go to Valhalla without you,” she replies, her eyes shining.

A hand squeezes mine three times, and I look down at Rhett’s hand. Another hand squeezes my shoulder the same. Another on my forearm. And another on my hip. All three times. I’d told them on a whim, and now here they are, destroying me and supporting me all at once.

I lose it. Right there on top of the mountain, surrounded by the men I found my home in.

“I love you, Everhart,” I say, and turn the urn over. I watch the ashes fall from the urn and whip into the wind, flying away, free as the birds Jinx always envied. They hold me tighter as it swirls away, as we watch until it’s empty.

In front of me, she smiles and lifts her hand in a wave before slowly fading away. Her voice echoes one last time in my mind, even though she’s gone. I collapse into the arms of my men, letting them hold me as I sob, as I release the pain I’ve been carrying since the wreck.

“I love you, too, Everhart,” she whispers. “I love you, too.”

Chapter 64

Fable

One Month Later

“I’ll love you until the cows come home,” Rhett proudly proclaims. “Fable Everhart, my queen! This is my proclamation!”

I giggle, watching Rhett strut around in his newly made leather armor. I have to say, he looks really good as a fae knight, like he was meant to be one all along. Of the four of them, he’s the one who’s taken most to cosplay. I like to think it’s because he’s a peacock, preening in all his glory. The fake pointed ears somehow make him look more masculine. The eyeliner even more so. Rhett was made for this.

“Funny enough, Gunnar said the cows came home this morning,” I remind him. “So that’s not very long.”

Rhett scowls. “It was meant to be romantic. You can’t bring logic into romance, Wild West Barbie.”

I giggle again and glance over at Colt where he stands in his own armor. I’d worked tirelessly over the last month to make them all their own, even making some for the animals we call friends.

“Romance isn’t logical,” Colt agrees with a nod. Dolly sits beside him, her leather armor on her back making her look like she’s ready for battle. She boofs when I look at her and wags her tail.

“Sir Colt,” I reply. “Romance is nothingbutlogical. Perhaps you should focus on the battle instead of agreeing with the evil fairy prince.”

“Oh, I’m evil now, am I?” Rhett grins. “That means I can claim the spoils of your virtue when I win.”

Gunnar snorts. “Ew, dude. You’re way too into this.”

Gunnar is dressed in his own armor, the hide stained red and intricate. He’d forgone a helmet and instead still wears his cowboy hat, making him look almost silly. On his shoulder, Mr. Frizzle sits on a special plate I’d added for him. He wears a tiny piece of armor on his back and a little helmet I’d crafted for him. Every time I look at him, he makes me laugh. Time was well spent making his armor.

“I gotta be into it,” Rhett fires back. “After all, one of us has to make up for Trent’s grumpiness.”

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