Page 86 of Premonition of Peace

As Lucifer pulled away, he captured my lips in a desperate kiss that said everything he couldn’t. Then he released me into August’s waiting arms. From him, I was greeted with a warm embrace and a gentle, teasing kiss. August’s touch was tender, but there was an undeniable intensity to it. His usual composure was rocked by a genuine relief that was almost palpable.

When I was released, I was immediately gathered in Marcel’s arms. Marcel, whose embrace was a mix of firm reassurance and quiet strength, kissed me deeply and slowly. By the time he let me go, the combination of their affections left me breathless and tingling. I had always had a problem with craving sex when even remotely stressed, and the stress that I just experienced was definitely influencing me. Still, I pushed it aside.

“I feel the bonds between us. I can see the threads. Why didn’t you feel it when I woke up?”

“You tell us,” Lucifer said. “We feel it, but something happened while you were out. It’s like we felt a fracture.”

August nodded in agreement. “It’s still there, but when we felt whatever that was, we didn’t know if The Morrigan had somehow taken control of the bonds as well.”

I had a feeling I knew when that happened. As pieces of me were lost, the bond would have been shaken. I was so close to losing every part of myself. My guess was that nothing would have been left to be bonded to.

“You know what happened, don’t you?” Marcel asked.

“I have an idea.”

“Fill everyone in,” August said, stepping back and giving me more room.

“Everyone?” I asked, raising a brow.

“Your life was hanging in the balance, and my asshole brother was prepared to harvest your soul if The Morrigan took over,” Lucifer began, though I didn’t miss the look of annoyance that he knew I’d kept a secret from him. “That affects everyone, little witch. So everyone is here.”

“Well,” I breathed out, “might as well get it over with.”

At that moment, I wished more than anything we had space and time. The three walls of warmth surrounding me were beyond enticing and if there weren’t supernaturals withsuperhuman hearing outside I might have considered delaying the storytelling a little bit. But it wasn’t meant to be.

Not right now, at least.

I pushed myself up from the bed, swinging my legs over the edge to stand up. The three of them hovered around me like protective shadows. Their concern was palpable, but I waved them out of the way.

“I’m fine, really,” I said with a steady voice. “Everything I faced was mental. Physically, I’m okay.”

It was true. When I looked down, I wasn’t wearing the sweatpants and oversized sweater I’d worn before and during the battle in my memory loci. I’d been stripped back down to my tank top and shorts, which meant I could see that all of the tiny cuts I’d had from the mental storm were nowhere to be found.

“Come on,” I called over my shoulder, striding past them and to the door. Ronan gave me a slight nod, moving his large frame out of the way. As I entered the living room, I was immediately met with the gaze of four pairs of eyes each holding suspicion, relief, and some weird mix of the two.

I saw the relief settle over Kat’s face right before Piper stormed forward and pulled me into a punishing hug.

“Next time a random bird gives you a note, don’t follow it. And don’t make deals with my mate to kill you, dammit,” she muttered as she squeezed me tight before stepping away.

Sienna followed close behind, tears streaming down her face as she joined the hug. The sight of her tears made my heart ache deeply. I’d succeeded in many ways in the last forty-eight hours, yet it felt like the ways I’d failed were some of the worst I’d experienced.

Her voice trembled as she pulled out of the hug, and said “I couldn’t afford to lose another person today.” The words hung heavy in the air.

“I’m so sorry, Sienna,” I said, my voice breaking just the same as hers. “I couldn’t save Sasha. I wish I could have done more.”

Sienna’s tears continued to flow, but she managed a small, sad smile. “I’m not sure where I go from here,” she admitted quietly. “But I know you did everything you could and at least I know Sasha has the chance to wander to peace now that her soul isn’t tied by her living body.” There was a sense of resignation in her words, a bittersweet acceptance of her loss.

Before I could say more, Kat stepped forward and Sienna moved to stand back by Anders. There was a moment of silence between my sister and me then, with a decisive movement, she pulled me into a firm hug.

“I’m glad you’re not body-snatched,” Kat said, her voice a mix of relief and stern affection.

When Kat finally pulled away from the hug, Ronan was, of course, the one to end the sappy greetings.

“So, what happened?” he asked, his voice carrying the weight of everyone’s unspoken questions.

I gave them a streamlined version of the battle, carefully omitting the more personal details about the versions of myself that had died. It wasn’t about keeping secrets right now. It was about the fact it was too painful to talk about. And instead, I focused on the key points—the confrontation, the chaos, and ultimately, how I had managed to kill The Morrigan.

The room was quiet as I spoke, the tension palpable as everyone listened intently. When I finished, a silence hung in the air before Anders broke it. “You killed her . . . in your mind?”

---