Page 197 of Song of Her Siren

We never found Megaera’s general, and I doubted we ever would in our lifetime. Even if we could find him, with his teleporting abilities, he could easily evade us. We had sent armies into the vast desolated human lands, only to come back empty-handed.

Human serfs from the Fae world had left us to repopulate the human lands, and I feared in a few centuries, they’d be back to mistrusting our kind, blaming us for the demon invasion.

Teddy had told us that it would take another two thousand years to rid our world of demons for good. Two thousand years. My immediate family would all be gone by then, though a blade of guilt twisted in my chest at the thought of our descendants having to go through this all over again. The Fae were ready to celebrate Tari and me, building temples in our honor and naming a holiday after us, but I didn’t want any such recognition, not after we’d failed to banish every last demon to hell.

So much had happened in the fifteen years since we’d defeated the demon army. After we buried the dragons and Fae that had perished in the demon war, we spent years rebuilding our cities and towns. Tari restored the forests and crops that the demonlings had destroyed. She’d also removed the concealment spells from Abyssus and the other towns. The centaurs elected Frida their queen and restored their stronghold after finding others that had been banished by their foolish king. The shifters rebuilt their town, making Adrean their king once more, while Ash served as King Helian’s right hand and emissary to all Terrae in Caldaria.

Drae and I had finally learned how to control the darkness in his soul brought on by being forced into the void by the demon king. There were days when the shadows would return, but I knew how to chase them away. He smiled more than he frowned, and he made a wonderful Duke of Abyssus.

Either out of guilt or obligation, my mother had reluctantly inherited the Delfian throne, allowing Marius to assume most of the monarch duties while she also worked on driving away Derrick’s darkness. Derrick hadn’t made as much progress as Drae, but he’d become proficient at hiding his depression, enjoying a short time with family before his eyes glossed over and his mind traveled back into the void.

After much deliberation, my mother named Ember and Aurora as her heirs. The girls didn’t mind the thought of one day assuming the throne, though I feared they didn’t know what having such power and responsibility entailed. They enjoyed visiting Thebes, though, especially Aurora, who would look for any excuse to see Teddy, who often visited his adoptive parents.

My parents named Teddy the heir to the Dukedom of Elisi. They also granted Drae the Dukedom of Abyssus, declaring our lands an independent country, like Windhaven and Elisi. They gave Windhaven to Lady Arabella, now Duchess Arabella, on the promise that she would be a fair ruler.

Windhaven prospered under her rule, returning to their former glory. Arabella never married, though she had a long line of lovers and four children from different fathers, all daughters, and all as devastatingly beautiful as their mother. I felt sorry for my oldest nephew, Liam, for Arabella frequently pressured Helian and Tari to arrange a marriage between Liam and one of her children. Luckily, Tari and Helian insisted their son would marry for love. That didn’t deter Arabella’s oldest daughter, Sasha, who relentlessly pursued Liam whenever they visited Peloponese.

My family and I gathered today to celebrate in the garden at Abyssus. Drae, Blaze, Ash, Finn, and Adrean played fire darts at the other end of the garden, a dangerous game that often resulted in burned bushes, but they were enjoying themselves, and Drae was laughing heartily, which was all that mattered.

Helian and Nikkos sat with Tari and me at the long dining table in the center of the garden. Helian bounced baby Isabeau on his knee while she sucked her thumb. How I adored my one-year-old niece with my sister’s dark hair and Helian’s alabaster skin and silver-blue eyes.

Tomorrow would be the official celebration at the Tribus Point, where all three capital cities and emissaries from the Fallax Islands, including my two favorite wyverns, Freya and Enso, would converge into one big parade and party.

The firefly lamps cast a pleasing glow around us while the sun gradually set as we drank tea and ate tarts while enjoying the mild spring weather. We watched my two youngest nephews, Ronin and Kylar, who had recently turned ten summers, chase after their older brother. Liam, who had Helian’s long, silvery hair and penchant for mischief, was always getting frustrated with his younger brothers for shadowing him everywhere. He frequently tried to escape, but he wasn’t allowed to fly far with his dragon, a pretty girl named Neeva with shimmery blue scales that made her nearly impossible to spot in the sky on a cloudless day. Just last month, Liam had answered Neeva’s call, making his parents proud by becoming a dragon rider in the Caldarian army.

I squeezed Nikkos’s hand, whispering my thanks when he refilled my wineglass. When he answered with a wink, I knew he had an ulterior motive—to get me drunk, so he could take advantage of me tonight. Not that I minded.

Liam hurried past our table, stopping only to snatch a tart and stuff it in his pocket.

Kylar cornered his older brother, pointing the end of his wooden sword at Liam’s chest. “Surrender, demon, or we shall turn you to ash!”

Liam threw up his hands with a groan. “I told you I’m not playing demons with you!”

Ronin jumped from a nearby bush, letting out a very human-sounding howl. “You never want to play with us!”

“That’s because I’m not a child anymore!” Liam waved them away like he was shooing a fly. “Go back to your nursemaid!”

My youngest nephews’ stricken expressions were enough to make my heart falter. They were such sweet boys, just rambunctious—very rambunctious.

Kylar’s face flushed a deep crimson as he threw down his sword and balled his hands into fists. “You’ll regret treating us this way when we get our shifter powers.”

“I can’t wait.” Liam shook his head, snickering. “Maybe then you’ll be too busy howling at the moon to play nursery games.”

Kylar and Ronin howled again, their human wails like glasses shattering in my eardrums. Isabeau pulled her thumb out of her mouth and made a whimper of protest.

“Boys, boys!” Tari bent over, rubbing her temples. “Your fighting is giving me a headache.”

Liam clasped his hands in a prayer pose while nodding toward the four dragons who soared above us. “You wouldn’t have to worry about us fighting if you’d let me ride Neeva.”

“You can fly the perimeter of Abyssus,” Helian said to his son, “but no farther.”

Liam punched the air, then let out a sharp whistle to his dragon. “Thank you!”

“Helian,” Tari warned, “do you think that’s wise? He hasn’t had enough training.”

He gave her a reassuring smile. “I flew Radnor the first day.”

She arched a brow. “And how did that work out?”

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