Page 151 of Gates of Rapture
But there Leto was, having returned to the bonfire, and near him was Casimir and… Patience.
Grace blinked at her sister, who stood smiling beside Casimir, her arm hooked around his.
“Patience?”
Thorne folded his sword away and drew close to Grace.“Is that you?Patience?”
She nodded.Tears swam in her hazel eyes.
“I can’t believe it,” he said.“I thought you were dead.I found so much blood in that gully that I was sure you were dead.”
Patience shook her head, and as tears tracked down her cheeks she told of James having ripped her out of the sky to serve on Third at the portal with him.She had been able to tell James when Greaves created the breach and just how many Third Earth death vampires he had ready to help him in his bid to take over Second Earth.“I wish it could have been done differently, because I know my sudden disappearance wounded you both.”
Grace reached out to her and took her hand.“I knew you weren’t dead, but you’re right, it hurt so much to lose you.”She glanced at Marguerite and reached for her hand as well.“But you see how everything has turned out.We have a new sister, and we will become aunts to her twins.”
Patience admitted that one of the advantages of her situation was that she had been able to know the significant events of her siblings’ lives.She couldn’t have stayed on Third helping James without some information.
“I suppose now that Greaves is contained on Fourth, James allowed you to come here.”
“Yes.”
She then looked up at Casimir.There was such a soft light in her eye that Grace said, “Am I seeing what I’m seeing?”She glanced from Patience to Casimir.
He covered Patience’s hand with his own.“The moment I arrived at the portal, I scented her.”
“Oh, my God.”Grace put her fingers to her mouth as her eyes filled with tears.She felt Leto’s arm surround her shoulders.
Are you okay with this?he sent.
She turned to him.“More than okay.Don’t you see how perfect this circle is?”Of course, she had one concern and shifted her gaze to Patience.“But you do know that Casimir and I—” She found the words impossible to say.
But it was Patience who rolled her eyes.“Grace, I was never celibate like you.And I’ve had many wild centuries.Casimir knows that.We’ve talked it all over.As for your relationship with him on Fourth, we’ve agreed that without you having taken him there, he would never have entered the redemption pools and would never have agreed to serve as Leto’s Guardian of Ascension.I met him, essentially, because of you, so I regret nothing.”
Grace looked from one to the other.She could see thebreh-bond forming between them.Once more her eyes filled with tears.She just couldn’t believe that Casimir, of all ascenders, had brought Patience home.
A long series of embraces followed.Patience would return to Second Earth, and Casimir stated without hesitation that he wanted to make his home on Second, not just because of Patience but because of his boys as well.“After all,” he said, “I promised Kendrew and Sloane that Auntie Grace would always be in their lives.”
Grace smiled.“You know, I always promised to take them camping in the Cascades.”She took Leto’s hand.“I hope we can do that soon.”
Leto pulled her close.“Absolutely.”
Casimir frowned.“And the new school term is about to start.I’ll need to get them enrolled right away.”
Grace stared at Casimir for a long moment.It was hard to remember the man he had been.Never in a thousand years had she thought she’d hear him speak about enrolling his kids in school.
She thought of Greaves.If Casimir could be redeemed, maybe it was possible that Greaves could be transformed as well.
***
Beatrice sat in her favorite chair in her living room, the one with the footstool that Grace had occupied while helping Beatrice to roll her balls of yarn.She missed Grace and wished the younger woman was here.She needed some comfort.
She leaned forward and covered her ears.Tears began leaking from her eyes.She was trying to be strong, but her son’s screams could be heard all over her floating estate.His agony, his rage, his remorse had erupted from the moment he’d touched the water of the first pool, the gentlest pool, the one that was meant to ease the sinner into the process.
Instead, Darian might as well be bathing in fire.
How great were his sins.
More than could be numbered.
