Page 105 of Seas the Reckoning

I have a plan, and I know it’s what I want to do. So long as Jackal agrees.

“There’s something I’d like to ask you,” I start.

Jackal pulls me tighter into an embrace.

“Anything.”

I chuckle.

“I haven’t asked it yet.”

“Doesn’t matter. Anything. Well, unless you’d like to revive your recent engagement. I don’t think I could make that happen.”

Not unless he wants to try calling a god and getting us a ticket to the Underworld. Claude sealed his own fate when he came at me and Jackal defended me. I can’t be sorry about it, and I’m endlessly thankful my mate was there for me.

We figured out later that Claude had only resisted my song because he’d been unconscious while I’d been using it, rousing just in time to see the rest of us exiting the beach.

The biggest issue it caused is an inheritance one. Councilman Taylor has been relieved of his holdings, and while the Magikai are sorting out what was obtained illegally, the councilman had a tidy number of items and properties that have already been cleared to go to his heirs.

Claude is gone. Lillian has disappeared for the moment. Likely a wise move.

That left, and leaves, Starla.

She doesn’t want anything connected to her father, but nor does she want Lillian to get it, which is what will happen if she relinquishes the fortune and the other witch can be located.

I know she’s been debating what to do with it for over a week now.

With a shake of my head, I focus back on my mate.

“I was wondering if, well, I wasn’t really able to get a fair shot at it the first time, and it really is a lovely place. Not that here isn’t lovely. It’s my home, and ultimately I want to come back here. But it’s months until the busy season. For now, I thought that maybe. I mean, I’d like to go if you’d want to⁠—”

“Mate, are you asking me to go back to England with you?”

I nod, not trusting my words. I’m stumbling over them trying to express myself.

“Yes. I am trying and failing to ask you that. But if you say no, I don’t want you to worry that I’ll hold it against you. I know we put your family at risk, so if you’d rather not go back, or if you’d rather go visit alone, I understand.”

He gapes at me.

“Given what we’ve all been through, I expected you’d want to stay here in your cottage with your dive company and Pickles. I would love to take both of you back to England. You know Lottie got her own puppy for Christmas, and I think Pickles would love a pal. It would be a thrill for me to be able to show you around. Not just the Lake District, but everything the UK has to offer. We could take in the lochs of Scotland, although if we see those you may never want to leave. The hustle and bustle of London, along with the food scene. The architecture around Oxford. Then of course there’s the Welsh countryside. Some amazing hikes out that way.”

He begins to smile, enthused at the idea.

I stare at him. This man who was falling for me before I ever knew it, and who I was falling for before we’d ever met in person. Who has supported me as I learned how to enter the more dangerous parts of the supernatural world. Who provided help, and support, and connected me to some amazing people without ever acting superior.

He’s had my back the entire time. With Pickles. With Leon. With Councilman Taylor. With my mother and my chaotic brother and my intrusive thoughts. He’s let me make my own choices and fight my own battles, never making me feel belittled or cast aside. But always there if I needed him.

Like with Claude, and so many other things.

“I will warn you that on the plane I am liable to remind you more than two or ten times to ensure your seatbelt is firmly fastened. You know, just in case there’s an emergency. I’ll probably ruminate on things like whether I’ve made a good impression on people, while being able to easily move on from emergencies, say if we get jumped by supernatural bandits and have to fight our way free.”

He grins.

“I will happily be there to reassure you, or if you feel you’re getting stuck in a loop, to help you ground yourself. It is a privilege.”

I sigh, looking at the ground.

“There’s just one big issue left, then.”