Page 161 of Rot In Knotty Pieces

I look around in shock. “Really?”

“Really, really. I took a longer route because I didn’t want to get caught with a body, but this is it.”

I get out of the car and look at the field of flowers.

“Who owns this land?”

Blaze walks over to stand beside me. “We do.”

We bury Callea in the flowers, where the moonlight can touch her.

We asked Kestrel if she wanted to say any words, but she just shook her head.

“We never needed words.”

We don’t push her, and when she indicates that she’s ready to go back, we head off. Surprisingly, we end up at the Sanderson’s home. Our pack crashing in the spare room of the Prince pack’s house.

Kestrel sleeps for three days.

The rest of us just orbit her, waiting to see what’s going to happen, what she wants.

When she wakes up, she eats and drinks, and then looks me in my eyes.

“Can we go home?”

We don’t have a home.

“I’m not sure where that is, Kest,” I say gently.

“I know. But we can go and find it. Together.”

I lean in and kiss her forehead. The spark of life is back in her eyes. She’s fighting to live, fighting for a future with us. A thread of hope lights inside me. Perhaps we’ll be okay.

Pix takes her hand and kisses the back of it. “Sounds delightfully interesting.”

Blaze and Sage exchange a look. “I’m sold.”

“Same.”

We all look at King and Roseland.

King shrugs. “Wherever our omegas are is wherever I want to be.”

Roseland just stares at Kestrel.

“What?” she asks defensively.

“Do you have an idea of where you want to be?”

She blushes and looks down. “A house with a bed big enough for us all and a big tree, big enough to climb in…”

Roseland smiles widely. “Let’s go, then.”

Raptor

Isteal out of the house and walk out into the night air, sitting down on the porch of our rented property out in the middle of nowhere. It’s okay, but it's not quite right for us. But it’s right for this. I close my eyes, and I go into our inner chamber.

It feels different now, brighter.