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Kentarch solidified and turned on me. “She and I were meant to remain there! I wanted to join her. I didn’t want to survive this night.”

Gabe quietly said, “The Bagmen had different plans for you.”

“I’ll clear the place of those creatures, then take her body back. I’ll use my pistol for a clean death.”

I shook my head hard. “Non, you got to put her in the ground, so you can get to work. You ain’t completed your mission, soldier. Once you do, then you can reunite with Issa.”

A hesitation. “What are you talking about?”

With everything to lose, I said, “Death came up with a plan to save the world from Richter, and it can work, but it depends solely on you. You once told me that you owed him for saving your life. You and Issa wouldn’t have made it past the Flash if not for him.”

The stubborn set of Kentarch’s jaw eased. “I won’t be of any benefit to you in my condition. I am broken.”

“We’re goan to help you get on your feet again. We’re here for you. It’s mind over matter—but you’re goan to have to work at it.”

He wiped the scarred end of his right arm over his weary face, then stared down at Issa’s remains. “Hunter, I ache to go with her.”

I felt how much he did. Still, my love for Evie would make me ruthless. “You’re in an ancient alliance. Are you goan to honor it? Or will you ditch your men behind enemy lines when the war is raging?”

Kentarch met my gaze with his brows drawn. I had him on the ropes. The great Chariot Card was the world’s ultimate warrior, a centurion; he revered honor and allegiance. I’d bet the idea of delivering the earth from evil got his motor revving too.

I pressed my advantage. “Hey, soldier, I can promise you one thing: you will die in this fight.”

6

The Empress

Day 631 A.F.

“Oh, hi, honey. You’re home early.”

“Mom?” I whispered as she approached from a nearby field on our farm. I met her halfway, the cane crops sighing as I neared.

The scent of gardenias perfumed the air, and the sun was butter-yellow in a cloudless sky, the light twinkling off her earrings. But pressure built around Haven, as if a hurricane brewed just off the Louisiana coast.

Though my surroundings felt so real, this must be a dream. Wasn’t I dimly aware of Aric in the bedroom with me and of Tee’s fluttery kicks?

Mom smiled down at me, making my chest go tight. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

I quelled a crazed laugh. “Something like that.”

“Bad day at school? Is this a three-scoop emergency?”

I used to believe one-on-one time with my mom could fix anything. Now my current worries were far beyond the scope of warm hugs and cold ice cream.

Jack, Gabe, Kentarch, and Joules were on their way to Louisiana together, right through Richter territory, because bait.

My Arcana ally Lark might be going rogue. She spent more time in the barn, had all but stopped her animal surveillance, leaving the castle vulnerable. Had her single-minded determination focused on resurrection? If so, then she had ignored my pleas not to go against Aric’s wishes.

He’d been avoiding the stables—hadn’t wanted to choose a stallion to replace Thanatos—but eventually, Aric would discover her actions in the nearby barn. Then there’d be hell to pay at Castle Lethe. . . .

Mom reached forward and tucked a curl behind my ear, drawing me out of my thoughts. “You want to tell me about it, honey?”

You die way too young, and I miss you so much. If you’d lived, you would be a grandmother soon. Your daughter’s hopelessly in love with two men.

Though I missed Jack terribly, I grew closer to Aric. He earned back my trust with every night he patiently watched over me.

My knight and I sidled around each other like magnets—at times opposing, at times attracted beyond denying it. But we somehow did.

“It’s nothing I can’t figure out.” I managed a smile for her. “Whatcha doing out here?”

“Planning an expansion. Our idea to go organic is paying off. The land is happier; customers are happier. We’re happier.” She surveyed the fields with satisfaction. “No matter how far away you go, Haven will always call you home.” It did even now.

I studied her expression. Prior to the Flash, she’d been Mom. Now that I’d gotten a bit older and had lived through an apocalypse, I understood that she’d been a full-faceted woman with her own aspirations and concerns. I wished I had asked her more questions about herself. “Did you never want to live somewhere else?”

Her gaze grew distant as she thought back. “Budapest. The Amazon Basin. Paris! I imagined a thousand different lives.” She met my eyes with infinite love. “But when you came into the picture, I wanted roots for you.” Once she got an idea into her head, nobody could stop her.