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CHAPTER NINETY

Ellery

Someone had gathered a bunch of colorful leaves and spread them across the forest floor to create an aisle leading to the riverbank. Between the splash of fire covering the ground and the blaze burning in the trees, the forest was alight with the shifting colors of the leaves.

In a black jacket and matching pants, Ryker stood at the head of the aisle. To his right was Tucker.

Tucker grinned when he saw me, but Ryker stared, his mouth slightly ajar and emotion filling his eyes. Awed and dumbfounded, he didn’t breathe as he gazed at me.

Then his lips curved into a smile that lit up his entire face and eyes. His hand went to his heart, and I swore tears shimmered in his eyes before he blinked them away.

Ruby and Scarlet left me at the head of the aisle to stride to the end. They went to the left and took up their positions while they waited for me.

Standing at the head of the aisle, I didn’t feel alone as numerous poltergeists and the over five hundred amsirah from the camp lined the aisle and spread into the trees. Our numbers had swelled, but we still didn’t have enough to take on the duke and his armies.

However, we were growing, and Val had reported that support for us was getting stronger throughout the sea villages. The duke had more control over some now that he’d taken their children, but he’d also created bigger enemies in those amsirah.

They might be scared that fighting would result in the deaths of those they loved most, but they were also furious he’d robbed them of their children. I didn’t know what many of them would do when the time came to fight, but until then, we would work on growing our numbers and training.

We’d prepared for anything… or tried to, but something could go wrong.

That was tomorrow’s problem; today was about me, Ryker, and love. It was about family.

My family was gone, and I was about to start a new one.

I swore I felt my parents on either side of me, beaming with pride and radiating love. Their presence, whether imaginary or not, brought me a sense of comfort I hadn’t expected to experience while standing here alone.

I held back the tears burning my eyes. I hoped my parents could see this and know how happy I was.

I prayed they’d be able to see the children I hoped to have one day. And when that day came, I yearned to feel my parents beside me again.

I resisted the urge to look to each side of me as a strange warmth pressed against my sides. This feeling wasn’t the icy chill the ghosts brought; it was something better, deeper, and true.

I might be imagining it, but I was certain I wouldn’t walk to Ryker alone. They’d be with me and see that, while my life wasn’t secure thanks to the duke and the aristocrats, it was wonderful.

Mr. Fletcher and Ianto had offered to walk me down the aisle, but I declined. My father was dead, and though I loved them dearly and appreciated their support, I couldn’t have them standing in the place of the man I’d lost.

When Callan started playing a slow, beautiful melody on his lute, it was my cue to start moving. As I walked, the eyes of the amsirah followed me, but all I saw was Ryker grinning at me.

He looked younger and more boyish than I’d ever seen him, even with a neatly trimmed beard covering half his face. Breaking free from the trees, leaves floated toward the ground.

The air currents caught and swirled them around before they fell onto me and the others. Their rich aroma filled my nostrils.

Leaves crunched beneath my feet and rustled against the hem of my dress. Now, whenever I heard the crunching sound of leaves, it wouldn’t just elicit the joy of childhood memories; it would also remind me of this moment and the hope I felt for my future with Ryker.

As I strolled toward Ryker, I took in his black coat and pants. He was used to having jackets and pants embossed with silver or gold for events like this, but the simple style of his clothes emphasized how handsome he was far more than any of those more elaborate designs did.

He was impossibly striking with his hair recently cut short and his silver eyes full of love. He never looked away from me as I walked toward him, and my grin widened with every step I took.

When I stopped and turned to face him, he clasped my hands and held them between us. “You are so beautiful.”

My heart fluttered before soaring impossibly higher. When he bent to kiss me, I lost myself to the warmth of his mouth and the electrical pulse swirling between us.

I rested my hand against his cheek, relishing his prickly beard against my palm as Tucker cleared his throat.

“Eh, hmm.” When we didn’t immediately pull apart, he continued. “You’re getting a little ahead of yourselves.”

The crowd laughed, and I joined them as we broke apart. Ryker kissed the tip of my nose and reclaimed my hands to squeeze them again.