Page 68 of Fated In Forever (Nocturne Vampire Clan #4)

EVANGELINE

I found Malachi on the back terrace of Crimson House.

He stood with his hands braced wide on the railing, pale hair catching the last rays of a spectacular sunset, and for a moment I almost left him alone. There was a looseness in his shoulders, a faraway look on his face I'd never seen before, and it seemed a shame to disturb him.

“I know you’re there, Vicious, spying on me,” he murmured.

“Just debating whether to interrupt when you look so peaceful,” I said, joining him at the stone railing, looking out over the woods, a few lightning bugs glowing between the trees as dusk settled in.

He turned to me with a smile that transformed his entire face. “I am,” he said simply. “For the first time in centuries, I feel free.”

The wonder in his voice made my chest tighten with emotion. “The blood oath?”

“Gone.” He held up his hand, flexing his fingers.

“I feel the difference in every breath I take.

I never realized how much that promise weighed, but that burning compulsion to obey…

it's simply... not there anymore.” His laugh sounded like pure amazement.

“I'd forgotten what it felt like to have my will be entirely my own.”

I leaned against the railing beside him, watching the way the fading light played across his handsome features. “What does that feel like?”

“Like waking up from a nightmare I didn't even realize I was having.” He was quiet, his gaze fixed on something in the distance. The pain in his voice made me want to reach for him, but I sensed he needed to say more.

“But now,” he continued, “my life is finally my own again. I’m deciding who I want to be, what that future might look like.

” His gaze rested on me. “Who I want in that future. You, of course.” His smile was gentle, and knowing and a little bit sad.

“Riordan and Blake—they're not enemies anymore.

Which feels strange, but also…good. They're friends…I think.”

He spoke with such awe, like he was discovering all of this for the first time, and my heart felt the exact same way as his smile—gentle and knowing and a little bit sad.

“And family,” I reminded him. “You have family now. Us.”

He stared down at me, like he was afraid to believe it could be true. “Do I?”

“Of course you do.” I turned to face him fully. “Blood doesn't make family, Malachi. Choice does. Loyalty does. Love does. And we've chosen you. I hope you choose us back.”

His smile turned soft, almost vulnerable. “Besides Tyberius, I never had a family. I'm not sure I know how to be part of one.”

“None of us do, not perfectly.” I thought of Angel, of the mistakes I'd made, the fears I still carried. “We’ll figure everything out, Malachi. We’ll make mistakes. But the important thing is we're doing this together.”

“Together,” he repeated, as if testing out the taste of the word on his tongue. “Gods, I like the sound of that. ”

“You know what?” I slid him a sideways look and a smile. “So do I.”

We stood in comfortable silence for a while, watching the stars come to life in the darkening sky. There was something deeply satisfying about this moment, about seeing someone I cared about finally free from the chains that had bound them.

Of knowing that we had a real chance at that future we’d only dreamed about up until now.

“Malachi?” Sabine's voice drifted from the darkness behind us, and I turned to see her approach on bare feet, her pale hair gleaming in the rising moon, a flowing purple gown streaming behind her like a train.

“Sabine,” Malachi said warily, tension returning to his shoulders.

She studied him with those all-knowing eyes of hers. “You're looking remarkably... unencumbered this evening.”

“The blood oath broke. I’m free, for the first time as a vampire. The feeling is…indescribable.”

“So I sense.” Her expression grew serious. “I have been summoned home, but I feel compelled to give you a warning before I go. Your time in this realm is limited. The Underworld has claims on you—duties that cannot be abandoned. You understand what I am saying?”

Something cold settled in my stomach. “What sort of claims?”

Sabine's gaze moved between us. “Malachi may be capable of switching between forms at will, but he will forever be bound to the Underworld. He has a task to complete, a role that cannot be abandoned. Eventually, he will need to return to fulfill his sworn obligation.”

“A sworn obligation?” I asked, cold certainty settling on me like a lead weight. “What did you do, Malachi?” When he just pressed his lips together, I turned to Sabine. “When did he swear this oath?”

“Little more than a week ago, Evangeline. A chance to save you, in exchange for the Underworld owning his soul for an eternity. You are saved, and now, his part of the bargain must be fulfilled.”

I looked at Malachi, seeing a shadow cross his face.

Without thinking, I reached for his hand, threading our fingers together.

His skin was warm, real, and I held on as tightly as I could.

“You swore yourself away to save me?” I kept shaking my head, my thoughts turning into a scramble of panic.

“That’s…there has to be some way to renegotiate. Some way to compromise.”

Sabine intoned, Take me home to my mate, and I swear, this realm will own me for eternity. Once she is safe, once she is healed, I will return, and resume my duties. I give you my oath.

“How long do I have?” Malachi asked, as if he wasn’t ready to know the answer.

“I cannot answer that, only the magic can decide,” Sabine replied, with her usual evasiveness. “But this separation...does not have to be permanent.” Her gaze softened as she looked between us. “Time, they say, is an illusion and love is infinite.”

“Then we'll make the most of the time we have,” I said firmly. “And when you have to go, we'll be here when you come back.”

His fingers tightened around mine. “You would wait?”

“Family waits,” I told him. “No matter how far apart we are or how long it takes, you'll always have a place here with us. We’ll always keep a chair at the table and a light burning in the window.” I squeezed his hand. “An old human custom, to guide you back home.”

Something profound passed between us in that moment— an understanding that went deeper than words. He brought our joined hands up and pressed a gentle kiss to my knuckles, a gesture so tender it made my breath catch.

“Thank you,” he whispered. “For giving me something to hope for.”

Sabine cleared her throat nervously, her eyes darting between us. “There is something else, related to your task. Souls remember. They remember love and hate, they remember who hurt them, and much like us, they hunger for vengeance. And maybe there are times when that vengeance is due.”

I narrowed my eyes. “So all those souls in the Underworld…they are aware ?”

“Let me tell you a story,” she said instead, her fingers closing around my arm, tight enough she had my full attention.

“Of two lovers, meeting over and over again through time. In different lives, in different worlds, long before vampires even existed. They fell in love, many, many times, sharing the same private, tender moments, making the same hushed promises, but in the end, choice...always decided their fates. Duty over love…love over duty…sacrifice over pain, every choice led to disaster.”

Off in the distance, thunder rumbled, even though the night was clear, and Sabine leaned closer, her fingers tightening around my arm as she dropped her voice.

“I have often wondered if, just once, what might happen if they simply chose each other? Would they be happy? Could they be happy?” She released a low, hushed laugh.

“Could they believe in each other enough to break the endless cycle and just…be content?”

A sudden wind whipped up, smelling of salt and waves, whipping our hair around our faces, and that fast, Sabine let me go and patted my hand. “I'll leave you two to enjoy the evening. But remember, Malachi—the magic decides the timeline.”

After she left, Malachi and I remained at the railing, our hands still linked, the cool night air and the sweet scent of roses washing over us.

“What did she mean about the souls?” I asked quietly.

“I don’t know. But that story…” He stared thoughtfully at the oncoming storm, the way the clouds lit up from the insides as they rolled closer. “I knew my whole life I’d been waiting for something, Evangeline. And the first time I saw you in the flesh, that moment didn’t feel like the first time.”

He exhaled, a warm whoosh of air that brought goosebumps to my skin. “I felt like I was seeing you again, after a long, long time.”

“Well, if it makes you feel any better, I wanted to stab you at first sight, so…” But that wasn’t exactly true. I’d felt the same pull, even if I hadn’t recognized it as love, even if I didn’t want to fully admit my feelings now. Because the thought that we’d already done this before…

No, I couldn’t wrap my head around that.

Malachi kissed my shoulder, wrapping an arm around my waist. “Perfectly understandable. I was an arrogant bastard.”

“Well,” I sighed, relaxing into him, “you still are, but you’ve managed to grow on me. But what Sabine said about the souls,” I paused, going back over every word. “That was a warning, if I’ve ever heard one.”

Then, in the distance, I heard Angel's soft laughter mixed with Eldric's deeper chuckle, and I smiled. We were all finding our way back to each other, a royal court that trusted each other, that fought for each other, and that was worth everything.