Page 139 of Samhain Savior

Looking down, I could see that the diamonds were no longer separate pieces, but instead had fused into one solid piece now locked within the silver circle. The white diamond and the black, light and dark, neither possible without the other. Power throbbed from the relic in Modi’s hand, not wild and fractured anymore but whole, focused, eternal.

And yet I felt it in me, too. A pull, low and steady, thrumming in time with my heartbeat. My blood was a part of it, binding the pieces together, and for that moment it recognized me as its anchor. The Key called to me like a distant echo, not demanding, not devouring—only acknowledging my part in its creation.

Archer’s hand closed around mine, his grip tight, yet steady. His love flowed through the bond, wrapping me in iron and fire, steadying me as my chest tightened.

“It is done,”Modi murmured, his voice filled with awe. “The Key is bound.”

And with those words, the weight of it shifted from me. The relic no longer tugged at my soul. It belonged to Modi now—his burden, his destiny.

Around us, quiet lingered, with only the wind through the pines to break the silence. Even Vine’s grin had faltered, replaced with something raw and reverent. Corson muttered under his breath, and Mal clung to his compass, his eyes on the sky.

Down the hill, the revelry in Fallow Hill continued, villagers laughing and singing around the bonfire, their voices carrying like ghosts through the pines. They didn’t know the air had changed, that the world had shifted.

I stared at the relic in Modi’s hand, its pulse steady, insistent, alive. We had chased it across cities, across blood and shadow, to Hell and back, and now it was whole.

The Fallen Key.

Whatever came next belonged to Asmodeus, because our part was done.

Chapter sixty-four

Delilah

“So, can we go to the party now?” Vine asked, already turning away from Modi and staring back down into the village. The bonfire had been lit, and someone had pulled out what sounded like a fiddle, sending lively notes floating on the autumn breeze.

“Shouldn’t we at least see if the Key will work?” I asked, more than a little eager to see if all that hard work was truly going to be worth it.

Before Modi could answer, the sound of approaching footsteps reached us, and I turned to see three people headed our way up the walk. The first was a young woman, maybe only a little younger than me, with shoulder length blond hair and blue eyes. The ends of her hair had been dyed a bright, bubble gum pink color, and shewore dark jeans, a black long-sleeved top, and aggressive looking combat boots.

Behind her walked a man whose size almost rivaled Corson’s, broad and muscular with short cropped hair and suspicious eyes. Next to him was another man, average height, but stunningly beautiful, his features sharp and his dark hair falling over dark brown eyes.

They moved fluidly, as a unit, and I wondered if they were members of the Brotherhood, too.

“Right on time,” Modi called, pushing past us and going to greet the newcomers. Holding out a fist, he received a bump from each of the guys, but the woman her greeted with a long, lingering kiss. The kind of kiss that happened between people who are destined to be together.

Forever.

“Did you get it?” the woman asked when the kiss finally ended.

“Of course, I did, butterfly,” Modi said, slinging one arm casually around her shoulders. “I told you my team would come through.”

“Let’s go then,” said the big one, his face painted in a scowl.

I was surprised when the woman, still standing under Modi’s arm, reached out and grasped the hand of the giant man, tugging him close to her other side.

“Easy, Corbin,” she said, offering him a smile that could only be called loving. “There will be plenty of fight left when we get there.”

“Listen to her,” Modi said, smacking a kiss on the woman’s cheek. “Halo knows what she’s talking about.”

“You’re leaving again?” Archer asked his friend, sounding resigned.

“Yeah,” Modi said simply, leaving the others and walking back toward us. “And I don’t know how long for.” Sighing, he looked over his shoulder at the woman and her two companions. The other man had now moved over to the woman, Halo, and was talking to her, his fingers twirling in the ends of her hair as he spoke as she continued to hold Corbin’s hand.

The scene was intimate and heartwarming, even if it was unconventional.

“This is the big one, Archer. The fight we’ve been waiting for.” Modi turned back to us, his gaze taking in Archer and the guys, and he suddenly looked so much older than he had a moment ago. “I have a feeling it’s going to be all or nothing this time. Halo, Corbin, Sinclair and I have some work ahead of us, but I’ll need you to be ready when we call.”

“Always,” Archer said, and I could feel his strength through the bond. He would be ready for whatever came, and I would be with him. Together.