Page 156 of Unrequited

The kitchen smells faintlyof antiseptic. Someone’s dumped half a med kit on the counter. Caitlin’s on a stool, her long hair tied back, patching up Seamus’s arm like she’s done it a hundred times. Maybe she has.

Her eyes meet Seamus’, then Rafail. “Listen to me and listen well, lads,” she says softly, and somehow I get the distinct feeling she’s every bit as in charge of this family as Keenan is. “You’ll not have any more bloodshed in my home. If you must fight, leave. Not here. Not in Ballyhock. We’ve worked for decades to have peace with the locals, Mr. Kopolov. I hope you understand.”

I watch as Kyla wipes blood off Daire’s cheek, swatting his hand when he tries to do it himself. Everyone’s passing around the same dented flask.

No one’s fighting.

No one in either family suffered more than a superficial wound.

Branson’s secured somewhere in holding, and Matvei’s talking emphatically on the phone in the corner of the room. It’s hard to adjust to seeing my family here, right here, in the McCarthy family kitchen.

I lean against the door and watch. There’s something surreal about it. Our families, side by side.

Rafail walks toward Keenan. For a second, I brace myself on instinct, but Rafail sticks his hand out. Keenan doesn’t even hesitate.

They shake.

I blink. No guns. No shouting. Just… peace.

“So we had to get kidnapped and almost murdered for you two to make peace?” I ask, half-amused.

“Aye,” Keenan says. “Leave it to Seamus to have a bit of flair about him.” He turns to me. “I’m sorry, lass. So very sorry.”

And somehow… that’s it. The fire’s gone. The war is over. I watch it happen like waking from a dream. My brother, the one I was raised to follow, and Seamus, sitting in the same room. Still breathing.

I let out a shuddering breath. Kyla comes to me. “My god, what you’ve been through,” she says. “I’m so sorry. And I’m sorry for how I treated you.” She grimaces. “I just—” She sighs. “No, there’s no excuse for it. I’m sorry, Zoya. Forgive me?”

I nod. “Of course. This has been messy and unconventional. I get it.”

“Aye,” she says with a sigh. “Hasn’t it though?”

Rafail and Seamus sit side by side. Seamus sits up tall. “Matvei sent me the footage,” Rafail says. “And I saw you save Zoya in there. You took the blows meant for her.”

“Of course,” Seamus says. “I’ll always protect her, Kopolov. Because I love her.”

Rafail looks at me across the room and smiles.

I breathe a sigh of relief.

“Alright, then,” I say, my voice carrying across the room. “If we’re at peace, can we please agree to get along without another damn fight? I’m still not pleased with my husband for what he did, and it’s hard keeping track of who the hell I’m angry with.”

Seamus gives me a sheepish smile. Rafail nods. Keenan opens another bottle and pours us another round.

Seamus walks up to me and wraps his arms around me. “I’ll make it up to you, lass. I give you my word, I’ll make it up to you.”

He kisses me in front of all of them, long and slow and claiming.

I kiss him back. Somewhere, far in the distance, church bells ring, hearkening the break of dawn. It feels symbolic.

For a moment, I fancy they’re wedding bells.

Welcoming a new era.

Epilogue

ZOYA

Maybe he leftit at the top of my bedside table so I would find it, but it was slightly buried beneath a few pieces of paper. So I’m not sure if he left it on purpose, or if he forgot. But Seamus doesn’t forget anything.