Page 170 of Wicked Magik

Vesper laughed, a laugh that I felt deep within my soul. Veylor even smiled.

The casket lid crashed to the floor as tendrils of white mist rose from within, cradling Alicia’s body. Her brown hair rose as if underwater; her garments rippled around her suspended form. Time seemed to hold its breath as the mist carried her weightlessly, frozen in time to the padded bed waiting beside the laboratory table.

Vesper was quiet, her heart still.

“Just as the day I put her to sleep,” Thackery said as he approached the table. We all followed and Vesper held her breath.

“Breathe darling,” Veylor said as his hand rubbed up her leg. “If you faint, you will miss your mother waking.”

Vesper's breath caught as she gazed down at her mother. The garments adorning Alicia's body shimmered with an otherworldly quality—fabrics that belong to this realm and not on Earth. Thackery must have dressed her in clothing from their first arrival on Earth.

“You know,” Vesper began, “I never thought about it, but mom never did age like everyone else.”

Thackery chuckled. “She didn’t. She put silver highlights in her hair as the years went by. You hardly noticed, children have their own problems.”

Vesper blushed. “I should have…”

Thackery's fingers closed around hers, warm and reassured. "None of that matters now," he said, his voice gentle. "You both carried burdens I couldn't share while I was searching for the portal. But look—" his eyes softened as they fell on Alicia's still form, "—we're all here now, and once we wake her, we have remedies that will heal what ailed her in the human realm."

Vesper’s legs tightened around my head.

Fuck, I’m hard.

Sylvaine, all the while, was staring at Alicia with longing. His fingers ran through her slightly streaked silver hair and a smile quirked at his lips. “Do you think she is angry with me?”

Thackery's hand found Sylvain's shoulder, squeezing gently. "Look how easily we reconciled. She won't harbor any resentment—we never did. Those were lies you told yourself." His eyes softened, glancing toward Alicia's still form. "Let's bring her back to us. Then perhaps you'll finally have your chance at fatherhood. She always wanted to give you that gift."

Sylvaine blushed and shook his head. “She wouldn’t want that so soon.”

Thackery chuckled and rounded the bed. “Alicia talked about it often. How she longed to see you again and give you a child. Prepare yourself.”

Sylvaine rubbed his chest, his eyes watered.

Vesper grabbed my horns and shook them. “Wake her up already, man!”

Thackery chuckled as tendrils of white mist emerged from his fingertips, encircling Alicia's still form. The ethereal wisps danced across her face before slipping between her parted lips and into her nostrils. Her chest expanded with a sudden, sharpintake of breath, the first sign of life returning to her dormant body.

Vesper bent forward over my horns, her breath catching as we watched. Alicia’s corset dress—once dulled by time—now blazed with white, orange, and brown hues as the ancient dust scattered from its fabric.

After a moment of the wind and snowflakes fading away, Alicia gasped, and her eyes opened. Her fingers twitched, and her head moved back and forth. “Thackery?” Her voice croaked, and Thackery was at her side with a glass of water that was on the nearby table.

Thackery helped her up and Vesper once again held her breath.

“Breathe, Vesper,” Veylor warned.

Alicia's head snapped toward Veylor's voice, her gaze landing on both of us. Her eyes widened at the sight, and Vesper trembled against me, no longer able to contain her excitement.

“Mom!”

Alicia let go of the glass, it was caught by Sylvaine. His touch startled Alicia, and she glanced toward him.

“Oh my god. We’re back? Vesper?” She looked back to Vesper, tears welled up into her eyes. “You’re here too?”

Sylvaine grabbed Alicia from the coffin, holding her close. Thackery came to Alicia’s side and stroked the side of her arm. “Hello sleeping beauty.”

Vesper wiggled in my grasp until I pulled her off my shoulders and held her in my arms, both women now surrounded by their males.

“Mom!” Vesper cried again, reaching for her.