She closed the portal and pivoted around to face him, hands on her hips.
“Sorry if I gave offense, little lady.” He pretended to tip his hat.
She scowled but dissolved into laughter when he began to tickle her.
“Stop!” she squealed. “Stop it! I take it back. You can be a cowboy!”
Connor wrangled her into a one-armed embrace, grinning at Ethan.
“So how was it?” he asked. “Did you find them?”
Sabine looked away. Connor had asked the question she hadn’t been ready to voice but that had been running through her mind since Ethan returned.
Ethan cleared his throat as he watched Sabine tense. “Yeah. It wasn’t hard. They’re right where we thought they’d be.”
“Old stomping grounds.” Connor shrugged. “It makes sense.”
“It’s a little strange, though,” Adne said. “Don’t you think? Going back to Haldis after everything that happened.”
“It’s their territory,” Sabine said, glancing at her and then staring into the distance again. “They belong on that mountain.”
She hesitated and her voice grew softer. “Do they seem happy?”
“They really do.” Ethan moved closer to her. His fingers gently rested on her upper arm. “You should come next time. See them.”
Sabine managed to smile at the kindness in his eyes, although her heart had gone jagged. “Maybe.”
“Sabine-”
She turned to face him head-on, reaching up and resting her palm against his throat. She let his pulse drum against her skin for a few seconds before speaking again. “That’s the past. I’m here now. With you.”
He frowned. “You don’t want to see them?”
She lowered her lashes, not wanting him to see the pain in her eyes. He’d know it was there. He always did, but sometimes she wanted to keep it veiled from her new companions. She was grateful for their friendship and Ethan’s love. She didn’t want the past to mar the hope she had for their future. “What about the other pack?”
“They’ve moved to the western face,” Ethan said. “Stephen’s pack has taken over the Banes’ former range. What was left of the Bane pack after the fight seems to have moved on.”
“That’s justice.”
“I thought so too.”
“So one alpha got her happy ending,” Connor said. “But how’s our boy adjusting to his new role?”
“Not that I’m an expert, but he seems fine.” Ethan put his arms around Sabine, drawing her back against him.
“I feel kind of sorry for Tristan and Sarah,” Adne said, hopping up on the table. She swung her legs back and forth as she mused. “They had about a ten-minute reunion. And then they lost their son again.”
“They didn’t lose him,” Ethan said. “Not exactly.”
“I don’t think they’ll be having family picnics in the forest, though,” Connor said.
“Are you ever serious?” Sabine asked.
Connor flashed a smile at her. “Not unless it’s absolutely necessary.” He frowned at Adne. “Why do you feel bad? I thought you talked to Sarah and, you know, explained about Calla.”
“I did,” Adne said. “And I think they’re trying to be happy for him, but I think they still feel like he’s just gone.”
“I’m just glad he ran out of the library when he became a wolf,” Connor said. “ ’Cause if he’d attacked Anika, and Ethan had shot the Scion right after he’d saved the world… Can you imagine?
“You really aren’t that funny,” Adne said.
“Yes, I am.” Connor smiled.
“Sabine?” Adne shot her a pleading look. “A little help here?”
Sabine stuck her tongue out at Connor.
“I rest my case.” Adne grinned.
“Ethan gets a vote too,” Connor said. “Ethan?”
“I abstain.” Ethan laughed. “Wait, no. I hate to give Connor credit for any of his humor, but he has a point. All the wolves, including the Scion, ran for the hills. I count that as a good thing. If they’d attacked us, it would have been ugly.”
“They were being called home, I think,” Adne mused. “Back to the wilderness. They didn’t have any reason to be interested in us.”
“Do you think they remember?” Connor asked. “When Shay became a wolf, do you think he knew what was happening?”
“There’s no way to know,” Adne said.
Sabine drew Ethan’s arms more tightly around her body. “It’s good that he changed. Shay and Calla belong together. They always did.”
Ethan bent down and kissed the crown of her hair. “I know the feeling.”
“Apparently the earth thought they belonged together too,” Adne said. “So are you guys ready? I’m starving and Anika is giving out new assignments in a few hours. I don’t want to miss dinner.”
“What exactly is your work now?” Sabine asked. “The war is over.”
“I think you mean
“We’ve got to keep an eye on that.” Connor pointed to what had been the library’s fireplace.
A massive iron door filled the stone frame. The Elemental Cross was set in the center of the door, giving all appearance that the two swords had been welded to the metal barrier. “Make sure no evildoers try to mess with it.”
“Like Logan?” Sabine asked.
“Logan,” Adne said, “and any other Keepers who hadn’t already passed their human expiration date. There won’t be a lot of them, but some are still around.”
“And we’ll go back to doing what we did before this war broke out too,” Connor said.
“You remember that far back?” Sabine asked.
“I’m pretty sure somebody wrote it down somewhere.” Connor smiled.
“Before there were Keepers and Searchers, we were all one group,” Adne said. “We made sure no one was abusing the mystical realm or messing with forces that shouldn’t be messed with.”
“We were called
“Speaking of names,” Connor said, “since we’re not searching for the Scion anymore, are we gonna get a new label?”
Ethan shrugged. “Ask Anika.”
“We could be Conatus again,” Adne said.
“That was six hundred years ago,” Connor said. “I vote no. Besides, the first Keepers were part of Conatus. Sharing a name with any Keeper would make me feel dirty.”
“Fine.” Adne ignored his teasing. “I just think using Latin would add dignity to our cause. Come on, we can argue about it over dinner.”
She began to weave a door.
“Dignity?” Ethan pulled away from Sabine, grinning at Adne. “Nobody actually speaks Latin anymore. Explaining that word anytime we met someone would get old fast. Besides, any group Connor is part of can’t actually be dignified.”
“Hey!” Connor shoved him.
Sabine laughed; her smile was full of mischief. “I’ve got a name for us.”
Ethan reached out, fingers tilting her chin up. When she looked into his sea blue eyes, the world opened up before her. Just like it always did.
“Okay, beautiful. What’s our new name?” he asked.
“Guardians.”
His smile softened. “That might take some getting used to. But it does have a nice ring to it.”
