By a Thread

always came back—no matter what.

I braced myself for what I knew was coming next, for that old, familiar, bitter disgust to fill Donovan’s face at the knowledge that I was still alive and kicking and that I hadn’t met the messy demise I so richly deserved. But instead of looking conflicted and disappointed as he had when I’d shown up on the hill above Tobias Dawson’s coal mine, relief filled Donovan’s face, and he did a most unexpected thing—he smiled.

He actually smiled at me.

It was a wide, welcoming, beautiful smile, full of relief, warmth, concern, and other, deeper things that shocked the hell out of me. It was the smile I’d expected to see that day outside the coal mine; it was the smile I’d hoped to see a dozen times before. It was all that and so much more—it was everything I’d ever wanted from Donovan.

The others were standing behind him, so I headed in that direction. Donovan hesitated, then took a few steps toward me, then a few more, then a few more still, until he’d walked halfway across the lawn—meeting me in the middle. He didn’t say anything, and neither did I.

I stood there a moment, my eyes trailing over him, starting with his black hair and bronze skin and working my way down his strong, lean body. Despite the smoke that boiled up into the dark, humid night, I could somehow still smell his clean, soapy scent, the one that used to appeal to me so very much. Finally, I raised my eyes to his, so that our gazes locked, gray on gold.

Desire glimmered in Donovan’s gaze, more desire than I’d ever seen him show before—desire for me. For the first time since I’d been in Blue Marsh, he let me see just how much he wanted me, maybe just how much he’d always wanted me. Desire, heat, raw, naked longing. They were all tangled together in the sharp planes of his face, along with other, softer emotions. I stood there and just stared into his eyes, looking at all the things I’d hoped to see, all the things I’d thought he’d never feel for me—ever.

Finally, Donovan held out his hand to me, palm up in supplication and a silent, agonizing question. I knew that if I took his hand, if I wrapped my fingers in his, he’d kiss me and pull me close, even though his fiancee was less than a hundred feet away.

I stared at his outstretched hand. Once upon a time, I would have given just about anything to have Donovan look at me like he was doing now, to reach out to me like he was doing now. The old feelings rose up in my heart then, all the electricity that had sparked and hummed between us, all the desire we’d felt toward each other, all the delicious things we’d done to each other the few times we’d been together.

I stood there, and I remembered all that.

And then I walked right on past him.

I saw surprise fill his face, but I kept on going, heading toward the others, heading toward Owen.

“Gin?” Donovan called out behind me. “Gin?”

I kept walking, and I didn’t look back.

A few seconds later, Bria spotted me. My sister let out a shriek of glee and pointed me out to the others. They all ran in my direction, but Owen was the fastest.

My love caught me in a fierce embrace, lifting me up off my feet and spinning me around and around. I laughed at the dizzying feel of it, and the rush of emotions that tightened my chest to the breaking point. Owen put me back on my feet and rained kisses down on my cheeks, nose, and forehead before finally capturing my lips with his. I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him back twice as hard.

I didn’t look at Donovan, and I didn’t give him another thought. Not once. I didn’t need to. Not now, not ever.

Dekes’s massive mansion continued to burn well into the night. The island’s fire department was eventually called out, but the house was too far gone by the time they arrived. There was nothing the firefighters could do but stand there with the rest of us and watch the mansion disintegrate.

“Burn, baby, burn,” I said, echoing Vanessa’s words and encouraging the flames with a smile.

The Blue Marsh Police Department arrived as well. Donovan stood off to one side of the yard, talking with several men in suits and spinning some story about what had happened, while Bria stood behind him, listening and occasionally adding to the conversation. The higher-ups in the department had already come out in full force to make sure that all the i’s were dotted and all the t’s were crossed, since Dekes had been one of Blue Marsh’s leading citizens. Of course, the po-po didn’t know about the had been part yet, but they would when the ashes cooled and they found whatever was left of Dekes’s body in the library.

While we waited for things to calm down, I filled the others in on my battle with the vampire and how Vanessa had helped me defeat him. Vanessa crouched down on the lawn a few feet away, her arms wrapped around Victoria, who was now awake and sitting up. Both sisters stared at the burning mansion with grim, satisfied expressions on their faces. I got the impression that if they could have, they would have blasted the structure again and again with their Fire and Air magic to make it burn that much hotter and faster.

Finally, Bria broke away from the group of cops and came over to where I was standing with Owen, Finn, Sophia, and Jo-Jo.

“So what’s Donovan telling them?” I asked.

Bria shrugged. “Some lame story about a gas leak getting out of control, exploding, and causing the fire with the added unfortunate consequences of Dekes and several of his men being trapped and burned alive by the flames.”

“And what’s he going to say about the busted gate and all the bodies with bullets in them?” Owen asked. “Especially the ones outside?”

He jerked his head. The giants that Finn, Bria, and Sophia had killed on their way inside the mansion lay strewn about the lawn like oversize garden gnomes that had been toppled over onto their sides.

Bria shrugged again. “Donovan’s claiming that he came to rescue Callie from Dekes and that the giants wouldn’t stand down and forced him to fire on them. Apparently, he’s going to hang the four bodies Gin and I left in the pool at the Blue Sands on the vampire and his men as well. I heard Donovan say something about infighting among Dekes’s men, some feud that got out of hand.”

Well, that was a rather convenient way for Donovan to clear his case, but I wasn’t going to complain, since it would keep the cops from looking at Bria and me in connection with those deaths. For once, the detective was actually doing me a favor. Maybe I wasn’t the only one who was mellowing.

“I don’t think anyone will be too concerned about Dekes, his men, or how they really died,” Bria added. “The folks the vamp threatened will just be glad that he’s gone. So will the other power players on the island, since his death will let them grab a little more of his empire for themselves. Pretty soon, it will be business as usual again.”

Eventually, Vanessa helped Victoria up to her feet, and the two sisters drifted over to us. Victoria still looked frail, weak, and ashen, but Jo-Jo had claimed she’d be all right in a few weeks now that Dekes wasn’t around to continually suck out her blood and magic anymore.

Vanessa walked toward me, her arm around her sister’s slim shoulders. “I just wanted to thank you. For coming back for us. If I could have spared you what Dekes did to you in the library last night and again today, I would have. I hope you know that.”

I waved my hand, dismissing her concerns. “You tried to warn me about him during the press conferece. It was my own fault that I didn’t listen to you. But I think things turned out okay in the end, since the bastard is burning in hell right now. The question is where will you two go? What will you do now that you’re free of him?”

Vanessa shook her head. “Honestly, I haven’t thought that far ahead. I’m just trying to figure out how I can put clothes on our backs and find us someplace to stay while everything gets sorted out. Even though I hate this place with every bone in my body, I almost wished that the mansion hadn’t burned. At least then I’d have something to start with to help us get back on our feet.”

I pointed at the diamond and pearl choker and cuffs that she still wore. “Those baubles you have on will be a good start. The diamonds are especially exquisite.”

“Really?” Vanessa asked, looking down at the cuffs on her wrists. “I thought they were glass, fakes, just as fake and twisted as Dekes was.”

“Oh, no,” I said. “I know a thing or two about gemstones, and those are the real deal. You won’t have any problem hocking those for cold, hard cash—quite a bit of cash, actually.”

Bria cleared her throat. “Speaking of cash . . .”