Understanding flooded through me. I understood. After all, I’d looked for survivors of my own kin in the mountains of Vanim before forming our group to head into the Mortal Plane. It was devastating to consider that if any person—our team included—had done something differently, lives might've been saved. Those thoughts would torture her, but they were inevitable in someone of her character.
She breathed out into the cold air. "I want to find my parents."
And there it was. I tucked her head underneath my chin. "I know you're disappointed that they're not here."
"I am," she admitted, her voice wavering slightly. "I want so badly to find them safe and sound. I need them to know about Zach, and… losing anyone else at this point might be too much. It's a reality that felt so far away before Zach passed on." She didn't say died, likely because it was so painful. I remembered this feeling from when I’d lost Lanzon.
"You push yourself too hard to try to fix things," I said gently. “Some things can’t be fixed by pushing, and you end up breaking yourself, instead.” I didn't want to upset her, but I was going to be honest. She was my wife.
She wiped at her eyes. "I know. Isn't that why we make such a good pair?" I let out a husky laugh, and she gave me a weak smile. "I won't push myself to the breaking point."
"Good." I kissed her on the forehead. "You know, I think we're both changing in the pushing department." After everything that had happened in the Higher Plane, I was forced to deal with my emotions in a new way. They all came flooding back to me at once, like ghosts emerging from my past to show me how badly losing my family had hurt me. Now, we hoped that both Lyra’s parents and my own were out there somewhere… alive. It was our job to investigate and look for them along the way.
After seeing Lanzon in spirit, though… something shifted inside me. I got closure. I knew he’d made it to the afterlife, and that brought everything full circle for me.
"Do you think we'll find them—all of our parents?" Lyra asked. Her grief was fresh, far from my years of suppressed sadness. I needed to give her time and space, but most of all, my love and support.
"I can't promise that, but I can promise that whatever happens in life, you'll be okay. I know you well enough to say that." I brushed a stray piece of hair behind her ear, and she smiled at my touch. "Uncertainty is difficult, but I daresay we're getting used to it."
She pressed her lips against mine. I wrapped my arms around her, and then we broke apart, our breathing filling the space between us. She rested her hands on my chest and played with the band around her finger. It still made me delirious to think that she was my wife. We were united against the world, now.
From the corner of my eye, I saw the trees twitch, and the movement sent a cold sensation through my body as they arched toward us… sensing us. Lyra spotted them too, since they were impossible to ignore for long, and looked up at me with heavy eyes.
"Let’s see what we can do," she said. I took her hand in mine, and we continued the search. I looked out to the forest on the other side of the clearing with our plane. A new scent hit me as I inched closer to the woods. Dark red dotted the bark of the nearest tree.
It was blood, and it had a familiar scent to it… My gaze trailed down to the source. A hard lump of dread settled in my throat.
We’d found Charles. Or what remained of him.
6
Roxy
The air was chilly, but I was ready. I always had to be ready in my new role. And honestly, I much preferred doing extra training than suffering through a terrible date with a guy who didn’t listen to a word I said.
The Hellraisers were only one of five teams within the Chicago Bureau. Each team had been formed as part of an initiative from the Bureau, working alongside the US government to take out the creatures from the Leftovers. Some areas had monsters that were bolder than others, while some—like the Salt Lake City mission—required annoying bait to get the beasts to come out.
I glanced at the large digital clock displayed on the building next to our training courtyard for the purpose of timed exercises. It was time to begin. Easier said than done, with Hindley watching me like a silent hawk from the sidelines.
I sized up the crowd. Our daily training as monster hunters involved mandatory physical and mental exercises. One had to be careful when hunting supernatural beasts, after all. With five teams of six to seven people each, there were plenty of soldiers here, and that included my brother and sister. The twins had better behave today. They were as troublesome as… well, me, before Bryce taught me how to behave, for the most part.
Yesterday was Captain Kelly's turn to run the training. I hadn’t met her before, but she had done an excellent job, and I wanted to do the same, hoping to impress Hindley and show her that I was capable of living up to my new promotion. “Captain Roxy” never gets old, no matter how many times I say it. Having the twins in the crowd today meant that my chances of screwing up were higher. I'd have to be on top of my game.
"Let's get
