I get it.
She sits down next to me, and we gaze at the brown grass—the dirt patch where the ship sat for so long. After a cold winter, new grass shoots are poking up from the ground. One day, there won’t be any sign the ship was ever here.
I can’t decide if that thought makes me happy or sad.
Korzyn and I have stayed here for the past six months, spending time with our friends and hunting any Dokhalls that attempted to attack us in retaliation. Now we’ll be heading back with Arix and Vivian. Korzyn has had some time to figure out who he is when he’s not responsible for Arix’s safety.
“Badadadada,” Danica announces, and I turn my head, my chest squeezing as I meet Korzyn’s eyes. He grins as he and Rakiz walk toward us. Behind them, Charlie and Dragix follow, their newborn baby boy tucked in his daddy’s arms.
“Yep, there’s dada,” Nevada murmurs. She grins at Rakiz as Danica throws up her arms. When he doesn’t reach her quick enough, she takes a step.
We all collectively inhale.
“Is she…,” Vivian whispers, and I nod.
“Don’t spook her.”
She takes another step, and Nevada’s hands fly to her face. Rakiz freezes in place, his eyes full of pride as he stares at his daughter. Behind them, Charlie grins at me as Dragix hands her their son, his eyes intent on Danica. As Nevada predicted, the baby has Uncle Dragix wrapped around her little finger.
Another step. Danica looks surprised, and then she takes another four steps before falling on her butt.
She grins at her father and claps for herself.
Rakiz picks her up as Nevada gets to her feet, tears in her eyes.
“She walked!”
“She did.”
“You’re so clever,” she coos as Danica claps some more. “My baby is a genius,” she announces, and we all laugh.
Charlie plops down on the grass on my other side, dark circles beneath her eyes.
“How are you doing?” I ask.
“Oh, you know, I’ve always thought sleep was overrated anyway.” She grins at me as Dragix positions himself behind her.
“Have you come up with a name yet?” I can’t help but grin as everyone goes quiet, waiting for Charlie’s answer. This baby has been called Bubba for weeks now while Dragix and Charlie made up their minds.
“Meet Casix,” she says. “After Dragix’s dad. Cas for short.”
“I love it.”
Baby Cas opens his eyes as I lean over, and I gasp. They’re now a rich, bright gold.
“His eyes have changed already?”
“Yep. Now he looks even more like his daddy. This kid has none of me in him, I swear.”
Dragix shifts behind her. “He has your smile.”
“He’s three weeks old. That was gas.”
“He has your gas face, then.”
I feel my eyes widen as Charlie bursts out laughing.
Javir saunters up to us, and Danica squeals. She’s obsessed with the teenager, much to his dismay.
“Uppy!” she demands, and he rolls his eyes but picks her up, flashing a quick grin at her when she showers his face with kisses. He places her on the ground and sits next to Beth, who reaches out and smooths her hand over his hair.
Danica stares at Cas, and he watches her. She babbles some more and crawls over to us, using my knee to pull herself up to her feet.
“Do you want to say hi to the baby?” I ask her gently, and she leans forward, patting Cas on the head.
“Bubuh.”
“Yes, that’s—whoa!”
A spark of gold, and Charlie is holding a teeny baby dragon.
Danica lets out a squeal and falls back on her butt, her mouth a surprised O.
Charlie’s face drains of color, and Dragix places his hand on her shoulder, keeping his voice low.
“Don’t panic or you’ll scare him. He can’t fly yet, but he instinctively knows how to shift. This usually doesn’t happen for a few months.” He smiles at Rakiz in clear challenge, and I roll my eyes.
“Are they seriously getting competitive about whose baby is cleverer?”
Charlie seems to be recovering from her shock as she smiles down at Cas, stroking her finger down his tiny dragon nose. “Yep. And I’m not at all surprised,” she says absently. “Do I need to worry he’ll set his crib on fire?”
Dragix grins and scoops up his son. “No. He won’t spit fire for years.”
Charlie lets out a sigh of relief. “Well, we were wondering if he’d be a dragon. At least now we know.”
Dragix is practically vibrating with pride, and I can’t help but laugh as he holds up his son, examining every inch of the tiny dragon—from his minuscule wings to his itty-bitty claws. Cas yawns—displaying a mouth that looks weird with no teeth—and then closes his eyes, settling into his father’s hand.
A tiny puff of smoke escapes above his head as Cas lets out a snore.
We’re all silent.
“This place just gets weirder and weirder,” Alexis says, and Charlie removes her gaze from her son long enough to grin at her.
“And you wouldn’t have it any other way,” she says.
We spend the afternoon talking and reminiscing, sharing stories about the other women. Someone breaks out the noptri, and a few of the warriors organize for some food to be brought over. A fire is built right in front of us, and eventually, when the sun has gone down, the group begins to disband, wandering away to their kradis.
I watch quietly, my mind elsewhere. According to my rough calculations, it will be the anniversary of Claire’s death in a few days.
My nightmares have gotten better. I don’t know if it’s because I’m finally talking about what happened that night, or if it’s because I’m surrounded by the scent of my mate each night as I sleep.
Korzyn takes my hand, lifting my wrist to
