There was so much more we needed to discuss, things that’d happened, battles to come, but for now, I wanted to take my family home.
I took my time driving, allowing Milo to relax in the passenger seat. The rest did him good, letting his muscles ease and his mind wander between sleepy half-thoughts. I indulged in his soothing thoughts, allowing Milo’s comfort to ease my concerns. Milo was my everything, and having him back kept me grounded in these terrible times.
Ben’s mood had lifted by the time we got inside the penthouse. He ran through the living room, screaming as Sheamus playfully chased him. The pair made a game of it, lost in silly thoughts and completely distracted from his earlier fears.
“All right, settle down,” I said.
“Let them have a little fun.” Milo gently nudged me, pressing his shoulder against mine.
The briefest contact filled me with butterflies.
“You know,” Ben said, hugging Sheamus’ neck and giggling as the dog licked his face. “You and Sheamus can be scar buddies.”
Sheamus’ patchy fur and missing left ear sent a shiver through me. It wasn’t the injury or appearance itself, so much as the pain this old hound had endured. As protective as Sheamus had become over Ben, I could only imagine how hard the dog fought to protect his former familiar bonded witch.
Those injuries were a painful, permanent reminder of the battle the dog lost in saving his partner’s life.
“Oh, definitely.” Milo knelt down, pressing his face against Sheamus’ so the scarred sides were prominent. “Look at us twinning.”
Ben giggled, holding his arms out so he could fly. Sheamus barked, casting telekinesis meant to lift his favorite human. Milo smiled, helping to steady Ben’s flight around the living room. Charlie chirped, running over to join in the fun. Carlie meowed, annoyed by the ruckus. I basked in the happiness of our home.
This family I’d built meant everything to me. I loved them all more and more every single day.
Thecoming days didn’t offer much of a reprieve. Many funerals were scheduled, many vigils were held, many tears were shed, and so much hope was lost.
When I arrived at Guild Master Campbell’s funeral, the overcast clouds gave way, ushering in a heavy rain. It masked some of the sorrow on familiar faces. Layla continued grieving, hit hard by the death. The death of her mentor, her inspiration. A death she couldn’t prevent despite her best efforts.
She looked weary without her typical confident expression. Her eyes were splotchy. For the first time since I’d met her, Layla didn’t have her hair styled in her cute little pigtails. Instead, she let her long brown hair hang lifelessly, catching in the rain as she sank with her feelings.
I wanted to comfort her, but I had nothing to offer. Death hollowed me out too much, and any advice I had on the subject would likely be detrimental. My only hope was that Layla didn’t cling to this pain for years.
Before I reached Milo, another mind often filled with anger called out. Kenzo. He’d come here to offer his respects, yet his heart and mind were a thousand miles away. Anguishedthoughts twisting in on themselves ate away at him. Guilt consumed him. Each breath he took stung. Nothing reassured him, eased the pain.
Caleb had been abducted, and Kenzo was flooded with worry.
He wasn’t the only mind stuck on Caleb’s loss, Tara’s loss. They’d been taken from us, from the city, and held captive by a psychotic witch.
My telepathy spanned the length of the funeral, hit with the anguish from thousands of thoughts. Everyone from Cerberus had come. Nearly everyone. One mind far away hadn’t made it out the front door before grief consumed her. Here, though, so many came to show their respects. Cerberus members, students, other guild masters, enchanters, civilians, investors, and many others, all of whom considered Campbell a friend and ally.
But far on the other side of the city, my telepathy snaked through the busy streets until I reached Katherine’s home. She lay on her bed, dressed in black, but unable to pull herself together. She sobbed, too devastated by her role in things. The possession ate away at her, haunting her with memories of Moire’s cruel actions. Guilt flooded her every fleeting thought, convinced she could’ve helped Caleb and Tara if only she’d done better. Been better.
She wasn’t at fault.
I only hoped she saw that soon enough.
Making my way around the edges of the crowd, I carefully pressed through the sea of black. Milo stood silently, mourning Campbell. His solemn expression made the scars on his face all the more prominent. Those jagged slash marks haunted me. He was fine, healed, but they were a constant reminder of the battles he’d always find himself entering.
The ten most powerful witches in the Global Guild opposed him, and he jumped into the fray without a moment of hesitation. But the pride he had for that fight was lost on him here and now.
I endured the thoughts of everyone around us because Milo needed the peace to quietly grieve Campbell’s loss. Latching my telepathy to Milo, sinking into his mind fully, would offer a reprieve I desperately craved in this abyss of anguish. But I couldn’t burden Milo right now. I needed to stand tall, offer myself as a pillar of support when he needed it.
During the sermon, a small spark of joy steered my magic. It was mixed with a twinge of guilt, but mostly relief. A few rows back, Lena stood between Hayden and Ellie, taking in the kind words and ceremonial verses meant to offer Campbell a final farewell.
Lena had already experienced a tremendous loss when Jamie was taken from her, taken from this world. There weren’t many left in her life that she cared for. She’d distanced herself from her family. She rarely associated with colleagues, Hayden and Ellie being the exception. And as she took in the service, Lena counted her blessings that she hadn’t lost either of the loves of her life.
While I didn’t care much for the trio as individuals. They mostly annoyed me, Lena with her sourpuss attitude, Ellie with her constant niceties, and Hayden with her ditzy aloofness. They were a vexing throuple. Still, I silently sent a wish for the very same thing Lena hoped for. May Lena, Ellie, and Hayden never experience the pain of losing one another.
I loved Milo and Finn just as deeply as Lena loved her partners. Losing Finn… I would never fully recover from it, but I was happy to finally allow myself to be happy again. May no one have to endure the grueling journey of grief I dragged myself through.
