Page 19 of Plain Sight

I might be crazy, I don’t say. “She’s not going to be alone out there, is she?”

“Change of plans.”

I should’ve asked about this before I let Gabriel whisk me away to be repaired. Lily was going to walk herself down the aisle originally, but that can’t happen now. I just can’t figure out who’s going to do it. Her dad isn’t in the picture. Her mom might be dead or might still be missing. Her grandfather is a fucking psychopath. I’d turn to count the groomsmen, but I think I might pass out.

Instead, the music starts up and the guests hush.

The doors open.

Remy is the first bridesmaid down the aisle. Her footsteps are louder this time—she has shoes on—but they’re steady. She smiles at me encouragingly, which makes me feel like a piece of shit. I’m the older brother. I should encourage her.

But it’s taking every scrap of self-control I have not to sprint down the aisle and find Lily. I think another unhinged sprint might be too much for this wedding. Also, Mason’s grip is pretty tight on my arm. It wouldn’t be easy to get free.

The other bridesmaids are coming. They, unlike me, have it together. They’re all smiling and looking beautiful. Hades’s wife winks at him when she’s halfway to the front. Zeus’s daughter runs to her mother when she reaches the row they’re sitting in, and Hades’s daughter follows, so we end up with two mini-bridesmaids standing in the row.

I’m going to throw up if Lily doesn’t come out soon. Mason says something I don’t understand. Probably don’t throw up.

And then she’s there at the open doors.

Everybody stands up. Several people say awww. Because Nate’s walking Lily down the aisle. He stands tall and proud and doesn’t look nervous at all. The confidence reminds me of Gabriel. Nate’s only lived at his house since last fall, and when he first showed up, he was in bad shape. Washed out and thin and bruised from having been beaten to within an inch of his life.

Now, he could be one of us.

One of my brothers, anyway. I might not give the impression that I was beaten to within an inch of my life, but if anybody looks close enough, they’ll see.

Gabriel was right. Nate belongs with us.

With them.

I’m fucking heartbroken, and I’m…fine with it?

I’m fine with it because if I go down in flames, at least they won’t be missing a person. Nate’s a way better option than me.

The light from the cathedral windows comes down on Lily, and I forget to be heartbroken, because she’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen. I didn’t know a veil was part of her outfit. They must’ve put it on just now, and it’s not over her face, just cascading over her hair. White, with black lace, like her dress.

Lily’s smiling, but she doesn’t look shaken. She’s not tearing up. It’s the fiercest I’ve ever seen her look. A human sunbeam, and God help whoever tries to stop her.

She’s an angel.

The avenging kind.

Nate bends and says something to her, and she answers, her eyes sharpening, and then they’re here.

Either someone told Nate what to do beforehand, or he decided on his own, but he looks me in the eye and sticks his hand out to shake. There’s a camera lens in my periphery. August is getting all of this. No doubt it’ll look even better in the photos.

Then Nate puts Lily’s hand in mine.

Time to get married.

Not time to run out of here so we can be somewhere alone.

The cathedral blurs, but Lily stays clear. I’m not sure what the priest is saying, or if it even matters. Something about love and marriage and family. I’m supposed to be looking at him, but I can’t take my eyes off her.

“I was so scared,” I tell her, keeping my voice low enough that I won’t interrupt my own wedding ceremony. Again.

“Me too.” Her eyes, a lighter green than mine, remind me of sea glass. Then the light hits them a different way, and they’re the color of a jewel. “I was really scared. But I knew you’d come to find me.”

“I love you.”