Page 23 of Sorrow & Strangers

“I’ll start training at the gym again.”

He exhales and nods once, though tension has tightened his shoulders again. He angles his body and flaps his wings, sending us through the portal. We land in front of Morningstar House, and Uriel puts me back on my feet.

He looks down at me, his intense gaze locked onto mine. “Safe.”

I nod. “Safe.” I slide my hand into his, squeezing gently.

“You’ll call your mother?” he asks, and I can tell he’s stalling.

“I promise.” I made a vow to myself that I would never ignore her calls ever again. It broke her heart, and I will never do it again. We had a long discussion where she told me how much she’d missed me and how desperate she was to talk to her girl. We both ended up crying for over an hour, but we cried together.

Uriel pulls me into a hug and kisses the top of my head.

“You’ll come home again soon?”

I nod against his chest, leaning against him. “In three weeks.” It is already planned.

He kisses my head again and murmurs into my hair, warm amusement coating his words, “Someone is lurking on the porch for you.”

Alice.

I could already sense her feral energy, feel her eyes on me. My best friend in the whole entire world is waiting for me. She never left me.

“I love you, Dad.”

“I love you, kiddo.” He pulls back and smiles down at me. “Safe,” he says again, and then launches himself into the sky.

Chapter Fourteen

Summer

My eyes burn, and a lump forms in my throat as the clouds swallow Uriel. I open my mouth to call him back, but then the whole world tilts, and I fall hard to the side. The weight of my best friend lands on top of me. Her pixie-like face hovers over mine, the moisture in her eyes nearly obscuring her visceral relief.

“You left me,” she says, her tears bouncing against my cheeks, hitting like hailstones. I hear the accusation in her tone, but there is no heat behind it.

“Alice—”

She buries her face against my neck and sobs. I wrap my arms around her, guilt burrowing its way through me. “You left me behind,” she whispers, and regret sinks into my bones. She’s right. I did leave her. She is grieving too, but I⁠—

“I can’t lose you too. You are all I have,” she says into my skin, and I hear it, the deeper meaning of her words. She doesn’t simply mean me going to Eden for almost two weeks. She’s talking about my unwillingness to live, my desire not to be on this plane anymore.

Hot tears burst from my eyes and I tighten my hold on her. “I’m sorry,” I say, and I am. I am sorry not just for leaving, but for everything I have put her through in the months following Connor’s death.

Alice straddles me and continues to sob. A stone pokes into my back, but I don’t care. My best friend needs this right now, so I hold her tight and cry with her. “Don’t leave without warning again.” Her words are wet and broken, but I can hear the admonishing tone. Obviously, the letter I left wasn’t nearly enough.

“I promise.”

“You’re all I have,” she repeats.

“I know. I’m sorry.”

She pulls back, and when she looks down at me, her eyes are red and her face is puffy. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen her this much of a mess. Well, maybe after Connor died, but she’d only allowed herself a couple of days of grief, and then she was in full caretaker mode for me.

Alice wipes her tears on her sleeve and then looks around, checking that no one has seen them, no doubt believing they are a weakness. She stands and offers me her hand, pulling me to my feet.

“Never again,” she says, looking up at me, her face now set in a serious expression.

I nod, and she relaxes, sliding her hand into mine. She grabs my suitcase and pulls me inside. It’s pretty astounding how she manages her emotions so absolutely, though I suppose learning to do so was a matter of survival. Growing up the heir to the throne of Drãculea when your people despise you can’t have been easy, and I know her father has always been awful to her. No doubt, just like me, her ability to control her emotions has saved her time and time again. She avoids talking about her childhood and everything she went through, but I know she will tell me when she is ready. Just like I told her about Torin when I was ready.