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“Meet the demon Andaras,” I said.
“Lulu?” her mother asked cautiously.
“Hi, Mom. Just, you know, commanding a demon.”
Aunt Mallory’s gaze went vague as she looked over the demon, the sigil, as if seeing the magic behind and beneath. She started forward, hands rising as if to insert her own magic, but my mother put a hand around her wrist, stopped her.
Inside the circle, Rose seemed to curl within herself, as if that would save her from the rage of a terrified mother.
“Let them finish,” my mom said. “They’ve come this far, and they deserve to finish it.”
“We had a bargain,” Rosantine called out. There was actual fear in her voice now; if she was ready and willing to be sent back to her realm, she must have thought that whatever Mallory had in store would be much, much worse.
But whatever the reason, she was right. It was time to close this chapter.
“Is everyone inside the House okay?” I asked.
“We’re fine,” Dad said.
I glanced at Lulu, nodded.
“You are commanded,” Lulu said. “And you are sealed.”
On cue, Petra lit the sigil directly with her blue flame. It spread quickly across the marks, the fire rising nearly a foot off the ground. Unlike demon fire, it smelled astringent and clean. Like a good facial mask.
“Andaras,” Lulu said, “you have agreed to be committed back to your dimension and to be sealed therein until the death of the universe. Go to hell,” she said, and slammed a hand on the shimmering sigil she’d painted, extinguishing it.
“Damn,” I heard Petra murmur. “Thatwas a good tagline.”
Rosantine screamed as flames rose, engulfed her. She didn’t burn, but as with the House, they swept her clean away.
There was a moment of silence as the flames guttered, leaving a crisp ring of singed grass.
And then the running started.
***
The four of us stepped away from the circle. My parents wrapped themselves around me. And with that, the fear, the worry, the guilt of the last week was ripped away. Even monster seemed to enjoy the embrace, its own relief—that its other component had returned—palpable.
We’ll figure it out, I told it.
I looked over, found Connor with his parents. His mother looked up at him from her petite height, her hands on his face. Gabriel stood beside them, a hand on his son’s shoulder. They’d have much to talk about, I thought. But now they had plenty of time to do it.
The reunion became a party. Word spread, and the displaced vampires returned, along with a few dozen from Washington House who’d come to celebrate their Master’s return. A few of the Cadogan vampires had started a band, and they played outside in the cool fall air while sipping Blood4You offered by the local distributor at a heavy discount. He was relieved one of his biggest customers had returned to this plane of existence.
The Keenes didn’t stay long; they had other business to handle, and their own reunion to take part in. Connor and I shared a quiet kiss before he left with them, holding his mother’s hand as they moved down the sidewalk.
The Bells and Sullivans gathered on the House’s back patio with Uncle Malik, Micah, the Ombuds, and a few of Washington House’s vampires.
We explained the events of the last few days, from Cornerstones to Power Rangers.
“What did you experience?” I asked.
“Outside the House was darkness,” Dad said. “There were noscents, no sounds. Just emptiness. We were still alive and well in the House, and everything in the House worked as it would have if we’d still been in Hyde Park. But outside was... nothing.”
“We think it was a bubble universe,” Mallory said, pushing a lock of blue hair behind her ears as she sat beside Lulu, an arm wrapped around her daughter. Catcher sat beside them, a few more grays peeking through his cropped dark hair, but his eyes hard and focused as they always were. “At least, that was Paige’s guess.”
Paige and the Librarian were sipping champagne in another part of the yard.
