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Suburb Outside of Tokyo,Japan
The next day after a very long plane trip, she was pulling up in front of her parents’ home.
But this time she wasn’t standing beneath that Japanese maple, hiding in the shadows. She was in broad daylight about to see her mom, dad, and brothers again, and meet her nephew with her head held high. Ready to rejoin her family because she deserved it.
All her old regrets and guilt had been washed away with Preacher’s love and her courage to take back her life. Karasu took a deep calming breath to steady herself as she felt her phone vibrate. Pulling it from her pocket, she saw the message from an unknown number. The message was short.Don’t chicken out. What the…. Then she smiled. She knew the sender and when he least expected it….
Preacher looked at her and said, “You ready?”
“So ready.”
He waited until she got to the walk and then slipped in behind her. He was so wonderful in thinking they would want to see her face first. She knocked on the door, her breath suspended.
When it opened, her mother stood there. “No, it’s time for lunch, Arata,” she said in Japanese and tears burned Karasu’s eyes to hear her native tongue. Her mother looked harried, but that was understandable being a grandma to a rambunctious boy.
She then looked at Karasu. “Can I help—” Her words froze, and her eyes widened. Tears started falling and she covered her mouth. “Luna?” she said, then yelled, “Luna!”
Then suddenly everyone was there. Her father, her brothers, and small nephew.
Her mother reached out and gathered Karasu against her and Karasu was so shocked at how she was several inches taller than her mom. The last time she had gotten hugged like this, she’d been so much smaller.
When her mom let her go, she turned to look at the rest of her family. Her father watched her with wariness, the same look on her brothers’ faces.
“Where have you been, Luna?” her father demanded. “Do you know what you’ve done to your mother, to all of us?”
She figured that was fair. “Yes, and I want to explain.”
“Who is this man?”
“His name is Boyce Carmichael. We’re engaged.”
Delight crossed her mother’s face, but her father looked him up and down. “You really do have a lot to answer for.” He slipped his arms around her mother’s shoulders and pulled her away from the door so that they could come inside.
They sat around the table, and Preacher took her hand, grounding her. “SEAL, babe. Don’t forget you’re not alone,” he whispered.
His words bolstered her. With him by her side, she could weather everything. Her heart was pounding so hard, she could scarcely draw breath. Then she started from the beginning. Her family went from horror and despair to sympathy and understanding, but it was going to take some time to get to acceptance. For her, she was cleansed and free. Whatever they decided, she would weather it with Preacher. “I know this is all so difficult to comprehend, and it’s been such a long time, but I’m home now and I intend to be part of this family again. I promise you that.”
Her mother reached out. “Luna, you’ve been through so much and so have we, but we never stopped loving you.”
She nodded. “I know. The candle.”
Then there were no words as her father rose and came around the table, pulling her into his embrace, then her brothers. Her nephew looked up at her. “Auntie Luna,” he said, setting off another crying jag. And she realized how the boy knew her. There was a picture of her on a table below the window where they had lit the candle.
Preacher was a warm presence at her back as they all switched to English, welcoming him into the family. Her mother’s English was as perfect as she remembered it.
By the time she went to bed that night, curled up against Preacher, she felt so good, she could barely contain it.
He was rubbing her back. “How you doing?”
“I’m so happy. So content. Thank you for coming here with me, for being who you are, for your understanding and support. I love you so much.”
“Thank you for what you did with Striker. He’s gone home to San Diego. He’s got some tough times ahead of him, but it’s a step in the right direction.”
“He’s a SEAL and he’s not alone,” she murmured.
He kissed her then, and she made a choking sound, tightening her arms around him, turning her face into the curve of his neck, then started to cry. He just held her through the storm with all his love and strength.
Her tears flowed and she let them finish the healing that Preacher had begun. Together they would face whatever came their way, in life, in work, in love. She would love him all the days of her life, and with confidence, she knew he would love her.
As she closed her eyes, she felt resurrected, a ghost no more.
Except when she was hunting.
* * *
