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“I don’t know what happened between you and Isaiah, Rukia,” Toni interjected, her voice thoughtful, “but if you want us to cancel their invite, we can.”
“No.” Rukia snapped out of her fog and heard her own teeth grind together. “They can come if they damn well want to; I don’t care. Where are we on preparations?”
Tyee offered her a tight smile as they launched into logistics and Rukia poured over the details. She dove into the nuances with single-minded focus, eschewing all other thought except the memorial service.
It wasn’t until Rona interrupted their planning that they even realized it was nearing twilight. Drake appeared in the doorway behind the petite vampire, his features tight in a way that told Rukia that Rona wasn’t in her right mind.
Instantly, her eyes fixated on the young Elemental at Aidan’s side. “Where does he live, Lucy?”
“Who?” Lucy frowned, confusion flitting across her green-blue eyes as she straightened in her seat.
“Torrin Scayde! Where does he work?” Rona’s rumpled, unkept appearance was a far cry from her customary poise. “I know you know. Tell me!”
When Rona made an effort to close the distance between them, Aidan’s eyes turned citrus orange, the feral wolf under his skin making an appearance. Baring his teeth in an eerily animalistic gesture, the werewolf alpha stood as a lethal barrier between the two females.
Sensing his hostility, Rona’s eyes flashed a dangerous shade of ocean blue, her incisors elongating on instinct. Lowering her head in a predatory gesture, the vampire hissed, “Get out of my way, wolf.”
The guttural words from the normally placid vampire sent shivers skating across Rukia’s skin, her heart beating frenetically in her chest at the sudden change of atmosphere. Standing up from her chair, her fist collided with the table.
“Stop, both of you!”
Abruptly, the rapt attention of the two apex predators had focused solely on her.
“Enough of this! Do you think this is what Gideon would want? Us quarreling among ourselves and baring our fangs?
Incredulous, Rukia continued in her tirade. “This is what theCitizenswant! We can’t allow them to win. They’ve already taken Gideon from us; we can’t allow them to take our unity.”
Though neither Rona nor Aidan moved, the hostility eased from their frames. Reason once again reigned supreme. Rona’s eyes lost their madness, the earthy tones of her irises shining through. Aidan rocked back on his heels, his face falling in grief while he inhaled sharply.
“It’s unfair,” came Rona’s small voice, the vampire’s despair-filled eyes finding Rukia. “I had only just found him. We hadn’t even been married a year yet.”
Rona’s features pinched together, the heavy weight of her sorrow breaking her from the inside out. “Six hundred years he walked this earth. Six! He’s saved countless lives from landslides, and earthquakes, and cave-ins. He created this community where his people could genuinely feel safe and appreciated, a home where they didn’t have to hide.”
Tears fell in earnest down Rona’s face, her hands fisting at her side. “Gideon trained people to manage their abilities and be the good the world needed. And Torrin took his life as if none of that mattered! I should have taken the blame for Victor’s death, not Gideon.”
“But you didn’t kill him, Rona,” Rukia caught the other woman’s gaze. “And Gideon wouldn’t have, either, if Victor hadn’t of pulled a gun.”
Nothing but despair filled the vampire in front of her. “I don’t know how to live in a world with Gideon.”
“Neither do I, Rona, but we’ll find out together.”
***
The next day passed in a blur of preparation and activity. Rukia had crammed her schedule so full of tasks and logistics that she barely gave herself time to think about what it was all for.
It was better that way. Easier.
Old eyes in young faces greeted her as the Elemental nation gathered just prior to the official opening of the ceremony. Largely silent, they came together with somber warmth, a glum cast over the proceedings. Past connections flared into new life, the youngest Elementals meeting the most senior of their kind.
Gideon had been their leader, but he hadn’t been the oldest of them.
Over the years, they’d met several Elementals who had aged well over a thousand years. Nix, a water Elemental born nearly thirteen hundred years ago, had ventured from the rugged region of Lebanon to pay her respects.
Rukia had only met the other woman twice over the course of her life, but she’d been deeply impressed. Now, they simply greeted each other with a companionable nod, Nix’s eyes filled with shadows.
Along the periphery, Rona stood in stoic silence next to Drake. On his other arm, Toni remained close, her eyes spearing through the assembled supernaturals. While the fire Elemental was the only one of her kind in their nation, Gideon had ensured she felt welcome and comfortable in this environment she considered her second home. Lucy and Aidan were off to their right, Brianna and Josiah clasping hands next to them.
How many people had Gideon influenced over his lifetime? How many souls had he saved with his willingness to mentor and guide?
