I gasp. “Oh, no!” I pull in a breath. “Lilith mentioned that it might take time to wear off. That she gave him too much. I’m starting to worry.”
“Problem is, I wouldn’t trust anything that came out of her mouth.” Lyre looks angry.
“You’re right.” I nod. “She seemed to be muttering to herself, though, or speaking to him, so,” I shrug, “maybe.”
“Let’s hope,” he says. “I would hate to see him go on like this. Jarrod said that he’s…nothing like his old self. That it’s disconcerting.”
Neither of us has seen Bolt since yesterday. Lyre’s friends feel he isn’t in the right headspace to see us.
“I think my powers are back,” he blurts, bringing me out of my thoughts. “I think she lied about them dying with her.”
I take a step back. “Oh my—! Are you serious?”
“Yep, my powers are back….at least, I think they are.” He lifts his hand, and scales appear on the top. When I look into his eyes, they are glowing.
I choke out a laugh and then cover my mouth because I don’t want anyone to hear and to think I’m mad. “How did you know?”
“I started feeling different. More like myself.”
“When?”
He narrows his eyes in thought. “From when I woke up this morning…it’s been gradual.”
“Why didn’t you say something?” I have to work to keep my voice down.
“I wasn’t sure at first,” he says. “I also didn’t want to get your hopes up. I’m sure I could shift if I tried. I’m not sure about whether my powers of healing are back.”
I cover my mouth with my hand for a moment. “This is fantastic,” I say.
“This is what I meant,” He cocks his head. “I didn’t want you getting excited. I can try to heal Andy, but it might not work, even if my powers are back. You understand that…I hope?”
“But it might work?”
“It might.” He shrugs. “There’s only one way to find out.” He goes to the side of the bed and places one hand on Andy’s head and one on his chest.
“Do it!” I say. We have nothing to lose. The doctor is coming in two hours to pull the plug. Andy is scheduled to die today.
Lyre nods. He looks down at Andy. Nothing happens. No light. No…nothing. Lyre let's go.
“Did you do it?” I ask.
He nods. “Yes…at least…I think so.”
“Did it work?”
“I don’t—”
Andy’s eyes open, and he kicks his right leg. He’s trying to breathe by himself. Trying to— He makes these awful choking noises.
“Doctor!” I yell. “We need a doctor in here!”
“Morgan,” Lyre says. He has this amused look. “I’m a doctor.”
I feel like an idiot. I forgot for a second. I watch in fascination as Lyre carefully pulls out the tube that has been breathing for Andy.
He chokes and splutters. He pulls in a deep breath. His mother and sisters run in, followed by two nurses. “What…happened?” Andy croaks.
“Andy!” his mom screams. Tears are running down her cheeks. Tears of joy.
I leap into Lyre’s arms. “You did it,” I whisper into his ear. “You gave him back his life.”
25
Three months later…
Morgan
I take another sip of my champagne. Lyre has a hand at the small of my back. He hasn’t so much as left my side the whole afternoon. He says it’s because I’m wearing a sexy dress and he’s worried some other guy will hit on me. Then he’d have to beat them, so in order to avoid a scene, he’s sticking to me like glue. As a dual reason, he wants to be able to whisper into my ear, all the things he wants to do to me that involve lifting my dress. As a third reason, he’s trying really hard to get me to take off my underwear.
Although I’m quite sure the last two reasons are valid, I know that they’re not the real reason he’s sticking to me like glue. The real reason is standing mere feet away from us. He’s glowering at me like if I handed him my knife – which is strapped to my thigh – he’d gut me like a fish.
His eyes narrow when he catches me looking at him and I feel Lyre stiffen.
Stephanus must pick up on the tension because he asks, “How’s the new job going, Morgan?”
“Not that new anymore,” I say. “I’ve been at Dragon Customs two months already, and I’m loving it.”
I met the rest of the gang, including Forge. Lyre mentioned my skills in fixing cars, and the rest is history. Turns out Forge recently had a kid and was looking to work less. Although I’m not sure it’s something I want to do for the rest of my life, for now, I really am loving it. It turns out that aside from being able to fix anything, I have somewhat of an artistic side as well. I’m having fun customizing cars. It’s awesome creating, building, and bringing something to life instead of destroying.
“Forge isn’t too grumpy to have as a boss, is he?” Jarrod asks.
“Nah,” I shake my head, “he’s been great. Stays out of my hair for the most part. Otherwise, he’s really helpful.”
Stephanus laughs. “That sounds nothing like Forge, then again, he is much nicer now that Ava is in his life. He was a grumpy fuck before.”
“Sounds like someone else I know, Stephanus. My throat has never been the same.” I touch my neck where he grabbed me months ago. I still tease him about how we met.
“Stephan…how many times have I told you to call me Stephan,” he says. “I feel bad enough about that whole incident.” It irritates the hell out of him that I still insist on calling him by his full name.
“My legs have never been the same,” Bolt growls, sounding like a caged lion. “You don’t hear me bitching about it.”
“Don’t!” Lyre’s voice is just as deep and menacing.
“Both of you stop,” Jarrod warns, looking from Lyre to Bolt. “Night and Shannon are on their way over, and this is their special day.”
Bolt’s jaw tightens. His eyes blaze. I feel sorry for him, the harpy did a real number on him. Whatever she gave him has worn off, but it’s not entirely gone from his system. He still blames me for killing her. He still pines for her, even though he says he’s doing well. He still wants her, even though he knows it’s fucked up. Even though he knows it’s the poison talking. We can all see he’s a mess. Lyre is worried. All of his friends are. Lyre rubs my back, and his gaze softens as I look up at him.
“How is everyone doing?” Shannon asks.
“We’re all doing great,” Jarrod says, a little too quickly.
“The ceremony was touching,” I tell Shannon. “You look beautiful.” Her dress isn’t the traditional white. It’s pink, as in bright pink, and it totally works. Night has a pink tie.
“Um…did I see a pair of sneakers on your feet as you walked down the aisle?”
Shannon’s cheeks go red. She nods. “You did.” She shows me by lifting her dress. She has a wry smile on her face.