Page 117 of Dawn Caravan
Chloe was right. Tatyana was right. And Ben was a stubborn idiot.
He’d lost one choice and gained a thousand. He could be with his friends. He could be a big brother to Sadia and a son to Giovanni and Beatrice. He could live a life that would make them proud. He could guard Chloe and keep watch over all his human friends.
And someday he would have to say goodbye. But everyone faced that, human and immortal both. Humans survived it, and he would too.
He would meet new friends, extraordinary people who hadn’t even been born yet. He would explore all the places he’d ever dreamed and others he didn’t have the imagination to conceive of. He would watch Sadia grow up, and he’d see the world change and evolve before his eyes.
And he’d see all of it in a darkness that wasn’t so dark anymore.
“Chloe?”
“Hmm?”
It was a new feeling, delicate as a freshly healed bone. But it was there. “I think I’m glad.”
“For what?”
Ben swallowed hard. “Just to be alive.”
Chloe’s smile was incandescent. “Me too.”
He put a hand over his eyes until he could steady his wildly careening emotions. “You knew I’d get here.”
Her smile turned soft. “Yeah, I did. So did she.”
“But I’m still angry.” He cleared his throat. “And I don’t know… How do you forgive someone when they’re not sorry for what they did?”
Chloe blew out a long breath. “Okay, related question. How can someone be sorry for what they did if they truly believe they did the right thing?”
“Sometimes I really don’t like you much.”
“I know. I love you too.”
30
Ben rose from bed the following night after a restless day of sleep. Something had disturbed him all night—some itching, aching feeling in the pit of his stomach nagged him like a pebble in his shoe. He checked all the email he could access, grabbed a thermos of blood left in the trailer, and looked at his most recent to-do list from Chloe.
Nothing was out of sorts. Nothing was on metaphorical or actual fire. His family was fine. His business was as expected.
What was wrong?
He called Tenzin. She answered after three rings.
“What?”
“How are you?”
She was quiet for a long time. “What do you mean by that?”
“I’m not trying to be complicated. I just have a weird feeling, and I’m checking on everyone.”
“I’m fine. Don’t worry about me.”
“Right.” Ben tried to think of the right words to tell Tenzin the realization he’d come to the night before with Chloe. That he was more than content with his immortal life. That he wasgladto be alive. Glad that they had a chance to be more than they had been. That he wanted to find a way to forgive her. “Tenzin, I was thinking—”
“Wait.” She moved away from the speaker and her voice was muffled. “Not now.”
“Is that him?” René DuPont’s voice was unmistakable. “Tell him we’re busy.”
