Page 77 of Wild Ivy
IVY
The houseI share with Ramsey looks exactly the same, but everything feels different. I turn my key in the lock. Years of memories flood back - late-night mission briefings, impromptu cooking disasters, quiet mornings when words weren’t necessary. It’s funny how a place can be so familiar and so foreign at the same time.
The scent of jasmine tea hits me before I reach the kitchen. Ramsey is waiting, two mugs already steaming on the counter. Of course he knew I was coming. He always knows. That’s been our dynamic since the day The Syndicate paired us together - him one step ahead, me charging forward anyway.
“So,” he says, sliding one mug toward me. “This is it?”
I wrap my hands around the warm ceramic, grateful for something to hold on to. “Yeah. I guess it is.”
He studies me over the rim of his mug, his expression soft but knowing. “MistHallow’s a good fit for you. For all of you.”
“It is,” I agree, then hesitate. “You could come too, you know. You and Josh.”
“I knew you were going to say that!” he exclaims triumphantly and holds his hand out as Josh saunters into the kitchen, grumbling and slapping a fiver onto his palm.
“So, is that a yes?” I venture.
His face turns sober again. “No, Ives. We need to stay here.”
Even though I knew deep down that would be his answer, it still stings. “Why?”
He sets his mug down, giving me that look that says I should already know the answer. The same look he gave me when I tried to convince him that starting a bar fight with a vampire coven was a good distraction technique. “Because someone needs to maintain order here. Keep The Syndicate running smoothly on this end. Make sure Thornfield doesn’t completely fall apart. But more than that, Josh and I have built something here. A life. A purpose. The Resistance and The Syndicate, that’s important. Maybe more important now than ever.”
“Because of what I’ve become?”
“Because of what everything’s becoming,” he corrects as Josh wraps his arms around me from behind and leans his chin on the top of my head. “The supernatural world is changing, Ivy. You’re part of that change, but there needs to be stability too. People who understand both the old ways and the new. The Syndicate can’t just be about eliminating anyone who pays the highest price anymore. It needs to evolve.”
“And that’s where you come in?”
“That’s wherewecome in,” he nods. “Me and Josh. We can bridge that gap here, while you and your guys forge ahead at MistHallow. Someone needs to stay behind and help guide that evolution.”
I take a sip of tea to hide the tremor in my hands. “I’m going to miss you. Both of you. It won’t be the same without my handler keeping me in line.”
“As if I ever managed that,” he snorts. “But we’ll miss you too, Ives.”
Josh kisses the top of my head and lets me go so he can stand by Ramsey’s side. “This isn’t goodbye forever,” he says, reading my thoughts. “It’s just a new chapter.”
“When did you get so wise?”
“Hey, I’ve always been this way.”
I grin despite the tears threatening to spill. “True enough.”
Ramsey and I smile at each other across the kitchen counter, years of shared missions, inside jokes, and quiet moments hanging between us. The bond between handler and asset was supposed to be professional and distant. Instead, we became family.
“You will always be my best friend,” I say suddenly, needing him to know. “That won’t change, no matter where I am or what I’ve become.”
“I know.” His voice is gentle. “You’re mine too.”
“You’ll visit?” I ask.
“Try to stop us,” Josh says. “I’m dying to see that place. It’s like legendary.”
“Yeah, someone has to make sure you’re not terrorising that poor academy too badly,” Ramsey adds with a laugh.
“I would never.”
“Yeah, okay,” he chuckles.
