Page 115 of Crossing Between
In that final moment, when everything was chaos and light, I had felt Ruth's soul break free. Later that night, when things had begun to settle, I'd felt her presence wrap around me like a hug, just for a second. It had been warm and bright and so purely Ruth. And then she was gone, but not into darkness. Into light. Into peace.
I left the station with a lightness I hadn't felt in months, perhaps years. The late afternoon sun painted the city in warm gold as I walked. Around me, people went about their lives,children playing in the park, couples strolling hand-in-hand, a group of young werewolves practicing control exercises under the watchful eye of their elder.
A faery flower vendor offered me a bloom as I passed, her gossamer wings shimmering in the sunlight. A centaur police officer nodded respectfully from his patrol route. Two witches argued good-naturedly outside their shared herb shop, their familiars watching with feline disdain from the windowsill.
The city was alive, breathing, thriving, healing. And for the first time since my powers had awakened, I realized I wasn't just surviving anymore.
I was finally living.
Varon
I stared at the growing mountain of paperwork on my desk, the words blurring together as I leaned back in my chair. The leather creaked beneath me, a sound that had once been a comforting constant in my centuries of existence. Now it just reminded me how long I'd been sitting here, that I was not spending that time with my new family.
Who could have predicted what Zoey would become? What we would become because of her?
I closed my eyes, letting memories wash over me. The first time she'd stood up to me, those ridiculous bright eyes flashing with defiance. The reckless, infuriating way she threw herself into danger. The even more reckless way she'd thrown herself into my bed.
Into my heart.
"Damn it," I ran a hand through my hair.
I'd walked this earth far longer than Iliked to remember. Centuries of careful distance, of calculated relationships, of never letting anyone too close. I'd built walls around myself so high and thick that I'd forgotten they were even there. Just the way it had to be.
Until her. Until Zoey crashed through every defense I'd ever constructed with the subtlety of a wrecking ball and that ridiculous laugh of hers.
My phone buzzed with a text from Kenji, another one of his incessant memes, this one featuring a grumpy cat with my face poorly photoshopped onto it. The caption read "When the coffee machine is empty." Despite myself, my lips twitched upward.
The oni had been a thorn in my side from the moment I'd recruited him. Too loud, too emotional, too everything. His power was undeniable, but his methods had always set my teeth on edge. I'd kept him at arm's length for years, seeing him as a necessary asset rather than anything else, even after a few secret shared nights of passion.
Yet somehow, in the chaos of these past months, I'd found myself looking forward to his inappropriate jokes, his boundless energy, even those ridiculous pranks he insisted on playing around the office.
When had that happened?
My gaze drifted to the framed photo on my desk, the only personal item I allowed in my workspace. It was from last month's department picnic, before everything had blown to shit. Elias stood in the center, his tentacles wrapped protectively around both Kenji and Zoey, who were making absurd faces at the camera. I stood at the edge, not quite smiling but not scowling either. An improvement, Zoey had proudly declared.
Elias. The kraken had always been easier to toleratethan Kenji, his calm demeanor and analytical mind more aligned with my own methods. But I'd still maintained that professional barrier, never allowing myself to recognize what was growing between us.
I opened my desk drawer and pulled out the small velvet box hidden beneath a stack of arrest forms. The pendant inside gleamed softly in the dim light of my office, a protection charm I'd commissioned from the highest-ranking witch in the city. Three gemstones set in ancient silver: a ruby for the oni's fire, an aquamarine for the kraken's water, an onyx for the vampires monster and a diamond in the center for the soulbinder who had somehow bound us all together.
It had cost me a small fortune and a favor I'd been holding onto for nearly a century. Worth every penny, every debt.
My phone buzzed again, this time with a message from Elias: "Dinner at 8. She's attempting to cook again. Bring fire extinguisher."
Following quickly was another text, this one from Zoey herself: "DO NOT LISTEN TO ELIAS. My cooking has improved significantly! But maybe bring wine. Lots of it."
The familiar warmth spread through my chest, foreign and yet increasingly welcome. This attachment. This affection. Thislove. It had crept up on me slowly, then all at once.
I had spent centuries believing that love was a luxury I couldn't afford, a weakness that would inevitably lead to pain given my immortal nature.
But she had changed that. They all had.
I closed the velvet box and returned it to the drawer. Soon, but not tonight. Tonight was for something simpler, for wine and probably burned food and Kenji's terrible jokes and Elias's patient explanations of whatever obscure topic had caught his interestthis week.
For the family I never thought I wanted. Never thought I could have.
I gathered my coat, switching off the desk lamp. The paperwork could wait until tomorrow. Some things, I was finally learning, could not.
Kenji
