She couldn’t help but smile, which was probably inappropriate with someone who may have been Wesley’s father lying dead by their feet. Still, she smiled, because they had just saved the world and she was owed the feeling of happiness that rose in her chest.

They had avenged her mother and everyone else who had died from the magic sickness and who had lost themselves and their loved ones because of the Loj. They had stopped a war. They had kept their city from ruin.

You see, ciolo. I told you that it would all be okay.

Her mother’s voice blew through her mind like the wind and for once Tavia didn’t want to cry or shut it out. She wanted to savor it and she wanted to laugh.

I know, she told her mother. And I wish you were here to see it.

Tavia squeezed Wesley’s hand.

He turned to look at her, deep brown eyes and a half smile that she felt in her bones. He was still wearing those damn cuff links and though the bow tie was gone—strange, considering this was definitely an odd day—his shirt was buttoned to the collar in true Wesley style. Almost pristine, if not for the blood splatters, which she kindly chose to ignore.

Wesley reached out and placed his hand on Tavia’s cheek, like he still couldn’t quite believe she was standing in front of him, rather than bleeding out on the floor.

“Don’t ever scare me like that again,” he said.

“I was just keeping you on your toes,” Tavia teased. “And in my defense, it wasn’t my plan. You have your sister to thank for—”

“Never again,” he said.

When he kissed her, it was soft and delicate, like he was afraid she might break, or that this living Tavia was the illusion and if he kissed her too hard then she’d fade away. So Tavia brought her hands around his neck and pressed him harder against her, letting him know that he didn’t need to be careful with her.

She was real.

She was here.

And she wasn’t going anywhere.

She felt Wesley smile under her lips and the world went newly quiet. He had the power to make her heart slow, like he was pulling all the bad from the world and all the worry from her body.

And then somebody cleared their throat and they quickly broke apart.

Tavia turned to face her friends, her cheeks warm.

She’d almost forgotten they were there and that she and Wesley weren’t the only two people in the world.

Saxony was tending to Zekia, pulling her sister to her feet and trying to avoid eye contact with Tavia, but Karam didn’t have that problem as she collected her fallen knives from the ground and stared at Tavia with her patented glare.