Chapter 54

The city settled into a strange new pace in the weeks that followed Magrahel. The Society had disengaged and was replaced with the working idea of integrating descendants into law enforcements to diversify the system. Halloway's death had been ruled an accident, and the Firenzes went utterly quiet as their business sunk without their supporters or their glint to keep them afloat.

Felix's body was never found, and I was never charged or even suspected of killing him. Especially not after Vanya claimed to have witnessed him murder the inspector and a host of other accurate accusations that tarnished the Firenzes' reputations further. There wasn't much for the alchemists to come back from after that, and they reduced their business model to medicinal tonics and tinctures. Which—from what I'd heard through Vanya—wasn't as profitable as their previous gains.

Thanks to Vanya, Nico had his shadow returned, or rather, delivered. A woman named Sinthia arrived the very next day following the party with a box of darkness in her hand. Only when I saw his silhouette stretch across the floor did I truly feel the weight of the world lift at last.

Things were changing in Lynchaven under Hartsong's new agenda. Now that the High Overseer had full power without the threat of the Nine, the cabinet added more chairs to the table to allow descendants a voice. Nico became a speaker for the Row, using his influence in a way that didn't involve extortion or blackmail. He was, as I teased him, completely legitimate now. The model of a true gentleman, despite how he acted behind closed doors—but that was for my benefit only now.

My brothers went home, returning to the Marchese Manor after Vanya returned it personally from the city's ownership. I still hadn't gone back—but I would. For now, there were too many ghosts that haunted the halls, and I was too busy preparing for the future to face the past just yet.

Aramis and I were cordial. I never doubted his motivations in the end were to help me, but some hurts lingered no matter how many times they were justified, and while my head had forgiven him, my heart was taking a bit longer to fully trust him again.

He'd still accepted my invitation tonight, to my pleasant surprise.

"I must admit," Nico said. "I thought I loved you in red, but you're a vision in white."

"Don't get used to it." I smiled at him through the mirror, glancing over the cream-colored silk dress that tapered from a fitted bodice. It was simple, with minimal detailing. All the attention went into the structure of the silk and how it cascaded off my body in ivory waves. A brief train draped the floor behind me. "I'm only wearing this for the tradition."

He left his false hand ungloved, dragging a metal finger over the pressed waves of my hair as it fell over my shoulder. "I have your ring, by the way. It finally came back from getting sized."

Talk of jewels distracted me long enough from my reflection to follow him to his desk. From a locked drawer, he removed a velvet box and held it between us before opening it. "I should warn you, this isn't what you picked out."

"What do you mean? What did you get me?" He'd taken me ring shopping weeks ago after he'd proposed properly at the pub. We were both drunk, and Nico's uncle was less than thrilled with the impulsivity of the moment, but it all worked out in the end.

I was wearing white after all.

"You told me a long time ago you didn't like diamonds, so instead of buying the one you picked out, I used the opportunity to get your real ring sized." A flush crawled his neck. Was he nervous?

"Nico." I wrapped the box with my hand, forcing him to look at me instead. "I married you once without a ring. I'd marry you without anything."

He quirked a brow. "Even without any money?"

My grin tightened, and I patted his hand lovingly. "Let's not get too hasty."

"Camilla!"

"I'm kidding!" I laughed. Sort of. "Please, just show me the damn ring already."

"Spoiled little heiress," he murmured, shaking his head. But then he lifted the lid from the box and revealed what he'd chosen, and my jaw dropped at the size of the ruby.

"Seven hells, Nico . . ." I gasped. "It's . . . it's beautiful."

"It was Nonna's," he said. I was speechless as he took my left hand and slid it over my ring finger. It fit perfectly. Every cut in the stone refracted the light in the gas lamps, glittering as I angled my hand.

"I was supposed to give it to you a long time ago, but things got in the way. We used it to make a portal when we broke into Hightower. The other side is in Esme's garage, where she has vowed to protect the mirror until the end of her days." He scoffed at the idea.

"If you're ever far away, Milla," he emphasized, "and you can't find your way back, it'll bring you home. The portal still works if you twist the diamond at the bottom and activate the shadows inside."

It wasn't just a ring, then. It was a piece of his home—our home—I could carry with me always, an heirloom they trusted me to pass down, and a reminder of where I belonged. I cleared my throat before I started weeping. It was far too early in the night for all that.

"I don't plan on ever being far from home, Nico, but the sentiment is beautiful."

He took a step back and sighed, his eyes falling to our bed. "I thought we promised not to keep anything from each other?"

"I'm not—" I followed his stare to the book lying open on top of the covers. I'd read it through nearly a dozen times, had tabbed the parts I thought important. My mother's words hadn't just told her story, they warned me of what was to come.

I just... hadn't talked to my husband about it all yet.

"I read it when you were busy," he said. "Why didn't you tell me your mother was alive?"

I swallowed a knot in my throat and fumbled with the newfound weight on my finger. "I just wanted to be sure of all the facts before I came to you."

"Milla," he said my name quietly. That knowing tone made me grimace. "Sabina said she saw your mother leave, alive, and the book confirms it. She practically begs you to come find her. Why not see where it leads?"

"Because, for once, we're all finally happy!" I lifted my skirts to gain some distance, pacing the room. "You have responsibilities here and a family that loves you. I cannot take you from your home just for the slim chance my mother is still out there."

"But her warning—"

"Was written twenty-one years ago," I cut in. "Yes, she technically told me to find her when I was ready. But I'm not ready. I'm not willing to upend everything we have—"

"I want to go."

My heels nearly caught on the lining of the rug. "What did you say?"

He stood there with his hands in his pockets, looking too casual for this conversation. "I want to go to the Continent. I want to help you find your mother. You saw the saint she trapped in Oblivion when you opened it, and if what he threatened was true, Chaos might be the only one who can help us if Order finds his way out." He stared me down, completely serious. "I think you need to find her, Milla."

My stomach wrung itself and I shrugged. "I wouldn't even know where to start."

"Vesper and Callow are leaving at the start of spring, when sailing conditions are better. Perhaps, with their connections, we can find someone who can help."

I didn't know if I was relieved or terrified to hear him suggest it. Part of me had entertained the idea while the other half didn't think it plausible. We'd be leaving everything we worked for to venture to a land that might as well have been another realm, the differences in our worlds.

"Don't think about it too much tonight, my love," he said. "We have the rest of the winter to decide, but I think you should give it more consideration."

"There's no certainty we'd ever come back, Nico."

He shook his head, unbothered. "Is there a single certainty in tomorrow, Milla? I'll take the risk if you take it with me."

A knock came at our door. My brothers were here to escort me to Sabina's, who had dedicated her warehouse for our wedding. I smoothed down the skirts I'd disheveled with my pacing. "We'll discuss it more later. For now, don't breathe a word to anyone."

Nico nodded. "Of course." He crossed the room in confident strides to answer the door, though his hand hovered a moment. "You are my family now, Camilla. I go where you go, till death takes me."

"Still betting how many years I'm going to shave off your life?" I jested, but my smile was fleeting.

"No," he said. "You've saved me too many times for that to hold true." He opened the door to reveal my brothers in their finest suits waiting on the other side.

Nico leaned against the door. "Ready for another adventure, princess?"

I lifted to my toes to kiss his lips.

"I'm ready."