Epilogue

"Istill don't know how I feel about it," Zev says, gnawing on a piece of pizza crust. "You used your DNA to alter the genetics of the pack. That's what they did to us on Sufoi."

"Yes, that's true, but my intentions are different from our handlers', and every member of the pack is free to quit whenever they want. They live in their own houses, and I pay them handsomely. Julian even has a mate."

"That's the key to this whole debate," Mylo says. "The freedom."

Over the last year, Mylo and I have reached a place of mutual respect. He defends me now, and when those occasional disagreements arise, they're more playful than cutting.

"I think this is a brilliant thing you've done. Giving these boys a way to bring meaning to their lives while protecting their communities," Dante says, taking a long sip of his Red Dragon Daiquiri. "Bravo, Kyan. Bravo."

Our Italian cousin is growing on me. I hate to admit it, but he's charming, never seems to take anything too seriously, and loves coming to see us.

"This is something I think I might consider for my people. They don't need more protection than their handsome red dragon," he jokes, fluttering his eyelashes in a silly, seductive way, "but it would be nice to take a holiday every now and then."

"Listen," Luka pipes in, picking a pepperoni off his slice and tossing it into his mouth. "It's a good idea. I support it. But you can't let Hudson join, do you hear me? I don't want him going on your dangerous missions for Oya or hunting sexual predators across state lines."

"I won't," I vow, "until he's eighteen."

Luka stops chewing to glare at me.

"He's an adult at eighteen, brother," I remind him. "You have to let him make his own choices."

He shakes his head as he lets out a long groan.

"Do you have a new mission scheduled with Oya?" Axil asks.

I nod. "We're heading to Canada next month. Saskatoon, I think. She hasn't given me many details on the targets. All I know is that it's a trio of vampires who are responsible for the deaths of six Indigenous women."

Oya has hired me, Yvonne, and the rest of the pack to take on missions on a per-contract basis. She wanted us to take on a full-time position, but I declined. The wrathenol is working, but I don't want to push the pack too hard. Besides, my list of human targets is still quite long, and I have no intention of putting that aside to kill a bunch of law-breaking vampires.

Every species has its fair share of monsters.

There's a vengeful gleam in Axil's eyes. "Make them pay."

"You know we will."

The six of us finish eating, and I offer to pay the bill. Dante says his goodbyes in the parking lot. He's flying home to Siena today.

I wonder if Naomi would be interested in a trip to visit him sometime. I'm eager to see how a charismatic dragon lives when the public knows about him. What are his days like? Perhaps we can stop by Scotland and Iceland at some point too, to visit our other European cousins.

When I get home, Naomi is sitting at the kitchen island scrolling through her phone.

"Hey, you," she says, hopping off the stool and wrapping her arms around my neck. "How was lunch?"

"Good. Dante wanted me to tell you he misses you already."

"Aw, he's such a sweet meatball."

"How was your day? Did you finish setting up your office at the lab?"

"Yes, finally," she says with a breath of relief. "I don't know what I'm going to do with all the volunteers though. I knew Quincy had a million friends, but I didn't expect them to move here after he died."

Oya made good on her word to pay for Quincy's lab, sending Naomi money whenever she needs new supplies, is considering a dedicated wing for a specific aspect of research, or wants to hire additional staff. In the wake of Quincy's death, there was an outpouring of support on Facebook. Naomi didn't realize how many lives Quincy had touched until he was gone. There were vampires from all over the country who credited Quincy with saving their life, simply by offering support in their darkest moments. Several of them have since moved to Sudbury to volunteer at the lab, eager to dedicate their remaining days to developing artificial blood.

"If you don't have enough work for them at the lab, you could see if they want to help out at your practice."

She considers this. "That's true. I know Yvonne could use a hand with the new recruits, and Ryan certainly deserves a promotion. He's still doing all the work of an assistant with the skills of a doctor."

That's long overdue indeed.

"Even Betsy has been coming by to help. She mostly complains, but I like having her there."

"Betsy?" I ask, searching my mind for the name.

"You know," Naomi says, "the old Cuban lady from my Sipper meetings."

Her face pops into my mind, along with a rather unpleasant interaction at the lab when she yelled at me for taking her seat. "Yes, Betsy. I remember."

"I wouldn't let them volunteer though. I'd want to pay them."

"So pay them. The practice can afford it, right?"

She nods. "Yeah, I think we can make that work. I'll talk to Harper about it."

I stand behind her and wrap my arms around her neck. "Well, if you need a cash infusion, don't hesitate to ask."

Naomi chuckles as I kiss along the shell of her ear. "Mm, that's convenient. I like having a dragon who's so liquid."

I doubt she meant for that to sound as dirty as it did, and I can't stop myself from replying, "So much liquid. Gallons."

She throws a crumpled napkin at my head. It bounces off my nose and lands in the sink.

The flutter of wings draws my attention to the covered porch. "Hey, Felix," we both call out to our frequent avian visitor.

Since it's winter, we keep the windows closed, but Axil crafted a sealed circular tube made of wood that serves as the bird version of a doggie door, allowing Felix to come and go as he pleases without our house dropping to freezing temperatures.

The entire porch is his domain, with a luxurious oversized bird cage, plenty of blankets, a fountain that only serves filtered water, and a crystal platter the size of a truck tire for his fancy peanuts.

My phone buzzes, and I see Naomi pick up hers at the same time. I don't bother reading the text, since it's clearly on the family text chain. She'll tell me what it says.

"It's Charlie." Then she squeals with excitement. "Oh, Caitlyn won the election!"

"Caitlyn?"

"You know, the one Sam and Vanessa went to high school with. They were enemies but settled their drama when Charlie and Caitlyn started becoming friends."

"Oh, yes." This is the woman who would often have too many drinks at Tipsy's and start petting my chest, asking if I'd like to be her Carlisle Cullen, whoever that is. I found her to be somewhat irritating, but from what I've heard, the many nights spent at the bar are behind her. Charlie helped run her campaign, and with the influx of so many new vampire residents who all seem to hold progressive views on how Sudbury should be run, Caitlyn apparently emerged victorious. "That's great."

The afternoon fades into evening, and Naomi and I settle on the couch in the living room, her with a bag of weed blood, and me with a stack of her famous almond weed cookies. The drug settles into my blood quickly, and we turn on the TV. Naomi found a new sitcom she likes, and we've been watching it every night this week.

Her laughter will forever be my favorite sound, and when our nights are spent like this, completely relaxed with our arms wrapped around each other, giggling about everything and nothing, I finally understand why my brothers were so desperate to find mates. The companionship, the knowledge that there is an entirely separate person with whom I share the same soul––it makes the darkness of an unjust world easier to bear.

"Did you have an appointment with Charlie today?" I ask, remembering it was scheduled for some time this week.

"I did," she says with a bright smile. "Baby's fine. She's officially in her second trimester now."

"Was Nia there?"

"Oh my god, that baby is so cute, I want to squeeze her little head until it pops."

What an odd inclination. "I don't think you should do that."

She laughs. "Yeah, Nia was there. Zev too, obviously. Nia is thrilled to have a baby brother. She wouldn't stop talking about it. How she's going to give him her stuffed dragon to keep him safe. It was adorable."

My mind drifts as I think about my brothers and what incredible luck we've had since coming to Earth. Our mates are very different, as are we, but in a country of over three hundred million people, we found our mates in the same general area. It might've taken over a decade, but we're now living in the same place too.

Luka and Harper bought the house on the other side of us, and theirs has a large, inground pool, which made Hudson and Cooper very happy. Ryan bought a condo in downtown Sudbury. Yvonne is renting an apartment near Tipsy's. Even the pack has moved into their own houses, just two streets away.

The doorbell rings, and I growl quietly as I pull myself off the couch and go answer it. I know it's not an unwelcome presence on the other side of the door, but I hate having my nights with Naomi interrupted.

"You forgot your credit card at lunch," Mylo says when I open the door.

"Ah. Thank you."

I go to shut the door, but his feet remain planted.

"Was there something else?"

He smirks. "Decal."

Decal? "What?"

He throws his head back, laughing loudly, and that's when it clicks.

"The fucking Wordle?" I send my fist into his shoulder. "You dick."

Mylo shrugs. "Now we're even."

I shut the door when he leaves, still stewing. Even? I'm not sure about that.

"Who was that?" Naomi asks, snuggling deeper under the blanket draped across her lap.

"Mylo," I growl. "He gave away the Wordle."

Naomi covers her ears. "Don't tell me! I still have three guesses left! La la la, I can't hear you."

I remove her hands. "You think I would do that to you? I'm offended, little vampire. That's just cruel."

The next episode begins, and Naomi notices the scowl on my face. "Still mad at your brother?"

"Yes," I grumble.

Her expression turns thoughtful. "He's not so bad."

No, he's not. Despite all the trouble we've given each other, he might be the best man I know. Well, one of four. Actually, the pack too. So one of eight.

"I never thought I'd be here," I say, stunned at how many people I willingly have in my life. This was not how I pictured my time on Earth to be spent, surrounded by people I'd die for. I look around our house, and then down at Naomi. "Or any of this. There's so much joy everywhere I look."

"You deserve it." She leans her head on my shoulder. "We all do."

I suppose my brilliant mate is right.