Epilogue

Rose

Hours pass in a blur of questions and talk that would surely overwhelm me if not for Zak's constant presence. He is a shield at my side, unafraid to bark back at the werewolves when they pester me too much.

"She's already said that she doesn't know anything. How many times do you have to hear it? I'm beginning to get really fucking tired of this bullshit. And she's not going to the First Realm with you. I don't care what you think — she doesn't owe you that. She just got here, for fuck's sake."

"She needs to be monitored."

"Then monitor her from here." His voice is sterner than I've ever heard it before, having lost his usual friendly charm at some point in the last half hour. I lean into him further, and he re-tucks my woollen blanket higher around my shoulders.

"I agree." Evander's resolute tone cuts through the unsettled murmurs of his mother's people. I hadn't understood why he seemed so invested in my welfare until it was revealed to me that his wife's father may very well be my own.

I keep thinking about Papa and wondering what he knew.

There's further argument, but it's so very difficult to pay attention. Warm arms scoop me up, and Zak's scent — wonderfully spicy and masculine and perfect — surrounds me as he holds me in his arms. "We're going back with Evander," he says. With my head against his chest, his voice seems to rumble through me. "I'm not letting her go."

I hear the words car and too late for a helicopter and vacation house out west in Titirangi , but I am in and out of sleep, waking only when Zak asks me to stand for a moment. "Sorry babe, but I can't get us both through the car door."

It's cold and there are other hands at my back. I recognise Evander's voice asking, "You've got her?"

"Yeah." I'm lifted again, back into Zak's arms. "I'm just gonna hold her, okay? Just don't crash or pass by a cop."

"Avoiding cops at this time of night might be impossible, but the windows are tinted enough," Evander replies, and I can hear the humour in his voice, even if I don't understand what he's saying. "We'll be fine."

There's another person in the front of the car. A werewolf, I think. She turns, her gold eyes reflecting light, but I don't recognise her. "It's me, Lylia," she says with a small smile. "I'm in glamour." It makes no sense, but nothing makes sense right now except the strong arms that tighten around me.

I fall asleep under the glow of street lamps that are both familiar and foreign all at once, the heartbeat of my love steady against my ear.

The birds are singing. I recognise tui and grey warblers, and tears well in my eyes at how familiar it all is. I don't know where I am and I don't remember getting here, but I used to wake to the sound of birdsong every morning. Now I can again.

The empty space beside me in bed is still warm. Zak. I may feel adrift regarding so many things, but he holds me in place, solid and strong and good . I slept in his arms all night — I know that much from the brief kisses we shared in the dark before slumber overtook me once more.

I slide out from under the blankets, finding a note sitting atop the robe that's draped across the foot of the bed, and fresh tears well as I read.

Rose,

Just downstairs grabbing tea/coffee for us. I know there's a lot going on, but we're in this together.

Love you,

Zak

I slip the robe on over my naked body, tying it at the waist, and pull back the curtain that hangs over the window.

I am struck by the beauty of it all. A blue, cloudless sky and native bush greets me. There's a balcony here, and I play with the lock on the strange glass door, biting my lip as I slide the door open.

The crisp winter air smells so sweet. I take in great big lungfuls of it as I step out onto the wooden decking barefoot, ignoring the biting cold. It's more than worth it to feel the morning sunlight on my skin.

"Rose."

I turn at the sound of Zak's voice. He's there in the room, wearing a matching robe far too small for him, and I grin at the sight of his bare legs, the hem barely reaching the middle of his muscular thighs. "You found me," I say quietly.

The look he gives me is intense, stealing the breath from my lungs. "I found you," he agrees. "You look beautiful."

I know I'm blushing. We've done so many things together, and yet I feel a nervousness now that didn't exist before. I suppose it's because I'm truly in the flesh. "And you are as handsome as ever," I tell him as he joins me, his big hands settling on my waist.

In the sunlight, his eyes are a lighter shade of brown. I reach up, running my fingers over his jaw, feeling the short stubble growing there. "I'm here," I whisper, touching his long black hair, worn loose around his shoulders.

"You're here," he agrees. "I'm never letting you go."

I nod, leaning into his open arms. I have grieved for my family already, and I will continue to forever. I have so many questions about my father and my newly-discovered half-sister. I want to know where I was trapped, what Zak saw, and how they freed me.

It would be so easy to panic, but Zak's embrace grounds me and brings me back to the present.

"How do you feel?" His voice is deep and smooth, wrapping around me like a hug. I take one of his huge hands in mine, lifting it to my lips, kissing his claw-tipped fingers before pressing it to my chest, over my heart.

"Alive," I whisper. "And so happy to be here with you, my love."

Thank you for reading Lost and Found . If you want to read more romances set in the Unravelling Monsters Universe, you can find them all on my carrd.