Epilogue

Keylon was nervous. It had been a long time since he’d felt so anxious. He’d told himself there was no need, but this was Winter’s family .

Not his real family, although in a way, they were more real than the clan Alvin had been born in. Those people didn’t exist for Winter, and while Keylon knew that eventually they’d have to deal with Winter’s old clan, neither of them was ready to do that now. Keylon hoped it could wait until Carlyle was dealt with. It had been years since Alvin’s family had called him to ask about him, so he didn’t think they’d reach out anytime soon. It was a problem he’d deal with if and when he had to. Right now, he had another problem to focus on.

Winter’s acquired family.

He’d told Keylon he was very close to Samuel’s family, which meant Keylon needed to make a good first impression. Not only that, but he hoped that being accepted by Samuel and Winter’s clan would lead to the mages and their dragons finding more allies. They’d taken care of Carlyle on their own the first time around, but it hadn’t been enough. They should’ve had more protection. If someone beyond their dragons had been there after Carlyle had been trapped in the gemstone, they could have grabbed the gemstone, and they wouldn’t be in this mess now.

There was nothing they could do about the past. They could only learn from it, and from what Keylon had learned, it wouldn’t hurt to have more people on their side.

“Everything will be all right,” Dallin said gently.

Keylon took a sip of his tea. At the moment, he was obsessed with a blend of black tea and cocoa with a splash of coconut milk. “I’d like to think so, but I don’t know these people.”

“You’re Winter’s mage. They’ll welcome you just because of that, but I’m sure they’ll like you, too. You’re a nice person.”

Keylon snorted. “You have to say that because you’re my brother.”

That word seemed to startle Dallin, but he beamed at Keylon. Keylon was glad he could give Dallin some happiness. Ansley was still casting his tracking spell to try to locate Sol every so often, but so far, without result.

He did have results when he tried tracking Simon, though. From what they’d been able to find, he was traveling around the country visiting abandoned houses and cottages. They had no idea where he went when he returned to Carlyle, but Keylon was sure that eventually they would manage to track him. In the meantime, they could only guess what he was doing and try to catch him, but he’d gotten smarter, or rather, Carlyle had. Ansley was still able to track Simon, but Carlyle had equipped him with more spells, and every time they caught up to him, he managed to leave before they could grab him.

It was worrying. If Jarvis was right and Simon was collecting objects that had belonged to Carlyle, there was a good chance these objects were filled with magic. Dallin had neutralized the fire spell that had been in the ceramic dragon figurine they’d found in the forest, but he was still working on the cat. He’d said it was a pity to have to free the magic that was stored inside of it, but none of them wanted to use it. There was no way to know who it had belonged to before Carlyle stored it in the ceramic cat. It might have been his, but it might also have been the magic he’d stolen from Emory, and none of the mages here wanted anything to do with that. Dallin had decided he’d continue poking at the figurine and wait for Emory to return and could decide what he wanted them to do with it.

They were once again powerless. They couldn’t do anything about Simon, and they couldn’t find Carlyle. They couldn’t reach Sol. It was incredibly frustrating, and while Keylon would welcome the distraction of meeting Samuel and Winter’s clan, he also knew that, eventually, they would have to deal with Carlyle’s mess, and he wasn’t looking forward to that.

Winter appeared at the kitchen door. He beamed when he saw Keylon, and Keylon’s heart skipped a beat.

He couldn’t believe he had Winter in his life again. They were still learning how to be with each other, and it was nothing like being with Alvin, but Keylon didn’t mind. He’d lost Alvin, and he’d made his peace with that. Now, he and Winter were together, and Keylon couldn’t remember the last time he’d been so happy—probably before the dragons were taken from them.

“There you are,” Winter said as he walked into the kitchen and reached for Keylon. He leaned down to wrap an arm around Keylon’s chest from behind and kissed his temple. He gave him a quick squeeze before leaning away, making Keylon smile.

He noticed Dallin watching them, and his smile faltered. Dallin shook his head, and Keylon knew without words what he was telling him. He wanted Keylon to be happy and not to worry about being with Winter in front of him. His heart had to be broken, yet he didn’t resent the other mages, and he wasn’t bitter.

“Is it time to go?” Keylon asked as he turned lightly in his seat to look back at Winter.

Winter took advantage of Keylon’s new position to kiss him on the lips. “Yeah. Samuel and Jarvis are waiting for us in the courtyard. Jarvis has been talking about opening a more permanent portal to the clan, but I think he’s a bit wary because of Carlyle.”

“I hope Samuel wasn’t offended.”

“Jarvis didn’t say that was why he was hesitant, but I can guess, and I don’t blame him. He doesn’t know the clan, so as far as he’s concerned, they might be allied with Carlyle. Beyond that, Carlyle could raze the clan to the ground and use the portal to get into the castle. I think it’s a good idea not to open a permanent one, at least not until we’re done with him.”

Keylon was grateful. He didn’t want his newfound family to break down. He wasn’t quite sure where he and Samuel stood yet, but they were both important to Winter, which meant they’d be in each other’s lives for a long time. They needed to learn to be friends, and it would’ve been hard if Jarvis had accused Samuel’s clan of being allied with Carlyle.

“I’ll see you two later,” Dallin said as he waved them off.

Keylon wanted to stay with him and comfort him, but there was little he could do. Until they found Sol, Dallin would be in pain.

“How’s he doing?” Winter asked as they left the kitchen.

“Not great. He’s putting up a good front, but I know him. He’s hurting and worried.”

Winter grimaced. “We all are, but I can’t imagine how much worse it is for him. We need to find Sol.”

“We will.” Keylon was convinced of that, but he didn’t know what would happen when they did. Would Sol still be alive? What was Carlyle doing to him?

The only way to find out would be to find Carlyle, but so far, that was a no-go. They could only hope that by the time they managed to reach him, Sol would still be alive.

Keylon didn’t want to think about what would happen to Dallin if he wasn’t.

Dallin had said that he could still feel the bond between them, which meant that the dragon was alive, but that was all they knew. Carlyle had been alive when he’d been trapped in the gemstone, and it hadn’t been a walk in the park for him. There were a lot of nasty things he could do to Sol without killing him.

Keylon really fucking hated him.

Carlyle was hurting his family, the people he cared most about, and it made Keylon want to strangle him. He might if he knew where to find the asshole.

Thinking about how he would murder Carlyle distracted Keylon for a bit, but not nearly long enough. His nervousness returned as soon as he and Winter stepped out into the courtyard. Jarvis and Samuel were talking, but they both looked up when they heard them. Jarvis’s smile was sweet and gentle while Samuel beamed.

“Ready?” he asked Keylon.

Keylon had no idea how to answer that question.

* * * *

Winter knew Keylon was nervous. No matter how many times he told him there was no need to be, he understood that for Keylon, this was a big step. He was meeting Samuel’s family, but Samuel’s family was also Winter’s, which was what made him nervous.

The only thing Winter’s family would care about was that Winter wanted to be with Keylon. As long as he treated Winter right, they would welcome him into the family, too.

Thinking of them made Winter wonder about his birth clan. He didn’t remember anything about them, and he’d been too afraid to ask. Eventually, he would, but for now, he felt at peace having Samuel’s clan and Keylon in his life. If he wanted to find out more about Alvin and the man he’d been before, he’d focus on that after Carlyle was gone.

“We can go,” Keylon said as he nodded.

Samuel grinned, probably able to tell that Keylon was nervous. Winter gave him a warning glance, but it only made Samuel’s smile widen. Sometimes, Samuel was a troublemaker.

“Call me once you’re ready to come home,” Jarvis said as he opened a portal in the courtyard. “I’ll open a portal for you.”

With Carlyle trying to burn them and the castle down, the mages had become even more careful. They’d increased the number of protection spells on the castle and had included a spell that would block all portals that weren’t created by Jarvis or one of the mages who lived here. That meant it was harder for Winter and Samuel to go home, but neither of them had protested. The mages needed to keep themselves and the people they loved safe, including Winter and Samuel.

Samuel waved at Jarvis and quickly crossed the portal, but Winter didn’t move as quickly. He offered Keylon his hand, smiling when Keylon took it without hesitation. He didn’t drag Keylon toward the portal. They walked toward it slowly instead, giving Keylon the time to gather his thoughts and take a deep breath.

“They’ll probably be waiting by the portal,” Winter warned. “They know we’re coming, and they’re excited to see me and Samuel and to meet you. I know they’re a lot, but if you’re overwhelmed, you can tell me, and we’ll come home or find a quiet spot.”

Keylon pulled on Winter’s hand to get him to stop walking. Winter faced him, worried, but Keylon didn’t look like he was panicking—yet.

“You called the castle home,” he said. “You said we could come home.”

Winter had to think back to his words. “Yeah, I did.”

“Is that how you feel about this place? Do you feel this is your home?”

“I do. I know we haven’t talked about it, but Jarvis said I could move here permanently. I think he’d be more comfortable if I did, but I didn’t want to make that kind of decision without talking to you first. Besides, you have to know that Samuel and I are a package deal. He’s not going to return to our clan just because I tell him to. Now that he’s here, he wants to stay.”

Which worried Winter. He didn’t want Samuel to have to face Carlyle, but at the same time, maybe if they had more mages on their side, it would be easier for them to defeat the dickhead.

“I’d be happy if both of you moved here permanently,” Keylon said with a smile.

Winter pulled him into his arms. It still felt like a miracle that he was allowed to do this and that Keylon wasn’t running away. They were working things out, getting to know each other, and while it was going a bit slowly, Winter didn’t mind.

Part of him was still confused about his past and everything he was missing, but another part of him didn’t care. What good would it do for him to focus on the past? Wouldn’t it be better to think of the future?

And Keylon was Winter’s future. Winter was sure of that.

Keylon’s lips felt like perfection against Winter’s. He wondered if he could drag Keylon back to his room and how angry his family would be if he did, but Jarvis cleared his throat, interrupting them before they could get too far. When Keylon stepped back, his cheeks were flushed, and he carefully looked away from Jarvis, even though Jarvis was smiling.

“Welcome to the family,” he told Winter.

Winter grinned. “I can’t believe that I went from not having anyone to having two families.”

“Well, you do. Your first family is waiting for you, though, so maybe you should go before they decide to send Samuel back.”

Winter took Keylon’s hand and pulled him toward the portal. Keylon went without arguing, but when Winter turned to look at him, he could see he was once again nervous.

“They’ll love you,” he promised.

“And if they don’t?”

“It doesn’t matter because they’re not the people who decide who I’m with. I do, and I want to be with you .”

Keylon nodded and squared his shoulders. He looked a bit like he was going to war, and Winter hoped that he’d relax soon. That wouldn’t happen until they saw his family, though, so he dragged Keylon through the portal and straight into their arms.

When they arrived, it was to find Samuel talking with his parents. Samuel’s siblings were there, too, but thankfully, the extended family wasn’t. That would have been way too overwhelming for Keylon.

Everyone turned to look at them almost as one.

Keylon cringed, but Winter pulled him forward. He wrapped an arm around Keylon’s waist and beamed at his family. “Keylon, this is Samuel’s parents, George and Julianne.” He pointed at Samuel’s sister and at his brother “This is Sally and Nicholas. They’re Samuel’s siblings.”

Keylon nodded at them, looking out of his depth. Winter didn’t let him go. Instead, he beamed at the people who’d welcomed him into their lives so many decades ago and had become his family. “Everyone, this is my Keylon.”