Epilogue

Liam

I stand behind Lacey, watching the door swing open to reveal my friends.

"Hello, beautiful little creature." Karrion says, making Jameson growl as he punches Karrion's arm.

"If there wasn't a child here right now, I would end your miserable little existence." Jameson spits as he shoulders his way past Karrion.

"Will you knock it off?" two female voices say in unison, from behind the guys.

"Come on in," I smile, stepping to the side and letting them all through the door. My smile grows as Lacey steps out onto the porch, admiring the bike that now sits in our driveway.

"That thing is so fucking cool." She shrieks, her eyes glistening with excitement.

"It's a very nice bike." I agree, leading her back inside the house. "Let's go, I'll introduce you to everyone."

She follows me back into the kitchen, my eyes immediately finding Lilyanna. I watch as Spade hands her an envelope and she disappears around the corner. Lillian comes to stand behind Lacey, hiding from our guests. "Guys, this is Lillian and Lacey." I announce and everyone stops what they're doing to wave at the girls. "That's Jameson, Jade, and Reid." I point to each of them as I tell the girls their names.

"I saw her give both of those boys kisses." Lillian whispers to Lacey, causing me to chuckle.

"The guy holding Lilith is Karrion. Then Nyx and Mateo are over there." Pointing to where Nyx is leaning against the wall, she smiles at the girls and waves again. Mateo nods his head before grabbing Nyx's hand and gently kissing her knuckles.

A moment later, Lilyanna walks back into the kitchen with a smile plastered across her face. "What happened to Alaric and Aurora? I thought they were coming too."

"They're on a little side quest, they'll be here in a few." I grab my phone off the charger, checking my messages, and smile as I read the latest one from Alaric. The package has been secured, they'll be here soon.

"What are you up to, Romeo?" She asks, leaning into me. I wrap my arms around her waist, pulling her tighter against me.

"Nothing at all, Tigerlily." Smiling down at her, I wink before stepping away. If I stand here with her, there's no doubt I'll ruin her surprise.

"Lachlan, show the girls where the playroom is. We'll come get you when it's time to eat."

Right on cue, Karrion walks over, bouncing Lilith in his arms. "This one fell asleep." He whispers, looking at her sweet, sleepy face.

"I'll take her upstairs." Grabbing her from his arms, I pause long enough for K to kiss the top of her head.

"Goodnight, my sweet little devil niece." He coos, pushing her hair from her forehead before I take her to her crib.

On my way back downstairs, I pop my head into the playroom to check on the kids. Seeing them playing happily, I pull the door shut and head back toward the kitchen. Alaric and Aurora are now seated in the living room with the rest of the group. I spot the teddy bear in the corner and sigh in relief when I notice there's no blood on it.

"Thanks for grabbing him for me." I pat Alaric on the shoulder as I walk behind the couch. "Not a problem." He nods, putting his hand on Aurora's knee. She leans into his side, placing her hand on her stomach. Before I have a chance to congratulate them, a loud noise rings out from behind me.

"Sorry about the noise, I dropped a knife." Lilyanna yells from the kitchen. "The carcoochie is done!"

"What kind of coochie?" Karrion stands, pushing Jameson back down onto the couch as he walks past him.

"Fucking prick," Jamie growls, jumping to his feet and pulling his knife from his pocket. K just smirks at him, licking his lips like the psycho he is. When these two are together, you can always guarantee that someone is going to pull a weapon at some point.

"Will you two just fuck already, so we can move past your petty betty bullshit?" Jade laughs, smacking both of their asses as she slides past them into the kitchen.

"Don't make me throw up, it's time for food." Karrion fake gags, causing Jamie to lurch forward. Nyx steps in front of him, placing her hands on her hips.

"Just ignore him, J." She grabs the blade from his hand, closing it and putting it back into his pocket. "You know his ovaries hurt around kids."

"You think I won't kill you both?" Karrion snarls, running his nose along Nyx's neck. I throw my head back in laughter, because my friends are weird as fuck. The weird tension between them makes me extremely happy to be a boring couple. I couldn't imagine sharing my Tigerlily with anyone. Just the thought has the reaper crawling under my skin, ready to snap.

Lilyanna

We all gather around the dinner table, taking care of the kids first and sending them to the kid's table. Margaree watches over them so Liam and I can enjoy ourselves tonight with our friends. Even though we spent the night out last night, she thinks it's for charity. That we volunteer as actors during the attraction, hence why we can get away with coming home completely drenched in blood and don't have to hide it.

Looking around the table, I grab Liam's hand, giving it a squeeze as I smile. I'm so fucking lucky to have such an amazing and crazy group of people in my life that are loyal to the bone. I couldn't imagine being surrounded by anyone else but them. The Wicklows and The Rivers. My Family.

"You guys down for some poker tonight after the little ones go to bed?" Spade asks and I nod with a laugh as I take a sip of my wine.

"Why? So I can kick your ass again?" I say as Jade chimes in.

"He thinks he's good, but he aint shit." She laughs as Spade narrows his eyes at her.

"You'll pay for that later, Babygirl." He says with a smirk as a light blush litters her cheeks.

"I'd actually love to watch that." Karrion chimes in as a butter knife goes sailing across the table, but he ducks just in time, letting the knife clatter against the wood floor. I lean over towards Spade,

"Thanks for getting me those documents so quickly. Everything checks out. Once the night is over, I'm hoping Karrion and Jameson will blow up the evidence before someone notices." I whisper, and he nods.

"Don't worry, Lil. It's taken care of. You have nothing to worry about." He assures me.

"Alright. How is she doing?" I say, nodding at Jade.

"She has her days, but she's okay," he says and I smile as my eyes collide with Jade's and she gives me a wink. I shake my head and look over at Nyx, who's already eyeing us.

"When are we having a girl's night?" I ask, and her eyes light up.

After making plans, we continue through dinner, laughing our asses off and finishing off a few bottles of wine. Aurora sticks with water and I can't get enough of rubbing her little belly. I wish My Romeo would put another baby in me, but he's making me wait until Lilith is a little older. The jerk.

Before we know it, the kids are off to bed and we're setting up to play some cards. Liam brought up the poker tables, but I'm having trouble getting the leg to not fold in. Looking around for My Romeo, Mateo grabs the table before it topples over.

"Lily, I got it. Why don't you go get some more wine with the girls, or maybe go check and see what the hell is taking them so long?" He smiles.

"Sure, those girls are always up to something." I laugh as my phone pings in my pocket and I take it out, looking at the unfamiliar number. Pressing the green button, I bring it to my ear, saying, "Hello."

"Mrs. Quinn, you don't know me, but I know you. If you value your life or the lives of those kids, you just tucked into bed; you're going to do exactly what I tell you." The deep, raspy voice threatens as my hand turns into fists at my side. My eyes collide with Liam's and his brows furrow as a shiver rakes up my spine.

"Tell The Reaper it's a work call." He barks down the line. "Excuse yourself from the room and go to your office."

"Ofcourse, Dr. Salishan, I can take a look at that for you." I say, covering the phone with my hand.

"Hey babe, I'm going to take this call in my office. Dr. Salishan needs me to look at something." He nods, kissing my forehead, knowing damn well the doctor I partner with isn't named Salishan. He will be alerting the others subtly to the threat among us.

Walking down the hallway to the office, I enter and shut the door behind me.

"Well, I've done what you asked. What is it that you want?" I spit.

"We've been watching you for years. We know exactly who you are and who the reaper is. Those kids you stole last night were not yours to take. They were sold to a very prominent business-man who's already made his payment. Those disgusting people were just a middle-man. Taking care of the kids as their own until we saw fit. Now we want our merchandise." He informs me, and I laugh. This motherfucker, whoever he is. Has no fucking clue. He may have watched, but he knows nothing. Don't threaten a mama who is already feral. You threaten her babies and all hell will be unleashed. If you thought Devil's night was a massacre… Well, welcome to Halloween night.

"The game is over. Give it the fuck up. Threatening me will get you a first-class ticket to a grave, my man. Do you realize how many killers are in my home right now? You want these kids? Come get them. You have two hours or game over. Tick, Tock, little bitch. Tick. Fucking. Tock."

….To be continued in White Rabbit: A Carcoochie Halloween Massacre 2025.