“He doesn’t seem to like me much,” was the first thing Matthew said as we exited the lot.

“He’s no longer going away to college in New York, so he can be close to me,” I said, my attention still glued to the world outside my window.

“Is that a good thing?”

“I’m not exactly sure what you want me to say to that.”

“I don’t want you to feel obligated to say anything, just to voice however you honestly feel,” he said.

“I honestly don’t know how I feel anymore—about so many things.”

Matthew didn’t press, and we drove in silence most of the way to the North Society compound. He guided me up a few floors, to an office with a familiar name on the wall plate.

Roland Damascus.

Matthew swiped the keycard and held the door open for me to enter. The picture of Abigail and me was no longer on the desk, and there was an elegant, familiar red dress hanging from the hook on the wall. It wasn’t the same dress as from the branding ceremony, either successfully dry-cleaned or replaced in kind. It was a different red dress, though I couldn’t be positive the shade of red was any different but it was just as gorgeous and awe-inspiring. A shoebox was set on the floor beneath it, same as before.

“If you don’t get blood on this one, you’ll be able to keep it,” Matthew said, his lips curling into a self-satisfied grin.

“If you don’t cut me open, then I won’t get blood on the dress,” I retorted. The banter felt good and made me momentarily forget where we stood with each other.

“No daggers in this ritual.” He walked over to the couch and sat down kitty-corner, crossing his legs.

I wasn’t totally comforted by that statement, but I obediently grabbed the dress from the hook and headed into the en suite.

The dress fitted just as perfectly as the last, and I hadn’t missed the fact that this one wasn’t off the shoulder but had short lacy sleeves—just enough to conceal my scarred shoulder. Anticipating a formal ceremony, I’d applied adequate makeup this time, as well as ensuring my purse was well stocked for touchups. I’d also already been wearing the white-gold compass pendant under my shirt; now, it could clearly be seen at the low neckline of the dress, with its diamond accents and the N of rubies.

I combed my fingers through my hair, then applied a little extra cherry lip gloss before joining Matthew in my father’s old office. I flung my casual clothes and purse over the closer arm of the couch and set my sneakers beside the shoebox.

“You look amazing,” Matthew said, chewing on his bottom lip.

“Was it you who made sure it had sleeves?”

“I may have put in the request.” Matthew shifted uncomfortably on the couch.

“Thank you,” I said, my hands still fidgety, partly from the ceremony about to begin, but equally from being alone in a room with him again. The first time we’d been on our own in a room together after finding out he was a vampire, was in this very office. And now I felt no more comfortable around him than I did then.

Matthew stood and fixed the creases on his dress slacks. He was attired more formally than I was used to seeing him—shirt tucked in, just missing a tie. “Well, we don’t want to keep them waiting,” he said.

I set the shoebox on the coffee table, so I could sit on the couch to put on the heels. Matthew grabbed the first silver heel from my hand, dropped to his knees, and slipped it on my foot himself, then gingerly buckled the strap around my ankle. He repeated the process with my left foot.

The feel of his cool hands on me sent shivers up my legs and sent my heart racing just a little faster. I was nearly upset how powerful his effect on me was, with such simple touches.

He silently offered a hand to help me to my feet and I automatically took it—my ambivalent mind not even having a say. However, he let my hand go once I was upright, then started for the door.

“What will become of this office since my father… well, because of his condition?” I asked as Matthew held open the door.

“It’s been relatively untouched a long time,” he said, thoughtfully glancing around. “It’s been saved for you.”

I gave the sparse room another once-over as well, trying to picture the old man I now knew to be my father working at the desk. “Wow; an office of my very own. Almost like you could see the future.”

“Something like that,” Matthew said and steered me into the hallway. He offered me his arm as we strolled to the elevator, walking slower now, since I was trying to remain elegantly upright in my high heels.

We went up a few more floors, only a few levels away from the ground, and headed for the same Backstage door as last time. We passed through the staging room and I walked out onto the stage alone, finding the number three where I was meant to stand. Remarkably, I was the first girl to arrive, only Barry was already there and had taken the number one position. The candidates had been instructed to line up in the same order as during the branding ceremony.

Barry glanced over at me and smiled. He was by no means fat when I’d met him a few months earlier, but was now noticeably leaner and more muscular from our training. I wondered if he was thinking the same about me? I adjusted my bangs to shield my right cheek before realizing what I was doing.

The overhead spotlights shone down like tiny suns; I’d forgotten how hot they were. The towering burgundy curtain loomed before us and I knew what awaited us on the other side.

I glanced down at the healing line across my left palm, the brand of the True North Society. Bound in blood; bound as one.

Zelda was the next to arrive, with Mallory shortly after, her glistening blonde hair tightly wound in a glamorous updo. She could pull off a sleeveless dress perfectly. And between the low dress, the pendant at her throat, and her hair up, her long neck was accentuated and exposed—almost like a challenge.

“We did it,” Mallory whispered my way.

“We did,” I replied. It had been a long and painful road, but we’d come out the other side like two phoenix rising from the ashes.

The lights suddenly went out and the low hum from the orchestra rose from beyond the curtain.

“Finally, we can stop pretending to be friends and move on with our lives,” Mallory said just as the whoosh of parting curtains sounded and monstrous applause rose from the auditorium.