“Oh, honey, are you sure it’s not too much of a hassle having me here? I can stay at a hotel for a few days until I find a job.”

My mother was standing in Lincoln’s kitchen. She looked overwhelmed and grateful, but also in shock. The second we’d driven over the border, her slave mark had disappeared from her forehead, which was a part of the contract we’d made Grim sign. It was also why he tried to kill her before she’d crossed the border.

Lincoln waved a hand in dismissal. “Not a hassle at all. To be honest, I’m hoping you’ll cook for me. I’ve missed home-cooked food. Brielle never makes me anything,” he pouted.

My mom grinned. “Yes, I’m afraid my cooking skills rubbed off on Mikey more. Brielle is more like her father—a good eater.”

Haha! I laughed but then held onto my ribs. Even though I’d spent a few hours in the healing clinic, after dropping Bernie and Maximus off at their new digs, I was still in a shitload of pain and felt like I could sleep for a year.

“Honey, why don’t you go lie down. I’d like to keep an eye on you over the next few days, make sure you heal okay,” my mother trilled.

“Yes,” Lincoln agreed. “Come on.” He started to walk me into his bedroom and then stopped.

“Er,” I mumbled and started to turn around.

‘Oh my God, I should lie down in my mom’s bed, right?’ I asked Sera.

Before my weapon could answer, my mom held up her hands. “Please. We’re all adults here. Brielle is twenty now. I don’t mind.”

My cheeks went bright red with embarrassment. My mom was always cool like that. For my fifteenth birthday, she gave me condoms and a pack of birth control, even though I wasn’t having sex.

“Right,” I squeaked and shuffled into Lincoln’s room. There was no way I was having sex with her in the other room, but I wouldn’t mind sleeping next to Lincoln. I fell into bed, careful not to land on my bad shoulder, though pain started to flare up everywhere else as my joints settled.

“You did it, Bri. You got your entire family out of Demon City.” Lincoln’s voice was soft in my ear, his fingers trailing along my skin.

I had. I’d saved my family.

It was a beautiful thought. A huge relief.

Which was why it surprised me to fall asleep with such happiness, and wind up sucked into such a nightmare.

I was walking through that alleyway in Hell, and all of the demons were surrounding Sera. But Sera wasn’t a cactus. She was a small child, and that old lady was there again, screaming. Everyone slowly turned to look at me, smiling and welcoming me like I was home. I was sweating profusely, looking for a portal or a way home.

Then Lucifer showed up and he started to train me, just like James said. We worked on my dark magic, and I was a willing student. It was awful. In the dream, I would do as he told me, but in my head, I knew it was wrong.

I wanted out.

But I was stuck in Hell.

“Brielle!” Lincoln’s voice jarred me from my sleep and my eyelids snapped open. It was the fourth time he’d woken me that night.

I looked over to the clock, and saw it was seven in the morning. I didn’t want to fall back asleep, although I was exhausted, I couldn’t risk being sucked back into the nightmares.

“You’re soaking wet.” He touched my back gingerly.

“Nightmares,” I croaked.

Lincoln’s dark eyebrows were drawn together with concern. “What about?”

I didn’t want to make a habit of lying to Lincoln, and I had yet to tell him about what James had said. Sitting up, I hugged my knees. “Hell. Lucifer. General bad things.”

Lincoln sighed. “Okay. Well, you used a lot of your dark magic. You took off the necklace. All of that was probably too much for you.”

Remembering the necklace still in my jeans pocket, I nodded. Reaching down, I pulled it out, heavy in my hand. “Will you?” I asked him and lifted my long blonde hair.

He took the necklace from me. As he was coming over my head with it, it laid against my chest and… cracked.

The sound was unmistakable. I gasped, looking down to see the crystal split right down the middle.

“What does that mean?” I turned to my boyfriend.

Lincoln looked scared for the tiniest second before it vanished. “Nothing. We’ll just have Mr. Claymore make a new one.”

Nodding, I reached for his hand. “I have to tell you something, but I need you to not freak out.”

His hand tensed, eyes widened. “Okay.”

He was totally going to freak out.

‘As he should,’ Sera piped up from her place on the floor.

‘Not helping.’

“So… my old friend from Demon City is Sighted.” I let that sentence linger. The Sighted were so freaking rare that knowing one was akin to being besties with one of the fallen archangels.

“And?” His hand was starting to sweat in mine.

I gave a nervous laugh. “And I saw him at the fight. He told me he sees a different prophecy for me.”

Lincoln breathed in and out deeply. “Which is?”

I chewed my lip and decided to just blurt it out. “I go to the underworld and train with Lucifer to use my dark magic.”

Lincoln’s eyes widened so far, I thought they might fall out of the sockets. “What! That’s ridiculous!”

“I know!” I told him. “It’s just as ridiculous as Raphael’s prophecy that I’ll go down there, and kill Lucifer.”

Lincoln was silent.

I shifted uncomfortably. “You don’t think I’m going to actually do that, right?”

He did. I could see it in his face. “I don’t want you to. It’s too dangerous. But…”

I swallowed hard, my heart rate starting to pick up speed. “But?”

Lincoln stroked my thigh with his thumb. “But you have these incredible powers, and black wings, you even went into Hell to get Sera and it didn’t seem to affect you. If anyone could do it, and end this war… it’s you.”

Oh my God, he drank the Kool-Aid. “Lincoln, I’m not doing that.” I stood. “I want to be normal. I just got my family all together, and now I want to focus on my healing studies, and help out with the war in that way,” I declared.

He nodded, dropping the subject. “Okay.” But his words, his curt nod, and stiff body language didn’t match up.

He actually expected me to kill Lucifer?

The smell hit us both at the same time.

“What’s that?” Lincoln’s brows knit together in confusion.

I grinned. “That is my mom’s cinnamon-banana walnut waffles.”

Lincoln wiped his mouth. “I just drooled a little.”

Laughter erupted out of me, and I decided to let the whole killing Lucifer thing go. For now.

“How do you feel?” he asked, as I limped across the room, and made my way into the bathroom to brush my teeth.

“Like I got hit by a bus,” I assured him.

Make no mistake, I’d be walking funny for weeks.

* * *

When we’d finally made our way out to the kitchen, I grinned at the sight of Shea, Mikey, and Noah sitting around the table, shoving their mouths full of waffles, piled high with cubes of butter, and maple syrup.

“Hey, bro. I didn’t know you’d be here.” I gave Mikey a side hug. He spent most of his weekends with his pack on Clark’s land. He was still learning to control the beast, but quick side hugs were okay.

“Are you kidding? Mom’s home, so I had to come.” He was wearing a goofy lopsided grin.

Mom’s home. Those two words hit me with the realization of what had happened. I’d gotten my mom out.

“I’m going to need more batter. Especially if we want to take some to Bernie,” my mom declared.

“Oh, I’ve hooked Bernie up,” Lincoln replied, eyeing the piping-hot waffle coming out of the chipped red maker, my mom brought from home.

I looked at my boyfriend. “Oh really?”

He chuckled. “I told Raph about the situation. He said it’s no problem for Bernie to come to the cafeteria and eat after the students have eaten their meals—before they’ve put everything away.”

My mom met my eyes, and I could see she was totally planning our wedding in her head.

“That was very sweet of you, Lincoln. Thank you,” she told him.

I smiled, getting on my tippy toes to kiss his cheek. “Thank you.”

Lincoln’s cheeks were red, and he mumbled a “you’re welcome” to both of us.

My mom held up a dish towel. “Hang on, you call him Raph? The Archangel of Healing?”

Lincoln chuckled. “Yeah, it felt weird at first, but he asked us to. He doesn’t want to seem above anyone. He’s a friend.”

He is a friend. A very good friend.

My mom started to tear up, looking down at the floor.

“Oh, Mom, what’s wrong?” I crossed the kitchen to be by her side.

She wiped the tears and patted my hand. “Nothing. I’m just… happy. I haven’t been happy in a long time.”

Silence descended upon the kitchen. I knew she’d had it hard in Demon City after I’d left, then doubly hard when Mikey was having his issues. Now I could see the stress it had caused her. Close up, she looked tired with bags under her eyes, hair limp and dull.

“Lots more happy days ahead, Mom,” I assured her.

Lincoln stepped in front of us. “Absolutely, but only if I get one of those waffles right now.”

My mother’s laughter filled the space around us, and my chest felt lighter and lighter as each person joined in.

This, our little family moment right here, was one of the happiest days of my life.