Fallen University: Year Three

He hauled me to him for one more blistering kiss, then wrapped the towel around his waist and strolled from the room.

Still grinning like an idiot, I wiped off the condensation on the mirror and finished getting dressed.

My four soulmates and I had spent the past three months learning the ropes of our new job. I was glad we still got to live on earth, but—as weird as it felt to say—the underworld was growing on me. For every horrible, deadly part, there was something breathtaking and beautiful about it. It was a harsh, often somewhat desolate beauty, sure, but it was a part of me in a way I was finally beginning to embrace.

No evil overlord had risen up to take the place that Gavriel had left empty—yet. But we were setting up a communication network so that word could be spread quickly if there were rumblings of another despot wanting to take over.

But today… today was a special mission.

It’d taken weeks of begging, cajoling, and mild threats on my part, but Director Price had finally agreed to it.

Today, we were going to bring Michael topside to visit his family.

A little thrill of excitement went through me at the prospect. I hadn’t had much family to speak of when I’d been turned, so there was no one to leave behind. But my men had become my family, and the idea of being separated from them hurt so much I couldn’t even bear to think of it.

If Michael loved his family anywhere near as much as I loved my four soulmates, he deserved the chance to see them. To spend time with his grandchildren.

And really. A werewolf grandpa? What could be fucking cooler than that?

There was a pep in my step when I opened the bathroom door and headed to the living room. When we were on earth, the guys and I shared a house in Seattle, in a much nicer neighborhood than my old one. We were in the process of building a house in the underworld too, with both Michael and Vee’s help.

Although I loved spending time on earth, and I especially loved the access to amenities like hot showers, I felt more and more comfortable in the underworld these days. And not in an I’m turning evil way either. That myth was finally being dispelled amongst the Custodians, although the Envoy division was still whispered about by some people who clung to the old ways.

Whatever. Let them talk. Director Price trusts us, and we’re doing something worthwhile. Something important.

Familiar deep voices greeted me as I headed down the hallway to the living room, and I found my four men all waiting for me near the front door.

“Ready to go, gorgeous?” Jayce pulled me in for a kiss, then planted a little peck on my nose before releasing me.

“Yeah. More than ready.”

“This is a good thing you did, Pipes. Setting this visit up for Michael,” Kai said softly as he took my hand. He didn’t have much family outside of our little unit either, but from the look in his eyes, I knew he was thinking the same thing I just had.

“Thanks.”

“It really is. Hopefully they’ll take it better than my parents did,” Kingston added with a roll of his eyes.

Since his parents had witnessed our fight against the fallen that had invaded their mansion, there hadn’t been a lot of point in trying to convince them the supernatural was all a myth. It’d taken them a while to come around to the idea that their son was now a dragon, but they were getting there.

Clipboard was furious about the idea of letting any humans know we existed, but as far as I was concerned, we were entering a whole new era. Hannah hadn’t been kidding about making changes from the inside, and although she was still a new recruit with the Custodians, she was already making waves. Clipboard could get on board, or he could get left behind at the station. Either option was fine by me.

My men and I gripped each other’s hands tightly, concentrating on our destination, and a moment later, a portal opened up and sucked us in.

Warm air wafted over me, and a harpy called in the distance.

I blinked my eyes open to take in the landscape that had once seemed to hold nothing but danger and terror. Maybe it had changed, or maybe I had. But it certainly didn’t seem as threatening as it once had.

I had friends here now.

I had a purpose.

And that made everything different.

As if he’d read my thoughts, Kai gave my hand a little squeeze as our circle broke apart.

“Welcome home, Piper.”

***