Jack sank his fangs into her neck and she surrendered to him, to love, to pleasure, to the feel of him everywhere—in every last part of her. He took her and held her, and when it happened, she felt broken and free and new.
She could not stop crying. She was so happy, although happy was not the word, it was more than that. It was strong and coursing through her as if she were lit like a candle, an extension of his love and lust, a mere collection of nerve endings. She felt open and whole and surrendered.
“What is wrong, my love?” he whispered, his beautiful face a breath from hers.
She pulled him ever closer. She kissed him hungrily. Nothing is wrong. Nothing…nothing at all.
It was wonderful and frightening and awkward and ecstatic, and she was dizzy from the blood and the pain. But the pleasure was more intense, and more than she could have imagined.
Sweet oblivion.
Tonight they would be bonded. Tonight, she would be his. But she was already.
NINE
Angel Bride
At sunset, Schuyler walked into a small church on the north side of the city. She had made the journey alone, as tradition called, her new leather sandals stepping lightly on the cobblestones. When she arrived, Bliss was waiting for her at the vestibule entry.
“You look gorgeous as usual,” her friend sighed. “And that dress!” Bliss handed her a bouquet of wildflowers. The same kind that Jack had given her during their climb up Mount Rosa. “Jack wanted me to give this to you.”
Schuyler smiled as she accepted them. She put a flower in her hair. Her heart beat wildly, and she felt so much love—not just for Jack but for her friends, who were with her on this night.
“Where’s our girl?” a voice asked.
“Ollie!” Schuyler cried, turning to give him a tight hug. Even though they had just seen each other the night before, she was so glad that after everything they had gone through, they were all there for one another. This was what she had wanted. A bonding was both a commitment between her and Jack and a celebration for their community. These were her people.
“I think I get to give you away,” Oliver said with a smile. “Which is only appropriate, don’t you think?”
From behind the closed chapel doors, Schuyler heard the sound of Wagner’s Bridal Chorus, commonly known as “Here Comes the Bride.” A traditional choice perhaps, but on her bonding day Schuyler did not want to trifle with convention. She felt deep-seated desire to pay homage to the institution they were joining.
“I think that’s our cue,” she told Oliver, taking his hand. Bliss opened the doors and stepped into the aisle first, as the bridesmaid.
Schuyler felt none of the butterflies or anxiety she had thought she would feel. She looked straight ahead.
Because there he was.
Her Jack, standing so straight and true. Their love had been tested and challenged, but they had come out of it whole. Their love was stronger than ever. This bright, cheerful happiness that filled the room was his creation. He had cast his own spell, had managed to track down Bliss, and had brought Oliver from New York. They were not even the only friends in attendance. The small chapel was filled with smiling, familiar faces. There was the entire lacrosse team: Bryce Cutting and Jamie Kip and Booze Langdon and Froggy Kernochan. There were Hattie and Julius Jackson, beaming and proud. There was Christopher Anderson. There was Ghedi, their friend, even after everything.
Oliver kissed her on the cheek and shook Jack’s hand.
Then Jack kissed her forehead, and the two of them walked toward the altar. This was right, this was wonderful. This was the happiest day of her life.
Somewhere, not too far, Schuyler felt the presence of those who were missing. She felt Dylan smiling. She felt the love of her grandparents, Lawrence and Cordelia. But most of all, she felt the loving presence and guardianship of her mother and father, wherever they were.
* * *
There was no priest at the head of the altar. Blue Blood unions were made by the bondholders themselves. They only had to consecrate their union by saying the right words to each other.
Jack turned to Schuyler, reaching for her left hand. He slipped a ring on her finger. It was the same one that the Venator had brought. The cursed ring.
“Drusilla thought she could spoil this day for me. But she was wrong,” Jack said. “I should thank her, truly, for giving back what I had once lost.”
Schuyler stared curiously at the ring on her finger. The white metal was gone. She saw now that it was a dark-colored band, threaded with a crimson line, as if it were cast of iron and blood.
Jack held it up to the light.
In all my years on this Earth, I have amassed a fortune of jewels and treasures. I can offer you diamonds and rubies, sapphires and emeralds. Yet there is no jewel brighter than your eyes.