Up from the Grave (Night Huntress 7)

“Of course!” I said out loud.

Marie’s brows went up as if to say, are you sharing with the rest of the class or not?

“Bones is right, you’re not here because we want revenge,” I said crisply. “We don’t need it. Katie is alive.”

Marie’s mouth actually dropped, then she looked at me in an odd way, as if wondering if my mind had snapped from grief.

“I fail to see how that’s possible,” she said in a neutral tone.

“Demon shapeshifter who did us a favor,” I supplied. “You can only kill demons one way, and beheading isn’t it.”

Suspicion and disbelief competed on her features before they became perfectly smooth.

“If the person executed wasn’t the child, why would you tell me?”

“You’re the only person who can find us without looking,” Bones stated. “With those filmy minions of yours, no one can hide from you.”

“So if any ghosts tell tales of a strange vampire family they encountered, you can order them to shut up,” I added. “My power to command ghosts will fade, but yours never will. That’s why we’re telling you about Katie. You’re going to help us keep her a secret.”

Bones’s mouth curled. “And you’ll want to do that, for if word of her survival spreads, you’ll be considered an accomplice in duping the vampire council.”

“How?” Marie asked bluntly.

“With this,” Ian said in a cheerful tone.

We all turned. He held up a camera, smirking.

“Got some lovely shots of you speaking with Crispin, Cat, and Mencheres, but it’s the boat in the background that really makes it incriminating.”

“Besides.” Mencheres’s smile was wide enough to show his fangs. “You’ll do it because if you don’t, I can tear your head off from two cities away.”

Marie let out a sharp laugh at that.

“I can send Remnants after you from the same distance, so let us dispense with the threats.”

“Yes, let’s,” I said at once. “Instead, why don’t we try something neither of our species has been able to do before? Let’s trust each other.”

I held out my hand, staring into Marie’s hazelnut eyes.

“Back in New Orleans, you swore by your blood that if there was a public execution, you’d leave Katie and the rest of us alone. You got your execution. Now give us our peace, and we’ll promise to do the same with you and your people.”

Marie looked at my hand, then at the boat beyond.

“Are you prepared to hide her until she dies a natural death? With her bloodline, that could be a very long time.”

“Then that’s how long we’ll be away,” I replied evenly. “Mencheres has promised to handle issues with their people, and I was never a social butterfly anyway.”

Her gaze flicked to Bones next.

“You would give up so much for another man’s child?”

“Katie is my child,” Bones responded instantly. “She may not be my biological daughter, but that merely means she’ll have two fathers.”

Marie glanced at the boat again. I did, too. Tate was on deck, Katie standing next to him. She had Helsing in her arms, as per usual. Much to my delight, Katie loved having a pet, and my kitty took the additional affection as his due. It was almost dark, but I could still see the new blonde highlights in Katie’s auburn hair. She loved the sunshine although we had to slather her with SPF50. Maybe she spent so much time in it now because she’d seen it only rarely before.

Then Marie looked back at me. With a hint of a sardonic smile, she grasped my hand.

“We will trust each other, then. After thousands of years, it’s past time our two species tried that instead of threats and death.”

“Better late than never,” I said, squeezing her hand.

When we let go, I took Bones’s, savoring the feel of his flesh and the power that curled around me with its own caress.

We could accomplish anything together. I hadn’t believed that before, but I did now.

“Mencheres,” Marie said, turning to the other vampire. “Since we are all in agreement, you need to return me to my city. I have to make sure no more of my people disobey me like the ones in Detroit did.”

“A queen’s work is never done,” I said lightly.

Now her laughter was knowing. “Neither is a mother’s, Reaper, as you’ll soon discover.”

I looked at the boat again, waving this time. Tate waved back. Katie looked at him, at me, and held up her hand, giving it a tentative wiggle.

I couldn’t be prouder if she’d composed a sonnet and pinned it to a bull’s-eye by throwing a knife from fifty paces.

When I looked back at Marie, I was smiling.

“I can’t wait to find out, which is why I’m starting now. Bones?”

He snorted. “I’ve been ready, luv. It’s you that takes the longest, as always.”

I couldn’t stop my grin. “So let’s not wait anymore. Everyone . . . we’ll see you again, some soon, some later, but as vampires say, until again.”

Then, instead of climbing back into the dinghy and rowing, I grabbed it and flew.