Death at First Sight (Spero Heights Book 2) (14 page)

Epilogue

Dr. Delph closed his eyes and smiled up at the afternoon sun, enjoying how his spine stretched as he bowed it back into camel pose. Lia and Zelda mirrored him on either side, their yoga mats rolled out over the grassy lawn of the square.

Lia had been at Orpheus House for two weeks now. She swore that the sauna massages were more than enough to get her through the drug withdrawals and vision symptoms, but Dr. Delph had finally convinced her to give yoga a try too. And Zelda pushed the idea along by promising to practice with them.

Selena lay sprawled out on a quilt a few yards away, the twins drooling and cooing beside her. She yawned and rubbed her eyes before snatching up a rattle as it rolled off into the grass. Billy gurgled at her and reached for it.

“I’ll be right back,” Dr. Delph said, smiling at Lia and Zelda as he stood. “You’re doing great.”

He cut across the lawn and joined Selena on the quilt, pausing to make a silly face at the babies before he addressed her. “We should have another meeting soon,” he said.

“What for?” Selena was still angry with him, though it was hard to blame her.

“I just want to be sure we haven’t forgotten anything…” his voice trailed off thoughtfully.

Their cover-ups usually didn’t call for measures so drastic, and he was extra anxious about this one, seeing as how in involved the woman who had taken over the center of his universe. Every breath conjured her in his mind, and his heart ignited when she glanced his way, a knowing smile curling up the corners of her mouth.

Selena yawned again. “Everything is taken care of. The car is at the bottom of the river. Logan took a chainsaw to the tree it hit. His
pack
ate the rest of the evidence.” She paused to give him a bewildered look. “I still can’t believe you wouldn’t let me keep the gun. An untraceable weapon would have been nice to have around for emergencies—”

Dr. Delph shook his head. “Not worth the risk.”

She huffed and raised an eyebrow at him. “The only thing you need to worry about now is staying on my good side. We’re in this crap together, so you better start acting like it. No more secrets, bucko.”

He grinned at her watered down language. She’d been trying extra hard to keep her tongue in check when the twins were present, though she more than made up for it when they weren’t around.

“She’s cute. I’ll give you that,” Selena said, glancing over the lawn to where Lia and Zelda had rose up into downward dog. “Nice ass!” she shouted, sending Zelda tumbling back to her yoga mat. Lia blushed and lowered herself more gracefully.

“Honestly, Selena?” Dr. Delph struggled not to smile.

“What?” She gave him an innocent grin. “Ass isn’t a curse word, is it? No, it’s not,” she baby-talked down at Emma. “Ass is just a donkey. Hee-haw.”

Dr. Delph chuckled under his breath. He’d never been happier, and not even the grim visions the Fates delivered to him could change that. He was just glad to have them back in his head. Their reasons for abandoning him were still unclear, but he could safely assume it was either due to his potential death or blossoming love life—maybe both. It didn’t really matter. Whatever the universe brought down on them, he knew they’d get through it. Together.

“Graham called,” he said, taking Selena’s rejection of secrecy to heart. “He’s coming back this week.”

Selena snorted. “About damn time. If he misses the fireworks display, the Midnight District is going to have a riot.”

Dr. Delph winced as he recalled his morning vision. “I think we might have a riot on our hands anyway. He’s not coming back alone.”

Selena’s eyes narrowed. “You said he didn’t find the missing vamp.”

“He didn’t.” Dr. Delph swallowed. “He found someone else.” There was more to it than that, but he’d said enough for now. The day was too beautiful to spoil completely.

Selena sighed and sat up on the blanket. The wind whipped playfully at her spiky hair, but it did little to smooth the creases cutting across her scowling face. “Thanks for ruining my Saturday, prick.”

Dr. Delph shrugged and reached back to let his hair down, shaking out his messy bun and combing his fingers through his tangled tresses. “You said no more secrets.”

Selena stuffed toys in a diaper bag and began buckling the babies back in their carriers. “Well, at least your new lady friend will be able to see this one before it hits us, right? I mean, as long as she’s as
sharing
as you are.” She rolled her eyes.

“I don’t know.” Dr. Delph frowned.

“What do you, you don’t know?”

He rubbed a hand over his jaw. “I mean, we’ll have to see if Lia’s visions are capable of predicting supernatural deaths as well as human deaths.”

Selena growled softly. “Well, that’s just great. Real useful one you’ve got there, doc.”

“Technically, vampires are already dead. It complicates matters,” he said. Then his brow scrunched as he turned to look up at her. “Also, we’ve never put conditions of usefulness on our citizens before. This is a safe haven. The only ones sworn to serve and protect are you, me, and Graham. When someone else lends a hand, it’s out of the goodness of their heart.”

He was talking about Zelda and Logan, of course. And the snarled expression on Selena’s face proved that she knew it too.

“Yeah, yeah. They’re coming over for dinner tomorrow. You can save your preachy crap for another day.”

Dr. Delph grinned, pleased to know that she was trying to mend ties with her brother. He was leading a new life, one that wasn’t orchestrated by his overbearing sister. She still had trouble reigning in her alpha blood, and it was clear she’d never submit to him or join his pack, but Dr. Delph was hopeful that they could at least remain civil. They were family, after all. And family had to stick together.

He smiled down at Emma and Billy in their carriers, cooing and babbling as they sucked on their fingers. They seemed so happy. They were too young to realize that their real mother had been sacrificed on the altar of a corrupted coven, that Selena had slaughtered their abusive father. That conversation was years away, but it
would
come, and Selena would need her brother close by when it did.

“Leaving so soon?” Lia asked as she joined Dr. Delph and Selena, helping them roll up the quilt. “They’re getting big,” she said, glancing down into the carriers with an adoring sigh.

Dr. Delph hadn’t told her of the child he’d seen in their future. Some things were best left to surprise. He wanted her to feel the weight of that joy all at once, to see the delight in her eyes when she felt their unborn child awaken inside her.

Dr. Delph stood and Lia smiled up at him, her eyes sparkling. He tilted his head against hers, brushing her lips with a quick kiss.

“Gross,” Selena grumbled as she looked away from them and tucked the quilt down in the twins’ diaper bag.

Lia didn’t take her eyes off Dr. Delph, but an impish smile pinched her mouth. “Nice ass,” she said, turning Selena a shade of red that Dr. Delph was sure hadn’t been named yet.

Coming soon…

THE MIDNIGHT DISTRICT

A SPERO HEIGHTS NOVEL

Graham Pierce, the beloved mayor of Spero Heights, has finally returned home… but he’s not alone.

After a wild vampire chase prompted by one of Dr. Delph’s visions, he stumbles across an apocalyptic affair resulting from his failure. The vampire in question is dead, leaving a curiously strong vampling in his place. Graham can’t explain his fascination with her, and he has no idea what bringing her back to his quiet little haven in the mountains could mean for him or for all of Spero Heights.

Eliza Wilson shouldn’t have gone to her ten-year class reunion. Certainly not right after losing her job, and most definitely not after being served divorce papers by her husband’s attorney and latest conquest. When her high school stalker corners her in the parking lot for a little love bite and she wakes up without a pulse, that’s the last straw. Hell hath no fury, because she brought it all back with her.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This is book number ten for me. You’d think I’d have a pretty good system and schedule down by now, but I find I’ve just become more accustomed to the way deadlines
whoosh
past me and disappear over the horizon.

Luckily, I have an amazing critique group and beta readers who don’t mind editing and proofreading at the very last minute (okay, they probably
do
mind, but they deliver anyway). I promise to make the New Year’s resolution stick next time, guys. Cross my heart!

Extra big thanks to my grammarly astute husband, the epic Horsemen of the Bookocalypse, and Andrea Cook, who did another awesome Twitter countdown (complete with manly yoga pics
a la
Christian Delph).

And finally, thanks to all of my dedicated readers! I hope this ten-book journey has been just as much fun for you as it has been for me. Now on to the next ten!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

International best-selling author
Angela Roquet
is a great big weirdo. She collects Danger Girl comic books, owls, skulls, random craft supplies, and all things Joss Whedon. She's a fan of renewable energy, marriage equality, and religious tolerance. As long as whatever you're doing isn't hurting anyone, she's a fan of you, too.

Angela lives in Missouri with her husband and son. She's a member of SFWA and HWA, as well as the Four Horsemen of the Bookocalypse, her epic book critique group, where she's known as Death. When she's not swearing at the keyboard, she enjoys painting, goofing off with her family and friends, and reading books that raise eyebrows. You can find Angela online at
www.angelaroquet.com

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