Some of the younger children were already visiting their families in an attempt to re-establish the relationships. The “home” was changing, and the children, including Emmett and Leah, were being reintroduced to the real world. Nancy and Wes were healthy and oblivious, but Cam and Kate hadn’t resurfaced, which was probably a good thing. No matter what Peter said, I could see him throwing new Peter out a window if faced with a fallen angel who had interfered in his life.
The fae had mostly decided to follow Phoenix, and many half-blooded fae were discovered, but acceptance of them was a long way off. Exiles were returning in their droves, and families were reunited. The new government had ordered all “slaves” to be released, and every day, beings of all races were calling for help so they could escape their owners.
Elathan was in his element as Phoenix’s new best friend, but the funny part was that they weren’t even faking it anymore. Elathan was heavily involved in the new government and re-establishing a new version of the Guardians. Phoenix had taken back the Sanctuary, but he still wasn’t sure what it would be used for. The Headquarters were slowly being transformed. Moses’s flats were still free, and a large section of the city had been forced to seek drugs elsewhere. Change was everywhere.
Although I was happy to help with the children, organising new laws and quotas and rules was not part of my life. Aside from the restrictions set down by the rest of the Eleven, I had come to realise that my way was not always the best way, and I couldn’t judge fairly. Eddie had been right about one thing: it wasn’t my job to enforce my brand of morality on anyone else. There was so much going on, so much to do, and I didn’t know if I would ever be ready for a real relationship with anyone, least of all Peter.
“I just… I don’t want to keep having to separate people in my head,” I said, attempting to make him understand. “I don’t have the energy anymore.”
His eyebrows came together. “I literally have no idea what that means.”
“Okay, the only way I could stomach my grandmother was to separate her personality in my head. She was two people: the frail old lady who wanted to help me and that horrible person who terrified me as a kid. I couldn’t put the two together because they didn’t fit. I imagined her to be the way I needed her to be, but given half the chance, she would just remind me of that other person, the person I didn’t need. That’s because they were the same person.”
He stared at me blankly.
“The good comes with the bad. Just like you.”
“Hold on a sec—”
“Listen to me. I’ve been separating you in my head, too. You were the judgemental prick who wanted to kill me, the one who walked all over me to get what he wanted, and then there was the other you, the one I wanted to save from the dark side, the one I thought cared about me. But you were wearing his skin when you betrayed me, and even he’s able to switch off his feelings. Even he’s not good for me.”
“Ava, come on. We all made hard choices.”
He didn’t get it. He might never get it. “I’m not sure if I can do this, Peter,” I said. “I have a lot on my plate right now.”
“Jesus, Ava, I’m not proposing. I’m just asking for a fresh start.”
“Maybe I don’t want one! I’m not a victim anymore. I’m not a fighter, either. I’m not a rebel or a daughter or a granddaughter. I’m just me, and I’m still figuring that out, but I like it this way. I can be anybody right now. I can go anywhere I like, and I don’t need anybody else right now.”
“So that’s it? Your answer is never?”
I sighed. “My answer is—”
A knock on the door startled both of us. Somebody kept banging, over and over again.
“I smell blood,” I whispered.
Both of us reached for our weapons, despite the insistence that we were living in a time of peace. I opened the front door warily, only to see a tall teenage girl standing there. She was pretty, but her striking green eyes were terrified.
“You,” she said, her voice hoarse. “Are we safe here? Is it safe?”
“Yeah, you’re fine,” I said, catching her as she fell. I knelt on the floor with a stranger in my arms, her long blond hair streaked with blood and a badly healing burn marking her shoulder and bicep. A man lay against the front gate, unconscious and bleeding.
Peter stared down at me in concern. “What the hell is this?”
I laughed a little hysterically, feeling something shift within, like an empty space being filled. “I think this might be my first lost soul.”
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Thank you for reading – for more information, check out Claire Farrell’s blog or email the author. Sign up to be notified of new releases.
Traitor is the final book in the Ava Delaney series, but as Breslin said, the end is but a beginning. There are many stories to tell in this world, and Ava may show up again.
Books by Claire Farrell:
Death is a Gift
Stake You
Thirst (Ava Delaney #1) – Free
Taunt (Ava Delaney #2)
Tempt (Ava Delaney #3)
Taken (Ava Delaney #4)
Taste (Ava Delaney #5)
Traitor (Ava Delaney #6)
Awakening (Ava Delaney Volume I – Books 1-3)
Verity (Cursed #1) – Free
Clarity (Cursed #2)
Adversity (Cursed #2.5 – Free
Purity (Cursed #3)
Cursed Omnibus (Entire Cursed Series)
One Night with the Fae
Sixty Seconds
A Little Girl in my Room
Claire Farrell, Traitor
(Series: Ava Delaney # 6)
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