His head was bleeding. So was his shoulder and his arm, and those were just the parts of him she could see. It looked like he’d made contact with a blunt surface several times as well. So many questions filled her head, but she couldn’t ask any of them. Despite his firm grip on her, it was obvious he needed help.
They didn’t have to ask. Before the ocean could plunge them into the rocky shoals one more time, Cadence realized they were both floating out of the surf. Surrounded by blue healing light, as well as the ebb and flow of Cassidy’s powers, they slowly traveled up from the depths, holding onto each other with everything they had left.
Aaron’s bleeding stopped almost immediately, and before they even reached the cliff’s edge, she could tell he felt much better. “Are you okay?” she asked quietly, pulling his head to her shoulder.
“I am now.” Finally hearing his voice brought tears to her eyes, and somehow Cadence managed to increase her grip around him. If she had her way, she’d never let go of him again.
In a matter of seconds, Jamie had him healed, and the only evidence that he’d been in pretty bad shape a few moments ago were ripped leather and blood stains. Aaron pulled away from her slightly, and while she was reluctant to give him any room at all, when his lips met hers, it was totally worth it.
The sound of their friends clapping and cheering from the top of the cliffs was not enough to persuade them to stop. Not even the feel of the earth rising up to meet her boots caused Cadence to disentangle herself from the husband she’d been missing for what seemed like an eternity. It wasn’t until Cassidy shouted, “Seriously—I’m gonna drop you back in if you don’t knock it off!” Followed by Elliott’s bellow of, “Get a room!” that put a little space between them.
Cadence had to come up for breath, but she didn’t unwrap her arms from around his waist. “I’m so glad that’s over with,” she said quietly.
“Me, too,” Aaron said quickly. “Hines died a split second after Christian ran out, so I collided with a brick wall again. I didn’t let it knock me out this time, though.” The sound of Christian chuckling over her shoulder made her think Jamie had completely healed him, too. She’d have to get more information about whatever he was laughing at later. “I tried again, despite the fact that I shouldn’t have been able to leave without anyone in there, but then—did you throw someone in at the last second?”
“It was Cass who did it,” Cadence said, nodding at her sister.
“Cadence lured her over. I just did the heavy lifting,” the teen replied, an air of nonchalance in her tone.
“You did a lot.” Cadence nodded in thanks at Cassidy who turned a little pink and looked away.
“Who was it?” Aaron asked, and the question hung in the air around them like a lead balloon.
Finally, Cadence managed to put it all in perspective. “It was Holland.”
His eyes widened slightly in disbelief before his head rocked back and forth a few times. “I guess it really is over then.”
“I hope so.” The thought that they would never have to face the Vampire Queen again was a little difficult to accept. It might take a few days to sink it.
“I don’t think she can survive in there for long, especially the way the cave was sinking in on her,” Christian added.
“Won’t the demon hunters have a field day with her? She is part demon, after all, isn’t she?” Elliott asked.
“Seems to be. They sure had fun ripping her baby apart.” Christian laughed, and Cadence instantly felt terrible for throwing the child into the portal, but then it had been trying to kill her....
“The demon hunters left after they killed the child,” Aaron informed them, letting go of Cadence with one hand to turn and face the team. “But if she’s in there, I’m sure they’ll be back. The tunnel we were using collapsed when the grenades went off, which was unexpected. I’m not sure about the rest of it. I have no idea if she would’ve come through another tunnel or collided with a wall of falling rock.”
“I guess it doesn’t matter,” Jamie said. “She can’t get out unless something else goes in, and all of our enemies who know about the portal are dead or in it.”
“All but one,” Aaron reminded them.
“Surely Daunator won’t get himself involved in all of this, will he?” Elliott’s tone seemed more leery than confident.
“I sure hope not. Defeating Holland is one thing, but taking down an entity as powerful as Daunator would be something else entirely. We may have to face him someday, but I hope he gives us a little bit of a break,” Aaron said. Cadence could see the exhaustion in his eyes and couldn’t blame him for needing a rest.
“Let’s go,” she said, aware that Moira’s team was handling interference and pretty much everything else. “You look like you could use a nap—and a shower.”
Aaron glanced down at himself and seemed shocked at all of the blood. “For once, I’d have to say a nap sounds pretty inviting.”
Cadence took one more look behind her at the beautiful cliffs and headed off to the van with her friends, her hand never leaving Aaron’s. The heat from the rising sun was beginning to dry her clothes, and the shock of everything that had transpired was finally sinking in. Holland was gone, all of her friends were back, except for Alex, and they would finally be able to have their formal wedding. It might’ve been delayed an extra week, but the thoughts of spending endless days lying in the sun on the beach with the most handsome man in the world brought a genuine smile to her face, something she hadn’t worn in days.
This probably wouldn’t be the end of LIGHTS, not as long as Daunator was out there, not as long as there was even one more Rogue Vampire stalking its prey, but it felt like the end of something, and as she climbed into the SUV with her team, Cadence didn’t know if she should feel sadness or relief. They’d lost Alex, but that was an acceptable sacrifice since he’d wanted to go. The fact that everyone else was with her was enough to dissuade the negative emotions clogging her mind. Whatever came next, her team would be ready, and Cadence felt confident that she and Aaron could lead them to victory no matter the monsters they faced.
