A Clash of Storms (A Shade of Vampire #50)(76)

I chuckled, and Field rolled his eyes before he put on a sheepish smile and nodded.

“He’s right, though,” Field said, gazing at me. “I didn’t have the courage, but you seemed to have enough for the both of us, anyway.”

That prompted some “aww”s out of River and Mom, while the Hawks all wore their signature smirks.

“Guess we found the chicken in our family then,” Sky joked.

“He’s already got the wings for it,” Blue chimed in.

“I could pluck your feathers out, little birdies,” Field shot back with a grin.

“Oh, don’t cluck so much. It’s unbecoming!” Rock chuckled in return.

“There are so many ‘why did Field cross the road’ jokes going through my head right now.” Fly was the last to speak, making us all burst into laughter.

“I have to say, though,” Dad said, looking around. “There are some pretty… fascinating creatures around here.”

I realized that his eyes had been sucked in by the succubi, judging by the way he couldn’t help but gaze at a group of them standing a couple of feet away, watching us. Dad’s eyes glimmered, which suddenly made everything very awkward and prompted Mom to blatantly stare at him.

“Bastien, honey,” she said, her voice a couple of degrees below zero. “You’re drooling.”

Dad swiftly turned his gaze to look at her, surprised and embarrassed.

“I… No, baby, I wouldn’t… You know I wouldn’t,” he tried to explain while I stifled a laugh.

“It’s not his fault, Mom,” Jovi interjected, chuckling as he patted him on the back. “They’re succubi. They’re naturally designed to seduce, just like the incubi. They sometimes forget to keep their nature under control, and they have this effect on the opposite sex. You get all lightheaded and can’t turn off your bedroom eyes. It’s quite extraordinary.”

Mom couldn’t help but laugh at Dad’s predicament, until she noticed Grezzi gazing at her with a seductive smile from across the room. Her cheeks flushed as she took a deep breath, and I snapped my fingers in front of her face before glaring at Grezzi. He got the message quickly, turning his head to rejoin a conversation with Jax, Hansa, and Jasmine.

“Mom, stay with us,” I said.

“Okay, I see what you mean, Jovi.” Mom blinked several times, regaining her senses and wrapping her loving arms around Dad’s large frame. He smiled gently and welcomed her embrace, amused by how the tables had turned.

Jovi took Anjani’s hand and brought her closer to our group. The goofy smile on his face said it all, and our mother was quick to point that out as she gave Anjani a polite and appreciative nod.

“I take it this beautiful young lady here is your significant other?” she asked with a smile.

Anjani’s skin glowed delicately as Jovi put his arm around her shoulder.

“She is, and I swear it had nothing to do with her succubus nature,” he said, pulling her closer, then sighed as he gazed at her. “Okay… maybe it had a little bit of an influence, but I’m in full control of my mental faculties here when I say she’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”

Mom and Dad put their arms out, inviting us all to join in another group hug, this time with Field and Anjani included. We laughed as we came together, with River, Ben, and the Hawk brothers once again amplifying the reunion.

“We’re just happy you’re all okay,” River said, tearing up. “Now that we’re remembering everything, I don’t know how the hell we spent over twenty years without you. The Shade hasn’t been the same!”

“It’s all good now, Mom,” Field replied gently. “Nothing will tear us apart like this ever again.”

I breathed out as I relaxed in his embrace, welcoming the natural and familiar scents of my family into my consciousness. I eventually told them about my Oracle abilities and how this whole Eritopian affair had unfolded, and, after a few moments of carefully considering all the details, Mom and Dad took me into yet another tight hug.

“You are perfect just the way you are, sweetheart,” Dad said, his voice trembling. “The upside is you can keep using these abilities for good.”

“Yeah.” I nodded, wiping more tears. “I plan to work on them more, though. I have a very poor sense of direction when I’m under.”

“Oh, honey, you’ve come so far already, in such a short timespan!” Mom replied encouragingly. “Mastering your Oracle abilities will be peanuts compared to this!”

And she was right. The hardest part was over. Everything else that followed could be managed and controlled, conditioned and perfected.

The only thing that didn’t need additional work was my relationship with Field.

We were together now, and back with our families, too.

We were perfect.





Serena





The best part about being a sentry was the fact that I was able to sense my parents’ emotions as they held Phoenix and me tight, kissing our faces, stroking our hair, and telling us how much they loved us between sobs and hiccups. They were raw and vibrant, a mixture of grief, joy, and unconditional love that had crashed into them from the moment they’d remembered us. They didn’t hide any of it. In fact, they projected it at full blast, bringing Phoenix and me to tears.