House of Royale (Secret Keepers #4)(72)

I felt nervous for them. They were our family. I wanted them to be able to take this new step together. Light shot up and I gasped, not sure if that was a bad sign. Another beam of light, from whatever was above, shot down to meet their beam.

“The network accepts them,” a council member shouted.

The cheers that erupted were almost deafening, and my heart swelled at the thought that all the houses were joined together in this moment. In celebration. The rest of the ceremony was over pretty quickly after that, then all of the overlords met to congratulate each other, while the members of the houses started to make their journey home.

Daniel asked all of us to stay until the end, sending messages to his friends via the network. “You’re going to have to show me how this network works soon,” I joked to Xander.

He gave me a wink. “You got it, babe. You have forever to learn about my world. I can’t wait to discover everything with you.”

He was perfect. Most of the time, anyway. The arrogant asshole came out on occasion, but to be honest, I loved that side of him almost as much as his sweet side.

Emma just about barreled me over as she tackle-hugged me. “I missed you,” she exclaimed.

I burst out laughing. “I missed you too. I was wondering if I might be a little crazy, since it was only one night apart.”

Maya joined us then and we pulled her into the hug. “Nope, not crazy,” she told us. “I was almost going to sneak out of Chase’s place last night and come find you all.”

“Tell me that Chase’s place in Daelight Crescent is a tree house,” Emma said with a laugh. “And we can have sleepovers there?”

Chase joined us then, after saying farewell to his parents. “It’s a very large tree house. And you’re all welcome anytime. There’s enough room for us all to live together and still have our own wings, if you’d like.”

Everyone laughed even though he’d said nothing particularly funny. It was just nice to think about the future. About being together. And I guess … we were all happy.

“Callie!” Emma cried when our friend finally escaped from the council and others gathered around the new overlord couple. “You’re an overlord major.”

Callie hugged all of us, her face glowing even though her eyes were tired and somewhat haunted still. “I can’t believe it, but … I feel the energy now. Inside. The same way my fire is there. And while I’m really happy, Daniel is still getting his ass kicked for dropping that on me with no notice.”

Her mate chuckled as he wrapped his arm around her. “You’d never have turned up today if I told you what I had planned. It all worked out for the best.”

She shook her head at him but didn’t argue. The last of the crowds were disappearing, and I realized how huge this top section of Imperial actually was.

“So, what did you want us to wait here for?” Lexen asked Daniel.

Daniel and Callie’s faces went somber. I worried for a moment they had more bad news.

“I’ve been waiting for my full powers,” Daniel said. “Because I wanted to offer you all one last chance to say goodbye.”

Lexen froze, like he knew exactly what Daniel meant. “You should call your parents, Jero, and Star back as well,” Daniel prompted his friend, who still looked frozen. “It’s a one-time offer.”

“Are you sure?” Lexen said hoarsely. “I’ve never heard of anyone doing that before. I don’t want to get their hopes up.”

Daniel clasped his friend on the shoulder. “I will break the rules for you all. Just this once.”

Emma started to cry, and so did Callie. My eyes felt very damp as I stared at the ground, still not totally sure how Daniel was going to allow them to say goodbye to Marsil.

“He’s in redemption?” Emma asked, sobs escaping her.

Daniel nodded. “Yes, he sacrificed himself to save two worlds. His soul went straight to redemption.”

Emma nodded rapidly. “Of course it did.”

Lexen’s parents appeared from the huge building that was near the back of this level. Star and Jero were with them. Lexen met them halfway so he could explain everything. Ambra started to cry, burying her head in her hands, while Roland comforted her. Jero and Star, though, both looked happy, their faces almost bright as they hurried across to our group.

“They all accept your gracious gift,” Lexen told Daniel.

Roland cleared his throat. “You’re breaking a lot of rules today, Overlord Daniel.”

Daniel shrugged. “First day on the job—everyone makes mistakes on their first day.”

Roland chuckled. “I can see you’re ready to bring about the sort of change Lexen has always pushed for. I can’t wait until the day the four of you stand at the pillar of Overworld. That will be a fine day indeed.” His wife lifted her head, her dark blue eyes rimmed in red. Roland’s arm was still around her, solid, supportive. “Ambra and I are going to seriously discuss when to hand the mantle over to Lexen. Whenever he and Emma are ready for it.”

Emma went very pale, but she also looked pleased that they had included her.

“Can I see my son now?” Ambra asked, her eyes brimming with fresh tears. “I need to see him one last time.”

Cue waterworks again. This was going to be one emotional visit, and I wondered…