Page 21 of Sorrow & Strangers

When I step out onto the porch, I see Luke sitting where Farrah and I sat the one time I came with Connor to Eden, binder in her lap, a bright smile on her face. Luke is also holding a book, and he seems to be adding things to it.

“This seat taken?” I ask, walking toward him, trying to pull a smile from his lips. He glances up at me and just shakes his head. I sit next to him, looking at the book, and realize it’s not a book at all, but a photo album. I pull the blanket over me and shift closer to him, needing comfort when I find myself staring down at hundreds of photographs of Connor.

Luke picks up a photograph of Connor and Alice. They’re glaring at each other in front of a dartboard, obviously bickering about the score. The picture makes my heart squeeze, but it also reminds me of the moment I took the photo.

“You cheated,” Connor grumbles.

“Did not. You’re just a sore loser, birdbrain.”

I roll my eyes. “Does it matter?”

“Yes,” they say in unison. Both are annoyed because the winner got to decide what we’d do for the rest of the night. Alice wants to go to some party, and Connor wants to have dinner and watch movies.

I snap a photo of them, both looking petulant, and show it to them, sending us all into fits of laughter at the ludicrousness of the situation.

We ended up going to the party. I didn’t really care what we did. The best part was going home with Connor.

Luke slots the photo into the album and then picks up another one, this one of just me. I’m standing on the beach in Drãculea, and I’m laughing at something Connor said behind the camera.

“Where did you get these?”

“They were on Connor’s phone,” Luke says, slipping the photo in.

“You have his phone?”

He nods. “It was pretty banged up, but I managed to save the data.”

“Luke, maybe this should wait . . .”

Luke shakes his head. “No, I like it. It reminds me, you know?” He looks at a photo of Rafe glaring broodingly at Zach. “That he was real. That he lived. That he loved.”

I nod and lean my head on Luke’s shoulder, taking comfort in his solid presence as I tell him some of the stories behind the various photos. It takes a while, but he finally laughs. It’s small and lined with heartbreak, but it’s there, and it shatters through some of my own pain.

Chapter Thirteen

Summer

Izip my case as Rafe enters his room. “You finally heading back?” he asks.

“It’s time,” I say, looking up to hold his gaze.

“And Alice is climbing the walls,” Rafe says, one corner of his mouth tilting.

“She is,” I agree. I’ve called her every day that I’ve been here, and while she’s never asked for me to come home, I can tell she’s missing me. No doubt, the large Morningstar House feels too empty with only one person in it. I feel guilty about leaving, but I didn’t know how desperately I needed this until Uriel turned up at our door.

Rafe pulls me into a hug, and the gesture surprises me. I may share a bed with the new eldest Morningstar, but he still isn’t big on physical contact. “I’ll see you soon,” Rafe says, tightening his arms around me.

I hug him back, enjoying the feeling of his large frame engulfing me. “I’ll be back in a few weeks.”

“Yeah,” Rafe says, pulling back to look down at me, his eyes guarded.

I press a soft kiss to his stubbled cheek, and he hugs me tight once more before releasing me to pick up my suitcase and lead the way downstairs so I can say goodbye to the rest of the Morningstars.

“You know they’re going to try to make you stay,” Rafe says as we walk along the landing.

I nod. “Yeah, I know, and I want to.” I sigh. “Desperately.” Because it’s true, I do want to stay here, surrounded by their love and warmth, but I miss Alice, and I promised Connor I would continue on at Avalon. “At least Mom and Dad are more normal.”

“And Zach, Zane, and Luke.”