Page 48 of I Am the Storm

In my roomlater that night, I find myself in a restless state despite my exhaustion. After hours of pacing, I sit on the patio and watch the Dragon's Breath dancing in the sky as I consider whether I made the right choice.

Will the Collector get justice? Will justice be enough? Will he have a chance to harm others in the meantime? Should I have killed him when I had the chance?

Derek wasn't happy that Cole had brought him here, but the Enforcers came and arrested the Collector based on my statement of his illegal activity. Cole didn't say another word about it, but I could see on his face that he felt this plan was doomed to failure.

He might not be wrong, but just because I might fail doesn't mean I didn't make the morally right choice.

So why do I feel so hallow?

"Why so glum, sis?"

I whip around, the voice behind me startling me out of my thoughts. "Adam?"

I stand, my heart fluttering at the sight of him. I still can't believe he's back. He's alive.

He reaches over and hugs me, and I smile into his shoulder, despite everything, then I guide him to the chairs in front of the fire. "How did you get in here?" I ask.

"Magic," he says, with a flourish of his hands and a chuckle. He leans in and takes my hands. "You're so much more powerful than you realize, Evie. You have no idea." He studies my palms as if they might give him the answers to my powers, but he says nothing about what he sees. Then he pulls back and leans against the chair, crossing his left leg over his right. He used to cross his right over his left, I realize. It's a stupid observation to make, but it strikes me there is a lot about my brother I no longer know. And a lot about me he doesn't know. This is the longest we've ever spent apart from each other, and our experiences since his—well, death—have shaped us each differently.

"I have something for you," he says, pulling a small package from his cloak and handing it to me.

It's wrapped in a blue silk cloth and tied with a silver ribbon. "What's this for?" I ask.

"It's my Christmas gift to you," he says. "Or, Midwinter gift, I guess. You seem to have acclimated to this new world quite well."

His words aren't accusatory at all, just an observation, and yet I feel the sting of them just the same. What does it say about me that I was able to slough off my old life without a glance backwards?

Still, I unwrap his gift and find a small velvet box. Within is a stunning silver ring with a shiny black stone in the center in the shape of a rectangle, and red stones on either side.

"It's black onyx," he says. "It will protect you."

I slide the ring onto my finger and I actually feel a shift in the air around me, like a barrier forming. "This is so strange," I say, my mind drifting. "I had a dream about this ring. I'd forgotten it but it's all come back to me now. I found a ring just like this in a marsh surrounded by ancient trees." I look up at my brother. "It's uncanny that you would get this for me."

"We're twins," he says with a shrug. "We've always had an uncanny connection, don't you think?"

"Yes, of course, you're right." I shake off the feeling of unease with the memory of all the times our lives interconnected in strange ways. We often had the same dreams or nightmares…sometimes we'd even appear in each other's. The next day we'd remember what we did in the other person's dreams. I haven't thought about that in so long, and the memory causes an ache in my heart.

Tears fill my eyes and I reach over and grab his hand. "I've missed you." I sniff, then swipe at my eyes with my free hand. "Your remains are still on my mantelpiece."

He laughs and glances up at them, just above the fireplace. "I noticed. But you don't have to miss me anymore. I'm right here."

Then he stands, a small, sad smile on his lips. "And I will be back," he promises. "But for now, I have to go."

I stand and hug him again. "Why?"

"You know why. If I'm found here, the truth will come out about who really killed Mary and her baby and I'll be arrested. I can't risk it when there's so much to do."

"We have to talk soon," I say. "I'm having a hard time wrapping my mind around the moral conundrum you've created."

He kisses my forehead. "We will. For now, keep that ring on and be careful. I love you, Evie."

"I love you, too," I say, but before my sentence is out, he's gone. He hopped over the balcony and seemed to vanish into nothing.

A moment later there's a knock on my door and my heart beats so hard in my chest it feels like it's going to crack a rib.

If it's Liam… if he heard anything, that will put me in a sticky situation. He needs to be focused on himself. On the case that could end his freedom for good if he's convicted. Finding out the truth about Mary and my brother's roll in her death could be a fatal distraction for him. I tell myself I'm keeping this from him for his own good, but, of course, I also have selfish motives. I don't want to hurt him. I don't want to lose him. What if, once he finds out, he sees my brother every time he looks at me?

But when I pull open the door, it's not Liam standing there.