Libra Ascending: An Epic Urban Fantasy Romance (Zodiac Guardians Book 1) by Tamar Sloan (adult books to read .TXT) 📗

of her fingers, she turns away, limping toward the house. Instead of walking through the front door though, Cassandra turns left and disappears down the side of the house.

Climbing back in the truck, Tristan sits and waits, although he’s not sure what for.

He doesn’t want lights turning on in any of those multitude of windows—it would mean Cassandra has to explain her injuries. Cassandra having to think harder about what happened to her.

And why.

But the house remains dark. Meaning no one’s going to be there to help Cassandra wash away the blood. To tsk tsk over the bruises. To tuck her in and reassure her she’s safe.

“Do you think she’ll be okay?” Brielle asks quietly.

Tristan sighs, starting the truck again. “It seems she’s tougher than she looks.”

The drive back to the warehouse is silent. Heavy with the knowledge of what has to happen next.

Lifting Zarius and Tess’s bodies. Putting them in the back of the truck like they have with Skins in the past.

Wondering how he’s going to explain their disappearance.

Trying to forge a life without them.

But Tristan slows as they reach the final rise before the warehouse. Instinctively, he cuts the headlights.

Brielle leans forward, having seen it, too.

A soft glow rises into the black night, punctured by flashes of red and blue. His hands tightening around the steering wheel, Tristan creeps the truck to the top of the hill and stops.

“Dammit,” he mutters.

Several police cars have surrounded the warehouse, their lights flashing. Beside them, a single black car is parked.

Brielle frowns. “Does that car say FBI?”

Tristan works hard to carve out a short, sharp nod. His body feels like it’s turned to stone. “Yeah, you read it right.”

He scans the bodies moving in and out of the warehouse, quickly finding what he’s looking for. The tall, thin frame. The balding head.

The nose poking around where it shouldn’t be.

Tristan allows the truck to roll back, his mind screaming for him to go down there. To be able to say goodbye to the two people who were his world.

Who he now has to face his future without.

Brielle grabs the dash as if she’s having problems letting go, too. “But—"

“We can’t go down there. The feds will ask too many questions.”

“Oh, Tristan,” Brielle breathes, realizing what this means.

Tristan looks away, preferring to keep his gaze on the black night rather than the movement and lights. “It’s probably better this way. I’ll get a knock on the door. They’ll get a proper burial. I won’t be able to answer any questions as I was never there.”

Brielle goes quiet. She knows the truth.

Tristan was there.

He saw Chardis murder Zarius and Tess.

“So, what now?” she asks, her voice tight with the pain Tristan’s feeling.

If she were his soulmate, that would make sense.

But she’s not.

Tristan grits his teeth. “I’ll drop you off at the orphanage then head back to my house and wait.”

Cassandra is home safe, with no memory of what happened.

They now know Brielle is the Libra, a Zodiac Guardian.

Chardis is gone…for now.

With a heavy sigh, Tristan allows the truck to roll back. Once they’re far enough away, he starts the engine and heads back to Mirror Point. “It’s over.”

30

Brielle

The night seems so much darker as Brielle walks up the stairs of the orphanage. Her steps are heavy, and it’s not just because she was nearly crushed by hyper gravity. This is going to be her permanent place, at least until her next birthday.

Now that she’s thrown away her chance at a family.

But she can hardly feel that selfish loss now, knowing that Tristan’s loss is so much greater. She only lost a possible family. He lost a real one. Somehow, that sting burns deeper than anything else.

At least she could be there for him. They may have failed to save his parents, but they discovered they have a major advantage against Chardis.

Her powers.

If she’d practiced more, been better prepared for the fight, she may have even defeated him tonight. She clenches her fists with the vow that the next time they face him, she will.

Then she opens the door, ready to face her solitary orphan life once more.

“Brielle!” The voice that doesn’t belong here reaches her before she sees them standing next to Sister Agatha.

Frank and Beatrice.

Before Brielle has time to react, Beatrice rushes forward and wraps her in a tight embrace.

Shock has Brielle stupefied, unable to react.

She sees Frank’s face over Bea’s shoulder, and the emotions carved there are a mixture of concern and relief.

“Why did you run off like that?” Bea asks, still hugging her.

Brielle is speechless. There’s no explanation she can give that will make any sense, or excuse her disappearance.

Frank closes in, putting a hand on her back. “We were so worried about you. We didn’t know what else to do but wait for you here.” He looks over at Sister Agatha, whose wrinkled face is fluffed in a loving smile.

Brielle finds her voice at last, though dry and cracking as it is. “I’m so sorry for leaving like that. There’s no excuse for my behavior. I understand if you want to call off the adoption.”

Beatrice pulls back enough to face her, a frown pinching her brows. “Oh, you sweet girl.” She shakes her head, then smiles. “It’s already done.”

Brielle blinks and looks at each of their faces one at a time. “Wait. What?”

“We signed the adoption papers as soon as we got here,” Frank says, looking and sounding the epitome of a father.

Brielle’s breath catches in her throat. “R—really?”

They nod.

“It’s understandable that you’d freak out,” Frank says. “We shouldn’t have rushed you over to our house. It was too much too fast. But we wanted to make sure you know that you always have a home with us. You can always rely on us. We aren’t going to give up on you.”

“Unless…you really don’t want us as your parents.” Bea’s eyes mist up as she barely gets the words out.

Overcome with more emotions than she can name, Brielle throws her arms around Bea’s