You okay? Nikolas’s hand covered mine on my lap. It still amazed me how good he was at reading my emotions and knowing exactly what I needed. Like this trip to New Hastings.

Yes. I looked at the people sitting around the living room of the apartment. Roland and Peter were there, of course. I couldn’t have a homecoming without them. Jordan had come with us to “see where it all started” as she put it. Chris was here for old times’ sake.

“So how is Tristan handling all of it?” Peter asked.

“Good, considering,” Chris said quietly. “He arranged for her burial, and he had to tell my mother and their parents about her. They’re taking it hard, as expected.”

My chest tightened when I thought about Tristan. He’d been devastated about Elena, and racked with guilt over what she had done to Nikolas and me. I’d told him he was no more responsible for what she had done than he was for what had happened to her. One day he would see I was right, but for now he was grieving his sister all over again. After the burial, he’d immersed himself in work. He spoke very little except to Desmund, who was a good friend and a confidante, just as Tristan had been for him for so many years.

It was through Desmund that I’d learned Madeline had finally contacted Tristan two days ago. The Master’s death had freed Madeline from her compulsion and she no longer had to live in fear. According to Desmund, Tristan and Madeline had talked for a long time, and Tristan had looked happy for the first time in weeks. Maybe rebuilding his relationship with his daughter would help him through his grief.

I had no plans to build anything with Madeline, but even I couldn’t stay mad at someone forever. Maybe, someday. For now, I was glad she had reached out to her father.

Roland exhaled loudly. “Tristan’s a good guy. Hate to hear he’s having such a rough time.”

“Me too,” Peter said.

Jordan looked at me and her expression said she’d had enough of the sad talk. “This is a nice place, Sara, but it’s small and so quiet. How did you stand it?”

Nikolas and Chris laughed. “It wasn’t this quiet the last time we were here,” Nikolas told her.

Chris made a face. “I seem to recall taking a vacation after my time in Maine.” He looked at Nikolas. “How many vampire nests did we clean out on that trip to Vegas?”

Roland shot me a sly grin. “When the pack heard you were coming for a few days, a couple of them went to visit family out of town.”

I rolled my eyes at them. “Funny, guys. And to answer your question, Jordan, I loved it here. We used to find plenty of things to keep us occupied when we were kids. I don’t think I was ever bored.”

Roland grinned. “If our parents knew half the stuff we used to get into...” He leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees. “Is Nate moving back now that it’s safe?”

“I think there are too many bad memories here for him to ever come back.” The last time Nate had been in this apartment, he was a vampire. He was still trying to forget that part of his life.

“What’s he going to do with the place if he doesn’t come back?” Peter asked.

“He was talking about selling it, so Nikolas bought it for me.” I turned my head to smile at Nikolas, and he leaned in for a quick kiss.

Jordan snorted. “Yeah, they’re like that all the time now since they mated.”

She and I shared a secret smile. Jordan had been positively giddy when I told her that Nikolas and I had finally completed the bond. She’d tried to pry the details out of me, but some things are just too intimate to share, even with your best female friend. I’d given her the “when” and “where” but that was pretty much it. She’d replied that the dreamy look on my face told her all she needed to know. Plus, we were talking about Nikolas.

“So I guess that means we’ll be seeing more of you guys,” Roland said hopefully.

“Until we leave for our trip,” Nikolas told him.

“In June we’re going to spend the summer in Russia.” I couldn’t keep the excitement out of my voice. Nikolas had told me so much about his homeland that I couldn’t wait to explore it with him. I was nervous about meeting his parents, but eager to learn more about his early life. I’d already spoken to his mother on the phone, and she was as excited as I was for our visit.

Chris’s lips twitched. “Perhaps we should tell Miroslav Fortress to be on alert this summer.”

I picked up a small pillow and threw it at him. “You’re going to miss me. Admit it.”

He caught the pillow and flashed his dimples. “I don’t know how I’ll get by without you, Cousin.”

Roland’s mouth turned down. “Well, we’ll miss you. This place is not the same with you gone. School sucks even more now.”

“That reminds me; how is all the extra schoolwork coming along?”

Roland and Peter groaned together. Once they’d returned to school, the teachers had piled a bunch of assignments on them to make up for the month they’d missed. They had to complete it all if they didn’t want to repeat their senior year.

“I’ll graduate this year if it kills me,” Roland declared. “Or if Uncle Max doesn’t do it first.”

“Is he still mad about you two taking off?”

Peter grimaced. “He’s over that. I think. Now he’s all about us learning our pack responsibilities. Hunting, patrolling, stuff like that.”