He lifts his gaze. “I used to wonder, every day, if I made the right decision to break up with her. I could’ve saved her the pain, but why cage her in a lie? I didn’t want Tatyana to waste her love on me.”
He wanted her to be free too.
“You’re a good person, Nikolai.”
“You’re a better person than me,” he refutes. “I’ve just lived longer.”
“And made more right choices?”
“No,” he says, staring through me. “Just choices. Right or wrong, I don’t know.”
I nod and step forward, until I’m close enough to hug him around the waist. His hand finds the back of my neck, both of us still in costume. Still needing to practice the rest of the routine.
And he murmurs, “Where did we leave off?”
“At the beginning.”
The beginning, all over again.
Act Forty-Eight
“I keep waiting for someone to say gotcha, Thora James, you’re really not supposed to be here,” I admit to Nikolai while we ride down the elevator, the strap of my gym bag slung on his shoulder. Tonight is my first time in Amour. Tonight is when it all becomes real.
“You’re going to be waiting for a long time, myshka.”
Because no one is going to pull a fast-one on me. Hopefully.
The elevator doors slide open, and we head to the lobby. “They’re going to meet you here?” he asks, checking his watch. We still have plenty of time.
“Yeah, my mom just texted that she’s waiting for my dad and Tanner in the hotel room.” In my family, the men take longer to corral than the women.
We stop on the cobblestone, next to a map kiosk of The Masquerade, the 1920s clock hanging above us. I catch sight of a few familiar faces along the west wing, headed this way.
Timo, Luka, and Katya are talking in a huddle as they walk, gesturing to the fountain wall that the Dionysus statue sits in.
They’re up to no good.
Nikolai is zeroed in on them, his face all strict lines. “Don’t do it,” he says under his breath.
And then the three siblings break apart. Maybe we’re both paranoid. “They’re probably just talking—” I cut myself off as the three of them sprint towards the wall.
“Shit,” he curses.
Heads all across the lobby follow the three teenagers. In unison, they run up the tiled wall and flip backwards, trying to land on the fountain ledge. Timo sticks it at first, but then he staggers on the lip of the marble and splashes into the water. Luka tries to help him up, but he loses his balance and follows his brother, drenched from the waist-down.
Leaving Katya the lone victor, only her feet wet, still standing.
People start clapping. I join in. Damn—that was cool.
I look to my left, and Nikolai is applauding too. Katya meets our gaze with the biggest grin. It lifts my spirits, my nerves about tonight beginning to wane.
Then I remember that she’ll be gone in a week, and my brief smile fades. Nikolai was on the phone with Sergei all last night, talking about Katya. And when he hung up, he threw the cell at the wall. Apparently his parents aren’t that excited about her joining Noctis.
They’d rather she stayed here. Because it’s “more stable”—Nikolai used air quotes when he told me. As though it was all a joke. He wants them to love Katya the way that he does, to be as thrilled to see their daughter as she is to see them.
But it’s not likely that’ll happen.
He’s handing Katya off to people with less love to give, less care to offer, and it’s killing him inside.
“Hey!” security calls, aiming towards Nikolai’s siblings.
“Run,” Luka says, grabbing Timo and lifting him to a stance. They race away, down the east wing, slipping on the cobblestone and laughing.
Katya shakes her head at them and steps off the fountain ledge. Security just watches her, and she points to us. “I’m with them.”
Nikolai raises his brows. “You’re going to have to find a new scapegoat when you’re in Noctis.”
Her shoes squish and leave wet footprints as she approaches. “No, I’m not.”
I frown in confusion.
She rocks on the balls of her feet, her long brown hair parted in the center. Her big, round eyes seem to sparkle like her brothers’ now. “Because…” She smiles, tears filling her eyes. “I’m staying here.”
Nikolai’s face falls in shock. “What?” He looks to me, as if I planned this.
I hold up my hands. “I didn’t know anything.”
“It was my decision.” Katya fiddles with her fingers. “I’ve thought about it since Thanksgiving…” She takes a deep breath. “…I only wanted to go to Noctis because Mom and Dad were there. And it took me some time but I realized something important.” She rubs her eyes with her hand, cheeks already splotchy.
“And what’s that?” Nikolai asks.
She laughs into a tearful, happy smile. “I realized,” she says, “that you’re more of a parent to me than they ever were.” She laughs again and points at him. “You’re my favorite brother, Nik. You know that?”
He has his hand over his mouth, his eyes flooding. When he drops his arm, he says, “And you’re my favorite sister.”
“I’m your only sister,” she reminds him.
He hugs her, and I hear him whisper in Russian that sounds close to thank you. He wanted her to stay.
I wanted her to stay. I blow out a breath, relief loosening my muscles. She chose him over her parents.
This good news comes on the heels of Luka’s. He accepted a role in Infini yesterday, after learning a new discipline. They’ve added the Wheel of Death back into the show, the apparatus that Timo was previously known for. The one that Luka didn’t think he had the patience or skill to learn.
I realize exactly what this means for the future. Katya will be in Vegas. With Luka. Timo.
Nikolai.
And me.
I smile. So much. It’s a better ending than the one we’d all been imagining.
When they break apart, Katya looks to me, wiping her eyes again. “Can I keep Darkest Warmest Night until I finish?” she asks me.
I nod and Nikolai gives me a look. “What kind of book is that?”
I clear my throat, a tickle where my lie sits. “It’s not romantic.”
“It’s about a werewolf family,” Katya says. “It’s a good book.”
I really can’t stop smiling. “Exactly.”
He wraps his arm around my waist, pulling me closer. And that’s when I see my mom, dad, and little brother emerge from the elevators. My pulse picks up speed.
“Good luck tonight,” Katya tells me, noticing my family. “I’ll be in the nosebleeds with Luka, but we’ll be there.” She waves goodbye and heads down the east wing.
The nerves return.
“Act normal,” I say to Nikolai. This’ll be fine. Don’t sweat it. The closest I’ve come to this moment was introducing my homecoming date to my parents. I was sixteen. Not living with him, of course. This is a different caliber.
Nikolai stares down at me. “As opposed to all the times I act abnormal.”
Right. No, wait, not right. “You pierced my…”
“Thora!” My mom exclaims, throwing her hands in the air to hug me. That was a close call. She squeezes me tightly, my dad nearby with a proud smile.