Doc came by Eternity Road, which was up and running thanks to Fitch and his magical elves. Ambrose and Talbot were bringing up stock from the basement, which had been overlooked during the looting. A few magicians had even, shamefacedly, brought back a few items, telling me that they’d “found” them.
Minneapolis, the mortal and the magical, gradually returned to normal. Crews painted over the Tria Prima symbols with heavy white paint, erasing the signs of Hecate until from the outside, no one would have known she’d even been there.
Talbot and his dad had refused to move the store to a new location. The graffiti had been painted over, the windows repaired, and the store completely restored. There were scars, but the city rejoiced when Eternity Road announced the grand reopening.
Rebecca and I were tidying up for the event when Doc walked in. His trench coat was gone. Instead, he wore a black suit, white shirt, and a red tie patterned with tiny white flowers. His shoes had been ferociously polished.
“Hello, Daddy,” she said. I snickered and she punched me on the shoulder.
“Rebecca, it’s good to see you getting along with your brother.”
He made it sound like we were squabbling teenagers, but maybe to him, we were.
“What’s up, Doc?” I’d been dying to say that since I met him. He looked blank when Rebecca chuckled.
“I’m leaving Minneapolis,” he said.
“You’re not staying for the reopening?” Rebecca asked.
“Where will you go?”
My father put a hand on my shoulder. His hand was steady. “Where I belong. I’m going to take back my kingdom of the dead. There will always be a place for you in the underworld. For both of you.”
“Thank you, but I belong here.” I stuck out my good hand, but instead, he folded me into a brief hug.
He embraced Rebecca, who looked like she didn’t know whether to kick him or kiss him. She settled for a kiss on the cheek. Doc slipped out of Eternity Road, his shoulders straight. We went to the window to watch him until he disappeared from sight.
“You know,” Rebecca said thoughtfully, “he may have redeemed himself after all.”
“Anything’s possible,” I said.
Talbot and I put out food and booze. My cousins and sister were supposed to be helping, but Claire had disappeared the minute Carlos arrived. Naomi sat in a comfy chair that Talbot had brought down from his apartment.
“Did we really need all these decorations?” I asked, hitting a balloon and sending it floating to the ceiling.
“Naomi, Claire, and Rebecca spent half the night decorating,” Talbot said. “I wouldn’t touch a streamer.”
I smiled at him. “We have something to celebrate,” I said.
“We do?” he replied. “I mean, I think so, but I’m surprised you do.”
“Of course I do,” I told him. “We survived.”
Carlos and Claire came out from the stockroom, giggling madly. Rebecca was on the phone with Johnny. Talbot and Naomi were on opposite sides of the room, but he couldn’t stop looking at her.
Everyone was paired up, in love. Except me. I thought about slipping away, jumping in the Caddy and driving wherever the road led, but then my sister slipped her arm in mine.
“You’re not alone,” Rebecca said.
“How did you know what I was thinking?”
“I’ve felt the same way. Many times,” she said. “You can’t leave. It has to be four Fates. Like it was before.”
The door opened as our guests arrived. The store was soon filled with the magical community, all eager to tell us how grateful they were. Representatives from each of the Houses arrived for the ribbon-cutting.
“Where’s Ambrose?” I asked. It was his big day. He was the new leader of the House of Zeus and he hadn’t even needed to kill anyone to do it.
“Just getting the champagne,” Ambrose said.
Willow had taken her uncle’s place as the head of the House of Poseidon, and the House of Hades was represented by Johnny Asari. The House of Fates would lead as a foursome.
Ambrose popped a bottle of bubbly and we all cheered. He and Talbot filled up glasses and passed them out.
“Here’s a glass for you,” Talbot offered. I tried waving it away, but he put it in my hand. “It’s sparkling cider,” he said. “No alcohol. You’re on a roll. Let’s keep it that way.”
My heart lifted and then settled when Willow entered the store. A dozen or so naiads trailed behind her. Her dark hair had been styled into a crown of braids and she wore a simple green dress and sandals.
She was stopped by magicians who wanted to offer their condolences for her uncle’s death. She was gracious, but brief. She finally made it to my side.
“This is Nyx Fortuna,” Willow told one of her entourage. “He is the head of the House of Fates.”
“The House of Fortune and Fates,” I corrected her. “And I am only one of the leaders.”
She smiled. “It is a fitting tribute to your mother,” she said.
We watched silently as Ambrose used a pair of comically large scissors to cut the red ribbon wrapped around the display cases. After the ribbon was cut, the crowd burst into applause.
“Nyx, come take a photo with us,” Claire called out from the other side of the room.
I gave Willow a smile. “Duty calls.”
“It was good to see you, son of Fortuna,” Willow said.
“It was good to see you, too,” I said, “Lady of the Lake.” I kissed her cheek before I left.
I joined my cousins and we linked arms as we posed for pictures. “Where’s Johnny?” I asked Rebecca as the flashes went off.
She pointed to Johnny, who was holding court near Harvey the bear. “Doing the political thing. Glad-handing all those magicians who turned their backs on us.”
“He’ll do a good job as the head of the House of Hades,” I said.
“He’d better,” she said.
Eventually, the crowd’s exuberance was too much for me, so I slipped into Ambrose’s office for a moment of quiet.
I touched the charms around my neck. “I hope you’re proud of me, Lady Fortuna,” I said softly.
“I am.” Her voice was a whisper.
“Mother?” I could almost see her face.
“Yes, it’s me,” she said. “I’m proud of you, Nyx.”
“Proud?” I knew my mother loved me, but since I’d arrived in Minneapolis, I’d done many things that I was not proud of.
“You have managed to do what I could not. Reunite the House of Fates. That was your true destiny.”
“House of Fortune and Fates,” I corrected gently.
“Fortune and Fates,” she repeated. “I like that.”
“I have so much to tell you,” I said. Silence. She was gone.
When I rejoined the celebration later, Naomi handed out more champagne. “I wanted to toast to the Fates who came before us,” she said. “All four of them.”
She popped the cork and poured glasses for everyone. I declined mine.
“I’ll stick with the apple juice,” I said.
“Here’s to a new generation of Fates,” Naomi said.
I lifted my juice glass and clinked it with the other Fates. “With Fortune’s favor,” I said, “we will succeed.”
My sister, my cousins and I took our places and once again, there were four Fates. And fortune favored us.