Because Mom was right. I needed it. I needed some part of him with me.

I knew this sounded weird.

But I didn’t give a fuck.

Ren, being Ren, said nothing about the blood even though now it was on him.

And we were waiting.

All of us.

Indy and Lee. Eddie and Jet. Hank and Roxie. Jules and Vance. Ava and Luke. Stella and Mace. Hector and Sadie. Tex and Nancy. Marcus and Daisy. Roam and Sniff. Mom and Dad. Indy’s dad, Tom, and his girlfriend, Lana (incidentally, Lana was Mace’s Mom; so yeah, we were incestuous—whatever, it worked). Tod and Stevie. Buddy and Ralphie. Smithie and LaTeesha. Annette and Jason. Jules’s uncle Nick and her friend May. Jimmy Marker. Brody, Monty, Matt, Ike, Jack and Bobby. Blanca, Rosa, Carlos, Elena and Gloria. Dom and Sissy. Vito and Angela. Willie Moses. Brian Bond. Darius’s Mom, Dorothea. Duke’s wife Dolores. And even Stella’s band, Floyd, Buzz, Pong, Hugo and Leo showed up.

A motley crew of cops and crooks, bounty hunters and baristas, PIs and rock stars, hot guys and Rock Chicks.

Darius’s people.

Darius’s family.

And last, Shirleen was sitting beside me.

Close.

There was some shifting and my eyes flew to the door, hoping it was a doctor with good news. But I saw Jane walk in.

She’d been around, not much, and her usual quiet. I knew a couple of the Rock Chicks and Hot Bunch spoke with her. Since she didn’t return my calls or give me time when I approached her, and since (for once), I didn’t press, I didn’t know what they said or how she reacted.

All I knew right then was that she came straight to me, her eyes never leaving mine.

She stopped in front of us. Ren’s hold tightened, and I looked up to her.

“Nothing ever really bad happens in a fairytale, Ally,” she whispered, her eyes, locked on me, bright with tears.

And hope.

“I hope you’re right, chickie,” I whispered back.

“Me, too,” she said. Her eyes slid to Ren, then to Shirleen, who she gave a small smile before she moved away.

Ren’s hand gave mine a squeeze.

I gave his one back, let him go and shifted.

But not away. Only so I could reach out and find Shirleen’s hand.

When I did, hers closed tight.

I looked to Lee, who Indy was holding, her cheek to his chest, his chin to the top of her head, his eyes to the door, his jaw hard. My BFF, though, had her eyes on me.

She smiled.

It was fake, but I smiled back.

Then I looked to Eddie, who had Jet in what Jet called the Eddie’s Woman Hold. That was his arm wrapped around her neck, holding her tucked deep into his side.

His eyes were also on the door.

Jet’s cheek was to his shoulder and her eyes were on her husband’s profile.

I then looked again to the door when there was movement there. I pulled in breath and it caught when I saw who was walking through.

Not the doctor.

Duke.

And Duke was not alone.

Following him were Malia and Liam Clark.

Holy shit!

I sat up straight.

“What the fuck?” I heard Lee growl.

But my eyes were pinned to Malia, who was looking around, but doing it looking freaked way the fuck out, and Liam, sticking close to his mom, looking around and doing it looking cautious but confused.

Eddie broke from Jet, Lee from Indy. They headed her way and I moved.

“Ally,” Ren called, but I ignored him.

No one was going to stop me.

Fucking no one.

Lee caught me with a hand in my belly before I got to them, warning, “Not the time, Ally.”

But I ignored him, too.

Eyes to Malia, I moved them to Liam and lifted up my hand, covered in dried blood.

“That’s your father’s,” I announced, and Malia moved close to Liam as Liam’s eyes got huge and they riveted to my hand.

I heard a gasp and I suspected it was Dorothea’s.

Interesting.

Apparently Dorothea didn’t know about her grandson.