Traci handed her a small pile of her clothing. Doubtful the model's clothes would fit, Sofia moved deeper into the bathroom to dress in jeans too long for her petite frame and a t-shirt too snug to be comfortable.

"When will you know if the house is safe?" she called.

"Soon," was his vague response. "They have to finish their clean-up."

"Did they find Czerno?"

"They won't. He goes poof and returns to one of his other bases, leaving everyone else to fry."

Sofia shivered, unable to help the trickle of fear and pure hatred for the sick creature who tortured Darian.

"Did you really shoot her?" Traci asked.

"Not on purpose," Pierre grated.

"That's kind of an extreme form of revenge for asking you about croissants."

Pierre mumbled a few curses. Sofia wiped the fog away from the mirror. Her bruises were gone, and her two-toned eyes were calmer than they'd been. She hadn't felt like she belonged in this world until she'd seen what good she could do. The death visions, the distrust everyone on the planet had for a soul-reader, the inability to eat ... they were nothing compared to helping a man find his soul again. While she didn't yet understand the depths of her new world, she found peace in knowing this was indeed her world, too.

"Pierre, I want to go home!" she complained.

"Okay."

"Really?" She poked her head out of the bathroom. He lowered his phone.

"All clear. You are coming with us, mademoiselle," he said to Traci.

Traci sprang up and snatched her purse. Pierre grimaced and rose more slowly. Sofia slipped on oversized flip-flops Traci dug out of one of the closets. Pierre's phone dinged, and he opened it again.

"There are a few missions going on, but they said the house is clear," he said. "Linda is there. Looks like we'll have to evac and rebuild the Tucson Sector. Czerno knows where all our safe houses are."

Sofia only half-listened as she led them down the stairs, anxious to get back to Damian and the place that had become her home. Grande and Lon awaited them in the living room, and they rose as she approached. Two armored Tahoes sat out front with an additional two more well-armed Guardians. They all piled into the SUVs.

"If I weren't so scared, this would be neat," Traci whispered to her. "Armored cars, bodyguards ... like we're famous or something."

"It is kinda neat," Sofia agreed. "Until your bodyguard shoots you."

"If you keep mentioning it, it won't be an accident next time," Pierre retorted, shooting her a look in the rearview mirror. She smiled, and Traci covered her mouth to keep him from hearing her laugh.

"Pierre," Sofia said with a serious note. He glanced at her. "Thank you for taking care of me. You're a good man. I hope you stay my bodyguard."

"You're welcome." Though still arch, his tone had softened enough to show her he wasn't unaffected by her genuine words.

He drove them through back roads and alleys to ensure no one followed before taking the highway and exiting into a direction that appeared to be nothing but desert. The mansion was invisible until they crossed the boundary of Damian's magic, when it appeared out of nowhere: an expanse of green grass, trees, and the stone building in the middle of the desert. Pierre dropped them off in front, waiting until they stepped across the entrance before driving off. The compound hummed with activity, from the gardens that served as a helipad to the teeming barracks and Guardians pacing the halIs. She was reminded of a scene from a movie, where an army mobilized for war. They remained in the foyer, uneasy with the amount of activity and weapons, until approached.

"Linda's asleep already. Go on up and rest. We've got to start moving everything within twenty-four hours," Lon told them, slinging a machine gun over his shoulder.

"Traci," Rainy appeared from down another hallway, holding out his hand. She went to him, ducking out of the paths of a few Guardians.

In the midst of the activity in the mansion, Sofia saw Dustin. He settled one of his cool looks on her and tossed his head toward the stairs. He didn't look to be in a mood for questions, so she hurried past him to her room, Pierre trailing. She closed the door, surprised at how quiet her room was.

She was about to lie down when she sensed Damian walk by. Her heart soared, and she touched the ring at her neck. She hesitated, sensing he would be angrier with her than Jule or Dustin had been. Or both combined. Steeling herself, she passed Pierre at her door and knocked on Damian's door.

Not in the mood, Sofia.

She opened the door, heart pounding. He was framed against the balcony once again, and she leaned against the door before venturing forward. Despite the cool fear spiraling through her, she couldn't help but feel thrilled at the sight of him after she thought she'd lost him.

"If you ever, ever, do anything like that again ..." He didn't have to finish the threat. His tone was enough to tell her he'd show no mercy. He was too angry to face her, and she was glad of it. She hugged herself, wanting to throw her arms around him but knowing he was in as an approachable of a mood as Dustin.

"I brought this back," she said and pulled off the chain, placing the ring on the table nearest the door. "I wanted to apologize to you, Damian," she continued. "When I was in that room ..."

His grip on the railing tightened, and she stopped, afraid of pushing him through the brittle facade containing his emotions. After a thick moment of silence, she forced herself to continue.

"I swore to myself I'd do this," she said. "Damian, I love you. If you don't hate me for what I did, if you still ... want me ... I'm yours."

He said nothing, didn't move. A knock sounded at his door. She took the opportunity to escape, darting by Dustin to her room.

She'd said her piece. She didn't know if she'd hurt him enough to drive him away forever or if there was a sliver of him that still wanted her. Tortured by the thought she might have waited too long to realize what she had, she paced her room until too tired to stand.

Just when he'd thought Sofia couldn't surprise him more, she did. The insanity of what she did was beyond his comprehension. While he loved the thought of her commitment to him, her action made him want to explode. And then to waltz in and deliver such an important message at a time when he wanted nothing more than to remain infuriated with her for her actions ...

"Fucking women," he muttered.

"That fucking woman saved your brother's life," Dusty reminded him.

He hadn't yet reconciled how he felt about seeing his brother alive and in so much pain. He was more and more appalled by the memories afflicting his brother, what he'd gone through since his supposed death. Darian was showing more signs of life. He'd spent the morning vomiting blood and was able to remember Jule and Dusty by afternoon.

And kiri. He knew Sofia better than he knew Damian. Damian closed his eyes in pain, unable to shake his brother's black history.

"Though if I were you, I'd still be super pissed at her."

"I am," he assured him.

Dusty's gaze grew intent. "Damian, I'm sorry. We should have prevented her from leaving. I never thought she'd do something like that," he said quietly.

"I don't hold you responsible," Damian said with a smile. "If there's one thing I've learned about humans, it's that you can't control them."

"It is my responsibility. She's your mate and my sister. I swear it'll never happen again. The oath I took to you and Jule I now take to her." Dusty's conviction was on his face. Damian was touched.

"Thank you, Dusty," he replied in a hushed tone. "I doubt she'll appreciate it though. The first time she forgets your birthday, all hell will break loose."

Dusty shook his head.

"I am grateful to you, Dusty," Damian replied more seriously. "It's been a rough few days."

"How are you feeling?"

"Good. Easier for me than Darian to readjust."

"How is he?" Dusty asked.

"He's lost in his mind right now. He'll have to work through it."

"I don't suppose there are any shrinks among the Naturals."

"Don't think so. Sofia can work with him some. I don't know how she reached him inside that dark maze," Damian said with a shake of his head.

"Neither do I."

"What a sick bastard. If I could kill Czerno ..." Damian swore darkly. How sick was the man who kept his former enemy as a slave?

"Fuck, D, I'd take killing Claire over Czerno any day," Jule said, appearing near the door. "Czerno's job is to be a bad guy. Claire was the worst kind of traitor imaginable."

"Good point," Damian said. "I was able to take care of that issue, though. I can't touch Czerno."

"I love Sofia, but I hope you take a switch to her ass," Jule advised as he tossed himself into one of the chairs.

"I told him it was your fault," Dusty said.

"It was," Jule agreed. "And I'm deeply sorry for it, Damian. On what soul I have, I swear never to allow harm to come to kiri."

Damian chuckled. "It wasn't either of your faults. I think this was a small thing they call fate," he assured them. "And thank you both."

"We still good for tomorrow?" Jule asked, referencing their journey to Europe.

"Yep. Dusty and Darian will be babysitting my Oracle."

"I'll keep her in line," Dusty assured him.

"I'm too angry at her to pity her," Jule said. "You gonna try to rein in Pierre, too?"

"If only. The day kiri grows tired of him, he's going to my behavior modification training," Dusty assured him.

"Only if kiri agrees," Damian warned.

"Is this how you train 'em in the eastern hemisphere?" Dusty demanded, turning to Jule.

"Better a benevolent team player than a dictator," Jule retorted.

"Disciplinarian. I don't let them run amok and follow their feelings. I give them structure," Dusty corrected him.

"Like robots."

Their long-standing feud over leadership styles was interrupted as Darian appeared in the midst of them. Damian's throat tightened, and his eyes misted at the sight of his brother. Darian appeared confused as he took in Jule and Dusty, recognition blooming slowly. He turned to Damian, his scarred features the most beautiful sight Damian had ever seen.

"Ikir," he said, nodding his head in submission. "May I see kiri?"

"You don't need permission to do anything," Damian said gently, aware his brother was not yet himself. "Please don't call me ikir. I'm your brother, not your master. And yes, go see kiri. She'll be happy to see you."

"I will be happy to see her, ikir," Darian said. He adored Sofia, that much was obvious, even if he wasn't really sure where-or who-he was most of the time. Damian's feelings for her swelled even more.

"How are you, Darian?" Jule asked with a warm smile.

"I am well, ikir," came the mechanical reply. "Please excuse me, ikir." And he was gone. Damian's gaze lingered. Darian had a long way to go, but he was alive.

"Take care of both of them, Dusty," he murmured.

"I swear it," Dustin said.

"He's as strong as you, D. He'll pull through," Jule said. "And Dust-man won't let anything near them."

"Damn right I won't."

Damian smiled. He knew as much and was as grateful for the two men before him as he was at finding his brother again.

Visions of Czerno and home videos from Darian morphed into a grotesque nightmare that made her body shake, even as she tried to push the dream from her thoughts. Insomnia was a blessing from such darkness.

Come, Damian ordered.

She hesitated before pulling on her robe and obeying. The mansion was quiet again, the signs of activity from earlier gone. Pierre glanced up from the game he played on his iPhone as she passed him. He watched her until verifying where she went before returning to the game.

Damian's suite was lit only by a blazing fire in the hearth, and the scent of Jule's cigars hung in the air. She waited, gaze falling to Damian. He appeared calm and in control again, if not relaxed, with the only three men he'd ever trusted. Her heart almost burst at the sight of Darian in one of the seats. Though he was still unable to understand exactly what was going on, he'd improved dramatically even since she last saw him.

Damian waved her in without looking at her, his eyes reflecting the fire. He patted the seat beside him on the couch facing Dustin and Jule. She didn't hesitate to settle beside him, knees drawn to her chest, and leaned into his body, struck by the difference between the men before her: Dustin, the cold Greek prince, and the mysterious dark warmth of Jule. At once, the home videos and nightmares faded. She sighed in relief and rested her head on Damian's shoulder. He moved his arm to wrap around her and pulled her against him.

"You're not forgiven," he reminded her.

"Damn straight," Jule said, though there was warmth in his face. "If I had a woman who pulled the bullshit you did, you'd-"

"Be in deep shit, kiri," Darian finished for him.

Jule chuckled. Darian's disapproving gaze mirrored Damian's, and Sofia hid her face against Damian's chest as the three men facing her gave her similar looks.

"I'll never have a woman, if they're this much trouble," Dustin declared.

"Agreed. And if I do, she'll learn to call Damian, Dusty, or Darian before leaving the house," Jule chimed in. "Which is exactly what you will do, kiri."

Sofia couldn't help but say, "You'll both have women, and Dustin, when you're in trouble, she'll call me."

Jule and Dustin both looked to Damian.

"Not sure I like this Oracle shit," Dustin voiced for both of them.

"No way, kiri," Jule said firmly.

"If she didn't come after you when you needed her, why would you want her at all?" she challenged.

"Definitely steering clear of Americans," Dustin added.