Curtain Call (The Jewel Project #7)

46. A Heavy Legacy

Kyle couldn't believe it had come to this.

"It's gonna be alright," Kay said, her voice soft as she played with her hand in his hair.

It calmed him down, and he needed it so much. Because once the shooting and the killing was done, everything came crashing down on him with a force that took his breath away. Was that what a panic attack felt like? It was only the silence and Kay's strokes that kept him from screaming.

"I know it's a lot to take in, sweetheart," she said, her fingers moving down the side of his face.

He looked up to her, blissfully distracted. "You've never called me that before."

"I know. I started doing it inside my head when I thought you were dead. I did tend to talk to you a lot."

Her words hurt, but not as much after everything. He chose to focus on the fact that they were together now. "I think I kind of like it."

Her smile drove the demons away. She grounded him, made everything so much less complicated because she was a constant reminder that even if the past had been a mess and the present was panic-inducing, their future stayed the same. He still had her and his family and they'd fortunately all escaped this mess somewhat intact. At least for now.

Where they'd go from here... Well, that was another matter which was suddenly up to him. It was was why he'd ended up in Davyn's office, sitting at his desk. A glass and a half-empty bottle of whiskey were still on it. He'd probably taken a drink to give himself the courage to do what had to be done. Had he predicted it would go so far? What would he have done if he were still alive?

Kyle took out the jewel from the drawer and glanced at it. It shone eerily in the neon light, as if hiding its true nature, much like Davyn had. It also seemed to shimmer in shades of blood. They'd started with blood and ended with it, hidden beneath the surface. So much loss. So much pain.

How? How could Davyn carry all that knowledge alone for thirty years? How could his mother and Freider? How did it not smother them? Kill them slowly?

Maybe it did. After all, Freider preferred to fake his own death, abandon his family and plot bring his own brother down rather than come clean. In the end, Davyn had been the only one brave enough to take the plunge.

Tell them the truth, once and for all, subject himself to their judgement and their hatred. And, in return, he'd gotten his own truth.

His father... For maybe and hour, Kyle had had a father who actually wanted him, who was proud of him and did anything to protect him. The thought tightened his throat and had his teeth clenching painfully.

"Kyle?" Kay sounded a little worried.

"I..." He didn't know what to say. Maybe it wasn't just an hour. Maybe it was a whole month hiding beneath snark and mumbled curses. A confusing month filled with teamwork in which Snitch Gravel had died and Davyn had risen from the ashes.

"I know it's all overwhelmed, that knowing the truth could've changed so much," Kay whispered. "But it didn't. And maybe he was right. Maybe all the misery and the pain was worth it to get us to where we are."

Kyle had no doubt about that and didn't see the point in spending any energy on potential what ifs. There was only one little thing he had wanted to go differently, and it had happened a mere hour ago.

"I wish he hadn't died."

Kay settled herself in his lap. He cradled her, leaning his cheek against hers. It still felt amazing to hold her after all the time they'd spent apart, after the doubt and the fear that they'd never see each other again. Even with all the craziness, he hadn't gotten used to being with her again, and having her there eased the pain.