Epilogue
It took several days after the Daemon attack to finally be able to talk about what had happened, and take stock of the damage to our group. Shawn thankfully was okay, and only had a few broken ribs and a concussion from the blow to the head. Injuries among us was scattered between broken bones and cracked ribs. The deaths of Grace, Thomas, Faith, and Michael were a blow to our group and we all felt the loss of them greatly.
My loss of Mark was a taboo subject that no one brought up. Haniel's claim that Guides could survive without their Protector proved to be true, but I was unsure at what price. My soul no longer felt like my own, and I felt like a lost ship at sea.
Haniel took care of cleaning up the mess at Mark's house that we had left behind. None of us had stepped foot in there since that fateful night, nor did we have any inclination to do so. The house was now the very essence of evil to all of us.
The funeral for our lost friends was both heartbreaking as we met the rest of the Links and the children of our new friends. My heart wept when I held Timmy, Grace's and Thomas's sweet curly-haired toddler for the first time. He was the perfect mix of both of them, with a happy nature that made me smile sadly. He would never know how fabulous his parents were and just how much they had loved him.
Our new friends departed the day after the funeral to go home and recover from the rest of their injuries. Sam and I wept openly as we hugged Kieran and Jaime one last time.
"You're going to be okay," Kieran whispered to me, hugging me tightly. I nodded mutely. I had no choice but to be okay.
"We'll be back soon," Jaime promised, giving us one last hug before she scooped Timmy up in her arms.
"We'll see you soon," Shawn said to them as he slung an arm around my shoulder, lending me the strength he knew I needed.
The ride back from the airport was quiet, and I sensed my friends' eyes on me, but I kept my gaze firmly on the landscape we passed. I knew they didn't approve of today's destination, but I had fought them over it.
"I'm going with or without you," I finally said, and the battle ended there.
Shawn pulled the used Explorer that we had bought by pooling all our resources together after leaving Mark's new Navigator behind, into the crowded parking lot. I climbed out, looking at the bright lights of the amusement park in front of me. My friends thought it was a terrible idea to re-open my wounded heart by visiting our spot, but they were wrong. My wound hadn't scabbed over yet, it was just a gapping painful hole.
I needed to visit here.
I needed to walk on our beach or all of it would drag me under. I had nothing left of him. The dreams were gone and my soul fluttered around helplessly, searching for something that was no longer alive.
It was a constant battle for me to tamp the grief that threatened to take over the now vacant spot in my soul. Haniel had helped me overcome some of it so that I could survive the now broken Link, but it took everything in me to keep moving forward. My soul screamed at me to let it be and wanted nothing more than for me to curl up in a ball and waste away. Every fiber in me agreed with my broken soul, but only one thought kept me moving on. I would not let the bastard win by proving he was right, that our Links caused more harm than good.
Walking by the ticket booth, I passed the rides we had ridden so long ago without a sideways glance, as I headed for the steps that would deliver me to our beach. Bending down, I removed my sandals mechanically and descended the stairs slowly. Each step made my heart skip a beat. After what seemed like an eternity, I stood on our beach. A spot we had spent our short lifetimes on, together. Sinking to my knees, I felt the loss of him more painfully than ever before. My tears ran hot and fast and I sobbed for my lost love, but most of all, I sobbed for his lost soul.
Sam and Shawn joined me giving me, their strength, as my tears finally ran their course. They grasped my hands firmly in theirs after I had cried myself out, leading me away from our spot. Pausing, I looked back one last time. I grasped the necklace Mark had given me in my hand and studied the words delicately etched on it before I curled my fingers firmly around it. God's plan had backfired. We may have been created to save the forgotten souls, but what happens when one of our own becomes the most important forgotten soul of all.
