Fusion (33 page)

“That’s awesome.”

“David’s other message involves you. He asked me to bring you over to his apartment. He has your dad’s permission.”

“Sure. When? We are heading home after dinner.”

“Right now. I’ll have you home before then, but you better let your boyfriend know you’ll be gone until then, so he covers for you.”

“What should I tell him?”

“The truth, Arizona.”

Easier said than done. It’s not like I could tell Kell that my stalker Sigma-W was wandering me off for a while. So, I kept it simple, and sort of told him the truth, or at least didn’t lie.

“Kell,” I said, making him jump out of his skin as I walked into his bathroom. I could see the outline of his body through the grained shower glass, but not enough to make out the expression on his face. He slid the door open slightly and peeked out.

“Shrimp, what’s up?”

“Dad’s sent a Sigma-W over to get me to take me to David. I don’t know why, but I’ll be back before dinner. Cover for me?”

“Yeah, but is that a good idea? Just taking off?”

“Like I’m going to disobey my dad right now? I’m in enough trouble already. I better go. See you in a while.” I left before he could protest.

“Ready?” Stan asked when I walked back into my room.

“Yes, let’s go.”

He put his hands on my shoulders and the room faded away. My eyelids closed, blocking out the bright light. I had become so used to this form of transport that using any other was just a hassle. Mom really needed to embrace this.

We arrived about ten minutes later, and I opened my eyes as soon as my feet hit the ground. And grinned—Ariele stood in front of me.

“Arizona!” She threw her arms around me, pushing Stan out of the way. “Scram, guys. We need some girl time.”

“Charming,” Stan complained.

“Let’s go play with the Wii in my room and leave the girls to chat. Hi, Arizona,” David said.

I kissed his cheek. “Talk to you soon,” I whispered.

“So, spill!” I said to Ariele. “I am so excited to see you.”

“Me, too! I was bummed that we didn’t get to say goodbye properly.”

I felt sad. “So, is
this
goodbye?”

She nodded. “It has to be, I’m afraid. I have to get on with my life here.”

I could understand that. Ariele’s life would be simple once the press lost interest in her. Life
here
was normal. Mine would never be, and anyone involved with me would be dabbling with the paranormal whether they liked it or not. Plus, she had
A
.

“Are you pissed that Mom took you away from this for a whole year?”

“No, not at all. I got to meet
you
. I wouldn’t give that up for anything.”

I hugged her. “Oh, it’s so hard to say goodbye forever.”

“I know, but I guess you can stalk me anytime you want, like that Stan. Surely a princess will have a Sigma-W on call!”

Now that would be pretty awesome, but I knew it didn’t work that way. Still, occasional stalking might not be totally out of the question. “You know, you might be right. I’ll try to check in on special occasions, maybe even leave you a little something to tell you that I was there.”

She smiled. “I am going to miss you.”

“Settling back in all right?” I knew we didn’t have much time, but I needed to know that she was going to be okay.

“I’m not going to say that it’s fine, because it isn’t. It’s a fricking nightmare with people camped outside our rental. But I know it’ll get better. They can’t stay there forever, I hope. On the bright side, Monica and
A
are sleeping over for a few nights, which is beyond awesome.” She paused. “You know, it’s just so weird to hang out with
A
again. I keep forgetting that she hasn’t got
you
in her. I have to stop myself from talking brand names with her.” She shrugged.

I unclasped my Stephen Webster Thorn necklace and put it around her neck.

“Arizona! I can’t take that!”

“Stand still!” I fastened the clasp while she held her hair out of the way. “There.” I stepped back. It was perfect on her. “Now you have something of
me
.”

A tear trickled down her face as she ran her fingers over the pendant. “I don’t have anything as pretty to give you, but you have my love. Always.”

“Good grief, Ariele, you’re going to make me hurl,” Stan said, coming into the room.

“What a clown!” Ariele said crossly.

“
My
Sigma-W,” I said unexpectedly. Maybe he would be. I looked up at a very surprised-looking Stan and smiled.

“Who has to take you back very soon,” Stan said. “But I guess you need to talk to David first. I’ll entertain Ariele with tales of romance to keep her amused.” He laughed as he ushered Ariele to the kitchen.

I looked over at David. My David. Was this another goodbye? I didn’t know if I could take another. “Thanks for bringing Ariele. It means the world to me.”

“I wanted to. And your dad understood. Are you going to be okay?”

“Yes, I am. I think.”

“Poppet, your dad agreed to let me leave the Wanderer life.”

“So you’re just a regular dude now?” I smiled.

He laughed. “Yep.”

I hugged him, not feeling the need to say any more. I could tell that he was happy, and that was all that mattered.

“Stan!” I shouted. “I’m ready.”

Maybe not for a final goodbye, but I was friends with a paranormal stalker, so I’d be able to check on my friends occasionally.

I kissed Ariele and David, and then Stan and I were off. He wandered me back to my bedroom at Celia’s house.

“Can you stand another goodbye?” he asked.

“Not really. Plus you’ll be forced to come see me. So how about an
au revoir
?”

“Perfect. See you soon, princess.” And with that, he faded away.

I just made it to dinner. Everyone—Celia, Greg, Dr. Fox, Mom, Ella, and Kellan—was already seated. Kellan had saved me a seat between him and Ella. As soon as I sat down, Celia rose and clinked her spoon against her crystal flute.

She turned to Mom. “Oll, it’s been wonderful having you, your family, and friends stay over for a visit. I am very sad to see you go. My home is always open to any one of you.” She smiled at each of us in turn. “A toast to all of us, friends for life. Bottoms up!” She raised her flute and then touched each of our glasses with it before she brought the rim to her lips for what I thought would be a sip, but she gulped down the contents of the whole glass and then said, “This is how Paddington girls do it.”

Mom laughed. “Bottoms up,” she said and followed suit.

“Mom!” Ella scrunched up her nose in disgust.

Mom laughed and we all dug into the feast.

Hours later, the five of us—Mom, Dr. Fox, Ella, Kellan, and I—were back at Ames. We’d met the October Project supervisor outside, and he’d led us back to the Portal antechamber. It seemed so empty this time without Harry, Ariele, and her parents. I got into my pod with Kellan and lay my arm on the armrest to receive the sedative mixture.

“What do you think we’re going back to?” Kellan asked.

“A normal life.”

“You think? By all accounts, it’s mayhem all over the world at that end.”

“My dad will sort that out,” I said confidently. “In the meantime, he’s not going to allow anyone to mess with us anymore.” That was for sure.

“Ready?” Mom asked as she came over and stuck the needle in my arm.

“Ready. And Mom…”

“Yes?” She smiled at me.

“You made the right decision.”

Ten Years Later

T
he white silk flowed like a cloud behind her as she walked down the petal-strewn path flanked by her father and mother. I felt Mom tense and grabbed her hand, squeezing it tightly. I glanced up and saw her dewy eyes. This must be hard for her, even harder than it was for me. For me, this was just surreal, like watching myself play a part in a movie. And this was the end, the happy Harlequin ending where the girl marries the boy of her dreams. Except the boy… man… now beaming at his bride had once upon a time been my dream. And the girl was me.

The other
me.
The one I would have been had my mother not left that life behind. She’d escaped when it became untenable for her, but looking at it from here—hidden from sight—did she regret anything? Was that what the tears were all about? She should have no regrets. Things had turned out more than okay in Stevensland. David had been—was—the key. Without him, the bleak future Mom had imagined could still have become a reality. But in changing her destiny, she’d also changed Arizona Stevens’s future. She’d gifted her with David, who had worked tirelessly to heal the wounds of the broken family to the point that they were all here today, united in their joy for their daughter… sister.

Arizona Stevens looked radiant, and she positively glowed when her veil was lifted to reveal her beautiful face. I could almost feel her complete bliss as she looked into the eyes of the man I knew had given her all of his heart. My own heart twinged just a little when I saw the admiration and complete devotion pouring from David’s eyes.

We were gathered in New Jersey at the wedding of David Skoog and Arizona Stevens. Assembled, not with the guests at the church in Princeton, but at our own unique vantage point, hovering between dimensions unknown to most of the party below.

Ariele looked up and waved, touching the hairclip I had left on her bed earlier that morning. I waved back knowing that, although she couldn’t see us, she knew we wouldn’t miss this for the world. She looked beautiful standing beside Monica and Ella—the other Ella.

Ella Stevens was a vision in her silver-teal bridesmaid dress—the popular actress happy to play a rare supporting role. I glanced over at my own sister, her arms entwined with Jonas’s. She was no stranger to the Golden Globes, having picked up her second nomination this year. For my sister, no matter what path her life had taken, all roads led to a stage. She was born a performer.

However, the divergence had taken my mom on different journeys. I wondered if the lady who stood beside Arizona Stevens was plagued by memories of the man she’d met all those years ago in Paddington, the love of her life who had forever disappeared. My heart ached for her.

I looked over at my mom and dad, their hands in each other’s, their forever wedding-band tattoos a reminder of the strong bond between them and their undeniable love.

“She did the right thing,” Kellan whispered in my ear, kissing it gently.

“Yeah, you’re right.” I turned to face him as he kissed me.

“Now it’s my turn,” he said. “Arizona Darley, will you take a leap of faith and marry me?”

Portal would not have morphed into the Portal Chronicles without the unwavering enthusiasm and support from the PC fans. All writers need constant reinforcement, and you have given me that, fueling me forward into what started off as completely uncharted territory for me. I am forever grateful. You’ve given me the confidence and motivation to keep writing.

There are really no words to describe the utter awesomeness of the team that works relentlessly to make sure that I put my best foot forward. Sue Bernstein, my editor and dear friend, believed in me from the very first book I wrote and has spent many hours polishing my work. I couldn’t imagine trusting anyone else to maintain the integrity of my words as she does.

While writing, it’s so easy to get lost in the characters and story. That which may seem obvious to me might not to the rest of the world. I wouldn’t dream of setting my books loose without a stamp of approval from my crack beta team: Allirea Brumley, Al Kunz, and Vickie Boehnlein. They keep me grounded and surrounded in a warm blanket of love and support.

I never learned to type, and tapping away with my two pointers can lead to all sorts of extraordinary typos, most too embarrassing to mention here. Saving me from public humiliation is the job of my capable copy editor, Karen Allen (Red Adept Editing), and my proofers Lala Price and the Red Adept Proofing team. I’d also like to thank Ted Risk (Dellaster Design) for formatting the eBook edition. He truly is a pleasure to work with.