#Chapter 198: End Of An Era

Grace Consciousness bled back slowly, like dawn filtering through the dense canopy of a forest. Sounds, muted and blurry at first, sharpened into the rhythmic whir of helicopter blades and the sharp barks of Enforcers. My vision, blurred by sleep and a grogginess I couldn’t explain, gradually focused on the scene before me. Charles was sitting nearby, silhouetted by the coming dawn, looking at a tablet, his jaw clenched tight. A small, warm body was pressed against my bare chest. I looked down, and so much tension I hadn’t realized was still there bled out of me. Cecil was curled up against me, nuzzling me like she did when she was a baby. I blinked slowly. It was over? I looked past him into the growing sunlight. The scent of rain and blood lingered in the air. “Hey,” he said. “Care to get dressed?” I frowned and nodded. He reached out an arm and looked at me. He glanced down at Cecil. Everything in wanted to keep her closed. I wanted to snark at him, but I didn't. “Don't go