Epilogue

Crane and Trudy spent much of that afternoon in an unused room in the Sheriff's Department, playing cards as they waited for Abbie to emerge from Reyes' office. Three days after Trudy's return, the palpable relief in the community had started to fade and people were looking for someone to blame.

That someone, it seemed, was Abbie Mills. After all, Trudy had been snatched while under her guardianship, and even though she had returned her home without a scratch, it wasn't looking good.

Trudy spent a long time in silence, staring at her hand of cards as if her entire future lay in them.

'Miss Trudy? Is something the matter?' Crane asked gently.

'Is Abbie in trouble because of me?'

Crane was tempted to placate her with words of comfort, but his mind kept flying back to that terrible night on the road outside Sleepy Hollow. He would be a fool to imagine that Trudy had gone through that ordeal unscathed. Trudy had passed through death like a phoenix from the flames and emerged even more powerful than he could have predicted.

'Abbie is an inscrutable woman. In many ways, she is as mysterious as the Sphinx, but there is one thing I know for sure. She loves fiercely, and fights like an Amazon for those she cherishes most dearly. She will weather whatever storm comes her way, and she will do it gladly for your sake.'

Trudy looked at him and for the first time in days, her smile reached her eyes.

He found her sitting on Abbie's front porch. It struck him as odd that having faced a myriad of demonic creatures without flinching, he should dread this meeting like the plague.

'May I?' he asked, gesturing towards the space beside her.

Trudy nodded sullenly, pulling herself into an ever-tighter knot as Crane sat down.

'You have met your prospective family?' He did not really need to ask, because Abbie had filled him in earlier. It seemed that the ideal foster parents for Trudy had appeared – a couple of paediatricians from Connecticut who lived on a horse farm with their six adopted kids.

'They're still inside, getting the third degree from Abbie.'

Crane had deduced that much already. Parked alongside Abbie's truck was a dusty Land Rover and Sheriff Reyes' conservative Lexus. It all seemed very much like a fait accompli, a done deal, and that realisation made Crane's heart ache.

'I am told that they are very respectable people,' he offered.

'They promised to teach me to ride horses.' Trudy's voice was small, more childlike than Crane had heard in a while.

'That sounds most pleasant.' He knew that he should be encouraging, but a selfish part of him was tempted to prey on her hesitation and doubt. 'Do you want to go with them, Trudy?'

Trudy concentrated on her feet. 'I like them,' she said slowly. 'But what will happen to you if I go?'

Crane let out a laugh that was a little too close to a sob. His grief at Henry's death had been muted, less an expression of personal loss than a profound regret at possibilities unfulfilled. Trudy's simple concern for him was more moving than a thousand platitudes of pretended sympathy.

'Well, I shall have to shift for myself,' he replied. 'And if that fails, I have the Lieutenant to keep me in line.'

'You should marry her, you know.'

Crane laughed in surprise, but there was a hint of discomfort in his levity. 'You don't understand. You see, I am married to Katrina, and Abbie is my friend.'

'Don't get me wrong, I like Katrina,' Trudy said thoughtfully. 'She taught me a lot, but she's not like Abbie. You'll never find anyone better than her.'

Silence fell between them. Eventually, Trudy found her voice again. 'What if I don't like it there?

'Hear this.' Crane regarded her seriously. 'If you ever feel lonely or unhappy, call me and I shall come.'

'You promise?'

Without hesitation, Crane pulled off his treasured Masonic ring and held it out to her. 'This was given to me a long time ago as a pledge of unswerving loyalty, brotherhood and devotion. As long as you wear that ring, know that you are my friend, and I shall always be at your service.'

Trudy shyly took it from his hand and placed it on her thumb, the only finger it would fit. She leaned over and hugged him tightly. Without another word, she stood up and ran back into the house.

Crane felt the pressure of her arms around him like a band squeezing his heart. When she pulled away, the absence was painful. For the first time, he felt the love of a father.

After the last of Trudy's belongings had been packed into the Land Rover and all the goodbyes had been said, Abbie closed her front door with an overwhelming sense of emptiness. Too numb to cry, she walked into the kitchen and uncorked a bottle of red wine.

As she poured a large glass, she noticed a tattered copy of Heidi sitting on the table. She sighed with dismay, thinking that Trudy had forgotten it in the confusion.

She picked it up and opened the front cover. On the title page was an untidy scrawl:

Dear Abbie

This is my most prized possession. Guard it for me.

Love, Trudy.

Abbie sat on the couch beside Crane as night enveloped the cabin. She had tried to lend a sympathetic ear to him, but truthfully, her mind was still reeling.

Katrina had shown up at Crane's doorstep that morning to inform him that she wanted to end their marriage. The time they had spent apart had convinced her that their paths were destined to diverge. She planned to travel the country with Aled, learning more about her powers and locating other witches.

Her last words to him were ones of warning. The deaths of the Horsemen of War and Death had dealt a blow to Moloch's plans, but there were two more Horsemen waiting to rise. Evil still lurked, and she felt compelled to muster as many soldiers in the army of good as possible. She wished him well and told him that she would return in the final battle, to halt Moloch's rise once and for all.

Crane was left shell-shocked by her departure, and Abbie was worried for him. Since their first meeting, Crane had clung to the hope of Katrina's return above everything else. After everything that had happened in the past few weeks, she was afraid this might be the straw that broke the camel's back.

'You okay, Crane?' she asked.

'No, Lieutenant, I am not "okay." But I shall be, as long as you do not desert me too.'

There was a rueful smile on his face that tugged at Abbie's heart. She leaned forward and placed a hand over his. 'I'm not going anywhere.'

'Good, because we have a war to fight, and neither one of us can fight it alone.' He regarded her unflinchingly. 'We have passed through hellfire together – there is nothing we cannot overcome.'