Maya's POV
I couldn't move.
My body was frozen in place by Elena's magic, but my mind screamed with a thousand questions. Dante's marks glowed gold on his arms—proof he wasn't human. Marcus lay unconscious on the floor. A demon—an actual demon—twisted in a glowing cage beside him.
And now an old man in ancient robes stood in the courthouse hallway, radiating power that made the air vibrate.
"Release them," the old man commanded Elena. His voice echoed with authority that couldn't be denied.
Elena lowered her hand. Suddenly I could move again, could breathe. I stumbled, and Dante caught me, his glowing marks warm against my skin.
"Stay behind me," he whispered.
"Dante Valenti." The old man's gaze fixed on him. "You have violated the first law of our kind. You exposed yourself to humans. The penalty is erasure from existence."
"No!" The word ripped from my throat before I could stop it. "Please, he was trying to protect us! That man—" I pointed at Marcus, "—he attacked Dante! He forced this!"
The old man's ancient eyes turned to me. "And you are the reason for all of this chaos. The human woman who captured a Cupid's heart."
"I didn't mean to—"
"She's my fated mate." Dante's voice was strong despite his fear. "Chairman Theron, I've served the Council for three thousand years without question. I've earned my transition to humanity. I was so close. Just a few more days and I would have been fully mortal. This—" he gestured at his glowing marks, "—wouldn't have been possible. But Marcus Chen, influenced by demonic magic, forced my hand. I had no choice."
"There is always a choice," Theron said coldly. "You chose love over duty. You chose this woman over our laws. You chose exposure over discretion."
"He chose to save my daughter!" I pushed forward, ignoring Dante trying to hold me back. "Do you know what Marcus was going to do? He was going to take my six-year-old child away from me using lies and manipulation. Dante stopped him. Dante protected us. Isn't that what Cupids are supposed to do? Protect love?"
Lily's small voice cut through the tension. "Is Mr. Dante in trouble because of us?"
Everyone turned to look at her. She'd been frozen too, but now stood small and scared, tears streaming down her face.
"Is the bad magic man going to hurt him?" Lily walked toward Theron with zero fear, just a child's honest concern. "Because Mr. Dante is good. He makes Mommy smile. He fixed our door. He promised to keep us safe. Good people shouldn't get in trouble for being good."
Theron stared at this tiny human child lecturing him about justice. Something flickered across his ancient face—surprise, maybe. Or amusement.
"Child, you do not understand—"
"I understand you're about to be mean to my friend." Lily crossed her arms. "And my mommy taught me that being mean is wrong. Even if you're old and have magic."
The social worker, the judge, and the police officers were still frozen, unable to process what they were seeing. But I could see the judge's eyes moving, watching, taking everything in even though she couldn't speak.
Theron knelt down to Lily's level. "Your friend broke rules that have existed for millennia."
"Did the rules say he couldn't protect me and Mommy?"
"No, but—"
"Then the rules are stupid." Lily's bottom lip trembled. "Mr. Dante was nice to me when nobody else was. My daddy—" she looked at Marcus's unconscious form, "—my daddy only pretends to love me. But Mr. Dante really cares. I can tell. And now you want to make him disappear because he has glowing arms? That's not fair!"
"Lily, stop," I said gently, pulling her back. "You can't talk to—"
"Let her speak." Theron stood, his expression thoughtful. "It has been a long time since anyone challenged the Council so... directly."
Elena stepped forward. "Chairman Theron, if I may. Dante didn't just expose himself randomly. He was defending his fated mate from demonic influence. According to ancient law, a Cupid has the right to defend their bonded soul by any means necessary."
"He wasn't fully bonded yet," Theron countered. "The transition wasn't complete."
"But the soul bond was recognized." Elena gestured at Dante's marks, which pulsed brighter whenever he looked at me. "Look at his marks. They respond to her. That's not a maybe-bond. That's destiny confirming itself. The universe chose them for each other. Are you really going to erase a fated pairing because the timing was inconvenient?"
Theron was silent, considering.
"And there's precedent," Elena continued, gaining confidence. "The Barcelona Incident of 1876. Cupid Aria exposed herself to save her mate from a vampire attack. The Council pardoned her because she was defending her bond. How is this different?"
"That was different. Aria was fully bonded. Dante is still transitioning—"
"By days!" Dante interrupted. "Maybe a week at most. My marks are already fading. I'm losing my memories of being a Cupid. I can feel my immortality slipping away. In another week, I'll be completely human. Just give me that week. Let me finish what I started."
"And if I let you go, what stops every Cupid from exposing themselves whenever convenient?"
"This wasn't convenient. This was necessary." Dante's marks flared. "Marcus Chen wasn't just a controlling ex-husband. He was demon-touched, using supernatural influence to destroy innocent people. Rebecca is in the hospital. Maya was being stalked. Lily was going to be ripped from her mother. I did what any decent being would do—I stood between evil and the people I love. If that's against your laws, then your laws are wrong."
The words hung in the air.
Theron's expression was unreadable. "You dare challenge the Council's authority?"
"I challenge any authority that prioritizes rules over protecting innocent lives."
Oh god, Dante was going to get himself erased for talking back.
But Theron surprised me. He smiled. Just a little.
"You sound like I did, three thousand years ago, when I first became a Cupid." He looked at Elena. "He reminds me of us. When we still believed love was worth fighting for, consequences be damned."
"We still believe that," Elena said quietly. "Some of us never stopped."
Theron studied Dante for a long moment, then me, then Lily still clutching my hand.
"Fine," he said finally. "I will give you one week. Seven days to complete your transition to humanity. During that time, you will not use any Cupid powers. You will not expose yourself again. And you will solve this custody situation without magic." He gestured at the frozen humans. "I will erase their memories of what they saw today. They will remember only that Marcus Chen became violent and was arrested. The demon will be dealt with. But Dante—if you slip up even once, if you expose our world again, there will be no second chances. Understood?"
"Understood." Dante's relief was palpable.
"And you." Theron turned to me. "Maya Chen. You are now bound to Cupid business whether you like it or not. The supernatural world knows about you. If you speak of what you've seen, if you endanger our secrecy, you and your daughter will be dealt with. Harshly."
Fear shot through me, but I lifted my chin. "I understand."
"Good." Theron waved his hand, and the frozen humans began to stir. Their eyes glazed over as their memories shifted, changed, rewrote themselves. "Your wedding appointment is in six minutes. I suggest you not waste this second chance."
He vanished in a shimmer of light.
The demon cage disappeared, taking the creature with it.
Marcus groaned on the floor, his eyes no longer red, just... empty. Lost. The demon's influence was gone, leaving behind a broken man who'd let evil use him.
The judge blinked, looking around confused. "I—what happened? Mr. Chen, you were saying something about custody, and then you just... collapsed?"
The police officer moved toward Marcus. "Sir, you need medical attention. And we need to discuss those threatening messages you sent to Ms. Chen."
Everything was shifting, changing. The supernatural evidence erasing itself from human minds. But the human evidence—Marcus's texts, his threats, his stalking—that remained.
Dante took my hand, his marks still glowing faintly but fading fast. "We should go. Before anything else goes wrong."
"But the wedding—"
"Is scheduled for 9 AM. We have five minutes." He smiled, tired but real. "Still want to marry a former Cupid?"
I looked at him. Really looked at him. This man—this being—who'd risked everything to protect us. Who'd challenged ancient powers for my daughter's safety. Who was giving up immortality for a chance at human love.
"Yes," I said. "I do."
We walked hand in hand toward the courthouse chapel, leaving Marcus and his demons behind.
Lily skipped ahead of us, excited. "I get to be the flower girl!"
"We don't have flowers, baby."
"That's okay. I'll imagine them!"
We reached the chapel doors. Dante squeezed my hand.
"Thank you," he whispered. "For believing in me."
"Thank you for fighting for us."
We pushed the doors open.
And screamed.
Rebecca stood at the altar, her face still bruised but her eyes clear. And beside her stood Marcus's lawyer, holding a document.
"The wedding is cancelled," the lawyer announced. "I have an emergency injunction. Marcus Chen is removing custody rights from Maya Chen effective immediately. Lily goes with us. Now."
Rebecca's expression was pure agony. "I'm sorry, Maya. But he has proof you're unfit. And I have to testify against you."
Lily was ripped from my arms by a woman in a CPS uniform I hadn't seen enter.