29. Jasmine

29

JASMINE

J asmine regretted not telling Ell-rom about her fling with Edgar sooner, so this awkwardness could have been avoided.

It wasn't that she had deliberately hidden it.

Somehow, it had just never seemed like a good time to bring it up.

Well, that wasn't entirely true. She could have told Ell-rom about her relationship with Edgar when she first mentioned the pilot, but she had chosen not to because she didn't want to put any emotional strain on Ell-rom, who was struggling with enough as it was, or on their relationship, which was still in its budding stage and fragile.

Thankfully, Ell-rom's initial jealousy was gradually melting away, and the longer he talked with Edgar, the more the accusation in his eyes faded. He seemed to no longer feel threatened by the guy, probably because Edgar had found Angelica.

It was also a relief that he had lost interest in Morelle.

Jasmine could only imagine how Ell-rom would have reacted to that particular complication.

"So, Edgar," Ell-rom was saying, "do you have much family in the clan?"

Edgar shook his head. "It's just my mother and me, but the entire clan is my extended family."

"I'm excited about joining the clan," Ell-rom admitted. "I only have my sister, and I don't remember much about my life on Anumati. I have a couple of vague memories of our mother, but that's all. I don't think we interacted with anyone outside the head priestess and occasionally the temple guards and acolytes."

The hint of sadness in Ell-rom's voice sent a pang of sorrow through Jasmine's chest. She reached out, placing her hand over his. "I only have vague memories of my mother, and my father was not the warmest of guys, but at least I had friends in school. You and Morelle didn't even have that."

"Not that I remember," Ell-rom said. "How did your mother die, if I may ask?"

"I don't know. I was a little girl when it happened, and my father refused to tell me how she died. She was only twenty-seven when she passed."

In the back of her mind, Jasmine had always harbored the morbid thought that she wouldn't live longer than her mother and would die at twenty-seven, but now that she was facing the possibility of becoming immortal, it no longer made sense to cling to that belief.

Not that it ever had, but beliefs were not rational.

"Did you try to find out what happened?" Edgar asked.

Jasmine shook her head. "My father was adamant about me leaving it alone, and he instilled such fear in me that every time I thought about investigating her death, I would chicken out."

Ell-rom frowned. "I don't understand that expression."

"It means that I was scared. Chickens are scared of everything, so when you say that someone is a chicken, it means that they are gutless."

The furrow between Ell-rom's eyes deepened. "You are not gutless."

"Well, if the shoe fits…" She laughed. "I need to stop using idioms and confusing you."

"I actually got that one." Ell-rom took a sip of his coffee. "But I still disagree. I think that you are very brave."

"I second that opinion," Edgar said.

"Aren't the two of you sweet?" She cast them a charming smile. "But the fact is that I didn't have the guts to investigate what happened to my mother."

"She might be alive," Edgar said. "She might have left your father, and he claimed she was dead because she was dead to him or something like that."

The thought had occurred to Jasmine. She didn't even know where her mother was buried, and her father refused to tell her. Sometimes, she fantasized that her mother wasn't dead at all. Maybe she had found love in the arms of another man and had run off with him?

It was painful to think that her mother had left her behind to pursue her own happiness, but Jasmine preferred that to the finality of death. If her mother was still alive somewhere, there was still a chance that they would be reunited.

Then again, it was just a fantasy, and she was probably gone.

"I wish that was true, but I don't think it is."

"Did she look like you?" Ell-rom asked.

Jasmine nodded. "I got my coloring from her. My father is a typical Russian dude with pale skin, brown hair, and blue eyes. I have a few old pictures of my mother. They are with the rest of my things in storage."

"I think you should find out what really happened to her, just so you can put the issue to rest." Ell-rom gave her hand a gentle squeeze. "I would have loved to help you investigate, but I'm in no position to do that. I can't even thrall. Not well, anyway. If I could, a visit with your father could have solved the mystery."

It hadn't occurred to her that it was a possibility. Any one of the immortals could get into her father's head and retrieve the information from there or force him to reveal it.

Not Ell-rom, though. He had managed to shroud, but they hadn't even practiced thralling yet.

Edgar leaned forward, his eyes sparkling with interest. "I could do that," he offered.

Jasmine felt a jolt of anxiety at the suggestion. Part of her desperately wanted to know the truth about her mother, but another part was terrified of what she might discover. "That's not a priority right now."

She caught the glance that passed between Ell-rom and Edgar, a look of silent understanding that made her narrow her eyes. "Don't even think about doing anything without consulting me first," she warned. "And especially nothing that involves my father, my stepmother, or my stepbrothers. They are all mine to deal with."

Edgar held up his hands in mock surrender. "Of course not. But you know, I could ask Roni to do some digging. Nothing invasive, just a preliminary investigation."

Roni was the clan's hacker who had gotten them fake identities that could be verified and even included university credentials, so she knew how good he was. But something in the way Edgar had suggested it made Jasmine pause. A suspicion began to form in her mind.

"Roni has already looked into my past, hasn't he?"

Edgar had the grace to look sheepish. "Roni probably did some basic background checks when you became involved with the mission. It's standard procedure."

It made sense. After all, they had trusted her with monumental secrets, so it was only natural that they would want to ensure she wasn't a threat. "I get it," she said with a sigh. "So, what did he find out?"

Edgar shook his head. "I honestly don't know. That kind of information is strictly need-to-know. But I can talk to Roni and ask. He'll probably call you to get permission to share any details with me."

Jasmine snorted. "He didn't ask for my permission to dig into my past, but he'll ask for it now?"

Edgar shrugged. "He checked up on you for security reasons and reported his findings to Kian. My clearance is high, but I'd need a legitimate reason to access that information."

"If Roni calls, I'll give permission. But I want to know everything he finds out."

"Of course." Edgar nodded solemnly.

The possibility of uncovering the truth about her mother both thrilled and terrified Jasmine. For years she had pushed those questions to the back of her mind, but now, with the clan's resources potentially at her disposal, she had a real chance at finally getting answers.