3. Edgar

Edgar shook his head. "You can"t just go out and buy a phone. You need to get a special-issue satellite clan phone that works anywhere globally."

There was still so much that Jasmine didn"t know, and the type of phone she could or couldn"t use was just the tip of the iceberg.

She had no clue that Aru and his teammates were not mere immortals but gods and that they had been sent from the distant planet of the gods to search for the missing Kra-ell pods. They had also been tasked with finding out whether any of the exiled gods or their descendants had survived after the bombing that had killed almost all of them five thousand years ago, but that was not something that she needed to know.

Or so he thought.

No one had told him what he was allowed to tell her, and Edgar wasn"t taking any chances.

The question was whether he should wait until tomorrow for Kian"s visit or find a quiet spot and call Onegus for guidance.

"You can use mine until you get a new one," Frankie offered, then frowned. "Now that I"m immortal, will the restriction on who I can call get removed?"

Dagor pursed his lips. "I hope so. William probably can do that remotely."

The butler cleared his throat, reminding them he was waiting by the door to show them the other penthouse.

Margo leaned to plant a quick peck on Frankie"s cheek. "We will just put our things in our bedroom and return here." She looked at the outdoor terrace. "Maybe we can have coffee and tea out there."

Frankie grinned. "I"ll get the coffee going."

"I"m curious about the other penthouse." Gabi glanced at Frankie. "Don"t you want to see it?"

"On second thought, I do." Frankie threaded her arm through Dagor"s and led him toward the door.

As they followed Okidu out of Kian"s penthouse and across the vestibule to Amanda"s residence, Edgar tried to remember if he had ever seen Amanda"s penthouse. He"d been to Kian"s place a few times while they had all still lived in the keep, but Amanda had her own place back then, a condo near the university, and she"d rarely stayed at her penthouse apartment in the keep.

As he"d expected, the layout was nearly identical, a mirror image of Kian"s, but the decor had a distinctly feminine touch. Where Kian"s apartment had been all sleek lines and masculine hues, Amanda"s was softer, the colors more inviting, and many plush throw pillows were strewn over the couches.

Okidu led them through the space, highlighting the various amenities and features. The fridge and the pantry were well stocked, reinforcing Ed"s assumption that a crew had been sent to prepare the penthouses.

"Dibs on the master bedroom," Margo called from down the hallway.

Jasmine frowned. "Shouldn"t we flip for it?"

Edgar chuckled. "They have priority. Negal was here first." And he was a god, but that revelation was still pending. "Besides, we are only staying here a couple of nights, so it doesn"t matter."

"Right." Jasmine pouted. "I would like to bask in the luxury a little longer than that."

When Okidu opened the door to the guest suite, Jasmine walked in and nodded in appreciation. "This is very nice."

The centerpiece was a massive king-sized bed piled high with fluffy pillows and draped in sumptuous linens. Floor-to-ceiling windows offered a view of the city skyline, and a small sitting area was strategically placed to take advantage of the view.

"Look at this." Jasmine walked into the closet. "This is bigger than my entire apartment."

Edgar rolled their suitcases inside and left them near the door. "I don"t think we should unpack. We are not staying long enough."

"Of course we should." Jasmine walked over to a bank of drawers and started pulling them out one at a time. "Most of my things are unsuitable for trekking in the Himalayas. I will need to go shopping." She turned to look at him. "Who is going to pay for that, and can I leave my stuff here?"

"I don"t know the answers to either of your questions." Edgar rubbed a hand over the back of his neck. "Kian will stop by tomorrow, and you can ask him about it. We can store our stuff in the underground facility if he wants to lease out this place again. "

"There is an underground facility?"

He might have said too much. "Yeah. Storage."

With a doubtful glance in his direction, Jasmine walked out of the closet. "I want to see the primary bedroom. I can only imagine how much more luxurious it is."

"Sure. I want to see it, too." He"d only seen Kian"s living and dining rooms and had never seen the bedrooms.

Jasmine knocked on the master"s open door before walking in. "Is everyone decent? Edgar and I want a tour."

Margo emerged from what Edgar guessed was the bathroom and waved them inside. "You"ve got to see this."

As Jasmine hurried to join her friend, Edgar stayed in the master bedroom and walked over to the glass sliding doors that opened to the terrace. The lap pool was calling to him, and he resolved to use it at least once before they shipped out.

Who knew how long this expeditionwas going tolast?

It might be months before hegot a chance toswim again.