Chapter Thirteen

Morning brought no answers. We woke without sparks or flashes of light. No displays of power and no cool nicknames. But the men smiled at each other, and I felt the crossroads of their bond tingle inside me. There was no going back from this.

We unlocked the tower doors and got ready for the day—bathing, dressing, and cooking breakfast. Just usual family stuff done large scale. Once the children were fed, we released them into the wild, and they went shrieking downstairs, bypassing the elevator since they wanted to stop at Fallon and Sam's floor to collect Zariel along the way. The rest of us got into the golden cage elevator and watched the ruffians as we descended.

Dominic and Sebastian didn't exactly take the stairs or stop for Zariel. They flew down, gliding along the spiral beside our descending cage. Az waved at them, and they giggled and called out to their daddy. It was adorable. One of those moments that makes all the other parenting stuff worthwhile.

And then Que stepped out of a hallway, into the stairwell, and collided with Sebastian.

Sebastian shrieked.

Quetzalcoatl shrieked.

My husbands and I shrieked.

Sebastian and Que flapped their arms—and in the case of my son, his wings—at each other. Luckily, Quetzalcoatl recovered quickly and grabbed Sebastian before he fell. He held the crying, winged boy aloft, and that was all I saw before I descended past their floor. It was enough to know that both of them were okay, but I still ran out of the elevator as soon as it stopped and rushed up the stairs to meet them halfway.

First, I caught Dominic, who launched himself into my arms, wailing for his brother.

“It's all right, Dom,” I said as I hurried up to Que and Sebastian. “Que, I'm so sorry. I should have warned you that there are flying children in this house.”

Quetzalcoatl chuckled and bounced Sebastian in his arms. “It's all right. It's nice to be around people.” He handed Sebastian over to Az. “Even if it means literally bumping into them.”

“Sebastian, shh,” Azrael cooed as he took our son downstairs. “You're fine. This is a good lesson for you. You need to watch where you're going. People are not always going to watch out for you.”

“Sebastian!” Dominic cried and flew out of my arms, chasing after his daddy and brother.

“Dominic,” Sebastian said through his hiccuping tears and reached for his brother as if he was dying.

I rolled my eyes. “My children are a bit dramatic. I don't know where they got it from.”

“Mom, what happened to the twins?” Lesya asked as she came running down the stairs with Vero, Zariel, Fallon, and Samantha.

“Sebastian flew into Uncle Que.” I waved at him. “They're both fine, but it scared your brother.”

“Oh.” Lesya grimaced. “Sorry, Uncle Que. They are ruffians.”

“Ruffians, eh?” Que asked, his eyes twinkling .

“Yes,” Lesya said and strode past. “Everyone says so. We're going outside to play now. Are you going to come out onto the drawbridge?”

“The drawbridge?” Que looked at me.

“The veranda,” I explained. “It's a permanently lowered, extra wide drawbridge that crosses our moat. But it's more of a veranda. It just made it look like a drawbridge.”

“Ah. I see.”

“The lions are having breakfast in the dining hall if you haven't eaten yet. Then you're welcome to join us outside. We usually have some coffee and watch the kids play.”

“That sounds like a lovely way to start the day,” Que said.

“It's all right, as long as the kids don't get too rambunctious. Come on, I'll walk you to the kitchen. I need to get my coffee anyway.”

Our group went together, the kids heading outside alone. They'd be fine for a few minutes. The rest of us went through the dining hall, past several lions who called out greetings, and into the kitchen.

“I don't know if Fallon showed you around the kitchen,” I said to Que. “But help yourself to anything you find in here. If there's a pot of coffee brewed, it's up for grabs. Just make sure to start a fresh pot if you finish one.”

“Some of the guys have already made breakfast,” Trevor said and waved toward the platters of meat, french toast, eggs, and pancakes. “Have at it.”

“Thank you.” Que made a beeline for the food.

As Que fixed a plate, the rest of us poured our coffee, then headed out to the veranda. The Pride Lands were fully awake by then, lazing in the sun like a cat. Sunshine brightened the tall, golden grass and turned the lake into a mirror. Lacy-leafed trees with flat tops spotted the plain, and herds of animals grazed. Many of them wandered to the lake to drink. It hadn't been my favorite landscape when I first moved there, but it had grown on me and now it was home. The one time I'd seen it transformed, it had hurt my heart. I knew then that I could never change it.

I sighed happily as I sat down in a Victorian chair, kicked off my shoes, and dug my toes into the silk carpet.

Odin took the chair on my left, Azrael chose the one on my right, and Kirill sprawled on the floor just to the right of my feet. He slung a thick arm over my lap and sipped his coffee. I had to resist the urge to pet him like a cat. But then Nick, my immortal, gray, tabby cat, strolled up and laid on the rug next to Kirill, propping his head on Kirill's thigh. When Kirill started petting Nick, my resistance vanished and I stroked his long hair.

“What the fudge brownies is this?” Viper demanded. “Are you four a new sub-team or something?”

“No, of course not,” I said. “Mama loves you all equally.”

Re snorted. “You do look a little cliquish. What happened last night?”

No one had asked about it yet since the kids had been around. So I wasn't surprised when Viper, Trevor, and Re leaned closer in their seats and stared at us expectantly.

“The Trinity Star took some of their Death Magic, blended it, then portioned it out to the three of them,” I said. “They bonded.”

“Our bonds run through Vervain,” Odin took over. “She's not a part of the magic, but she unites us.”

“Interesting,” Trevor said.

“What's this now?” Samantha asked. “You formed another bond? But you're already bonded.”

“ They formed the bond.” I waved at Az, Odin, and Kirill. “I just served as a conduit.”

“A keystone,” Odin said. “Her star united us. We're like one of her trinities.”

“Except separate from my star,” I hurried to say. “I didn't feel you click into it.”

“Yes, we're separate from the star, but still a part of you,” Azrael said.

“Ugh, you're making my head hurt,” Fallon said.

“So what does it mean?” Re asked. “What can you do?”

“We haven't tried to do anything yet,” Odin said, his expression going pensive. “I suppose we should train together. A new magic needs to be explored before it's used in battle.”

“Battle?” Fallon asked. “Are we preparing for war?”

“No,” I hurried to say. “But it's good to be prepared for anything. We don't know what the trickster will do next.”

“Hey, Az,” Aidan, one of the Intare, said as he stepped outside. “Lexington is getting hit by a big storm. You might want to go down and check on the citadel.”

“A storm?” Azrael asked as he stood up. “Like a hurricane?”

“No, just a rainstorm, but they're predicting heavy flooding.”

“In Texas?” I frowned. “Does Texas get floods?”

“All the time,” Aidan said. “How do you not know that?”

I shrugged. “I'm usually at the citadel when I'm there, and Azrael controls the weather around the Wild Fey Lands. I don't know why, but I've always thought of Texas as a dry place. ”

“I may control the weather within the Fey Land, but the surrounding strip is occupied by our staff and the families of the Wild Fey children,” Azrael said. “I'd better go and make sure they're all right.”

“Check in with Austin too,” I said as he leaned down to kiss my cheek. “He may need your help. And let us know if you need our help.”

“I will,” he promised and headed inside.

“I guess training will have to wait,” I said to Odin.

“Kirill and I could still test things out. It will be good to try the magic without Azrael there. It might make a difference.”

“Ve can use training yard,” Kirill suggested.

“Right now?” Odin asked.

“Da. If you like.”

Odin nodded and stood up. “Yes. I think it would be best to learn about our new magic as soon as possible.”

Kirill stood up, and the two of them headed off toward the training yard around the side of the palace. I frowned after them as Re and Trevor slid into Az and Odin's empty seats.

“Guess you really are separate,” Viper said to me.

“Still jealous?” I lifted a brow at him.

“I never get jealous, starlight.” Viper grinned. “I know you love me no matter what.”

“I do, but it's okay if you get jealous.”

“Do you want me to get jealous?” He waggled his brows at me. “I can get all aggressive like I was when you were a bad girl.”

“Of course she does,” Re said. “She's a woman. Women love it when men get jealous. It reaffirms their hold on their men. ”

“Does it, though?” I asked. “I don't know. And it depends on the level of jealousy. There's a whole scale from adorable to psychotic and most of that scale is too close to psycho for my comfort.”

“Are you sure, La-la?” Re smirked. “I've known you to occasionally enjoy some rough play.”

“That's pretend stuff. Bedroom stuff. It isn't real. A truly jealous and possessive man is dangerous. They tend to be unpredictable too. I prefer sane men. Thank you very much.”

Trevor chuckled. “Then it's a good thing the Intare Magic prevents jealousy.”

“Right,” I murmured, watching Kirill and Odin make their way around the corner of the palace.

“Are you jealous?” Viper asked me.

“Huh?” I looked over at him in surprise. “No.” I frowned. “At least, I don't think so. I was a little annoyed at how they left without saying anything to me. But I guess it wasn't necessary. I knew what they were doing.”

“Then what's with that face?”

“I'm just wondering what this bond will do to their magic. I can feel the strength of it inside me, and each of them was already very powerful, to begin with. What are they now?” I whispered the question.

Re, Trevor, and Viper exchanged a worried look.

“Maybe they rushed into this,” Re said.

“Oh, come on,” Fallon huffed. “More power is always a good thing. And you heard them—they're the same men. I didn't notice any craziness popping up. It will be fine.”

“Yeah, you're right,” I said. “And I'll feel it if it's not fine. I just want to know what we did. It felt big. I want to know what they're capable of now.”

“So do they,” Viper said. “That's the point of training.”

“Yeah,” Trevor said. “We'll find out soon enough what kind of power they created.”

“Created,” I murmured. “The Lion God of Winter and Death, the King of Asgard, and the Angel of Death. They each have a different version of Death Magic.”

“Different aspects,” Re said. “Kirill's will be cold, tempered by Winter. Odin's will be controlling as he is the ruler of the dead in Valhalla. Perhaps even warlike, since his Death Magic is connected to his mastery over War. And Azrael's will be the purest form of Death.”

“Put them all together and what do you get?” Viper asked.

Silence fell and reigned for a few long minutes as we considered what this might mean. And then the happy shrieks of playing children intruded and lightened the mood.

With a long exhale, I let out the tension that had been building in my shoulders. “They'll work it out.”

“And then maybe we'll be strong enough to take on the trickster,” Viper said.

There went my good mood.