Ella “D-duke?” I stutter out, completely overwhelmed by the information, my eyes going wide. “There are dukes? And I had – I have an uncle!?” “I’m sorry,” Henry says, and I can see the guilt written all over his face. “I overlooked this – honestly, no one has heard from him in years – and,
“A longer plan,” I whisper, sitting back against my chair. “To – to reclaim the throne. To keep it…in his family’s line.” And my eyes drift back to Rafe now, cooing gently in his father’s arms. My baby, the grandson of a King. The nephew of a Duke that, perhaps, always wanted to be in charge
Ella “Um, excuse me,” Roger says, and Sinclair and I – mutually surprised – snap our attention to him. “Obviously,” he says, pointing a slow hand between the air between him and his brother, “the question of why the Sinclair blood was desired is the only one with the clear answer –“ “Oh my god,
“God,” I say, slumping back in my chair, shaking my head in wonder. “He really thought of everything, didn’t he?” Around the table my family nods in confirmation, but Henry holds out a hesitant hand. “It is important,” he says, moving his gaze to each of us in turn, “that we all realize that this
Ella Cora blinks rapidly in disbelief and my own mouth falls open. I see Roger go tense in his chair and feel Sinclair do the same beside me. “Wha – what?” Cora asks, aghast, leaning forward to stare more closely at Henry. “The problem that is HankJ;FJA Hank? What the hell kind of problem is H
But Henry, Sinclair, and Roger don’t nod along with me. Instead, they just quietly look away from Cora, not saying the words that echo in the back of my mind as well. That Cora…she might just not want to believe bad things about Hank because she got so close to him. That if he tricked all of us, t
Ella I find Cora, a little later, in the long room th0at we’ve turned into a hospital, working hard probably to distract herself. I grimace, a little, when I see that her bedside manner has certainly suffered in the wake of her frustration – she’s snapping at patients, glaring at them when they tak
Ella Cora wasn’t kidding when she said that there was a lot to do for the wounded men. Honestly, I underestimated her – or she’s a much faster and better worker for me, because I fall into bed at the end of each day totally wiped, asleep before Sinclair can even say goodnight to me. The boys are b
He shakes his head at me as tears fill his own eyes and he leans forward, pulling me against him while somehow miraculously managing not to crush our children between us as he holds me tight in his arms. “So, I guess it wouldn’t matter,” he murmurs against my hair as I sniff back my tears and nod.
“Even more than the kids!?” I gasp, my mouth falling open a bit. “I mean, the kids,” he says, shrugging as if they’re not much, which makes me laugh. But then he goes a little rigid as he realizes something, raising his eyes to glare at me a bit. “Wait, are you saying you like the kids more than m
Ella “Nope,” Sinclair says, heaving himself out of bed and grabbing his phone off the bedside table as he does. “I can’t live like this, Ella – I’m calling Roger, I’ve got to know –“ “Dominic!” I say, laughing and grabbing for him, trying to catch the edge of his pajamas and failing because I’v
She laughs and I look first at Sinclair, who shrugs, and then back at my sister. “Come on,” Roger says, nodding at the crowds of people waiting to congratulate us and at the small table of refreshments. “Let’s decide this over some champagne.” Sinclair nods at me and I sigh, moving with my famil
The last image, though, lingers. Ariel, with Rafe and Jesse on either side – as they always are – and her two mates behind her. All standing together on a battlefield with Ariel at the center, magic welling between her hands and passing to her brother, to her cousin. Their faces are serious as t
Cora The images of Ariel’s future come in quick flashes, and somehow I get the impression that the Goddess is eager to share these glimpses of her life. The ones that come first are what I sort of expected, especially after seeing some images of Rafe’s childhood and hearing about the ones that
“We are not,” Cora scoffs, gently taking Ariel into her arms as Sinclair and I laugh. Roger grins, leaning forward to kiss me on the cheek before passing Jesse to me. “You know I’m kidding, right, Ells?” he whispers. I smile at my brother-in-law and gently pat his cheek. “When in doubt, Roger,”
Ella Three weeks later – Ariel was born under a waning quarter moon, not a new moon like her brother and her cousin – I stand anxiously in the woods, my little girl held tight in my arms. “I’m sensing some anxiety,” Cora says, grinning at me with a little too much glee as she comes up to my sid
“Oh my god,” I say, the words spilling out of my mouth. “Oh my god,” I sit up straight, staring at Henry, my eyes flicking to his legs – because honestly, I don’t even notice his chair anymore, or think of him at all as someone whose abilities are hindered. Or of me as someone who is able to do an