Chapter 18 Ezra
Ezra
I stuck around my home long enough to see Quinn and my lover settle in for training. Quinn had wanted to head straight to the Alun, but Xan convinced her to stay and show him what she already knew.
‘You didn’t tell her about your tether. Or who you are,’ I sent through our link as I left.
‘She just learned what a tether is. She needs time to process.’
He wasn’t wrong, and I wasn’t good at any of this.
‘Do what you need to.’
I trusted my lover, questioning him would only undermine that.
I would not do it again. He would have to tell her before she left our home.
Every one of my enforcers knew she was with the Architect.
I hadn’t tried to hide anything. Too many people had seen the Architect bring her in, and Everly’s adventure at the pit fight was already spreading.
Mystery breeds speculation. Speculation breeds unrest. With The Mile in our sight, this was not the time to alienate our own.
My officers had already gathered for our morning briefing. I joined them around the tall, round table, with the replica of our castle resting in the center. At my touch, the table’s underlighting came to life, adding purple to the haze in the windowless space.
As always, Abernathy, my information officer, began with updates. The rest of my five shifted uneasily. Rowan literally vibrated with his unhappiness, which made Lark, my logistics officer, look uneasily between the two of us. After a few minutes, I had to address the unspoken.
I held up my hand, and Abernathy stopped talking mid-word. “Report on our activities at The Pit.”
“Four of our own exited our walls…” Abernathy began.
While he spoke, I observed my five, taking special note of Rowan.
The youngest of my generals paled. At the mention of body snatchers, flickers of elemental power escaped him. The others edged away.
Abernathy finished up his thoughts. “The Westwaters have made no contact, but they do not use or endorse slavery. I do think it’s safe to assume we crossed no lines in retrieving one of our own, but that’s not my department.”
I only half listened; still studying Rowan.
My officer had tethered Quinn weeks ago. He claimed he hadn’t meant to, but then he ended his contract with Angela Moore. The fallout made him political poison, and our family could hardly afford to lose more allies.
“We should acknowledge the breach with the Westwaters and send a gift,” Valentino, my relations officer, said. He turned to Rowan. “I would appreciate your experience here on what would be suitable.”
Rowan focused, steadied, and spoke, listing off various appropriate gifts. I gave Valentino the barest nods to keep them moving forward. I handpicked each of my officers for a reason. Our family was a force to be reckoned with beyond my lover’s skills as a mentalist.
The two settled on a bottle of scotch. With that loose end tied, the briefing moved on, and inevitably, so did my focus.
“Quinn Question stumbled into our family,” I said evenly.
“If it weren’t for the Architect, her final breaths would’ve been taken under our coliseum.
Her ancestry’s unknown, and her magic’s incredible but unstable.
” I looked at each of my officers. “We want Quinn to stay in our family, but ultimately, the choice is hers.” My gaze settled on Rowan, and I chose my words very carefully.
“She has chosen to study under the Architect for the time being.”
Rowan’s jaw clenched.
“If anyone has questions, bring them to me.” I turned to my logistics officer.
“Lark, I need a detailed report on Hope’s office and our food situation.
I understand we are stretched, but new information has come to my attention, and I need to confirm that every trainee inside our walls has access to food. ”
Lark blinked in surprise but nodded.
I added Quinn’s description of the charcoal-gray-haired body snatcher to our list of wanted and ended our meeting.
My officers filed out, though Valentino lingered, seeing Rowan still standing at the table. I shook my head, and my relations officer let out a relieved breath before darting down the hall.
Unlike my other officers, Rowan didn’t have a title. His elemental power and level-headed, straightforward mind earned him a position in my five. However, nothing about his response to Quinn had been straightforward or level-headed.
“I need to see Quinn,” Rowan stated.
Bags hung under his eyes like he hadn’t slept, and his elemental magic winked in and out of existence.
“She’s in the care of the Architect.” I kept my voice even. “As you well know.”
Shame rolled across Rowan’s face before he clenched his jaw and straightened his shoulders. “Does she know her friend, Xan, is the Architect? A mentalist?”
I narrowed my eyes, waiting to see if the same judgment spilled out of Rowan’s lips as the rest of the world.
Rowan’s posture sagged. “I just need to see her.” He lowered his voice. “I was there. I didn’t realize she was too until it was too late.”
Red washed my vision. He’d been at the pit fight, without her. If not for the table, I’d have decked him. The tether should’ve screamed her location, her emotions. Even if he didn’t like her, which I doubted, he should’ve been there.
My shadow leaned, reaching for his throat.
Quinn was safe. She’d woken up in my bed. She now sat with my lover, exploring her magic.
“You chose your path,” I said. “Don’t look to me to fix it.”
Rowan snarled. “I’m not asking you to. She’s in the Architect’s apartments, your fucking home. Buried in the cliff. Impenetrable.” Rowan flexed and brought his arm up. “None of her friends have heard from or seen her. It looks bad. I’m asking her captor’s permission to see her.”
Rage surged. I held. “We’re not her captors. If you believed that, you wouldn’t be in my five.”
“Then let me see her,” Rowan demanded. “Prove it.”
I exhaled. He wasn’t wrong. Keeping her close looked bad. But he’d tell her. His posture screamed defiance. Xan just needed days.
“If she asks for you, I’ll set it up,” I said at last.
Rowan’s teeth ground, sparks snapping off him. With a thought, he could dust the table. He was fast; I might not reach a shadow before he punched me through the wall. The Alun had limited us. Here, nothing would.
Rowan clenched his fists. The magic around him snapped. Wind and heat whipped through the room with a crack.
“‘If she asks for me,’” Rowan ground out.
The air stilled. His posture dropped.
Relief or frustration, I couldn’t tell. The Alun fight had given resolution.
This didn’t.
Rowan took a calming breath and walked out of my war room.
My control slipped, leaving me in a void of frustration.
My day of reports and training drills dragged. The sun set in pinks and purples—not that I saw it from my windowless war room.
Rowan was actively pursuing Quinn. While I did… what?
‘We’re done for the day.’ My lover’s voice in my head made me jump. ‘This will be a slow process. Her magical blocks run deep. I plan on teaching her about the families tonight. Will you bring maps from the war room?’
I sent my lover a mental nod.
‘Do you want to eat with us?’ my lover asked.
‘No.’ I didn’t want to eat. My body burned, and I needed to move it until I had control over myself. ‘I’ll have maps ready when you’re finished.’
My lover didn’t respond, and I didn’t question it. I went to the gym, pushing and pulling heavy weights until my muscles screamed and my nerves calmed. By the time I re-entered my home, the sounds of eating and talking came from the kitchen. Quinn’s adorable laugh drifted through the door.
I’d never felt so much joy radiating from my home, and I basked in it.
The maps didn’t fit on a table, so I shifted them around the bed until they worked. My stomach growled, and I shoved a protein square into my mouth.
The door opened, and the two spilled out.
Although my lover wore his simple trainee uniform, Quinn hadn’t changed out of the clothing we left her with this morning.
A pair of light boxers barely peeked out from under one of my tunics, hanging off a single creamy shoulder.
Her hair was up in a messy bun, and a pair of Xan’s hoop earrings dangled from her ears.
She looked more relaxed than I’d ever seen her.
Bare legs. Sleepy eyes. Wrapped in pieces of both of us.
Our clothing. Our girl.
Xan looked at the maps and beamed at me. He stepped away from Quinn to kiss me on the cheek. “Perfect.”
I gripped him around the waist, bringing our hips together, and met his baby-blue gaze. Hope, joy, and fear looked back at me.
Fear.
My heart sank.
Whatever was going on between us, he needed my support. The world feared mentalists. They feared him. Outside of me, he had no real connections.
But Quinn wasn’t afraid. She made him laugh. The two of them got to know each other and loved every moment of it. She literally lit up our home. My lover moved around her in our space with confidence and ease. He wanted her in our lives, even if we hadn’t figured out how yet.
I regretted pulling away. But regrets were for people with no future. I leaned forward and locked Xan’s lips with mine for a sweet, chaste kiss.
Quinn bit her lower lip, and her gaze heated. I’d left my shirt off after my workout, just for her. My body was still pumped, muscles swollen and taut. Xan ran a hand down my chest before pulling away and smiling at Quinn.
She blushed and clicked her bare heels together adorably.
My lover settled facing the maps on the far side of me, and I sank with him, leaving a Quinn-sized space between us.
Xan cocked his head to the side, clearly surprised.
I flexed my back, rippling my chest muscles. ‘Do you want me to leave?’
My lover’s gaze flicked down, as did Quinn’s.
‘No. I’m just surprised. You didn’t join us for dinner… so I assumed…’
“Um,” Quinn said, watching us speak in each other’s minds.
I looked away from my lover and held out a hand to Quinn. “Between us.”