Total pages in book: 148
Estimated words: 139178 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 696(@200wpm)___ 557(@250wpm)___ 464(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 139178 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 696(@200wpm)___ 557(@250wpm)___ 464(@300wpm)
“Put Jason out of his misery before he has a stroke,” Dmitri drawled from the sofa, where he sat with one arm braced along the back, Honor beside him.
The spymaster’s expression didn’t alter as he said, “You know.” That only seemed to ratchet up his annoyance. From the way Dmitri glanced over at him with the hint of a grin tugging at the corners of his lips, the two were now engaged in a furious mental discussion.
Izzy—perched on the arm of a sofa—and Sam, who’d taken a chair, shared a thoughtful glance, no doubt also bouncing ideas off one another. Quite aside from being comrades in arms, the two had become fast friends the instant Sameon grew old enough to interact with Izzy on an adult level.
Ashwini, meanwhile, glanced at Montgomery and Sivya, noted their preoccupation with the monstera…and became supremely interested in a hanging plant herself.
I think Ash knows, Elena said into his mind after a sip of her grape juice.
Where do you think that foul-smelling abomination of an ice cream came from, hbeebti? He fought a shudder. I only looked in the freezer in the kitchen out of desperation while the house system ran a search for stock in the city. And there it was, right in the front.
Montgomery never mentioned that!
Montgomery is discreet, as, it appears, is Ash, since Janvier clearly doesn’t know. Still, I think we will have a riot if we do not speak soon.
Elena tapped her fingernail on her wineglass. “Right,” she said in a solemn tone, “let’s get to it. We’re here tonight to talk about a big change in personnel at the Tower.”
“Has Trace accepted an official transfer into the Seven?” This from Izzy.
“No, he’d never accept.” Jason’s voice held absolute conviction, the ebony of his wings motionless as he focused all his attention on the discussion. “Same with Misha.”
Naasir’s firstborn was an integral part of the Tower—and a man everyone in this room had known as a child. As they’d known Nasien and Izar. The triplets had given each of them at least five gray hairs—and left an indelible mark on their memories. Such a bright, wild energy the boys had had.
“Oui.” Janvier nodded. “The Seven will always be the original seven members. This we all know.”
Dmitri stretched out his legs as he settled deeper into the sofa, with Honor leaning into him. She’d already told Elena she was going to keep her lips “zipped” until they announced the news, for fear that she’d let it slip.
Raphael picked up the conversation. “The person—who is slated to join our innermost circle—is not anyone you know.” Before Jason’s head could explode at the apparent catastrophic breach of the meticulous security protocols he’d laid down, Raphael grinned. “Our new team member also won’t be able to carry out any duties for…well, at least the next seventy or so years.”
Mahiya reacted first.
Hands flying to her mouth, she let out an eep sound.
25
It will be all right, Misha. I promise.
—Dmitri to his Firstborn (So very, very long ago, before Raphael’s Ascension and after Dmitri’s Ruin)
The next few minutes were a bedlam of hugs, dropped jaws, and congratulations.
The first thing a beaming Elena said after everyone had calmed down, was, “This stays in this room. Our next stop is the Refuge. We’ll make sure Venom and Holly are in on that celebration, then we’ll drop by to see Illium and Aodhan, and Vivek.”
“What about Misha?” Janvier hooked one arm around his bent knee. “Kid’ll be pissed if he feels left out. I mean, I know he’s technically an adult these days, has grown out of clawing sofa legs, but he might regress.”
Once, Raphael would’ve glanced at Dmitri to see his reaction to that precious name, but that had been hundreds of years ago, soon after Misha, Izar, and Nasien had been born.
Dmitri was the one who’d named Misha.
“I was ready,” he’d told Raphael, his voice rough with memories of a little boy who’d adored his father so much that he’d tried to stow away in Dmitri’s market cart so he could spend the whole day with him. “And Naasir, he’s a huge fucking piece of my heart. It felt right that one of his boys carry my boy’s name.”
Today, Raphael said, “Misha’ll understand that we had to tell Naasir first—he is, after all, the head of their little pack.”
Elena’s favorite tiger creature had turned into one hell of a father.
“Our baby will grow up in New York,” Elena said to a question from Jason, who now wore the mien of a spymaster already shuffling pieces on the board to best protect the child of his archangel. “We’re taking Keir and Nisia’s advice to stay in the Refuge for the first year—me and the baby full-time, with Raphael flying in and out—but after that, we’re coming home.”
“Galen was raised in Titus’s court.” Dmitri glanced at Jason. “Not the child of an archangel, but an angelic infant all the same. I’ll talk to Titus’s people, see how they ensured his safety while allowing him to grow into the barbarian he is.”