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"Don’t knohat a hed Of course he didn’t "They’re things I couldn’t live without" Lanthe and Sabine had endured some lean early years and felt like they deserved to be spoiled Now that Lanthe had gone fro it--in hell--the greedy sorceress in her de "If your realher than the tallest ht be used to altitude and tees, but I would suffer Other Sorceri must suffer"
"Not at all The same forces and wards that conceal the Territories and bind the islands together provide breathable air and warmth"
"Forces and wards? Sounds like sorcery to me I’ll bet sometime in your history, a Vrekener was chummy with one of us"
"It’s possible," he conceded "We have ineers to run the machines, but we don’t knohat the source of the power is"
Interesting She pictured sorcery-fueled steaht have liked to see such a sight But in this lifetio to the Skye doesn’t mean we couldn’t date each other If you accoons"
"If I even consider it, then I’ll know you’re enchanting me," he said "Your sister would plot to et I’ve witnessed the manifestation of her powers"
When Sabine had forced Thronos’s father to see his worst nightmare Whatever she’d shown him had made the male claw at his eyes
"Your sister doesn’t seem to bear ill effects froly, they left her deadened, blasé about tragedy"
When Lanthe had accused her of not caring about anything, Sabine had replied, "That’s not true I care about nothing very much"
Lanthe added, "At least, she was blasé before Rydstro But she weaves illusions over her face, so you rarely knohat she’s feeling anyway"
"How many times has she died?"
"Over a dozen Not all by Vrekeners" When he raised his brows, she adainst her Hu a witch And so on" She paused a ? Will your brother not plot to rant that he hates Sorceri It’s the cause of much strife between us"
"So he’s like your father, then?"
"Yes But if Aristo harmed you, his brother’s sole fated fe aze "We hold mates sacred"
Thronos will never believe et Vertas warrior Rydstrom to trust her--just because she’d been a Pravus player who’d lied to hihed, "Hoas I supposed to know to act like ood?" I hear you, sister
"Would Uncle Aristo accept those future offspring of yours?" Lanthe asked "You made it clear that Sorceri blood would be a detriry when I said that I would not love a halfling any less"
"But others ht look down on them"
Thronos’s face turned cold and intent "I will not tolerate the slightest disrespect to our children"
Our children "Aren’t you worried about the insanity tainting ain, I was angry when I mentioned that"
"It was true My "
"I met her once"
"What? When?"
He told her of a brief encounter, when he’d seen Mother worshipping her gold She’d called hi you?"
He nodded "Your mother was harmless, Melanthe Yet rew ht in the abbey and saw a stranger I grieved his death, but gods I blalanced up sharply, as if he hadn’t meant to say thathis throat, he said, "I wanted to Never seeood time"
She could scarcely believe her mother had known that secret Why hadn’t Elisabet feared an attack? Lanthe would have to get Sabine’s take on that
"Do halfling Sorceri have powers?" Thronos asked
"Usually, but Vrekeners have stolen soreincarnated Children are born without souls"
His lips thinned, but the wheels were obviously turning "How old were you when you discovered your persuasion?"
"Really young I told Sabine to close her mouth She couldn’t open it for a week, not even to eat She was starving but no one could figure out what had happened to her You should know, these kinds of things happen with Sorceri kids"
Instead of appearing horrified by the prospect, he confidently said, "We can handle it"
It was then that she noticed how rown since the island She would bet steady was his default setting--unless he suspected that hisof other men
Didn’t mean she wouldn’t call him on his bullshit "Oh, co? If we had a teenage daughter and her skirt was short, I’d think it’d be even cuter if shorter Hoould you react to that? And if she hadn’t stolen gold by the tierating"
"Not at all We’d have you not knowing up from down" But this didn’t even bear discussion, because if she and Thronos ever did end up together and she got pregnant, the reality would prove far different: She’d happily go to tell hiood news, all fa la la He’d ask her if he was the father She’d behead hie
"While we’re on the subject, Vrekener, would you expect aze over her "Not behind closed doors" He must have realized how objectionable she found his words, because he added, "I’m sure you wouldn’t want to stand out as the least dressed feiven me a title to aspire to And besides, behind closed doors, I wouldn’t dress at all"
His brows shot up
She tapped her chin "Unless I was in the mood for leather or lace"
"Leather" He sed "Or lace"
Then she frowned "What’s this talk about having no roofs?"
Sees, he took aexcept sky above us"
"Yes, but can’t you hear couples having sex all the time?"
He rubbed the back of his neck, as if the skin there had just heated "We are quiet in matters like that"
She stopped in her tracks "What does that mean? Sometimes it can’t be controlled"