“You’re the last person I’d trust with an explanation,” Sly growled at Oren.
“Dad, he’s my Faction. You’re going to have to accept him sooner or later.” Reverie frowned at him in disapproval. I felt bad for Oren. I knew Sly had been through some things.
I’d seen firsthand what war could do, but Oren wasn’t his father and deserved the benefit of the doubt.
Sly grunted but didn’t confirm or deny what she’d said. I knew it would take time for him to accept Oren. As much as he seemed to love his daughter, I was confident he’d make theeffort. Between Oren’s support and Reverie’s comforting weight in my lap, I felt the stress I’d been carrying melting away. Being part of a Faction felt similar to the camaraderie and support I found in the military. Of course, none of my buddies sat on my lap to comfort me. They would have toted an ass whipping if they had tried.
I cracked a smile at the memories of the crazy shit we’d done. Now that I think about it, Josh may have tried to sit on my lap one night after we paid a visit to Bourbon Street. That nutty fucker was always trying to push my buttons.
“Just understand that I am loyal to Reverie and my soon-to-be Faction brothers. I have a large family who are unaware of this situation, but I’d like you to meet them. I also owe them some answers, and perhaps all of you would be willing to help with that.”
Maybe meeting my family would help them understand why I’d had trouble transferring my loyalty for so long. Sly stared into my eyes and then nodded his head in the affirmative.
“I was taken by surprise when you mentioned the human military. I can understand your loyalty to your people. It shows character that you want to come clean to us now.”
“You felt no loyalty to Aurathia untilrecently?” Jesse smirked.
I knew he was joking with me, but I took his question seriously.
“Why should I be loyal to something I knew little about? I have friends and family who I feared could be harmed or killed by Aurathions. Why wouldn’t I try to prevent that if I had the chance?” I kissed Reverie on the head. “I’ll admit the pull to your daughter had a part in my decision to speak up, but there were many deciding factors.”
“I’m sure there were.” Adelaide stood and began clearing the table. I gently removed Reverie from my lap and jumped up tohelp, along with the rest of the guys. Adelaide grabbed me and pulled me to the side after I set the dishes I’d gathered into the sink.
“I think you’ll be a wonderful addition to Reverie’s Faction. A man of your experience can help guide and teach the rest. The stronger my baby’s Faction is, the better I’ll feel. After hearing of the attack in Oklahoma and the damage that was done, I fear that things are going to escalate quickly.” Her gaze became distant, “You must learn from our mistakes and remain together no matter what. You’re stronger that way.”
Adelaide patted my arm and then headed to the sink. Her words had instilled fear in my heart. It seemed like she’d had a premonition, but I wasn’t sure if that was an ability she possessed. Either way, I would stick to Reverie’s side like glue.
The thought of this Selene woman getting her hands on my Nexus was more than I could bear.
I felt a cold splat on my face, and everything went black. After my conversation with Adelaide, it startled me for a moment before I realized what had hit me. Pulling the wet rag from my face, I saw Nathan grinning.
“Heads up, Jolly, you wash, and I’ll dry.”
I threw the rag as hard as I could at his head, but he disappeared before it landed and reappeared behind me.
“You’ve got to be quicker than that.” He laughed and teleported back to the sink. I loved Reverie for herself, but I couldn’t wait until I had an ability to torture him with. Maybe I would gain the ability to mute the bastard. One could only hope.
“I have a dishwasher.” Adelaide hid a smile behind her hand.
“We’ll take care of it. Go sit down and relax. You deserve it after that fantastic meal you just made.” Zeke came in carrying more plates and glasses.
“Fine. Y’all talked me into it. I’m going to grab Reverie so we can gossip about all of you handsome men.” Adelaide grinned and left the kitchen.
“So, what do you think our next move should be?” I looked at Oren.
“I think we go through with our plan of getting Reverie into the Faction housing, and we don’t let her out of our sight. She’s a badass, but not against the number of powerful Aurathions she’d be up against if they succeeded in taking her.” He looked enraged at the very thought of it. Zane strolled in.
“What did I miss?”
“Besides the dishes?” Nathan raised a brow, handing me a plate to dry.
“My brother has a talent for avoiding housework. Just wait until we visit my parents, and you'll see him work his mojo.” Zeke narrowed his eyes at his twin while he wiped down the stove.
“We were discussing Reverie and if there was anything else we needed to do to keep her safe.” Oren used his ability to levitate the trash bag from the can and replace it with a new one.
I watched in wonderment, still just as amazed as on my first day at Emberhold.
“We stick to her cute ass like glue,” Zane said, opening the refrigerator to examine the contents.
