Mother throws her hands up and shakes her head. I’ve seen her do this move only two other times. First, when I decided that escaping the palace by sliding down the long, slick trunk of a furulla tree and propelling myself off the cliff that jutted over the foaming shore was an excellent idea. (Honestly, everything grew back … eventually.) And second, when I told her I intended to attend the Fleet Academy instead of staying at home and starting a family to keep our lineage strong.
“Your mate.” She sighs. “Do you have any idea how many Calarian females have lined up just to try and get an audience with you upon your return to Latrides?”
I shrug.
“You could’ve had your pick of anyone. Anyone. And yet.And yetyou choose to defy my wishes, defy your position as crown prince, and join a warrior circle with utter reprobates. And on top of that, you sealed the circle without alerting the council.” She finally meets my eyes again, and a stab of regret slices through me at the hurt in her voice. “And you didn’t even tellmeyou suspected you’d found your Omega.”
“Mother.” I ease from my chair and drop to my knee in front of her, taking her hand in mine. It’s frailer than I remember, the back lined with golden veins that show through too-thin skin. Her mouth is drawn in a stern line, but I’m beginning to realize she isn’t just upset about what I’ve done. There’s more. And from the way she looks, the ‘more’ is all bad. “Lana and the circle aren’t anything I planned. It just happened. I should’ve come to you, but I’m telling you honestly, nothing was going to stop this circle.Nothing. She’s in my hearts, and I share that feeling with Ceredes and Jeren. Nothing has ever felt more right to me, and I know this bond is real. Sheisour Omega. The Pillars have ordained it.”
“Oh, Kyte, my willful child.” She clasps my hand in hers and looks down at me with immeasurably sad eyes. “You are the most precious thing to me. And not for lineage or because I wish for you to wear my crown.” She sighs. “Though Ido. But now that you’re in a sealed circle, you’re in more danger than ever before.” She runs her free hand through her long, white hair. “I knew war was coming, but the circle only solidifies the fact. The council will likely react in knee-jerk fashion unless I can convince them the circle is here to help us, not the harbinger of destruction.”
“Maybe I didn’t mention the circle to you, but you didn’t mentionwarto me?”
“I’m a fleet regent, not just your mother. There are plenty of things I can’t discuss.”
“Can’t or won’t?” I cock my head in the same haughty manner as hers.
“Both.” The corner of her mouth twitches. I could always make her smile.
“So, the fleet needs help? The Sentients are stronger than anyone is letting on. That’s it, isn’t it?” I return her steady grip. “What’s really happening out there in the galaxies and the Rift?”
“I didn’t want to tell you, didn’t want to alarm you or anyone else needlessly, but the circle can’t be denied. I felt it even though I was far off-world in a fleet cruiser. It was like a pulse throughout the galaxies. We sensed it, and so did the Sentients.” Her face turns stony. “They know about her. Perhaps they know even more than we do.”
I stand and lean against Harlan’s desk. “What do you know about Lana? You must have had some idea she was important. Why else would Bartanz try to claim her out from under us, to stop the circle before it began?”
“We knew who she was. That’s why we sent for her. To keep her out of Sentient hands. But Bartanz?” She folds her hands in her lap. “Please explain what he’s had to do with you sealing this unauthorized circle.”
“He came to the ball, told Lana she was to be his mate, and that he only had her at the academy to acclimate to the fleet. He intended to take her away. That’s why we were trying to seal the circle, to prevent it, but then Warverian showed up.”
Her expression doesn’t change, but I feel the shift in her, the suspicion. “Bartanz did all that?”
I peer more closely at her. “Without council approval, I’m guessing?”
She doesn’t answer, but I can read her.
I want to rub my palms together. It looks like I’m not the only one in trouble with my mother. Good. Bartanz can take the heat. The bastard deserves it after traumatizing Lana the way he did. I send my thoughts out to her and feel a pleasant chill run down my spine when I realize where Jeren has taken her. They’re floating together in the light of three moons, calm and serene. But her power is wild, still whipping inside her like a mist tempest. The sheer amount of it is staggering, and even though I can feel that same power rippling inside me, it’s nothing compared to what Lana possesses. She is the hub of the circle, the place where her three Alphas meet. And as Omega, she possesses the power of all three of us combined.
“You didn’t answer my question about Lana.” I tap my finger on Bartanz’s metal desk. “What do you know about her?”
My mother stands and smooths her white hair around her golden horns. “A few things, but first I need to speak to the council about Bartanz.” Turning, she strides away.
“Don’t leave me hanging.” I cross my arms.
“Later.” She waves me away and hurries out into the hall, a formidable presence even next to Master Harlan and High Commander Bartanz. They head toward the meeting room at the head of the faculty quarters. No one said I was free to go, but no one said I had to stay, either. I creep into the hall and find Ceredes already there.
“Viciously interrogated?” I ask.
He smirks. “Just yelled at by Master Harlan for the most part. Bartanz seems to have dropped all his ridiculous Sentient accusations thanks to Master Daviti showing up. He told them how he saw Warverian take Lana, how someone had disabled the barrier, and explained his efforts to save her.” His hands fist. “He burned her. It was his blast that set the Sentient ship ablaze.”
“It was an accident.” I can almost see Daviti in my mind, though I know it’s Ceredes’s memory, not mine. The old master was contrite, almost to the point of tears, as he explained his rescue efforts. “I never meant to hurt her,” he’d said. “This is just like the war. Casualties and blood. Just like when I lost my Lirian.” His anguish was real.
“I know he was trying to save her.” Ceredes rolls his shoulders. “But I still don’t like how badly she was hurt.”
“Me neither.” I glance down the hall toward the meeting. Guards are stationed outside, but they pay us no mind. I suppose the council has dismissed us for the time being. But they’ll get back to us, I have no doubt of that. This circle has shaken the fleet, and the fallout is going to be dangerous and widespread. But right now, I don’t care. Right now, I feel a primal pull to my mate.
“There’s an entire battalion stationed on school grounds.” Ceredes grinds his teeth. “They’re making sure the Sentients are gone for good.”
“They’ll be back. Not tonight, but soon.” I can feel that as certainly as I can feel Lana’s amorous feelings toward Jeren at the moment. Jealousy tries to flare in my breast, but it doesn’t. There’s fire, but only one that drives me to seal the circle fully with Lana, Jeren, and Ceredes.
