Neither he nor Sariah looked particularly happy about that realization.
“The drone is Jin.Jin is the drone,” Raider announced in a bored voice.“The sooner you get that through your head; the better off we’ll all be.”
Sariah’s features betrayed her unwillingness to accept that.“Those rules cannot be applied to him since his current body has not undergone the rigors of theadva ka.”
“But his soul has,” Kira pointed out.
And the soul was what counted.
Sariah’s nostrils flared with frustration as she tried to intimidate Kira into backing down with that intangible sense of power some Tuann had.
Too bad for her that Kira was immune, having spent her formative years around creatures that made Sariah look like one of Earth’s fluffy bunnies.
Done with the conversation, Kira jerked her chin at Jin.“You ready?”
He put the last of a series of metal figurines he’d been collecting from the room into a backpack.
“Just about.”
Kira narrowed her eyes at the mouth of his bag, thinking that what he’d just put inside looked suspiciously like one of the mini-mes Jin had a habit of creating.
It couldn’t be, though.She had to be imagining things.
Yes, that had to be it.There was no way her best friend had just used the last few minutes to collect banned technology while in full view of the two people on this planet most likely to throw his ass in jail.Emperor’s son—or not.
Noticing her gaze, Jin stopped.“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
Oh, God.He’d definitely done exactly that.
Jin eyed her suspiciously.“It doesn’t look like nothing.”
“We’ll talk later.”
When she could rip him a new one.
Jin adjusted the straps of the bag.“Ready when you are.”
The clink of a teacup being set on the table cut off Kira’s response.
Jin’s maybe mother—whose name Kira still didn’t know—patted her mouth before giving Kira her full attention.“Do you consider this wise?”
There was no judgment in her tone.It was simply a question.As if she was truly curious.
Selene used the same tactic when dealing with the children she fostered.The utterly reasonable tone and query designed to help them—and Kira—arrive at the appropriate conclusion.
Too bad Kira was wise to her game.And just stubborn enough to hold her ground.
“You are the heir of House Roake.Tell me—what do you think would happen if harm was to come to him while in your care?”
Even knowing she was being manipulated, it was hard not to fall into the trap.
Kira could only imagine what the emperor would do.Adult or not, your child was always your child.Torvald would rain down hell on whoever he felt responsible if Jin was injured.Since Kira was now the heir, that meant her House would get caught in the crossfire.
The woman capitalized on the tiny chink she’d made in Kira’s armor.“The boy may have been able to defend himself in that other form, but can you say the same for his current one?”
Truthfully?No.
