“We go spectral in our hound forms,” Gage said.
Spectral. Holy shit, that was the word Silas had used.
“That makes us the same substance as a soul,” Garret went on. “So, then, we can grab the soul and take it back to the Underworld.”
“Grab it?”
“In our teeth.” Gideon snapped his teeth at me.
“Would anyone care for dessert or coffee?” our server interrupted.
I ordered a slice of cream cake, and Gage chose the tiramisu, as promised. Garret got gelato and Gideon went with a torte. We all got coffee.
Then we got back to our conversation.
“Can you invade people in that form?” I asked.
“Invade them?” Gage asked. “You mean, possession?”
“Yes.”
“No, we don't do that,” Gideon said. “If we enter a human in spectral form, it's to retrieve a soul that has possessed them. We bite it and remove it. That takes only seconds.”
“I see,” I murmured.
“We keep the order you're so fond of.”
“Yes, you do. But are you fond of it?”
“What?”
“Do you enjoy your job?”
Gideon blinked, then he looked at the other two.
“It's not a tough question,” I said. “Do you enjoy what you do?”
“Not really,” Gage said. “It used to be fun. Tracking down escaped souls. Taking them back. Clearing life residue before it becomes a haunting. It was all interesting and exciting in the beginning.”
“But it's taken a toll,” Garret picked up where Gage left off. “It happens to all of us. This . . . ennui. It's why Hades gave us mates. Without a mate, we'll eventually—”
“Maybe don't get into that yet,” Gideon cut him off. “It's a lot to put on her.”
Garret grimaced. “You're right.”
“I can handle it,” I said.
“No, not yet,” Gage said. “Let's keep things simple for now.”
“All right.” I didn't want to push them and raise their suspicions, so I started talking about myself again. I told them about growing up—first, in the orphanage, and then in foster homes—and how I always wanted a family. I told them about working hard in school so I could get a scholarship, then meeting Jake in college. I told them a lot about myself, hoping they would tell me things in return. But by the time I finished my stories, I had also finished dessert. And so had they. It was time to go home.
I wasn't sure if I was relieved to return to the safety of their warded home or afraid. It could be the safest place on Earth for me. Or, I could be trapped in a gilded cage.
Chapter Twenty
“Let's make a fire down by the lake,” Garret suggested as we walked into the house. “We could roast marshmallows like kids.”
“We've already had dessert,” I said.
