Mirielle giggled. “It tickles.”
“Oh, it tickles?” I wriggled my fingers into her armpit to tickle her. “Like this?”
As my daughter giggled, the glow seeped into her, brightening to a blinding level. I closed my eyes against the light, but only seconds later, it winked out. Eyes shooting open, I found Miri staring up at me with her sparkling purple eyes. Purple like the magic of Twilight. I had always assumed she'd gotten her father's eyes. But her father's eyes only matched hers because they had changed when he came to Fairy.
Severriel may have just suppressed Miri's Angel magic, but she wasn't just an Angel. I had a feeling that this was going to work against Heaven. Mirielle had been so focused on her Angel abilities that her Fey magic hadn't risen. It was possible she didn't have any Fey magic, but it was a slim possibility. Looking at her smiling face, I was certain Miri had other magic inside her—magic that had been waiting for a chance to show off. Miri winked at me as if she knew what I was thinking.
As I gaped at my daughter, her father hurried over to us.
“Miri? How do you feel?” Sever stroked her dark hair back.
“It stopped tickling.” Miri grinned at him. “Can we go home now, Daddy?”
“Yes, my darling.” Sever took her out of my arms and hugged her. “Yes, we can go home now.” He met my gaze over Miri's head. Instead of relieved, he looked even more worried.
Had he seen what I had? I couldn't ask him. Not in front of the Angels.
“All right, your business is done here.” I turned to motion at Gabriel. “Shoo!”
“Shoo?” Gabriel lifted his eyebrows.
“Go home, Gabe,” I said. “You don't belong here. You're scaring my fairies.” I motioned at the faces peering out of windows.
“Yes, Your Majesty. I apologize for that.” Gabriel bowed and then motioned at the other Angels, who also bowed to us. “Goodbye, my Queen.”
He didn't mean me, and my daughter knew it.
Miri grinned. “Goodbye, Uncle Gabriel.”
Gabriel vanished in a swirl of air magic.
I waited, watching the street until I was sure that they were gone. Then I looked at Sever.
“Yes, I saw it,” Sever said. “This isn't over.”
“No, but I don't think that's a bad thing. Also, I've got some unrelated news.”
“What happened?”
“Not here. Let's go home.”
“Yay!” Miri cried. “Home! I want Grandpa!”
“Yeah,” I muttered. “I want my daddy too.”
Chapter Thirty-Eight
After the Angels left, I had to do some PR work with the fairies who had witnessed everything from the safety of their homes. Once they were reassured that Heaven wasn't attacking us, Sever, Miri, and I went home to Twilight.
We found Killian, my father, Eibhleann, and Rowan out in the back garden by Eibhleann's tree. We often gathered there since it was lovely, and Eibhleann liked to be near the tree she was connected to as a Dryad. They were seated at the wood-slab table in front of the massive oak, the adults drinking from steaming mugs while Rowan made flower crowns for her Pixie friends.
Eibhleann saw us first, her leaf-green eyes going bright when they landed on Miri. Dryads tended to be nurturers, and Eibhleann was a healer on top of that, so she adored the children. A little stouter than her daughter Aideen, Eibhleann's tan skin covered some impressive muscles. With her dark green hair—a color nearly black—she made a beautiful complement to my father's bright coloring and pale skin. Eibhleann smiled and laid a long-fingered hand on my father's forearm.
Dad looked up, meeting my gaze with his purple, starry eyes—nearly identical to Miri's.
“My girls are home!” King Keir stood up, climbed over the bench, and came to hug Miri and me together. As he hugged me, he whispered, “Is everything all right?”
“Yes, and no. I need to talk to you, Kill, and Sever alone,” I whispered back.
