We reached her Corolla, and the five of us stared at it.
Cassian raised an eyebrow. “I still can’t believe this is the car we are trusting with our lives.”
Nadia glared at him. “Be nice. She’s sensitive.”
Ezra opened the back door. “Everyone squeeze in. Please do not kill me if I sit on someone’s lap.”
Lena climbed in. Cassian took the seat beside her. Ezra paused, assessed the situation, then climbed over Cassian to wedge himself between them like this was a tactical decision.
It was tight. Very tight.
Nadia and I slid into the front. She turned the key. The engine sputtered. Sputtered. Stalled.
Ezra winced. Cassian groaned. Lena started laughing.
Nadia muttered, “Not now. Please not now. Come on, old girl.” She tried again. The engine sputtered again. Then choked.
Silence.
Ezra tapped the back of her headrest. “Have you considered pleading with it?”
Nadia ran her hands lovingly over the steering wheel. “Please. Please start. I’m begging.”
She twisted the key again, and the engine coughed violently. Then it roared to life.
Everyone cheered at the same time. It was loud and chaotic, but it was brilliant.
Nadia aimed the little car toward home.
I held her hand on the center console as she drove. “Ezra, tell me what you did. What actually happened?”
Ezra blew out a long breath. “Okay. So. I sat there and kind of closed my eyes and pressed enter. That was the last part.”
Nadia choked on a laugh. “Ezra.”
“I know,” he said. “I know. But based on the readings, I think I threaded your original bond with Nadia through the Sovereign Court power-share frequency. And then I redirected the power drain into a closed loop.”
I frowned. “Explain that.”
“It means the power-share has only two recipients now. Cristian and Cassian.”
Cassian perked up. “So, we are the new Sovereign Court, brother?”
I groaned. “At least I’m alive.”
Nadia elbowed me lightly.
I sighed. “Ezra. What you did was… bad bitch.”
Absolute silence met my words.
Nadia glanced at me. “Honey, I think you mean badass.”
I nodded once. “That too.”
Nadia squeezed my hand. “What about our bond? Where does that stand?”
Ezra leaned forward between the seats. “I’m not sure. I know it shouldn’t drain you anymore, Nadia. I think that part is gone. The connection will still be there. You might feel it sometimes. Or you might not. It depends on how the frequencies settle. But it should not be so strong that you cannot be apart. Or that it pulls on your energies.”
