Devyl froze. “Where’s Mara?”
“He took her and Valynda.”
Cameron gasped. “Why?”
Thorn cursed as he met Devyl’s gaze. “Because she’s a Deruvian and she’s pregnant. And Valynda because of me.”
Cameron didn’t understand. “You?”
He nodded. “I shouldn’t have gotten any of you into this.”
Thorn started away.
“Hey!” Savitar shouted. “Where are you going?”
He appeared aghast by that question. “To deal with this.”
“You can’t fight him alone, Leucious. Are you insane?”
Thorn glanced around at them. “I can’t endanger you. I’ve already asked too much.”
Devyl gaped. “That’s my wife and child. You don’t think for one minute that I’m going to stand by and let you fight without me?”
Kalder stood and took Cameron’s hand. “We’re family. All together. United.”
“Dysfunctional,” Zumari added. “But never boring.”
Sancha kissed his cheek and draped her arm around his shoulders. “Aye to that. Deadmen forever.”
Devyl nodded. “Launch our colors, Mr. Death. We have another adventure before us. And we won’t be stopped.”
***
Mara blasted at the doors with her powers.
Valynda ducked as the lightning-like blast ricocheted off and narrowly missed her straw head. Her luck, the blast would have caught her on fire. “Beg pardon, mum? Could we hold our tempers a bit?”
“I’d rather hold my sister’s head in a forge.”
At the moment, so would she. But irrational tempers wouldn’t get them far. “I’m sure the captain and the others will be coming for us.”
Mara nodded. “That’s what worries me.”
Valynda paused as she noted the way Mara’s hand lingered over her stomach. It was a unique way women touched themselves whenever they…
She cursed silently. “By chance, are you expecting?”
The high blush on her face answered even before she nodded bashfully.
Well, that explained why their enemies had been so eager to lay hands to the captain’s wife. Valynda could only imagine how much power was flowing through the body of a pregnant Deruvian. Given Mara’s powers when she didn’t have the additional life inside her, it stood to reason that she’d be even more potent now.
But for them to take her…
You know why.
Her stomach cramped in fear and she prayed she was wrong. But a few moments later when Gadreyal appeared, the expression on the Irin’s face said that Valynda had been right in her initial assumption.
“The Malachai wants a word with you.”
