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“I don’t think that’s true.”

Blair made a sound of disbelief. “It took me centuries to feel strong enough to disobey her.”

“I’ve only known your mother for a brief time, but she doesn’t seem like the type of person it would be easy to deceive."

“She isn’t.”

They were quiet for a time as the steady rain tapered off into a drizzle. Fog settled thicker over the water, enveloping them in an icy mist. Iris pressed closer to Blair, grateful for his warmth. Maybe it was irrational to feel this safe around him considering what he was capable of, but to her, it was the most natural thing in the world. Blair was so much more than his condition. He was kind and brave and good, and she hoped that someday he would be able to see it, too.

As they stood in silence, Iris thought about Blair’s family. She found herself pondering the luxury and weight that must come from having unlimited time. “It was really nice to meet your sister,” she said, peering up at him. “And Gérard and the boys. You were so sweet with them.”

He smiled. “They’re great kids.”

“Did your sisters have any other children?” When he shook his head, Iris added, “Will Tommy and Ennis be immortal like the three of you?”

Blair sighed. “Time will tell.”

She considered that for a minute. “You said that your sisters don’t have your condition. Why are they still immortal?”

Blair looked thoughtful. “It seems that the children of someone born with the full strain of the condition are immortal by default. But that wasn’t something my parents were sure of until we all came of age. They were worried about me, particularly, realizing that if I continued to grow older, my body wouldn’t be able to handle the transformation someday. But I stopped aging somewhere in my mid-twenties.”

“Thank goodness.”

He angled his face to look at her. “You think so?”

“Of course,” Iris said at once.

Blair flexed his fingers against her side, staring out at the waves. “I’m not so sure. If I had lived out a normal lifespan, I wouldn’t be around to cause trouble anymore.”

“Don’t say that!”

“It’s just the truth. But I never would have been so fortunate. I would have either died during a transformation around middle age or my mother would have tried to make me immortal. Like she did with my father.” He carved his boot into the sand, curving it in a wide circle that resembled the moon.

“Is that…difficult? To make someone immortal, I mean?” Iris clarified.

“Very. It’s an involved process, one my parents haven’t fully disclosed to me. It has only around a fifty percent chance of working, too. When it fails, it results in immediate death.”

From the way Blair tensed beside her, Iris had a feeling he was recalling the occasions in which his family had failed in their attempts to grant someone everlasting life.

“And it’s only someone born immortal due to this condition who can attempt to extend their immortality to another.” He paused. “Other than those who use witchcraft, I suppose. I have no idea how Gabriel and Clement managed it.”

Iris’ breath hitched. “I can’t believe your mother would have risked doing that to you if you hadn’t stopped aging. You could have died.”

“She wouldn’t have had another choice if the transformations were already killing me. She waited for as long as she could to change my father, until he was nearing old age and his health was failing. They got very lucky.”

“Has anyone else…?”

He nodded. “My sister, Venetia, tried it on all of her past husbands. Four in all. Each of them died.”

Iris clasped a hand over her mouth. Blair’s eyes were still focused on the fluctuating waves, while the sea’s frothy underbelly lapped the tips of their toes, soaking through Iris’ boots.

“I never thought she would try it again, but she did, just recently,” Blair continued. “This time, she was successful. Her husband, Steven, is sixty-five. He was only twenty when they first met. He always hates how people look at him, like he’s some creep with such a young woman. Now he’ll have to live with that for the rest of his life. But I know he’d take that over being separated from her.”

Iris thought about the portraits of Espirit’s many past husbands. “Did Espirit ever try…?”

He shook his head. “She never wanted to take the risk.”

Iris bit her lip, hesitating, but the question burst from her before she could help it. “Would you ever attempt it?”