Page 83 of Dark Reckoning
“Yeah, that was it.”
We ended the call and it was one of the weirdest conversations I'd ever had. Salino had been an integral part of everything that had gone down. From being the cause to being the solution and yet, he remembered none of it. Only that he was now the sole Emperor. Lucky bastard. He didn't even have to shoulder any blame or guilt, not to say that he even had any. According to him, he'd still do everything all over again, even knowing the consequences. Not only did he feel the rewards outweighed any problems, but that he also had faith in Adrian and me that we could fix it. Shit, I didn't know whether to be flattered or pissed off. I decided to be both.
I'd called Damon next, just to check in on him. He answered with a bit of attitude. “Yes, Sage, you're interrupting me.”
“Well, good day to you too, Damon. I'm just checking to make sure your barrier was working properly?” I asked, but I needed to know what he remembered.
“It is, but I'm missing four of my griezels. You wouldn't have anything to do with that, would you?” he asked.
So, two more of his had died before he could put them in lockdown. Too bad.
“Not at all. But I hope you can locate them. I promise you, I didn't do anything to your flock,” I said. “The barrier was my peace offering.”
“Or a way to cover your tracks?” Damon speculated.
“Listen very carefully, Damon. I didn't do anything to your fucking griezels. I know we had an issue in the past, but that was it. I just wanted to let you know that the paperwork for Fantasy is coming to you today. Don't make problems now where there aren’t any,” I warned.
“Your pride—”
“Is off fucking limits, Damon. And you should know that an attack on me is also an attack on Salino. And he is the sole emperor of all vampires. Also, Adrian and I are members of the Echelon Imperial. So, think wisely about throwing around false accusations or making any threats.” I made sure that my tone was as menacing as it needed to be to get my point across.
There was silence for a few seconds, then he spoke. “I trust you, then. But I will get to the bottom of my missing griezels.”
“I hope that you do,” I said. “Goodbye, Damon.”
I ended the call and sighed. That was one annoying ass supernal. Of course, I had to admit, he was pretty helpful during all of this. I still didn't like him, though.
“Is everything okay?” Adrian asked me.
He'd entered the room just as I ended the call. I rose and walked over to him, taking him into my arms. “Yeah, everything is fine.”
“Damon isn't trying to start anything with you, is he?”
“He knows that would be the end of him,” I said, because it would be.
Adrian nodded and kissed me. “Okay, good. Now, for our wedding, I wanted to go over this menu.”
We talked about our wedding for the next two hours and then I put our plans into motion, getting everything arranged. Later, we did attend the memorial for Xirsi and Kyla and it was actually quite a beautiful send off. Just us, as only we knew that they were dead. Their loved ones knew nothing. Which was unfortunate. I did ask Kakashi if there was anything the Council members needed to do before they could have a wedding.
He smirked. “You're getting married?” Then he nodded. “That is good.”
“Why is it good?” I asked. I mean, I knew why I wanted to get married, but his ass always had something sly on the side where knowledge was concerned.
“There is magic in that kind of bond between mages. Vows given, it will strengthen the power you share.”
“And make the Council even stronger?”
He nodded. “It is something Aldéric and I will do one day.”
“I didn't know you were the marrying type,” I said.
“For him, yes. Congratulations on your own,” he said.
“Do we need to do anything, like get some blessing or anointment?” I asked.
He chuckled and shook his head. “No.”
Okay, that was good to know. “Thanks, for everything. Adrian and I are alive because of you.”
