Page 39 of Hexbound
Madrigal sucked in a breath. "All three of the Relics Infernal are missing? Why the hell wasn't I informed?"
"Drake commanded that the recovery be kept quiet. Only those who needed to know were aware of any of this."
"So he turned to you," she said, and he wasn't certain if she were pleased or not. "What are your orders, Hades?"
"Protect the Prime," he said swiftly. "Protect the Order."
"One would say you have the order of that mixed up." Her voice dropped to a silky whisper. "You serve the Sicarii, who serve the Order. The Prime is a highly important playing piece, but not more important than the Order."
His voice roughened. "Understood."
"What efforts have been made to recover the relics? Even with the Blade destroyed, who knows what they could be used for? We could find ourselves battling a demon, even without the Blade. And what of Morgana?"
So he told her, leaving out certain details such as the fact that the thief was inconveniently lodged in his house right now. "Morgana was presumed dead in the collapse of the house, but the excavators have not yet discovered her body." Nor had they found the body of his half brother, Sebastian, which troubled him even more than Morgana's missing remains.
They couldn't have escaped, could they?
Some remains should have been found by now, instinct whispered.
"Does Drake's resignation have anything to do with his ex-wife?"
Of course it did. Bishop didn't understand his father's decision. Eleanor Ross might have been Drake's lover, and injured in the attempt to recover the Blade, but Drake had to have known the mess he'd leave if he resigned. Didn't he? He could have hired a nurse to care for Eleanor, but Bishop's arguments had fallen on deaf ears. "He's tired of being pulled in both directions," he admitted. "The Order has always been his priority, but now others take its place."
Madrigal tapped her lips. "Troubling. Drake has left us in a fine mess."
"Or perhaps," he suggested softly, "Drake is the only one with the power to confront a demon and survive."
"That wasn't even subtle, Hades."
"I wasn't trying to be."
"No." She perused his face. "That's one of the things I like about you. At least it's good to know your feelings on the outcome of this vote. What would you do if it goes against Drake?"
Dangerous to let her know, but perhaps the thought of fighting amongst the Sicarii would give her pause. "The question isn't, what would I do? The question is," he suggested, stepping closer, "what wouldn't I?"
As much asVerity found herself liking Marie Adams very much, the second the woman's back was turned as she looked for thread to take in the dress Verity wore, Verity vanished.
All it took to track Bishop was the lock of his hair that she'd stolen the first time she met him. Verity could find anything, once she'd got a feel of it. Thus she found herself staring up at the British Museum, thankful that it was free to the general public as that lingeringtugpulled her inside.
In the hall, she found her mark talking to a woman wearing white ruffles. Images shifted over his face, making it difficult to see, but then it finally settled into his dark, watchful expression.
Bishop was a dark flame, the woman his opposite. Veering left, Verity meandered into the mammal chamber as if she were interested in the displays. Pausing in front of some sort of stuffed creature, Verity stared at the nameplate, pretending to read it as she eased out the faintest touches of power. This was her most complex weave and difficult to hold for long periods of time, but she was insanely curious about just what he was up to. Through the glass case she watched the older woman lead him into a smaller room filled with three others, whose faces shifted in and out of perception. Clearly some kind of spell work was involved, but she'd never seen the like.
The eavesdropping rift opened just near her ear as she watched them from a distance.
"—let us be blunt: We've never encountered a scenario like this in all the years of the Order's history," said a sneering male voice. "How is this going to affect the stability of the Order? There are those who might not care for the new Prime, who would look to Drake and see a figurehead to return to glory—"
"He's made it clear he doesn't ever intend to resume his mantle as Prime," Bishop cut in.
"Yes, but who knows what the future holds?" the man responded.
"If the new Prime cannot hold their position, then they're not qualified to lead," Bishop countered. "Unless you'd like to hold their hand, Osiris? Perhaps you can nursemaid an ineffective Prime through his leadership years."
A faint laugh greeted his words.
"The Sicarii remain apart," said the woman in white, who was the only one whose face didn't flicker and change. "Nobody's holding anybody's hand. We serve, we protect. That is all."
Sicarii.Oh, hell.Verity swallowed. This was clearly a meeting of the very people that she wanted to avoid.
