at Brendan’s office. It was all mahogany and glass.
“Aern,” he said, ignoring the brunette as she soundlessly stepped aside and backed from the room. “What kept you?”
If he knew, his face didn’t betray it. “Catching up on some rest,” I said, stretching my shoulder again for emphasis.
He walked around the desk to stand close, unbuttoning and rolling the cuffs of his shirt as he did so. “And I’m glad you did. Walk with me, will you?”
As we entered the hall, I raised a brow at him.
He shrugged. “I’m sure it’s secure. It’s just that lately I’ve been having trouble keeping things from our Brianna.”
I tilted my head forward, not liking where this was going.
“No, no, I’m certain it’s nothing,” he said after seeing my response. “Maybe she isn’t even aware of what’s happening. It just seems like she’s familiar with far too much.” He rubbed a hand absently over his chest as we rounded the corner. “Things have been excitable around here to say the least. Probably one of the younger ones, they are so worked up about the actual prophecy girl being here. Likely one of them mentioned something they’d overheard from a private meeting.”
I glanced over at him. “Prophecy girl?”
He smirked. “Yeah, that’s what they’re calling her. She’s like a pop star around here.”
“I’ve noticed I’m not getting the same reception,” I said.
Brendan didn’t meet my gaze. “They feel betrayed. Now that she’s here, it’s different. It’s like you’re refusing her, like you’re refusing the prophecy.”
“It isn’t my prophecy.”
“And so you’ll leave her to Morgan?”
His words were ice and I stopped to stare at him. “Then you’ve turned on me as well.”
“No,” he said, letting out a deep breath. “No, Aern. It’s… it’s only that things have changed now. This is building to something we can’t control. If we don’t strike now—”
I cut him off, throwing his own words back at him. “I know the stakes, brother.”
He held up a hand in forfeit. “You’re right. We’ve had this argument enough. Come; let’s update you on what you’ve missed.”
I followed Brendan to a balcony overlooking several manicured acres that fell into dense woods. It was still cool, but he left the double doors open behind us, and if I hadn’t known better, I’d have said we were alone. But there would be armed guards throughout the house, and though I couldn’t spot them from this vantage point, I was certain the trees were crowded with even heavier security.
When Brendan leaned against the thick wood rail, I asked, “What have they learned?”
“They made the connection right away, traced the car back to their foster parents. The woman, she’s safe as of this evening. As luck would have it, she’d changed her name, cut all ties to her previous life. They may track her down one day, but we’ll keep an eye on things. The foster father, however, was not so fortunate. Morgan’s men took him in the same day. Word is they botched their chance to get information from him, roughed him up a bit more than they should have.”
I winced. When Morgan was angry, he tended to overdo the sway, let a little too much of his rage through.
Brendan nodded. “We had a team extract him, but it doesn’t look good.”
“Where is he?”
“Logan dropped him at County General, convinced him he’d been cleaning gutters when he’d fallen from the second-story roof and tumbled through the balcony railing before landing face first on the concrete drive. That should just about cover his injuries with the doctors, excepting the screw holes through his wrists.”
I loosened my grip on the railing and turned to lean against it, watching the cream-colored curtains swim on the breeze.
“The house was clean,” Brendan continued. “It had to have been dumb luck that they found you again.”
“You’re giving luck a lot of credit, Brendan.”
He stared out over the lawn.
“Aern,” he said, ignoring the brunette as she soundlessly stepped aside and backed from the room. “What kept you?”
If he knew, his face didn’t betray it. “Catching up on some rest,” I said, stretching my shoulder again for emphasis.
He walked around the desk to stand close, unbuttoning and rolling the cuffs of his shirt as he did so. “And I’m glad you did. Walk with me, will you?”
As we entered the hall, I raised a brow at him.
He shrugged. “I’m sure it’s secure. It’s just that lately I’ve been having trouble keeping things from our Brianna.”
I tilted my head forward, not liking where this was going.
“No, no, I’m certain it’s nothing,” he said after seeing my response. “Maybe she isn’t even aware of what’s happening. It just seems like she’s familiar with far too much.” He rubbed a hand absently over his chest as we rounded the corner. “Things have been excitable around here to say the least. Probably one of the younger ones, they are so worked up about the actual prophecy girl being here. Likely one of them mentioned something they’d overheard from a private meeting.”
I glanced over at him. “Prophecy girl?”
He smirked. “Yeah, that’s what they’re calling her. She’s like a pop star around here.”
“I’ve noticed I’m not getting the same reception,” I said.
Brendan didn’t meet my gaze. “They feel betrayed. Now that she’s here, it’s different. It’s like you’re refusing her, like you’re refusing the prophecy.”
“It isn’t my prophecy.”
“And so you’ll leave her to Morgan?”
His words were ice and I stopped to stare at him. “Then you’ve turned on me as well.”
“No,” he said, letting out a deep breath. “No, Aern. It’s… it’s only that things have changed now. This is building to something we can’t control. If we don’t strike now—”
I cut him off, throwing his own words back at him. “I know the stakes, brother.”
He held up a hand in forfeit. “You’re right. We’ve had this argument enough. Come; let’s update you on what you’ve missed.”
I followed Brendan to a balcony overlooking several manicured acres that fell into dense woods. It was still cool, but he left the double doors open behind us, and if I hadn’t known better, I’d have said we were alone. But there would be armed guards throughout the house, and though I couldn’t spot them from this vantage point, I was certain the trees were crowded with even heavier security.
When Brendan leaned against the thick wood rail, I asked, “What have they learned?”
“They made the connection right away, traced the car back to their foster parents. The woman, she’s safe as of this evening. As luck would have it, she’d changed her name, cut all ties to her previous life. They may track her down one day, but we’ll keep an eye on things. The foster father, however, was not so fortunate. Morgan’s men took him in the same day. Word is they botched their chance to get information from him, roughed him up a bit more than they should have.”
I winced. When Morgan was angry, he tended to overdo the sway, let a little too much of his rage through.
Brendan nodded. “We had a team extract him, but it doesn’t look good.”
“Where is he?”
“Logan dropped him at County General, convinced him he’d been cleaning gutters when he’d fallen from the second-story roof and tumbled through the balcony railing before landing face first on the concrete drive. That should just about cover his injuries with the doctors, excepting the screw holes through his wrists.”
I loosened my grip on the railing and turned to lean against it, watching the cream-colored curtains swim on the breeze.
“The house was clean,” Brendan continued. “It had to have been dumb luck that they found you again.”
“You’re giving luck a lot of credit, Brendan.”
He stared out over the lawn.
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