{Reipon}

Xelan climbed the stairs out of the basement with Pax cradled in his arms. The unconscious boy was draped in the abandon only the young managed, and his father was almost overwhelmed with emotion from the journey to now.

How long before Xelan’s son became a soldier and fought in the same war Xelan fended off his entire life? Before he ripped people apart and smiled in a crazed frenzy for the love of violence—

Xelan was unhappy about the Iona-29 footage.

Rayne was a brilliant sapphire in the terrible beauty of combat, but it showed in the tarnish of her soul. She slept in a box of her own blood, refused touch, and reveled in death.

What happened to his little girl—

Pax stirred and curled onto his side in Xelan’s arms. They weren’t far from their suites now. He took them the long way to avoid Tumu and Lamassau’s extreme public display of blind abandon.

Honestly, Xelan was jealous of it. The memory of soft purrs and rushed breaths during his and Tameka’s near miss earlier distracted him from work. She looked so relaxed today for the first time in a while, thriving among their people. Her pep rally fostered this casual atmosphere they’d enjoyed since. Tensions melted, relationships regrouped, and some people poked around in other people’s affairs.

Pax held Korac’s Verse in his hands for his dad, hugged it tight as if protecting it. Xelan wasn’t upset with Sagan. He cherished the trust they had, which made her comfortable enough to come to him like that. He only found it hard to face her with what she might know about him. They did ask for his consent before broadcasting it. At least, there was that.

“Okay, Pax.” Xelan laid his son out in his tiny bed next to their room. “Good night, son. Mommy will kiss you soon.” He kissed the boy’s red curls and mused to himself how grateful he was that Pax inherited Tameka’s hair.

The child tiredly blinked eyes that matched his father’s as he reached for a strand of Xelan’s unbound hair and let it slide through his fingers. “I like your hair, too. G’night, daddy.”

Xelan frowned as Pax rolled away onto his side. It reminded Xelan that there was so much the parents didn’t understand about their child, but now wasn’t the time for this derailment of his train of thought.

The Prince of Cinder took his former General’s writing to the veranda and found a seat under the second setting sun. More stars twinkled in the green velvet sky as he slipped off the twine and unwrapped the kraft paper.

Off the top of his head, Xelan could list at least ten thousand things he’d rather do with his free evening—

Sincere violet eyes and a soft smile filled with kindness flashed through his conscience.

Of course, he would read it.

Xelan was finishing up chapter one when a beautiful sight stepped onto the veranda. Tameka tamed her wild red coils into two braids that emphasized the delicate arch of her brows, the gentle curve of her jaw, and the soft plush of her freckled cheeks. She’d changed into a white Lukemore silk robe that left her long legs exposed. Out of the Progeny, Tameka kicked the hardest in training, and it showed in the muscle tone of her naked thighs—

“My eyes are up here.”

“I don’t want those wrapped around me, Tameka.” After considering what he actually said, Xelan erupted into a fit of laughter.

Her soft giggles joined him in a happy chorus.

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

This was comfortable.

He pat the big outdoor sofa beside him and flashed her the bound manuscript. “Sagan’s assigning me homework now.”

Tameka ignored the cushion and stepped between his knees to perch herself on one of his thighs. Her warmth bled into him, and she smelled like bergamot and expensive moisturizer. She peered at the book. “Can you study with a partner?”

Welcoming her almost shy smile, Xelan kissed her braids. “We could do other things…”

Playfully, Tameka nudged him, but it actually forced a huff from him. She half-laughed as she chastised him. “Sorry, but I won’t let you use me to avoid this any longer.” Contrary to her words, she kissed him, soft and sweet, before snuggling into him. “We can do this together and talk it through. I want to know you, Traitor Prince of Cinder. No more hiding. Deal?”

“Deal.” Xelan adjusted Tameka in his lap and encouraged her to take one half of the book. “This will be the chapter when Korac came to Cinder. When he met Nox and I.”

“What did you learn from the first chapter?”

“That I’ll have to save my reactions for my Verse.”

They read for a long time in silence. Well, not complete silence. Pax’s soft snoring drifted through the window occasionally, lighting their eyes with precious delight. They made that little bundle of congested nasal passages. His nacre would correct it in a moment.

After finishing the scene where Nox slayed Gale in what Xelan once considered cold blood, Tameka stirred in his arms. They eventually shifted to lay out the length of the cushions with her snuggled against his side. She looked up at him. Those bright green eyes sparkled with curiosity.

“Get it out of your system.”

“Well, I’d hate to know any spoilers before you write your own Verse, but your speed threw me off in Nox’s Verse as well. Xelan, you held out on us during our training. Muchly.” Tameka poked his nose to keep her observations casual, but her voice held something deeper.

Xelan nodded and set the book aside to trail his fingers along her arm. His gray complexion contrasted against her tawny brown skin. “I was still earning your trust, and I worried about intimidating you without nacres. But that’s not what bothers you. Go on, Tameka. You can tell me.”

She looked away and spoke against his chest. “You moved so fast, then. How did Nox and Korac ever best you? Why did you resort to the self-destruct code in your nacre?”

Ah. Well. Something akin to shame tightened his throat, and Xelan had to clear it to explain, “If you remember, there was a garrison on the stairs behind Korac and Nox. All I could think was how to stop them from pursuing you and Rayne. I could fend off my broth—Nox—and I’m not sure Korac’s heart was ever in the fight. After reading these, I’m more convinced it wasn’t. Not really. But I’d never defeat them all. Nox was always stronger than me. I knew this even before I read how much he withheld from us. I thought it was an appropriate time to test an experiment I wanted to install in our Shadow.”

“The self-destruct sequence?”

Xelan squeezed her bicep. “Right.” It became tougher to talk. “But… I miscalculated. I overestimated the blast radius and the rate of my repair systems. Not only did the explosion miss Nox, but I didn’t heal fast enough to recover and escape as I’d intended.”

Tameka remained silent. Her fingers walked over the exposed skin of his stomach.

Her contemplation concerned Xelan, so he tried another approach. “It was a risk. If we’d known about Pax, I swear I wouldn’t dare. I don’t know what I’d do differently, but I know I’d come out alive for you. All of you.” His voice softened to almost a whisper. “I blame myself for so much of what happened—”

Tameka’s finger planted firmly on his mouth. “No.” She straightened to stare down into his eyes, so he’d see how serious she was. “No talk like that. I swear to Elden, Rayne is your daughter in all but direct lineage. She never confessed it to me, but I know she blamed herself for what happened to you. We are not blaming anyone but Imminent. I’m not even sure I blame Nox anymore.”

If Xelan winced, it’s not because he disagreed with her. It’s because hearing that truth aloud, his own truth, further fragmented his delicate understanding of reality.

Tameka continued to echo his thoughts. “Remorse abused and used every King of Cinder, turned them into hateful weapons. I mean, you trained Rayne like a weapon to kill Nox, but I know it’s not the same.”

Ah. Full wince. Xelan took her hand in his and gave it a gentle shake. “No. What I did was out of hope. I wanted the world behind Rayne so that once she defeated Nox, it would break the Probability Matrix and free her from dying alone and afraid.”

“Did it work?”

Xelan sighed, heavy with the uncertainty. “We’ll know in time.”

Tameka reached over him to retrieve Korac’s Verse. “Until then, will you read to me?” She settled back against him, not at all aware that her robe shifted higher to reveal more of her thighs. Almost to her—

“Read, Icarus.” Xelan met her sparkling eyes and her brilliant smile. “I’ll give you a present afterward.”

“Yes, ma’am.” He opened the book to the three Icarean teens racing across the Ignis Desert, and an old wound opened into a past life. “This will get rough.”

Tameka’s smaller hand slipped into his and warmed Xelan at her touch. “We’ll get through it together.”

Together sounded good.