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“On days where the sun is really intense, we burn badly. So we avoid going out or cover up well. But during the day if it’s overcast? We don’t have any issues,” Stasio said.

“Yeah, I was worried about that,” Caitlin said. “Not that I was into suntanning. I always just burned. But that I would have to live a life only at night? Or that the sun could make me disintegrate? That was not an appealing way to live.”

“The only ones who disintegrate are the old ones,” Arman said.

Fiona frowned. “Aren’t you old ones?”

“Yeah. So if someone kills us, we would turn to ash,” Arman said.

“But if you’re more…uhm, newly turned like Caitlin?” Fiona hated to even bring it up, but she had to know how this all worked.

“She would look like a regular person if she died,” Jasmine said.

“Okay, so let’s say you protect me through the blood moon, then what? They leave me alone? They can’t steal my power? What?”

“Tobias wanted to turn you to gain your power, but he can’t do it until the night of the blood moon,” Arman said. “If he turned you, then you can’t kill the one who makes you.”

“Ohmigod, so you’re like a puppet? Playing to their whim?”

“Essentially,” Levka said.

Fiona looked at Caitlin.

Caitlin shrugged. “I would have died if Levka hadn’t saved my life. I have no regrets. And he in no way controls me.”

Levka gave Caitlin a smug smile.

“Not that he doesn’t try sometimes.” Caitlin gave him a hug and he kissed her back.

“It’s truly a condition of the princes having been princes,” Jasmine said, smiling at Stasio.

He pulled her onto his lap and kissed her. “I was just lucky I changed your mind about eliminating us.”

“Ha! You left me no other alternative.” Jasmine turned to Fiona. “I had to go on the run with them because of association. I had made the mistake of telling hunters that I was Stasio’s girlfriend. I thought he was a vampire hunter like me. Not a rogue. The princes had tried to overthrow the ruling League in Wales. They lost the battle and were branded rogues.”

Stasio smiled. “You know it all worked out for the best between us.”

“It did. These guys get themselves into the worst binds and then miraculously get themselves out of them with a little help from friends, I might add,” Jasmine said.

“Like with coming to my aid.” Fiona had to give them credit for coming to help her out when they didn’t even know her.

“Exactly,” Ruric said. “Speaking of which, we need to head to Houston and get on our flight.”

“Do we have any layovers? Or do we have to make any other connections?” Fiona hoped not. She thought if they could get on the flight and be out of here, they would be safe. As long as Tobias and Regina didn’t pick up their trail.

“It’s a straight shot, no stops,” Ruric said.

“Oh great.” Fiona was so relieved.

“Let’s go,” Levka said, and they dumped their trash in the trash bins, then headed outside into the fresh air on the perfectly cloudy day. “We’re going to get rain.”

“Yeah,” Jasmine said. “So let’s hurry.”

“Can rain hurt you?” Fiona figured that would be a disaster. What if they couldn’t fly in rain?

Jasmine smiled. “No, but we’ll all be soaked to the skin and that will make for an uncomfortable flight.”

“Oh, true. How long is the flight?”