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“Well, that’s sorted,” Gideon said, reminding me of his presence. “I really need to go. Kley, I’ll ask Mom to clear you for the rest of the week, officially assigning you to the rune research. No one will question it. I will need daily reports, though.”

She nodded eagerly. “Thank you!”

His gaze moved from her to me, then back to her. “I take it you’re staying?”

“I have a dungeon to visit,” she replied cheerfully. “And a dark sorcerer’s library.”

She said it the way most kids would talk about visiting Santa’s workshop.

Gideon laughed. “I’ll leave you guys to it.”

“I’ll walk you out,” I said and stood.

It wasn’t that I was ever concerned for any of my guests, but it was best to not leave them alone. They could and would likely freak out if they encountered the other inhabitant of the house.

Not that Cassius often left his quarters, but the smell of freshly baked goods could entice him if he caught it.

Kleos followed suit as we returned to the entryway. Outside, the gardens were less bright already, switching from blue to a deep purple.

“Do your light trees mimic the sun outside?” Kleos wondered, peeking beyond the door.

“Not as such. They do what they like.”

I didn’t quite understand how the garden worked, in all honesty. I just knew that it was dark when I wanted to sleep and bright when I needed light.

“Oh, a Sessona we met in the tram told us you should save her a dance,” Gideon told me at the door.

“I completely forgot,” Kleos said.

“Sessona is fully aware she can have all the dances she’d like.” The old hag earned them. She ran an orphanage on Wolves Avenue.

“So that’s your type,” he joked. “Slightly scary sharp-toothed, fifty-somethings?”

“I beg your pardon. She doesn’t look a day past forty-seven. Which isn’t bad at three hundred years old.”

Laughing, Gideon waved his goodbye, leaving me alone with Kleos Valesco.

In my home.

Fuck. What now?

“I suppose I should show you to my dungeons, then.”

“I bet you say that to all the girls,” she shot back.

Chuckling, I led her down the great staircase and through the network of complex corridors, until we reached the lowest levels.

We walked in silence. I was careful, not totally familiar with this side of the house myself. I’d explored as a kid, but I could still get lost.

I was startled to notice that Zazel followed us. That cat loved to pretend I didn’t exist unless it was time for his food, or the rare occasions when he deemed me worthy of allowing a brief head pat.

“Here we are.” I pushed open heavy red doors engraved with minute details—war scenes, by the looks of it.

Magic still lingered within the wood, though its intent wasn’t harmful to me.

Cold and dark, the floor wasn't exactly fit for guests, but I'd have time to make it inhabitable by the weekend.

"These cells were reserved for the plebe," I assured her as we passed the dozens of empty, barred rooms. "But there were a few meant for noble prisoners."