Page 118 of Princess of Bael

I found several.

Too many, in fact.

Leaving us with far too much to investigate and too little time to do it.

Ashmedai had noted several of those imbalances on a new sheet that now hung off the bookshelves to my right.

There were several dozen power shifts that Kayla had confirmed she sensed, too.

In addition to everything else this group had noted.

“What are you thinking?” Kayla asked me quietly, her eyes searching.

“Wishing you could read my mind?” I countered, my lips quirking at the thought. Some mates could speak telepathically. I was honestly rather surprised that we couldn’t. Perhaps it was a result of too many years apart. Maybe we’d grow into it someday.

Or maybe that was the sense of wrongness I felt inside.

The sense that told me something was missing.

Her trust? Her love? Her desire for a future?

I wasn’t naïve. I knew I didn’t have any of those things yet. It would take time and a lot of groveling to convince her to give me a real chance.

The problem was, I couldn’t really grovel. Not when I didn’t regret our bond or why it’d been necessary at the time.

Kayla studied me for a long moment. “I’m not sure I want to know your mind.”

“Then you’ll never know what I’m thinking.” I reached out to tuck a stray strand of reddish-brown hair behind her ear. The new color hadn’t seemed to alarm her at all. It was almost as though she hadn’t noticed. Or maybe she was avoiding the cause of it.

Me.

Our bond.

Our shared energy and power.

“I’ll go inform Prince Bael of the update,” Yaz said, interrupting my moment with Kayla. “Is there anything else you’d like me to tell him, Princess?”

She pulled away from me to face him. “No. Just pass on the warning that something is imminent.”

He dipped his chin in acknowledgment. “Prince Ashmedai?”

The Archdemon flicked his fingers in dismissal. “Make sure he passes the word on to Alastor.”

“I’ll request it,” Yaz replied, his statement suggesting he didn’t expect Bael to agree.

A Portal Dweller appeared then, his hand held out for Yaz. The Royal Guard must have used his device to call for him while I’d been focused on Kayla.

The two of them vanished before Ashmedai could comment. The Archdemon narrowed his gaze, clearly aware of the Royal Guard’s antics. However, his focus moved to me. “Do you want to inform Azrael?”

“Is there a reason you think Scion won’t?” I countered.

The Archdemon blinked, his expression exuding an innocence that didn’t become him. “Why wouldn’t Scion tell him?”

I narrowed my gaze. “If there’s something you want to say about the Archangel of War, then I think you should just voice it.”

“And insult one of your oldest friends?” He glanced at Trudy. “That would be unwise of me, yes?”

“Oh, you suddenly care how I feel about Scion?” Her tone held an edge to it that made the Prince of Hell grin in response.