Page 42 of Wicked Bonds

The pair disappeared, leaving Leela and Balthazar in the home with Gabriel, Clara, Sethios, Issac, and Stas.

Caro had left with Jayson, Lizzie, and Aidyn shortly after Vera had explained the plan again. Jacque had returned to take Owen back to Hydria as well. The phone Luc had spoken through was also nowhere to be seen. And Vera was outside manipulating memories.

Which meant the chase was about to begin.

“Where’s Osiris?” Balthazar asked, his chest vibrating her back.

“Outside,” Sethios replied. “At least, he claimed he intended to wait outside until the plans were decided. Vera might have already conveyed the intentions to him.”

“Do you find that odd?” Balthazar pressed. “That she’s conversing so freely with Osiris?”

Sethios shrugged. “Better her than me.”

“What’s your concern?” Issac interjected, his sapphire gaze astute as he assessed the male standing behind Leela.

She had always liked Issac Wakefield’s no-nonsense approach. It differed greatly from Balthazar’s fun-loving one, causing the two to bicker often. However, they were both fiercely loyal. Therefore, while they might argue frequently, they always valued each other’s input during serious conversations.

Sort of like brothers.

Except Balthazar often tried to seduce Issac into bed—something Leela fully appreciated and understood—making it a little less familial.

Still, their relationship was one she enjoyed observing.

And she would not mind being in the middle of them in bed. She’d even invite Stas to join. The more the merrier.

Balthazar’s arms tightened around her waist, indicating he’d heard that little tangent in her mind. However, his words and tone didn’t give anything away as he said, “She misted into the Bahamas compound without any hesitation, suggesting she’d been there before. Did you give her directions?”

The question appeared to be for Gabriel, though she couldn’t see the trajectory of Balthazar’s gaze since he stood behind her.

“No, I didn’t,” Gabriel replied.

“Then how did she know where to go?” Balthazar asked. “And why isn’t she hesitating where Osiris is concerned?”

“Because she understands my intentions,” a deep voice informed them all as a flurry of black feathers appeared around Osiris. He materialized half a beat later, his wings disappearing as he took on a corporeal state. “Stas needs to understand runes, wards, and defensive maneuvering. I expect you to provide her introduction since she’s not yet ready to train with me.”

“Not yetwillingto train with you,” Stas corrected without missing a beat.

Issac wrapped his arm around her as though to hold her back, or perhaps to caution her from speaking again. Osiris might be aiding them all today, but that didn’t make him an ally or someone who would tolerate that tone.

“Her manners need improvement as well,” he added as though plucking the thought from Leela’s mind. “You’ll handle that.” That comment was for Sethios. “This strategy you’ve all decided on might buy you a few days, which is nothing in the grand scheme of time.”

“Do you have a better suggestion?” Issac asked, his tone politely curious, not sarcastic.

“I do,” Osiris replied. “But that requires Astasiya to agree to my tutelage, which I’ve been told she isn’t ready to accept yet. Therefore, I’ll indulge her wishes. For now.”

“How kind of you,” Stas deadpanned.

Sethios casually stepped in front of her, the movement not lost on anyone in the crowd. He knew her attitude would upset Osiris, and he was saying, bluntly, that his father would have to go through him to touch her.

Fortunately, Osiris didn’t appear to be in a punishing mood.

Instead, he just shook his head and looked at Leela. “Good luck, Seraphim. You’re going to need it.” His gaze went over her shoulder to the mind reader at her back. “I’ll be sorely disappointed if you get yourself killed, Balthazar. Try not to die.”

With a rustling of feathers, he disappeared without another word.

“Vera’s working with him,” Balthazar said a second later. “That’s why she understands his motives. She’s our mole.”

“In addition to Mateo or in lieu of him?” Issac asked.