Dylan said nothing, just held Magnus’s gaze.

“Gianna’s prized Thunderstroke alive, all this time, and no one was the wiser. Somehow, miraculously, Demigod Kieran found you. What a lucky fellow to find a Spirit Walker and a Thunderstroke, all before he has even proved himself.” Magnus’s gaze landed on the cats next. They were flanking me, the male licking his paw and the female lying on her stomach, looking at Magnus judgmentally. “Where did you get those cats?”

“A stray had kittens,” I said. “These two wouldn’t let us re-home them.”

“What magical beast has enhanced their genetics? As we can all agree, these are not from a normal stray.” Magnus narrowed his eyes at me, and I could see the wheels turning.

“Honestly, I have no idea,” I said. “They are from a normal stray. Two normal strays, actually. I, unfortunately, saw them…in a private moment.” My face warmed under Magnus’s calculating stare.

“Coming back to my question,” Kieran said, “now what? Where do we go from here? You won’t be leaving with Alexis, as I’m sure you know.”

“Now what, yes. Good question.” Magnus tucked his hand into his trouser pocket. He looked around, and it was clear he was making note of the cameras. “I will say this: Alexis raised some good points while in spirit. Whatever your reasons for giving it to her, she has your mark, and she has created a soul link between you. The only way to successfully separate the two of you would be to kill one of you. And if someone were to kill you, Demigod Kieran, it would severely affect Alexis’s performance. I’ve felt what it’s like to lose a soul-link partner. It is a hard thing to come back from. Even if Alexis were to be…retrained”—his tone said he meant reprogrammed—broken down and built back up, as Lydia had said—“she would feel the loss. She’d feel it, but she wouldn’t understand it, and so she wouldn’t be able to properly grieve. It would drive her to madness, and that would create a very dangerous situation. Controlling someone with Chaos blood is not easy. Combine that with the power of a Spirit Walker? People would die. Many people. Then they would come back, controlled by her, and wreak absolute havoc. She would need to be killed, like the last Spirit Walker. She’d do more harm than good in the long run.”

Magnus was basically using the cameras to get out a warning—killing Kieran to get to me wasn’t a good idea. He was saying the words that would essentially protect me. It would’ve been a relief, if Aaron were the type to admit defeat, and if there weren’t the past to consider.

Kieran must’ve had the same thought, as he asked, “Does any of that matter to you? Given your past, I’d assumed you wouldn’t be interested in keeping her around.”

“My past, yes.” Fire burned in Magnus’s eyes, so hot and ruthless that I tried to take a step back. I saw something else in his eyes, too, though. A wound. Raw, weeping loss. “As I said, it is not easy to control someone with Chaos blood. It is not legal to kill someone because of a grudge, either, even for a Demigod. I well understand the importance of law and order in these modern times.” His tone was lofty, and it was clear he was not speaking to us, but talking to whoever might be seeing the footage. It was also quite clear he hadn’t answered the question. “I find I am in a bind. So this is what I propose, Demigod Kieran. If the two of you do not continue to harm the interests of my territory, I will see no reason to dig up past family grievances of which she played no part. She has existed this long without being troublesome, and if you keep her…coloring within the magical lines, we’ll say”—his eyes crinkled with his small smile—“then we can coexist as any two Demigods and their staff—”

“Significant other,” Kieran interrupted. “She is my significant other, whom I hope will one day wish to co-lead with me. She is not on my staff. She has no blood oath. She is of independent mind and soul. I can no more control her than any man can control his partner.”

“Be that as it may, the events that have come to pass have put you in charge of her magical upbringing. You are tasked with teaching her our laws and making sure she follows them. Her failure will fall on you both, and if it impacts my territory, I will be forced to act. I am sure you can understand that.”

Kieran nodded once, almost a bow. “I can. That compromise is fair.”

“In addition…” Magnus paused again, then raised his voice. “If anyone shall threaten her, or strive to take her from you unlawfully, I will feel it is my duty to intercede.” This pause lasted longer, and I held my breath. “After all, if I can’t act on a grudge, or even welcome my flesh and blood onto my staff, I certainly won’t let someone else force the issue. The rules of dibs are well known.”

Kieran’s laugh was forced, as was Magnus’s. I held my breath, trying to sort through all of the emotions running through me.

His gaze on me was kind, and it was hard to understand how such a ruthless man could have such a comforting presence. I found myself wanting to know more about him. It was a foolish thought, given who he was, but my mother was gone, and so help me God, I wanted to know what it was like to have a father.

But I had to remember that he was a Demigod of Hades. Lydia had been able to trick us, and Magnus was so much better at his job than her. We’d thwarted him this time, but I couldn’t be so naive as to think he’d given up the battle. Magnus’s strength was in the long game—I’d heard that from Kieran and his people often enough. Building up a relationship with me was a good foundation for snatching me up if something were to ever happen to Kieran. Something he might make happen to Kieran. Then Magnus could swoop in, helping me grieve and securing his claim on the Soul Stealer these people had apparently always wanted.

I swallowed down the aching in my heart and held on to Kieran. Why wish for a thing that might be your ruin, when you already had the thing that was your salvation?

“Until we meet again,” Magnus said to me, his focus acute. “And remember, when you go into spirit, make sure your body is safe and guarded. Trust very few with the whereabouts of your body when you are outside of it. You will learn ways to break out of someone’s hold in spirit. You are strong enough to escape even a Demigod, but if someone gets your body, it is game over.”

Kieran laughed. “You don’t know Alexis and her wards very well. When it comes to them, nothing is game over. We’ll speak more, Magnus. For now, we need to pack up and head home.”

“Of course. Yes.” Magnus took a step back. “I’m glad I was able to help.”

“It is Lydia you saved, not Alexis. Hopefully Lydia will see her way out of the trouble the dark fae are sure to bring to her doorstep.”

Kieran led us away, and Magnus—my father—watched us the whole time.

No, not us. Me. His gaze was rooted to me, and I could see the turbulence in the dark depths of his eyes.

Kieran walked us through the hole Thane had created, cutting off my view of my father. That was when reality dawned on me. I jerked forward, trying to get a look at him. I was too tired and low on energy to feel more than my immediate surroundings.

“Thane!” I said.

“What?”

I started, completely off my game. Then again, with the fatigue dragging me down, I didn’t have a game just now.