“Your father?” CK snaps at me. “Why didn’t you tell me you were looking?”
“Father?” Cole and Cade ask in unison, just as surprised.
“I only thought about it on Friday and they said they didn’t know, but I can tell they are hiding something.”
“Hm, it is interesting that Tiamat never mentioned it,” CK says thoughtfully. “I wonder who it could be?”
“Yeah, you and me both. I am starting to wonder if I don’t really want to know. Everyone seems so cagey about it. What if it is something so horrifying it will give me nightmares?”
“What, like The Thirteen?” Cole asks and both CK and I look at him.
“Holy shit!” I shriek. “What if it is? What if he was Her lover? Makes sense, why She would get so mad with him she killed him.”
I get two affronted looks at that comment and flush somewhat. “Sorry,” I mumble.
“Yes, well, I think Cole may have a point. I can’t see any other reason why they wouldn’t tell you or want you asking questions about it,” CK says.
“But why would he want to hurt you if he is your father?” Cade asks a damn good question.
“I don’t know. Maybe he doesn’t know?” Cole says.
“Or maybe he does and doesn’t care. He is evil, after all. What difference does it make whether I am family?”
We all ponder that morosely for a few minutes.
“We are jumping ahead of ourselves here,” Cade says, breaking the silence. “It seems unlikely to be The Thirteen, because the timeline doesn’t track. But it must be somebody. It is worth looking into some more, if you want us to?”
“Or, I could just go to the Dragon Realms and ask Tiamat,” I say.
“Ask Tiamat what?” Sebastian asks, joining the party – uninvited.
“Boundaries, people!” I snap at them. “All this willy nilly barging into everyone’s rooms is disturbing.”
“Yes, what if Liv and I had been fucking?” Cole asks, crossing his arms.
“Then I’d have joined in,” Sebastian says with a shrug to which Cole nearly punches him. But he did kinda walk into that one. “So, ask Her what?” he presses.
“None of your business,” I say as CK says, “Who her father is.”
“Do you mind? I don’t want the whole world knowing my business.”
“I wouldn’t call Sebastian the whole world, my sweet. Besides which, we don’t keep secrets.”
“Humph, except your own,” I mutter and then look up at him sharply. No secrets? He looks away innocently, but I resolve to ask him about that later.
“Father? Can’t say I even thought about it?” Sebastian remarks.
“Well, why would you?” Cole snaps. “It’s nothing to do with you.”
“She is my sibling and my Queen,” Sebastian says haughtily. “It is everything to do with me.”
Is it? I think with a slightly raised brow. Getting a bit protective there, Princie.
“Look. Let’s just forget about this for now and next time I see Tiamat, I will ask Her straight up. Everybody just stand down now. The most important thing now is to find a way to get this bloody sword out of the Spirit Realm so I can get rid of this thing.”
“Can you not just Astral there?” Cole asks.
“Corinne says no. She says the only way there is by dying. I need Xane, can someone please go find him?” There are unsurprisingly no takers to that request but as it happens when I beckon, he comes, as he is there in a swirl, or shimmer, or whatever, it is he does.