In the previous scene, Luc had gotten a call from Shohn asking for his help. She'd discovered that Joe's mother, whom she's been trying to help him find, had apparently been hidden by an agency with at least as much power as the Imperial Witness Protection Program. The only way she'll get around the blocks to find her is if Luc can pull some strings to get access.
Luc sank onto the couch, mulling over what Shohn had said. This news had his king's fingerprints all over it. Missing mothers. Secret experiments.
All stemming from the same period as the Sabbath Experiment.
One isolated incident that refused to die. A pivot point in history. A moment in time every disaster either led up to or was a result of.
When Izzorah entered the room thirty minutes later, Luc was still sitting there. "McDoth says dinner's ready in ten minutes."
"Okay." Luc didn't move.
"What's wrong?" Izzorah sat beside him and took his hand. "You're blanking your emotions, so I know you're hiding something. Do you need to talk about it or need me to wait and let you stew about it?"
Lacing his fingers with his beloved's, Luc took a deep breath. "I have to decide which of two kreynid nesins I'm going to knock down."
Izzorah flicked those perky ears of his and laid them back. "Hornet's nests?" Cocking his head, he sniffed. Kin smelled emotions, but Izzorah smelled intentions as well, which was more than a little scary at times. "This has something to do with Pietas."
"I know you trust him, but, love, believe me, he has things in his past you know nothing about. You haven't known him as long as I have."
"All Pietas and the others say is that I'm only a quarter century old, and how compared to them I'm a baby. I get sooo tired of hearing it. He's done things in the past that he's ashamed of, but he wants to change his ways." Izzorah tapped his nose. "He can't lie to me, as much as I can tell he wants to, so he doesn't."
"Pietas swears that he never lies."
"Yes, t'hahr, but what he means is, he admits part of the truth and lets you figure out what's missing." Izzorah huffed a short laugh. "If this has something to do with him, you should tell him."
"I have a hunch this has more to do with his sister, but it is about him."
"Dessy? Sorry, I mean Rheyn. I'm trying to remember to call her by her preferred name."
Luc squeezed Izzorah's hand. "Talking about people who've had different names in different lives gets confusing."
"I'll say." Izzorah twisted on the couch, facing Luc. "What's holding you back on the decision?"
"I either have to call her, or Alitus."
"Oh, wow. Either your immortal ex, the empress, or the Minister of Imperial Intelligence, the immortal spouse of your human ex."
"That sums it up." Luc scrubbed both hands over his face. "And I'm probably going to have to kick one or both of those nests to get answers."
"If you call Alitus, you'll have to deal with Wulf too. It's going to happen, even if you have the best intentions. Alitus wouldn't keep that from him."
"I don't want to interact with that ex unless I have no choice."
"If you call Rheyn, she'll want something in return."
"Right."
Izzorah gave a small laugh. "Plus if this has to do with Pietas, she'll be angry you even brought it up."
"Yep."
"T'hahr, would Alitus have to get her permission for anything?"
Luc rubbed his jaw. "Probably. Which means I might as well call her and be done with it."
"No time like the present. That's what you always say. I'll tell McDoth to wait dinner." Izzorah squeezed Luc's hand and left the room.
"And I was having such a good day." Luc stood and straightened his jacket. He tapped his bracelet. "Call Rheyn, voice only. Private number." Maybe she'd be busy, and he'd have to leave a message. But no. Two rings and she answered.
"Luc, how are you?" She sounded cheery. Must have gotten good news.
"Fine. You?"
"Great. What's up?"
"Are you alone?"
Silence filled the room, followed by a heartfelt sigh. "What's my brother done this time?"
While he gave her the gist of what he knew, she remained quiet. "That's it? Your liaison investigated a group of twelve women missing during the years leading up to the Sabbath Experiment."
Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all. "That's right."
"And all you want is for whatever blocks we have on the files removed so you can find them."
"Yes. Exactly."
"Listen to me, Luc. I want you to hear every word I say."
His chest tightened. "All right."
"Walk away. You aren't allowed to know this information. No one is. If anyone tries to access it further, I'll consider it a personal attack and a matter of imperial treason."
"What?" The word burst from his mouth before he could stop it. But did he stop there? No. He added, "Why?" as if he had a death wish.
"Did you not hear me? I said walk away. Forget this. I don't care what your reasons are for knowing. You can't. You won't. And anyone who tries to go around those orders will disappear into the unknown, never to be heard from again. Now, are we clear? Walk. Away."
Crystal Clear Trust, a slow-burn, forced proximity scifi alien romance is being released on my birthday! How cool is that? Not many ways to make a birthday better than that.
