He’d sealed his own mother’s fate.
Then Vera had returned to remove the memories—with Gabriel’s permission.
“Use that,” she said urgently, glancing down at her wrist where a bracelet blinked with purple lights.
Ah, a frequency jammer, he thought. So she wanted this conversation to be private.
“We only have thirty seconds before the surveillance equipment around us resets. The audio and visual will begin to record again. You have enough to work with. Don’t let me down.”
Gabriel stared at her. “What other memories have you altered of mine?” Because he sensed there were more. Many, many more.
She flashed him a secret little smile. “Who says these are even real and I haven’t just made it all up?”
Always mischievous. Not at all like a typical Seraphim. That was why she and Leela were such close friends—neither of them favored the stoic nature of their kind.
“You pledged fealty to Astasiya.” That wasn’t something he could sense, yet he felt the truth of it inside. Likely because he now possessed the memory of watching it happen. However, it was when Astasiya was a baby, not seven. Which meant he had other holes in his mind from that period of her life.
Unless all of this was a lie.
He frowned.
His sister would be able to feel the existence of a fealty pledge from Vera. Just as she would be able to feel his loyalty to her if she searched deep enough.
Gabriel considered Vera, weighing the chances of it being a mental trick or a reality. He could ask her how the council hadn’t discovered her change of allegiance, but the same question could be tossed right back at him. They had no idea he’d pledged fealty to his sister because they hadn’t yet met her. The moment they did, they would sense the ties between them and would realize he’d given her his loyalty, not the council.
However, without a previous cause to investigate his behavior, no one had noticed his shift yet. That could very well be the purpose of today’s discussion.
Given his bizarre behavior of late, they’d probably looked into his essence more and found the shift inside him. In which case, they would outlaw him from Seraphim society—a punishment he would happily accept.
Except Vera had spent ample time around the council over the last twenty-five years. It was surprising to him that no one had noticed her lack of a loyalty pledge to the higher Seraphim.
Unless she’d used her gifts to alter their memories of discovery.
The only one who could confirm the pledge was Astasiya, and he didn’t have a way of asking her about it right now. Besides, she’d require coaching to even be able to sense the bond. And there just wasn’t any time left with the council requesting his presence now.
“If it’s all just a mental trick, then my fate is decided either way,” he added. “I’ll just have to choose to trust you.”
“A wise choice,” she replied, her irises shifting to blue-and-green orbs as her feathers sprouted around her. “Good luck, Gabe,” she whispered, her bracelet releasing a small beep before she misted out of sight.
He swallowed, then glanced at the massive structure behind him.
He’d meant what he said. His fate was already decided. If her manipulation proved to be a lie, he’d end up in a rehabilitation chamber beside his mother.
However, if the memories were genuine, he now had a very real card to play.
“You can’t just waltz in there, Sethios. The wards will incapacitate you, and you’ll end up defenseless on a shoreline.” Leela stood with her hands on her shapely hips, her blonde hair pulled back into a ponytail.
Sethios had found her in Balthazar’s house doing fuck knew what since she was alone here. He hadn’t bothered to ask, his first and only question being about Caro’s location.
Astasiya and Issac had followed him. Now they sat on the couch in the living area, watching Sethios battle with Leela’s logic.
Battle and lose, he thought, irritated. “I can’t just sit here, Leela. We know where she is. Just mist me into her cell, and I’ll take it from there.”
“Yes, that requires me to know her cell.” She rolled her eyes at the notion. “Oh, and as I’ve said three times now, get you past the barriers. Which is impossible. You’re not an inducted member of society. The wards will fire defensively. They may not kill you, but they will break you.”
“Gabriel is taking care of it,” a voice chimed in as dark blue feathers appeared in his peripheral vision. “He’s meeting with the council right now,” Vera added, her body turning corporeal in an instant. “Also...” She touched Leela’s head, causing the female to jolt.
“What are you doing?” Balthazar demanded, his gaze locking on Leela as he stepped into the house with Lucian right behind him. He started toward Vera, but she held up a hand—the one not touching Leela—to halt him. Her authoritative aura had both Elders pausing beside the couch.
