<b>Chapter </b><b>139 </b>
<b>Envy </b>
Layah eased forward, shadows rippling until she was standing outside me, her form stretching, shaking her fur like she was shaking off my nerves. She nosed at Elliot and
<b>Macey</b>, then nced back at me. I understood without words.
“Hey,” I said gently, brushing Elliot’s curls back. “How about you two take Layah out to the garden? Those Death Lilies are blooming. Pick some for your mumma, she’d love
them.”
Elliot’s face lit like antern. “Really?” He spun to Reina, who nodded, her smile watery but real. Macey squealed, already tugging Elliot’s hand. Fergus got scooped under her arm and off they went, Layah padding behind them like a knight on duty. Theirughter was already chasing down the hall before the door shut.
<b>I </b>sagged back into the chair. My palm pressed low, protective, the way it always does now. “We can’t keep pretending they’re safe here,” I said, voice tight. “Every attack gets closer. The witches aren’t throwing shadows at us anymore, they’re pushing hard. When theye again, and they will, the children will be the easiest leverage.”
Four sets of eyes met mine. My mates didn’t argue, didn’t dismiss it. They knew. They felt it too. The air itself was stretched thin with what wasing.
I turned to Reina. “If your people are willing to stand with us, then maybe… maybe Elliot and Macey should go with you for now. Just until this breaks. Elliot would be over the moon to meet the rest of his family, and Macey…” my throat caught, “she’d follow him anywhere, she’s an orphan, but she’s ours, just as he is. I’m not ready to let them go, but it might be the only way to keep them from being pawns in this.”
Reina’s eyes went ssy<b>. </b>She leaned forward, her hand covering mine where it clutched the bump. “Envy<b>,</b>” she said softly, steady, “if this is what must be done, then I’ll guard them with everything I am. But know this, I’m not going to take him away from you. From any <b>of you</b>.<b>” </b>Her voice thickened. “I can’t undo the years I lost. You gave him love, safety, a home. <b>You </b>raised him when I couldn’t. That means when this is done, when it’s safe, we share him. He is ours<b>, </b>together. My son, your son. And I’ll never stop being grateful for
<b>that</b>.”
Wed, Se
I blinked hard. “You mean that?”
“I swear it,” she said, and for the first time, I believed every syble.
91%
Xavier’s hand closed over my shoulder, grounding. Haiden leaned against the table like he was guarding us both. Levi’s nod was small but certain. Noah just reached for my hand, folding it between his.
The door banged wide before anyone could breathe out the tension. Elliot and Macey
came in like a storm, arms overflowing with lilies, petals brushing their cheeks, stems
dripping dirt on the floor. Layah padded after them, looking smug about her haul.
“Look, look!” Macey said, nearly tripping over Fergus. “We picked all the pretty ones.”
Elliot grinned wide, cheeks flushed. “For Mumma,” he said, rushing the flowers into Reina’s arms like it was the greatest treasure he’d ever found. Her hands shook a little as she took them, pressing her face into the blooms.
I smiled, though my chest was tight. “Hey, you two. Can we sit for a minute? Big people
talk.”
Elliot frowned but obeyed, climbing onto the couch with a bounce. Macey followed, hugging Fergus like a shield. I sat across from them<b>, </b>my mates nking me, Reina clutching the flowers like lifelines.
“It’s not as safe here right now as we’d like,” I began carefully. “So, we think it might be best for you both to stay with Mumma for a little while. Elliot, you’d get to know her people, your people, and your family. Macey, you’d go too, so you’d stay together.”
Elliot’s whole face lit. “Really?!” He twisted to Reina, eyes wide. “Mumma, do I have a little brother? I remember… I think I remember someone small, crying, and I held him<b>.</b><b>” </b>
Reina’s breath caught, but she nodded, voice soft. “Yes, sweetheart. You do. His name is Elias, but he’s just as big as you now.”
Elliot’s grin nearly split his face. “I knew it.”
Macey tugged on my sleeve, eyes big. “I really get to go too? I get to stay with Elliot?”
<b>I </b>kissed her forehead. “Of course you do. You’re best friends. Where he goes, you go.”
They both leaned forward at once, questions spilling over each other.
“What’s it like there?” Elliot asked.
“Do they have snacks?” Macey demanded.
“Is it big?”
“Are there other kids?”
Reinaughed through her tears, wiping her eyes quickly. “Yes, it’s big. Yes, there are other kids. And yes, snacks, though maybe not as many as you sneak here.”
“I think,” he said seriously, “that I’d like to go. But only if Macey’s with me. And only if I
cane back here too.”
“You will,” I promised, though my throat ached around the words. “This is always your home. Always.”
“Do you two want to go pack some bags?” I asked, smoothing Macey’s hair where it had gone wild from the lilies. “Just the things you can’t sleep without. Fergus, treasure boxes, ribbons<b>, </b>whatever you need.”
They scrambled off the couch in a whirl of socks and giggles. Their chatter echoed up the hall, ovepping about how many socks counted as “enough” and whether or not crayons
were a necessity.
I rubbed my hand low on my belly and looked at Reina. “There’s something else you need
to know. About Elliot.”
Her shoulders stiffened. “What is it?”
“Being in that stasis spell… it did more than slow his body,” I said carefully. “And being being prince of the Underworld gave him certain… abilities. They don’t alwayse out in predictable ways. He’s strong. Too strong for a boy his age.”
Reina’s lips parted, worry starting to edge into her eyes. “What kind of abilities?”
Before I could answer<b>, </b>Haiden leaned his elbows on the table, a grin tugging at his mouth. “Glitter bombs<b>.</b><b>” </b>
Reina blinked. “Excuse me?”
“Don’tugh<b>,</b><b>” </b>I muttered, though my own lips twitched.
1%
Haiden spread his hands, enjoying himself. “Last month? He sneezed during training and the entire corridor looked like a unicorn exploded. Three grown warriors slipped on
rainbow dust. Took us hours to scrub it out.”
“He can project raw power,” Levi rified, patient as ever. “Ites out in bursts.
Sometimes light. Sometimes force. Sometimes…” He shot Haiden a t look. “…glitter.”
Reina pressed a hand to her mouth, half in shock, half in augh she couldn’t quite smother. “So he… leaks magic?”
“That’s one way to put it,” Xavier said. “Most of the time he’s steady. But when his emotions spike, happy, scared, angry, it can get… messy.”
Reina nodded slowly, absorbing every word like she was carving it into herself. “Then I’ll
watch for it,” she said. “I’ll keep him safe.”
I studied her face, saw no hesitation there. Just a mother willing to carry what she’d been
given.