Not trusting his voice, he nodded curtly. That bit of underhanded nastiness was far from the worst trick the Convocation played on familiars, but it rankled nevertheless.
“It turns out that it’s a fairly simple magic, along the lines of basic warding, particularly as Sabrina agreed to having the geas implanted. It reinforces her internal resolve. Han was able to provide the power for Ziv. The pair of them worked quite well together, in fact,” she added with a lift of one brow.
He didn’t like the sound of that. “Are you suggesting what I think you’re suggesting? Because you already know my answer.”
“Surely you’ll accept that not all wizard–familiar bondings are negative, abusive relationships.”
He had to say something. “You won’t like this, but we should discuss the possibility of having Alise sever our—”
Nic pressed her fingers over his mouth. “You’re right, I don’t like it. Don’t even suggest it.”
“I want you to know the option is out there,” he persisted.
“I know and I don’t want it.” She glared at him fiercely, then softened, wriggling winsomely on his lap, brushing his groin with her shapely thigh. “You’re not getting rid of me so easily, wizard.”
“You’re trying to distract me,” he admonished severely, because it was absolutely working. And sheer relief filled him that she didn’t want to be severed from him. That possessive wizard instinct in him she always wanted him to listen to had nearly gone mad at the thought. A good caution for how other wizards would react.
“I just want my wizard to be happy,” she purred sensually, then stopped teasing him, sobering. “The fact remains that the best way to protect our unbonded familiars—Han, Iliana, and Selly, too—is to see them safely bonded. You have the power and discretion to choose good wizards for them. I’m not suggesting that you take the choice away from Han, but it could be an ideal partnering. Wizard Ziv is not interested in a sexual relationship with their familiar, so that would allow Han to be faithful to Iliana, which is their ideal. There are far worse solutions.”
“I’ll think about it,” he allowed grudgingly. “I suppose if the bonding becomes a problem, we could always have Alise sever the bond again.”
“If we want it known that we’ve discovered this massively powerful weapon that promises to destroy the supremacy of wizards in the Convocation, which means they’ll crush House Phel and exterminate anyone with the knowledge of it before allowing that to happen.”
“Unless too many people know for them to kill everyone. We need to disseminate this knowledge widely,” he argued. “How can you not be in favor of this? It would mean freedom for all familiars, the ability to govern their own lives. No more second-class citizenship.”
“Don’t lecture me,” she replied tartly. “I am in favor of it. I’m just more in favor of keeping your foolish head attached to your body!” She yanked on his hair for emphasis, eyes glittering green ferocity, his personal marsh cat unsheathing her claws. “You’re more important to me than all of them.”
“Than all the world?” he teased, drawing her to snuggle against him, tipping her head so her silky curls fit under his chin and wrapping his arms around her. What had he done to deserve such unconditional devotion? Nothing. Sometimes it terrified him how much he didn’t deserve Nic.
“Yes,” she answered firmly. “I’m selfish that way. You made me bond you, too, and I’m not giving you up, not for anything.”
“What if Sammael has bonded Selly to a wizard?” he asked softly, giving voice to one of his fears for his fragile, naïve sister. “What if it’s Jadren—or someone worse?”
He felt more than heard her sigh. “Let’s not borrow trouble. The priority is getting Selly home safe. We can make decisions once we know more.”
“If Jadren bonded her, I’m going to kill him.” Gabriel felt better for putting that out there. He’d enjoy taking apart the duplicitous El-Adrel spy, joint by joint, starting with his fingertips.
“Again, let’s cross that bridge when we come to it. Sabrina is to send terms for us to retrieve them both. We’ll know by evening and perhaps have them here by morning.”
“Good,” he grunted, mollified by that much. “I want this episode over with so we can move on with other issues.”
“Like destroying the Convocation?” she asked, lifting her head and meeting his gaze with amusement and a bit of rebuke.
“Yes.” He kissed her, harder than before, showing her his determination. “You’d condemn the world for me; I’ll remake the world for you. No other familiar should ever feel they have to give up their friends, family, homeland, and lives simply to avoid a terrifying fate.”
She laughed softly, stroking his cheek, a glisten of emotion in her glowing eyes. “You’re not so scary, wizard.”
“No?” With a mock growl, he lifted her, turning her to straddle his lap and hiking up her full skirts in the same motion. Manifesting a silver blade from moon magic, he sliced away her panties and cupped her hot sex, making her gasp in shock and instant arousal. Thrusting his fingers inside her sleek passage, he held her in place with a hand at her back, so she arched over it, taken by the convulsion of pleasure. The movement forced her full breasts to swell over the low neckline of her gown and he buried his face in her bosom, inhaling the scent of roses, then licking a long line between her breasts up to her mouth, capturing her lips in a savage kiss, driving her ruthlessly higher with his fingers.
“Gabriel,” she panted, clutching his shoulders. “Let me—”
“No,” he informed her. No question this time. “Let me.”
It was a long time before she had any breath to argue.
~ 18 ~
Selly paced the small enclosure, waiting for Jadren to wake. Through the sole glass wall, she could see the wizard-scientists and engineers moving about their work, ignoring her as if she were just another piece of lab equipment.
