“At least I’m not the one tainted with human blood!” he snarled after her. He cast a feral lip curl at Sumi before he pushed himself up and stormed out.

Okay then.

Sumi released a slow, steady breath. She didn’t know why, but she felt bad for all of them. And honestly, rather intimidated by Thia. For a little thing, she was ferocious and highly unpredictable.

Who was her father?

To her knowledge, Hauk only had Fain and Keris as brothers. But then she hadn’t done that extensive a dig into his family. Only enough to get the parameters of this mission straight in her mind. And Fain had never said much of anything about his family. Since he’d been disowned by them, he’d told everyone, even her, that he was an orphan with no blood lineage whatsoever.

“What do you mean, we’re staying here another day?” Darice whined outside. “Gah! It’s not fair! This is supposed to be my Endurance, not an exercise in learning to tolerate humans!”

“And it’s not supposed to be an exercise in my learning to tolerate you,” Hauk shot back. “Now do what I told you.”

“You’re not my father! I don’t have to do what you tell me.” There was no missing the hatred beneath those words.

Thia let out a tired sigh. “And all this wondrous joy because my father can’t stand the thought that I’m a grown woman and he can’t rule my entire life anymore.”

“Not a word against your father, Thee. That’s my brother you’re talking about, and I will not have you disparage him in my presence.”

“Disparage him? Excuse me? Have you met my father, Uncle Hauk? The man who smiles with a grimace and has perpetual PMS and an itchy trigger finger? Try dating with that…” When she spoke again, it was in a falsetto. “Why yes, hon, my father is the legendary killer with a higher body count than the top three League assassins combined. No, he’s not planning to eat you or hide your body, dear. That’s his version of a smile, and yes, we’re all well aware of the fact that he looks like he’s in extreme pain when he does it. Just don’t make any sudden moves and you might live long enough to get to the front door…” She made a shriek of indignation. “Really, I should just go ahead and join a convent now.”

Hauk snorted at her tirade. “Be glad you have a father who loves you.”

“I am delirious that he loves me. I just wish he’d loosen the noose once in a while so that I can breathe around the choke hold.”

Sumi swallowed hard as she realized who Thia’s father was. Given that tirade, there was only one male it could be. Nykyrian Quiakides. Crowned prince of both the Andarion and Triosan empires.