Those most unexpected words left her completely breathless. Was he implying…

She closed her gaping jaw. “Excuse me?”

Nero gave her a lopsided grin. “For the baby’s sake, you need to rest, and yes, I’m exactly what you’re thinking I am.”

Trisani. A chill went down her spine. She’d never met one before. Few people had since they’d been hunted to the brink of extinction. But everyone knew about their legendary psychic abilities. Abilities that were so great, most of them were killed in their youth before they could develop them. Others were kept as drugged slaves and ruthlessly used. An even larger number of them had been experimented on to the point they willed themselves dead.

Now they were an endangered species.

Nero turned toward Syn. “Can you give us a few?”

“Sure. I need to see about a bed for her anyway.” Syn left them alone.

Nero folded his arms over his chest. “And to answer your earlier question from the waiting room, Darling’s my cousin. But only Syn knows that, and only because of Darling’s surgeries. We had to tell him since he needed to know exactly what he was dealing with whenever he operated on Darling. Due to the hostility toward our people, it’s not something we ever talk about.”

“Then Darling knows he’s partially Trisani?”

He nodded. “Don’t fret, though. Darling’s a good eighty to ninety percent human, genetically. He has just enough of our DNA to screw with his metabolism and genetics. But that’s a good thing. It’s the only reason he wasn’t hurt worse by what the Resistance did to him. Had he been fully human, he wouldn’t have survived it.”

While she was grateful Darling was still alive, those words hit her hard. Had he been completely human, he would never have been forced to endure so much. “Can you tell me what’s going to—”

“No,” Nero said, cutting her off. “My powers don’t work that way. The future is in constant flux and I don’t have the ability to pinpoint the decisions you’ll make that impact it. I can see several outcomes, but I won’t know which one is correct until it comes into being.”

That made sense, but she hated that he couldn’t tell her what would happen. “Which is why you’re telling me to rest.”

“Exactly. And I can tell you what is fact. Such as, Darling loves you more than anything. I know you love him the same.”

Those words should make her happy and yet…“Why do I have a bad feeling there’s a but in your tone?”

“You know the but.” His voice was eerily calm and distant. “It haunts every second you breathe.” Nero looked down at Darling. “He has the ability to be the greatest governor in Caronese history. But he will step down to keep you with him. Drake’s not old enough to lead yet, and Ryn can’t lead because of his mother’s bloodline.”

“Could you?”

Nero shook his head. “I’m related to him on his mother’s side.”