I clear my throat. “And what about this Flame Goddess? Where does she come into it?”

He takes his time topping off his drink before answering. Then he sighs, a long soft sound that suggests the letting go of reluctance.

“The Flame is considered a Goddess by many of the species,” he says eventually. “Not all. The Shifters refuse to recognize it that way. For them, it’s a natural energy, like electricity or heat. The Anlu’kyr revere the Flame Goddess, so do the Fae. She has a temple dedicated to her in the Faelands. The High Priestess is a good friend of mine.”

Something in his voice alerts me to a deeper meaning. “A good friend, huh?”

Flanagan’s broad grin crinkles the edges of his eyes and lights his face. It makes him look even more handsome.

Where did that thought come from?

“Just a friend,” he says, taking another swallow of coffee. He scrapes off a splinter of wood and dusts it away. There’s something about this subject making him uncomfortable.

I push my plate aside and lean my elbow on the table.

“So, that tattoo. What does it mean? Why are you marked by this Goddess?”

Flanagan puts his cup down to fold his arms, muscles bunching. He looks out at the garden. “When I returned to the village, my wife had died from an illness, and my daughters had long since been abducted by the Anlu’kyr. To rescue them, I sought a favor from the temple. After I served them for one year and fulfilled a specific task, the High Priestess, Elwyn, granted me freedom from the moon’s curse and protection from any direct witchcraft.”

“So did you get your daughters back?”

His smile drops away. He brushes crumbs from his thigh. “That’s a long story, Michael. For another time, I think.” He pushes his plate away. “Have you finished? We should go.”

The relaxed mood we’ve fallen into shatters. “You said you’d answer my questions.”

“Later.”

“What happened at Longreach?”

Flanagan’s hands curl into fists. “Alexei’s forces hit the labs. He destroyed them and managed to abduct four Channelers. We also lost an important scientist and his technicians.”

“So he attacked the labs for the Channelers?”

“Longreach is where we treat rescued slaves for blood addiction, but it’s a new move. I don’t yet understand the change in tactics.” Flanagan looks at me as he says that last part.

“You don’t still think I’m in league with him, do you? For fuck’s sake, Flanagan—”

“I know you are not willingly his servant. But I believe you’re the instigation for this renewed engagement. And I don’t believe it is entirely to do with your half-breed status. At the steelworks, he relinquished you far too easily. I worry about his intentions, what his next move will be.”