Niniane rested her head on her forearms, refusing to look anybody in the eye. “So the way I see it, I can have an abortion and go back to Adriyel like nothing’s happened,” she said dully. “Or I can have the baby in secret, give it up and go back to Adriyel like nothing’s happened.”

Covering her mouth with one hand, Pia met Dragos’s gaze then closed her eyes. The pain involved in those two choices was terrible to contemplate.

“Or I can have the baby openly, declare it my heir, and make it a target for assassination attempts its entire life, because the Dark Fae are xenophobic, racist shits, and gods forbid that a half-breed of any kind lay claim to their precious shitty throne.” Niniane took an unsteady breath. “Or I can abdicate and have the baby…and still make it a target for assassination attempts its entire life, because it will have a legitimate claim to the throne, and gods forbid that would ever happen. And I don’t know how to tell Tiago. I did not behave well that night, and it’s easy to tell someone you love about something you’re proud of. It’s lot harder to tell them something you’re ashamed of.”

Aryal stirred. “That’s okay, you don’t have to tell him. I already did.”

Niniane’s head shot up. “You what?”

The harpy looked unrepentant. “I went upstairs, borrowed Eva’s cell phone, and called Tiago. He’s going to be here in the next half hour. He’s really mad, but he might calm down some by the time he gets here.”

“I can’t even look at you right now!” Niniane exclaimed.

“Oh, come on, I did you a favor. You just said you didn’t know how to tell him. Problem solved. You’re welcome. You never should have kept him out of it to begin with.”

“It wasn’t any of your business!”

Aryal opened her eyes wide. “I’m standing right here, aren’t I? You made it my business when you asked me to fly you two hours north.”

Niniane roared, “THAT’S NOT THE SAME THING, YOU JACKASS!”

As the two broke into an impassioned argument, Pia pinched the bridge of her nose and closed her eyes. She said telepathically to Dragos, Does Aryal ever do anything she’s actually supposed to do?

Right now, I’m having a tough time remembering anything.

Remind me to never tell her anything in confidence.

Aryal has her strengths. She’s a relentless investigator, and there is nobody more loyal, vicious, or creative thinking in a battle, but she’s a disaster when it comes to interpersonal matters. If you need to be reminded of that, then you’re in a lot more trouble than either of us can help. He pulled out Aryal’s cell phone, crushed it in one fist and set the mangled piece on the table.