remained with them but with Stas, and she’d be excommunicated.
Or worse, he thought, looking at Skye.
Her blue eyes focused on him half a beat later, her dark lashes dropping as she blinked. “Oh. Yes. It’s time to discuss.”
“Time to discuss what, darling?” Ezekiel asked, his soft tone underlined in indulgence and reverence.
Why am I noticing inflections in voice now? Gabriel wondered idly, irritated by the change. He didn’t want to notice such things. Unless they could be useful in some way. He started to consider the prospect, only to be interrupted by Skye.
“My missing wings.” Her singsong voice matched the dreamy quality of her eyes as she gazed upward at the dark night. “I sometimes dream of them.” She twirled around with her eyes closed and sighed. “Freedom mattered more to me than my wings.”
“The council told me they removed them as a punishment. I didn’t realize that was possible.”
“There’s a lot they don’t tell you,” she replied softly, her sapphire gaze landing on him. “You believe they work with the Fates, that they keep us sequestered away from the others to protect us.” She smiled, but it held a touch of sadness. “Is it considered a partnership when there’s no choice in who you serve?”
Gabriel considered that. “No. It isn’t.” Then he looked at Ezekiel. “Did you know she was a Seraphim?”
The long-haired assassin lifted a shoulder, his trademark leather jacket crinkling with the movement. “I knew she came from your world and that she wasn’t an Ichorian.”
“And you never thought to mention that?”
“I asked him not to,” Skye said. “It wasn’t time yet. But now you finally know, and we can truly begin.”
“Truly begin what?” Gabriel asked, his eyebrow twitching with the urge to arch. He ignored the sensation, keeping his face bored.
“The future, of course.” She walked over to her snowman to twist the carrot nose just a little. “Now it’s perfect. Let’s go inside, Ezekiel. I’m starting to shiver.”
He pulled off his jacket to wrap it around her shoulders, then led her toward the front door. Gabriel followed because he didn’t know what else to do.
“What does the future hold?” he asked, wanting more information.
“Change” was all she said before shaking the snow from her dark strands and rushing over to the fire. Ezekiel watched her with an indulgent smile that had Gabriel wanting to slap some sense into him. He was too busy mooning over the girl to help clarify her cryptic statements.
How she’d brought such a formidable male to his knees, Gabriel would never understand. He’d never allow a female to leash him in such a way. It just served no practical purpose. And he liked his independence.
He also enjoyed controlling his senses and emotions. It helped him focus on what was important—like finding out what the hell Skye meant by “change.”
“What kind of change?” he asked as she bent to tend to the fire glowing in the living area.
Owen and Jacque had either teleported somewhere or had stepped out through the back door of the house because they were no longer here. Gabriel would have to bring them up to speed when they returned. Just like his mother and Sethios, who were still upstairs.
“The needed kind,” Skye said, straightening and wrapping Ezekiel’s jacket tighter around her. “We’ve been controlled for so long. It’s time for everyone to choose their own freedom.” She faced him, her eyes clearer than usual. “Did they tell you what I was punished for? Why they removed my wings?”
“No.”
She nodded. “There were two destinies; I wasn’t sure which path you took. You picked your mother over your father. A wise choice.”
He didn’t need her confirmation to know it was the right decision on his part, but he dipped his chin nonetheless. “Why did they remove your wings?”
“Because I didn’t conform,” she replied. “They group the Fates into circles to predict certain outcomes. And I refused to focus on the outcome assigned to me. So, my wings were removed. But what they didn’t realize was I’d chosen my path with a purpose. Wingless Fates are scarcely monitored because they can’t mist. I used that to my advantage to flee.”
Her lips curled down, her blue eyes shifting to Ezekiel.
“Unfortunately, my chosen destiny morphed when Osiris learned of my unprecedented escape. And so, I ended up in his captivity.” She shrugged then as though unbothered by the twist of fate. “I will be free. One day.”