So by saving me, you condemned our son to a life you hate?
Yes. His gaze met mine, blue eyes hard. Better the life of a Mijai than no life, Risa.
It would have been better to have left things as they were meant to be – both of us dead. But then, if the Raziq had the power to call my soul back into this world, what was to stop them doing the same to my son? I might not agree with what Azriel had done, but I could certainly understand his reasons. Now that he'd actually explained them, that is.
I snagged another piece of pizza. "So, I guess the next thing we have to do is go see if we can get into that warehouse near Stane's."
"And if we can't?"
"Then unless dear old Dad comes through with a key to get into his quarters in the temples, I'm fresh out of ideas."
He studied me for a moment, then said, "What of your uncle?"
I frowned. "What of him?"
"Did he not study to become a priest?"
My confusion grew. "Yes, but that's not going to help us get into my father's quarters."
"Maybe, maybe not," Azriel replied. "But it is very rare for a half Aedh to undergo priest training, and that alone suggests he's more than likely extremely powerful."
Which was something I'd never really thought about before. I mean, sure, I knew he'd undergone training, but it had never struck me to ask why a half-breed had even been allowed near the temples. Unless, of course, the priests were in short supply even back then.
"Powerful or not, from what my father said, we won't be getting into his and Lucian's quarters without some sort of access code." I finished the slice of pizza and licked a few cheese remnants off my fingers. "Besides, we don't need Uncle Quinn to get into the temples. You can do that, can't you?"
"I can, yes, but it is unlikely I would be able to access the inner sanctums, and that is no doubt where your father's quarters are. Only the initiates are quartered in the outer rings, and we Mijai rarely have need to go any farther."
So once again my father hadn't been completely honest. What a surprise. "I really don't want to involve Uncle Quinn, if only because it'll drag Riley into the equation."