Annabella stepped through the portal and into her home.
The fortress rose around her, its walls protected by layers of wards. Servants greeted her in the entrance hall and ushered her inside. Cornwell, the head steward, fell into step beside her.
"The young master is in a mood, my lady," he said cautiously. "He is bickering with the head of security."
Annabella sighed, gathering her hair into a ponytail as she quickened her pace. "Can they not save this for another day? Of all days, today?"
She pushed open the doors.
Spells streaked across the room in flashes of light. An overturned chair lay near the windows, two cushions had caught fire, and the head of security was ducking a succession of bright bolts while chasing a small figure around the furniture.
The boy stood at the centre of the chaos, grinning as he flung another spell.
"You're a pain in the ass!" She snapped, vaulting over a chair.
"What ass?"the boy shot back. "You're flatter than a pan. You might as well be sitting on bone."
"You foul-mouthed little demon! I'll wash that mouth out with the Sisters of Light's bathwater!"
"That's disgusting!"
The head of security lunged, caught him by the ankles, and hoisted him upside down.
"Why do you have to be so unruly? Your mother is reasonable. Your father is reasonable. You must have been adopted."
The boy calmly flicked his fingers. Frost spread across her eyebrows.
"I look too much like my mother and my ancestors to be adopted," he said, still dangling upside down.
Annabella watched from the doorway, one arm folded across her waist, the other hand pressed to her temple.
"Enough."
Her power swept through the room.
Lyz froze mid-step, the boy still dangling from her hands. Annabella raised one hand, and he floated gently out of Lyz's grip and into her arms. With a careless turn of her wrist, she released Lyz from the spell and melted the frost from her face.
"You've caused enough trouble for one day,"Annabella told her son. Her voice was quiet, but there was no mistaking the warning in it. "I don't want to hear another word."
The boy glanced at the vein pulsing at her temple.
He knew his mother's gentleness had limits. She would cuddle him, indulge him, and patiently answer a hundred questions—but she would also punish him without hesitation if he pushed too far. On a particularly bad day, she might even send him flying into another realm.
He wrapped his arms around her neck and nodded, his lower lip jutting out in a practiced pout.
Annabella held him close, then turned to the head of security.
"And you. How old are you?"
"You cannot be serious!"She protested. "Don't let those hugs fool you. He deserves to be punished."
Annabella ran a hand through her son's hair. His eyelids were already growing heavy.
"Not in front of him, Lyz."
Lyz stared at her for a moment, clearly unconvinced. Then she snatched up her sword and stormed out.
Annabella carried him to his room, where the servants had already prepared his bath. She dismissed them and settled him into the warm water herself, washing the dust from his skin, healing his cuts and bruises while asking him the sort of simple questions that kept him talking.
Had he enjoyed himself today? What had he done? Had he been good?
The last question earned her an immediate, indignant protest.
He told her everything about his adventures with Bad Adult, from the games they had played to the trouble they had managed to find. His hands moved as quickly as his mouth, sending little ripples racing across the water.
Annabella listened, too tired to correct his choice of name.
When he began shaping the water into floating spheres, she raised a hand and transformed them into tiny clouds of warm mist. They drifted above the bath, catching the light. He burst into giggles as she sent them bobbing around his head.
For the first time that evening, Annabella laughed.
She dried him, helped him into his nightgown, and tucked him beneath the covers. He wriggled into his pillows, still fighting sleep.
"When will I see Bad Adult again?" he mumbled.
"Wouldn't you rather see your father?"
The boy's smile faded.
"Father is always busy. He never plays with me." He picked at the edge of his blanket. "I don't think he likes me very much."
Something tightened behind Annabella's ribs. She smoothed his hair away from his forehead and climbed into bed beside him, curling around his small body.
"No father hates his son," she murmured. "Your father loves you in his own way."
The boy remained unconvinced, but he nestled closer when she kissed the top of his head.
"And as for uhm... Bad Adult," she added, "I have a surprise for you."
His eyes opened a little wider.
"What surprise?"
"You'll have to wait."
He tried to protest, but the words dissolved into a yawn. Within moments, he was asleep against her, one hand curled into the fabric of her robe.
Annabella stayed until his breathing settled into an even rhythm. Then she eased herself from the bed, drew the covers over his shoulder, and left the room without making a sound.
Annabella's chambers occupied the eastern wing of the fortress, spacious enough. Annabella showered and changed into a robe. The warmth lingered on her skin as she sat before the mirror and worked fragrant oil into her arms and legs, her movements slow and absent-minded.
When she finished, she studied her reflection.
Her body had changed remarkably little. The same familiar lines, the same face looking back at her. Yet she could still remember carrying another life inside her: the strange weight of it, the quiet intimacy, the knowledge that her body had become a home for someone who did not yet exist anywhere else.
It felt impossibly distant.
And impossibly recent.
Her gaze shifted to the portrait of her son on the table.
For a while, she simply looked at it. Then she rubbed the remaining oil from her palms and spoke without turning around.
"I thought you wouldn't come."
Lyz appeared in the doorway.
She entered, strolling into the room as though it were perfectly ordinary for her to be there
"I won't spend the night alone because Georgie is cockblocking me by acting crazy
Annabella arched an eyebrow, still working the oil into her palms. "And what makes you think I want you in my bed?"
Lyz smirked and came to stand behind her. "You could always ask nicely."
She leaned closer, close enough that Annabella could feel her breath brushed the curve of Annabella's neck. Then she seductively raised her eyes to meet Lyz's and slightly turn, Just as their lips were about to meet, Annabella reached for her lip balm, smoothing it across her mouth with unhurried strokes while maintaining eye contact with Lyz. "You're too harsh with Georgie," she murmured.
Lyz exhaled a laugh, flat and a little breathless, and crossed to the drinks cabinet. She poured herself a glass of wine and reached for a second glass.
"You're spoiling him," she said, attempting to fill the other.
"Not tonight." Annabella rose from the vanity and crossed to the table. "I'm not in the mood."
Lyz took a sip. "You're always saying that when I'm right."
Annabella sat in the chair opposite her, crossing one leg over the other. The silk parted along her thigh, and she made no effort to cover it. A faint smile played at the corner of her mouth.
"That child listens to no one. Not even me. And I spent two years in Sagan time growing his ears in my womb. You'd think he might have inherited some respect."
"Perhaps he inherited your stubbornness instead."
"Perhaps he inherited it from someone else."
The words came softer than she meant, and something sad passed over her face before she buried it.
Lyz finished her wine, set the glass down, and crossed the room. She stopped before Annabella's crossed legs, close enough that the edge of the robe brushed her trousers.
Lyz reached for her.
Annabella released a quiet pulse of power.
Lyz's knees hit the carpet before she could catch herself.
She stared up, stunned, then laughed, a shaky, breathless sound. Annabella leaned forward with one elbow on the arm of the chair, her purple eyes gleaming.
"I understand my son can be a lot for you," she said, her voice low and silky. "But we're a package deal."
Lyz swallowed, her hands braced on her thighs. The teasing had left her hard and aching. "I'll try to be more forgiving."
"Will you?"Annabella studied her, violet eyes gleaming. "Then perhaps you've earned something."
"I thought that was off the table."
Annabella's smile deepened. She stretched out one bare foot and pressed it lightly to Lyz's shoulder, then nudged her back until she sat on the carpet. Lyz went willingly, eyes never leaving her.
Annabella rose. She took her time, letting the robe slide from one shoulder, then stopped and looked down at the woman waiting at her feet.
"I like you like this," she said. "Docile."
Lyz's breath caught.
Annabella untied the sash with a single slow tug. The silk fell open, then slipped away entirely and pooled around her ankles. She stood there a moment in the lamplight, letting Lyz look, letting her hunger build.
Then she stepped forward Unhurried.
"Ah, ah." Annabella lowered herself into Lyz's lap, straddling her, and rolled her hips once, slowly, just enough pressure to make Lyz's head fall back and her breath break. Then she stopped.
So hard," she murmured. "Does it ache?"
"Yes," Lyz breathed.
"Good."
Lyz gasped. Her arms locked around Annabella's waist, trembling. For all her swagger, she was shaking, her gaze fixed on Annabella's breasts, desperate to worship them.
"Hands," Annabella said.
Lyz's hands flattened on the carpet. Annabella tilted her head, and a thread of magic slid around Lyz's wrists, light as silk, and drew them behind her back. Lyz exhaled shakily.
"Patience,"Annabella whispered, catching Lyz's chin in two fingers and lifting her face. She rolled her hips once, slowly, and watched Lyz's eyes flutter. "You'll enjoy what you're given."
She began unbuttoning the white shirt, one button at a time, her knuckles grazing bare skin with each one. When it fell open, she slid her palms up over Lyz's ribs, then her breasts, thumbs circling until Lyz arched into her touch with a broken sound.
"Annabella—"
"Hush."
She pushed the shirt from Lyz's shoulders and bent to press her mouth just below her ear, then along her jaw, then lower, trailing slow, open-mouthed kisses down her throat. Her teeth grazed the pulse at the base of Lyz's neck, light enough to tease, then she soothed the spot with her tongue.
Lyz bit her lip, trembling. Annabella cupped her face and tilted it up, then leaned in until their mouths were a breath apart and held there. Lyz lifted toward her. Annabella drew back by exactly the same distance.
"You want this badly," Annabella whispered against the corner of her mouth.
"You know I do."
"Show me how badly."
She dissolved the magic at Lyz's wrists. Lyz's hands came forward instantly and gripped Annabella's hips, then froze.
"You can touch me," Annabella murmured against her skin. "Don't be greedy."
Lyz's hands slid up her breasts, her thumbs circling the swollen nipples.
Annabella's head fell back with a soft, unguarded moan. Lyz dragged in a ragged breath. She started rocking forward, a hard but slow grind that drew a whimper from Annabella. When Lyz's hips began to chase it, Annabella pulled away and settled lightly on her thighs, out of reach.
"Not yet."
"Please," Lyz said. It broke in the middle.
She tilted Lyz's face up panting and kissed her, deep and slow, tasting the wine on her tongue. Then she pulled back, her thumb tracing Lyz's swollen lower lip.
"You'll have to earn it," she whispered, and her eyes were dark with promise. "I intend to take my time with you tonight."
Some time later, Lyz lay on her back on the carpet, chest heaving, trousers tangled around her knees. Every muscle in her body was still drawn tight, and her skin was slick with sweat. Annabella stood over her, naked and unhurried, taking a slow sip of wine. She looked down at Lyz with a small, satisfied smile.
"Gods," Lyz rasped, staring at the ceiling. "You rode me like ...never before." She dragged a hand down her face and let out a shaky laugh. "I can still feel you squeezing me. Were you in a mood tonight? Don't get me wrong, I loved every second. But you were somewhere else for part of it."
Annabella smirked. She gathered a shawl around her shoulders and settled on the edge of the bed, crossing one leg over the other.
"I was in a mood. That's all."
Lyz gave her a sceptical look.
Annabella took another sip of wine. "Something strange happened today."
Lyz pulled up her trousers and rolled onto her stomach, propping her chin on her hands. The languor had already left her face. Whatever else she might be, Lyz was never slow to recognise when a conversation had become work.
"What happened?"
Annabella turned the glass slowly between her fingers, her free hand resting at the base of her throat.
"I met Callen and Gabrielle."
Lyz's expression sharpened. "What are they after this time?"
"The usual."A wry smile touched Annabella's mouth. "Trying to improve the lives of their people. Admirable, really."
Lyz waited. Annabella had never been one to mistake a preamble for an answer.
"Something is wrong with Callen,"Annabella continued. "He feels different."
Lyz pushed herself upright, walked to the bed and sat beside her.
"He disappeared for a year and only resurfaced recently. Something must have happened to him."
"I doubt it's that simple." Annabella took another sip
She studied the wine in her glass. Callen had always been easy enough to read, even when he tried to hide behind his awkwardness. The man she had encountered today carried himself differently. He had reacted in a way that made little sense.
It was a small thing. Small things, however, were often where the truth began to show.
"Have him watched,"she said. "Carefully."
"I'll put eyes on his estate."
"Not his home." Annabella held out her glass, and Lyz took it. "Watch his surroundings. Find out whether he's been in contact with the Butcher."
Lyz's brows drew together.
"He was about to sell me information about the identity of the butcher the last time we spoke," Annabella continued. "Since then, nothing. Now Callen returns, acting as though that never happened. That's what bothers me. Track the Butcher's movements. Compare them with Callen's return. I want to know who he's been meeting, where he's been going, and whether anyone has been helping him stay out of sight."
Lyz drank. "If we've got a spy on our hands, why not just get rid of him?"
Annabella laughed softly and drew her knees up to her chest, resting her head on one hand. The shawl slipped from her shoulder, and her purple eyes gleamed in the lamplight.
"Because I'm bored," she said. "And I'd like to play a little."
Lyz's mouth curved into a slow smile.
Annabella looked almost angelic, wrapped in her shawl, her hair loose around her shoulders and her expression serenely amused. Lyz had seen that look before. It never ended well for the person who had caught Annabella's attention.
"You're going to make a mess of this," Lyz murmured.
"Probably."
"And you'll enjoy every second."
"Almost certainly."
Lyz shook her head, smiling into the wine.
Annabella reached for the glass, but Lyz held it just beyond her fingertips.
"Anything else, my lady?"
Annabella lifted her gaze to hers.
"Don't be greedy...Once is enough."
Lyz handed her the wine.
She knew better than to mistake Annabella's amusement for carelessness. Whatever Callen was hiding, Annabella had decided to give him room to reveal it himself.
And that, Lyz suspected, was far more dangerous than having him executed outright.