Page 32 of Winterfall Destiny

Andrei rolls onto his side, propping his face with a hand, elbow on the grass. "Maybe he should worry."

"Andrei." Maeve kicks him with her bare foot. "Sorry, Ethan. I thought Tobias told Dorian."

"Yeah, don't you think Dorian would be with us if he knew?" asks Ethan. He strides over to Andrei. "Stand up."

"I'm sorry?" asks Andrei with a slight sneer to his voice.

"I want to look at you." Andrei doesn't move and Ethan looks at Maeve. "What's the kid like now? Attacked anybody?"

"Have you seen the First again yet?" puts in Zeke.

"I'm still the Andrei that you all know and love or hate," he says, his voice not sounding like that Andrei at all. "I've no murderous desires. Well, apart from towards my mother and her little minions."

"Is he telling the truth?" asks Zeke.

Ethan gazes around. "Where are the other two? What are you hiding now?"

"Jamie and Tobias went out," explains Maeve.

"Where?" asks Ethan sharply.

She shrugs. "We're not prisoners, but we're all bored stuck here waiting until our London plans are sorted."

Zeke's focus on Andrei doesn't waver, his eyes now feline slits. "I hope he hasn't been out amongst humans."

"Nah. I'm saving that big reveal to shock Mother Dearest's troops once we catch up with them." Finally, he stands and brushes grass from himself. "I don't feel the need for blood, if that's what you're hinting at."

"He's barely away from the lawn," puts in Maeve. "No threat to anybody."

Ethan steps back and scrutinises Andrei, gaze lingering on his eyes and then Andrei's bare arms. "Trying to get a tan?"

"Ha ha. No. But at least I'm not as shiny as I was."

Andrei steps back as Ethan closes the small space between them. "What are you now, Tepes?"

"A daywalker."

"You're part something else. Is the First communicating with you?" he demands. "Zeke—Dorian needs to know. We need him or Eloise to look into his head."

"Tobias has. Several times," puts in Maeve and stands too. "There's nothing."

"Excuse me!" Andrei pokes her in the side. "Are you saying I'm empty-headed?"

Andrei jokes around more than he did in the weeks leading up to the incident. Before all this, he'd become moodier and withdrawn, no longer hiding his feelings behind the familiar sarcasm barrier to distract people from him.

That's back. The guy's scared because he's no clue what he'll become.

I bloody would be too. At least I've a good idea what I'll become.

"Maybe leave speaking about all this until everybody's here?" suggests Maeve. "You're here to speak to Ash about other issues, right?"

Zeke's intensity grows, and I'm on edge whether one of them will test out Andrei's new self or—worse—rush off to fetch Dorian. They'd piss me off if they did bring Dorian here because he'd cause drama, and I need to talk to Ethan.

Ethan grunts and turns away. "I suggest you get your guy who thinks he's leader to communicate with ours who thinks he's in charge, too."

I can't help smiling.

"Yeah, you know if Dorian finds you've hidden this, he will go full asshole mode and appear at the house uninvited," says Zeke. "We won't tell him but get Tobias to speak to him tonight."

---