Page 55 of Seducing Jenny
They both went quiet, but Jac was clearly not happy with the situation.
“I was going to say, I’ll sendAbysswith you. She’s the most studied conduit we have. She knows the holy texts better than I ever could. If anyone can help Credo, it’s her, not me. So Jac—” she looked him dead in the eyes, “—stop panicking. I haven’t forgotten.”
Sensing the tension between the couple, Jade piped up. “What is going on?”
Sarah glanced at her sister. “Remember I told you that me, Deacon, and Jac agreed that I wouldn’t do any big magic?”
Jade nodded. “Yes.”
“Well, this would certainly qualify. And since I’ve been barely sleeping, these two are getting paranoid—”
“I am not paranoid,” Jac insisted, squeezing her hand. “But I’m not going to let you put yourself in harm’s way for a Bateen.”
She smiled at her companion, but there was steel in her eyes. “You do notletme do anything, and don’t forget, I’m a Bateen by blood.”
His jaw clenched. “Still not letting you put yourself in harm’s way,” he said beneath his breath.
She rolled her eyes at Jac’s overprotectiveness. “I’ll call Abyss.”
CHAPTER 16
Jenny
After meeting with Abyss, it was decided we’d spend the rest of the day in Sorellamore. Sneaking around Credo’s island would be easier under the cover of night. Jac and Abyss took Tiger and Mal on a tour of the manor, giving me and Sarah some time alone.
I dropped into the seat beside her that Jac had vacated and faced her. “Okay, what’s really going on?” I asked her, sensing something was off. “Jack and Deacon are not the paranoid type.”
My sister bit her bottom lip, then said, “Truth be told, they’re not being particularly paranoid,” she admitted.
Her pause stretched too long, and my stomach tightened. “Well? Out with it.”
Sarah shifted in her chair. “According to Chasm, who is more medically-minded than the rest of the conduits, the placenta has a tear—”
“Oh my god, what do we do?” NowIwas panicked. “What about Ode? Can’t she do something?”
“She agrees with Chasm,” Sarah said, more calmly than I felt. “She says surgery is inadvisable, even with their technology. Evidently, most of their tech was developed during wartime, so it was optimized for trauma care, not pregnancies. They say fetal cell division moves too fast for their scanners and tools to keep up.”
I held her hand and willed myself not to cry, because I didn’t want to upset her. “Why are you out of bed, then?”
“I’m not bleeding, so I’m okay for now. However, if that changes, then I’m on bedrest.” She didn’t look happy about the prospect. “I told them I might be able to modify myself internally, but literally everyone has made me promise not to do it. I don’t blame them for not trusting the process. I barely knew what I was doing when I did it the first time.”
I frowned at her, thoroughly confused. “Did what?”
She gave me a small, mischievous smile. “I used my contra abilities to shift my internal organs in a way that allows me to have…a moreelaboratesex life.”
My eyes widened, and I was intrigued. “What does that mean, exactly?”
“When me and Deacon and Jac first got together, well, they’re Ladrians,” she said, her face flushing a bit. “They’re big, everywhere, and accommodating them completely was impossible.”
I laughed. “Oh my god, I have the same problem when I’m in human form!”
“I hated feeling as though I couldn’t please them in a way that they were used to. So I moved things around to make it possible.” She grinned at me. “Want me to do that for you?”
As much as I wanted to sayhell yes, I gave her a stern look. “No magic, remember?”
“Nobigmagic is the agreement,” she said. “The shift was not difficult at all, once I became the conduits’ leader. It came with an infusion of abilities that I’m still exploring.”
I hesitated, beyond tempted, but nothing was worth risking her pregnancy. “Thanks, but I’ll wait until my niece or nephew is out.”
