Page 10 of Choosing Jenny
“Try again.”
“No,” he growled, teeth clenched. “Rationally speaking, would you rather face a palace full of guardsandthe palace magician, or would you rather face a handful of caretakers on an island on Halla?”
Discord’s anger simmered, visible in every line of her body. But I knew she wasn’t actually mad at Surge—she was mad at Justice, for putting Aphonic through hell. The same catatonic curse that had consumed Justice’s father was now working itsway through his consort, the woman who had cared for Discord like a daughter. Discord felt helpless, and that helplessness was eating her alive.
“I don’t know you well, Discord,” Sam interjected softly, “but you’ve always struck me as—”
“Don’t give me any ideas, Sam,” she said, her voice low with warning.
Sam visibly shrank from her, but stayed seated. “I don’t—”
“You’re right,” Discord said in a tight voice. “You don’t.” She stood up again and marched into the mansion, leaving us behind.
Sam’s eyes welled with tears. “Did I do something wrong?”
“No,” Surge said, as he took her hand in his. “Discord is just struggling right now. And she doesn’t know how to handle those feelings. I’m sorry she was rude to you.”
“I feel like I should go apologize—”
“Don’t,” Jenny said firmly. “She needs time to process her feelings, otherwise she’ll take her anger and frustration out on you even more.”
Surge arched an eyebrow at her. “You’re right, but how do you know that about Discord? It’s not like you know her all that well.”
“No,” Jenny admitted. “But she reminds me of my older sister, Elizabeth. Tall, gorgeous, emotionally prickly—”
“Able to kill a man with little effort?” Surge asked in a wry tone.
“The opposite, actually. Elizabeth is a nurse. A nurturer.” Jenny smiled faintly. “But when she gets upset, she shuts down. If you push her to talk before she’s ready? You’ll regret it for weeks. Best thing to do is wait until she comes to you. I have a feeling Discord’s the same way.”
I smiled at Jenny, having met her sister. “You’re prettier than Elizabeth.”
She gave a cute little snort-laugh, her face turning pink. “Oh my god, no, I’m not. You’re sweet, but you’re lying.”
“Not at all. No reason to lie.”
She wrapped her arms around mine and hugged me. “And you’re far more handsome than that bloody Ladrian we saw with Mal.”
I chuckled. “I’m over it.”I wasn’t.
“Good,” she said succinctly. “Because we have much bigger issues to deal with right now.”
I agreed and turned toward Surge. “If I had someone who could get you into the palace and back out again, do you think you can do the de-spelling?”
He hesitated, then nodded. “Well, yes, but could they get Aphonic out, too?”
“Possibly.” I mulled things over for a moment. “I need to make a call on a secure line.”
“Cheesecake’slines are super secure,” Jenny offered.
“Okay. If I tell them what we’re doing, without actually sayingwhatwe’re doing, I think I can make that work.”
“I’m coming with you,” Jenny said.
I smiled at my girlfriend. “I hoped you would.”
As we left for her ship, I prayed to the gods that my old boss wouldn’t be mad I was calling for help so close to his consort’s due date. I also hoped he might have some advice of a more personal nature.
CHAPTER 4
