Chapter 106: Chapter 106: Powerful family

Dax raised a brow with a dangerous smile on his face. One that promised mocking, out of his deranged sense of love.

“Five minutes,” Dax repeated, as if tasting the number. “How generous.”

Chris made a soft sound that was half laugh, half warning. “Dax.”

Dax finally glanced at him, the look in his eyes the opposite of mean – fond, amused, entirely too pleased to be in a room where nobody was performing. “What? I’m agreeing.”

Marianne let out a low laugh from her armchair, relieved and delighted by the return of something human. Daniel’s hand rested gently on the back of her chair.

Trevor’s mouth twitched once, then he thought better and grinned. Lucas’s expression stayed sharp, but the tension in his shoulders eased by a fraction, like he was allowing himself to exist without armor for a minute.

Sirius, watching Dax with the calm of someone who could take a joke and throw one back harder, lifted his brows.

“Since we’re counting mercy in minutes,” Sirius said mildly, “did you let Nero take charge of Saha while you were in Palatine, or did you at least lock the throne room?”

Chris choked.

Dax’s smile widened immediately, bright with amusement. “He’s fine.”

Ethan’s eyes narrowed with the slow, delighted interest of a man watching chaos circle the room. “Define fine.”

Marianne sat up a little straighter. “Oh, please tell me Nero is currently unsupervised.”

Chris put a hand over his mouth, eyes sparkling with horror and pride. “He’s not unsupervised. He has a staff.”

Dax’s expression remained serenely confident. “A very experienced staff.”

Sirius’s mouth curved. “Staff that survived Dax. Staff that survived Chris. And now the staff has to survive both of you combined in one theatrical, chaotic heir who looks exactly like a younger Dax but with longer hair and an ego that thinks it’s a stage light.”

Dax blinked once, offended on principle. “His hair is distinguished.”

Chris’s eyes glittered. “His hair is a weapon.”

Trevor finally exhaled a quiet laugh. “Is he behaving?”

Chris’s smile turned sweet and ominous. “He is behaving in the way Nero behaves.”

Lucas translated without missing a beat. “So no.”

Marianne looked delighted. “What did he do?”

Dax lifted a hand, as if this was all very normal and not an international incident waiting to happen. “Nothing.”

Sirius stared at him, unimpressed. “That’s a lie.”

Dax’s mouth twitched. “It’s not a lie. It’s selective reporting.”

Ethan leaned back slightly, amused. “What did he do?”

Chris sighed, long-suffering and affectionate at once. “He insisted on delivering a ’message of condolences’ to the nation.”

Marianne’s eyes widened. “No.”

Chris nodded. “Yes.”

Dax’s expression remained calm. “It was heartfelt.”

Sirius’s brows lifted, his blue eyes gleaming with amusement. “Was it also broadcast?”

Chris’s eyes closed for half a second. “Of course it was broadcast.”

Marianne made a sound that was pure joy. Daniel’s mouth twitched, the closest he ever got to a grin in public.

Trevor rubbed his temple like he could already hear the headache. “How bad?”

Chris opened his eyes again, resigned. “He wore black. He looked devastating. He quoted something dramatic. And then he promised the nation that their ’radiant future’ would be protected.”

Lucas raised a pale brow, not very impressed by what should have been scandalous. “That sounds… acceptable.”

Chris’s smile turned dangerous. “And then he added, ’If anyone tries to destabilize the kingdom while my fathers are away, I will personally make it entertaining.’”

Silence.

Then Marianne laughed out loud, genuinely, bright and unrestrained.

Sirius leaned back in his chair, satisfied. “So you did let Nero run the kingdom.”

Dax’s eyes warmed with pride he didn’t even try to hide. “He did well.”

Ethan shook his head slowly, amused despite himself. “That is not what I would call well.”

Chris shrugged with theatrical resignation. “It’s what we call on brand.”

Sirius’s mouth curved, and the edge of pretended grief that had hung in the room since the cathedral finally loosened.

“You are talking about my heir,” Dax said, grin widening, “but where are yours?”

Trevor made a small sound that was halfway between a laugh and a warning. “Don’t start.”

Dax looked delighted. “I’m starting.”

Lucas’s gaze slid to Dax, flat. “You’re always starting.”

Dax’s grin didn’t falter. “Because it’s entertaining.”

Sirius leaned back in his chair; the emperor mask relaxed just enough to show a person underneath it. “Zion is preparing to leave,” he said. “He’ll be in Alamina.”

Ethan’s mouth twitched faintly. “As a representative.”

“As a representative,” Sirius repeated, deadpan enough that the room understood exactly what kind of ’representation’ this was. “For Arion and Dean’s engagement party.”

Chris’s expression softened with immediate understanding. “Ah. So Zion is doing the same thing Nero will be doing.”

Dax’s grin turned proud. “Nero will be there. Officially.”

“Officially,” Chris echoed, sweetly. “As part of Saha’s delegation. Unofficially, to see his friends and show off his hair.”

Dax nodded once, mockingly solemn. “The hair is important.”

Marianne let out a quiet laugh, amused. “So the heirs are using the party as a summit.”

Daniel’s voice was calm. “They were going to find an excuse anyway.”

Trevor exhaled slowly, and some of the tension he’d carried out of the cathedral finally loosened. “Sebastian is going.”

Lucas’s mouth curved slightly, pride cutting through the fatigue. “And Dean will be there, obviously. He can’t exactly skip his own engagement.”

Chris’s brows lifted. “So both Fitzgeralt sons. That’s brave of Alamina.”

Trevor’s tone was dry. “Alamina will survive. Probably.”

Lucas added, with the quiet confidence of a man who knew exactly how sharp his children were, “Sebastian will behave in public.”

“And cause problems in private,” Chris supplied, pleased.

Trevor didn’t deny it. “Yes.”

Marianne’s eyes brightened. “And Thomas is already in Alamina.”

Lucas’s gaze flicked to her. “Thomas is there early?”

Marianne nodded once, a hint of pride slipping through. “It’s his rotation. He’s helping Arion with the beasts.”

Daniel’s hand rested lightly on the back of Marianne’s chair, steady and approving. “Duty and training.”

Chris’s smile sharpened. “And convenient timing.”

Marianne’s mouth curved. “Very convenient timing.”

Sirius’s eyes flicked to Ethan, amused. “So Zion arrives, Nero arrives, Sebastian arrives…”

Lucas finished it calmly, as if listing a weather forecast. “And they all ’happen’ to be there at the same time.”

Dax’s grin widened. “Perfect.”

Trevor leaned back slightly, the shape of the conversation settling into something that looked almost like family planning instead of international power.

“They want to see each other,” Trevor said, simpler than politics. “That’s the truth.”

Ethan nodded once. “Good.”

Chris’s voice softened by a fraction. “Better than the alternative.”

Lucas’s gaze went colder for a moment, the memory of Caelan’s greed still sharp. “Yes,” he said. “Much better. Now, about the dead devil…”

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