Page 14 of Autumn Queens & Shadows

“Papa,” Rain screamed from somewhere in the garden and my brother faded and then returned with his little daughter in his arms.

He smacked a few big kisses on her round cheek. “Find your gloves and help me plant the tulips? Your uncle is not being useful.”

She nodded and sprinted to the shed to return with a pair of small gloves in her hand. Of course he’d gotten her into this whole business. “Uncle, put my gloves on,” she said, handing them to me. “Be useful.”

My brother was raising demons in the making. “Where is my please?” I asked.

She giggled and squealed when I pretended to bite at her fingers. “Please, uncle.”

“Well done, baby doll.”

Rain ran to Kil’s side and kneeled beside her father, watching him and poorly mimicking what he was doing. There was no containing Kil’s happiness. Not from his shadows, nor from his face that had lit up with a grin.

I glanced up at the hot skies again and frowned. “Where is Snow?”

“With uncle Nubil,” Rain said, trying to push a bunch of her dark hair away from her face and failing.

Kil pulled his gloves off and fixed her hair, securing the two tails tightly on top of her head. “Caelum. She’s sat in on a meeting with them.”

“Since when?” I asked, watching Rain sprint away to fetch the small pots of flowers from the green house.

My brother’s jaw almost snapped from how tight it was set. “A day ago.”

I raised a brow at him. “A whole day. How on Numen have you survived without wagging your tail at your wife for a whole day?”

A shadow knocked me hard behind my head. “That fucker needs to understand that our children miss her.”

I chuckled. “The children miss her, huh?”

“My, my,” Snow cooed, coming into the garden space. “Have I been summoned?”

Kil shot up to his feet, eyes wide. “You’re back.”

His wife frowned and glared at him. “Should you be so happy?”

My brother cleared his throat and tucked away his smile. “No, I shouldn’t, should I?”

I held back my laughter, and my brother shot me a quick glare.

“Well,” she said, looking around. “Will you not be greeting me either?”

Like that, Kil dropped everything and ran to her, gathering her body close to his and kissing her.

“Mother of skies,” I murmured to myself when he began all but eating her face and pressing himself to her.

“Mama,” Rain screamed once again, dropping the little flowerpot she carried and running to her parents.

Kil hoisted their little girl up and the three shared a long, long embrace. For a second, I almost felt bitter.

When I cleared my throat, my brother looked at me with some strange realisation, and then sat his daughter on my lap. “Will you stay with uncle, my little princess? Your ma and I need to…talk for a moment.”

Horny, lying piece of shit. “Don’t be too loud.”

He shot me a look over his shoulder and smirked. “I never raise my voice during arguments, brother. It’s her you got to tell,” the bastard said, pointing to his scowling wife who was about to undress him right then and there.

Before she could say anything, he pressed his mouth to hers and both faded out of sight.

“Is ma in trouble?” Rain asked, blinking those thick dark lashes at me. “Daddy gets really upset when she leaves.”