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“When you were with Isis, it wasn’t so frightening. I knew you were safe with Her. But this last time…” She shuddered, fresh tears spilling free. “I felt your suffering as they died, yet all I could wish for was that I could die too. So I could be with you on the other side.”

“You will have an heir someday, remember? She will need you. But once she’s grown, if you still wish to come with me when I die, we will make it so.”

She breathed a little steadier and nodded. “I do want to continue Oya’s legacy.”

“Exactly.” I gently pulled her up to sit beside me in the chair, keeping an arm around her, her head resting beneath my chin. Then I glanced around my gathered family. “The events of the past twenty-four hours have crystalized a few things in my mind as being of the utmost priority.

“First of all, I greatly value every single one of you. I’d like to offer my blood to any of my human staff who wish to make such a commitment to me and House Isador. Please let me stress it’s not required to keep your position. However, I do find it useful to be able to send messages without needing to speak or rely on technology. If Gina, Frank, and Kevin hadn’t been carrying my blood today, I don’t know that I would still be here.”

Gina squeezed Frank’s hand. “Your blood pulled us straight to you, my queen. We knew you were in trouble. Immediately.”

“Just so we’re clear, there’s a special clause in their contracts that I also don’t expect or require any of you to add to yours, if you do wish to accept my blood.”

“What does it do?” Regina gave a sheepish shrug under our attention. “Sorry, I’m new to all of this.”

I waited for one of my humans to answer, since I really couldn’t say how it might affect her.

“When I first tasted our queen’s blood, I felt like I could taste colors,” Kevin said. “Everything is more vivid, sharper, every detail of every plant and leaf, stone and clump of dirt, simply glows with energy. It’s like I can see the energy or aura in every living thing now.”

“Any natural gift you have will be amplified,” Gina added. “Humans with any natural psychic abilities will get stronger. Healers, reiki workers, herbalists would see a spike in their understanding and natural abilities to blend herbs or pull negative energies from the body. And of course, the more of the Mother’s blood we carry, the longer we will live. Grandma Paula was still as sharp as ever at one-hundred years and lived to be one-hundred-thirty-nine years old. Though she’s probably rolling over in her grave that I’m telling her secret.”

“Not at all.” Leonie lifted her head, her lips curving with amusement. “She’s cackling with glee.”

“For me, it will give me access to your thoughts,” I said. “I will be able to speak directly into your head. I will know if you’re plotting to betray me.” My jaw tightened, my voice sliding toward steel. “And you’ve all seen how I deal with betrayers. I don’t expect any of you to betray me but take that as your warning if you do.”

Almost like they’d choreographed their movements in advance, Winston, Magnum, and Harvey all stepped closer and bowed before me. Though Magnum curtsied.

“It’s a very great honor,” Winston said gravely. “Which I eagerly accept, Your Majesty.”

“It will be an honor to add your blood to both of your mothers’.” Magnum inclined her head with an elegant smirk. “Don’t ask how old I am and expect a straight answer.”

My throat ached as I nodded. “I suspected, given your position in the Park Avenue house.”

“My father and grandfather before him carried your mothers’ blood, Your Majesty.” Harvey dabbed at his eyes with an elegant handkerchief and gave me a wide smile. “I’ve hoped I might carry a minuscule drop of Isador blood but now I will know for sure.”

I held my palm out for Itztli to make a small cut and then offered my hand to Winston. He dropped to his knees before me and cradled my hand in both of his gnarled hands. “Thank you, Your Majesty. I will honor you and House Isador until my last breath.”

He pressed his mouth to my hand, taking a few swallows. When he raised his head, his eyes twinkled merrily with new mischief. “Most impressive, Your Majesty. I think I may ask your knight to show me how to use a sword now, so I can graduate up from flamethrowers.”

“Twould be a pleasure, Winston,” Guillaume said.

Winston rose and backed away so Magnum and Harvey could taste my blood as well. Then Julie and Regina both came to kneel before me, though I didn’t miss the younger woman’s death grip on the other’s hand.

“Sorry,” Regina said. “I’m not nervous about swearing to you at all, Your Majesty. I’m just squeamish, and I don’t want to embarrass myself.”

“It doesn’t taste like blood,” Kevin said. “Not like you’d expect. If anything, it was more like a thick, warm wine.”

“Close,” Gina replied. “Wine but more complex. Like it’s been simmering with special herbs and fruit I’ve never tasted in my life. Sweet like honey but not sugary at all, if that makes sense.”

“Not really.” Regina huffed. “But I wanna taste colors too.” She wrinkled her nose, scrunched her eyes shut, and quickly pressed her mouth to my palm. Her lips moved over my skin. Again. More confidently. Then she slowly lifted her head. Eyes wide and dark, her pupils huge, she stared at me with a dazed look like she’d just slammed back a wicked shot of tequila. “Chaos clamors all around, unable to break free. Only you can hold him.” Then she blinked, shaking herself as if she woke up from a bad dream, and grinned. “That wasn’t bad at all. What?”

“Did Grandma Marion have the gift of Sight?” Leonie asked.

“Yeah, supposedly, but I’ve never…” Regina’s eyes widened. “Wait, really? Do I have the gift of Sight now? What did I say? I don’t remember.”

“Chaos clamors all around, unable to break free,” I whispered. “Only you can hold him.”

Her head tipped to the side. “What does that mean?”