Page 82 of Dark Princess Ascending

Bridget checked his vitals, comparing them to the numbers on her screen.

"Looks good," she said finally. "If you maintain these levels for the next two hours without slipping back into unconsciousness, I'll release you to Gertrude's care at home."

"Perfect." Rob sat up straighter. "Can I have something to eat? I'm starving."

"You can have clear liquids for the next two hours," Bridget said. "You'll have to wait for the steak at least until tomorrow."

He frowned. "How did you know that was what I was craving?"

She patted his shoulder. "You are not my first transitioning male Dormant, Rob. Rest now." Bridget made a note on her tablet. "I'll be back to check on you in an hour." She walked out of the room.

"Do you want to have the transition test done before you leave?" Margo asked.

Rob shook his head. "I don't need one."

"It's tradition," Margo protested. "You only get to do it once, and you might regret not commemorating your transition properly later."

"I agree with Margo," Gertrude said. "You should have it like every other newly minted immortal."

He looked between their eager faces and sighed. "Fine. But only because you both seem so excited about it."

Margo's face lit up as she reached for her phone, but Rob lifted his hand to stop her. "Let's wait the two hours Bridget indicated, just to be sure."

It had suddenly dawned on him that Bridget had said she was releasing him to Gertrude's care, which meant that he was going home with her, but they hadn't decided anything in regard to their living arrangements.

He reached for her hand. "It's decision time. Are you taking me to your house, or are we getting a new place just for the two of us?"

She smiled so brightly that he was momentarily blinded by it. "First, I will take you home, and Hildegard will help me take care of you. I hope that the three of us will get along splendidly so we will all want to just continue living together."

Rob would have preferred for the two of themto move into a new place and have a fresh start, but he knew how much Gertrude cared about Hildegard. The two had been best friends for decades.

"I would love to have you all to myself, love, but I don't want Hildegard to be lonely."

"I know you would, and so would I." Gertrude sighed. "But I don't want Hildy to feel like I'm abandoning her or kicking her out. Hildegard is seeing one of Kalugal's men, but I don't know if she's serious about him."

"You need to talk to her," Margo said. "Perhaps she's ready for a change."

48

PETER

Marina sat cross-legged at the foot of the bed. She tried for a casual expression as she watched Peter's preparations, but she couldn't quite hide her concern. She'd gotten better at masking her worry every time he left on a mission, but he could still read the tension in her shoulders, the way her fingers twisted in the fabric of her shirt.

"The surveillance equipment is already in place," he said, hoping to reassure her. "We've been monitoring the estate for days. This is just initial reconnaissance."

"With a full tactical team," Marina pointed out. "That doesn't sound like just reconnaissance to me."

He paused, checking his gear. "We need to be prepared for any contingency. If we confirm there are children on the premises?—"

"You'll go in immediately." She nodded. "I know. And I support that. I just..." She trailed off, biting her lip.

"What is it, love?"

"I'm worried about what this new assignment will do to you. Seeing that kind of evil up close, day after day..."

Peter set down the earpiece he'd been checking and moved to sit beside her. "I've been doing this for a long time, and some of the girls we rescued from the traffickers were very young. Early teens, at best. So, this is more of the same for me. I can handle it."

He knew he could, but he also knew that it would leave more scars on his soul. It was difficult to accept that such evil existed in the world. It tainted the whole of existence and sucked the joy out of life.