Page 54 of Dark Destiny: The Fates' Bargain

Zach regarded him with a raised brow. "Of course. The ladies too. Let me show you how to work these."

"We had phones on the island," Number One said. "We know how they work."

Theirs had been issued by the Brotherhood, and they had left them at the bottom of the cove so they couldn't be tracked by their signal.

"You know the basics already." Zach distributed the devices. "There is nothing complicated about these, but there are some specific features that I need to explain."

He walked them through the unlock gesture and the contact screen anyway, quick and efficient.

Bowen drifted toward Number One. "Sullha's number is in the list of contacts. I saw her this afternoon, and she's eager to talk to you. Now you can call her."

The collective felt Yaaf's reaction before he could modulate it, the sudden jerk in his chest, but had the grace not to comment.

"Thank you for telling me." He scrolled through the short list of names, with small portraits next to each one for easy recognition.

Sullha's had either been taken recently or artificially altered because her hair looked shiny in a way he had never seen it on the island.

She was smiling in the picture.

He wanted to call her right now. He could step out to the corridor for some privacy, not from the collective because that was nearly impossible to do, but from the Guardians and everyone else in the gym.

He started toward the doors when they opened again, and Mattie walked in.

"Dinner is served in the kitchen," she announced. "Come while it's hot."

The others moved. Yaaf hesitated, contemplating letting them go and staying behind to make the call, but then a heavy arm landed across his shoulders before he could slip away.

"Wait until after dinner." Bowen steered him toward the door. "Let me tell you about my visit to Sullha's house on the way."

"Sullha has a house?"

Bowen nodded. "Three bedrooms. One for her, one for her mother, and one for Tomek." Bowen walked him down the corridor, either ignorant of the fact that Yaaf could have effortlessly broken his arm off at the shoulder or just confident that he wouldn't. "Tomek's room came stocked with toys that he couldn't wait to show my mate, and Sullha looks like she's dream-walking and waiting to be awakened at any moment. I didn't get to see Leehy because she was resting in her room."

Yaaf absorbed the information, and the feeling that moved through him was so tangled that the collective withdrew to give him room with it. He was glad that she had a house and that Tomek felt at home enough to show his new toys to a stranger. But underneath it, undignified and impossible to dismiss, was jealousy. Bowen had gotten to see Sullha in her new home before him.

"I envy you," he admitted. "I wish I could see her like that. Free, safe, and happy."

"You will, soon enough." Bowen patted his shoulder.

They entered the kitchen, which had become the central hub of their new life underground. The lab occupied just one corner of the big industrial space, the equipment arranged on two steel tables, with the refrigeration unit humming against the wall. The rest of the kitchen was used as their dining hall. No one cooked in there, though, and the food was delivered in cases from somewhere else.

Mattie, who wanted to make life as comfortable as possible for them, had already taken the dishes out of the boxes and arranged them on platters on the long center island that servedas their dining table. Tonight, it was roasted chicken, rice, vegetables, flatbread, and some small dishes that Yaaf wasn't familiar with.

Petrov already occupied one of the stools, a napkin tucked into his collar, and a laden plate in front of him. Anita sat beside him. The Guardians also joined them: Bowen, Theo, Jay, Robbie, and Callan.

Zach came in but didn't sit down. Instead, he lifted a hand toward the island. "Doctor Petrov. Good to see you. Dimitri has phones for you, Anita, and Mattie, and he will explain how to use them."

"Thank you," Petrov said. "Having a phone will make me feel like a free man again."

"My pleasure. I wish I could stay and chat with you about your research, but I need to collect some equipment for William before I head back."

"Anytime," Petrov said. "Bring vodka."

Anita lifted a hand. "Please don't."

Zach laughed and was gone again before Petrov could argue.

"It wasn't a joke," Petrov grumbled. "I'll sell a kidney for a bottle of vodka."