Warriors of Poseidon 03 - Atlantis Unleashed

reactive game against Anubisa‟s Apostates has gained us nothing but pain, pain, and more pain. If she hurt him . . .” Ven‟s words trailed off, but even from across the room, Conlan could read the agony in his brother‟s eyes. Justice had sacrificed himself to the vampire goddess for Ven, and the weight of that had been crushing Ven‟s soul ever since.
    “I must agree,” Alaric said. He stood alone, as always; separate and apart from the rest of them. Perhaps only Conlan knew the full extent of that aloneness—Conlan had been there with Alaric when the priest had first realized the full extent of his feelings for Quinn. But Poseidon‟s high priests all swore a vow of celibacy, and Quinn‟s role as coleader of the human rebels had forced her into her own state of solitude.
    Never had a pairing been more impossible, but futility did not easily translate into the ability to forget.
    “We need to work more closely with the human rebels and forge a comprehensive plan,”
    Alaric continued. “The days and centuries of acting as a strike force are behind us. If Quinn—if Jack and Quinn are in a position to meet with us, we should make that meeting sooner rather than later. But our first priority must be Justice, of course.”
    Riley shifted on the couch and made some small noise of discomfort, and Conlan tensed, ready to leap across the room to her aid. She shook her head, though, and smiled at him. “I‟m fine. Just stretching. Our son persists in wanting to sit on my bladder.”
    “Our daughter is never still, like her mother,” he corrected.
    “If you desire to know the truth of it, all you need do is ask,” Alaric said dryly. “As much as we have all enjoyed this amusing interplay for the past several months.”
    Riley rolled her eyes at him, then wedged a small pillow behind her back and looked around the room. “There is nothing— nothing —more important than finding Justice and making sure that he‟s okay. Even before we knew he was your brother, we knew he was our family, just like everybody else in this room and each warrior in the Seven.”
    There were several nods of agreement. Conlan began to speak, but Riley shook her head again. “It‟s my turn to be selfish. I understood that everything needed to be put on hold for Justice when he was taken captive by Anubisa. I‟ve done everything I could to support the search. But now, from what you tell me, he disappeared voluntarily. Not only that, but he abducted that poor archaeologist.”
    “Talk about your international incident,” Erin said, wincing.
    “Exactly,” Riley replied. “Here‟s my point, although I know I‟m making it badly. My baby will not be born until his parents are married. I understand that we can‟t hold the big brouhaha wedding, and I‟m fine with that. I never cared about a big circus of a ceremony, anyway. But either we go to my church at home, we bring a minister to us in Atlantis, or we go to a damn Elvis chapel in damn Vegas. I don‟t care. It doesn‟t matter to me. I always loved Elvis, anyway. But one way or another, Conlan and I are getting married sometime in the next week.”
    The beauty of it, and one of Riley‟s most amazing qualities, was that she never raised her voice. She didn‟t have to. She was human, not Atlantean, and she‟d once joked that the closest she‟d been to royalty before she‟d met Conlan was going to Burger King. But she wore the demeanor of a queen as though born to the role.
    “Well, you‟ve heard it. My future queen has spoken, and I can do no less than obey,” Conlan said, smiling at her.
    “She‟s correct that the child should be born to wedded parents,” Alaric said. “He or she will face enough problems when the time comes for you to pass on the crown, as the first half human ever to take the throne in Atlantis. There is certainly no need to add the additional burden of illegitimacy.”
    “We can always count on you, can‟t we, Alaric?” Riley said, exasperation mixed with a grudging affection in her voice. “I meant that I want my baby to be born into the world knowing that his parents love each other enough to make the ultimate commitment. But thank goodness we have you to point out the legalities of the situation.”
    Alaric raised one eyebrow and looked puzzled. “Although I detect sarcasm in your words, I am unsure as to its cause. Although . . . oh. Of course.” He bowed to her. “As you wish, my lady.”
    Riley narrowed her eyes. “If this is