With their mother, explanations were a fact of life, Jordan thought. For Hadyn more than him. It wasn't as if Laureline really trusted his judgment; that wouldn't happen as long as they were still alive. He wasn't punished for his judgment calls, however, and Hadyn always had been. He shrugged a little smiling slightly. "You'll have to tell us all about David's hypocritical lecture," he said lazily, flicking back an errant wave that had slipped out of Hadyn's ponytail. It wasn't as if both David and Katya hadn't killed everyone they'd ever challenged; their desire for a kinder, gentler Spades was commendable, Jordan supposed, but not exactly likely any day soon.

"Grandmother's inviting Ivona Wolf," he said, though, on the subject of dinner. "I think if she could arrange a marriage for me, she'd do it."