“That is, unfortunately, a point that is past,” Anastasia Rakovich pointed out. The “house manager” for the Kildar, she was a former harem slave and harem manager hired to fulfill much the same role. She had more or less inserted herself into the position of “house manager” since the Keldara housekeeper, Mother Savina, was less than experienced in managing the household of a lord. Anastasia had been a junior manager from the time she was seventeen and the manager of an Uzbek sheik’s household from the time she was twenty-one. Still only twenty-seven, she was model beautiful with long blonde hair and blue eyes, much like the late Gretchen Mahona. But while she regularly warmed the Kildar’s bed, and he her back, given that she was a high-level sexual masochist, the Kildar had never been infatuated with her as he had become with Gretchen. “And, frankly, if he’d had more time with her the hurt might have been less. Or more, I don’t know,” she added with a sigh.

“The reason we originally gave for the Rite is, of course, no longer… effective,” Mother Mahona said. “Which is well, since I don’t think the Kildar is willing to continue with the Rite.”

The previous mission had involved the sale of WMD by the Russian mob to Al Qaeda. The mob had the WMD, the Al Qaeda members had a very large quantity of portable currency and gems. Most of that had been captured and brought back, despite the battle. Mike had stated, bluntly, that dowries, now and for the foreseeable future, were covered.

Gretchen had not been her daughter by body but held her name due to being of the extended “Family” of the Mahonas. Mother Mahona and Mother Silva, Gretchen’s birth mother, were both at the meeting to see if they had any idea how to pull the Kildar out of his depression. Neither had come up with anything.