In the end, she did not tell him the names of the other five Ruling Houses co-ruling Tartarus Shade. Ikaris got the hint.
Neither he nor his comrades were in a position to turn her down. From the moment she had received them in that hall with no permit to stay, their fate had been set.
They could, of course, go to the city and seek the protection of another House, but that would be a direct slap in the face to House Morgunis. The fact that she had revealed that her House was the most powerful in Tartarus Shade, whether it was true or not, was both an enticement and a threat.
Moments later, when his comrades were done being grilled by Anaphiel, she called them to her office and had them sign a contract to join her House Morgunis.
It was a lengthy contract. The scroll of parchment on which the clauses of the contract were written was several feet long when unrolled, but Ikaris was undaunted and read each clause carefully until the last.
