Memories of the past brought only lines between his brows. "Childhood wasn't exactly idyllic for me, Eileen."

It wasn't said in a harsh tone, but rather matter-of-fact. Growing up the Spade King's adopted son, considered less than worthy by the families of clout within the Suit and at six years old heir to a madman's legacy, Ethan was sometimes amazed he'd survived as long as he had.

But he had no desire to burden innocent shoulders of his own woes, so he simply shrugged. "Sounds good in theory, doesn't it? If we had our choice, I'm sure we'd do it that way, yeah." He took a breath, adding, "Unfortunately, life's a bitch for tossing curve balls more often than not."