Page 56 of To Bleed A Kingdom

Tristan stumbles over his feet. “A bond.” Slowly straightening, he blinks. “A bond like the one we share? Like you have with Amara and Zander?”

“No,” I reply, and his shoulders slump in relief. “Those are weak. This one’s much stronger than ours.”

His lips flatten. “Lena, that's not a small mistake. That's a huge mistake. One of epic, monstrous proportions. It's probably the worst thing you could’ve possibly done.”

He’s going to kill me.

“That's not all,” I mumble, chewing on my bottom lip.

He growls, not as rumbling or deep as Darius’, but just as terrifying, given the situation. “What did you do?”

“It's not that bad.”

“Lena!”

Avoiding his gaze, I stare up ahead at The Early Bird Inn. “Darius caught me in a lie.”

“Godsdamnit, Lena.” He scrubs his face. “Have you lost your mind?”

“My mind’s still intact, thank you!” I snap. The vein in his temple begins to throb and his mark darkens. Not good, not good at all. I should probably tone it down a bit. “Before you lose it, the lie just tumbled out by accident. And as for the bond? I have no idea how I did it.”

Tristan exhales a long, calming breath. So long, I can see his chest concave with the effort. “How can you not know?”

“I didn’t initiate it.” I shrug. “It just appeared.”

Shoulders beginning to relax at a new puzzle to solve, he continues forward, pivoting towards the inn. “I didn’t know that was possible. Has Darius said anything?”

“I don’t think he has any idea what it is, and I’ve seen no evidence of bonds in this realm. He may not even realize they exist.”

“He probably thinks he’s going insane,” he says, ascending the steps to our piteous lodging.

A burst of laughter punches from me at the thought, but I smother it with a cough when Tristan tosses a warning look over his shoulder.

“Are you sure you didn’t create it intentionally?” he asks suspiciously.

“Positive. I've thought of nothing else since it happened. I didn't do anything. What do you think this means?”

“I don't know. Let me think on it a bit.”

The wood railing on the porch steps snags on my vambraces. I tug it free and look up to see Tristan peering at me with a curious expression.

“Hmm.” He hums. “You do seem to have a rather extreme reaction to him. I wonder if that could be the cause.”

Extreme is too meager a word.

The Captain’s ruggedly beautiful face appears before my eyes, causing my body to warm and my heart to race as I imagine his massive form dominating me at this very moment, piercing me with those glacial blue eyes that always seem to burn with a desperate need to consume every inch of me. The same need thathas me often fighting against offering myself up as his own personal sacrifice, and in turn losing all sense of self, losing sight of my cause.

Dispelling the thought, I say, “I should probably just focus on avoiding him.”

Or try to, at least.

“I don't know. If Darius isn’t aware of the bond, this could prove beneficial to us,” he says as he steps under the Gods Light on the inn's deck. “That is, if you’re able to overcome your…urges.”

I grimace. “In other words, suck it up?”

He smiles. “Exactly.” He scans the street over his shoulder and purses his lips. “Although, after your spectacle today, any attempted subterfuge with him may be moot. I doubt you can go anywhere in Seboia without eyes tracking you.” He peeks at me out of the corner of his eye, a mischievous twinkle to it that the God of Mischief, Saxon himself would be jealous of. “I might just have to lock you up.”

“Funny,” I say dryly, passing him by.

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