Page 25 of Upon Shattered Bonds

“I know very well what I mean to you, Ezekiel: nothing. You made that clear when you refused me.”

“I never said you meant nothing to me, Nina,” he managed. “Nothing could be further from the truth.”

“Doubtful.”

Zeke could feel the words starting to stick in his throat, and the dreaded anxiety that always stopped him from clarifying his position whenever Nina pushed him away. In the past, this was the moment he’d usually retreat to his clan territory and curse himself for being a coward, but the shock of losing her had been too strong.

“You were a child when our bond emerged.”

The same fangs that’d lodged in his wrist only moments ago flashed in her snarl. “I was a sovereign, a woman in my own right!”

Her spiteful words were expelled in a gasping breath, and Nina seemed to remember her injuries. Sitting back against the headboard, she steadied herself.

“Rejection has never inspired a woman into love.”

The air between them froze with her tone. He couldn’t defend his actions without explaining what had happened to his family only decades before he’d met her. The past, painted red with the blood of his beloved kin, was an injury still waiting to be told. Its pain had colored every interaction he’d had with his mate before she’d grown into the woman she was today.

He owed Nina the explanation, but centuries of being unable to speak to her about it couldn’t be defeated so easily. Despite everything that happened today, Zeke still couldn’t find his voice. And now, he was taking too long to respond. He was getting so sick of hurting her.

Intruder.

Zeke felt a distinctive presence brush past his psychic senses, and he immediately tensed in preparation for an attack. Baring his teeth, his attention redirected to the unknown Raeth that’d skirted along the edges of the property.

Nina noticed the intrusion at the same moment he did. His mate stiffened against the headboard, her face losing even more color.

Kaien teleported into the room, a warning blazing in his features. “Sister.”

“Deflect,” came her spoken order, the barest trace of vulnerability hidden in the undertones of her voice.

Had Zeke not been so attuned to her, he’d have missed it. Even as she constructed her calm façade, the emotion filtered through the unfinalized mating bond between them.

A hasty nod and Kaien vanished.

When Nina’s face lifted, her fragility was forgotten, replaced by staunch determination. “Please, Ezekiel, follow Kaien to intercept the intruder. He will be the only one capable of holding my clan together should anything happen to me.”

At the thought, Zeke’s composure began to slip. Anger and protective instincts surged within him, dark and bitter. Nina’s wound meant that she’d have to face a challenger weakened and in pain, alone on the battlefield while he watched helplessly from the sidelines. It was all Zeke could do not to teleport outside and eliminate the threat before it began.

But Nina was a sovereign, and in Raeth culture, his interference was unacceptable. If he fought on her behalf, it’d signify her weakness. Even if it meant keeping her alive, she’d loathe him for it. He’d lose her forever.

The wall separating his sanity from the void beyond sliced needle thin.

Gritting his teeth at her request, Zeke only nodded.

Color distorted and blurred around him as he teleported to where Kaien now stood, shoulder to shoulder with Aidan. Neither man acknowledged his presence, but Zeke took no offense. His every attention was focused on the approaching Raeth.

Rhonnen.

The intruder had barely met his fourth century, which was young for a Raeth, and every ounce of his inexperience showed on his face. Battle hadn’t yet hardened his features, and his self-satisfied air told the story of his affluent upbringing.

His step, sure and steady, halted several feet away from the pair before him. Rhonnen’s eyes, a brown so dark they were nearly black, fixated on Kaien.

“Where is your sovereign? I desire to challenge her.”

Kaien’s hollow laugh contrasted with the haughty tone of the question. “You are either stupid or incredibly naïve if you think you can defeat her.”

A smirk. “Where is she?”

“Painting her nails,” Aidan replied casually.

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