Page 88 of Bind Me

“Kaden,” I say louder, trying to keep my voice steady. “Tell me what just happened. If you’re pulling some stunt, I swear to the gods that I’m going to throw you out of this moving car. You really scared Chowder and me.”

“I-I have visions,” he finally admits.

The admission catches me off guard. It’s not what I expected him to say at all.

“Like seeing the future?” I ask, trying to wrap my head around it. I’ve never heard of anyone having visions, so I’m not sure what it really means.

“I have what’s called genetic memory,” he explains calmly. “It’s a gift that runs in my family line, where random snippets of my ancestors’ experiences are passed down to each new generation. I mostly get visions from my grandfather’s life, like he wants me to know something.”

He rubs his face again, his brow furrowing as I absorb what he’s saying.

“So, it’s like you get a glimpse into his past? Do you think it’s related to you trying to discover who got him put into Tartarus?”

He shrugs. “It might be,” he admits, a hint of uncertainty in his words.

“So, what did you see?” I ask, my heart still pounding from the scare.

Chowder curls up in his lap, and Kaden rests a hand on him, a gesture that makes my heart warm with tenderness.

“It’s hard to make sense of it,” Kaden admits. “I see him either with his business partner or his lover. And I feel like I’m missing a major clue. His business partner is the woman you spoke to at the wharf, so I really need to find her again and discover what’s going on.”

I blink at him, noticing the slight tremble in his hands, worried about what all of this means.

“I feel like she’s the key,” he continues. “Like she might know what happened to my grandfather. So, once we’re back, I need to concentrate on finding her.”

“I’ll help you,” I say, determined. “There have to be records of her somewhere.”

Pressed up against him, I can’t believe how quickly I reacted, how much he means to me.

We fall silent. I remain glued to him.

The road stretches out ahead of us, but I’m worried about him—about us.

For now, though, I squeeze his hand tighter, grounding myself in the moment, and hope that he’s right… and that I’m nothing like my mother.

We step out of the airport into the late afternoon sun, which casts golden hues dancing on the horizon. Norway looks stunning in this light. The more time I spend here, the more it feels like home.

Kaden is back to his friendly, jovial self, dragging me close to his side, stealing kisses, bantering with Chowder. He sneers at any man daring to look at me as we walk toward the parking area where we’re getting picked up by a driver.

He leans in to whisper in my ear, “I’m going to cut their eyeballs out for daring to stare at you.”

“You need to calm down,” I answer, secretly amused by his protective nature.

We move toward the sign indicating the pickup area, and I notice how quiet the underground parking area is. There aren’t many cars or people around, which is strange so late in the day. Suddenly, I spot two men in black hoods heading straight for us with purpose, and my heart skips a beat.

Kaden’s posture changes instantly, his muscles tensing as he sees them.

“You gotta be kidding me,” he mutters, mostly to himself. “They better not be mercenaries.”

The men charge at us with menacing intent, and Kaden steps forward. The first man swings a fist at Kaden’s jaw, but Kaden ducks beneath it with fluid ease, responding with a quick jab to the man’s ribs that makes him grunt in pain. Kaden charges after him, slamming those powerful punches into his face and chest, and once the guy falls, he doesn’t get back up.

I’m recoiling, my body on high alert, scanning our surroundings… we’re still alone.

The second man lunges with a knife. Kaden twists aside, grabbing the man’s wrist and using his momentum against him. The man stumbles, and Kaden drives an elbow into his back, sending him sprawling onto the pavement.

“Stay back,” Kaden snarls at me, glancing over his shoulder to ensure I’m out of the way. I clutch the straps of my backpack with Chowder sitting over my shoulder. Fear courses through me as I watch the fight unfold. I hate seeing him continuously being attacked, but then again, he is disposing of them quickly.

The first man recovers, dragging himself up, and charges at Kaden again with a wild swing.

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