Page 68 of Bound By Roses

When his opponent’s sword gets a little too close to Quinn, I force myself to turn away. I know he meant what he said about not letting a single one of them touch him, but he enjoys the close calls too much. I’d rather not force myself to endure the heart palpitations that are a sorry side effect of watching him fight.

I move for the water and spot Teagan almost instantly—but she’s not alone, and this time it isn’t Petra she’s speaking with.

It’s Jade.

He’s standing well back from the water and there’s a tenseness to his body, but aside from that, they seem to be talking with relative ease. I can’t help but wonder if he must understand some of the sirens’ language of signs as well. He was born here and even though he was stolen from here at the age of five and has since lost his memories, perhaps something from his early life stuck.

I consider heading back to the beach, but Jade suddenly pivots on his heel and begins striding in my direction. Our eyes meet only briefly as he passes me, and as if he can’t get away from me fast enough, he summons his wings and launches into the sky. It only takes a moment to lose sight of him in the blinding sun shining down above us.

“What was that about?” I ask when I reach Teagan. As much as I hate it, I’m a little annoyed. He can’t be friendly to me one moment and then hate me the next.

Teagan shakes her head as if she too thinks he’s being ridiculous and then points a finger at me.

I sigh and take a seat on the rock ledge in front of her. “Of course he was talking about me. I bet he had nothing nice to say.”

She makes a gesture that I recognize as the word ‘question.’

“He wasaskingabout me?” I don’t see how that’s all that different. As long as he wasn’t asking for advice on the best way to kill me, I probably don’t have to worry.

Teagan nods and reaches a webbed hand behind her until it touches her back.

“Asking about my scars?” I guess that makes sense. He’d hoped that seeing them would bring back some of his memories, and honestly, I did too. I loved him once and even though I feel nothing close to that now, part of me misses him.

Teagan nods again but then makes the gesture for ‘more.’ Understanding her has gotten significantly easier, but it’s moments like this where I wish she could speak or that Petra was nearby to translate.

I make the best guess I can. “About everything that happened in Lunae? Our history?” I can’t think of anything else related to my scars that Jade would want to know. Either way, he could just ask me. He and Teagan were friends of convenience once,since he wanted to get close to me and she was acting as the dragons’ spy while remaining my closest—and only—friend.

Another nod. Gods, how I miss her voice. It’s her advice I need right now.

“I don’t know what to do about him. One minute he looks like he wants to kill me, and the next he’s helping me.” I hold up my left hand without thinking, but lower it quickly when Teagan gasps. I didn’t mean to spring that on her, but even with the constant dull ache, I’d nearly forgotten.

Teagan holds out a hand and I know it’s because she wants to get a better look at mine, but I’d rather she just forget she saw it.

“It looks worse than it is.” Does it? I’m missing a fucking finger.

She reaches out again, more demanding this time. I’m suddenly too tired to argue, so I lay my hand in hers and stare out over the water so I don’t have to see it. It isn’t until Teagan presses it flat against her chest that I’m forced to look back because the realization of what’s happening is suddenly worse than the injury.

Teagan once had one of the siren gifts. Her song could heal—or at least ease pain. Every time I was whipped, she was there. Humming, singing. I thought it was the healing salves and ointments the palace servants would smooth across my lashes that took the pain away, but it was always Teagan. She kept what she was a secret to protect the dragons, but that never stopped her from using her gift to help me.

The gift she lost because of me.

“I’m sorry,” I say, but then I notice her smile. Why is she smiling?

And then I feel it. A soft, rumbling vibration emanating from her chest. And with it, the painful throb ebbs.

I gasp. “You can still dampen pain.”

She’s beaming now, and so am I. Losing that ability wouldn’t have made her any less of a siren, but I’m so happy for her, nonetheless.

She moves my hand as if to examine the injury, but her attention is entirely on my ring. A flicker of what might be fear crosses her face for a moment, but it quickly fades into a smile.

She makes a gesture that I understand to mean ‘union.’

“Wedding?” When she nods, I laugh. “No. No wedding. Not anytime soon, anyway.” I tell her about our trip to see the Spider and everything that happened after. The fight with Quinn, the glimpse of the old Jade.

Teagan listens patiently, reacting with appropriate levels of shock and disgust at all the right times.

“Am I wrong to forgive him?” I ask after a while. Quinn asked me if we were okay—and we are. But should we be?

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