Page 28 of Tempest of Wrath and Vengeance

“I wasn’t here to gainyourtrust. I couldn’t care less if you or your Guardian trusted me,” Auryon said, lowering her bow. “I was here for her. It was her trust I needed, and I had it until the end.”

“You lost that trust,” he sneered.

“Then I guess we have something in common,” she retorted.

The smirk that tipped up on the corner of his lips was nothing short of the darkness that ran in his veins. “She knew to expect it from me. I’ve never given her any reason to think otherwise, but you? Your betrayal was so much worse, wasn’t it?”

Her features went just as dark as she glared back at him, her fingers tightening on her bow at her side.

“Tell me, Auryon, what will Temural do when he learns you failed your task to save his daughter?” he went on.

To his shock, Auryon tipped her head back and laughed. “How naïve of you to think it is only Temural you must worry about.”

“Me?” Theon asked. “You are the one who failed.”

“But you are the one who broke her.”

The words hit their mark, and Theon felt himself wince as he stepped back from her.

“So instead of trying to shift blame and make me the bigger monster here,” Auryon went on, the arrow disappearing as she looped her bow across her chest, “perhaps we should focus on what we are going to do to pull her back before it is too late. Because if we lose her completely, this will no longer be just a war between Arius and Achaz. If we lose her, wildandfury will come for you.”

He rolled over in bed with a heavy sigh. He’d been tossing and turning for the last three hours. It didn’t surprise him. Sleep had been hard to come by for weeks now. With both Tessa and Luka being gone, he wasn’t even sure why he tried. To make matters worse, he could still smell Tessa on the sheets from the last time they’d stayed here. There was no way he was sleeping in the master suite that had been his father’s. So he’d taken the room he’d always stayed in, but they hadn’t stayed here since the night of the Emerging Ceremony.

The night that had led to the Bargain with his father.

With a frustrated grumble, he threw the blankets off and sat up, grabbing his phone from the nightstand. He cleared the messages from Felicity, ignoring them like he had all the other messages for the last two weeks. There was nothing else, and he wasn’t sure why he’d expected there to be. The other people who would be trying to get a hold of him in the middle of the night were either locked up somewhere or didn’t want to speak to him.

Tossing his phone aside, he made his way to the bathroom. Bracing his hands on the vanity, he lifted his head to look in the mirror. He looked as exhausted as he felt, and he knew there would never be a restful night’s sleep without her. The bond strained at the thought of her, and because he was weak, he let himself remember a time when she would curl into him, her hand resting on his chest. He let himself think about how she would seek him out, whether for comfort or reassurance. For the briefest of moments, he’d glimpsed what it could have been like, and it’d all been a lie on her end.

Gods, he craved those lies.

Reaching down the bond, he pressed a palm along that wall that was keeping him out. He felt the shudder on her end, and he smiled despite himself.

Until she let him in and spoke.

What do you want, Theon?

Only you, Tessa. It’s all I’ve ever wanted.

You mean my power.

Maybe in the beginning, but not anymore. You could be a mortal, and I’d still only want you.

There was a pause before she said,Your lies are still pretty.

I’ve never lied to you.

He felt her scoff before he felt something else.

Want.

Need.

Desire.

It will never be enough, beautiful.

What are you talking about?

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