Page 133 of Bound By Darkness

“Watch it,” I said, my voice rumbling inside my chest.

The way my blood was thrumming beneath my skin, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to stop.

“I know who you are,” Moria interjected, her arms crossing her chest. “It took me a while to put the pieces together, but I knew I recognized your name.” She mirrored me, her body matching my mannerisms. Even if she tried to hide it, her legs and arms slightly trembled as she stared at me. “Your silver eyes solidified it on the hillside.” She pointed a finger. “While I thank you for rescuing Thalia from Armas, if you venture close to her again, I’ll shred the skin from your bones.”

“Sounds like a challenge,” I said, my lips curling into a grin. “I could say the same for you.”

“Oh bullshit,” Moria cried, her hands clenching together. “Stop pretending you care for her. You’re the reason her family is dead,Kaydn.” She spat my name out into the air, her nostrils flaring.

“Who told you?” I said as I turned to Iyanna, ready to threaten her for the deal she had broken.

Moria flashed a primal grin. “Naexi does endless amounts of talking when she’s drunk.”

Of course it was Naexi. She could never keep her mouth shut once ale flowed through her system. “Look, I understand the preconceived notions about my family, but I wouldn’t hurt Thalia.”

“Yet you won’t tell her who you are,” Moria added, her hands shaking slightly.

“I didn’t kill them,” I stated firmly. “And I don’t plan on hurting her. My business when I tell her is mine and mine alone.”

Moria bared her teeth. “I suggest you go on with your business quickly.”

I bared mine back. “If you tell her?—”

“Enough,” Iyanna yelled, her fists slamming against the table. “Finish your squabbling outside of my tent. I don’t have time for your petty fight. What I need from you is to leave her alone. I can’t have Thalia sidetracked by your” —she paused, her eyes narrowing—“primal instincts. Any distractions must be eliminated if she is to serve her purpose.”

“She’s not a weapon.”

“You are wrong. She isa weapon, Kaydn, and it’s time you viewed her that way instead of pretending like she isn’t.”

“Iyanna—” Moria said, her voice shaking as she stepped closer, her lips turning into a thin line.

I flicked my gaze to Moria. “You view her that way too?You’re okay with sticking her on the battlefield with trained soldiers when she’s barely able to stop me?”

“Maybe if you spent less time fucking her, she’d be prepared,” Iyanna mused, cutting off Moria.

My nostrils flared. “Take it back, Iyanna.”

Iyanna grinned. “You forget you work for me.Iprotect your true identity and hold the bond of the woman you care for.” Iyanna hummed. “One whisk of the hand, and I could drag her back here. Explaineverythingyou’ve so desperately tried to hide.”

“Iyanna,” Moria cut in. “That’s enough?—”

But Iyanna’s eyes glowed brighter in the dim light as she splayed her hands against the table, her frame leaning a breath away from my face. “Be a good boy. If I find you staring at her, talking to her, hells, brushing past her outside of what is necessary, I’ll see to it Thalia is the first on the battlefield every single time.”

“You wouldn’t dare,” I bellowed as I stared back at her white eyes, my hands curling around the desk to keep myself from punching her.

“Are you willing to test it? I am an ancient,” Iyanna purred.

My eyes narrowed, but I took a step back. “I hope you’re thrilled with your decision, Moria.”

Moria bit her lip, but said nothing as she looked to the side.

“If either of you cared about Thalia, you’d ask her to be involved rather than deciding her fate alone. She’s had enough people dictate what she can and cannot do?—”

Beads clinked together as Thalia and Naexi walked through, Naexi holding her recently bandaged arm.

“This better be fucking important, Iyanna,” Naexi grumbled as she plopped into the empty chair.

My eyes narrowed at Iyanna, a slight curl remaining on her lips as she turned her attention to Naexi.

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