Page 89 of The Blood Moon Oath

I shake my head, my heart pounding. “No, you don’t understand. I needed to see it. I needed to understand where you came from.”

But then, as the pieces start to click together in my mind, a sudden realization strikes me. My breath catches in my throat, the answer coming to me like a whisper in the back of my mind. "It was Finn, wasn’t it?" I ask, my voice barely above a whisper.

Torin’s eyes soften, and I see the briefest flash of something vulnerable cross his features. He doesn’t answer immediately, but his gaze flickers to the floor, the weight of the memory settling between us.

“Finn…” I say again, my voice thick with the understanding now. “It was Finn who stopped you. When you were about to end it. He saved you.”

Torin looks up, locking eyes with me. His jaw tightens for a moment, but then he nods slowly, the truth spilling from him like an old, familiar wound. “Yeah. It was Finn. He found me... after. He pulled me out of that darkness when I couldn’t pull myself out. He’s the only one who ever could.”

I feel the weight of those words sink into me, the enormity of Finn’s role in Torin’s life settling over me. In that moment, I realize just how much Finn has carried, how much he’s done to hold the pieces of Torin’s broken soul together.

I swallow the lump in my throat. Maybe all this time I've made unfair assumptions about these men.

The connection between us is stronger than ever, the bond we share deepening with every passing moment. I can feel his emotions, his vulnerability, his raw power, all flooding through me. And for the first time, I realize thatthis—this bond, this connection—thisis what has always tied us together. We are linked, not just by desire, but by something far deeper. Something painful. Something that goes beyond the flesh.

I move to stand, but Torin’s hand gently pulls me back into the water with him, his touch grounding me. He doesn’t speak,but his eyes say everything. His past is a part of him. But so is his future. And in this moment, I realize, we’re both bound by our own scars—his from years of torment and rage, and mine from the oath that keeps me tied to vengeance.

We’re both lost in our own ways, but maybe we can find some sort of peace together.

Chapter

Forty-Six

KAEL

The forest is alive with sound—the rustle of leaves in the wind, the distant call of birds, the sharp clang of steel as Sable and Torin move in perfect synchronicity. They fight together as if they’ve been doing this their entire lives, the movements fluid, almost effortless. It’s maddening.

I grit my teeth, my eyes tracking them as they take down the training dummies we’ve set up, each one obliterated with calculated precision. Torin's blade arcs in a flash of silver, while Sable moves like water, quick and deadly. She’s good. Too good.

And then there’s me and her.

Another misstep. Another failure.

Her blade nearly catches me across the arm as we move out of sync again, my parry too late, her strike too early. We’re supposed to be practicing counterattacks, but it’s like trying to fight with a shadow that’s constantly moving in the wrongdirection. I curse under my breath, stepping back as she glances at me, her chest heaving with exertion.

“Careful, little huntress,” I snap, the frustration bleeding into my voice. “The point is to hit the enemy, not your partner.”

Her glare could melt ice. “Maybe if you actually moved when you were supposed to, we wouldn’t have this problem.”

Torin bursts into laughter from the sidelines, leaning on his sword like he’s watching the best comedy show of his life. “You two are a disaster. Maybe we should just let Sable handle everything. At least she doesn’t trip over herself.”

“Shut it, Torin,” I growl, but he’s already grinning like an idiot.

Finn steps forward, his ever-calm presence a sharp contrast to the chaos between us. “Enough,” he says, holding up a hand. “We’re taking a break. Torin, come with me. Kael, you and Sable need to sort out whatever this... mess is. If you don’t, the Trials will eat you both alive.”

I start to argue, the words forming on my tongue, but Finn’s already walking off, Torin trailing after him with a wink in Sable’s direction. Of course. Leave me here to deal with this disaster alone. I turn back to her, scowling.

“This is stupid,” I mutter, brushing past her toward the nearest tree. I lean against it, arms crossed, trying to ignore the fact that she’s staring at me. “We don’t need to ‘sort anything out.’”

“Oh, really?” she says, her tone dripping with sarcasm. “Because it sure looks like we do.”

I don’t respond, the weight of her gaze pressing down on me. She steps closer, her breaths still heavy from the fight, her face flushed. “Why are you like this?” she asks, her voice softer now, but there’s an edge to it. “Why are you so cold, so... distant?”

I stiffen. “I’m not distant.”

She scoffs. “You’re practically a glacier, Kael. Torin and I work fine together. Finn and I work fine together. But with you, it’s like running into a brick wall.”

I look at her, the frustration bubbling up again. “Maybe because you went and bound yourself to Torin. Did you even think what that would do to me?" I run a hand through my hair, messing up its perfect styling. "I didn't even know it was possible to bind yourself to more than one person."

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