Page 15 of The Bond That Burns

When he finally pulled back, his lips were stained crimson. His lips were stained withme.

He wiped the back of his hand across them languidly, clearly in no hurry. “You make this so much harder than it needs to be, Pendragon.”

“You think I care about making things easier for you?” I said sharply. “Next time, you’ll drink it from a vial.”

His face darkened. “I certainly won’t.”

“Why not?” I demanded, rising to my feet and grabbing a scarf to wrap around my wrist. I’d known he’d refuse. “Rodriguez said it can be done. I asked him. I’ll draw the blood myself, and you’ll...”

“No.” Blake cut me off, his voice emphatic. “That’s not how this works. I’m not an animal you can feed scraps to. If I have to endure this, so do you.”

My blood was boiling. I wondered if I could actually burn him with my anger. If only it was that easy. “You’re unbelievable. You’ve already taken everything from me. My blood, my freedom. Yet you act as if you’re the one suffering somehow.”

“You think I wanted this? To be bound to someone who hates me, someone who...”

“You love it,” I snapped. “I think you fucking love it. As if whatever you had going on with Regan wasn’t just as toxic. As if someone like you even knows what it’s like to really respect another person.”

He stared at me, then shook his head stubbornly. “Whatever. You’re boring me, Pendragon.” He stood up and started to move towards the door, then paused. “Don’t worry about the tribunal tomorrow. That’s why you’re really so upset tonight, isn’t it? Everyone knows where you stand. You’re House Drakharrow’s. And you’re mine.”

My pulse spiked. “I don’t belong to anyone.”

His lips twisted. “You should stop lying to yourself. Everyone belongs to someone here. Even me.”

“Maybe you should learn to stop seeing the world that way,” I suggested. “Not everyone is just a possession or something to beused and discarded on a highblood’s whim. Not even when it’s your uncle.”

“Maybe not everyone,” Blake said softly. “But certainly you.”

For a moment, I held my breath. Was he serious?

“Do you even believe half of the horrible things you say?” I demanded, my voice trembling.

Something dark crossed his eyes. His gaze dropped to my wrist. “I believe you’re wasting my time.”

“Then get the hell out,” I almost shouted.

He smirked. “Don’t lose any sleep over tomorrow. You’ll make it through.”

I clenched my jaw. Was that supposed to be a pep talk? Reassurance?

Being reminded that I might make it through the tribunal only because of where I stood in relation to Blake and House Drakharrow was not comforting.

The door clicked shut behind him and I slumped back into the chair by the fire, cradling my wrist.

For a moment I let myself imagine how it might have been. Without the weight of everything that had broken us. Blake’s betrayal, the tribunal, the dragon.

But if Blake thought he’d come out the victor in all of this, he was wrong.

CHAPTER 5 - MEDRA

The day of the Tribunal dawned cold and gray, as if the last pieces of summer had been sucked away overnight, skipping autumn, and going straight to the cusp of winter.

I’dd already decided on what I would wear the night before. I dressed quickly, running a brush through my hair and then leaving it in a cloud around my shoulders. My red curls marked me. There was no hiding who I was. So why bother taming it or toning it down?

There was a knock at the door. Headmaster Kim had told me he would be my escort to the Black Keep where the tribunal would be held.

It was time. I grabbed my cloak and pulled it on quickly.

Half an hour later, we stood on the isle of the Black Keep, inside the Tribunal Chamber. The chamber was further within the keep than I had been before. Circular, with high stone walls, the chamber seemed to stretch endlessly upwards.

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