Page 48 of Chains of Love

I stare at my hands, unable to look at her. The bond makes my skin tingle with awareness of her presence. Her scent fills the room – herbs and moonlight, and I'm so used to it by now that it nearly smells like home.

"I should have told you." Her voice wavers.

"Which part?" The words taste like ash. "The part where you collect men like trinkets? Or the part where none of this is real?"

"It's not like that." She takes a step closer. I can feel the heat of her body, remember how it felt pressed against mine. "The bond... it amplifies what's already there. It can't create feelings from nothing."

I laugh, the sound harsh even to my own ears. "Is that what you tell all of us? Sethrys? Kaelor?"

"The bond doesn't create false emotions," Lirien says, her fingers still twisting in her robes. "It's like... like wine. It loosens what's already there, makes it stronger, more immediate. But it can't conjure feelings from nothing."

"And I'm supposed to believe that?" I lean forward, resting my elbows on my knees. "After seeing those two fawning over you like lovesick puppies?"

"That's exactly why I fought against strengthening our bond." She takes another step closer, and I hate how my body responds to her proximity. "I knew if we did, your emotions would become too entangled with mine. If you chose to leave?—"

"When," I correct her. "When I leave."

She flinches but continues. "When you leave, breaking the bond would be more difficult."

My head snaps up. "Break it? We can still break this?"

"Of course." Her voice softens. "Keeping the bond would be too painful for both of us after you leave. You wouldn't be able to get very far otherwise."

The pieces don't quite fit. I stand, pacing toward the window. "Then how were you able to travel across an entire continent without your..." I wave my hand toward the door, where her other pets wait. "Without them?"

"Because once the bond is sealed, it functions differently." Lirien's explanation comes quickly, rehearsed. "The initial binding requires proximity, but after that?—"

"After that, what?" I turn to face her. "You can just collect more of us?"

Her green eyes flash. "That's not?—"

"Not what you meant?" I step closer, close enough to see the faint glow in her irises. "Then what did you mean, Lirien? Help me understand how any of this isn't just another manipulation."

Lirien backs away from me, her robes rustling against the wooden floor. The moonlight streaming through the window catches in her silver hair. My fingers itch to reach for her, but I clench them at my sides instead.

"You don't get it." Her voice trembles, but her chin lifts defiantly. "Valentia blesses us with this bond. It's an opportunity, not a curse or a prison. She gives us the chance to experience love in ways most people never will, to feel it deeper, stronger?—"

"Love?" The word tastes bitter on my tongue. "Is that what you call this collection of yours?"

"There's nothing wrong with love." Her green eyes flash, the magic in them brightening.

"No." I step closer, towering over her. "But there's everything wrong with lies."

The bond throbs between us, making my skin tingle. Lirien's hands twist in her robes, but she holds my gaze. "The only lie I told you was that the summoning was an accident. Everything else – every moment, every word, every touch – that was real."

My laugh comes out harsh. "And I'm supposed to believe that?"

"Yes, because it's true." She reaches for me, but I step back. "Including the fact that the bond can be removed. That's why I brought you here. If that's what you want, we can break it."

Freedom. An end to this ache in my chest, this constant pull toward her. An escape from becoming like Kaelor and Sethrys, desperate for scraps of her attention.

"I do." The words come out sharp, cutting. "I want the bond broken. I want to be free of you. Now."

24

LIRIEN

Ilean against the door, letting out a shuddering breath. The stone corridor's chill seeps through my robes, but it does nothing to cool the heat of frustration and hurt burning in my chest.

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