Page 37 of Own To Obsess

Turning on his heel, he ran to his tobo, hurriedly preparing to leave. The tobo was sled that only held a seat for one person. There was no roof and no walls, like normal carriages, just the seat and the long ski paddles designed so that one man could travel quickly on his own with his own sled-dog pack. His guards stood staring at him, shocked for a moment, and then hurriedly rushed their own tobos to follow him.

“Shinno?” the instructor called, surprised.

“I have to go,” Kardos growled back. “I'll be in touch.” He barked an instruction to his pack and they shot forward before he’d even finished it.

When he had bitten Shaya, completing the bond between them, the awareness at the edge of his mind had tunneled directly into his chest and bloomed into the most incredible feeling. It had been like a floating ball of life; bright and radiant and shiny in his chest, especially when he was with her. In the two days since he’d bitten her, he’d come to deeply appreciate being able to discern Shaya's mood without having to question Rozalia extensively each day or judge her mood solely by her actions. The awareness of her before the bite was only an echo, and one he’d been able to ignore when he needed to, but the bond brought him closer to her in such an intimate way that couldn’t be replicated.

This change panicked him.

It had begun as a dip of surprise and discontentment, but the blast of dread and horror, then fear, was so severely unpleasant, he knew something had to be happening to her, and the idea of that sent him into a panicked rage. She should be coming back from Rozalia’s hut at this time, so he wasn’t sure the potionist was even with her to help protect her from whatever was happening.

He urged his sled-dogs to travel faster, so fast there was a real fear of toppling over or breaking away from the dogs and slamming into a tree, but Kardos kept his focus on the bond, monitoring the fluctuations within it.

By the time he reached the port, the potency of the horror and fear had lessened a little only to be dominated by a dark, bitter bloom. The bond itself had shrunk to something cold and lifeless.

Kardos boarded the boat that would take him from the training island back to Nyek and ordered the ship's captain to travel as fast as he could, not waiting for his guards who had fallen behind.

Fixated on the bond, he stood on the deck throughout the journey, watching as Nyek Island came closer as the ship's hands fed and watered his pack, rubbing down his tobo with oil. But compared to the speed of his tobo, the boat was moving at an incredibly slow pace. Even his own enormous ship that they journeyed to and from the Western Lands with was quicker than this.

He growled his frustration as the bond within his chest shriveled even further until it was like a lump of iron. What the fuck was happening? If anyone had done anything to her, even looked at her harshly, he would kill them. There was no question about it. The other shinnos thought they were smart to summon her without him, but their plan had backfired. News was starting to spread he had mated his Omega in the Central Lands’ temple, and it put a new perspective on the mating they’d had outside the temple steps. The people of the Isles were starting to speculate that Kardos and his Omega were drawn to the temple to mate, and the only couple known to do that was Az Eshra. In truth, he had been unable to stop it both times. He hadn’t realized that the completion of the bond would cause such an immediate desire to get inside her, and she was just as eager. The interesting result of that experience was the only reason why he hadn't completely distanced himself from his father. He had been furious to find out the high chief had accommodated the shinnos’ summoning. It was one thing to be bound by traditional rules, but there was nothing that said that he must honor their request to see Shaya alone. But then, his father had made confusing decisions lately, and Kardos wasn’t sure if he was trying to help or just fucking things up because he was angry with his son.

Finally the boat reached the port, and Kardos paid the captain, as the servant carried his tobo onto Nyek port. Within a few moments, he was racing along the snow again heading toward his hut.

All kinds of thoughts crossed his mind as he approached, but nothing seemed to be amiss. There was no snow storm, there was no siting of any animal that may have been heading in her direction, all the people of Nyek Island were going about their daily duties as normal.

When he arrived at his hut, he jumped off his tobo, hoping he’d find her inside.

He burst in, frightening some of the servants at the entrance, and when he looked at them, he could see in their eyes something had happened.

“Where is she?” he bellowed.

Rozalia came hurrying down the hallway. “She's in your study.” Kardos was shocked to see tears in her eyes. “She doesn't want anyone near her.”

“What happened?” Kardos growled.

“I-I… I don't know,” Rozalia stuttered. “It happened on the journey back from my hut. One of your servants sent for me, but I haven't been able to see her properly.”

“What you mean?” Kardos barked. He burst into his study, but it was empty. He turned to bellow at Rozalia but she pointed at the desk.

Kardos leaned down and saw Shaya was curled up underneath his desk far back against the wall. “Come out, Shaya,” he ordered.

She didn't respond and all he could hear was quiet sobs.

“Shaya,” he demanded. “What has happened? Come out from under there!”

But as he spoke the despair in the bond deepened, becoming colder and more despondent, a reluctance twisting through it. This wasn't working.

Kardos thought for a moment and then gestured for Rozalia to leave. She turned slowly, her eyes flitting between the desk and him, and then left the room and close the door gently behind her.

Kardos stilled, quietly examining the bond within him. Shaya was still scared, but even more so she was upset about something specific. The jagged raw emotions were stronger than anything he had felt before—almost unbearable—and the idea that his Omega was suffering in this way both angered and alarmed him. He wanted it to stop. Immediately. But it was clear she needed careful handling.

Lowering onto his hands and knees, he crawled to the desk and reached for her.

“No, no, leave me alone,” she sobbed, her voice raspy. “Don't touch me! Leave me alone.”

Kardos growled in annoyance at her instruction. There was no way he wasn’t touching his own Omega. He reached farther in and hooked his arm around her waist and gently pulled her toward him, gathering her up in his arms.

As soon as he had her, he stood up slowly, but she curled herself tightly into a ball, wrapping her arms over her head and burying herself into his chest.

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