Page 110 of The Sacred and the Tormented

Arianna counted the seconds before reaching for the glass. Vairik interlaced his fingers again and leaned back, clearly waiting for her response.

Rion. Her mate. A male she’d die to protect. Would she have fallen for him without the bond? She’d been terrified of him in the beginning. She’d heard all the stories and she’d witnessed his ruthlessness first hand.

But despite all that, she’d still chosen to save him. She’d done that because of her mother’s teachings and because she couldn’t bear to see anyone suffer.

But when she’d run to the river, something had pulled her back. She’d felt a connection to Rion she couldn’t explain. The bond had stopped her from running. Without it, she would have dove into that water without a second thought.

“I don’t know.”

The male raised a brow. “He was a creature that swept across the land killing your own people and you don’t know?”

“It’s not like he would have done those things if it weren’t for you.”

The male chuckled, the sound mirthless. “Maybe. Or maybe it was always in his nature.” Silence stretched between them. “Conversation is a rarity for me these days, humor me with your answer.”

Arianna chewed the inside of her cheek. “I think it would have depended.”

“Oh what?”

“The situation. Fate. Circumstance.”

He smirked again. “You know what I think? I think without the bond, that male would have ripped you apart the moment he scented you were from Móirín. I think the bond is the only thing that stilled his hand. And yours.” Arianna met his gaze. “I know your story. I know his too.”

He leaned forward slightly, resting his chin on his hands. “I know you once cared deeply for another of your companions. I know he’s now plagued by the same bond. A perfectly good match ruined due to unnatural interference.” Arianna wasn’t sure if he were speaking to her or to himself.

“Talon is free to love who he wishes.”

“Is he?” Vairik’s brow lifted. “The gods have shackled him to another with a ruthless nature. A female who was supposed to end the life of his proclaimed best friend and yet he forgives her intention so easily. As do you. A complete stranger.”

“People can change.”

“Just like that? What if I decided, right here, right now, to give up my endeavors, would you forgive me?”

“You’re a monster.”

“By your definition, so are they.”

“What do you want me to say?” Her heart was racing with the truth of his words.

Vairik leaned back again. “Nothing I suppose. It wouldn’t matter either way.”

Arianna watched him for another long minute. She tried to picture this male in his youth, back before the scars of the world had hardened his heart. He’d loved once. And that love had betrayed him because of the bond.

He’d mentioned changing his mind. Was part of him aching for a reason to let go of his anger?

The creatures within her writhed again. Arianna tried to take a deep breath and quell it into submission.

“I think,” she said, trying to choose her words carefully. “Given the proper circumstance, I might have fallen in love with Rion without the bond.”

“Really? And what circumstances would those be?”

“A world without you. A world where he was never marked as a demon. One that saw him as the son of a High Lord instead of a creature of death and destruction.” Vairik snorted, but she kept going. “Our countries were allies, we would have met eventually. You manipulated his fate, just like you claim the gods manipulated the previous Divine away from you.”

A real smile slowly spread across his face. “My, how the tables turn. Who would have thought I might grow into the very thing I loathe.” He rested his chin on his right hand, one finger over his lips as if he’d suddenly become lost in thought. “Perhaps it’s no longer worth my time. Maybe peace is on the other side of moving forward.”

Arianna wasn’t sure she liked the sound of that. “Moving forward how?”

His gaze roamed to hers. “You already know my plans, or did Conall not inform you?”

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