Page 54 of Ecliptic

“Careful, you still need rest,” Maddock said, helping me sit up.

“No. Tell me. I remember. What is it?”

“Told you she would remember,” Rowen said proudly.

“Wouldn’t you rather talk about the horrible things your mom just did to you?” Maddock asked, clearly trying to change the subject.

“No,” I said, realizing it was the truth. “Those memories no longer serve me.”

Madds spun to leave the dome. “I’m going to go and let you two talk about it. I don’t want to be here for this.”

“Oh no, you’re staying,” Rowen said, yanking him back down by his arm. “This should be fun.”

“What is it?” I asked, rubbing my temples.

Rowen pursed his plump lips and sighed before he said, “Maddock is in love with you.”

“Ha. Ha. Hilarious,” I said through the dull throb in my skull. “Now, tell me.”

“It’s true, Keira,” he said as Maddock moaned in embarrassment, avoiding eye contact.

I was most definitely still drugged. “Come again?” I asked, dropping my hands into my lap.

I glared at Maddock in confusion, his brown eyes darting back to me. “It’s not . . . by choice. It appears that when I invaded your mind—” Rowen glared murderously. “—I went in pretty deep. I dug my claws in as far as they would go, then pushed harder. I saw many of your memories. Saw what you saw and felt what you felt. Your feelings were so powerful, unlike anything I’d ever felt before. There was pain, but there was also silver and gold and love. And when you pushed me out of you, I didn’t want to let go. You just feltsogood. So I gripped tighter. Not only did I take some of the Alcreon Light, but it appears I’ve also taken a piece of your bond with Rowen.” He swallowed hard. “On accident.”

“He has felt the power of our soul flame bond, Keira,” Rowen said, not moving a single muscle, but I had grown accustomed to spotting the rage just beneath his calm exterior.

So that explained why he’d been able to help me the day I almost drowned and why I felt comfortable in his embrace. It wasn’t just stolen emotions. It was a stolen bond.

I pressed my hands to my eyes to clear the lingering fog. “That is . . . weird.”

“It’s not for a lack of tryingnotto. But what you have is . . . powerful. Better than any drug I’ve ever taken, and I’ve damn near tried them all. Better than ecstasy, better than heroin. And a thousand times more addicting. I . . . I find I need to be near you.”

My shock faded, the reality of the situation hitting me like a rogue wave.

I shot up from the bed and into Maddock’s face, nearly stumbling into the medicine cabinet. He tried to help me, but I pushed him away, nausea creeping up my throat. “How dare you take a piece of my Light,andmy bond. That is sacred. You’ve already stolen so much from me. And now this?”

“I know, and I’m so sorry to you both. If I could stop it, I would. I just want to help you now in whatever way I can. That is all I want.”

I didn’t care what he had to say. Not a single word. I pulled back my fist, anger coursing through me like a riptide. I hadn’t been able to intentionally touch anyone for so long that the moment my fist connected with his face, satisfaction rippled through me. And I grinned as his head knocked to the side.

He looked at me in shock, rubbing his jaw. “I know you’re mad. But?—”

“You have no idea how I feel right now.”

“Actually, I do. Maybe not to the full extent. But I hold a piece of your bond within me. I’ve . . . I’ve been able to feel you for a while now.”

Disgusted, I nearly gagged. “What about your fiancé?” I asked, remembering I’d taken memories from him too.

“I’ve been dead to her for a while now, since before the accident. She’s moved on, and I let myself die there. I’m not going back.”

“Well, you can’t stay here! I don’t want to be anywhere near you. Not even on the same planet as you. We can literally split the universe in half. Stay on your side, and I’ll stay on mine.”

I punched him again and again. Fury blinded me, but Maddock made no move to evade my onslaught.

“Keira,” a voice pulled me back to myself, as it always did and always would. My fist stopped midair. “Are you sure you want to beat him to a bloody pulp?”

“Yes. I really think I do.”

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