Page 43 of Only Cold Depths
“It’s fine,” he said in a low voice. “I just gave myself a skinbond. That should take care of it.”
Even as he said the words, the bruise faded away. Kyrion flexed his fingers and rotated his arm, and the sticky cobweb in my mind twinged with pain and soreness. Guilt churned in my stomach. He’d been hurt because he’d been trying to protect me, and I’d been annoyed and upset at him for it.
I moved forward, held out my hand, and opened my mouth to apologize, but Kyrion stepped back and tossed the used skinbond injector into a recycler in the corner. I stopped, my hand plummeting to my side.
He smiled, as though everything was fine, but his eyes were dull and tired, and his shoulders sagged with exhaustion. “I’m going to take a shower. Try to get some sleep, okay?”
Before I could respond, Kyrion went into the bathroom. The softclickof the door closing made me flinch, and more guilt churned in my stomach.
Even though Kyrion was only on the other side of the wood, and I could still sense him through the bond, right now he felt a million miles away. Even worse, I had no idea how to fix the awkward distance that had suddenly sprung up between us.
Icrawledintobedand pulled a cozy, weighted blanket up to my chin. I wanted to stay awake until Kyrion got out of the shower so we could talk, but the stress of the day caught up with me, and I fell asleep. I didn’t wake up until the next morning, when a sharp knock sounded on the main suite door.
I rolled over and stretched my hand out, but my fingers only met cool sheets. My eyes popped open. Kyrion was gone.
I sat up, my gaze darting around the bedroom. His stormsword was also gone, along with his bandolier of supplies.
Kyrion?I called out through the bond.
He didn’t answer me, but the sticky cobweb of him was calm and still, and I could sense he was on the estate . . . somewhere. Kyrion normally got up before I did, but he was always quick to come find me when he realized I was awake.
I waited a minute, but I didn’t sense him moving any closer. Why wasn’t he returning to the suite? Did he want to avoid me because of our conversation last night? Hurt spiked through me at the thought.
Another knock sounded, a little louder and sharper. I groaned, wanting nothing more than to dive back under the blankets, but I got out of bed, threw on some clothes, and slid my stormsword into its slot on my belt.
A third knock sounded, and I opened the door to find Asterin in the corridor, dressed in a clean pair of gray coveralls. She was holding a large paper bag in one hand and a travel mug in the other.
“Where’s Kyrion?” I asked.
“I ran into him a few minutes ago when he was leaving your suite. I offered to have a servant make him breakfast, but he muttered something about exploring the estate and reviewing the security.”
I snorted. “I’m sure Siya will love that.”
Asterin let out an agreeing chuckle, although her laughter quickly faded away. “You and Kyrionaresafe here, Vesper. You don’t have to wear disguises and hide who you are anymore. The estate and the rest of the mountain are all House Collier territory. Holloway can’t touch you here, and even a bounty hunter would think twice about attacking. Plus, my mother and stepfather wouldnevergo back on their word to shelter you, and neither would Siya. The honor of House Collier means everything to her, and she would never disobey a direct order from Aldrich.”
I thought about all the guards Kyrion had pointed out last night. “Is something going on with House Collier? Some dispute or trouble with another House?”
“Not that I’m aware of, but I haven’t been here much over the last few months. I’ve been too busy husband hunting on Corios.” Asterin’s mouth puckered with disgust, but after a few seconds, her eyes narrowed. “Wait. Why would you ask that?”
“No reason,” I lied. “I guess I’m just looking for trouble everywhere these days.”
Asterin’s face softened with sympathy. “Do you still want to visit my workshop? I understand if you would rather stay here and rest.”
For a moment, I considered doing just that. Closing the door, getting back into bed, and pretending the rest of the galaxy didn’t exist. But that wouldn’t help me, and I was tired of running and hiding like I had done something wrong when Callus Holloway’s lust for truebonds was to blame for this whole messy situation.
“I would love to see your workshop. Just give me a few minutes to get ready.”
Asterin followed me into the suite and handed me the bag and mug. “You can eat while you finish.”
I took a cautious sip. A delicious apple cider with subtle notes of orange and a warm touch of cinnamon exploded on my tongue. I hummed with pleasure, then opened the bag, which contained several chocolate-apple scones.
My stomach rumbled, and I crammed a scone into my mouth. Buttery, flaky crust. Big chunks of sweet apple. Bigger chunks of chocolate. All of it drizzled with a vanilla-bean sugar glaze. Mmm-mmm-mmm.
“You’re a good friend.” I shoved another scone into my mouth.
Asterin grinned. “I know.”
I quickly scarfed down all the scones, along with the cider. Then I brushed my teeth and pulled my dark brown hair back into a ponytail. I also grabbed the Techwave cannon, along with some of the solar magazines Kyrion had packed.
