Page 20 of Claim of Blood
“Done?” Ilona sneered. “You’re already marked.”
“My coven operates in the First Cat,” Emilia said, her tone soft but firm. “Homes, shops, wards with children nearby. If hunters are actively embedded—”
“They are,” Nathaniel said, extended nails gouging into the table’s surface. “You know they are. They’ve been watching us from inside the walls.”
“This is now a security breach,” Gaspard said. “The location is required.”
Leo didn’t move. “No.”
Silence pulsed through the room.
“Then compel him,” Ilona hissed. “That’s what the bond is for, isn’t it?”
Adam met her gaze with a stare like ice. “No. It is not. As you are fully aware.”
Ilona held his gaze for a moment longer but said nothing.
“It’s not its purpose,” Adam continued, voice cold and precise. “The bond exists for connection. For recognition. Not coercion.”
Gaspard spoke from his place at the table, ever smooth. “But it does allow for easier compulsion. A benefit, if unpleasant.”
Adam didn’t look away. “A last resort.”
“Adam,” Maja said gently. “We need this.”
Adam stood slowly, his movements measured. The council’s eyes followed him as he stepped away from his seat and circled the table. Each footfall echoed in the silence, too loud, too deliberate. He hated this. Hated every inch of the walk toward Leo. Hated that it had come to this.
This isn’t why the bond was created. It was never meant to be a leash.
He stopped just short. Leo lifted his eyes to meet his, wide and wet and pleading.
“Please don’t,” Leo whispered. “You didn’t make me give them the address in Innsbrook. Don’t make me give this.”
He smiled softly, and it wasn’t mockery. “We didn’t need it,” he said gently. “Rooting them out won’t be a challenge.”
“They’re my family,” Leo said hoarsely.
“And this city is mine,” Adam replied.
Adam let his hand rest against the side of Leo’s neck, just beneath the claim. The bond responded immediately, sparking between them like static under the skin.
Normally, all it took to compel a human was eye contact. A few whispered syllables, the right tone, the right pull of will. Simple.
But Leo wasn’t just human. Not anymore. And Adam was ancient enough to know that touch made the compulsion absolute. Irresistible. Paired with the bond, there was no version of this where Leo could say no.
The resistance lasted only a breath.
Then Leo shuddered violently. His body bowed under the force of it, knees scraping against the floor, hands splaying to brace himself as if the chamber itself tilted around him. His mouth opened, but no sound came.
Adam leaned in, voice barely more than a whisper. “Where?”
Leo trembled. Sweat gathered at his temples. His lips parted around the words like they were being torn from his throat.
“Montclair...” he gasped.
Adam felt the bond flare hotter, the resistance faltering.
“Which floor?”
