Page 18 of Moon Bound

“Aspen, where is your Raven?”

“He…he’s gone,” she croaks, throwing her hands over her face. Guilt tugs at my shriveled heart, steering up another bout of anguish. Deep down, she’s a scared girl who wants to confide in her father. Had I been that male since birth, this situation would be so much easier.

“Tell me what happened,” I carefully demand. I’ve done my fair share of research on the Supernatural Council and their delegation of Ravens since Orianna’s came to me. Once assigned, the guardians are not permitted to leave their charge.

“It was stupid. Chase challenged me to a hunt, Torsten wanted to try and outrun my wolf through the woods. We were just burning some frustration,” her navy eyes slide to me briefly. I bite down on the inside of my cheek to prevent my cheek from twitching. Sparing a quick glance back, they’ve yet to take their eyes off the damaged carpet, and for good reason. Those assholes will be serving time in the dungeons. I trusted them to protect her, not dare her into being reckless.

“Emotions were running high. I couldn’t separate my wolf from my…vampire,” she snarls the word like a curse. I swallow my own growl at her display of disgust. We’re the superior species. To be one of our kind is a gift, never a curse.

“What do you mean, separate?” Jaxon steps forward, hands braced in front of gray sweatpants. Always the soldier. Watching her spike of irritation at Jaxon’s voice, I lean back in my seat, resting my crossed fingers over my stomach, although my patience is almost non-existent these days.

“You know how it is,” Aspen growls. “Imagine that voice in your head that never shuts the fuck up being at war with a wolf prowling within your skin. They fight and argue; meanwhile, I’m trying to keep us all in check.” I catch the worry in Jaxon’s icy blue eyes and shake my head slightly. Nothing Aspen said makes any sense, but one problem at a time.

“So, you were racing through the woods,” I bring her back to the problem at hand. Apparently, I can’t trust my men to have her best interests at the forefront of their duty, I can at least rely on the Raven.

“Right, so, um,” Aspen grips the sides of her head. White hair spills over her face, shielding her from view, but I reckon that was the purpose. “I was closing in on Jaxon, I think. My wolf has taken over at this point. I remember Sawyer tackling me, urging me to shift back. His voice drowned out the others in my head, and somehow, he got through. I shifted, but I still wasn’t in control. I…I kissed him,” Aspen barely whispers, shame lacing her voice. “I fed on him, there was a flash of bright light, and then he left. That’s it.”

This time, my cheek does twitch. Just below the eye socket. My breathing shallows, my own grip on reality slipping.

“Aspen, I need you to think really carefully,” I lean forward and tilt her chin to face me. “Did he drink from you too? Did any of your blood enter his system?” Aspen’s navy eyes flick back and forth, replaying the memory before those dilated irises return to me.

“I think my lip might have been bleeding when we kissed. Why?”

“Fuck!” I shoot out of my seat. Three pairs of muscled arms are there in an instant, restraining me, but I’m not king just for appearances. Shoving the three away, I roar at the top of my lungs. Aspen’s heartbeat begins to race. I’m scaring her, and I don’t give a shit. Our entire plan is fucked. Years of preparation ruined. “Get her out of here!”

Aspen is forcefully removed from my office, much to her displeasure. Her screams can almost be heard over the sound of my foot splintering the wall. Whatever she didn’t originally wreck, I make quick work on destroying. The chairs are in pieces, and the rest of the desk is smashed through the stained-glass window. A slither of moonlight peeks through, mocking me.

The swapping of blood between supernaturals under the moon's clear light seals their bond. Not to be done so on a whim, becoming moon-bound is sacred, only for the truest of mates who have overcome many obstacles and challenges to be together. For the power of the moon to interlink each other’s souls and allow them to share one for the remainder of their lives, never to be without the other - if you don’t want your soul to fracture.

A ripple of anguish explodes within my chest. I gasp, drawn to my knees. Glass shards splinter my skin, but nothing compares to the agony inside. Hot as an inferno, I choke against the onslaught. The heartbreak of a broken moon bind often leads to suicide. The pain is indescribable. The link is irreversible. And these absolute fucking idiots allowed our best asset to bond with a creature of another species. The more I think, the angrier I’m becoming.

“Call off the trials,” I croak. “There’s no use now.” Meticulous planning, and they couldn’t have waited a few more days.

“The plan still stands. This doesn’t change anything.”

“This changes everything!” I shout. I genuinely thought Jaxon would be the champion. I’ve been grooming him to take my mantel since we discovered Aspen’s existence. The trials were to be a formality. Itrustedhim to keep her safe. Whether she was raised by me or not, Aspen is my flesh and blood. She’s mine to protect, and in not ensuring she has the best possible mate, I’ve failed her. The same way I failed Orianna.

Something inside my chest splinters. The affliction I keep trying to patch over and hide anyway slams into me with the force of a battering ram. I stagger forward on all fours, dragging myself onto the shaggy rug before the fireplace. A thump against my side lets me know I’ve collapsed, although, in my mind, the room is still spinning. The pain is a raw ache that robs me of all comprehension and breath.

“Lorcan!” Jaxon dares to call me by my name, attempting to lift my six-foot-four bulk of muscle upright. I refuse to obey, reserving my energy for the next round of crippling fire burning through my being. I thought it would have lessened all these years later. I was wrong. “Try to see sense. The trails can go ahead. Aspen has multiple species within her. For all we know, she may be able to have multiple mates too.”

My chest lessens the faintest amount of pain, enough to breathe shallowly. Could it be possible? I had accepted the Raven would remain with her for good, although his disappearance doesn’t bode well. All I wanted is to save Aspen, the broken bond I’d suffered with for too long, and when I thought it couldn’t get any worse, Orianna’s death broke me. My body is decaying from the inside. It won’t be long before I beg for a stake to the heart to put me out of my misery. But not until the future of the kingdom I’ve built is guaranteed.

“This only could have happened if they were true mates,” Chase pitches in. “It would have happened eventually.” I hadn’t realized he was still in the room, but with his presence comes the return of fury. Vaguely noting the male kneeling before me, I swipe my hand to bat him away. Fucking Chase.

“You caused this,” I shakily point a finger. “You and your stupid notions set them up perfectly. Moon help me, Chase, if you don’t perish in the trials, you’ll do so in the dungeons. Leave me.”

“Of course, your majesty.” I sense a hint of resentment in Chase’s tone, but with his exit, I can recoil within. All I feel is agony and death. Internal death. The edges of my vision darken, and I’m half tempted to lie here forever more. Time simultaneously passes and stands still, my thoughts fleeting like leaves on the breeze. I’m cursed by my duty to uphold appearances, but once upon a time, I was prepared to walk away. Love makes you do crazy things, and I was a day away from storming the shifter camp and claiming Orianna in front of her betrothed—one single day.

Hands-on my shoulder rouse me ever so slightly. Through a daze of memories, I can almost imagine it’s Orianna herself, coming to save me. But as the fog clears, I find myself cupping the cheek of my assistant, Nova, as she holds a blood bag in her hand. Clearing my throat, I attempt to sit upright, but she refuses to let me, instead, pushing the blood bag tube into my mouth, she patiently waits for me to drink it all, dabbing my mouth of any spills. So weak. So pathetic.

“Stop taking care of me,” I grumble when she retracts the tube. Nova masks her concern with a small laugh.

“Even if I wanted to, I’m bound by duty. As are you. So, get up. You have some explaining to do to the Techies and carpenters.” Nova peers around the room, her milk chocolate eyes scanning the destruction of wallpaper to curtains. There’s nothing like some father/daughter bonding.

“I don’t have to explain myself to anyone.” After a few long calming breaths and extreme focus, the heaviness in my chest lifts a minuscule amount as I bury the emotions I can’t handle. Bury them so deep I can pretend they don’t exist for a while longer.

Sitting up straight and gradually blinking to clear my vision, I see Nova next to me on the rug, her red heels tucked beneath her. Her lipstick and hair tie share the same vibrant hue, and her long brunette ponytail drapes over her shoulder. I've always wondered why she chooses to help me when she has the freedom to pursue any interest she desires. As she turns her attention to me, her eyebrow arches quizzically. “Are you going to let me call for the doctor yet?” Nova asks as she does every time.

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