Silence.
“And Dean Bellows… she thought if I bonded, it might awaken something in me. But that didn’t go as expected.” I laugh, and it’s sharp with disbelief. “Instead of creating a rare bond to one person… I felt four bonds during the ceremony.”
They all sit up straight.
“Four?!” Cleo yelps. “That’s impossible!”
“Trust me. I want this to all be in my head… I know it sounds impossible. But now that two have confirmed they also felt the bond, it’s becoming harder to deny. The only thing on my side is that they all assume they are the only one… but it’s been a nightmare and painful to resist the side effects.”
“Okay, I need to know who these bonds are right now.” Tabby pipes in, missing the point.
I give her a look, but she doesn’t back down. So, I continue.
“Okay, fine.” I laugh hysterically. “You’ll appreciate this, Tabby. My first bond to cross the arch? Professor Gabriel.”
“Lucky girl,” Tabby drawls as the others take a sharp inhale, recognizing the severity of the situation.
I shoot her a glare before continuing. “No Tabby. Not lucky. In case you forgot, I’m a Wrath, and he is a Sloth.”
She winces as she looks away.
“I know we joke around about bonding him, but we all know that alone is a death sentence for someone like me. And if that’s not enough, the second was Atticus Willshire.”
That shuts them all up.
“He was at my trial,” I say. I take a second to take a shaky breath. The anger at the universe, at the situation, starting to pour out of me.
“He confronted me after the bond ceremony. We agreed to keep it quiet. He doesn’t want to be bonded to a sinless nobody outside of his faction.”
Brix makes an indistinct sound in his throat. “Are you sure you can trust him? He’s Councilor Willshire’s son.”
“I don’t know, Brix,” I mumble, “I don’t have a choice. And speaking of the council, my third bond was to Maylo Villanox.”
“What?” Sly blurts. “As in the Speaker for the Envy Councilor? He’s insane.”
“A total psychopath,” Tabby agrees, finally realizing this is not a harem of dreams, but a total nightmare.
“That’s right,” I say. “And not only is he also tied to the Council, he voted for my exile at the trial… he’s wanted me dead since the beginning. Since the ceremony, he’s disappeared. I haven’t seen him.”
Everyone is dead silent now.
“And the last…” I hesitate. “The last one is Alexi from the Lust faction.”
Tabby’s eyes narrow. “Wait… Alexi? The sexy golden God with top power levels?”
“Alexi? How is that possible??” Holly adds.
“I don’t know, Holly. How is any of this possible? He… pulled me into an empty classroom on my way back to the dorm tonight and said that he’s felt the bond since day one. He—” I swallow.
“Alexi tried to blackmail me. Said if I didn’t take him up on his offer to sleep with him, he might not keep the bond a secret.”
Holly stands. “I’ll kill him.”
Brix mutters, “I’ll help.”
“No,” I blurt. “It’s fine. Something in our bond tells me he wouldn’t. But I—I can’t deal with all of this alone anymore. I’ve tried. I’ve been trying. But I’m drowning. And I need help.”
For a moment, no one says anything.
