Something inside me screamed to stop Celanea. I didn’t know why, because they were just ensuring that I couldn’t impregnate her. It wasn’t like I wanted a kid. But that deep part of me, the part that took control during sex with Gray earlier, flared to life, powerful and strong. I huffed in and out through my nose as my heart rate increased. I couldn’t move. I couldn’t fight against Celanea’sbond. The magic was too strong.
Celanea reached for a pestle and began to mash the contents as she continued to repeat the same incantation. She set the bowl back onto the platter, then grabbed the large knife once again. As she did with all her spells, she sliced her wrist, cascading her obsidian blood into the bowl, and then mixed it into the contents.
No. I knew what came next, and if Celanea made the concoction reach Gray’s throat, it was over for my little savage.
The old part of me that kicked and clawed its way to the surface exploded from my chest, breaking through the Syphon Bond, giving control over to the old version of myself once again.
A memory roared to life, one where I was forced to stand in the shadows in The King’s Palace throne room while young Gray endured a public beating in front of all our people. Grim had held me in place, threatening my sister if I moved to help her. I couldn’t go through that again. And I couldn’t let her, either.
I gasped for air, my shoulders slumping forward for a millisecond as it registered in my mind that I could move. I’d broken through the ironclad clutches of the Syphon Bond, even if it was only temporarily.
Without hesitation, I lashed out my shadows at Celanea and Forest, making them coil around their torsos and then their throats. Celanea shrieked in surprise before snatching up the knife. I launched myself at her, disarming the knife from her fist with a blow to her wrist so I could capture it for myself. It worked. I couldn’t ignore the whispered incantation that seeped through her lips, but it didn’t stop me from trying to drive the blade into her chest.
I tried to feed from her, deplete her, not in the state of mind to realize that I only had that magic because of her. I was a death-bringer becauseshemade me that way. It was her magic I possessed.
Celanea laughed, tilting her head back as my shadows slunk from her body. The knife never even pierced her skin. “Silly boy. I think it’s time to teach you a little lesson.” With a snap of her fingers, two Infernals appeared at my side.
“No!” I reached for Gray, desperate to travel her from here.
Magic-restricting cuffs slapped onto my wrists, silencing the insidious magic that flowed through me. “Gray!” I cried out, hoping she’d wake up and fight back since I’d failed. My cheeks burned from the moisture dripping from my eyes. “Wake up!” Rough hands at my shoulders shoved me to my knees, and their dark magic suffocated me as they held me in place. I would be forced to watch this horror show unfold. Helpless.
“I’m so sorry. I failed you,” I whispered, lowering my chin.
“Eyes up here, little warrior,” Celanea crooned before she turned to Forest. “I thought he was better than that?”
Forest sighed. “He does stupid things when it comes to my daughter.”
Celanea tsked. “To think he just rebuked my gift of apathy.” She turned back toward the other half of my soul, who still remained unconscious on the wooden table. “Regardless, we must continue.” Picking up the bowl containing the concoction from before, she resumed her process. Celanea leaned over Gray, forcing her mouth open to pour it in.
Gray began to spit and gag, thrashing. But the Tempest dug her fingers into her jaw and forced her mouth shut. The need to protect her consumed me, but I couldn’t move. After several agonizing moments, Celanea’s chant waned, despite Gray’s resistance. “Swallow it,” Celanea clipped, covering her mouth with her free hand as she returned the bowl to the platter. “Or we can do this the hard way.”
I couldn’t speak. All I’d ever wanted was to protect her.
Gray whimpered, coughing against her hand. A red haze of fury eclipsed my vision as I remained on my knees. I felt the Syphon Bond slither its way back in control of my heart, tightening its reins around my soul once again. I fought against it, gritting my teeth and yelling as the internal battle erupted into pain. Warm liquid seeped from my nose, and I realized my nose bled from the effort.
With a final push, the Syphon Bond seizedcontrol, eradicating my emotions and shutting me down. Its power spread, forcing me to comply.
Finally, the torture—for Gray and me both—came to an end. My jaw ached, and my teeth threatened to break under the pressure I put on them.
Celanea sighed contentedly. “All done. Problem solved.” She pivoted her twisted gaze onto me. “Take her back to the keep. Do with her as you wish now.”
Like the puppet on a string that I was, I followed her command, moving to cradle her in my arms once again and carry her back to her cell. She lay half-conscious in my hold, her face wrenching in pain. Little groans scraped from her throat, followed by a whimper.
It was strange because I felt a connection to her. The love I had just felt still lingered, but as I strode through the corridors, it was muted, even as I touched her.
However, my loyalty remained with her. That would never change.
I wielded my shadows to unlock and open the door to her shared cell with Slate. He was awake when I carried her inside, and his eyes displayed the same wrathful rage that I felt, except that his was clearly directed toward me.
Fuck him.
Gently, I laid Gray on the rigid floor before I locked a different set of cuffs back on her wrists and ankles with a tenderness I didn’t know I even possessed anymore. The cuffs were attached to a longer set of chains in the wall, offering her arms the freedom to lie down without being extended above her head. After what Celanea just did, she would be in agony when she awoke.
“She’ll hate you.” Slate’s voice was raw. “You might have her, but she’ll never love you the way she loved the old version of you. You’re not what she wants.”
“And neither are you,” I retorted as I watched her drift into a deep sleep.
Slate grunted. “The difference between you and me is, Iaccepted that years ago. I’ve always known where I stood with her. However, you—whoever this demonic version is—doesn’t know boundaries or respect. Because if you did, you’d know that you have no chance of coming back from what you’ve done to her.”
