“The Fates. Their deities. They’re real.” Lainey’s lips parted, even though a part of her wanted to dismiss Kate’s words. “And trust me, I didn’t believe it at first, but once you feel them, sense them inside you, they become very hard to deny. Not to mention the blood bond.”
Lainey had heard a little bit about the blood bond from Cecelia, though she’d, frankly, thought that her friend had lost her mind at the time.
Now, Lainey wasn’t so sure.
“That’s what happens during some ceremony, right?” Lainey asked, unsure, biting her lip.
“Yes, the mating ceremony. It’s like a marriage ceremony, I guess, only a lot more…intense. Not to mention very, very permanent,” Kate said, a teasing tone in her voice.
“What do you mean?”
“Well, the blood bond,” Kate answered. “You’re bound to one another. He’s inside me, in my mind.”
Lainey frowned. “Like…metaphorically?”
Kate chuckled. “No. I mean I can sense his feelings, read thoughts that he sends to me, sense where he is, if he’s safe. And he feels the same for me.”
“That’s…that’s…” Lainey trailed off, gulping.
“Crazy?” Kate guessed and then sighed. “Yeah, but I’ve had time to accept it. It’s a lot easier to accept when you have someone else in your mind, trust me.”
“And Cecelia and Taylor and Beks all went through this with their, um, mates?”
“That’s right,” Kate said, nodding. She slanted her a look and teased, “You really are curious about this stuff.”
A little flustered, Lainey said, “It’s hard to believe. I guess I’m just trying to understand this place, these people better. Who knows how long we’ll be here.”
Kate patted her shoulder. “I’m sure they’ll find the crystal soon. One of Vaxa’s Ambassadors, Cruxan, is trying to track it down as we speak.”
The thing was…Lainey wasn’t so certain she wanted this Ambassador to find it anytime soon.
If only to give her more time with Kirov, to sort through the mess in her head.
Lainey sighed, leaning against the balcony, nibbling on her lip. Mess, indeed.
“Hey,” Kate said, her eyes softening in concern. “Is everything okay?”
“Yeah,” Lainey said, a bit too quickly. She cleared her throat. “Yeah, I’m just…overwhelmed. I’m still processing everything that’s happened.”
Something in Kate’s expression made Lainey’s stomach flutter in nervousness. Because suddenly, she wasn’t so sure that Kate believed that was the only reason. Lainey could practicallyseethe brunette putting the pieces of the puzzle together.
Shit.
“Of course,” Kate finally said, her eyes careful. “If you ever need to talk, I’m here.”
“Thank you,” Lainey said, not quite meeting her eyes. “I appreciate it.”
Chapter Fifteen
Kirov was Vixron’s relief for the night. When he showed up at the human females’ dwelling, apparently shortly after Kate had left, he informed the guard that he had the night off.
Vixron looked at him carefully, but simply jerked his head in a nod and departed, probably too eager for a full night of sleep to directly question Kirov about his interest in one of the human females.
Then, Kirov’s gaze found Lani.
His whole body relaxed, the buzzing in his mind quieting as he drank the sight of her in.
She was sitting in the fire pit area with the blonde female, who was too busy drawing on the tablet he’d left for her to notice that he’d walked in.
