His eyes sharpen despite the red tinge creeping into them. "You're certain?"
"Kheirall and Ragnar were there. They saw me but didn't expose me. I think... I think they were trying to help."
"Those demon bastards always did play their own games." He shifts and the chains groan. "Coinneach has already delivered your message. Your knights will warn the court."
Relief washes through me but it's short-lived. Svenn's body convulses suddenly, a growl tearing from his throat.
"You should go." His voice is strained. "The eclipse isn't over yet. I can feel the bond starting to—"
Svenn cuts off with another growl. His control is rapidly fraying. He lurches toward the wall where a lever is mounted, using his limited range to pull it. The chains tighten with a metallic screech, anchoring him to the floor.
"Svenn?"
"Go. Now. Before—" He struggles to get the words out. "I didn't want you to see me like this."
I move closer instead of leaving. "I'm not going anywhere."
"Rhianelle, please." The words come out strangled, desperate. "I can't control it much longer. The bond is breaking free, and when it does… He's everything I've tried to protect you from."
"I don't need protection from parts of yourself."
He goes still. Even the chains stop rattling.
"I want all of you," I continue, keeping my voice steady despite my racing heart. "Every dark corner, every part you keep locked away."
"You don't understand." His voice is deeper, more primal. Claws are beginning to emerge from his fingertips. "The hunger. What it makes me want to do."
"Then show me."
His head snaps up, eyes wide and wild. "You don't know what you're asking."
But I do know.
I step closer until I'm within arm's reach if the chains broke. "We can't keep doing this. I'm tired of you hiding from me, Svenn."
"Rhianelle." My name is a warning, a plea.
"The bond doesn't just want you. It wants to consume you. Possess you completely—" He cuts himself off with a snarl, his fangs lengthening.
A hairline crack appears in one of the chains.
His claws are fully extended now, shadows beginning to writhe around him despite the iron binding.
"I'm not some fragile flower, Svenn. I survived nine hundred years in Astefar. I can handle whatever you—"
"This isn't about what you can handle! It's about what I might do!" The chains shriek as he pulls against them. "The bonddoesn't understand restraint. It only knows to take, claim, keep, and mark you."
"Go ahead and let it out." I reach toward him. "Let me see this terrible thing you're so afraid of."
He jerks back violently. Ice begins to spread where his hands grip the iron.
"Rhianelle… Don't come closer." There's panic mixing with the hunger now.
I take a breath, steadying myself. "Something else happened at the ball."
Everything goes still. Even the shadows stop moving. The temperature in the cave seems to drop ten degrees.
"What happened?" His voice is dangerously soft.
