The Bond

by B. C. Burgess

  Her voice drew closer as she continued. “After you stood me up the first night, I hoped I’d see you last night.”

  “I don’t have time for this,” he dismissed, resuming his steps.

  She caught up and walked beside him. “You’re covered in blood.”

  “Am I?” he asked, unable to curb his sarcasm.

  “Here,” she said, “let me get that for you.”

  She reached for his cheek, but he grabbed her wrist and jerked her to a halt. “I can clean myself.”

  Her violet eyes narrowed as her nostrils flared, but she didn’t try to retaliate like usual. She just pulled her wrist from his rough grasp and glanced over her shoulder. “Have you thought about what I said?”

  “No.”

  “Liar.”

  “I have to go,” he mumbled, pissed and annoyed she saw him so clearly.

  He walked away, but she followed. “Go where?”

  “To get more soldiers.”

  “Are you taking a unit?”

  “Yes.”

  “You should take me.”

  “Why? So you can go on about nonsense that’ll get us killed?”

  She sighed, but kept up her pace. “No, so you can sleep next to a warm body while you’re gone.”

  “No, Lyn.”

  “It might be our last chance.”

  He stopped and met her stare. “I said no. Your time would be better served here, with another wizard.”

  She opened her mouth to respond, but was interrupted by Agro’s voice. “You,” he barked, pointing at a witch near the entrance to his tent. “Gather your friends then report to my bedchamber. And make sure they have all their limbs.”

  Lynette’s eyes grew huge as she turned them on Guthrie. “You have to take me with you.”

  “I don’t have to do shit for you,” Guthrie countered. “Besides, it’s not like you haven’t already seen Agro’s bed.”

  Her forehead wrinkled as her eyes grew shiny, begging him to reconsider. “The mood he’s in, those women won’t make it out of there alive.”

  “He’s not aiming to kill them, Lyn.”

  “He rarely aims to kill his own soldiers, Guthrie, yet they fall just the same. But I can see you don’t give a shit, so go. I may or may not see you when you get back.”

  She glanced at the witch recruiting women for the boss’ pleasure. Then she turned the other way, heading for a thick cluster of trees on the edge of camp.

  Guthrie looked from her to Agro, who stood at a basin outside his tent, washing the blood from his face and disheveled hair. He looked like shit, and so did his aura. When the soldier tasked with cleaning the bloody tent approached the basin to ask a question, he was knocked on his ass by a gust of summoned wind.

  Guthrie took a deep breath as he ran a blood-stained hand down his face. Then he called Lynette’s name. She paused her flight and turned back, and Guthrie gave a reluctant nod. “Go pack your stuff.”

  Her aura brightened as she raised her eyebrows. “Yeah?”

  “Do you want me to change my mind?”

  “No,” she answered, walking backward toward the sleeping quarters. “Thank you.”

  “Whatever. Just keep your ridiculous schemes to yourself. I don’t want to hear them.” The claim was a lie. Part of him wanted her to feed his ego by convincing him he had the gall and power to overthrow Agro and take control of an army. And the spark in Lynette’s gaze told him she recognized the temptation.

  “My lips are sealed,” she agreed, “until you ask me to open them… for whatever reason.” Then she turned and flew away.

  Guthrie sighed as he threw one more glance at Agro, who’d stripped down and ordered a witch to wash him. The man was psychotic and temperamental, but he had an uncanny knack for staying alive and retaining control. Guthrie would be a fool to challenge him, but now that Lynette had planted the idea, Guthrie couldn’t dig it out.

  “Damn her,” he whispered. Then he flew to follow through with orders, wondering if they’d be his last, or if he’d keep the temptation at bay and return to Agro with the means to capture his elusive witch.

  Chapter Four

  Layla and Quin ended up back in the bathtub, but this time they had coffee instead of wine, and there wasn't a towel covering his lap.

  Layla sat between his legs, leaning back against his gorgeous body and all its incredible parts, and because it felt as natural as breathing, she wasn’t the least bit shy. In fact, she was in heaven.

  “I still can’t believe it, Quin.”

  Neither of them had wrapped their minds around the fact that they were bonded yet, but now it was seeping in… slowly.

  He set his coffee aside. Then he magically kept hers in place so he could lift her up his body and nuzzle her neck. “It explains a lot.”

  “I think it raises more questions than it answers,” she countered, watching silver ribbons snake around their touching legs. “Like that silver. It’s not in my grandparents’ bonded lights.”

  “I know.”

  “Have you ever seen it before?”

  “No.”

  “What about this?” she asked, lifting his hand, and they both looked at the crease where their forearms touched. Small sparks shimmered across their flesh in waves, tugging on their hair follicles, so skin contact alone easily provoked shivers and goose bumps.

  “Nope,” he answered, entwining his fingers with hers. Then he stretched her arm out and kissed his way from the inside of her elbow to her shoulder.

  She closed her eyes and tilted her head, giving him access to her neck, and warm and fuzzy tingles rose from her toes like bubbles in carbonated soda. Being bonded to him was a dream come true, and she wanted to maroon herself in the fantasy, drown herself in everything good about it, but more than blissful love accompanied bonded mates. She'd seen what can happen to them, and sharp daggers of fear ripped holes in her euphoria. Her parents' experience flashed through her mind, and not only did she see what was beautiful about it, she saw what was tragic about it.

  Her heart stopped as her eyes widened, and she jerked upright, slopping coffee across her hand. “Oh god. No. What have I done? How could I have done this?”

  Quin swallowed the lump that leapt into his throat when she jerked from his arms. Then he vanished her mug and wrapped his arms around her chest, trying to calm her down, but she wasn't so easily soothed. He could feel her heart beating through her back, and her aura had changed completely. He’d never seen it so torn, and it had his stomach flipping. “Calm down, Layla.”

  She fought his grip and twisted around. “How can you say that? This is . . . It's . . . ”

  He took her face and leaned close, forcing her to focus on him. “Are you worried you're pregnant?”

  “Yes, Quin! Of course I'm worried. I'm terrified.”

  “You're not pregnant. Please calm down.”

  She started to argue, then paused and furrowed her eyebrows. “You sound sure.”

  “I am sure.”

  “How?” she demanded, maintaining a death grip on his thighs.

  He smoothed her wrinkled forehead then touched her heart. “Because I'm protected against pregnancy right now. I took care of it while I was gone Sunday.”

  She didn’t relax or respond, so he reached back up and touched her quaking lips. “I swear, Layla, there's absolutely no way you're pregnant.”

  Her fingernails retracted as she tilted her head. “What do you mean, you took care of it?”

  “It's a spell. It takes up to an hour to perform, and it guards against pregnancy for as little as three hours or as long as two weeks, depending on how you cast it.” He tucked a spiral behind her ear and kissed her tense jaw. “I'll show you sometime.”

  She closed her eyes, melting in his arms as her aura returned to its gorgeous palette. “I can't believe I didn't even think about it. That was really irresponsible of me.”

  He smiled and kissed her forehead. “Stop chastising yourself.”

  “I can't. Not aft
er what I've seen. Besides, that's the number one rule when having sex, and I didn't even consider it.”

  “The rules are out the window, Layla. We're not average people, and this is not an average relationship involving average sex.”

  “But we didn't know that before.” She paused and suspiciously narrowed her eyes. “You protected yourself, huh?”

  “Yes.”

  A smile played on her lips as she fiddled with his collarbone. “So you anticipated tonight?”

  He grinned and shifted her around, cradling her across his lap. “Yes.”

  “Since when?”

  “I've been anticipating this night for a long time, but I think you're asking when I decided to make it a reality.”

  “Yes,” she laughed, “that's what I'm asking.”

  “Let's see,” he mumbled. “We've both been ready for this night since around Thursday, right? Five days.”

  She nodded, and he lifted a spiral to his lips as he went on. “I would have made it happen sooner, but things kept getting in the way. You had a rough week, my love.”

  She laughed as she cuddled into him, listening to his heartbeat and story.

  “Thursday was a dreadful day, and your broken bones left you fragile, so loving you like this was out of the question for Thursday and Friday. It would have happened Saturday, but things went terribly wrong, and Saturday ended up being worse than Thursday.” He tucked her hair behind her ear and took her cheek. “Once I had you back, you were broken, and I had to fix you before thinking about anything else. But when your grandparents got here to heal you, I was able to look beyond the pain. Considering everything you’ve been through and all the obstacles you face, I was terrified we wouldn't get this night if I didn't act soon. Every time we turn around, our time together is being threatened, so I decided to stay in Karena's best room for a couple of days and take the opportunity before anyone could steal it from us.”

  She straightened away from his heart and raised an eyebrow. “So when you agreed to our deal this morning, you already knew what would happen tonight?”

  “I knew what I wanted to happen,” he confessed. “I never would have made that deal otherwise.”

  Her mouth fell open then closed. “I guess that would have been fine since I couldn't stick to it anyway. My self-control drains away when you touch me.”

  “I didn't play fair.”

  “I'm glad you didn’t.” She took his hand and wiggled his seductive fingers. “So this means we were made for each other, huh?”

  “That and so much more.”

  “Do you think this is why you had dreams about me?”

  “Maybe, but I’ve never heard of another bonded couple dreaming about each other before meeting.”

  “It's not fair. I should have been dreaming about you.”

  He smiled and played with her pucker. “But I knew about you. You didn't know I existed, but I've always known you were out there, somewhere, being perfect and beautiful.”

  She continued to pout, so he gave her a kiss. “How about now? Do you dream about me?”

  She dropped the act and smiled. “Every time I sleep.”

  “I like that answer,” he approved. “Speaking of sleep, you need some.”

  Her smile fell as her eyes narrowed. “The dreams are sweet, Quin, but they're nothing compared to the real thing. I don't want to go to sleep. I want to stay awake forever.”

  “It's four o'clock in the morning, love, and we have a stressful day ahead of us.”

  “Oh.” She dropped her gaze and fidgeted with her hair. “Do you think it will be that bad?”

  He leaned her back so he could find her eyes. “I love that we've bonded, Layla. It's the most amazing feeling in the world, and I wouldn't trade it for anything, but there are a lot of things we have to think about now, things that wouldn't have been an issue if we hadn't bonded. We have to tell our family, and we’re facing some difficult decisions.”

  “Are you worried?” she whispered.

  “Yes,” he confessed. “I'm very worried.”

  “It shouldn't have to be that way.”

  “No, it definitely shouldn't.”

  Tears gathered in her eyes, and his jaw flexed as he stroked her cheek. “Please don't cry, Layla. Not tonight.”

  “I don't want to leave, Quin. I don't want you to have to leave.”

  “Me neither, but we'll do what we must to keep what we’ve found in each other.”

  “Surely there's another way.”

  “I hope you're right, and we'll do everything we can to figure it out. I promise.”

  She laid her cheek on his bicep, staying silent for several seconds. Then she found his eyes and touched his cheek. “I don't want to be sad right now, Quin.”

  “Me neither, angel.” He kissed her fingertip. Then he smiled and raised his eyebrows. “You know, there is one thing we could do to cheer ourselves up.”

  She perked up and grinned. “You mean you're not going to force me to go to sleep?”

  “I still think you need sleep, but I'm willing to let you stay up for a little while longer.”

  Her aura brightened as she smoothly flipped around and straddled him. “That sounds like a huge sacrifice on your part. I'll have to make it worth it.”

  Taking his jaw in her palms, she touched her forehead to his. Then she melted into a kiss while sliding down his torso.

  Magical sparks flipped from their flesh and sizzled through their bonded lights, and the electrifying energy popped the surrounding bubbles, showering them in gold glitter and emerald petals.

  Chapter Five

  The snow came at Guthrie in cold, gray swirls that matched his stormy gaze and the granite peaks slicing through the eastern sky. The fluffy flakes that slipped past the hood of his crimson cloak clung to his lashes then succumbed to his magical heat, melting into quivering droplets.

  Guthrie expected no less of the flight over Ship Mountain, which found itself blanketed in snow six months out of the year, so he didn’t bother cursing nature as he wiped away the moisture blurring his view. The unit behind him, however, started grumbling the moment they began following the Klamath Mountain Range into California.

  Noon had come and gone, and Guthrie knew the soldiers were tired and hungry. They usually slept during the day, and they’d been on the move since dawn. But Agro had given Guthrie a mere three days and two nights to collect an army large enough to obliterate the coven protecting their target – a witch more powerful than any other.

  Because Agro had already summoned the troops near Oregon – only to slaughter most of them – rallying more would require a trip through California, Nevada, Wyoming and Montana. Then there was the matter of flying back to Oregon. The boss wanted Guthrie back in the Clatsop State Forest before the sun snuffed out the third night, and if the lieutenant found himself unable to make his deadline, he’d be wise to fly in the opposite direction, because those who failed Agro generally failed to draw breath long enough to regret their mistake.

  Wiping away another melted snowflake, Guthrie dipped into a ravine and slowed to a hovering stop. According to Agro’s map, a unit of Dark Elite soldiers camped nearby, awaiting the boss’ call.

  Guthrie lifted the concealment spell on his body and opened the sleeve of his cloak, letting his snake taste the air. Then he dug into a hidden pocket and retrieved a map printed on a scroll of parchment.

  Several soldiers dropped into the gully around him and lifted their concealment spells, relieved to be out of the wind, but Guthrie ignored their sighs as he unrolled the map and mumbled the word Appalachia. Wind whistled along the jagged mouth of the frozen chasm as he scanned the map’s legend. Then he flipped the scroll over and located the correct coordinates. The camp was less than ten miles away.

  Tucking the map in his cloak, he glanced at his unit, who wisely kept their complaints to themselves while awaiting their next command. Most of them were experienced soldiers who knew better than to expect a reward for their obedience, but Gu
thrie decided to throw them a bone.

  After ushering Silestra back into his sleeve, he concealed his body and floated toward open air. “We’ll take a break and eat when we reach the camp ten miles south, but then you have a twelve hour task ahead of you.”

  “What will you have us do?” Lynette asked.

  Guthrie looked at her, a woman as deadly as she was beautiful, a tempting rose with razor sharp thorns… which she’d recently plunged into his sides with whispers of rebellion. “We’ll split up,” he answered.

  Lynette scowled, her porcelain skin creasing around her violet eyes and red lips.

  Guthrie ignored the look and continued. “A few of you will accompany me to Nevada to fetch Agro’s soothsayers, while the others continue south. There are a few more settlements in California I don’t have time to visit. Now conceal yourselves. A hot meal is less than twenty minutes away.”

  With exact coordinates, they easily found their destination and entered the sleepy camp unannounced, bringing down protection spells with predetermined passwords.

  A nearby guard jolted to attention and scanned the crimson cloaks. Then he met Guthrie’s confident stare and tried to stand taller. “What’s the meaning of this?”

  Guthrie sized the man up then looked around, pinpointing the largest tent. “I’m Agro’s new lieutenant, here on his command.”

  The guard slowly relaxed and eyed the rest of the travelers. “What happened to Farriss?”

  “Good question,” Guthrie returned, heading for the tent undoubtedly housing the camp’s commander. “He went missing five days ago. Wake everyone and tell them to prepare to depart.”

  Lynette huffed and crossed her arms. “I thought a hot meal was on the menu.”

  Guthrie narrowed his eyes on her, and her arms slid to her sides as she bowed her head. “Sir.”

  Guthrie stifled a smirk, wise enough to know Lynette wasn’t submitting. She was merely appeasing him in an effort to get what she wanted, which happened to be his ear, so that she may whisper mutinous plots into it. And considering her outrageous schemes, she probably wanted to build him up in front of the other soldiers, cement him as a man worthy of an army’s obedience and loyalty.