Page 64 of Twisted Bonds
“Better than dying snidely and cowardly,” Sunder spits back.
“Enough!” Mira’s shout cuts through the air like a knife. Her hazel eyes flash as she looks between Sunder and Tairyn. “If you can’t be part of the solution, then shut up. Like it or not, we’re in this together now. None of us want this, but here we are. So fucking be nice.”
My gaze finds Bobble’s, then Tairyn’s, and finally Sunder’s. Something passes between each of us, feeling the weight of Mira’s hopes on us all. An understanding.
“Sorry,” Bobble offers, his colossal form hunched apologetically. “I just thought—”
“You thought right, Bobble.” Sunder’s soft whisper embraces the shifter like an old friend. “We’re just frustrated.”
“Watching you two is like watching two schoolgirls on the playground,” Tairyn drawls, a smirk on his lips. “Now give each other a sweet hug.”
“Better than playing games, isn’t it?” Sunder bites back, his chestnut eyes narrowing dangerously.
“Okay. Let’s take a break. It’s a lot to take in and process,” Mira cuts in. As we each file out of the room, going our separate ways, I can’t help the lonely pang in my chest. The door to my room closes behind me, and I lean against the cold stone wall, rubbing my temples.
This isn’t how it’s supposed to be.
thirty-one
Mira
Bobble throws a glance over his shoulder, questioning me as I hang back in what I’ve nicknamed the war room in my mind. I nod at him to go ahead, trying to impress my meaning into the movement. I’ll catch up in a minute.
Once the others are gone, Tairyn stops his pacing and watches me cross the room to him. There’s not a twinkle of amusement or a smug, shit-eating grin plastered on his face for once. No swelling shadows dancing around him like ominous tendrils of smoke.
“You didn’t tell them about your bargain with Yurghen.” His brow furrows, something unreadable passing over his face. “About how you got your Chroma back,” I clarify to his vaguely confused expression.
He tips his chin in understanding. “They didn’t ask.”
The space between us fills with a palpable energy, like we both want to say something, do something, but still ourselves. At least, I think that’s what’s happening. Maybe I’m misreading this whole situation. But…
“You tried to save me. When you thought Yurghen was here for me.”
Tairyn is silent. His gaze locks onto mine, a haunted expression that has nothing to do with the bruises edging the corners of his eyes. Uncertainty pulses inside me, seeps around me until I’m idly scratching at my cuticles.
“I did,” he finally admits with disarming sincerity, his voice low like he’s whispering his deepest secrets into the dark. His lip is swollen, an angry split down the middle.
His admission makes the tension thicken, almost unbearably so, turning our conversation into a battlefield. Stalemate. I open my mouth to say something - anything, but no words come out. He seems to be waiting for me to speak, his gaze never leaving my face.
I swallow the lump that’s formed in my throat. “Thank you,” I mumble. My gratitude falls into the silence echoing around us.
When he doesn’t say more, I turn to leave. My cheeks prickle with heat as I scurry away, but I can’t fathom why. Maybe because I’m a coward for not saying how I feel. Maybe it’s because I feel anything other than hatred for this man who took me captive.
Once out of his sight, I sprint down the torch-lit hallway, my boots thumping against the stone floor. The flickering light casts long, dancing shadows that seem to mock my urgency. I just need to find Bobble and Sunder. To see them. To hold them. Let them make the world feel safe and simple again, even if it’s just for a minute.
Walking side by side, I can see they are deep in conversation. I don’t even think they hear my approach. Sunder’s deep voice reverberates ahead, a rolling thunder of discontent, while Bobble’s softer, more soothing tones attempt to mediate.
“Talking to Cor’than is insanity,” Sunder growls, his words slicing through the dense air like a blade.
“Peace, Sunder. We need allies, unpredictable as they may be.” Bobble’s tone is as steady as the earth itself.
I finally catch up, slipping between them and looping my arms through theirs. The tension between my shoulder blades eases away like mist in the morning sun. I can feel their presence sinking into me, warm and familiar, through the bond we share. It’s been too long since I’ve felt this connection, this rightness.
“Cor’than is a mistake.” Sunder glares ahead as if his gaze could burn holes through stone walls.
Bobble nods, but his amber eyes meet mine, glinting with a silent plea for understanding. “But he has resources that we lack.”
“Let’s shelf the Cor’than debate for now,” I suggest, snuggling closer to the two pillars of strength on either side of me. My heart thrums in my chest, harmonizing with theirs. “We have more immediate matters to attend to.”