Page 81 of Twisted Bonds
His words send a jolt through me, stirring the embers of the feelings I’ve tried so hard to snuff out. But is that enough to trust him? Once again, I’m stuck in this position, unsure where to place my trust. I ignored so many red flags with my ex-husband, and look where that got me. And yet, even with Sunder, there were omissions and betrayals before something more blossomed between us. Could Tairyn…
I stop that thought before it begins. I’m so pitiful. So desperate for his attention. All of them. I put myself in these situations over and over again to be hurt.
“Feelings can change,” I retort, my voice shaking with a mix of anger and vulnerability. “What’s to stop you from deciding we’re expendable again?”
“Nothing,” Tairyn admits. His eyes are like twin verdant flames, burning with a raw and powerful intensity that reaches into the depths of my soul and stirs up a storm of emotions. My heart can’t help but flutter in response, aching for the connection and trust that seemed to be within reach only an hour ago. “But if I wanted to sabotage you, I wouldn’t be offering my help.”
His words are like a balm on my frayed nerves, but I can’t bring myself to fully embrace them. The wounds he left are still too raw, the memories of his betrayal too fresh. I tear my eyes away from him, barely able to stomach his gaze.
“Let’s say we believe you for now,” Callum says cautiously. “What do you propose we do next?”
“Malicryn will come looking for Mira in the next few days. When they don’t find her, they might hunt her down. If I knew more about the ritual, I’d be able to tell you how important she is. Maybe they’d find a replacement and do the ritual without her. They could have someone else lined up for all I know. But they won’t wait any longer to make their moves. Whatever they do, it will be immediate.”
Sunder folds his massive arms across his chest, a deep frown etching its way into his features. “We can’t just sit around and wait for them to make the first move,” he says, his reluctant tone a growl. “We leave for Valenfall today. If we get some horses and ride hard, it will still take us a couple of weeks to get there. I just hope Cor’than doesn’t execute us on the spot.”
“There’s a faster way.”
We all turn to Tairyn, waiting for him to continue. “The portals. They weave in and out of the realm, constantly moving. Hard to predict. Impossible to find. Unless you know the right people.”
“No, no, no. The last time we went into those things, we had centaurs trying to kill us,” I object. Until Sunder killed them. I shudder at the memory of the sounds they made.
“This is different. It won’t be inter-realm travel. It’s domestic, if you will.”
I take a breath, trying to calm to gnawing feeling in my gut. But it’s Callum who speaks first. “We need the extra time. If we’re going to stop him, we need Cor’than on our side yesterday.”
It doesn’t take long to ready ourselves for the next leg of our journey. Sunder keeps the shield around Tairyn, never taking his eyes off his back as we descend the steps of his dreary palace.
The midday sun is already high overhead as we exit into what looks like a ghost town straight out of the old west. Callum lets out a long sigh as he exits the doorway from Tairyn’s villainous lair and into the abandoned city.
As I cross the threshold to the outside, Tairyn makes a loud hissing sound behind me like the sunlight is burning him alive. I roll my eyes at his dramatics and fall in step beside Callum. “I wasn’t sure I’d ever make it out,” he whispers.
I rub my hand over his back and press my forehead into his chest. “We’re going to make it through this. Together.”
“Let’s go,” Tairyn calls behind us, already stepping onto a small dirt path of switchbacks. “And you can drop the shield, Sunder. Save your energy. You’re going to need it.” There’s a sadness to his tone, a hint of resignation.
Sunder scoffs at his back. “Unlikely.”
Tairyn shrugs but doesn’t argue further. Within an hour of following him down the twisted back path through the mountains, a common fae with a gray beard crosses our path. With a silent nod to Tairyn, he leads us the rest of the way to a small clearing of boulders.
The man holds up three fingers and points to a spot nearby before making another silent nod to Tairyn and meandering on his way.
“Interesting company you keep,” Bobble observes.
“The best company always is,” Tairyn retorts. “We’ve only got three minutes until the portal appears. Channel your Chroma as soon as you see the shimmer. It’s attracted to magic. It should pick us up and spit us out near Valenfall in a matter of seconds. However, just to make sure we stick together, I suggest we all hold on to one another. Different people can move different ways in the portals.”
“Well, that’s where I have to stop you,” Callum cuts in. “See, I don’t have even an ounce of trust for you.”
I cock my head at Callum, wondering where he’s going with this. I keep glancing back to the spot the strange man said the portal would appear. Won’t be like last time. Won’t be like last time.
“As far as I can tell, you’ve exhausted your usefulness.”
Callum kicks Tairyn in the knee, knocking him to the ground. Bobble holds out an arm to keep me from going to him. “Don’t Mira. We have to leave him behind.”
My jaw drops. My eyes flit between Tairyn sprawled on the ground and the grim expressions of the other Shards. “What?”
“It’s for the best. He’ll betray us. We can’t let him get alone with Cor’than. Who knows what shit he might plan behind our back next?”
“Sunder, you can’t be serious.”