Page 76 of Deck of Scarlets
“The bonding? You never said anything about that,” I whispered to Josh.
“I thought I told you,” he whispered back.
My nostrils flared. “No!”
Father coaxed us forward, and Collin scurried over to take my dagger so my hands would be free. Baron came forward to remove the remaining daggers, then Asher and Kal started to set up for the next part of the ceremony. The table, once covered in decorative weapons, was replaced with a thin, white table runner, a silver knife, and two white towels. We stood before the display, and my hands shook with anxiety. Whatever the bond meant, it clearly gave the impression of some type of blood oath, and that made my stomach flip upside down.
Father Benedict picked up the silver knife, examining it in his palm before handing it over to Josh first. “The bond of a Scarlet and the Tutelary Saint is sacred.” Josh sliced a thin line on his palm before giving it to me. I took it without protest, but my anxiety never faltered. I held the knife. Josh’s blood lingered, dripping down until it touched my hand.
Father Benedict then gave us his attention, waiting for me to slice my hand as well. Breathing through my nose, I did a quick cut down the center of my palm, hissing from the sting. Blood began to ooze from the wound, coating my palm.
I didn’t have time to react as Father Benedict grasped my and Josh’s arms, forcing our palms to connect. “Bonded by blood, chosen by fate.”
Our joined hands began to glow with a gold aura.
How in the world?
“In the eyes of our Lord and savior and fellow members of The Order, bear witness to a holy binding.” The light became blinding, to the point where everything disappeared, but I could still feel the connection of our hands pulsating. Josh’s fingers intertwined with mine, and the sense of security from his hold sent a wave of sudden relief through my body. Suddenly, I was flooded with a vision of us connected, fighting back to back, protecting one another, and I never thought I would feel such a sense of gratitude and security by viewing our future selves fighting alongside one another. Our weapons, his bow and arrow, and my—long sword? The dagger I’d chosen moments ago was absent from the vision. The sword’s pommel was designed similarly to the dagger’s, only the stone in the center glistened a honey yellow in the light whenever I swung. We fought until every gruesome creature perished, our clothes caked in black tar and blood. I’d never seen so much carnage in my life.
Eventually, the scene changed, our hands joined on a cliffside, with luscious green valleys as far as the eye could see, surrounded by others alike, basking in the realization that we’d survived a war. I went to turn to Josh but instead found a man with shoulder-length, raven hair, violet eyes, and a sense of death coating his presence. The valley’s green grass suddenly browned at our feet, trees lost leaves, and the sky twisted in an eerie gray. Bodies of once healthy warriors dropped dead, some rolled down the hills, blood staining everything in its path.
I tried to rip my hand from his, but he held tight, pulling me close to his chest, his breath of sugary sweetness fanning my face. “My Juniper.” He lifted my hand to his lips, the cold kiss sending an unwanted chill throughout my body.
“That’s not my name!”
I tried to escape, but his grip only tightened, to the point where his fingers dug into my skin, the feeling of bruises already taking form. His eyes swirled with dark shadows, making the violet color fade, his lips inches from my own until he leaned off to the side, his cool breath against my ear. “You can’t win.”
The golden light faded, bringing our sight back and everything and everyone around us into view. Father Benedict separated our clasped hands, and I gazed upon my palm to find the wound healed, not a single trace of blood in sight.
But that wasn’t what had me taking a step back from them; it was the catastrophic nightmare I bore witness to during our bonding.
My heart pounded erratically against my ribcage, the pressure so intense that an ache began to form. Josh cocked his head to the side, unsure why a look of fear plastered my face. Did he not have the same experience? Was I the only one to see such tragedy? And who was the man calling me Juniper? My eyes darted toward the crowd as they patiently waited for something to happen. Father Benedict looked over at my labored breathing while I clutched my healed hand against my chest. Without a word, he nodded to the others, a signal for them to leave. I needed to get a grip on myself, just enough to get out of there and try to make sense of what just happened.
Collin took the bloodied knife from my other hand and cleaned it with one of the white towels on the table. Baron cleared the remaining weapons before carrying them out of the room. I continued to stare at my healed palm, waiting for something to happen, but there was no trace of the golden light from moments ago.
The members began to leave the room, but Josh remained, standing just inches from me, watching my reaction, a look of concern on his face.
“Remi?” he called. My name echoed in the empty room, and a taste of anxiety coated my tongue.
I swallowed back the bile that threatened to ruin the nice carpeting. “What?”
“You’re as pale as a ghost. Are you okay?” Josh asked, moving forward, trying to bridge the gap I’d created between us.
I wanted to say something, but I couldn’t find the words. It all just seemed so real, regardless of my encounter with an actual demon not too long ago. How could my life go from harmless drunken nights and annoying fancy parties to blood, death, and chaos?
Life has always been that way. The words traveled to me in a whisper, caressing the walls of my mind, a lingering itch I couldn’t scratch.
I frantically looked around, not sure if I was hearing things, when Josh smirked. “It’s the bond.”
“Excuse me?” I said, taking a step back. “Get out of my head. That’s creepy.” Panic swept in like a tidal wave, taking control of my nerves. Because if he could hear my thoughts now, that would mean…
I slammed the images of what I’d witnessed during the bonding down, locking them away until I could separate myself from him.
“Kind of impossible when we are bonded and your thoughts are so goddamn loud,” he retorted.
“You have got to be kidding me! Now I have to hear you inside my head? It’s bad enough I have to listen to you now,” I groaned, ripping the hood off my head.
Josh dramatically grabbed his heart, looking wounded. “Oh, that hurt.”