Page 45 of Threaded
He watched her for a moment and then exhaled heavily. “You don’t know anything about what the bond entails, do you?”
“Nope. Ryenne has been frustratingly tight-lipped about it.”
Sebastian rubbed his face, and then met her gaze, his hazel eyes sparkling. “Of course I will bond with you. It’s not even a question.” His voice was so kind, so gentle, Mariah felt her heart squeeze in her chest. She smiled at him broadly, glad to have accomplished at least one good thing today.
Especially since she’d killed someone earlier.
That reminder had blood rushing into her ears, and she dipped her head down, resting it back on Sebastian’s shoulders, desperate to hide the sudden wave of anger and fear washing through her.
“Your parents,” she said, clamoring hard for a distraction. “I think I would love to meet them one day.”
Sebastian’s smile was so broad, she felt the shift of his cheeks against the top of her head. “You will.”
* * *
They remained there, curled on the couch, well into the night. They talked about their lives before Verith, about the families they both loved so much. At some point, Mikael had snuck in and deposited dinner, leaving as quietly as he’d arrived. Mariah had finally remembered how hungry she was, before … everything. Each time she was faced with a reminder, her chest would lock up, panic springing a trap closed over her heart and her lungs. And each time, Sebastian responded to her panic with a gentle squeeze of her hand, a reminder that he was there, that she was safe, that somehow Ryenne would find a way to fix the damage Mariah had wrought. Sebastian brought the food over to her on the couch, and with a few more lighthearted stories, Mariah felt her appetite return. She finally ate her dinner, ignoring the relief reflecting back at her in Sebastian’s face with each too-large bite she stuffed in her mouth.
There was another feeling she saw starting to flicker in his hazel eyes, but she didn’t allow herself to even so much as acknowledge it. She was content tonight with his companionship, his calming strength. She appreciated his gentle touches on her hands and hair and back, how they kept her grounded on this plane of existence, but there was nothing more she could offer him.
He was too good.Especiallyfor her.
As the twin moons, now spheres of silver and gold, rose high in the sky, Mariah found her eyelids growing heavy. They’d eventually spread themselves across the L-shaped couch, each sprawled on a section, Mariah’s head resting on Sebastian’s chest where they met in the center. His fingers were still curled into her hair, stroking it idly. Just as she felt herself finally fading into the clutches of sleep, a single thought flitted through her head.
I have got to stop sleeping on this damn couch.
CHAPTER21
It had been one week since the meeting with the Royals.
One week, and Ryenne was still struggling to placate those lords, trying to contain the disaster Mariah had wrought in a single fit of uncontrolled anger. Since her outburst, her magic had come alive in her belly in a way it hadn’t been before, a constant whirling and twisting mass crawling through her like serpents.
Mariah should’ve known that taking to the magic so quickly would become a curse of its own. She could hardly sleep, could barely rest. It was beginning to drive her mad. Irritation and frustration and exhaustion scratched at her mind in a place she couldn’t itch.
“They are still … upset, to say the least.” Ryenne’s voice was weary, her face sagging with both exhaustion and …age. In that past week, a week without the well of magic that had given her long life, Mariah noticed time crept up on the queen, stealing back what had been withheld from it for so long.
All things, Mariah supposed, come with a price.
That same magic coiling in her gut was no different.
Ryenne continued, “Upset … but I believe finally willing to put this entire matter to rest.”
Mariah’s attention shot up from the meal she’d been picking at since the queen had strode into her suites, her already nonexistent appetite vanishing as she took in the stoic face of Ryenne and the sour one of Ksee behind her.
“What? They are? How?”
Ryenne heaved a sigh. “It has taken many conversations and great effort on my part, but I believe they’ve come to acknowledge that Beauchamp and Campion displayed an unforgivable level of disrespect towards you. Through me, they wish to extend their most sincere apologies, for any and all offense you experienced. I’ve been assured that such disrespect will not happen again.”
Mariah watched Ryenne carefully, dissecting her words.Many conversations … great effort on my part … Through me…
These words were not those of the Royals, but of Ryenne. And Mariah would be a fool to believe otherwise.
“So, what you mean to say is they believe me to be nothing more than an insolent child who takes offense to every slight she’s dealt.” Mariah met Ryenne’s gaze with a hard stare of her own before shrugging a shoulder. “At least they don’t want me dead.”
At that, Ksee finally spoke up. “Youdidbehave like an insolent child, Mariah. They failed to address you, and in response you lost control, blinded one lord, and stopped the heart of another. I have never once in my life questioned the decisions of my Goddess, but—”
“But what?” Mariah interrupted, silver and gold magic snapping like whips through her veins. They pushed against her lungs, wrapped around her heart, fueling the flare of rage at Ksee’s tone. “But now you think she made a mistake in Choosing me? It’s far too late for that now, Ksee. Either you can respectyourGoddess’s wishes and my future place here in Verith, or you can leave. And don’t forget, I didn’t want this for myself, either. I’ve been forced to accept this just as much as you. However, I’m determined to fulfill whatever it is Qhohena has planned for me, and if you intend to stand in my way, then you may see yourself out.”
The room was so silent, a pin drop could’ve been heard. Ryenne held her breath as she watched Ksee, whose own face grew increasingly more red, her eyes blazing with the fires in her veins. Finally, the priestess spoke.