Page 50 of The Bones of the Cursed

He runs his hands through his hair in frustration. “I don’t know what to do. She is your fated, even if she doesn’t know it yet. She belongs to you, heart and soul. The Gods have deemed it so, we all saw the proof.”

“What the fuck did you just say?”

We both whip our heads to the tiny human standing only a handful of feet away. How she snuck up on us, I have no idea, but by the look on her face she heard enough to be pissed.

“Let me get this straight,” she says slowly. “You left me because you think Malakai is my mate? That’s what all that was in the cave? You both knew, everyone knew, and no one told mea damn thing.” She points to me and I can feel my heart cramp at the pained look on her face. “Youknew. I asked you point blank what that was in the cave and you wouldn’t tell me.”

“That isn’t necessarily what that means,” I rush to say. “It could just mean the Fates have tied us together for some other reason. It doesn’t mean we’re mates.”

Kailu scoffs and Alanis gives him such a livid look that I’m shocked he doesn’t catch fire.

“Let me ask you this,” she snaps. “Is that common for people who aren’t mates?”

Kailu and I exchange a glance.

He steps forward and Alanis takes a step back, shaking her head. Kailu exhales but doesn’t speak. I grit my teeth in annoyance and take one for the team.

“It isn’t common, no.”

She raises a brow at me and waits.

“The mating bond tends to show up in different ways with different mates. Hearing each other’s thoughts, feeling the emotions the other has. It could be any number of things that reveal the bond.”

She looks to Kailu and I see the understanding in her eyes, the knowledge that I so easily read her emotions, like I have a direct line to them. Kailu doesn’t know this; I didn’t have it in me to break his heart further.

She swallows and looks to me with a small nod. The tears in her eyes make my heart spasm in pain for the second time in a span of minutes.

She nods again, not to anyone in particular, but more to herself. As if she is accepting the cards that the Fates have played.

“If you thought I was your mate,” she says, “why didn’t you say something? Why didneitherof you say anything?”

I exhale slowly. “You were dealing with a lot. I know you thinkno one can hear you when you cry every night, but we can. I do. I hear you, and I didn’t want to make anything worse.”

She grits her teeth, barely concealed anger brimming just beneath the surface. “Why are you here, Kailu?” Her tone is cold, so different from how I’ve ever heard her speak before. It’s like she is emotionless, detached.

Kailu flinches, but he still says, “I found some information when I was visiting the towns in the Shadow Territory that led me to the Shivering Lake. Turns out it’s another portal that ghouls are coming through.”

His injuries make sense now. “Where are the other soldiers who went with you? The humans?”

His teeth clench. The pulse in his neck picks up speed. “Dead, save for the one they took with them.”

Alanis gasps.

Well shit.

“We should probably get some sleep,” I say. “We can head out in the morning, since we need to get to Percius as soon as possible. I can fill you in on the details as we travel.”

Alanis doesn’t look at either of us before turning on her heel to return to the campsite, ducking into the tent she shares with Hannah.

Kailu shifts back into animal form, moving to lay down near the fire.

It’s later that night, or early the next morning, when anxiety thrums alive in my veins. I’m not sure if this is a warning sign of what’s to come, or just my body coping with the stress of everything, but my heart is beating so fast it makes me lightheaded, and it seems impossible to take a deep inhale of breath.

- ELION -

My body is beaten and bruised because the cloaked man visits me every day, as if I’m little more than amusement, a toy to pass the time. I’m sure he will be here soon.

A glimmer in the corner draws my attention to the Banshee. She visits me every day after the male leaves to heal the worst of my injuries, careful not to heal me so much that he notices. Today she sinks down to the floor, offering me company.

---