Page 30 of Bonded Chaos

“We shall see,” he said with a smirk.

Ryker straightened his tunic. “I have to leave on an errand for my father. My brother Riordan will keep you company in my absence.”

“I want nothing to do with you or your family,” I spat.

Ryker ignored my outburst. “Be a good girl for him, won’t you, Cadence?”

I. Was. Seething.

Ryker stalked toward me, and before I knew what was happening, he’d brushed his lips against my own.

Then he walked away, leaving me to stew in my rage.

Chapter Twelve

Ryker

The moment my boots met the damp earth, I knew something was wrong.

I flicked my head to the side, signaling Malesh to fan out, then repeated the gesture to Eamon. Both men acknowledgedmy silent orders with a barely perceptible nod before they disappeared into the darkness.

I inhaled a deep breath, allowing my senses to delve into the surrounding woods as I tried to locate the source of my unease. A twig snapping underfoot was all the confirmation I required.

“They’re still here.”

“The Wraith Borne?” one man asked, and I didn’t miss the slight tremor in his tone.

Most of my men knew the power of the Wraith Borne firsthand, but a small contingent had been too young to serve during the Cleansing.

“Do not allow the Wraith Borne to get their hands on you,” I warned. “Their toxic magic can drain the life from you with a single touch, should they choose.”

Eight decades had passed since that blood-soaked day, which was now immortalized in the pages of our history books. My father had grown paranoid about the Wraith Borne over the years. Their ability to break a person from the inside out as their magic twisted and crushed their victim’s organs with a mere touch, had already made most of their brethren wary of them.

They were some of the most lethal Fae the Unseelie Kingdom had ever produced, and when their numbers continued to rise, my father had judged them to be a significant threat to his position on the throne. It took little work to convince the council to gradually restrict their freedoms as he nudged the Unseelie Fae toward his ultimate end.

The eradication of the Wraith Borne.

His fears proved to be well-founded. The Wraith Borne had descended on the palace, wielding their deadly touch and killing anyone who stood in their way before my father even had the chance to go on the offensive.

What followed was a coordinated effort to hunt down and kill any Wraith Borne who survived the initial attack until my father had achieved his goal.

The cleansing of the Unseelie Kingdom from the disease that was the Wraith Borne.

No one had been spared. Men, women, and children had been sentenced to death by virtue of the magic that flowed in their veins.

Now, as I stood within the tree line of the darkened woods, I was reminded of the fact that the Cleansing had failed.

My father had only given the deadly Fae more reason to despise him and his rule.

The telltale signs of the Wraith Borne had marked the bodies scattered across the kingdom's outskirts in recent years.

Like the one we had just left.

My palms tightened on the pommel of my sword as I stepped further into the woods.

An unnatural stillness hung in the air, the silence wrapping around me like a shroud. It seemed as though even the trees held their breath, waiting and watching as we tracked our prey.

My shadows seeped from me, twisting and writhing as the dark tendrils scoured the path ahead. An icy chill settled in, and I saw mist form in front of me as I exhaled.

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