Page 63 of Bound to the Marak

Leonie blinked, taking in his new image. “You look… hot,” she said honestly, then bit her lip. “A little dangerous. Still definitely not from around here.”

A glint of amusement flickered across his features. “That will serve us well.”

He extended his hand. She took it.

As they began walking toward the ship’s descent bay, Karian's grip on her hand tightened, just slightly. Protective. Possessive.

“I hope you’re not planning to let me go off on my own,” she said, already knowing the answer.

“Never,” he said. “You are the Marak’s now. That makes you a target. Even here. Perhaps especially here.”

She frowned. “Why especially?”

“This planet is largely unguarded. Chaotic. The Dukkar could be watching, even now. And others, who would harm me by harming you.” His voice hardened. “You will not leave my side. Not until Alfie is found.”

A thrill of fear passed through her, tempered only by his calm authority. There was no arguing with Karian when he was in this mode—cold, calculated, but laced with something else. Something...personal.

Still, as they reached the final chamber before descent, a question burned on her tongue. She stopped walking.

“Karian?”

He paused beside her, his illusion-glamoured face unreadable.

“I need to know something. Before we land.”

He waited.

She drew a breath. “What am I to you, exactly? Your concubine? A pet? A plaything?” Her tone didn’t hold accusation, only curiosity—and maybe a hint of fear.

His jaw tensed. He looked away for a moment, as if trying to gather words from a language that didn’t quite suit them.

Then, quietly, he said, “A Marak does not take a companion. He takes soldiers. Advisors. Generals. Occasionally, pleasure slaves.” His gaze returned to hers. “But never... a mate.”

Leonie’s breath caught.

His voice lowered further, almost reverent. “What you are to me, little human, is something new. Something unspoken in our traditions. Something I am still discovering.”

They stood in silence. Earth spun slowly in the viewing glass. Somewhere down there, her old life waited—her neighborhood, the smells of city streets, the dog who had once curled beside her on the couch.

And yet… Karian was holding her hand like he would never let go.

Something new.

Her heart ached with the weight of it.

“I guess we’ll find out what I am,” she said softly. “Together.”

His fingers curled more tightly around hers.

“Yes,” he murmured. “Together.”

Forty-Five

Earth.

So this was the world that made her.

From the upper atmosphere, it looked unremarkable—blue oceans, clouds swirling in layered motion, cities etched into the land like fungal growths. But the moment they broke through the sky in the cloaked descent vessel, Karian realized it was anything but ordinary.

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