Page 93 of Lifebound

“I’m going to make you a promise, too, Miriam,” I said before we said goodbye. “If for any reason Rune can’t bring you that diamond, I’m going to bring it to you myself, okay? A dark diamond—and a new pair of jeans. How’s that sound?”

I meant every word. I made that promise with my whole heart, but again—even though Miriam smiled and nodded and thanked me, she still didn’t look like she fully believed me.

When we parted ways, she stayed there and waved at us for a moment longer, her pink dress standing out in the sea of grays and blacks and browns—and I noticed how the people looked at her. I noticed how they flinched and made faces when they saw her standing there, waving.

Just like they used to make faces at me back home my whole life.

How was it that bullying and belittling people was a trait that transcended fucking realms? They had bullies in a piece of land that wasn’t even a planet, that somehow hung on two stars that were actuallythe same star.They had magic and these strange animals and dangerous beasts and people who couldtastelies—and they had bullies, too.

My heart broke for Miriam and I couldn’t help but feel like shit imagining her spending all her time up there on the side of the mountain. We could only see the tip of it from here because we’d come so far, but I could imagine it just fine.

“You shouldn’t have done that,” Rune whispered. “You shouldn’t have promised her.”

I closed my eyes and fought back the sting of tears. “I fuckinghatebullies.” With all my being.

Did they even realize what they could do to a person? I didn’t care where—here or on Earth or in any other realm—they were all the same.

Rune was silent for a little while as we walked.

“She’ll be all right, Wildcat. I will bring her that diamond before winter begins, one way or the other,” he eventually said.

I looked up at him, and if he knew how big of a relief I felt right now, he’d probably start running from me.

“Thank you,” I said and hid my face underneath the hood of the giant cloak again. It was so big I felt like a Dementor with it on, but at least it kept me hidden from everyone.

This town was a lot like the Neutral Lands we’d passed, but also a lot different. No sorcerers and no incubi and succubi that I could see. No golems, and thank God there were no werewolves here, either. Just the thought of a person actually shifting into an animal—no thanks. I’d rather not know. Having witnessed a vampire drinking blood from a two-headed guy was more than enough. I was ready to spend the rest of this journey without another traumatizing event.

Miriam remained on my mind for a long time as I walked side by side with Rune. The fomorians here didn’t much care about me because they couldn’t even see my face, and at one point, when Rune grabbed my hand to get me to move faster, he said they’d think I was his slave or something. I didn’t even complain. As long as they left me alone, I’d take it.

He told me about a few of the creatures we saw, about how they lived, about the rivers that went through Cloakwood, about how fomorians were basically charged with keeping the peace between the western and eastern territories of Verenthia, and nobody ever gave them a choice about it. They were also the most endangered species on the continent because of the sorcerers, who lived just up Cloakwood, between them and the fae courts.

I saw two more fae as we went down a wider street possibly over two hours later. I was already sweating and I was tired, and I kept asking for a break but Rune wouldn’t hear it. They passed by on the other side of the street, and it was so easy to tell them apart from everyone else. Miriam had stood out in the crowd because of her dress, but they stood out because of theireverything.

They both had reddish brown hair, glossy and soft looking, and they both wore rust-colored velvet with golden threads on their slender bodies, and they lookedrich.Not just the clothes, but the glow of their skin, too. The way they held their shoulders. The way they moved, so slowly, like they had all the time in the world, while everyone else around them was in a rush to get somewhere.

They turned when we passed, and their eyes stopped on Rune. They were both surprised—and unearthly beautiful, too, which made me wonder about all the other fae who lived in the Courts. Did they all look like that? Like they were drawings? Like they were made with the sole purpose of mocking the rest of creation? Like they invented perfection themselves?

Because it wasn’t fucking fair.

But they looked at Rune, analyzed him from head-to-toe, and Rune looked at them as well, without batting a lash. The difference was astounding, now that I was thinking about it. Rune wore clothes that matched everyone else’s around here—black pants and a black shirt, leather boots that seemed pretty well worn. I had no idea where he hid those knives he kept around, but that was about all the eye could see on him. No velvet or silver or gold. Just those clothes.

And now I was dying to know why.

Then the fae looked at me.

Half my face was covered, and I barely saw them through the hood, but Ifeltthe heat of their attention all the same. They were curious about me, it was easy to see, but Rune wasn’t rushing. He just held my hand tightly in his and continued to walk at the same pace, until we no longer saw them anymore.

So many thoughts crossed my mind as we turned corners and went behind buildings, until we ended up in the main street again. Possibly Rune’s way of trying to lose those fae if they were following us.

“Whysire?” I asked. “Why did Miriam call you sire?”

“Because I’m fae.”

“Yes, but you’re also just a guy. You’re not dressed in velvet and gold, which, by the way,why?”

He turned his head, looked down at me. “Because I’ve been banished by my Court, Wildcat. Enough with the questions.”

I ignored him, of course.

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