Page 107 of The Crown of Nyx

Good. Awesome.

I needed to talk to him. Figure out where we stood. We were mated, and the weakening state of our bond needed to be addressed.

But I had a feeling doing that in front of Hawk just wouldn’t work, and Orion wouldn’t open up to me with the others around. I hadn’t forgotten his aversion to touch, the rumours that went around the academy about those who crossed him.

And I didn’t blame him for it. After what I’d witnessed in his nightmare, what I knew of his past, I understood.

It did make me dangerously angry though. Mostly at his father. I was a little glad I’d never had the…pleasure of meeting the Lord of Luna. Especially knowing what I knew now, I doubted my magic would have been controllable.

During my brief stint at the academy, I’d learned that harm against mates was punishable. And that if one found out that their mate was being abused during the time of their bond being completed, all bets were off.

Sighing, I turned away from Orion and checked in with Maeve, Rowan, and Elias separately, making sure they were okay. I felt them; their bonds were bright, and there was no sign of anything bad. But I still needed to make sure for myself.

Rowan checked back first with confirmation that he was fine. He said he’d found more of the old ruins and was taking a look at runes marked into the stones. That he wanted to know if they were somehow connected to Dante.

That made my stomach dip, but I calmed the sudden racing of my heart with a deep breath.

Elias checked in after, telling me he was in his wolf form, and had found something to eat. I really wasn’t sure if I could stomach anything from this world, but only because the idea of eating something hunted just made me feel…weird.

Hopefully it wasn’t another zombie thing.

Maeve checked in last, a little more hesitantly.

I went back to the vampire crypt,she said, guilt coming down the bond.I just needed to be sure.

It felt like a hand tightened around my heart, squeezing until it became hard to breathe.You shouldn’t be alone down there, I replied. I was hurt that she hadn’t told me it was something she was worried about. But italso scared me that she’d gone off alone. At least Elias and Rowan were within shouting distance.

But she was alone, underground, in a place we don’t even know is stable.

I’m not alone, she replied. I breathed a sigh of relief, dropping my head in my hands.The demon is with me.

That had me stiffening, but not out of distrust of Damon. I had his soul in my hand. One wrong move, and I could…

I actually wasn’t sure what I could do with his soul, but it probably wasn’t good.

I pulled away from Maeve to find that connection I had with Damon. The one created by our deal. It wasn’t like the bonds; they were lights in my chest, threads that connected me with the other parts of my soul.

Damon, however, was a link that didn’t exist in that place.

I rubbed the marking on my hand, the snake that connected with his. I wouldn’t even dare touch the one around my thigh. I hoped it had no special side effects.

Ah, wife, is there something I can do for you?His voice came through way too clearly to be normal. Now, I wished I’d spent some time actually studying demon deals and who he was.

If you let any harm come to my mate, I will hurt you,I replied.

His laugh echoed in my head, sultry and dark.Do not worry, wife. She is safe. If not for me, she would have come alone, and I figured it would be better for you to know she was not alone in this dark, decrepit place.

I couldn’t tell if he was messing with me. But I released a breath, eyeing the dark forest like he or Maeve might just pop out of it. At least, I hoped they would.

If something happens, I will shadow us out of the crypt,he added.I am perhaps the best person to be at her side.

As much as I didn’t like having to trust the life of my mate with him, I was a little grateful it was him down there with her. He could jump them out if the dungeon became unstable, or an enemy appeared.

Just be quick, was all I could muster.

I hoped Maeve found what she was looking for. But for now, I would just have to worry quietly on my own.

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