Page 154 of The Legacy of Ophelia
But I was reluctant to ask her after her own fucking binding tattoo had severed with Titus’s death. The way she’d screamed…even though I was being tortured at the time, I’d never forget the sound. It ripped at my very soul.
Still, despite the obvious pain, I’d do it. If there was a way other than death to remove my Bind to Ophelia so I could receive one with Mila—and Ophelia with Tolek—I would. We didn’t need the damn thing.
A part of me was afraid to find out what it would be like without this North Star tattoo. If the first Bind I’d received never worked correctly, would a second? I didn’t think I could stand that, and I didn’t want to see the broken look in Mila’s eyes if that happened.
I was almost certain the reason Ophelia’s and my Bind never worked correctly was because I’d had so many secrets when we’d received them. I’d signed the treaty and had been planning to disappear. But there was a part of me that feared it was some twisted piece within me that truly ruined it. Something that would damage any ritual or bond I received my entire life.
I shoved the fear aside for now. It was useless unless we actually found a way to sever a Bind.
“We’re happy for you,” I told Cypherion.
Tolek sat up straighter. “We are. We just want a chance to celebrate the union and officially welcome Vale into the family.”
Cyph looked between us, eyes narrowed, but he relaxed. “Thank you. This new bond has been making it hard to focus.”
“How?” Tolek asked, head cocked.
“I’ve been extra defensive of Vale but domineering.” He shook his head. “I need to get a grip on it.”
He had been a bit more surly than usual when Vale wasn’t around, and she’d been more assertive, but I’d assumed it was just her Fatecatcher powers settling in. Apparently it was their emotions tugging back and forth on the bond, attempting to regulate after being stitched together by the hands of the Fates.
Was Cyph providing that newfound strength for her? And was it the new risks of this magic driving him to be moreprotective? Cypherion thrived on order and control, so I understood why that would disrupt his normal behavior.
Spirits, is that what I should have felt with the Bind? I didn’t fucking know. Didn’t fucking know if I wanted to either. Because if it was, something was clearly wrong with me.
“You’ll adjust to it, CK,” Tolek assured him confidently, tracing the hilt of his sword where it leaned against his chair as he went back to his book.
“What is that you’re reading, anyway?” I asked, leaning forward to glimpse the cover. “Not your usual type of book.”
Tolek shut the volume, tossing it on the table between us. “Something Lyria said last night got me thinking.” When he and Ophelia saw her spirit. That’s where Mila was now. I offered to go with her, but she’d wanted to go alone and insisted I help Barrett.
Tolek pressed the heels of his hands into his eyes as he thought. “She said something about using all the weapons at our disposal.” Sitting back, he dragged a hand through his hair. “Maybe she wasn’t being literal, but the way she emphasized it…I don’t know. It felt important.”
“You think she knows of some secret weapon we have?” Cypherion asked dubiously.
Tol studied his sword, shaking his head. “If she did, she’d tell us. But Lyria was smart—she came up with the idea to imbue the Starsearcher weapons. Maybe she had other ideas that hadn’t fully formed. And she’s been watchingeverything.” He sighed and took a sip of his drink. “The theory feels like it’s right there, and I just can’t grab it.”
Trying to help, I asked, “Any thoughts on what happened with Bant?”
“When I went to the Blackfyre, the heretics were already out of their right minds. They were forcing that girl beneath the tar without an ounce of remorse. I don’t know if it was the allureof the power or simply losing touch with their civilized warrior selves, but they were gone.” Tolek traced his palm, a faint scar slicing diagonally across each. He studied them, muttering, “It was fucking atrocious.”
“It’s a far jump from worshipping the pools to pillaging the capital,” Cyph said.
Tolek nodded. “But that power…it’s consuming. And it’s the source of dark, corrupted magic for all worlds. I’vefeltit’s strength…” His eyes landed on his sword, the steel catching the mystlight flicking in the chandelier above. “Actually”—Tol placed his drink on the table and pushed upright, grabbing his weapon and balancing it across his palms—“I still feel it.”
“What do you mean?” I eyed him, leaning forward. Cyph straightened, coming to stand between our chairs.
“I never looked into it further,” Tolek said, eyes sweeping over the blade. “I was distracted by saving that girl, and then I got the letter that Ophelia was back.”
“What happened?” Cypherion asked, pulling Tolek back on track.
He shook his head, a crease forming between his brows as he studied the weapon like the memory played out along the steel. “When my sword dipped in the pool, it flashed with light. It was bright—searing—but not like Ophelia’s Angellight.” Tolek shrugged, looking up finally. “I haven’t seen it since, but it was empowering. It radiated through the blade and intome.”
“Into you?” I echoed.
“It was like a pulse of power through my veins. It’s lingered. I felt it when I used my sword against Thorn in the desert, too.”
Cyph inclined his head. “When you injured him, you mean?”
