Page 104 of Bound
Chapter 37
Gage
It takes several agonizing minutes to melt the lock. By the time it clatters outside the cell, my skull throbs persistently.
Though I can feel my fire, it seems far away and even harder to call.
The magick inside of me now is curtesy of Amoret. It tastes like her whenever I use it. Sweet. Not as warm as mine, but no less powerful.
I can no longer feel her in my head, the purity of her emotions. Her love.
My chest wants to crack and spill the warmth inside me. How anyone as innocent as her could love someone like me …
I force it down.
No. Her love is a blessing. Not something to squander or question. It is a gift that I can never repay. But I will spend the rest of my fucking miserable existence trying if she will let me.
I open the thick wood panel and peer up and down the stone corridor. Flickering torches give the expanse an old world castle feel and I have a theory Markus would be right at home.
Keeping Amoret tight to my side, we start down the hall. There are no sounds save for a distant thump somewhere deep within the stone walls. She shivers against me and I mourn the loss of my flames.
It is the first time I have ever wished for their presence. Their heat.
But with the chemicals the soldiers injected me with, I know I will not be at full strength until the taint of the medicine wears off. It could take hours. Days.
I don’t plan on sticking around long enough to find out.
As we near the end of the hall, masculine murmurs float back to my ears. I draw up short. Amoret’s small frame bumps mine, her pert breasts rubbing over my arm.
I turn to her, finger to my lips. She gives a short nod, her beautiful hair tousled around her face. I point firmly for her to stay. Though something like fear stains the lilac hue of her eyes, she just goes up on tiptoe, pressing her lips to mine.
Desire and fear swirl in an …interestingmix inside me.
I can’t tell which emotion is hers and which is mine, but in that moment, they both are. Pulling back, I palm her nape, press another kiss to her temple, and edge to the end of the hall.
The closer I get, the more I can make out of the voices. The unrest.
“This wasn’t what we signed up for, Steel,” says a rasping male voice.
“We signed up for whatever hit our government needs us to take, Wraith,” says the other. “They’re both Fae. One we have no records on and the other … Fuck, you saw his fire. That shit could torch half a city block. More.”
“Why? Because Alpha says so?” Wraith snaps. “This is bullshit. The female is a little girl. She—”
“Don’t say she reminds you of Emily,” Steel growls.
Silence falls between them.
“I know you’re pissed about Em,” Wraith says, his tone softer now. “But those two didn’t hurt her. Ralf’s information could be wrong. They could just be Fae.”
“And that’s fucking bad enough.” Steel’s tone is cold. “They’re both metas. The time for their place in our world is done, man. Either get with the program or get out.” Soft footfalls storm off in the opposite direction.
I wait.
Easing around the corner, I spy a tall male with his back to me. His platinum blond hair is cut high and tight, leaving the dark tattoos crawling up his neck very visible.
I take a step and reach—
“I won’t fight you.”
