Page 84 of Snag
Rath nods thoughtfully, but then crams another hunk of ham in his mouth, chewing. The dynamic has shifted between him and his uncle. Loyalty coming into play, maybe? Now that Rath is in the room with the Outcast, he’s hesitating, even though he seemed geared up for a confrontation from the moment he saw the photo in the tower office.
“You knew my Aunt Disa,” I say, stepping in where I totally don’t belong to get the answers Rath and Rought appear to need. Because this really isn’t my set of secrets to unravel. It’s not relevant to thenowI’m navigating.
ThenowI’m navigating rather poorly, given my handling of Bellamy— even if I’m only going to admit that to myself. I’ll keep that in mind as all the drama of my aunt’s life and death keeps sucking me in.
The Outcast leans back in his chair, pushing his still-full plate of food a few inches away from him. “I did.”
I reach my hand across the table. My arm doesn’t even span halfway. Rath tugs the photograph free of some inner pocket in his cut, then passes it to me, easily reaching across.
I place it face up on the table, then slide it over to the Outcast.
He leans over to look at it rather than touching it.
A shifter who commands a motorcycle club the size of the Outcast, as well as a portion of an entire country, forover thirty years, is smart enough to not touch something passed to him by a person of my power.
He exhales sharply, sounding almost pained. Then he laughs quietly, head tilted as he almost reverently touches the edge of the photo.
“So perfect,” he murmurs, as if not aware he’s spoken out loud.
And I know. Iknow.
“You were one of my aunt’s chosen.”
“No.” He sighs, settling his palm over the photo as if blocking it from his sight is the only way to force himself to look away. With his arm extended, he settles back in his chair and fixes his gaze on me. “I was her soul-bound mate.”
“What?!” Rath blurts.
The Outcast ignores his nephew, his eyes glued to me. “What is wrong with your bonds?”
“My aunt didn’t have soul-bound mates,” I say calmly, ignoring his question. Though my heart is making a solid attempt to lodge itself in my throat.
“Three of us,” he says, matching my even tone. Though his gaze is so intense that I’m tempted to look away.
I don’t. But it’s unusual for me to be intimidated at all.
“As you have three,” the Outcast adds.
“I don’t have three.” Because I need the conversation to move much, much quicker, I offer a truth of my own. “My bonds have been stripped from me.”
The Outcast frowns deeply. “That isn’t possible, even if you rejected —”
“I would never,” I insist, because I know that much, at least. I know it.
The Outcast flicks his gaze — questioning and clearly angry — to Rath, then Rought. “What have you done? Is this why Reck isn’t here?”
“This is about you,” Rath says roughly. “About your fucking secrets and how they might have impacted us. You knew Disa. You knew Zaya wasn’t dead. You let us believe —”
“I don’t get involved with the Conduit’s business. I protect as much as she’ll let me, but I no longer have the right —”
“We’re your blood!” Rath shoves his chair back, shooting to his feet. Then, finding himself with all of our attention on him, he paces, clearly trying to level out.
“Sit,” the Outcast says after a strained moment. The command is mild but pointed.
Rath stiffens, clearly thinking about ignoring— or at least trying to ignore— the essence-enforced demand. Then he throws himself into the chair, which creaks warningly under his weight. His gaze on his plate, he attempts to finish what remains of his breakfast in a few fierce bites. Clearly stifling himself.
I didn’t really understand, not until watching Rath struggle in this moment, what it must have been like to be on the other side of all this. Abandoned and forgotten by his soul-bound mate. By me. And then to find out that our elders, those most trusted to guide and protect us, had knowledge of it. Or even more nefariously, that they had a hand in keeping us apart.
“Just so I have this clear,” Rought drawls, deliberately deepening his Southern accent. “You were soul bound to Disa Gage, the Conduit. But you still took my mother as your chosen, bite-bonded mate.”
