Page 159 of The King is Dead
I nodded. “They can’t… there’s no way she can come with us—”
“Yilan, did you not hear them? She’s hismate.”
“You can’t seriously believe—”
“Love, you heard the same things I did. Do you think there’s any doubt?”
A flare of irrational anger athimwashed through me. “But that’s not… they’re too…it can’t be!”
“Apparently it can, and itis.”
I stared up at him knowing that this fierce sense of betrayal rocking through me wasn’t fair. He wasn’t trying to hurt me or defy me. He believed them. But he was surprised that I didn’t?
“Melek… they’re both… their minds. How can we even be sure they haven’t just heard things from others and are repeating them to make us believe it?”
Melek frowned. “Yilan… they aren’t liars.”
I deflated like a popped bladder because I knew he was right. But something deep in my corefought.I couldn’t imagine Istral as a wife and mate. A lover? I shook my head, but Melek gathered me closer, still staring down at me, stroking my face.
“I know it’s a shock,” he rumbled. “But we did suspect.”
“No. No. Not really,” I said shaking my head.
“Yilan—”
“Don’t patronize me. You don’t know her. Not like I do.”
“No, but God does. And apparently He’s given them to each other.”
An image flashed in my mind then of the two of themtogether. Gall excited andhugeand poor Istral utterly overwhelmed and…
God, I wanted to gouge my mind’s eye out with a spoon.
Unaware of the nightmare playing out in my head, Melek put a hand to the back of my neck and dropped his head to whisper in my ear.
“We need to tell them how to do this. They’re bonded. They’re going to do this. No matter how uncomfortable it makes you, it’s clearly happening. So, we need to make sure they know how so they don’t hurt each other, or… or themselves.”
“I can’t. This can’t be—Melek, we can’t! She’s not ready!”
“We don’t have a choice. We have to move in an hour.”
“She can’t come with us!”
“He won’t leave her, nor she him. Remember how hard it was for us just being separated by the tower? Can you imagine pushing them nations apart? That’s when they’ll make stupid choices. You know they will.”
I stared up at him. “You want me to take my sister into that… hellhole?”
He shook his head. “I’m thinking we leave them in the Shadows. They can connect with Jhonas when he brings the legion to wait. They’ll be close enough that once I’ve taken dominance I can send a runner for Gall. It will delay things a day, but… they’ll be safe. They’ll both be safe. And if there are any problems and Jhonas has to bring the legion through, we tell Gall to take her back to Theynor.”
I took a breath, relieved that he at least wasn’t suggesting I take Istral among the Nephilim. “I… I mean, I don’t like it, but—”
“We need to talk to them Yilan. We need to help them.”
I glared up at him. “I’m not setting my sister up to betaken,Melek!”
“Do you believe they won’t go there without our input? You know the draw of the bond, Yilan—”
“I knew it as an adult. As someone with at least some concept of physical love and intimacy. She’s so naïve!”
