Page 35 of Branded By Shadow
But I’d been wrong.
I bared my teeth at him in a mockery of a smile. “Or what?”
Before he could answer, the suite door slid open. A dark-haired woman entered, her skin so pale it seemed to drink the light. Her sharp cheekbones and the severe cut of her suit were so reminiscent of Damon it made my stomach clench.
Behind the woman came a familiar, heartwarming figure. It was Helena, elegant in House Hera colors, and more frantic than I’d thought she could be.
“Cora! Hera help us…” She rushed to my side, her eyes taking in the scene before her gaze landed on Damon, hard as flint. “Damon. What did you do?”
He opened his mouth, but no sound came out. He looked… broken. Good.
Helena let out a slow, sharp breath. “Actually, you know what? Whatever it is, I don’t want to hear it. Get out.”
Damon’s entire body went rigid. “Helena—”
“Now.” She straightened, and though she was a head shorter, she seemed to tower over him. “You aren’t helping her by being here.”
The dark-haired woman placed a hand on Damon’s shoulder, a familiar gesture that sent an uncomfortable twist through me. “I’ll stay, Damon. I’ll keep you posted.”
He gave me one last look, and through the chaotic storm in his eyes, I saw an expression of agonizing remorse. Then he turned and was gone.
The woman approached the bed, taking a seat beside Cassandra. “We haven’t met. I’m Elara, Damon’s cousin. I know this is difficult, but we’ll do our best to help you.”
His cousin. I’d heard her speak through the security system before, but somehow, we’d never crossed paths throughout all my time at the estate. I pushed myself up on my elbows, the effort making my own voice crack. “If you’re his family, then tell me. What happened in that chamber?”
“Our House has a unique connection to the Shadow Realm,” Elara answered. “It’s a place between worlds, a font of our power. During the… incident… the realm used the temporary bond as a conduit. It attacked you.”
My breath hitched. “Why? Why would it do that?”
Helena let out a weary sigh, her fingers finding my wrist. “Oh, child. It doesn’t hate you. That’s the problem. The affinity between House Hades and House Demeter is ancient. Normally, that would be a protection. But you… you are different.”
Elara looked down at her lap, choosing her words with care. “The Realm sensed an unclaimed, unharnessed Demeter bloodline connected to a Hades Alpha. It tried to consume you.”
All those years fighting my own gift, trying to suppress it, to deny the part of me that was different. And all I’d managed to do was make myself look like an easy meal. What a fool I’d been. “So for your Shadow Realm… I’m a nice snack.”
Elara flinched but didn’t deny it. Wonderful.
“Don’t think about that now,” Helena said, tightening her hold on my arm. “We won’t let it touch you. I’ll stabilize the bond to prevent it from connecting with the Realm any further. That will keep you safe.”
There was so much certainty in her voice that I couldn’t help but believe her. She’d stood up to Damon for me. She was the first person who’d been willing to do that, other than, perhaps, Alexander. And he didn’t count.
I nodded and forced myself to answer. “Okay.”
Even those two syllables came out harsh and painful. The brief exchange had drawn out every ounce of strength I’d had left.
Fortunately, Helena didn’t need me to be strong. “Just relax,” she whispered. I tried, but it was easier said than done.
Her energy flowed into me, cold at first, then a chasing warmth. A frantic pulse beat in my throat, fighting against her power. A phantom energy clawed inward from the bruised skin over my bonding gland, grasping for something deeper.
The claiming mark at my throat throbbed. I felt it reaching, trying to dig deeper into my skin. Helena’s power met that invasive force and contained it, wrapping around it like invisible chains. “Hold her,” she said tightly.
Elara’s hands came down on my shoulders, keeping me pinned to the bed with Alpha strength. I hated the touch, but needed it just the same. The bond stabilization felt like something inside me was being pulled taut, stretched to its limit but not allowed to snap.
An involuntary sound of pain escaped my lips. Cassandra leaned closer, her entire body emanating healing fire. “Just a little longer, Cora. You can beat this.”
My chest tightened until I couldn’t breathe. For one terrifying moment, the world went black. Then, something inside me settled. The invasive energy receded. The darkened patch of skin on my throat pulsed one last time and went quiet.
The cold burning receded to an isolated spot at the mark. No longer spreading. No longer life-threatening. Just contained.
