Page 33 of Black Onyx
He watches me shrewdly, looking for answers that he knows I can’t tell him, “Are the Fate’s involved?”
I nod, and he sighs, knowing that he’s not going to get any more information out of me. Even if I wanted to, this kind of vision is clearly important enough that the Fate’s have effectively put a gag order on me; if I open my mouth to tell him what’s going on and what it all means, no sound will come out, and I’ll be punished with shocks of pain until I stop trying. All I’m allowed to do is guide without influencing any decisions.
The room falls silent as he digests the information. A myriad of emotions crosses his face as his mind turns over the revelations of the last few minutes, but through it all, that spark of hope in his eyes never dies. I know he can feel the pull. I know he felt it as soon as he laid eyes on her, as I’m reasonably sure the others did too. When it comes to Farren, we’re all hopelessly drawn to her fire, beauty and strength. We never really had any hope of resisting, not that I imagine any of us would want to, not even Storm, although he’s going to fight it the hardest because he’s a stubborn fucker.
Loki’s voice drags me out of my thoughts, and I focus back on him.
“I’d be lying if I said I was at all disappointed in being Bonded to Farren. There’s just something about her that has pulled me in from the moment I laid eyes on her.” He admits, and the smile I give him is knowing. He continues, “I am so fucking glad you are back, man. Storm’s gotten even worse since you left, any emotion he once showed he shoved behind a wall of indifference, and there was never a crack in the façade. Until now, that is, these past couple of days with Farren, he’s shown more emotion than he has in years, granted it's all anger, but it’s something, and she seems to like pushing his buttons. There’s no fear in her when she deals with him, even though it makes the rest of us super fucking nervous.
“The others are all acting differently, too. I can’t decide if that’s a good thing or not. I know Farren’s past is dark, and I’m worried about how they’re all going to handle that.”
“You mean you’re worried about them going on a killing spree and hunting every last fucker that hurt her?” I clarify.
He grins, “Yep, that’s what I meant. I know I want to.”
“It’ll all work out how it’s supposed to, man,” I vow because it will. One way or another, I will fucking ensure it. Even if I have to watch as the world burns around us. I never said I was the hero; I’m not selfless; I will light the fucking match if it ensures that Farren is happy.
“I’m going to hold onto that. I have a feeling the future isn’t going to be an easy path for us to walk.”
I want to say, oh dear friend, you have no idea how right you are. Instead, I ask, “Are you good now?”
I watch as he rubs his fist against the centre of his chest, his eyebrows dipping low as he looks down as if expecting to see whatever is causing him pain.
“You’ll get used to that,” I say, nodding to his chest, he looks up at me quizzically, so I explain, “Farren doesn’t seem to feel it, at least not like I do. Any sort of distance makes it ache.”
“But you haven’t seen each other for years?” Loki asks with wide eyes as realisation starts to sink in.
“It was hell. Why do you think I looked like I did when you first found me? I’d been trying to distract myself from the pain by doing continuous missions without taking the necessary break in between. I’ve never been apart from Farren for longer than a couple of weeks before, so it’s never been more than an ache. It was not pleasant to learn that if I spent a month or more away from her, the ache turned into pain. I could still function, but it was always there. Never again.”
Loki gets up from the bed and places his hand on my shoulder, gripping it tightly in support, “I’m sorry. I’m not even going to pretend to understand how much that sucked, and I never want to find out. Come on, let’s go and find out what caused our woman to feel like that, unravel one of the many mysteries surrounding her and find out who we need to kill.”
I grin as I pull open the door, everyone’s attention turning towards us, their shoulders relaxing as they see Loki back to his usual self. Many people underestimate Loki because of his carefree attitude and usual inability to take anything truly seriously. I wouldn’t recommend it though; he’s deadly.
“Are you guys okay?” Farren asks, biting down on her lip in a nervous gesture that drives me fucking wild.
I’m mildly surprised that she’s still sitting on Rival’s lap. It looks like I might need to have this talk with someone else soon; judging from the dreamy look on his usually stern face, he’s not going to have a problem with the news.
“We’re good,” Loki replies, taking the seat next to Rival and her and taking her hand.
She frowns and looks at him with a confused little wrinkle on her nose before clearly deciding to just go with it. Following his lead, I take the other side of her and put my hand on her knee so she can keep her free hand on Rival’s arm that’s wrapped securely around her waist. Of course my tail decides it doesn’t want to be left out and strokes the back of her hand with its tip, making her smile.
I can’t help my smile as I look over at Reaper, Mayhem and Storm sitting opposite us. Reaper and Mayhem aren’t even trying to hide their interest in our seating arrangement, a flash of jealousy darkening their eyes. Fortunately, I sense that it’s more from not being involved than wanting to keep her for themselves. Storm, on the other hand, is watching, seemingly unaffected if a little pissed. At least that’s what he’d like everyone to think. I know better though. He’s just as interested in Farren as the rest of us are, and he hates it. Being interested leaves him vulnerable to feelings, and he won’t allow that.
He's going to have to get over it pretty fucking quickly. The Fate’s have a plan for us all, and it requires that we’re all on the same page. I’m not risking any of them just for my brother's stubbornness.
“Farren, before we got interrupted, what did you mean when you said the voice saved you?” I ask her.
She sighs heavily, “Exactly that. I’m not going into details, I’m not ready to relive it yet, and it’s not pertinent information at the moment. What I will say is that I was close to giving up. The voice whispered a spell that allowed me to escape.”
Her words pierce my soul, I almost lost her, and I would never have known what truly happened to her. I believe wholeheartedly that I would’ve felt her death through the bond, but I don’t think I would’ve been made privy to the details. The stillness in the room is telling of the severity of the reaction the others are having to her words.
Fuck.
I am never letting her out of my sight again. I hope she’s ready to have an overprotective deadly assassin stalking her every move because that’s what I’m about to become.
Chapter Ten
Farren
