Page 79 of Daughter of the Darkened City
And now Avenay was magically shackled to her.
Forever.
Enid didn’t know when, but arms wrapped around her, a cheek pressed against her cheek, a hand rubbed her back.
“I’m not going anywhere,” Avenay whispered.
“You should.”
“Why?”
“I have blood on my hands and I can’t ever clean it off, Avie,” she choked out through sobs.
Avenay took Enid’s hands and dipped them in the water. “There’s no blood there, Enid, because it’s already been washed off. You’re just still hanging onto it in your heart.”
“It’s all my fault. It should have been me and not them. None of them.”
Avenay cradled Enid’s face in her hands, wiping the tears away. “No, it shouldn’t have been. Fate deals hands, sometimes unfairly, but the hand it has dealt you is yours, Enid. You were meant to live. Do you think your parents would want you regretting the gift given you by paying that price?”
Enid sobbed and shook her head. “But Kaemon… Avie, he was abused and tortured and alone all those years and it should have been me.”
“Ask him, Enid, ask him if he would want it to be you. Ask him. What do you think he would say?”
She knew what he would say, that he was glad it was him and not her. That he would do it over again, knowing it wouldn’t be her.
“I don’t want to be the one always spared.”
“You won’t be. One day, the price will be yours to pay. But until then, honor the price that has been paid for you.”
“I feel so…” Enid swallowed the sob that threatened to spill out, “…so fuckingbroken, Avie. I don’t deserve someone like you.”
Avenay’s brow furrowed, a look so ardent shining in her eyes that Enid’s breath halted. “You’re no more broken than a mosaic. You’re so close that all you see are the uneven pieces in different colors. But when you step back, like me, all I see is something complex and beautiful.”
Avenay moved closer to her, placing a tentative hand on her shoulder, and Enid pulled her nearer, burying her face in her neck. She breathed in the scent of her mate, letting it wash over and calm her. That string between them pulled her deeper, and she tightened herarms around Avenay. She wanted to kiss her, to worship every inch of Avenay’s body. She wanted to use her hands and mouth and tongue to demonstrate how she felt towards Avenay. But in this moment, all she could truly do was to be held by Avenay, letting the soft strokes of her hands on her back soothe, helping her rest.
Chapter 29 Enid
Enid pulled on the scant black dress, waiting for Avenay in her chambers. Scant wasn’t even the right word. This was just bits of fabric draped over her most intimate parts. She turned about, looking at herself in the mirror.
It was perfect.
She rotated her shoulder, trying to get out the stiffness in her limbs she’d felt for the last few days. Maybe she was more tense and frightened of all this than she’d realized.
Knock, knock.
“Come in!” she called and turned to see Avenay entering. She halted her movements and drank in the image of her mate. Her beautiful mate.
She hadn’t told Avenay yet about the bond. She knew it was different for seraphs, but she wasn’t sure exactly how. Demons knew who their mate was, and as long as there weren’t any recommendations against it from the community, they accepted the bond and moved in. But she and Avenay were still fresh, new. With so much going on and so many things to figure out, asking her to be her partner for the rest of their lives was too much.
At the moment.
She’d get to it first thing after they gave Seraphina the cure, though.
If she survived the ritual. She shook her head and walked toward Avenay.
Avenay’s dress was scant too, though it was a white that complimented her dark complexion beautifully. Beads of pink and blue gold were embroidered in a snaking pattern around it, matching the headband Enid had bought for her. Avenay came in and twirled, her skirts kicking up.
“How do I look?” she asked.
