Page 130 of The Bonds of Indigo

Can I strip his will just so he’ll stay with me?

I hate even thinking about it.

Suddenly, Amarah’s arm slips around my waist.

“You can talk out loud to me about how you’re feeling,” she says, looking up at me with a soft smile pulling at the corner of her lips.

“Thanks. We can talk about it later. First, let’s figure out what we’re doing here.”

She looks away, down the road toward the border. “I don’t think crossing the patrolled point is a good idea.”

“I agree. Whether they’re looking for me or not, I’ve got no identification, and they’ll ask too many questions about why we’re entering Demour.”

I drape my arm over her shoulder, tapping my index finger lightly against her arm. “I’ll run the wall, see if there’s any opening, and we can slip in that way. If you approve.”

“What? No jumping it? No dramatic scaling?” She laughs. “Such a non-Kayn way.”

I swat her ass and vanish from her side. She’s left with her mouth hanging open, staring at me from a few feet away.

“Get back in the car, little slayer, and lock it. I’ll be back shortly.”

She rolls her eyes and says, “Such a brute.”

“I prefer dom, but we’ll get there.”

Then I’m gone—rushing toward the border to find us a safe passage into, quite literally, the Beyond of the Earth.

Chapter 33

Ilike him a lot, honestly.

Which I shouldn’t.

“My child.” I’m beyond elated that Vendra and I have fully reestablished our connection, but I can already tell where this conversation is headed based on the tone of her voice—and it makes me wish I could sever the link temporarily. “You must change your decision. Do you not see the way he looks at you?”

“You felt the intention with the bargain. And the blood binding knows, too. I simply cannot go back on it.”

“I will warn him about your intent. He would hear me if I reached out. He would talk some sense into you.”

I lean forward in the truck, my brows pinching. “You wouldn’t dare. Vendra, that isn’t… fair. It makes no difference. He has to kill⁠—”

“Someone. That was the deal. You have plenty of people you would like to see in the ground. What you want, that is not fair to me.”

A frustrated breath escapes through my nose. I’m genuinely taken aback that she’s scolding me like I’m some unruly child.

“It doesn’t matter. The deal was made and it cannot be undone. You understand the laws of the blood binding, and you promised.”

“I promised no such thing.”

“It will kill him! You promised to break the bond before he fulfills his part.”

I can physically feel the sigh as it vibrates through the connection between us. “I promised to protect him. That is not protecting him. I will not break it.”

“But it is. You MUST!”

“It is not. You tend to forget that I am a God, Amarah. You cannot trick me.”

I’ve not realized until now that when Kayn is far away, the bond feels tight. It’s strangely uncomfortable, and I wonder if that is always how it would be if it were to last. It feels slightly possessive and strange that the bond wouldn’t like us being apart. Seems sort of clingy to me. I don’t need to be physically attached to his hip, but it’s like this connection of ours makes it seem like I should feel that way.