Page 28 of Broken

Chapter 12

Cole looked over to see Thanatos standing in the doorway. As usual, he was wearing a brown hooded robe, like a medieval monk, that went all the way to the floor. The hood was so deep it made his face completely invisible.

No one Cole knew had ever seen that face. They all had bets on what kind of monster Thanatos was, and why he never allowed anyone to see any part of his body, except occasionally his hands. The skin on them was gray and mottled, and looked almost like stone.

In the ‘guess the monster’ betting pool, Cole had put down two hundred on ‘troll’.

Thanatos slowly turned his head from side to side, taking in the entire scene in the room. The hood stopped when it came to Cole, and then lowered slightly as Thanatos’ gaze fastened on Cole’s wrist. “Mr. Hunter. Remove the bracelet, if you please.”

Thanatos rarely said please, probably because everything he said was an order, no matter how it was phrased. And he always expected to be obeyed.

But this time, he wasn’t going to get his way.

“Yeah, well,” Cole said. “That’s going to be a problem.”

“Because?”

“It doesn’t come off.”

In seconds Thanatos had glided across the room and was standing in front of him. Cole held his arm out, and Thanatos touched the bracelet lightly, his fingers barely visible beyond the hems of his long sleeves.

A spark of magic flared, stinging Cole’s arm. “Ow,” he said mildly.

Thanatos turned his own fingers and looked at them, and then rubbed his thumb across the fingertips, as if he’d touched a shelf and found it to be inadequately dusted by the maid.

“Indeed,” he murmured.

He turned to Ireland and fixed the hood on her. “Remove it from him at once,” he demanded.

Cole could see the air between them shiver, like heat rising from the road. A clash of power? Maybe not. He got the feeling that inside she was shaking. “I can’t,” she said. “Only the Council of Bright Fae can take it off.”

Cole noticed she didn’t mention her plan for finding an alternative sorcerer. He didn’t say anything either. He wanted to know what Thanatos thought.

“I can see that it is bonding magic,” Thanatos said. “What is the nature of the bond?”

“It’s a Protector bracelet,” she said. “It allows us to share magic.” She held up her wrist, showing the bracelet she herself wore. “And before you ask, I can’t take this one off either. Bright Fae Council only.”

So, she also wasn’t mentioning that the ‘sharing’ pretty much went one way—that the Protector was in charge. He didn’t blame her; it was stupid to announce your weaknesses in front of powerful strangers.

Thanatos said, “And did Mr. Hunter agree to wear this bracelet that cannot be removed?”

Some of the guys in the room growled at the idea that maybe he hadn’t.

Ireland was still gazing defiantly at Thanatos, but she was scared. Panicked, almost. Cole could feel it, kind of like the way he and his brother could feel each other’s emotions at a distance, knowing if the other one was upset or in trouble.

The bracelets seemed to work something like a wolf bond, only juiced with Fae magic. Interesting.

Without thinking, he stepped closer to her, the way he would to a brother wolf who needed his support.

“Chill out, everyone,” he said. “It’s not her fault. You saw my wound, and the blood.” He gestured to the congealing red pool on the floor. “I was right there at the final checkout. The bracelet has healing properties. She put it on me to save my life.”

“But now you’re bound to her?” Gunn frowned. “Bound how, exactly?” He looked from Ireland to Thanatos. “Is this going to affect the pack bond?”

“I don’t know,” Thanatos said slowly. “Ms… Tinkerbell, did you say?”

Asshole. He knew damn well she wouldn’t really be called Tinkerbell. But then, he didn’t really like women much.

“Her name is Ireland,” Cole said. He turned and looked at her, explaining what Gunn meant. “Wolves in the same pack or family have magical bonds. We can feel each other’s emotions, influence each other, communicate at a distance with people we’re especially close to. Any outside magical influence can mess with the whole pack. Any thoughts on that?”