Chapter 5 #2
Without another word, I unfurled my legs from beneath me. The rug’s warmth greeted my feet as I leaned to the edge of the sofa. Hovering my palms just above his, a tingling sensation took hold immediately—intensifying with each heartbeat as if the slender gap between us were charged.
Then, as if he’d become my gravity, our palms collided.
I gasped the second we touched, the connection stealing my breath. It was raw. Electric. All-consuming.
Too consuming.
Panic surged swift and heavy, my body screaming for me to pull away—to break the connection. Without hesitation, I made to oblige, but before I did, a warm sense of calm enveloped me, smothering my fear in a blanket of invincibility.
I felt safe. Damn it, I felt safe. Deep emotion flooded me, my eyes stinging from the rush of it.
You’re okay, he said.
Only he hadn’t spoken.
He’d thought it.
The deep resonance of his voice had surrounded me in the darkness I found myself in—black like sleep before a dream takes hold.
Something about this strange space we shared made him feel more fulsome.
More… complete. Without seeing him, I could sense him.
His mannerisms, thoughts, emotions. The latter surprised me most, the depth of what slipped through his grasp almost overwhelming.
I supposed that was what happened when he couldn’t hide behind the mask of the commander.
Fuck, I was an open book on a good day. How bare was I laid before him now? My thoughts ripe for the plucking. My emotions his to mine at will. I needed to share the bleeding dream and get the hells away from this male before he stole more than I was willing to give.
My mind jerked to a halt as his hands moved against mine, the physical touch reminding me I wasn’t trapped in a dream—that I could walk away. That this was a choice.
As if sensing I needed more, Endymion gently interlaced his fingers with mine, deepening the connection between us until everything outside of us faded and it was just his energy and mine.
Are you ready? he asked after we both settled.
Before my mind could run away with fear that I’d hurt him through our connection, the truth of his promise poured from him like the golden warmth of liquid honey—steady and absolute—and stars above, it was strange to feel emotions in such a way.
I nodded—though I wasn’t sure if I’d physically done it or merely thought it. It was difficult to sense anything outside the ether we’d somehow created.
Then, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, I breathed in and relaxed into his essence. Instantly, I sensed a fragment of him stand at attention, ready. It took me a moment to realize he was waiting for me to recall the memory so he could tether to it.
Despite Endymion’s efforts to reassure me we’d be safe, I braced myself before letting my thoughts drift toward the dream.
Faster than a heartbeat, a bright strand of twined teal-and-blue energy shot toward him across the expanse between us—the one I hadn’t even known existed—as if showing him the path to my memory.
His magic didn’t hesitate. It surged forward, latching on with its glittering darkness. It sheathed itself over mine, the sensation tickling my senses as it darted upward with surgical precision. The instant it found the dream, it devoured it whole.
The first image of it flashed like a bolt of lightning—then was gone, as if I’d been pushed out.
A deep-seated relief washed through me as Endymion’s promise held. Hells, not only had he shielded me from the physical pain, but he’d spared me from reliving it.
I watched the tether shimmer, fascinated by the beauty of his dark magic—how it glittered like distant stars flickering in a moonless night.
As if the taut string of an instrument had been plucked, his darkness trembled, and I didn’t need the flash of red to know it reverberated with his fury. Whatever he’d witnessed had angered him greatly.
Every flicker of color was a glimpse of emotion slipping through whatever barrier he’d erected to protect me, and as the moments stretched on, my anxiety for him grew. Gods, I hated it. Hated that he’d had to relive it. I was selfish to show him—should’ve kept the burden to myself.
Then, as if they’d never been, the colors vanished.
In place of the glittering dark was a black so absolute it seemed to steal the light around it.
So enthralled in our bond, I’d forgotten the physical realm entirely until his grip tightened around mine like a vise.
I cried out in pain, uncertain if the sound lived only in my mind.
I knew then what the change meant—he was trying to block out the pain. His pain. And had our fingers not been laced, I might’ve never known he’d only upheld half of his promise. The half that protected me.
Ignoring the ache in my joints, I refocused on the tether, on helping him.
Waves of comfort radiated through me, the soft pink glitter of my magic disappearing into his at an alarming rate, as if his power were a black hole.
I flooded him with thoughts of laughter, happiness, joy, trying to remind him it was only a dream. That he was safe.
Without warning, our bond burst wide open in an explosion of light. We both gasped, as if struck, when the tether snapped between us.
Hearts pounding. Hands clasped. He was him. I was me.
Yet, there was a lingering we.
We sat there, eyes locked, heavy breaths slowing with each pass. A darkness overtook him as the hard lines of his composure slipped back into place.
“I will kill them before they ever lay a hand on you—do you hear me?”
I swallowed the emotion lodged in my throat and dipped my chin in acknowledgment, the slight movement freeing a tear into gravity’s grasp.
Shifting his grip, he lifted my hand with heartbreaking gentleness and brushed the tear away, careful not to let his fingers accidentally graze my skin.
It was one thing for me to place my hands in his; another thing entirely for him to touch me with such intimacy—the kind my body now recoiled from.
But it didn’t recoil now as another tear escaped—from his care. His kindness. He guided my hand to wipe that one away too.
Long moments passed as we just sat in each other’s presence, a whisper of our connection lingering before he made to release our hands. Our bond.
“Not yet,” I breathed, surprising myself but not fighting the inclination to stay connected.
A massive wave of emotion flooded from him, but with our bond nearly severed, I couldn’t discern what it was—only that it was raw, visceral, and utterly unexpected.
Time lost meaning as we stayed suspended in the moment, until slowly I unlaced my fingers from his.
As the world came back into focus, I was acutely aware of a forgotten Caius, who had silently witnessed the entire exchange.
Breaking eye contact, Endymion looked to the High Lord and nodded once, as if in confirmation of something they’d previously discussed—and not for the first time, I wondered just how close they really were.
“What?” I asked, feeling suddenly vulnerable.
Endymion leaned away from me, and I found myself wrapping the blanket around my shoulders and tucking myself into the sofa again, unsure if I even wanted the answer based on the concerned look they gave me.
“The good news,” the commander began, “is that it was only a nightmare. No wisp. No magic but your own at play.”
I narrowed my eyes, looking between them. “And the bad news?”
Caius shifted in his seat. “Simply put,” he said, “you shattered my wards.”
My brows furrowed as my mind raced to understand his meaning.
Hadn’t Endymion and Artton both said that wards stopped them from valenning into private chambers during the summer solstice?
That there were wards all over to prevent unsanctioned travel?
But hadn’t I just witnessed the three of them do exactly that after Caius had pulled me from my sleep?
Something as important as protecting the Summer Palace—hells, the entire court—had to be stronger than magic conjured in a dream.
I shook my head. “That’s impossible. I don’t believe for a moment that your wards aren’t impenetrable.”
Caius let out a humorless laugh, rubbing his jaw as he shook his head, then leaned forward in his chair.
“Oh, Nyleeria,” he said with a sigh. “How I wish you didn’t break the laws of our magic.
But alas, you are the spark. Had you said that statement an hour ago, I would’ve gladly agreed.
I assure you, your magic rippled through the palace—and my court—decimating my wards like sugar in water. ”
“Oh.” The single word was all I could manage. What else did one say? Sorry for stripping away your sense of security while I slept—my bad?
“Oh indeed,” he echoed.
I looked to Endymion. “Is that why you wanted to see what happened?”
“Partially, yes,” he admitted. “More importantly, we needed to ensure there was no other magic at play here.”
“Like Amos’ wisp?” I asked, suppressing a shudder.
“Among other powers, yes.”
“Other powers?” I said, instantly regretting my curiosity. “You know what—never mind. I don’t want to know.”
Endymion smirked, his eyes glinting with humor.
Before he could tease me, Caius stood. “Well, now that we know you’re safe and nothing nefarious is afoot…
dinner is getting cold, and I loathe a cold meal.
I believe Kai left clothes out for you in the bathing chamber.
“They should be fine”—he waved a hand in its general direction—"I suppose one benefit of the wards being down is that I can valen straight there.
" He gave me a sly wink. “See you both shortly.” And with that, he valenned away.
I arched a brow at Endymion, who shrugged before standing. “I’ll wait for you in the hall.”
“Wait—you’re not going to valen us there?”
He shook his head. “I’m tapped. Artton brought me in.”
Right. I kept forgetting.
He turned toward the double doors, only to pause halfway and glance back.
“I almost forgot,” he said, “I had Sidrick grab Luca for you.”