Fractured Bonds (Starfall Academy #3)

Chapter 1

Kai

The old sea witch frowned as she stared down at my broken body. Thanks to the illegal cuffs on my wrists, I had no access to my healing magic; it would take weeks to recover from the trauma of what the witch had done to me.

If I survived this procedure, I’d ask my mother where she sourced the cuffs, since to my knowledge, only high-ranking mages used them.

“This is no ordinary soul-bond,” the old crone muttered to herself, tutting in annoyance. I didn’t bother replying. After screaming my throat bloody for hours, my voice had gone. I wasn’t sure I even had a throat left.

When a soul-bonded mate died traumatically, the severing of the soul-bond almost always killed the survivor. Using magic to sever the bond was even worse, as it went against nature.

The pain of the sea witch’s magic penetrating my chest had been so excruciating, I’d eventually passed out, but because the tether remained, I had more of the same to look forward to.

Soul-bonds were gifts from the goddess, and few witches would dare risk incurring the wrath of a deity. Sadly, the sea witch was not one of them.

The old crone cared only about money.

“Can you sever it or not?” The enchanted door slid open to reveal my mother dressed in a pale pink gown, gems sparkling in her hair.

“It will take longer than I thought,” the sea witch said as she plucked various herbs from a canvas bag. “The bond is strong, and your son is resisting.”

Mother’s gaze skimmed over me briefly, but her expression remained blank. She’d never been affectionate toward me, but I had thought she cared in her own way.

Now I realized my mother didn’t care about me at all.

If she loved me, she would never have risked killing me to avoid a political scandal. She was the queen, damn it. And as the queen, she had the power to change the law to allow me to take a non-mermaid as my wife.

But to my mother, appearances meant everything.

“Keep trying. Failure is not an option.”

The sea witch hummed in agreement as my mother swept back out of the cave in a cloud of perfume. The door closed once again, and I prayed to the goddess for the strength I needed to resist the sea witch’s cursed magic.