CHAPTER FIVE #2
Emmery wrapped her arms around her middle. “Did you ever want one?”
“A long time ago.” She held the books tighter and shifted her weight as if ready to flee from this conversation. “But some of us aren’t that lucky.”
Emmery gnawed on her bottom lip before she asked, “Have you ever been in love?”
Talia smiled sweetly. “Such deep questions for such a dark night.”
“I just imagine in your line of work, there’s little time for companionship.” Questions howled in her mind like a pack of wild dogs and she needed someone to confide in. “Don’t you get lonely?”
“I have my work and friends here in the castle. It’s all I need.” She tilted her head. “Why do you ask?”
She gave a long pause before she replied, “I’ve told you about Shade.”
Talia nodded. “He’s your tethered. Your implexus bond. Part of this grand prophecy you’re mixed-up in.”
Emmery fidgeted with her braid. If she was going to ask anyone, Talia would be the safest option.
Gods knew she wasn’t about to ask Brennen and she barely knew Vera or Cyrilla.
She’d rather swallow a handful of nails than ask Destonne.
“Do you know much about it? I’ve been told that finding Shade is the key to staunching this fever and fulfilling this prophecy, but I don’t know anything about the bonds. I don’t know what to expect.”
If Shade was her tethered and she was destined to belong to him, why did that fill her with so much dread?
She needed some inkling of hope. Some assurance this was the right path and she wasn’t trading the past ownership she’d escaped from Nathaniel for this bond with Shade.
Though he didn’t seem the type to take advantage, she barely knew him.
And yet, the fear persisted, worming into her heart.
After she set the books down, Talia gestured to the bed. “May I join you?”
Emmery nodded and shifted aside to make room for her chambermaid to perch beside her.
“Implexus are the strongest of our kind, created by the tethering of souls with the silkworm's threads from the Sacred Lands. It’s part of your ember. The central part of your soul. The thing that keeps you tethered to this earth. It holds our heart’s emotion, strength, and to have such a bond is sacred.
A privilege. You should consider yourself lucky. ”
“Yes, but,” Emmery said, “I don’t remember much of Shade. Only his green eyes and…” She grimaced, sifting through her broken memories and scattered dreams. “I can’t even recall his voice, other than his northern accent. How will I know it’s him?”
Talia laughed softly. “You will know. But there is one sure way.”
“What is it?”
“Combine yours and the other person’s blood with the waters of the Whispering Spring.
You only need a drop.” She fidgeted with a chain around her neck.
“Once your blood is mixed, there’s a short phrase you must say in Sellidic that translates to ‘reveal my soul’.
If the bond is true, your blood and the spring waters will glow.
But you will likely suspect far before that.
Those with implexus bonds are inexplicably drawn to one another. ”
Emmery studied Talia’s soulful brown eyes. “What does it feel like?”
All Emmery knew was Deimos and Kahlia formed the first implexus bond but it was rumoured to have been broken when Deimos was locked away behind that wall of ice and Kahlia drowned herself in the Blood Mire.
Her chambermaid mulled over the question and thoughtfully smoothed her skirts.
“Like you have found everything you’ve ever searched for.
As if the two of you are connected by an invisible tether.
You will be pulled toward them in a way that is undeniable.
It’s the only bond that isn’t purely for power or politics.
It’s often called the love bond though love is expressed in differing ways.
It isn’t always romantic and platonic relationships often stem from it as well.
But some disregard it, treat it as a burden.
The bond merely tunes you into that other person.
Gives you a feeling of … completeness no one else can.
It’s a crossing of paths willed by the universe.
Sometimes they’re short. Other times long. But they always serve a purpose.”
Emmery gave her a small smile. “You seem to know quite a lot about it.”
“I only speak from experience.” With each word, Talia's shoulders visibly stiffened.
Emmery’s mouth grew dry. If Talia never had a family that meant either the bond was rejected or they’d passed. Both filled her heart with lead.
She shifted uncomfortably. Her legs wrapped in the sheets like restraints. “May I ask what happened?”
“She died in the war.” Talia averted her eyes, but the words came out emotionless. Practiced. “It was a long time ago.”
Emmery laid her hand atop Talia’s where it rested on her skirt. It was the best she could do. “I’m sorry.” Her eyes suddenly burned. To lose something so rare, irreplaceable, had to be an unfathomable pain.
“She’s a far-away memory now.” Talia managed a small smile. “You know it’s odd, I rarely speak of her. Her name was Henly. We met many years ago and shared more than a human lifetime together before she went to war. She had the burden of shadow too and … I loved her the moment I laid eyes on her.”
Emmery watched her closely as she fiddled with her necklace. Beneath her story lay the warning that these god given bonds could be broken. That death was the great equalizer.
“I can see the question on your face,” Talia said.
“And it’s one of the most insurmountable pains.
I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy. A broken bond will cause pain, regardless of whether it’s for allegiance, marriage, strength, or tethering.
” Talia removed the chain from her neck.
Dark liquid churned within the tiny globe pendant.
“I’ve been debating giving this to you for weeks. I have no use for it.”
Her chambermaid pressed it into Emmery’s palm.
“What is it?”
“A drop of water from the Whispering Spring. Henly gave it to me before she left for war and said she wanted me to move on should anything happen, but I have chosen not to. I choose her memory over a life with another.” She folded Emmery’s fingers around the pendant.
“Don’t let my story stop you from finding your love.
I don’t regret a moment of it, though I painfully miss her.
I hope you find Shade. And not just for the sake of us all. I wish you happiness, Lady Emmery.”
With the Whispering Spring frozen over like the basin in the Skyborne Temple, this was a rare gift. One she could never repay.
Tears burned in Emmery’s throat. “I can’t accept this from you.”
“You can and you will.” Talia stood from the bed and gave a short curtsy. “Goodnight, Lady Emmery. Sleep well.”
“Goodnight, Talia.”
Emmery watched her petite frame disappear through the door.
She waited several tense moments after the door closed before darting to the wardrobe.
After prying up the loose wooden panel, she carefully tucked away the necklace and retrieved her pack and cloak.
She smiled as she fondled the leather. Even if it had been a gift from Vesper, it was hers; one of the only things here that actually belonged to her.
Briar had grabbed Emmery’s journal, but Vesper still had The Nameless Book. The one he’d hidden from her.
Bastard.
After she dressed in her leathers and slung her favourite green cloak around her shoulders, she gathered up several dresses and either shoved them in her pack or draped them over her arm. How no one had noticed them missing yet was beyond her. Maybe Talia had discovered and kept her secret.
Emmery’s soul hungered for freedom and to taste the night air on her tongue, so she slipped the latch and slid out the window. In a moment, she clambered down the trellis and into the city streets.