Chapter 5
GRAESON
Graeson and Terin were the first to reach the horses near the Draconian River. As they made their way out of the inner city, detonations erupted as Sylvia and the others set off their explosives. Dani's plan had worked perfectly. Buildings crumbled, people screamed, and Frenzia fell into chaos. The guards were pulled away in every direction, the lost bride only a secondary thought as small fires threatened to consume the capital in earnest.
Even as the fire continued to roar behind them, Graeson knew Domitius would not rest until he had Kalisandre back. Graeson was not so foolish to think that the king's game was over just because Domitius caused the tunnel to collapse and separated himself from Kalisandre.
On the contrary, everything in Graeson's body told him this was just the beginning. Soon, the king's men would come for them.
Thankfully, as Graeson and Terin took the opportunity to rest and shed the Frenzian armor, the others quickly joined them. When Graeson spotted Sylvia, the same wicked gleam coated their amber eyes. When Sylvia spotted the last two unclaimed horses, a mix of anger and somberness filled their expression.
"Come on," Graeson said, cutting through the silence as his footsteps crackled fallen leaves and detritus. "We should get going before we lose our advantage."
Sylvia nodded, wiping their cheeks with the back of their hand and mounting their horse.
"What do you want to do with her?" Ellie asked, nodding in Kalisandre's direction.
Terin shifted his sister in his arms as he eyed Graeson wearily. "Kallie will remain in a coma for a while if I am not in contact with her, but it will drain me faster if we're separated for too long."
"There is no discussion to be had. She'll ride with you, Terin," Graeson said. "She is small enough."
"It doesn't matter if Terin's horse can handle her weight. Riding two to a horse will still slow us down," Ellie argued, folding her arms over her chest.
"We have no other choice," Graeson retorted, heading to Terin.
"He's right, Ellie," Medenia sighed, guiding her horse toward them by its reins. "We will have to make do."
Ellie's lips thinned, but she didn't argue further.
Graeson tipped his head to his friend. "I've got her, Ter," Graeson said, his hands outstretched.
"Thanks," Terin mumbled, passing Kalisandre to Graeson before getting atop his horse.
Graeson tenderly brushed a stray wisp of hair from Kalisandre's face. Her soft features were smeared with dirt and blood, and her brows were drawn slightly together. He hesitated, his grip tightening around her. When she didn't stir, though, Graeson carefully hoisted her onto Terin's horse.
Soon, he promised.
They rode hard and fast through the forest, only stopping for short periods to let the horses rest and to relieve themselves. Time passed slowly in the woods, every snap of a branch or rustle of leaves making them jump with paranoia.
Although they seemed safe, the entire Frenzian military would be after them soon enough. The destruction left in their wake would only keep the Frenzians distracted for a limited time.
Dani made frequent loops around the area, ensuring no one followed. When she returned from her latest lap, she said to Graeson, "Tell me what happened with Armen."
"What is there to tell?" Graeson asked, focusing on the woods ahead.
"Come on. You obviously feel some way about it," Dani said, peering down at Graeson's hands, where he gripped the reins so tightly that his knuckles turned white.
Graeson loosened his hold slightly and sighed, but the tension in his neck remained. He shrugged haphazardly. "Armen and I have never been the best of friends. The man is a prick who can't see over his ego. It was only a matter of time before he betrayed us."
"Is that what you think happened? That he betrayed us?" Dani pressed.
"Armen is many things," Terin said ahead of them, joining in the conversation, "but he has always been loyal to the Crown."
Graeson snorted. "Apparently not as loyal as we thought."
However, Graeson couldn't deny that he had trusted Armen enough to bring him along. Despite his personal feelings toward Armen, Graeson had believed he was loyal. Even though Armen had spoken against Kalisandre, Graeson didn't think Armen would have been so selfish as to abandon them and their kingdom.
Graeson should have known better.
He should have listened to the god within. Because after all this time, when it came to mortals, the monster was right. More often than not, humans only cared about themselves.
"I just...I find it hard to believe," Terin finally mumbled, breaking the tense quiet.
"I do not know what to believe anymore," Graeson said, his voice growing cold. "But I do know this: whether Armen intentionally betrayed us or whether he simply ran to save his own life is only a matter of semantics. Either way, Moris is dead because of him."
Dani and Terin fell silent, the only sound accompanying them being the clatter of hooves as they continued their trek through the foreboding forest toward Tetria.
The sun slowly moved across the sky, casting rays of light pouring through the canopy of leaves above.
As they rode, Graeson struggled to keep his focus on their surroundings. His eyes kept drifting to Kalisandre, unable to resist stealing glances at her. His mind was consumed with too many questions and worries. How would they explain why they had taken her against her will a second time? Would they be able to undo whatever damage Myra had inflicted on Kalisandre's mind? Would Kalisandre be able to trust them? Would she ever be able to forgive them? The weight of the conversation weighed heavily on him as they traveled.
When the horses began to slow their pace, Ellie called out, "We need to rest. Night is coming soon. If we keep going, we will run the horses--"
"No," Graeson interrupted, snapping his attention away from his wayward thoughts. "We must keep going."
Ellie kicked her boots against the horse's sides and raced ahead. Turning suddenly, she brought the horse to an abrupt halt, forcing Graeson's mount to stand on her hind legs as she cantered.
Graeson gripped the reins and squeezed his thighs as the horse's front hooves smacked the ground, "By the gods! Are you--"
"We're stopping," Ellie shouted over him, looking past him and toward the others.
He bristled. "No, we need to--"
Ellie's gaze locked onto his, her intense black eyes meeting his piercing silver stare. "We're stopping ," she hissed. "The horses need to rest, just as we do. Running ourselves ragged will do us no good."
Graeson clenched his jaw, his teeth grinding together as he glared at Ellie. She wasn't going to budge, and Graeson knew it.
By now, they had been traveling for several hours. The sun was dipping down in the sky, teetering just above the horizon. Shadows slithered quickly across the uneven terrain as evening neared.
He released a heavy sigh and glanced over his shoulder. "Dani?" he prompted.
Dani was already moving, guiding her horse around him and Ellie. She jerked her chin to the right. "I already found a place to lay low and rest until morning."
Graeson shifted his gaze toward Terin, biting his lip.
The prince was pushing his limits. Anyone could see that by the way his skin had dulled and his movements had slowed; just a bit longer and he might collapse.
Analyzing his options, Graeson returned his attention to the two women with a resigned sigh. "The moment dawn comes, we ride."
When they had entered the cave, Emmett practically threw himself onto the ground as he stretched out his limbs. "Gods, I never thought I would be thankful to be lying on stone."
Sylvia chuckled, but the light sound was short-lived as sorrow once again filled their gaze.
Without Moris' jokes cutting through the ever-present silence, his absence rang heavily in the cave with nothing left to distract them.
Moris was a good man. But Graeson had realized long ago that good men were often easiest to kill. Because the ones who didn't deserve to live--the people who destroyed, conquered, and slaughtered for their own advantage--were always the ones who refused to die.
Dani, sitting beside Sylvia, nudged them with a shoulder. Sylvia leaned into her, and Dani wrapped an arm around them. Dani's brows pinched in pain, though. The wound Dani had suffered earlier in the tunnels still caused her some grief. Graeson frequently found her wincing and touching her side, her palm sweeping over her stomach before she caught herself. She wouldn't be able to hide her pregnancy forever. However, it was futile to mention it since Dani would likely dismiss his concern and counter it with some spiteful retort.
So, Graeson kept his mouth shut as Sylvia and Dani silently mourned their comrade. He followed Terin as he placed Kalisandre gently on the ground.
"Here," Graeson said, quickly taking a seat on the other side of Kalisandre. He lifted her head and cradled it in his lap, gently brushing his knuckles across her forehead and sweeping away the loose strands of hair.
"How is she?" Graeson asked as Kalisandre remained asleep, lost in whatever dream Terin had woven for her.
Terin sighed as he slumped to the ground on the other side of her. "I am not sure what the king did to her, but her mind is a mess from what I can tell." He grimaced.
"How do you know that?" Medenia asked as she settled on the opposite wall of the cave.
"While I cannot read her mind like my brother could," Terin began, his gaze quickly flicking away from Dani as she flinched at the mention of her husband, "her mind has clearly been tampered with. It's a tangled mess, more so than before even." He furrowed his brow, stroking the scruff on his chin. "It's hard to explain if you haven't experienced it. I can still shift her dreams, but it's...harder. Finding the memories to call forth feels like I'm digging through piles of thick, heavy mud."
Graeson's brows twisted together as he observed Kalisandre's unconscious form. The torn piece of white fabric from her dress was now stained a muddied red color. He shifted her slightly and unwrapped the makeshift bandage from her head. As he peeled it back, he noted that the wound on the back of her head was no longer actively bleeding. Still, seeing her blood spread across the cotton sent a spiral of cold anger rising through his chest. This was all his fault. He shouldn't have fought her.
He should never have let her go when Domitius had first attacked them all those years ago. He should have held on tighter. If he had, then none of this would have happened.
"Here, Gray, use this," Ellie said, pulling a small square of fabric from her bag and calling Graeson back to the present. She poured liquid from one of the canteens on it before tossing the soaked rag to Graeson.
Emmett perked up from his spot on the ground, sniffing the air. "Is that liquor?" he asked eagerly.
Ellie scoffed, tucking the canteen back into her bag. "Not for you, it's not."
"What? Like it magically changes or something?" Emmett asked with a huff.
With an exasperated eye roll, Ellie placed her bag behind her, ignoring him.
Emmett let out a frustrated groan and flopped back onto the ground, throwing an arm over his eyes.
Shaking his head, Graeson gently patted the damp cloth against the back of Kalisandre's scalp, cleaning the wound. Once satisfied that the wound wouldn't get infected, Graeson set the rag aside and carefully readjusted Kalisandre. He leaned on his palms.
"Must she remain unconscious?" Medenia asked with a frown. "Why is she anyway? Hasn't she already been through enough?"
Before anyone else could respond, Dani mumbled, "Because she'll kill us when she finds out what we have done."
"Why take her in the first place then?" Medenia asked.
Graeson didn't need to raise his gaze to know Dani had turned to him. This was a question only he could answer.
He cracked his neck. "Taking her this way was not the original plan."
"You mean your intentions were not to force the woman you claim to love unconscious and drag her across the seven kingdoms unwillingly for the second time in the past year?" Ellie remarked, leaning against one side of the cave.
Graeson rolled his hand into a fist, an ember of anger growing into a spark inside him as the god stirred. "It's more complicated than that, and you know it."
Ellie eyed him quizzically as if she could hear the god's voice rearing its ugly head.
Graeson forced himself to look away from her when Medenia asked, "So, how long must she remain passed out?"
"Until she is ready," Terin answered with a sigh.
Medenia tilted her head in response. "What do you mean until she is ready? Ready for what?"
Terin rubbed his palms over his eyes in exasperation. "The last time I put her to sleep, it was easy to keep her unconscious. But this time? She's been fighting me almost every step of the way. If I release her completely, she will fight us."
"Are you sure?" Medenia raised a brow.
"Unfortunately, yes," Terin said. "Even if I wasn't, I do not think it is worth the risk. Not yet."
"How long can she remain like this then?" Ellie asked as she unfastened the leather strap that wrapped around her torso and held a series of throwing knives. As she placed it on the ground, the small weapons clattered together. "What's the longest you've kept anyone unconscious?"
Terin was quiet for a moment, his gaze fixed on the rough contours of the cave's ceiling. Although the evening was fast approaching, Graeson could still see the faint purple hue around Terin's eyes and the tiny web of green veins in the dim light.
"Two days," Terin whispered.
" Two days?" Ellie repeated in shock.
Terin cleared his throat and shrugged a shoulder. "Well, almost two days. When we were on the ship back to Pontia, Kallie hadn't handled the sea sickness well. I helped her sleep through a good portion of the trip."
"Was her mental state impacted because of that?" Medenia asked.
"She was slightly disoriented when she awoke but fine overall," Terin said.
"Is it safe to keep someone knocked out for so long?"
Dani shifted against the wall and said, "A couple of years ago, I suffered a major injury during a mission in Kadia. I was unconscious for a couple of weeks. My mind was intact, but it was my body that suffered the worst. Being dormant for so long made my muscles weak." Dani shrugged. "Whether or not it is safe is debatable, but I managed."
"What's the worst-case scenario then?" Ellie asked as she inspected one of her throwing knives. She ran a long finger over the blade as she pursed her lips.
"The worst case?" Terin's gaze flicked to Graeson.
Ellie twisted the knife and nodded. "We have about a week's journey ahead of us. What if she must remain unconscious for the remainder of the trip?" She raised her head and swept her gaze around the room. She cocked a brow. "Or do you expect her to go along with being captured again if you release her in a day or two?"
The muscles in Graeson's jaw ticked at the remark.
"If she is a danger--" Dani began, but Graeson interrupted.
"If she is in danger, we must be aware of it."
"Terin?" Ellie prompted.
Tugging on the ends of his hair, Terin said, "The worst-case scenario is that she falls into a coma and..."
" And ?" Graeson prompted, his body tensing, his mind racing with endless possibilities of what could go wrong. His hand froze in Kalisandre's hair, unable to move until he knew what fate might await her.
A cold breeze swept into the cave as Terin met Graeson's stare.
Terin swallowed and dropped Graeson's stare to look at his sister. "And she doesn't wake up."
Dread coiled in his stomach. "But we're not going to let that happen," Graeson spat, swallowing down the thickness of his words.
"And what will you do to stop it, Gray?" Dani retorted. "Scare her mind back to normal?"
"We will figure it out," Graeson snapped in return. "Kalisandre is stronger than you give her credit for." Of that, he was certain.
Dani clicked her tongue. "You forget that she remains loyal to that man."
Graeson's jaw tightened briefly. "Only because of the hold he has on her."
"Why do you think Domitius just let her go then?" Dani asked, anger beginning to fill her voice. "He knows something that we do not. She is a danger to all of us."
"What do you suggest we do then, Dani?" Graeson challenged. "We cannot let the sacrifice of those who have died in the hopes of rescuing her be for naught."
Dani was standing now, and even from across the cave, Graeson could see the fire blazing in her hazel eyes. Sylvia tried to pull Dani back down, but Dani struggled against them. She spat on the floor before sitting down when Sylvia refused to let her go.
"I know all too well what has been sacrificed," she hissed, her lips curling into a sneer. "I am not willing to let more people die because of her or because of your carelessness."
"She will remain asleep until we are somewhere safe," Terin said. "I promise you that, Dani."
Graeson bit down but remained silent, aware he would be outnumbered if he argued. Nevertheless, it did not mean he had to agree with Terin's decision.
"And how long is that?" Ellie asked. "A day? A month? Terin, are you prepared for that?"
Terin grabbed his sword and whetstone and began sharpening his blade. "For my sister, I will do what I must." He shrugged, gaze determined.
Ellie arched a brow. "Even if that is true, we cannot keep her unconscious forever."
Nodding, Terin continued to work his blade. "You are right. At some point, we will have to do something."
"We cannot trust her," Dani argued, still seething.
"No one is disagreeing with you, Dani," Ellie said, crossing her arms over her chest.
"He is," Dani said with a disgusted grimace as she pointed at Graeson.
Graeson placed his hand atop Kalisandre's shoulder. "She is not to be harmed," he commanded.
"No harm will come to her, Gray," Ellie promised, expression guarded. "But we must proceed with caution."
"Ellie is right," Terin said, holding his blade up and inspecting his work. "Although, I am hopeful she will stop fighting me soon. Once she stops, I'll be able to let her mind rest while I sleep."
"But until then?" Dani asked, brow cocked.
Terin placed his sword beside him and settled against his bag, propping his head up slightly with his arm. "Until then, don't let me sleep for too long." Terin closed his eyes, attempting to get some rest.
Sylvia whispered something in Dani's ear that made Dani finally settle as well. Dani leaned her head against the wall, closing her eyes as she spun her wedding ring around her finger.
Medenia leaned forward. "You care for Kalisandre, do you not, Graeson?"
Graeson dragged his gaze from the floor to the Tetrian princess and nodded.
"Yet you are all right with taking her against her will and rendering her unconscious?" It was the same question Ellie had asked but held no judgment or ridicule; only bewildered curiosity filled Medenia's words.
"What do you wish for me to say?" Graeson asked, brushing a hand through his hair. "Every moment that passes, every second that Kalisandre remains in this coma, pains me more than the last. It is not a choice I make easily."
"Yet you make it all the same," Medenia murmured.
"Because she cannot make her own choices, not when Domitius has poisoned her mind."
Medenia leaned back, flipping a crystal within her palm as she peered at Kalisanre. "She has been made to believe the bull king was her father. And for better or worse, he has played that role for as long as Kalisandre can remember. It is understandable that--"
"No," Graeson said, cutting her off. "That is not the main problem here. While it is terrible that he has fed Kalisandre a lie her entire life about who he is to her, when the truth was revealed to her, she ignored it. Think about it: if you were to discover that your parent was killed by the person who raised you, would you forgive them so easily?"
Medenia shrugged. "Families can be complicated."
Graeson knew that all too well, but it did not explain everything. Not in this case. "While that may be true, it does not mean you would forgive him so easily if you were in Kalisandre's position."
Medenia paused, then said, "I cannot say what I would do." She tilted her head, her brows furrowing. "You keep saying that Domitius has messed with her mind, Graeson, but how do you know that? What proof do you have?"
Graeson cracked his knuckles. "He confessed it in the tunnels."
"What did he say exactly?"
"He said that her mind has been manipulated."
"Manipulated how ?" Medenia asked. Then, as her gaze flicked from Kalisandre to Graeson, she gasped, eyes widening. "Does Domitius--"
"No," Graeson said, anticipating the question. "Domitius doesn't bear an ability. If he did, Armen would have discovered it and told us. While he is the one pulling the strings, Domitius is not the one with a gift."
"Then who?" Medenia asked, forehead creasing in confusion.
"The handmaiden."
"The handmaiden?" she repeated.
Graeson nodded. "Kalisandre's handmaiden and best friend is a woman named Myra. She was the other woman we had brought to Pontia originally."
"Wait," Sylvia said, snapping their eyes open. " That handmaiden?"
"Yes?" Graeson said, but by the way Sylvia's eyes had widened, the response came out more as a question. Graeson leaned forward. "What is it that you know, Sylvia? Did she say something when you were traveling with her?"
Sylvia shook their head. "Not quite."
"But?" he pressed.
Sylvia's shoulders dropped. "It's more of a hunch. When we were traveling south together, she was...off."
Ellie snorted as she used one of her knives to pick the dirt from her nails. "Why you all expect these women to react positively to being kidnapped is beyond me."
Graeson, ignoring Ellie, asked, "Off how, Sylvia?"
Sylvia tipped their head in Ellie's direction. "Ellie is right, actually. I had expected some sort of reaction from the handmaiden while we traveled--whether that be anger or a form of disassociation. I recall you saying that on your trip north with Kalisandre, the princess fought back. She tried to escape. But the handmaiden? She was...compliant. Friendly even."
Graeson waved a hand dismissively. "That's how she was with the rest of us when we arrived in Pontia. She was sweet, kind, and endearing, especially to Kalisandre. Maybe it's merely her personality? Or perhaps it's what she thought she needed to do to survive when she still believed us to be the enemy?"
"That's just it," Sylvia said, shaking their head. "Who acts that way to their captors? Before we had separated, I recall the handmaiden and Kalisandre whispering. Fear was written all over the handmaiden's face; she was practically dripping in it. But once we split ways? Something changed.
"Myra was...different. She was quiet, yes, but it was almost as if a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. The only time the fear came back was when we arrived at the southern port, where Ardentolian guards were everywhere. She acted scared. At first, I thought nothing of it. I had reasoned that it was because she was afraid of what we would do to her if they discovered her, but now..." Sylvia shook their head. "Now, I can't help but think she was afraid of returning."
"Did Domitius explain what Myra did to Kalisandre's mind?" Medenia asked.
"He said that she manipulated her emotions, twisting them," Graeson said.
Medenia was silent for a moment, but Graeson could see her mind at work. She cocked her head to the side as she observed Kalisandre with an intensity that Graeson wasn't sure what to make of.
Finally, Medenia hummed, nodding. "It makes sense now."
"What does?" Graeson asked, perplexed.
Medenia slowly dragged her attention from Kalisandre to meet Graeson's eyes, but it was almost as if she struggled to pull her focus from Kalisandre.
She blinked, her eyelashes brushing across the tops of her round cheeks. "I've been trying to figure out what's been off about her since I met her at the welcome dinner. If the handmaiden truly has warped her mind, that would explain the oddness I have felt. Her aura has been tampered with."
"Her aura ?" Graeson said hesitantly.
Medenia nodded. "We each bear an aura: a general feeling that emits from one's presence. You can learn a lot from someone just by inspecting their aura."
"And this is something you...see?" Dani surmised, apparently sharing the same reservations Graeson did regarding the matter.
To Dani, Medenia asked, "You once explained that you are a huntress, correct?"
"Yes," Dani answered hesitantly.
"And because of this, you are more attuned to signals that might appear insignificant to others?"
Dani nodded once more.
"But sometimes it is not simply something you merely see . It is a feeling, an insight. The shift in the air, an unannounced silence," Medenia said.
"I suppose," Dani mumbled skeptically.
"It is a similar thing that I experience, that many of my people learn to identify in our queendom."
Still unsure, Graeson asked, "But what made you come to believe her aura was tampered with?"
Medenia offered him a small smile, but it did little to soothe his doubts. "Call it an instinct if that makes you feel better."
He frowned. It did not. "How does this help us exactly?"
Medenia blinked at him as if the answer was as clear as the sky. But did she not realize the sky was filled with ominous gray clouds that swallowed the sun?
"It helps because it proves that you are right," Medenia said, placing the crystal she had been rolling in her hand back around her neck. The white crystal disappeared beneath her slip. "But more than anything, it tells me that there is hope . Because beneath the murkiness of her aura, beneath the shadows and the darkness that threaten to consume her, something else lies there. Your Kalisandre is still there. We just have to find her and pull her out before it is too late."
With Medenia's words, a seed of hope was planted within Graeson's chest, yet he did not let it bloom.
Despite hoping that whatever Myra had done to Kalisandre's mind was reversible, Graeson also knew that there were some things one could not get rid of.
Especially when it came to one's own mind.
Heavy snores filled the small space as Graeson lay awake, staring at the ceiling, his mind murky with thoughts he couldn't avoid. Darkness had long since enveloped the cave, yet sleep evaded him.
Unable to bear it any longer, he stood and slipped outside, carefully and quietly, tiptoeing around the slumbering bodies scattered across the cave's dusty floor.
Once outside the cave, Graeson felt the crisp night air brush his skin and tangle in his black hair. He gazed up at the shimmering new moon. As the glow of the new moon bathed him, the back of his neck prickled, and a sense of unease crept over him.
In the stillness of the forest, something akin to a chuckle sifted through the trees, causing Graeson to straighten, every muscle in his body tensing. Even the god inside him bristled, sensing something other . Slowly, he turned toward the direction of the sound, but only trees and brush greeted him. And yet...
"You are still fighting your true nature, I see."
Graeson's hand twitched at his side despite knowing a mere blade was useless against this intruder. "I am not fighting anything," he said through clenched teeth.
"Do not lie to me!" the voice roared, and Graeson struggled not to flinch as the ground shook and the leaves rustled around him. "I can sense the wall within you, the pitiful cage you have built. Do you think locking the so-called monster away will make you more human?"
Graeson couldn't speak, his voice trapped in his throat as he searched for the owner of the voice concealed within the woods.
"You still do, don't you? After all this time, I thought you would have given up that pursuit."
Graeson's sharp voice cut through the still air. "What are you doing here?" he demanded, scanning the forest.
The leaves rustled as a breeze swept across him, and the once-loud chirping of crickets fell silent. When no response came, Graeson clenched his hands into tight fists and hissed, "Show yourself."
More laughter echoed through the trees, sending a spiral of chills skittering down Graeson's spine.
"You do not command me, son."
"I am not your son." Ice-cold fury rose within Graeson. Even though Graeson could not see him, Graeson knew Barinthian, the god who claimed to bear his blood, was there. The deity lurked somewhere among the trees and shadows, hidden but undeniably present.
"Are you not?" Barinthian's voice surrounded him, low and haunting and searching. "You sure act like me."
"I am nothing like you, " Graeson spat in disgust.
The gold rings around his fingers hummed as the beast roared within.
"Short temper? Lethal with a blade? A craving for blood to soak the earth? How are you not like me?" the god laughed.
A feeling akin to a finger trailing down the side of Graeson's cheek scorched his skin. Graeson quickly shook it off, only to be met with the mocking laughter of the god.
The ethereal voice crooned, "You are the spitting image of me. Vengeance runs in your blood."
"At least, I care for human life," Graeson seethed. He was nothing like the God of Retribution and Spite. Graeson would never abandon a child or his mother.
Graeson would never abandon those he loved.
"Do you truly, though?" Barinthian asked. "Or do you just care about hers ?"
Graeson whipped his head around at the sound of the voice, his blood boiling beneath his skin. "Do not dare speak of her."
"Oh, right. How could I forget? Your dear Kalisandre is off limits." The god clicked his tongue. "A pity, really. She is a sight to behold. It is no wonder you wish to claim her."
"She is not one to be claimed," Graeson growled, stalking slowly around the shadows that beckoned him closer.
"Is that not how those precious bonds my dear brother created all those years ago work?" Barinthian asked. "How do you think she will react when she discovers the truth about the bonds? Do you think she even will accept you? After all, how can she accept you when you don't even accept yourself?"
Graeson squeezed his eyes shut, forcing the red seeping into the corners of his vision to vanish. "You do not want to push me right now," he warned.
Wind swept across Graeson's face. When the god spoke next, his voice was right at Graeson's ear. "Oh, I think that is exactly what I wish to do." Strong fingers gripped Graeson's shoulder, and warm breath brushed across Graeson's neck. "Let the rage out, son. Show the world the beast you truly are. Show them the real you."
Graeson spun, but the god was nowhere to be found.