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"Sounds good." He gestured toward the many doors that lined the hallway. "You should be able to find your mate through your bond. See you at the feast!"
I recoiled at the idea of the bond, let alone the mate attached to it, but nodded and ruffled his hair. I'd find them the old-fashioned way.
He scampered off, and I heard the loud door grinding closed up the stairs.
"Erhm — Jaiel?" I tried, voice rough. The wolf hated the thought of seeing the bastard after what he and the witch had done, but I suppressed it as best I could.
A door popped open to my right and Jaiel poked his head out, hair disheveled and eyes dark.
"Tye!" he said, gripping my shoulder. "We need to talk."
Chapter 47
Tye
Shaking off Jaiel's hand, I walked in, trying not to bristle at the contact.
I'd not minded with Alpha Blackwood or Finn, but it felt jarring to be touched by the prince — that damn imaginary wolf growling at him as though he was a threat.
"What's going on?" I asked, glancing around.
The room was surprisingly nice. More of those pipes tracked along the ceiling toward a small white sink, a toilet, and a bathtub. Alpha Blackwood wasn't kidding when he said he'd set it up for the whole compound.
The lack of windows made me feel claustrophobic, though, and I couldn't help the twinge of gratitude that they'd put me in quarters above ground instead.
"What's going on?!" Jaiel bit out, eyes wide. "What in all the hells is going on with you? Last year, you were a mage-hunting golden boy for the Empire — THE Collector, for saints sake. And now you're a gods forsaken body mage, and are mate bonded to Kaiya!" Shaking his head, he sank onto the bed.
"Though she is a stubborn-headed fool who doesn't know nearly as much as she thinks she does." He glared past me, clearly irritated.
Obviously things were not so great in the Kaiya-Jaiel world, either.
Shaking my head, I searched for a place to sit. The only open spot was beside him on the bed. Ignoring the wolf's protest, I carefully positioned myself there.
Jaiel had always been a half-way decent person. Not a friend — but a reliable co-worker. And I'd never seen him this worked up before.
I opened my mouth to ask, but he'd already started talking again.
"I don't even know what happened!" He ran his hand through his hair. "One minute she was stubbornly clinging to our mission despite knowing it's unnecessary now, the next I was telling her I thought she was worth more than she gave herself credit for. And then she was pushing me away and …" he dropped his head into his hands. "Saints."
The wolf snarled "MINE" and my skin crawled as the territorial beast pushed for control. He had no patience for hearing his mate discussed by another male …
I looked at the bulge of the wineskin from Finn in my pocket and pulled it out. Now was as good a time as any if I wanted to avoid strangling the prince … or worse.
The thick liquid burned my throat, then my chest, and I coughed, fighting it to stay down as I waited for it to take effect.
For a moment, nothing happened.
Then the wolf's growling grew quieter, as if it was moving further and further away from me.
Jaiel's confused stare drew my attention, and I closed my eyes. I'd explain once the unsettling creature was gone.
A few more seconds passed, and I let out a relieved breath and opened my eyes.
The wolf howled from the back of my mind, but it sounded far away, and if I tried — I was actually able to ignore it.
Mage forsaken. My mind felt so calm. So empty. So lonely.
No. I forced a smile.
