Silence falls like a heavy hammer.
But as I meet Kaison’s gaze, I know whatever we’d just been committed to is not good.
“Areyou going to tell me what the fae fucks we just agreed to?” I ask as soon as Kaison and I are out of earshot of the others. “What is the marking?”
He pulled me away, telling the others he needed a moment alone to impress me with the swath of Midnight roses. I can’t focus on the full blooms of blackish-blue petals all around us that smell like a floral licorice.
I understood Kai’s signal and kept my mouth shut, but I knew from his reaction we have a problem. A big problem.
“They want me to bite you.” Kaison doesn’t mince words, he simply comes out with it.
The voice disappears from my throat in a puff of smoke as the air squeezes out of my lungs.
Kai watches me carefully, letting me react, letting me travel back to the conversation and put it in context of the ‘mark her, or this marriage won’t happen.’
I'm trembling now, my heart rabbiting against my ribs. The thought of Kai's fangs piercing my skin, of being bound to him like that. . .it's too much.
“I—I can’t.” I force the words out despite having no breath.
Kai’s face is flat, expressionless, which scares me even further. “I know.”
My chest tightens. The flowers swirl and blend in a dizzying array of color. I can't breathe.
“Why?”
He takes a few steps away from me, caressing the head of a rose as he explains. “Midnight fairies mark each other with their bite mark—it's called the Seal of Amaranthe. No matter how much blood a Midnight fairy drinks, that scar does not disappear. It’s a true signal of dedication, loyalty. Your stepmother and my father are trying to call our bluff.” His fingers close, crushing the flower head in his grasp.
“Is there some supernatural binding to the bite?” I ask.
This sounds like mating.
I already know full well that weres have mates and it affects them physically to the point where if they break ties, it can mean death. I’m not sure what scares me more. Trusting Kaison to bite me and drink from me, or being bound to him beyond our deal?
Kai licks his lips slowly. “Not exactly. It means that. . .”
I don’t know why he is hedging now. “What? Spit it out.”
“It means that your blood will have power over me for the rest of my life.”
“Power overyou?” I ask.
Kai rips the flower head off the stem and throws it into the brush. “No other blood will ever taste as sweet as yours. It’s like an addiction I’ll always crave. Sex and blood.”
“And the same goes for me?” I guess dryly, even as panic crawls up my throat, threatening to choke me from the inside out.
“I don’t know,” he shakes his head, expression tortured. “I don’t know of any human who has been marked or what the effects would be.”
Great. Fae fucking fabulous.
“I—I’ll be right back,” I stutter, backing away.
“Cinder,” he says, trying to stop me.
I need space. I need to breathe. This is all spiraling out of my control.
Was it ever in my control?
I’m gone before he can stop me. I race through the gardens, headed toward the only place I can breathe. My eyes sting and my chest seizes, and I’m unable to catch my breath.
