"Ye're being a coward."
He was right. And it pissed me off, even though I'd said that exact same thing about myself. I spun on him, fangs fully extended, a growl rumbling in my chest. "Say that again."
Killian didn't flinch. Didn't back down. Just met my glare with unwavering certainty. "Ye heard me. Ye've faced down far worse things without breaking a sweat. But one tiny witch terrifies ye because she makes ye feel something real."
"That's not?—"
"It is." He straightened, his voice gentling. "I know what it's like, Elias. To find yer mate and realize they have the power to shatter everything ye've built to protect yourself. Lizzy nearly destroyed me. And I fought it, too. Fought her, fought the bond, fought everything that made me feel alive again after centuries of merely existing." His golden eyes held mine. "But staying away from her didn't make me stronger. It made me weak. Vulnerable. Distracted. A danger to my coven."
The words settled between us, heavy with truth I didn't want to acknowledge.
"Yer mate grounds ye," Killian continued. "Makes ye stronger. I've seen it happen with Jamal and Angel, with Brogan and Esme, with Kenya and Alex. Hell, I lived it with Lizzy. Fighting the bond only leaves ye vulnerable." He paused. "And right now, with Marcus still out there, with Talin needing to enter the thread network to save Alex—ye can't afford to be weak. And neither can she."
My head snapped up. "What are you talking about?"
He looked at me like I'd lost my mind. "How else do ye think she's going to get to him?"
Ice flooded my veins. "No. Absolutely not. That's—she could get lost. Trapped. Marcus could—" I couldn't even finish the thought.
"Exactly." Killian's voice was gentle but firm. "Which is why she needs ye. Someone to keep her tethered to reality. Someone whose bond with her is strong enough to pull her back."
Understanding crashed over me with devastating clarity. "My blood. She needs my blood."
"Aye. As her mate, ye could anchor her. Keep her safe while she saves Alex." He paused. "But only if ye actually complete the bond. Only if ye stop running and face what ye're so afraid of."
I stared at him, my mind racing through implications and possibilities and the terrifying reality that Talin was planning something impossibly dangerous. Something that could steal her from me before I ever truly had her.
The pull in my chest intensified, insistent. Demanding.
"I don't know how to do this," I admitted. "How to be someone's mate. How to let someone in like that. How to—" I broke off, frustrated with my own inability to name the fear churning in my gut.
"Ye start by showing up," Killian said simply. "The rest will follow."
Before I could respond, before I could process everything he'd just said, the air in the bar changed. Thickened. The temperature dropped ten degrees in an instant, and every bottle behind the bar started rattling against the shelves.
Killian's eyes flashed gold. "Get down!"
Chapter 9
Elias
I dove behind the bar just as the front windows exploded inward in a shower of glass and shadows. Dark tendrils snaked through the openings, writhing like living things, and the smell of ozone and old blood filled the air.
Marcus.
I surged to my feet, fangs fully extended, every instinct screaming danger. Killian was already moving, vampire speed carrying him toward the entrance. I shouted after him, but the shadows coalesced into a barrier between us before I could go after him. Through the darkness, I could barely make out a figure standing in the street.
"Good evening, gentlemen." Marcus's voice slithered through the air like poison. "I do hope I'm not interrupting."
"Ye're not welcome here, djinn." I could barely see him barring the door, but Killian's voice carried pure authority. Pure threat.
"Oh, I'm well aware." Marcus stepped through his own shadows like they were made of water, moving Killian out of his way with a flick of his wrist as he entered the club, slamming the door shut from prying eyes out on the street. "But I thought it was time we had a chat about my little witch problem, who I understand, you're helping." His flat brown eyes turned to me.
Pure rage erupted through my veins. "You don't talk about her," I gritted out through clenched teeth. "You don't even think about her."
Something cruel twisted his mouth. "Ah, yes. The mate bond." His tone was full of disgust. "Tell me, vampire, does she taste as sweet as she smells?"
I was moving before I could think, launching myself over the bar. My fist connected with his jaw, and I heard the satisfying crack of bone as pain shot up my arm.
