Page 102 of The Bonds of Indigo

Atlas waves a hand. “Good morning. Where’s breakfast?”

Kayn drops onto the log across from us with a heavy sigh. “We’ll eat when we leave.”

“Right… so what’s the plan?”

He doesn’t look at Atlas. Doesn’t even glance back his way. His stare locks squarely onto me.

Now that I understand what I must do… our road trip is coming to an end.

“We’re going to Demour.”

“What?!” Atlas practically shrieks. “The border, right? Not actually into Demour.”

I groan and give him an apologetic look. “Vendra’s warrior says the closer I am to Old Hearth, the easier it’ll be to connect with the Beyond. I’ll be able to cast the spell and open it. Then I’ll protect Kayn as we both cross the gates. My only concern is⁠—”

“You… are coming with me?”

“I—” The intensity in his stare twists my stomach into knots. “Let’s talk about that later. As long as the hex allows it, I’ll cross realms to keep you protected. We can figure out the details when we get there.”

Atlas clears his throat. “I’m… Mundane, Amarah.” His voice is resigned. When I turn to him, he looks genuinely defeated. “The Ashspyte. It’ll kill me.”

I completely forgot about that. Well—not forgot. I just… didn’t think about it. Selfishly, I focused on Kayn only and not on the very Mundane man sitting beside me. The Vampire being as old as he is should be fine. Atlas? He’d survive maybe a day without the right gear, and we still have to cross all of Demour to get to the far eastern side. It’s dangerous and selfish of us, but he has been eager for everything else we’ve done.

“There’s equipment we can get for you⁠—”

“Then just Amarah and I will go.” Kayn cuts in.

I inhale at the wrong moment and nearly choke on air.

“Uh, no,” Atlas snaps. “I’m pretty sure you two will actually kill each other without me as the buffer.”

I’m still trying to catch my breath. Gods, I may actually suffocate.

“I’m not going to kill her,” he mutters while shrugging his shoulders. “And she can try again if she’d like.”

“Again?” Atlas looks even more horrified.

I finally manage to pull in a breath that isn’t half saliva, half panic, but I’m still struggling.

Oh, no. This is the last thing I want. We cannot be alone. How in the Beyond am I supposed to avoid him if we’re stuck together for⁠—

Oh, Gods.

That’s a twelve-day drive.

Twelve days.

Alone.

With Kayn.

Oh, no. No, no, no⁠—

“Oh, yes. Yes, yes, yes.”

My head snaps up, and Kayn is standing over me, a shadow blotting out everything else. “You alright, little slayer? Choking on something?”

Atlas jumps in, “Do you need water?”