Page 56 of The Bonds of Indigo

“Sure—”

“No.” I overpower his response.

She tucks her chin. “You both said it yourselves, this place probably isn’t the best for me to be.”

“Or maybe you need to face what you did head-on. Who knows, maybe Vendra will reward you with helpful magic.” I cross my arms over my chest. “Just saying. She’s limiting your powers for some reason, maybe this can help.” My tone is mocking, but again, we—no, I—cannot forget that just five miles north of us, she slaughtered hundreds.

When she runs her tongue slowly across her teeth, my friend sighs heavily. She sucks her bottom lip into her mouth and brushes past Atlas.

“Whatever. Let’s just go.”

We carjacked an old black Mustang. Amarah opted to sit in the back, which makes the most sense—she’s the smallest of us, so there was no argument. Plus, I was able to look at her through the rearview mirror, which didn’t do anything other than infuriate me more.

The moment we got into the center of town, the urban energy and mountain-town charm came alive. The main street has small boutique shops, open-air cafés, and locally farmed goods. The smell of mountain air mixed with baked goods and pine is… to be desired. Everything for a Vampire is amplified. It’s why I particularly like being in a place like this; the scent is far more inviting than that of a big city like Sidence.

When we stop at a light right in front of a statue, I look at the girl in the back seat. I expected her to keep her eyes down, not looking out the window, but I’m wrong.

So wrong…

Her lips are slightly parted as she leans against the half door behind Atlas. Those eyes of hers, typically thin and almond-shaped, are round with… hope.

Pedestrians walk beside the car as they move across the street, and she focuses specifically on a mother holding a young girl’s hand, following them with her gaze as they cross the crosswalk. It’s only when she realizes I’m watching her that she halts her pursuit of them.

I squeeze the steering wheel when her lips purse and she jerks her head away.

“This town is beautiful. I’ve never been here before.” Atlas breaks our silence just as the light turns green. “I don’t want to be insensitive, but can I ask you a question, Am⁠—”

“Go ahead.”

He chuckles. “Why this place? Why… this town?”

My eyes flick to the rearview, watching for any sign of anything. I even listen to her heart, and although it pains me, I feel for the thread between us.

There’s no pride, no remorse, no happiness bleeding through. Her pulse doesn’t rise, and her expression doesn’t shift. It’s only through the bond that I sense the change, and it’s so intense it feels like I’m the one feeling it.

Guilt.

“Fate.” She looks at my friend as he turns his head over his shoulder. “Fate sometimes… isn’t kind. I…” Her hand rises to her throat, squeezing softly, and Gods help me I enjoy that I can see her fingers press into her skin. “If it wasn’t them, it would’ve been someone else. Another town. Another couple hundred innocent lives.”

I tut. “At least you know they were innocent.”

“I’m sure there was a bad one in the bunch,” Atlas adds, and I turn my head toward him, scrunching my face in shock.

“What? Did you know that one-in-twelve people are criminals in some form? And every one-in-a-hundred commit horrific crimes? It’s a real statistic, look it up.”

“Regardless,” she says before I can tear him a new one for trying to justify anything for her. “They didn’t deserve what happened here.”

My friend turns all the way around. “There you go again with your wording, little slayer.”

“Do not call her that.”

“Do not call me that.”

Her and I groan simultaneously after we finish our statements together.

Atlas doesn’t seem phased, because he keeps pushing as I turn into a parking garage. “What you did here. Right?”

There’s silence as I pull into a parking spot, and when I look at her through the mirror once more, she’s got her gaze dead set on me.