Page 68 of Commanding Blood And Bonds

Well. No complaints there.

See? Told you we could do both.

Ally’s grin widened. I’m inclined to test your theory.

Don’t have to tell me twice.

Kingsley’s voice cut through the haze.

“To be Soul Bound is nearly unheard of.” His expression turned serious. “You should be able to lend each other strength when one of you’s depleted. Yes, if one dies, the other will follow—but to kill a Soul Bound mate, you have to deplete both. That kind of power’s hard to match.”

That...that was useful. Very useful.

“Can you show us?”

His eyes gleamed. “Gladly.”

He patted Rosaleigh’s lap. They both stood. Ally and I followed.

She froze mid-step, eyes distant for a heartbeat before she grinned.

“Clever, Aren.”

“What?” I whispered, lacing our fingers as we followed them outside.

“He’s just making rapid-fire decisions without intent to follow,” Alvara explained, shaking her head.

“What?”

“Triggering visions—testing outcomes, seeing what sticks. One way to save time, I guess.”

I chuckled, nodding. She pulled out her phone and started tapping rapid-fire messages while Kingsley and Rosaleigh led the way. I placed my hand at the small of her back to keep her focused as we stepped into the bitter air.

The cold hit like a wall—sharp and skin-stinging, the kind of cold that forced you to be present. As we crunched out into the snow-blanketed field, I turned over what little we’d gathered about Soul Bonds, magic, and the rapidly escalating threat none of us could fully see.

Kingsley finally stopped. Rosaleigh clung to his arm, looking up at him with that starry-eyed affection only a mate could wear.

“For the sake of time,” Kingsley said, “we’ll start with Rose as your single target. Her power reserve’s shallower than mine, so it’ll deplete faster.”

I didn’t love the way he presented her—as if she were a soft, expendable resource. But Alvara seemed unfazed. Rosaleigh nodded, kissed his cheek, and sashayed a dozen paces into the snow, popping her neck as she turned to face us.

“When you’re ready,” she called sweetly.

In response, fire licked down Alvara’s arms, the crackling heat almost lost in the hush of falling snow.

We’re supposed to attack her? I asked mind-to-mind.

It’s just a game, August. Can you sense her gifts?

I closed my eyes. Focused.

And…nothing. She felt human. No echo of soul-bound gravity, no immortal burn. Unlike Alvara—or Aren—who radiated power like their blood hummed with it, Rosaleigh read as utterly ordinary.

Maybe that was Kingsley’s advantage. Maybe his people stayed hidden because they could.

So, Ally thought, we empty her well. He wants to show us how to fill it.

No further instruction needed. We split, circling her as we launched attacks in tandem—fire, air, water. She dodged and deflected with almost bored precision.