Page 75
I looked around the table. Each one of them was broadcasting varying amounts of apprehension along their heartstring. “Something tells me that I’m not going to like your methods of preparation.” I took another bite of pasta primavera to hide my own insecurity.
“Pixie, your moonstone concealed you from our world to protect the power you were born with. Without that charm, you’re vulnerable. We don’t want to risk exposing your power to the very people it was being hidden from. But…” his eyes flicked to Rami before coming back to me. “That’s not the only thing we can’t risk exposing now.”
My brows pulled down. “What do you mean?”
“The heartstrings, kulta,” Rami answered. “They require a rite by the Oracle and divine intervention to form.”
Understanding seeped into my thoughts. “If they find out that I tied them on my own, then they’ll realize I’m…different.”
“Yes.” Rami nodded.
“Different can’t be that bad,” I argued, betting that their concern was due to their overprotective natures. “I mean, Lucian is a hybrid. That can’t be common.”
The resulting burst of rage from every direction along the heartstrings stole my breath, and I winced, rubbing at my chest.
“It is that bad, Blue.” Bellamy looked as crestfallen as he was angry.
Lucian’s jaw ticked like it was fighting the words he wanted to say. “Half the Conclave wanted me put down like a rabid dog.”
“What?!” Now it was their turn to flinch at my outburst. “You were a victim!”
“That’s the way our world works,” Quinn muttered, the words laced with sarcasm.
“Your world sucks!”
“It’s your world now too.” Alaric’s gentle reminder didn’t make me any less incensed. “That’s why we have to be careful. A Heart will feel a natural draw toward their drift, but only the Oracle can confirm the will of Fate.”
I ground my teeth, magic simmering under my skin like I hadn’t felt since before the crash in the ravine. I didn’t want to be part of their world. In fact, right now, I wanted to turn their world to ash. “So it’s okay for us to think I could be your Heart, but if anyone finds out that we already know for sure, it’s game over.”
Ric winced. “Essentially.”
“Fine,” I gritted out. “So we find a witch and get a new moonstone.”
“We did.” Alaric exuded calm, but I could feel his bristling discomfort. “And it’s not quite as simple.”
Quinn, Luce, and Bellamy looked as lost as I was, clearly unaware of whatever Ric had done. Not Rami, though. His chest rumbled with an undercurrent of distress. I slipped out of my chair to move into his lap, and his arms immediately went around me. He buried his face against my neck and took a ragged breath.
“Hey, big guy.” I sifted my fingers through his hair. “Whatever it is, it’ll be okay.”
He shuddered but didn’t say anything. I looked over at Ric and nodded for him to continue laying out his plan.
“The moonstone suppressed your manifestation—it was easier to hide something that didn’t exist yet. Hiding the heartstrings requires a more powerful magic and…some discomfort.” He finished his sentence like it had thorns and produced a necklace.
Swinging gently from a silver chain was a pure black crystal the size of my pinky finger. When it caught the light, I could barely make out a faint glow radiating from its center. As a piece of jewelry, it was gorgeous, but I had a feeling that its beauty was about to be overshadowed by its purpose.
“Okay.” I reached my hand out, and I could feel the effort it took Alaric to turn over the charm. “So wearing it will hurt?” The pendant was surprisingly cool and heavy in my palm.
Ric tipped his head in a stiff nod. “It won’t damage the bonds, but it will essentially cut them off. I don’t know for sure, but I suspect it will feel like a severance.”
Rami’s arms spasmed around me while Bellamy and Lucian jumped up in protest.
“Ric, no way!”
“She’s not wearing that!”
Quinn looked sick, and the regret clouding our heartstring told me a severance was the exact agony he’d been hoping to avoid by resisting our bond in the first place.
“Guys, enough!” I shouted over the escalating argument between Alaric, Bel, and Luce. They quieted like I’d cracked a whip. I focused on Ric. “Is it going to hurt you too?”
