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“A few things, actually. The first one being that we should probably talk about the fact that we now have two bonded pairs in the Axis and, most likely, the eighth person.” A few heads turn toward Zara, and I immediately regret my words.
“Shit, I didn’t mean to single you out, Zara, and also, we’re all shitheads. You’ve already met Ruby, Lena, Archer, and Ezra, but this is Miri and Davis.” Miri leans forward in her seat and waves at Zara, and Davis grunts something that sounds like “hey.”
Zara tries to smile, but it’s too tentative to be considered a real one.
“What I wanted to ask is, what do we do now? Do we keep trying to avoid bonding and forming the Axis, or do we just suck it up, bond, and then try to banish Anthony and those other assholes back to Fairy?”
No one says anything as they chew over my question. I guess no one’s really thought about this yet.
“I know Anthony desperately wants to get back to Fairy, so maybe that’s all there is to this, but my gut tells me that doing anything he wants, like forming an Axis, is a bad idea. Hell, he kidnapped Miri and had that fuckface stab me. All so he could watch us bond like he was a priest at our wedding, marrying us.” Archer snarls, throwing his arm over Lena’s shoulders.
Zara sits up, cocking her head. My senses are locked on her every move, so I notice the change in her demeanor right away.
“I know exactly what you’re saying, but what if that just makes him someone else’s problem? Can’t it be that even though it benefits him, it might be a good thing for us, too?” Miri taps her finger against her glass, thinking through this fucked up situation.
“Did you say Anthony was there when you bonded?” Zara speaks up, her voice soft, but I catch every word. The group quiets and gives her their attention, which only makes her retreat, her shoulders sloping and her hands falling into her lap.
“He was. Why?” Davis says, sounding like a gruff asshole. I shoot him a nasty look, which he returns with a glare. “What?”
“You don’t have to snap at her.”
“That’s my normal speaking voice.”
“It’s fine.” Zara reaches out, dropping her hand over the top of mine and squeezing it, making my skin tingle like I’ve gotten a jolt of electricity. I don’t dare look at my sister or any of the other assholes at this table. I don’t want to see any of their lifted eyebrows or sly smiles.
“Did he take part in any way?”
Before Davis can snap out another question, Lena replies, leaning forward a little. She’s most likely interested because this might be new information and that’s her favorite thing. “He did. He said the words and had us recite them. Does that mean something?”
Zara gnaws on her bottom lip, pulling her hand away and putting it back in her lap. “It’s supposed to be a bond between two people. If anyone else is present, it should only be the other members of the Axis. If he was reciting the words, then he was latching onto the bond.”
Davis stands up, hands on his head as he takes a few steps away from the table.
“What the hell does that mean?” Miri asks quietly, anger sparking in her eyes.
Zara swallows visibly, her fingers knotting together as she sets them on top of the table. “He’s made sure he’s connected to your bond.”
Miri’s skin gets pale, then turns into a sickly shade. Davis’s face is so dark I’m surprised he hasn’t flipped a table. He takes a deep breath and stands behind Miri, dropping his hands to her shoulders. She sags back against him.
“What can he do with that?”
“Nothing yet. But if he manages to do it with all of your… bonds, then he would, in theory, have access to all of your power. He could drain you to fuel his own magic.”
“Fuck,” Lena hisses beside me and it’s echoed around the table.
I didn’t miss Zara’s hesitation when she was talking about our bonds. She’d stumbled over the word “your,” probably because she’s still coming to terms with the fact that she’s part of this now.
“Can we sever it somehow?” Archer asks.
“All magic has a beginning and an end. Nothing that is done is irreversible.”
“That’s good, then.”
“Yes, and no. Often there is a price that needs to be paid in order to reverse certain spells. Beyond knowing the how, you would want to know what those consequences would be as well.” Zara’s voice grows stronger the longer she speaks, even if she’s delivering bad news.
“And do you know how we can do this?” Davis asks, his voice gravelly, but I can tell he’s trying to sound less threatening.
“I’m sorry. I don’t.”
