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Avyanna pulled out a spell book, one like the one Charles had given me in the bookshop. She glanced at Salenia before stepping forward. “You agreed to put Gwen back in her body after this.”
Salenia’s thin, light brows pulled together. “You will get her back,” she said, her tone clipped. “Once you have proven your loyalty to me.”
My eyes flicked to Avyanna’s, but she wouldn’t look at me. “I already have.”
Salenia kneeled at the altar, with more grace than I ever had. With her eyes shut tight, I could feel the wrath radiating from her, as if being questioned was an act of aggression, although it was completely justified. “You will get her back.”
Avyanna nodded, but held her breath for a few seconds.
Please see she won’t help you. You have to see it.
She was my last hope.
She traced her finger down the center of the book, the sound of pages rustling filling the room. A deep energy settled in the room as her low chants echoed through the dungeon, the ancient power radiating from her incantation. I closed my eyes, as Ayanna’s magic connected with my own, and for a moment I felt a flicker of my power.
Her eyes burned into mine, but she continued anyway.
Please don’t let this happen.I prayed.Please.
Salenia sliced open her palm and a trail of blood dripped onto my hand. If I could just grab that dagger and jam it into her heart, this would all be over. As if sensing my intentions, she tightened her grip on the hilt. The sharp blade sliced through my skin as she dragged the dagger over my palm. Our wounds glowed with a white light, and our blood pooled together.
Avyanna’s chanting grew louder, whispers of the spell echoing around us in whispers, each one weaving us together into a single cord of life.
Through my blurred vision, I looked at Avyanna, who refused to meet my glare. I shifted my focus back to Salenia, a woman who was so broken, so desperate, that she couldn’t even see past her own hatred to save herself. She may have helped create this world, but that didn’t mean she deserved to be a part of it.
Avyanna's voice quavered as she spoke, and I was taken aback, hoping that she would end this before it was too late.
“Do you agree to the blood tie ritual, Salenia?”
Salenia nodded, her predatory stare latching onto mine. “Yes.”
“Do you, Seraphina?” she asked, using my birth name.
The magic was still around us, as if it was waiting for me to consent. Tears welled in my eyes, as I looked around, waiting for something to happen.
This couldn’t be happening.
I forced back my tears, refusing to show a crack in my expression when I looked at Salenia. I wouldn’t give her the satisfaction of knowing she’d broken me. She grabbed my hands; her nails biting into my skin. She didn’t need to threaten me. I already knew what was at stake.
I closed my eyes, thinking about Sebastian, knowing this was the only way I could save my life. I whispered one last prayer to the gods, then looked up.
“I….” I spluttered, the stone scraping against my back as I shifted my position against the altar. “I consent. Yes.”
Salenia’s smoky gaze latched onto mine, a sense of dread seeping through me as she stared into my soul. She placed her fingers over my palms, closing her eyes. My lips parted as the spell seeped into my core. Now a part of me. When she moved, I shivered, as if there was an invisible tether between the two of us.
Avyanna shot me an apologetic look, and I buried my head in my hands as the ritual finished.
My life was bound to hers and all hope was lost.
THIRTY-FOUR
Sebastian
Ihowledastheheavy chains held me to the wall. Rage coursed through me like a wildfire, my muscles straining against the bonds that kept me shackled in the tower and away from Olivia.
The soulmate bond between us pulsed with a palpable ache, the blood tie now complete. My fingers curled into fists as I gazed into the darkness. Every cell in my body urged me to break free, to demolish and tear apart all that lay in my path. All I could think about was Olivia, trapped and alone.
The metal seared against my skin, blisters forming under the surface as the magic infused into the chains, heated. Adrenaline numbed the pain, and my desperation built to a pinnacle. I pulled against the shackles, but they wouldn’t yield.
