I punched him back with my good arm as hard as I could, and he laughed.
“And I’m the Queen of the Fae Realm. What do you want—a medal?”
John grinned at me and ruffled my hair. His smile slowly dropped as he stared at me.
“Are you really missing a piece of your soul?” he whispered.
I nodded.
He looked horrified.
I took a deep breath. “That’s why our soul bond is corrupted. The betrothal jewelry probably sensed I was broken and tried to forge the connection to help me. It’s probably what overrode the bond sickness. I’d assume it’s corrupting your souls or something, but I don’t know.”
I expected the twins to recoil with disgust.
Both took a step closer.
“So we’re helping you,” John said with awe in his voice.
They both looked at me like they were enraptured and not at all disturbed by what they were learning.
“We’re never letting you go,” Luka said with steel in his voice like he could read my thoughts.
Malum breathed harshly, “So you’ve been mutilated?” Both Scorpius and Orion looked at him with concern.
I stopped breathing.
My heart beat erratically.
This was what I’d been waiting for; these were the consequences that had my thoughts racing and fear filling me ever since Jinx had revealed the truth.
I’d known it was coming.
“Yes.” as I pushed my shoulders back and sized up Malum. “Which means I’ll never be your perfect Revered. I probably won’t be able to help you control your fire in any way. I’ll corrupt you—just like I corrupted the twins.”
I paused. “I’m useless to you.”
Molten silver flashed.
Scorpius made a harsh noise under his breath, and Orion’s eyes widened. A muscle in Malum’s jaw jumped.
“Is that so?” he exhaled, and fire came out of his nose.
“I’ll never be your perfect Revered,” I said softly. “You don’t have to pretend anymore. I know I drive you crazy.”
Malum transformed into a creature of bronze and malice. “You’re right,” he said.
White teeth flashed.
My heart stopped beating.
It was a cold, dead, useless thing in my chest.
Malum smiled cruelly. “We don’t have to pretend anymore.”
Chapter 58
Aran
POISONED BONDS
Polyamory (noun): the practice of engaging in multiple romantic relationships.
DAY 38, HOUR 22
I took a step back and bumped into Luka as Malum stalked toward me swiftly. A vicious predator locked on its prey.
He stopped inches away, towering over me and exuding waves of vitriol and hate. “You think that after all this time—” He breathed harshly. “—I’ve been fucking pretending to be into you?”
“Maybe,” I whispered.
Silver eyes flashed with unholy rage.
Bronze features rippled with unspeakable emotions as he tipped his head back, opened his mouth, and fell to his knees.
He bellowed.
Fire burst from his lips as he said, “I care so much about you that it drives me crazy—morning, day, and night. I wake up, and my first thought every—single—day is that I hope you’re feeling okay. I go to sleep thinking about your sorrowful blue eyes. I fist my cock in the shower thinking about your pink tongue and pouty lips.” His voice rose, and he shouted, “How the fuck could all this be an act?”
“I don’t know,” I yelled back, overwhelmed by his impassioned display.
Ice spread across my hands and traveled up my forearms.
He pointed a flaming finger at me.
“I am so obsessed with you, woman, that it’s killing me!” he roared.
“Uh.” I rubbed the back of my neck awkwardly and mumbled, “I didn’t realize you cared about me that much.”
“Care doesn’t encapsulate a tenth of what I feel for you!” He gripped his shaved head. “Aran, I’m so fucking infatuated with you that I’m foaming at the mouth for a smudge of your affection!” He gasped shakily. “And you have the audacity to tell me I don’t really care.”
Handsome bronze features contorted like he was tortured.
My heart pounded painfully against my sternum.
“What more can I do?” he asked, still on his knees. “I’ve shown you time and time again that you’re my everything—you are my soul. You’re the reason for my existence. Without you, I’m nothing.” He thumped a flaming hand against his chest. “You’re my Revered.”
I shivered.
“That’s the problem,” I said. “I’m not an ideal. I’m an imperfect person.”
Steele eyes narrowed with confusion. “What the fuck are you talking about?” Scorpius and Orion walked up and stood on either side of him.
I waved my hand at them. “You three want me to be your Revered—this perfect mate that will save you. You don’t want me.” My voice trailed off. “You don’t want Aran.”
The twins shifted closer, their jewelry vibrating against my skin. John rubbed my back as Luka twirled one of my curls. They were pillars of support.
Scorpius frowned, his features sharp enough to cut glass; Orion’s eyes widened, dark lashes fluttering; Malum scowled.
“You’ve got to be joking?” Scorpius asked in disbelief. “Arabella, you’re our Revered. Of course we want you. Do you think I sit in the shower talking to anyone else for hours? Sun god—I don’t even want to do that with them.” He gestured to Malum and Orion. “I’ve told you things that I’ve never told anyone.” His voice quieted. He whispered like he was embarrassed, “I’ve opened up to you.”
Orion nodded as he stared at me, unblinking. “You’re the only person I can talk to without having to hide who I am. From the moment I first met you, a piece of me knew what you were to me. My everything.”
Malum stood up swiftly, determination on his face. “We can prove it to you right now.”
“What?” I asked, looking between the kings.
“You think we don’t want you because your soul has been mutilated—which we will be getting answers about later.” He raked his hand over his shaved head and nodded. “There’s a simple solution, one that also helps with the problem of unleashing our powers in battle.”
I rolled my pipe between my lips.
Malum’s tone was serious. “We can bond, and all of us can finally be together.”
I choked on smoke.
“It’s all up to you,” he continued intensely. “Will you accept the three of us as your mates? Will you let me be your Ignis and Scorpius and Orion be your Protectors?”
“Please,” Orion whispered, and Scorpius took a step back like he was afraid of my answer.
The three of them vibrated with fierce energy.
“Even if our mating bond is corrupted because of your missing soul,” Malum said forcefully, “we still want it.”
They nodded in agreement, like what Malum was saying wasn’t the opposite of everything they’d ever wanted from their mate.
I struggled to breathe.
“We want you, Aran.” Bronze features gleamed with emotions. “Flaws and all.”
My tongue was heavy in my mouth, and I struggled to speak.