Page 63 of Scarlet Wars
“You want me to bond with James today,” she said, the lawyer in her bleeding through every syllable, “but as it stands, I’m nowhere near ready to do so. He and I have been through a lot and I need to…breathe. So, give me a year. Give me a year to find my way back to him. Consider it a hard deadline. We’ll form the bond during this time, but not today.”
My heart was stomping and my stomach twisted hard, bile clawing up my throat, because even the thought of her bonding to him, of her being forced again to tie herself to anyone…
The High Chief studied her for a long, stretched silence, then inclined his head with finality. “And if we allow you this year, our deal will remain a secret. Except for the people in this room, no one learns of this?”
Emma nodded once, brisk and certain. “I’ll draw up an NDA if you’d like.”
The Chief snorted. “That won’t be necessary.”
With another flick of his wrist, the strangling translation around my throat dissolved into nothing, air rushing back into my system so fast it hurt, and across from me James jerked as his bindings fell away too.
The other Chiefs released Sean in turn, collapsing forward but alive, though barely.
“You have one year, Ms. Thompson,” the High Chief declared, the statement rolling through the room like a verdict carved in stone.
Then, with conscious calm, he rose from his chair and smoothed his coat, every gesture unhurried, a man so certain of power he could afford to waste time. “We will be back to check on your progress.”
His boots struck the floor in echoing clicks as he crossed to the door, each step a reminder of how completely he owned the silence he left behind.
The other Chiefs fell in behind him, shadows moving as one, until the High Chief lifted a hand and tore open a portal, its green glow swallowing them whole.
In the blink of an eye, the space was empty except for four of us.
And though my body was free again, I’d never felt the cage tighter, because Emma hadn’t just bought us time, she’d sold herself to someone else to do it.
SIXTEEN
EMMA
As soon as the United Chiefs vanished, Caden raced to Sean’s side. My body reacted before my brain did, my hands hovering over my best friend, the Healer’s instincts sparking alive. But when I reached for the next step, there was nothing. No technique. No training. Only a hollow space where the knowledge should’ve been.
“Emma, what the hell are you doing? Get a Healer!” James barked, his eyes locked on my best friend’s mangled body.
I didn’t waste a breath, and nexed Hillary, who tore open the portal before the echo of his order had even faded. Our resident Healer stormed through, instantly scanning the room. “What the hell happened here?”
“We had some differences with the Chiefs,” James muttered. The understatement was so absurd I almost laughed, though the sound snagged in my throat.
Hillary didn’t wait for answers. She dropped to her knees, hands glowing as she pressed them to Sean, sealing blood, mending bone, dragging him back from the edge with practiced precision.
I studied her every movement, every flick of her fingers. The way her magic threaded cleanly into Sean’s body, the way itobeyed her, steady, controlled, precise. I could almost feel what she was doing, could sense every shift in his pulse, every bone sliding back into place, every cell knitting together. Instinct gave me that much, but instinct wasn’t skill.
Instinct wasn’t enough. Not this time.
By the time Hillary portaled him out to the Healers’ wing, my whole body was thrumming—tension coiled so tight it hurt.
Then she vanished with him, and whatever thin thread I’d been holding onto finally snapped.
“How the hell is any of this possible?” I demanded, the words tearing out of me. “How are these people allowed to just walk in here and do this? To him?”
James scrubbed a hand over his jaw, shaking his head. “It shouldn’t be. We used to have real checks and balances, actual systems to stop this kind of power play. But with the Board gone, the only way to challenge the Chiefs now is if the majority of the Magi World takes a stand. And trust me, Emma, the United Chiefs have far more alliances than we do.”
I dropped back into my chair, feeling utterly useless. And frustrated. Angry.
The last hour kept replaying in my head like a bad loop, each detail worse the second time around. Every choice. Every threat. Every moment I couldn’t stop.
I searched James’s face for something, answers, reassurance, confirmation I wasn’t losing my mind. “I thought there was an absolute law against forcing people to bond?”
James nodded, though the light in his eyes was almost gone. “There is. But the High Chief was careful. He didn’t tell you to bond with me. He told you tochooseme.” His mouth twisted bitterly as he raked a hand through his hair. “The choice is the loophole.”
