Page 184 of Infernal Bonds

“Dugorigi has brought his children to the ball every year. Kairian has yet to find his Nyrith. As I hear it, he saw you speaking with Kairian and liked how you two looked together. He made a joke with Master Cornaith about it, but the master took it seriously.”

“But you said he was the reason I ended up in Feranzis.”

“Yes. Before he solidified a deal with Dugorigi, those he hired to dispose of you put his plan into action.”

So Cornaith wanted me to be with Kairian? He’d gone through all the effort to make a spectacle of my non-existent bond with Ezra only to decide… what? That he wanted me to be with another man?

Had he considered how the switch would look to the Elyrdin people? Wasn’t the Nyrith bond sacred to Shyrlivi? For someone all about appearances, it didn’t make sense, and I told her so.

“The alliance with the Sephra clan is more important. Besides, it is an easily solved problem. Just as he’d convinced everyone illusion magic was responsible for your trial in Cholian, a well-crafted story revealing how that same magic triggered a fake Nyrith calling should solve everything.”

My upper lip twitched, but I resisted the urge to bare my teeth at her. The bond was real. She wouldn’t take that from me.

“So what? Dugorigi wants me to be with Kairian? Did Kairian agree to this?”

“Master Cornaith agreed to Dugorigi’s request to give you to the Sephra clan so that their heir has a mate. A goodwill trade that grants the Sephra clan status while getting rid of Master Cornaith’s little problem—you. Kairian doesn’t know, but you are to be a gift to him. I’m here to facilitate the transfer.”

My blood turned to ice in my veins.

“Transfer?” I couldn’t mask the panic that made my voice pitch higher. “You said Cornaith didn’t know about this.”

“Incorrect. I said no, he doesn’t know about my intentions to test you before he does. He still intends to perform tests on you—with Dugorigi’s permission, of course. The additional tests were my indulgence, but with your Bondrot, I’m unable to do so without risking tainted results or your death.”

An uncontrollable shiver passed through me.

“What about the guys? I know they are probably sick, like me. If you let the Sephra clan have me, then they won’t get better. You should know what Bondrot does.”

“With the right magic, that insignificant problem can be easily remedied since you lack a solidified tether with them. Magic exists to terminate unsealed tethers. They’ll be fine.”

“Ash and I are bonded,” I reminded her.

“Your aura tells me that the same magic used to sever budding tethers can lessen the symptoms you’ll experience from breaking the tether with your bonded prince.”

I’d never heard that before. Was that not possible for someone else? How did she know? Nothing the guys had told me suggested someone could survive losing a mate without extreme side effects or death.

“What about Ash?”

Did he have an aura that’d accept the transition?

I didn’t want it, but if they forced us apart, I needed to know he’d be safe.

“Sacrifices can be made.”

I jumped to my feet as rage blinded me, my earlier panic at being essentially trafficked forgotten. Her hand went to her chest in surprise. I staggered, my hands slamming on the table to keep from hitting the floor. “Ash… isn’t… disposable.”

“Oh. You misunderstand.” She lowered her hand. “I believe allowing the orphan to die would be a waste. He’s an incredible asset to the guard. But that doesn’t mean Master Cornaith feels the same.”

I slowly lowered myself back into my seat, legs wobbling beneath me. “Why?”

“To Master Cornaith, Ash is nothing more than a glorified soldier holding a title that exceeds his true worth. The day his parents died, he lost all value to the council.”

I wanted to scream.

If I had the strength to stand again, I’d probably slap the pitying look off her face. Judging by the way she leaned back in her chair, just out of reach, I suspected my aura wasn’t hiding my violent intentions very well.

She’d said she could read auras. I hoped she knew I wanted blood—from a lot of people. I’d never felt so enraged in my life.

Not only did Cornaith want to trade me like chattel, but he also treated Ash’s life as if he were disposable.