Kain's words were very soothing to my ears …I hadn't even fully acknowledged. Respect. Purpose. Safety. He was offering everything Kael had denied me. His hand was extended, In invitation.
I started lifting my hand. My mind, was so starved for kindness and clarity, It was screaming YES!
The cabin door exploded inward, splintering off its hinges.
Kael stood in the wreckage, his chest heaving, his eyes were blazing with a feral, golden light. They locked onto Kain, then snapped to me, seeing my lifted hand, my stance toward his brother.
"Riley! Get back inside! NOW!"
He wasn't asking. It was the bond, activated with a brutal, familiar force. The silvery scar on my collarbone ignited with a cold fire, the pain was sharp, immediate demand for obedience. My body was jerking backward each step was against my will.
Kain didn't move. A slow, cold smile spread across his face. "So He returns. Still relying on Commands, I see."
Kael ignored him, his furious gaze pinned on me. "What did he tell you?" he demanded, his voice a guttural growl. "What lies did he tell you? Tell me!"
Another wave of pressure, another searing pulse from the scar, demanding I answer, demanding I betray the first person who had spoken to me like an equal. I clenched my jaw, shaking my head, fighting the compulsion. The pain was immense, a migraine and a heartache combined.
"I... I won't," I gasped, tears of pain and frustration sprang to my eyes. "I don't understand... why are you—"
"Stay."
This command didn't come from Kael.
It came from Kain. His voice was calm, but it carried the same absolute, magical weight. It was a counter-command.
A new, different agony ripped through me. The scar on my collarbone felt like it was being torn in two. My body was the rope in a supernatural tug-of-war. One force screamed at me to go back, the other to stay put. I cried out, my legs buckling, as conflicting magisms tore at my very soul.
"You're hurting me!" I sobbed, collapsing to my knees, clutching my head. "It hurts! Stop!"
Kael took a furious step forward, but Kain moved to stand between us, his posture relaxed but his power a palpable wall in the room.
"Enough, Kain," Kain said, his voice dripping with contempt. "You see what your brutality does? Look at her." He gestured to me, trembling on the floor. "I am the Alpha. The bond answers to me as well. Now, stand down, and let the girl come with me."
They faced each other over my broken form, I was no longer a person. I was the Key holder.
This was the first time I ever understood the magnitude of pain I will be going through.
It hurt
It hurt so much
The pain hurt so much
I understood the true horror of the Aethelgard Bond. I didn't belong to myself. I had become a contested territory, and my body and soul were a Damn Battlefield.