Chapter 185

DANE

The runes on my chains glowed with an unrelenting light, their rhythm steady as a heartbeat.

The Nameless had left me to the dark silence of the fortress, but his words didn’t leave me; his taunt biting into my thoughts like shattered glass.

I leaned back against the cold stone wall, closing my eyes. The bond to Aurora glowed faintly, a fragile thread between us, but there was something else now, something darker.

It was like a nail beneath my skin, coming from her. The engagement bond.

I’d felt it the moment Holden slid that accursed ring onto her finger. It wasn’t just symbolic; it was alive, and it was feeding off her emotions… but I didn’t know what had happened till Aurora told me.

“Damn it, Aurora,” I muttered under my breath, my fingers tightening on the chains.

But even as I hated it, I could feel a thin vein of opportunity in that connection.

It wasn’t one-sided. The bond was fragile, but given the right focus, I might be able to siphon some of the power that flowed through it. Perhaps even disrupt it.

I closed my eyes again, dragging up every ounce of concentration I could find.

The oppressive blackness of the layer crushed in around me and the dull sign of the engagement bond glowed in time with the runes on my chains.

“Aurora,” I thought, reaching for her down our bond. “Hang in there. I’m here with you.”

Her presence trembled, but was present.

“Dane?” Her voice was a whisper, cautious.

“I’m going to try something,” I said, keeping my voice even. “That bond Holden forced on you, I think I can weaken it. But you have to let me in.”

There was a pause, and I felt her emotions through the bond: fear, frustration, hope.

“If you think it will help, do it,” she said finally.

I took a deep breath, centering myself in the rhythm of the engagement bond.

It was like a living thing, coiling and uncoiling as it pulsed with dark energy. Biting my lips, I imagined reaching into it, forcing my own power through the cracks.

It was like trying to swim against an ocean tide. The bond resisted, thrashing and lashing out at me with bursts of pain. But I held on, gritting my teeth as I pushed deeper.

“Dane!” Aurora’s voice burst through, sharp with panic. “What’s happening?”

The pain surged, and I almost let go, but then I felt it, a flicker of weakness. The band stopped, just for a moment, its pulse shaking.

“I’m okay,” I told her, though my body screamed in protest. “It’s working. I just need more time.”

The faintest relief touched her side of the bond, but it was shaking.

“Be careful,” she whispered. “Please.”

I didn’t answer, channeling every strength of concentration into the bond. It shook, the dark threads beginning to shake under my attack.

But then, just when I thought I was gaining ground, the runes on my chains flared brightly, coursing through me like lightning.

I slumped back against the wall, hard, gasping for breath. The engagement bond whipped back into being, stronger than before.

“Damn it,” I growled, my fists clenching.

Before I could try again, the sound of footsteps echoed through the fortress. They were scattered, accompanied by heavy breathing.

I tensed, readying myself for another of the Nameless’s tricks.

But then I saw them.

“Trajan? Evander?” My voice came out shocked, disbelieving.

They stumbled into the room, their movements labored. Dark markings snaked up their arms and necks, pulsing with the same wicked energy as the runes on my chains.

“Dane,” Trajan rasped, his voice barely above a whisper. He slumped heavily against the wall, his usual strength sapped.

“What happened?” I shouted, straining at my chains. “How did you get free?”

Evander slumped to the ground, his breathing labored. “We… we don’t know,” he said, his voice raw.

“One moment, we were trapped. Next, the bindings broke, and we were shoved out of the lair.”

I frowned, my gaze narrowing on the marks. They pulsed rhythmically, as if alive.

“It wasn’t mercy,” I said grimly. “He let you go for a reason.”

Trajan’s jaw clenched, but he said nothing. “These marks,” he said, glancing down at his arm. “They’re… draining us. We can feel it.”

My mind raced. The Nameless doesn’t make mistakes. Whatever he had done to them, it was on purpose. The marks had been a backup plan, a method of control, even from afar.

“We need to get rid of them,” I said, my voice firm. “Whatever it takes.”

“And how do you propose we do that?” Evander asked, his tone sharp despite his exhaustion.

I didn’t have an answer. My eyes flicked to the marks again, watching the way they pulsed in time with the runes on my chains.

“They’re connected,” I realized aloud.

“What?” Trajan said, furrowing his brow.

“The marks, the runes,” I said, gesturing to my chains. “They’re tied into the same source. If we can break one, we might weaken the other.”

Evander gave a bitter laugh. “Easier said than done.”

“I know,” I said. “But it’s a start.”

The room was silent, the weight of our situation settling heavily on each one of us.

Trajan and Evander were losing their strength quickly and I was no closer to freeing myself, let alone Aurora.

But I couldn’t give up. Not now.

I focused my mind again on the bond, forcing aside the protests of aching muscles. It was there, the connection lay constant, if faint.

“Aurora,” I thought, reaching out to her again. “We’re going to find a way out of this. I promise.”

Her response was faint, but it was enough.

I trust you, she said.

I was still thinking of what to do next because it all seemed like I had a million decisions to make within such a little time and space.

“Evander,” I said.

“Any ideas, please? I’m confused here.”

As he was about to speak, a sound came through the hallway.

“Oh please, not now.”