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“That is the whole point,” Theon went on. “Because you cannot access your element yet, you cannot take down your own magical barriers. For the Marks to work, they need to get past those shields. The tonic creates a temporary crack in your shields that allows my magic to pass. Additionally, by taking the Marks before your magic is allowed to emerge, my magical signature will become intertwined with your own, which will allow me to draw on your magic once the bond is fully completed.”

“Sounds great,” Tessa muttered.

“Is it not an honor to be Selected as the Source of an heir?” Theon asked, shifting against the table.

Tessa’s eyes fell to her lap. “For many, I’m sure it is.”

“But not for you.”

“I was not lying to you in the hall.” She’d brought her hands to her lap now, playing with the beading of her gown.

Silence stretched on for what felt like minutes, neither of them saying anything. Tessa couldn’t bring herself to look at him. She knew if he was going to go through with this, she’d have to take whatever this tonic was. Hopefully it tasted like chocolate because she wasn’t even remotely hungry anymore.

He moved in front of her once more, and she felt his fingers gently grip her chin, tilting her face up to his.

“Tessa, look at me.” He waited until her eyes came back to his. “I know this may not be how you envisioned your future, but soon enough it will be the only future you want.”

There was a sharp stinging at her neck. Tessa cried out, her hand reaching up to grasp the spot, but Theon was faster. The hand at her chin snapped out to grip her wrist. His other hand lowered, and Tessa saw the syringe in his hand, a needle at the end of it.

“What did you do?” she gasped, trying to break free from his hold, but that was utterly futile.

“Tessalyn, look at me,” he ordered, and her eyes widened in horror as she felt the command slip under her skin.

Entrancing was a power gifted to all the Legacy. The ability to take complete control of another if they didn’t have the mental shields to block it. Fae were only taught to shield against it if their assignments required such a thing, and even then, it wasn’t something they could do until their gifts were allowed to emerge.

She tried to fight it, but her body worked of its own volition, her eyes sliding back to his at the order. He crouched before her once more, his free hand coming up to cradle her cheek. Power—dark and cold—vibrated against her skin at his touch, working its way inside her very being. She tried to scream. Tried to look away. Tried to move away from him. But she was frozen. An effect of the tonic, she suddenly realized. He began speaking in a language she shouldn’t know, but her soul knew what he was saying as her heart thrashed against her chest, breaking and shattering with each word that fell from his lips.

“I am Theon St. Orcas, Heir to the Arius Kingdom. You are Tessalyn Ausra. I have Selected you to be my Source. You obey me above all others. My desires are your desires. You are mine.”

3

TESSA

The finality of his words rang through the center of her very being, and although she couldn’t move, two tears slipped down her cheeks. Theon wiped one away with his thumb, brushing the wetness along her cheekbone.

“Acknowledge that you understand what has just happened, Tessa.”

Her lips parted as though released from a hold. “I understand…Master.” She knew the word should taste bitter on her tongue, but to her horror, it was sweet and wanted.

“Good girl,” he said, releasing her wrist and stroking her cheek once more. “When we are in private or with Luka Mors, and not in formal settings, you may call me Theon,” he added.

Tessa could only nod, too stunned to do anything else. He stood then, pouring another glass of water and holding it out to her. “Drink, Tessa.”

But she didn’t reach for the glass. “I’m not thirsty.”

“It will make you feel better. Help clear your mind,” he insisted.

“No, thank you.”

Theon sighed. “This is not going at all as I had imagined it would,” he muttered under his breath. He rubbed his eyes with his thumb and forefinger before finally saying, “Tessalyn, drink.”

She glared at him, having no choice but to take the glass and drink the entire thing before handing it back to him.

“Better?”

“Oh, yes. It fixed everything,” she retorted, really not caring at all about self-preservation now as the thing beneath her skin grew restless.

His brows rose. “You are…unexpected.”