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Kacela was whining from beyond the gate where she was locked out, and Axel stood just inside, his face as pale as Tessa’s.

“I didn’t know what else to do,” Axel said when Theon met his gaze. “You know how Metias and Pavil are, and without knowing what had been said between you and Father, I didn’t—”

“You did nothing wrong either, Axel,” Theon said, cutting him off. “You kept her safe. That is what I asked of you.”

“I didn’t though,” Axel said, guilt twisting his features as he gestured at them. “Look at her.”

“You did the best you could in an impossible situation,” Theon said firmly.

Silence fell among them as he held Tessa’s shaking body close to him, but something else was wrong. The bond was writhing inside of him, pushing against his skin as if trying to get out. It should be humming happily at having her so close, even if she was sobbing.

“Let’s get her to my rooms, and figure things out from there,” Theon said, not wanting to say anything to alarm her further, but as he spoke, her trembling became violent thrashing.

“No, Theon! I’m sorry! I won’t run again. I swear it. I won’t. You don’t need to lock me away. I’m sorry.”

She was utterly frantic, not making any sense as her words tumbled over each other. He tried to speak over her, to calm her down, but she wouldn’t listen, and the bond between them was taut and strained. What the fuck had happened?

Without another word, he stood. He had an arm wrapped around her waist, and he pulled her up with him; but as soon as she took a step, she was limping and whimpering in pain. A second later, he had scooped her up while she continued to whisper, “I’m sorry, Theon. I’m sorry.”

“Something is wrong,” he muttered over her head to Luka. “The Source bond is… Something is wrong.”

“What does that mean?” Luka asked from where he still stood by Eyal.

“I don’t know how to explain it. It’s like… It’s almost as if it wants me to push her away. Like it’s rejecting her,” Theon replied. At his words, Tessa began flailing in his arms to the point that he nearly dropped her. “Tessa, stop!”

“I need to breathe!” she cried. “I can’t be locked away!”

“Give her to me,” Luka said, coming over and reaching for her. “You need to make her answer a question.”

Theon instinctively pulled her tighter against him, and Luka all but ripped her out of his hands. She buried her face in his chest, wrapping her arms around his neck. “I can’t fix this,” she sobbed into him. “He’s going to lock me in the dark.”

“I’m not—” Theon started, but Luka cut him off.

“Don’t worry about that right now. Entrance her. Make her tell you if either of them touched her.”

Realization crashed through Theon at the words. He’d been so overcome by panic, he hadn’t even thought of that. Those two motherfuckers were the descendants of the lesser goddess, Gracil— goddess of emotion and empathy. Some of her descendants could amplify feelings. Metias and Pavil, in particular, could amplify fear and terror. Just being in their presence could increase feelings of panic and despair if you didn’t have proper mental shields in place, but if they touched you, it was like opening a direct link between their gifts and your soul.

“Fuck,” Theon cursed, reaching out to grip Tessa’s chin. When her eyes met his, he could swear there was a faint violet ringing her pupils, but he didn’t have time to study it. “Tessalyn, answer me. Did one of them touch you?”

“They both did,” Tessa answered, the entrancing pulling the answer from her. “One held me by the ankle, dragging me backwards. The other ran his finger down my face.”

“Fuck!” Theon repeated, raking his hand through his hair. They would have taken some of her worst fears and made them so great they’d be paralyzing. How she had even managed to run from them after being touched was a miracle in and of itself.

“I know it’s not something you want to hear right now, but you’re connected to her greatest fears, Theon,” Luka said.

“She’s my Source,” Theon snarled. “She can’t be— She’s not…scared of me.”

It wasn’t possible. They were irrevocably bound together. Their souls and destinies were intertwined at this point. She couldn’t fear him. Could she?

“I didn’t say you were her greatest fear. I said you are connected to her greatest fears,” Luka retorted. “Let me carry her back, and we can give her some space. Let their magic wear off a bit, and then, hopefully, she will be better able to fill us in on what happened.”

Theon hated that idea. Even though the bond was pushing her away, he wanted her near. He wanted to make sure she was all right. To heal whatever was wrong with her ankle and all those godsdamn scratches and cuts. But instead, he bit out “fine” and began stalking towards the gate. Axel opened it, leading the way out, and Kacela whined, nudging Theon’s hand with her nose.

He stopped to pet the hound while Luka maneuvered out of the stall with a still whimpering Tessa, and Axel replaced the gate latch.

“You did good today,” Theon praised the hound in a wary tone. “Although how you got out of the kennels is beyond me.”

“I will take her back,” Axel said. “I’ll meet you in your rooms.”