Page 3 of Bonds of Starfall

But still, she did not stir. Her breaths grew even, her heartbeat steadied.

And Atlas sat back on his heels, breathing a sigh of relief.

"Vesperin, you never make it easy for me, do you?" His words were quiet, barely audible even to his own ears.

It was done.

In her heart, she now held Nova—the power of the Celestials. Coveted so much that it had been artificially crafted by the humans, but no one could replicate something so perfect as a giftfrom a god. It had turned twisted, mutated into something so evil that it was responsible for the monsters that had done this to her.

Not only did his Nova make her heart beat and pump blood through her veins, but it also gave her a gift—his near immunity to the Rogue’s sense for his godly Nova. As a Celestial, Atlas was hardly the weak meal they usually hunted.

No,hewas the predator. And now, so was she.

It was done.

She would be safe.

And Atlas must leave her.

His fingers flexed. He hadn’t realized his palms still hovered, untouching, over her chest.

Slowly, he took her limp, cold hand in his own, flashes of a million lives and years and experiences sweeping over him from that one touch, alone. It had been so long since he’d felt her skin against his.

"Vesperin. Vesperin." The sound of her name made Atlas weak. It was always the same in every life—the name of her Soul. He held her hand against his lips, breathing in her addictive scent.

Names were tethers to Souls, spanning lives. As intrinsic to a Soul as desires or wishes, names were what designated them when they went to the Stars.

"Know that I am always watching," Atlas murmured against her flesh, tracing over the strong, steady pulse on the inside of her wrist.

He laid her hand gently by her side and stood, staring down at her now white hair. The wounds on her stomach had disappeared, as if they’d never been there to begin with. He knew the ignorant doctors that came to her aid would assume it was the awakening of her Stella—Aether—that healed her, and not his gift to her.

The Hunters were near. And he sensed Soul Searchers—they would have a long night of reaping ahead. Atlas could not be seen here.

"Goodbye, Star of mine. I’ll see you soon, but you won’t see me. Not for some time."

"I’m not messing around.Give it to me!" Vesperin Vox reached for the sealed letter in Kit’s raised hand, straining on her tiptoes as she tried to grab it from him.

Kit’s lips curved into a wry smirk, the silver medals on his Fleet uniform gleaming in the fluorescent lighting of the kitchen.

"Not so fast, sprite," Kit said. The stiffness of his gloves crinkled as he held the letter firmly, while his other hand settled low on her stomach, keeping her away from him.

With a pout of indignation, Rin strained forward. But the movement only brought their chests closer.

"Kit,please." She did her best to give him the sad puppy eyes he so often said were his weakness.

He shook his head, strands of his brown hair sticking out from under his pilot’s cap. "If I give you this, you’ll leave me."

"I—"

Rin wanted to say it wasn’t true. But it was.

That letter contained years of hopes and dreams within it. Or her undoing…

The insignia of the Hunter’s Academy was imprinted into the wax seal—a Star with two Echoswords crossed behind it, their gleaming, curving blades the very manifestation of what the Hunter’s Guild stood for:

Protection from the Rogues, and protection for Souls, so that they may be reaped and journey to the Stars and await rebirth.

Rin’s teeth dug into her lower lip. "Kit, you know I’ll always love you," she whispered. "But this is my chance. I didn’t hold you back when you applied for the Fleet."