Page 71 of The Primal of Blood and Bone (Blood and Ash #6)

CASTEEL

The late-morning sun washed over the Peaks as I stood at the window.

Hours had passed since Poppy left. When I asked Aydun what he’d done to keep others unaware of her absence, all he had said was that they would believe she still slept. But I had a feeling he was doing something else. No one had even knocked on the chamber door.

That should concern me, but everything he’d told me about the lands beyond the Primal Veil—what had happened there and why—consumed my thoughts.

The knowledge that Poppy had felt all those deaths sickened me. Even with my newly acquired abilities, I couldn’t imagine what she’d experienced. I just wanted her in my arms and to erase the horror from her memory.

My jaw tensed until I wondered if I’d crack my molars like my body had when it hit the wall.

After Aydun had announced that the end had begun and it would be worse than what had happened beyond the Veil, he’d decided to word the why behind the devastation there poorly. Very poorly.

“ The Ancients woke because of her ,” he’d said. Like he wasn’t putting all that shit on my girl. “ Just as we dreamed .”

Because of her.

I’d lost my shit.

Lunged at him and managed to get my hands on him. I’d seen the flicker of surprise in his eyes before he introduced my body to the wall.

Because of her .

Bullshit.

And it wasn’t denial that had me thinking that.

Yeah, I got that the Ancients Awakened in those lands because of Poppy’s Ascension into a Primal with the powers of life and death, but it was not because of her.

It wasn’t her fault, and I swore to the gods, if any of the other Arae said that shit to her, I would end them.

I drew in a long, slow breath as metal clinked off dishes.

The bastard was still eating.

Aydun had also told me who the Ancients once were, why some had gone to ground, and who they were now.

Unia eta eram.

Ruin and wrath.

And they were asleep, even here, likely right under this damn castle, and in the east, beneath the streets and homes of Atlantia—or what Aydun had called the Bonelands.

This whole time, we’d believed that the first Primal gods were the ones who created the realms. We’d been wrong. The truth had either been hidden or was lost to time. Regardless, I was willing to bet I knew exactly what the Fates were.

But, according to Aydun, the Ancients weren’t the problem.

At least, not right now.

Kolis remained the most pressing issue. A big one that’d kicked off a clock that was ticking down to the end. His presence alone wasn’t the only reason, though. That had to do with the other shit Aydun had spouted off.

Of course, none of it told me how to defeat Kolis.

“That would be considered interference,” he’d said.

How the fuck was everything else he’d said not considered interference?

Either way, I kept turning over his words as my gaze shifted to the Rise. I stretched my neck to ease the tension gathering in the muscles there. A draken took flight, launching off the wall.

My jaw clenched. Aydun had said a lot of shit that had nothing to do with the Ancients and everything to do with what the ruling Primal gods would do if Poppy—

“Heartmates.”

I briefly closed my eyes. He’d been doing that often—throwing out a word like he was answering a question only he was party to.

I turned, my lips thinning as I eyed the fucker and waited for him to continue.

Aydun picked up a piece of cheese.

I took a long, slow breath. “And?”

“They’re destined to bring about great change.” He chewed slowly, his head tilting. “Seen in the dreams the Great Creators dreamt ages ago.”

My brows shot up. “You’re telling me that the Ancients dreamed of all the heartmates?”

“They saw everything, Casteel. That didn’t mean they always understood what they saw, nor…” His pause was quite dramatic. “Nor does it change that the union of two hearts isn’t always good for the realms.”

I could feel the blood in my veins freeze. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“It means that sometimes, what is born of such a union, requires sacrifices.”

“What sacrifices?” Heart thumping heavily, I stepped toward him. “And cut the bullshit. I want a straight answer.”

“Don’t we all?” Aydun lifted a plate as if he would find something other than wood beneath it.

“The love between mates of the heart is incredibly strong. All-consuming. Inevitable. There is a strength in that, but there is also a weakness. It is believed that not even death can sever that type of bond.”

“And?”

“And, in a way, that is true. But also false.” He picked up his glass and took a nice slow drink.

The effort it was taking for me to wait for this fuck to get to the point was inconceivable.

“The death of an unbroken mate bond cannot sever that connection. The souls will reunite,” he said after what felt like five minutes. “But that bond can be broken at any point, no matter the…extenuating circumstances. Just as your people seal your vows, it can be rejected by one or both.”

I had a feeling he was referencing the Joining based on the grin the fuck tacked on when he said that last part. “What’s the point of you telling me this?”

“It’s something you should know.”

“Why?” The tips of my fingers burned. “I will never reject her, nor would she reject me.”

Aydun was quiet for a heartbeat. “Would you believe the same if you knew your union meant that untold lives would be lost, and the realm would be left in ruin?”

I opened my mouth to say what he likely already knew.

His eyes met mine. The flecks of color churned. “Would she ?”

I snapped my mouth shut as my heart stuttered. Poppy…she was better than me. Good to the fucking core in a limitless way I didn’t possess—didn’t even want to. But I knew she wouldn’t reject me, even to save the lives of many. I knew that without a doubt.

“What if,” he continued, his voice lowering, “such a union would destroy her?”

“What?” The word escaped with a burst of air. When Aydun stared back at me, I took a step forward. “I’m going to ask once more.” I kept my voice level. “Why are you asking me this? Because I don’t see how our union ends that way.”

“As I said, it’s good to know that you have such faith in your union.” He shrugged again, turning his attention to the platters. “You will need that. As will she.”

I stared at him, having no idea if there was some sort of hidden message in the shit he just spewed or if he was messing with my head. I suspected it was the latter when he opened his mouth again.

“Do you have anything else?” he asked. “Anything else to eat?”

Every piece of food, including the chocolates and dried meat, had been cleared. “You’re still hungry?”

He leaned back, patting his stomach. “I have an endless appetite.”

“Yeah, well, unless you have an appetite for wood and stone, you’re shit out of luck.”

Looking over his shoulder at me, he pouted. The fucker stuck out his lower lip and actually pouted. “There’s no reason to be so—”

We felt the charge of energy at the same time. I spun and saw the air between me and the window warp.

Aydun stood. “About time. I thought I’d starve to death.”

I couldn’t even respond to that bit of fuckery as a streak of crackling silver appeared like a bolt of lightning, lengthening and widening. My godsdamn heart lurched as I felt her before I saw her, the eather in me pulsing just beneath my flesh.

Poppy walked out of the tear in the realm, her gaze darting across the chamber, skipping over Aydun before shooting back to him. Her delicate brows lifted as she took a step away.

“Your husband has the temper of a rabid cat,” Aydun said, striding toward the opening.

Poppy’s head jerked back as her gaze swept over the Fate. “Uh…”

Aydun gave me a one-finger salute as he entered the opening. Once he was through, the tear closed behind him with a faint pop.

I hadn’t moved. I was cemented to where I stood, the air locked in my chest.

Blinking, Poppy turned her head toward me. “Were his…nipples pierced?”

Her voice, warm and velvety, snapped me into action. Everything but her disappeared.

I closed the distance between us in less than a heartbeat. Energy hummed over my fingers as I clasped her cheeks. “ Don’t ,” I rasped, my voice strained and edgy as I breathed in her sweet, soft scent. “Don’t you ever do anything like that again.”

“Cas,” she whispered. “I’m—”

I hauled her against my chest, muffling her words and forcing her onto her tiptoes. A shudder rocked the entire length of my body as I slid a hand through the silky strands of her hair, my fingers tangling in the loose braid.

Her heartbeat echoed in my chest as I looped an arm around her waist. Straightening, I lifted her so that her feet no longer touched the floor.

She clutched my shoulders, holding on as I walked us backward on unsteady legs.

Sitting on the edge of the bed with her nestled in my lap, I held her close, feeling her warmth and assuring myself she was safe, whole, and here.

“Cas,” she whispered.

I exhaled roughly, pulling back as I cupped her cheek. I took in every inch of her face, not missing a single freckle or scar. My gaze swept down, following the strands of hair that had escaped her braid and were stuck under the collar of her robe—

My stare shot back to her throat—to the faint red marks there. They resembled fingerprints. Anger froze the blood in my veins. My gaze lifted to hers. “Who did that to your neck?”

She lifted her fingers to the bruises. “Damn it, I was hoping they’d fade.”

“They didn’t,” I bit out. “Who did it, and where are they?”

Her shoulders tensed. “I’m okay.”

“That’s not an answer, Poppy.”

She let out a sigh, her back bowing slightly. “They’re somewhere you can’t go—”

Eather thrummed in my core. “Wanna bet?”

“Actually, I don’t.” She touched my jaw, and I leaned into the warmth of her fingers. “I’m okay. I swear.”

Relief and frustration fisted in my chest, forming a fucking mess of emotions. She wasn’t being honest with me.