Page 66 of Whispers of Wisteria (The Garden of Eternal Flowers #5)

“So?” Titus said as he crossed his arms. “Did you burn the damn thing?”

Julian, who’d been moving toward the door, clearly planning to sneak out anyway, paused and looked at Titus.

“No,” Damen said. My chest grew tight, and I was about to protest when Damen added, “Leave it alone.”

“What?” Titus dropped his hands back to his sides. “You’re fucking kidding me.”

My breath was tight. “Why not?” I wanted nothing more than to tear it apart. She shouldn’t have anything from that place.

Damen looked at me evenly. “Besides the fact that it’s evidence—” he started, and I bristled.

I knew that. But it didn’t change how I felt.

“—it’s also what keeps her grounded.” Damen looked at each of us. “No one is to harass her about it. Nobody says anything unless she comes to you first.”

“What are we talking about?” Julian asked, impatience gone.

“The rabbit,” Damen answered. Julian paused, thoughtful, as Damen added, “It’s the only thing she brought with her when she moved here.”

Well, and some shoes.

Still, “Okay,” I said. I didn’t like it, and personally, I didn’t understand how it would help.

But Damen knew what he was talking about.

“I don’t care.” Titus’s voice was dark, and his energy pulled in. “I’m going to destroy it.”

“You will not touch it,” Damen replied in equal measure. “If something happens to that rabbit before she feels safe, it could set her recovery back by years.”

Titus glowered. “It smells of everything!”

“Kieran gave it to her,” Damen said. “And it stayed with her the whole time. That rabbit is how she survived. She needs it.”

Titus growled, fists shaking, and Damen’s mood lowered.

“I mean it,” he said. “Do not do anything to it.”

Titus tsked and looked away.

“I saw her with it after you took her to Richards’s place,” Julian mused, and Damen frowned.

“Keep an eye out,” Damen responded. “We know she won’t tell us when she’s in physical pain, so she’d probably hide emotional pain too. We can assume that she only brings it out when she’s struggling and doesn’t know how to ask for help.”

“You have a Soul Bond now,” he continued, looking back to Titus. “You’ll notice when her thoughts spiral. Don’t dig. Just… listen for what she can’t say out loud. If she’s reaching that point, we need to know.”

Titus, still not looking at Damen, let out a breath. “Maybe,” he said finally.

That was probably the best answer we’d get from him. Between that, and my and Julian’s connections with her, we’d be able to help.

“There’s something else,” Damen said. “Bianca says she’ll consent to a physical exam.”

My heart felt as though it’d jumped into my throat. This was what we wanted, of course, but I didn’t expect it so soon.

Julian’s alertness sharpened. “Really? Then I’ll—”

“But not yet,” Damen interrupted, looking between the three of us. “She wants to talk to Do Yun first. She asks that no one pressure her until then.”

I watched him warily. He’d gotten her to talk to Do Yun, too? Was he a miracle worker?

“That’s good,” Julian said finally. “I’ll wait. I’ll let you know if I notice any changes in our Bond.” He paused, considering, then asked, “Are you going to do it?”

Damen, who’d begun to tap his finger on the table, froze. “What?” he sharply replied.

“The Soul Bond,” Julian explained, waving his hand palm up—like it was obvious.

I curled my fingers over my knees. How could he ask that?

It was clearly a touchy subject.

Sure enough, Damen scowled and the temperature soared.

“My answer has not changed,” he said. “No.”

But Julian had never been afraid of Damen’s moods. “What does it do?”

Damen’s presence grew heavier, and now even Titus was looking at him.

“Julian—” I began, pushing against my thighs. “Maybe now isn’t the best time—”

“Now’s the perfect time.” Julian didn’t even look at me. “Don’t you care about her?”

“You know I do,” Damen replied.

“Then what could possibly be so terrible about your Soul Bond that you’d keep her this vulnerable?” Julian asked.

“There’s more than just the Bond. There’s almost no circumstance in which I’d do it,” Damen said, final.

“So”—Julian lifted his eyebrow—“there is a circumstance you would.”

Damen’s glare gave me chills, but Julian only watched him coolly.

“We have a more pressing issue,” Damen said instead of addressing his statement. Julian blinked, but Damen didn’t even wait for a reply.

He whistled, and Kiania arrived an instant later. The tiger didn’t show any signs of battle. She sat and turned her face from Damen.

“What?” Kiania asked.

“Tell me what happened.”

If tigers could roll their eyes, I imagine she did before looking back to him. “Mu is so much nicer to work with.”

“Yes.” Damen didn’t seem offended. “That’s what you’re going to talk to me about. You know what I’m asking.”

She was quiet for a minute, tail curling, before she finally answered, “Fine. But only because you’ll need to keep watch.”

I leaned back as foreboding settled over me.

What was that supposed to mean?

“Belial asked for Mu to remain with him in exchange for freeing the dragon,” she said unflinchingly.

It felt as though the wind had been knocked from me. “Bianca couldn’t survive in the Underworld,” I said.

“Regardless.” Kiania looked at me. “Belial made the offer. It’s not unexpected.”

My heart was pounding. She…

She just couldn’t.

“And Bianca agreed?” Julian asked.

“She…” Kiania hesitated. “She was accepting the terms when I arrived. Then Belial became distracted by the news that the dragon found a mate and didn’t press the issue.” She looked to the door, then back. “But know that Belial doesn’t waste words.”

My chest was heavy. How could she do that—even theoretically? How could she even attempt to trade herself away?

What was she thinking?

Never mind, I knew what she was thinking. She was just wrong.

Titus’s growl cut through the room. He was barely able to keep himself from shifting. “Over my dead body.”

“Not even then.” Damen was even worse. His fists were shaking over his desk.

“I wouldn’t want that. How could she even consider it?” Titus asked.

“Because she doesn’t realize.” Damen was looking darkly at his hands. “But Belial knows. We’d never allow it without a fight.”

“You can’t take it out on her.” Julian stepped in.

Yes. “She was only trying to help,” I cut in.

“I know that,” Damen replied, looking up. “It’s not her I’m mad at.”

Kiania was still here, even though she’d been free to leave once her message was received. She just watched Damen.

“What?” he asked tersely.

“I was only seeing what might happen if the deal had been made,” she said, cocking her head.

“If the deal had been made, and Belial thought he could have her, he would die,” Damen replied without hesitation. “She is not his.”

“But it wasn’t, right?” I asked.

“There was no agreement between Bianca and Belial,” Kiania answered.

I let out a breath, the tightness in my chest loosening, and fell back into my seat.

That was close. Too close.

“She needs to know,” Julian said.

“I’ll explain it to her.” Damen had braced his arm on the desk and held his head. “She has to realize how important she is.”

“That’s the problem,” I said quietly. “She doesn’t believe that.”

She was life. Her existence was essential. Not only to us, but to the fae. She was the center of everything, and she still didn’t see it.

Because no one had ever taught her otherwise.

Damen ran his hand down his face before he finally said, “Then we’ll need to show her. She cannot go on believing she’s anything less.”