Page 121 of Wicked Bonds

Patreel told them the names of the original council members, how they’d tasked Osiris with developing a protocol that could revert a Seraphim soul to its intended stoic state, and how they’d vilified him afterward.

All to obtain control.

Everything the Seraphim had been told was essentially founded on a lie. At least where Osiris was concerned. Which left Patreel wondering what else they’d lied about.

Balthazar still had access to his thoughts, allowing him to hear the chaos unfolding in the other man’s mind.

We’re not supposed to feel, yet I… I feel… overly warm.

Buzzing with energy.

Violent.

Like I want to… to punch Dian.

Why? What is this? Anger?

Will I be subjected to reformation now? Is that the point of all this? To fear the mechanism? To turn on each other at the first sign of emotion?

Who am I?

What will happen to me now?

The things I’ve done…

This is… this is overwhelming.

Shut it off.

How do I make it stop?

Balthazar had sent a soothing shimmer through Patreel’s psyche, comforting him enough to ensure he maintained a peaceful facade while speaking.

The emotional assistance wasn’t provided as a favor to the other man; it was done to ensure he remained calm because Leela required serenity right now.

Her mind reeled from the influx of information, that dark sense of panic still lingering on the cusp of her thoughts. But she’d relaxed enough to process the information without falling back into a spiraling state.

He kept his arms around her, his palm gently cradling the back of her neck to demonstrate physical support as she rested her head against his shoulder.

She seemed oblivious to the fact that she sat in his lap on the sidewalk, her entire focus on Patreel and his words.

Fortunately, the late hour meant fewer people were outside.

Not that Balthazar minded being seen with a gorgeous woman in his arms.

But he suspected Leela would mind.

Her panic attack had been a sign of weakness, one she hadn’t even known she possessed until tonight.

Because her past had been riddled with false memories.

As has mine,he thought.

She’d bitten him. Had established a partial bond.

And he possessed no inkling of the memory.

Yet it’d happened here. In Bulgaria. Just a few blocks away.