Page 22 of Wicked Bonds

Leela swallowed, then nodded. “All right. But at least let me tell Caro. That way they can react appropriately to whatever is happening here if we don’t return.”

They would be returning. Of that she was certain. Vera had no reason to betray them.

But Balthazar didn’t know the memory-manipulating Seraphim like Leela did.

“I’ve already shared the visual with Issac,” Balthazar told her. “He’s aware.”

“I thought you couldn’t hear him,” she replied, her brow furrowing.

Issac’s blood bond to Stas had set the Ichorian on a path to become a Seraphim. Which made him mostly immune to Ichorian and Hydraian gifts as a result.

In twenty-five years, he’d have his wings. And a healthy dose of indestructible immortality to go with it.

“His mind’s unclear, like an untuned radio,” Balthazar confirmed. “But he sent me a visual response. He knows what we plan to do and is informing the others.”

An image flashed in her mind of Issac and Stas finding outfits meant for them in a fashion similar to how Balthazar had discovered their clothes.

Leela shook her head, trying to clear the visual as it morphed into Issac and Stas walking down the hall to find Caro and Sethios.

Then Issac looked directly at Leela and mouthed,Go.

Her eyes widened when the image dissolved into Balthazar’s amused expression. “Did you tell him to do that?”

“No, but I imagine he sensed you stalling and decided to take matters into his own hands. He’s not one to waste time.”

“Neither am I.”

“Then why are we still standing here?” He squeezed her wrist for emphasis, causing her to narrow her eyes.

All right. You want to go to Iceland? We’ll go to Iceland.She triggered her misting ability with a flick of a thought, grabbed the back of his neck, and whisked them through time and space.

To Balthazar, it probably felt like riding full speed through a tunnel. But it didn’t feel that way to Leela.

To her, misting resembled freedom.

It was a state of being where no one could touch her, allowing her to move gracefully away from the Bahamas and more or less teleport them directly north to the much colder climate.

Without anyone suspecting her presence.

Because of her rune.

They might sense Balthazar, but only for a split second. It wouldn’t be long enough for Patreel or Arvane to latch on and follow, a fact that helped quell the twisting in her gut.

She hated the notion of anyone tailing her. Just the mere thought suffocated her.

If anyone discovered the fractures in her conditioning, she’d be subjected to emotional reform.

She would never survive it.

She wasn’t bonded like Caro. She had no anchor to keep her sane. Only a deep love for humanity—which was the very weakness the High Council of Seraph sought to destroy.

The chill that swept over her had nothing to do with the frigid air that kissed her feathers upon their arrival.

However, it wasn’t just the concept of reformation that sent ice through her veins.

No. It was the reminder ofhimand what he would do when he found her. He hadn’t bothered to chase her. But if Patreel or Arvane reported her presence to him, he might change his mind and pursue her.

The mere notion of being caught sent a violent shiver down her spine, one she would usually attribute to the change in temperature outside and say nothing more about. Because this was her secret, the fear she harbored inside that no one knew existed.