Page 31 of Wicked Bonds

“He didn’t explain himself,” Ezekiel drawled.

“He rarely does,” Leela added.

Balthazar barely heard them, his attention entirely on Clara and the fuzziness of her thoughts. It reminded him of Issac, a realization that made his eyebrows shoot upward.

Her eyes widened in response, that plea radiating through her depths once more.Please… anything…The two words were muffled as though she were speaking through a thick glass or whispering something from several yards away.

But it was enough for him to understand.

Please don’t say anything, she meant.

Balthazar cleared his throat after a beat, his eyes narrowing slightly. “Does Luc know you’re here?”

“Gabriel said he’s aware, yes,” she replied.

Gabriel, Balthazar repeated.Not Stark.

That was telling indeed.

He glanced at Leela, curious as to if she’d noticed anything off about Clara. But she didn’t think or say anything at all, just met his gaze and said, “I’m going to go check with Gabriel about the wards, then head back for Jay and Liz.”

Because obviously it’s safe here,she added mentally.As I knew it would be.

Looks can be deceiving,he nearly said. But she disappeared before he could reply.

Clara’s eyes widened at the display of Leela’s departure, capturing his focus once more. Teleporting wasn’t new to her, which suggested she’d seen something unique about this disappearing act.

The wings?he wondered.Did you see Leela’s wings?Because Balthazar couldn’t. But Stas would have been able to. Issac, too.

So if Clara had witnessed the misting, then that could only mean one thing—she’d bonded with Stark.

How?he wanted to demand.How the fuck did you bond with Stark?

Yet her gaze had pleaded with him, suggesting she didn’t want him to acknowledge the truth out loud. While he wanted to demand answers, he chose to respect her unspoken request.

It was the least he could do after the way he and the others had treated her this past week.

She’d been framed as an informant, leading the Elders to believe she’d been feeding information to Jonathan—information that had led to several deaths. However, the Elders had recently realized Clara wasn’t the real mole. But they’d kept her locked up in order to placate the real mole so they could gather more intelligence on what he was telling Osiris.

However, it appeared that Stark had not only sprung Clara from her prison cell, but he’d alsomatedher.

What in the actual fuck is happening here?

“What else was Luc told?” Balthazar wondered out loud.Is he aware you and the Seraphim have bonded one another?was what he really wanted to know.

“Uh.” Clara cleared her throat, his question clearly leaving her uneasy. “I, um, don’t know.”

You don’t know? Or you don’t want to tell me?he wanted to ask.

But there were easier ways to find out what Luc knew.

“I see,” he told her, taking out his phone to dial the male in question.

The Hydraian King picked up on the first ring. “B.”

Balthazar didn’t bother with formalities, jumping straight to the point. “Have you heard from Stark lately?”

“No. But Ezekiel told me Stark has Clara in New York City.” Luc’s tone indicated he wasn’t pleased about that development.