Page 70 of A Door in the Dark
“It’s more fun when you ask.”
He sighed. “All right. What are those?”
“Each of these blades of grass came from Balmerick’s lower quad. That meadow right outside the portal room? I was sitting there when you walked by. Absently running my hands through the dirt and the grass. I plucked them. And then I found them in my pocket a few nights ago and realized how useful they might be.”
Theo was nodding. “An actual piece of our destination. That’ll be a lot stronger than the pull of a mental image. Having those will accelerate our passage through the waxways. You’re right. It could definitely work.”
“So, option two?”
He asked the obvious question. “What happens if they get to us before the candle burns down far enough? What if Clyde reaches us?”
Ren could only shake her head. “You have your vessels. I have a few spells. We’ll just have to make sure that we make them count.”
Theo looked dissatisfied by that answer. He knew what she knew. In a true duel twenty ockleys were nothing. Silence stretched between them as Theo looked deep in thought. Ren wasn’t sure what else she could say. They were winding to the end of this journey. Their options were limited. It was really that simple. Either they’d survive or they wouldn’t.
“What if you had more magic?” Theo asked unexpectedly.
Ren stared at him. “Please tell me you’re not about to unveil some secret way of acquiring more magic that only the city’s elite know about. I mean, I’ve heard a few theories about that, and it wouldn’t even be a huge surprise if it was true, but I’ve been keeping track of our spells like a professional accountant this whole time.…”
“No, there’s nothing like that.” His finger absently traced the chain at his hip. His fake vessel. “We can’t risk you having just three spells. If Clyde comes? Or Della’s crew? We can’t make a stand like that without your magic helping us.”
He shook his head, golden hair tossing across his forehead. It took Ren a moment to understand what he was thinking. She hadn’t suggested this option because she’d never dreamed he would entertain such a thing. A boy in Theo Brood’s position would never dare.…
“Bond magic,” he said, breathing the impossible into the air between them. “I don’t… I don’t want to frighten you away. Normally, I’d never consider such a forward gesture. And if you want the bond removed when we get safely back to Kathor, I’ll understand. I just don’t see any other option, Ren. If we’re going to survive, I need you.” He looked up. “Vega. To me.”
Ren didn’t have to pretend to be shocked. This was as startling as Cora’s possessing a devorium. An heir of one of the greatest houses in the world was suggesting bond magic with her. Ren was well versed in the history of House Brood. She’d studied their family, and all the others, hoping to find a foothold in the greater power structure that existed in Kathor. The only recorded instance of bond magic in the entire Brood lineage had happened nearly a century ago. The Broods had fought bloody battles with the northern rebels for decades. The family used notoriously brutal tactics. The only way to heal the decades-long divide was through an arranged marriage. Olivier Brood was bonded with Anni Graylantian—a daughter of the most powerful northern farming tribe. The Broods turned around and used that marriage as leverage against the rest of the rebels, dismantling them one by one. It wasn’t the most promising precedent for Ren.
Of course, there were examples of bonded couples in the other houses. But it was the kind of magic that was reserved almost exclusively for marriage partners who existed on parallel levels of power. A second son would bond with a second daughter. A Shiverian might bond with a Brood, but they’d never stoop to bond with a Swift or even an Ockley. Power did not bind itself to weakness. It was already unthinkable enough that Theo could imagine a future like that between them so soon, but would he really ignore rules that had been in place for generations?
As she looked into Theo’s eyes, understanding finally broke through her faulty logic. Of course. The answer was simple. Theo was falling in love with her. Certainly, the desperation of their circumstances played a role, but the truth was written in his patient and watchful expression. He looked like a fretful groom, waiting at a makeshift altar.
Ren struggled to form words as Vega landed on Theo’s shoulder. He crossed the distance between them, biting his lip the way he always did when he was nervous. He set one hand on the bird’s talons before offering his other hand to Ren. The gesture was an intentional one. He was linking the three of them through physical touch. Creating a bridge over which the bonding magic could course. Ren’s hand trembled slightly as she reached out to him.
“I see a future between us,” he whispered. “If we were back in Kathor, I would never ask this of you so soon. We could walk through the Giver’s Gardens. We could go out together and spend time in each other’s company. I would never want to… force your hand. But if we are going to survive this, let’s survive together.”
A slow-creeping dread filled Ren. This was what she’d wanted all along. A clear foothold. A path forward. House Brood had not been her original aim. She’d intended to work with literally any other house—intended to work against House Brood—but now she was being offered this? An opportunity to begin her dark task from within? She would be better positioned than she could have ever hoped, but her dread had a second source.
Bond magic was no trifling thing. It would knit the two of them together. Ren had no way of knowing how intimately. Most knowledge of the practice was anecdotal. There was too much variance, historically, for anyone to predict the consequences. Would she start to fall for Theo? Would he learn some of her carefully guarded secrets? Ren’s stomach turned unpleasantly at those thoughts. She forced herself to speak, even though she was gripped by uncertainty.
“Binding myself to a Brood is no small decision,” she said. “Before I do this, I need your word, Theo. I need to know that you meant what you said before.”
He frowned. “About what?”
“What kind of Brood do you want to be? I cannot stand the thought of being bound to someone who doesn’t have a care for others. I’ve… I’ve read all about the Canal Riots, Theo. I know the kind of men your father and your grandfather are. The kind of legacies they’ve left behind. I know how easy it would be for you to slip into their shoes and walk the same paths that they have. I need to know that you mean what you said about changing that legacy.”
He shook his head, adamant. “I am not my father. I promise you that.”
Ren wanted to point out that he could not truly promise her anything. It was likely that Landwin Brood would have the final say on who Theo became. It was even possible his father would demand they sever their bond when they returned to Kathor. A procedure like that was expensive—and dangerous—but not beyond the scope of House Brood’s capabilities. Ren stood there, weighing her options, and realized her fears were small compared with all the potential rewards.
Theo was literally offering her the impossible. She had to take it.
“Yes,” Ren whispered. “A hundred times, yes.”
He tightened his grip on her hand.
“Breath to breath. What I have, I give you.”
It was an old Tusk saying. The intentionality of his words wove into the magic. The spell curled briefly around her wrist like an invisible bracelet. Theo’s fingers flexed beneath hers. She was standing there, wondering if it had worked, when Vega’s existence poured through her mind. She could sense the deep pulse of magic. The brooding consciousness of the stone bird. On the other side of that consciousness Ren could feel Theo. It was like the first wafting scent of a garden that had been made just for her. She found herself frightened by how pleasant and alluring it was to her senses.
