The Bound

by K. A. Linde

  ALSO BY K.A. LINDE

  ASCENSION SERIES

  The Affiliate

  The Bound

  ADULT ROMANCE SERIES

  AVOIDING SERIES

  Avoiding Commitment

  Avoiding Responsibility

  Avoiding Intimacy

  Avoiding Decisions

  Avoiding Temptation

  RECORD SERIES

  Off the Record

  On the Record

  For the Record

  Struck from the Record

  ALL THAT GLITTERS SERIES

  Diamonds

  Gold

  Emeralds

  Platinum

  Silver

  TAKE ME SERIES

  Take Me for Granted

  Take Me with You

  STAND ALONE

  Following Me

  Copyright © 2016 by K.A. Linde

  All rights reserved.

  Visit my website at www.kalinde.com

  Cover Designer: Sarah Hansen, Okay Creations, www.okaycreations.com

  Photography: Lauren Perry, Perrywinkle Photography, www.perrywinklephotography.com

  Editor and Interior Designer: Jovana Shirley, Unforeseen Editing, www.unforeseenediting.com

  No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without the written permission of the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  To Meera and Kiran,

  for allowing me to fictionalize you.

  Emporia Map

  Pronunciation Guide

  Prologue

  1: The Watch

  2: The Woods

  3: The Fever

  4: The Leif

  5: The Gift

  6: The Ceremony

  7: The Bound

  8: Rhea—The Secret

  9: Ahlvie—The Dungeons

  10: The Rescue

  11: The Dock

  12: Rhea—The Outburst

  13: Daufina—The Royal Guard

  14: The Journey

  15: The Lively Dagger

  16: The Heartbeat

  17: The Hunter

  18: The Summons

  19: The Castle

  20: The Queen

  21: Avoca—The Ball

  22: Ahlvie—The Princess

  23: The Prince

  24: The Consequences

  25: The Fog

  26: The Safe Passage

  27: The Destination

  28: Daufina—The Return

  Eleysia Map

  29: The Bride of the Sea

  30: The Audience

  31: The Sea Bride’s Chamber

  32: The Upper

  33: The Sport

  34: The First

  35: Rhea—The Explosion

  36: Daufina—The Celebrations

  37: The Eos Holiday

  38: The Humanitarian

  39: Avoca—The Triangle

  40: The Release

  41: The Master Domas

  42: The Training

  43: The Water

  44: The Bound Effect

  45: The Spring

  46: Daufina—The Army

  47: The Final Days

  48: The Calm

  49: The Before

  50: The Storm

  51: The Blood

  52: The Conspiracy

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  AHLVIE GUNN: AL-VEE GUN

  ARALYN STROHM: AIR-UH-LIN STRAHM

  AONIA: A-OWN-YUH

  AURUM: ARE-UM

  AVOCA: AH-VOK-UH

  BARKELEY IOLAIR: BARK-LEE I-O-LAR

  BASILLE SELBY: BAH-SEAL SEL-BEE

  BRAJ: BRAHJ

  BYERN: BY-URN

  CARO BARCA: CAR-O BARS-UH

  CEIS’F: SEE-ES-EF

  CREIGHTON IOLAIR: CRAY-TUN I-O-LAR

  CYRENE STROHM: SAH-REEN STRAHM

  DAUFINA BIRKET (CONSORT): DAW-FEEN-UH BUR-KET

  EDRIC DREMYLON (KING): EDGE-RICK DREM-LIN

  ELEA STROHM: EL-YA STRAHM

  ELEYSIA: EL-A-SEE-UH

  EMPORIA: EM-POR-EE-UH

  EREN: AIR-EN

  HAENAH DE’LORLAH: HAN-UH D-LOR-LUH

  HAILLE MARDAS: HAYL MAR-DUS

  HUYEK RIVER: HOO-YIK

  INDRES: IN-DRESS

  JARDANA: JAR-DON-UH

  JESALYN DREMYLON IOLAIR: JESS-UH-LIN DREM-LIN I-O-LAR

  JESTRE FARRANAY: JEST-RAY FAIR-UH-NAY

  KAEL DREMYLON (PRINCE): KAYL DREM-LIN

  KALIANA DREMYLON (QUEEN): KAL-EE-AH-NUH DREM-LIN

  KEYLANI RIVER: KEY-LAHN-EE

  KRISANA (ALBION CASTLE): KRIS-ON-UH

  LEIF: LEEF

  MAELIA DALLMER: MAY-LEE-UH DAL-MER

  MATILDE: MUH-TILD

  NIT DECUS (BYERN CASTLE): NIT DAKE-US

  REEVE STROHM: REEV STRAHM

  RHEA GRAMM: RAY GRAM

  SERAFINA (DOMINA): SER-UH-FEEN-UH

  SHIRA: SHEER-UH

  VERA: VEER-UH

  VIKTOR DREMYLON: VICK-TER DREM-LIN

  Jardana’s body hummed with victory.

  Ever since she had returned to her rooms to find a note addressed to her from Prince Kael in their secret code, she had known that tonight was the night. Everything would change between them. Their little dalliance behind the scenes had gone on long enough. It was time to make this official.

  She was a Byern Affiliate, raised to be one of the most respected women in the entire country. And not just that, she was in a position to rule. Already, she was Assistant Director of Internal Affairs for Her Majesty, Queen Kaliana. Soon, she would rise from Assistant to the actual DIA for the Queen herself. The Queen’s right-hand woman. Her most trusted Affiliate.

  And, if things worked out as she suspected they would tonight, she would even surpass that and become a Duchess, ruling over all of Albion, her husband second in line for the throne. A woman could get used to that.

  She tugged the black cloak low over her brow. The note had been clear that she was not to be seen when she left. Long ago, she had figured out more than one passage in and out of the castle grounds where no one would stop her from leaving, even in dire times, such as now with Affiliate and High Order murders and that annoying Cyrene’s disappearance.

  Truly, Jardana believed Cyrene was just trying to get more attention, as if the King’s pretend interest wasn’t enough. She turned her nose up at the thought. No, King Edric cared nothing for that girl. That was why Cyrene had vanished in the first place.

  Jardana rolled her eyes. Cyrene made her blood boil. At least Jardana wouldn’t have to deal with Cyrene again after tonight.

  The trek to her rendezvous point wasn’t that far, but she held to the shadows and avoided people. If Kael wanted a private proposal, then she would be happy to oblige him.

  She passed a woman in a dirty frock, who jumped backward at the sight of Jardana.

  “Get out of the way,” Jardana snapped irritably.

  The woman dropped into a hasty, clumsy curtsy. “My apologies, miss.”

  “Don’t you know your betters? I’m an Affiliate, not some lowly commoner.”

  Her eyes rounded. “Forgive me. I meant no offense, Affiliate.”

  Jardana glared at the woman. “Her Majesty will be hearing about this.”

  And then she strode away, listening to the woman’s pleas, with dark laughter buried within herself.

  She reached the secluded building that Kael had me
ntioned in his letter. She had memorized it before leaving and promptly burned it in the fireplace. No one was to know what was happening.

  Approaching the door, she tapped out the code—three taps, pause, one tap, pause, one tap, wait.

  The door creaked open, and Jardana hurried into the house, locking the door behind her. She tipped back the hood on her cloak and surveyed the room. It was completely empty, not a single piece of artwork on the walls, not a single chair in the room, not even a scrap of rug to break up the stone floor. It was dismal.

  Why would he propose here?

  “Jardana, is that you?” Kael called.

  She turned toward a narrow corridor and followed his voice. “Yes, it’s me.”

  “Good. You came.”

  “Of course.”

  She walked down the corridor, into the open room, and stopped in her tracks. Candlelight flooded the bare room. A wooden table was in the center, and on top of it was a small book. When Kael turned to stare down at the pages, the air in the room seemed to shift with him. She had an eerie feeling that she couldn’t exactly place.

  “You wanted to see me?” she said, losing some of her bravado.

  “Yes. Shut the door behind you.”

  Jardana swallowed but closed the door and strode to his side. “What are you reading?”

  “A book my father left me.”

  “I didn’t know King Maltrier had bequeathed you anything,” Jardana said. “What does it contain?”

  “A great deal of things that are very important to the country.”

  “Has King Edric seen it?”

  It was the wrong thing to ask. Kael’s head snapped up to meet her, and his eyes were storm clouds. His pupils dilated, and he looked furious. She should have known better. She knew how much Kael despised his brother. He was the chosen one, born for greatness, given everything on a silver platter while Kael had to wait in the background, was looked down upon by his peers, and struggled to attain such greatness as his brother had already achieved.

  “Edric was not always the golden son,” Kael growled. “Once, my father chose me above everyone…above Edric. He left me the most precious thing in his possession, and today, we will see his plans begin to come to fruition.”

  Jardana smiled cruelly. She loved when he spoke like this. “Yes,” she told him, “together, we will take over the world.”

  “We most certainly will,” he said with that charming smile she knew all too well.

  He reached out and dragged her flush against him. “You trust me?”

  “Implicitly,” she told him.

  They were going to rule the world together. She would be his queen, seated at his side, second only to the Queen. Her ambition had never been higher than at that moment. She could practically taste it. She would sit atop the golden throne, looking down upon all the worthless citizens. She would have full command of the Affiliates, and they would do her bidding and her bidding alone. It was what she had been born for. Her mother had always said that she would be supreme.

  “Then, we must be made as one,” he breathed against her neck.

  She couldn’t hold back the gasp. Finally. “Yes. Oh, Kael, yes.”

  The knife plunged into her back so fast that she never saw it coming. It struck her so precisely that she hadn’t even had the chance to cry out, just as he had planned it. Blood poured from the wound, soaking Kael’s hands and falling onto the stone floor.

  “For you, Father,” he said. Then, he chanted the words that his forefathers had chanted before him, which translated from the ancient tongue to, “Life freely given. Power freely taken. Drawn from you. Give thus to me. Cast off the light and plunge into darkness. I surrender.”

  As the life drained out of Jardana’s once vibrant body, Kael claimed the life force for his own. There was no greater force on earth than the power he was claiming from flesh and blood. Their connection, so deeply entrenched over the years, only intensified the white-hot power now at his disposal.

  It was in that moment, as the power flooded his body, that he finally understood why his father had murdered his mother.

  Every single part of Cyrene Strohm’s body ached.

  She dismounted from her proud dapple, Ceffy, and dropped to her feet. Her knees nearly buckled underneath her, and she tried to shake off the stiff soreness that had come from riding day in and day out. Even her fingers were cramping from gripping the reins so tightly.

  Pulling her bag off of Ceffy’s saddle, she prepared her horse for another long day tomorrow. Her hand reached inside the bag before it fell to the ground at her feet. She removed the golden pin of Byern from the bag and affectionately ran her fingers over its climbing vines. It was the mark of an Affiliate, the highest position in the land, save royalty. It pained her not to wear the pin anymore, but she and her companions had all agreed that it was too recognizable. So, it lay, tucked away, in her belongings.

  Cyrene stifled a yawn and covered her mouth to try to bite back the exhaustion. The last thing she wanted was for anyone to see her weariness. She had been the one to convince her friends—Maelia Dallmer, Ahlvie Gunn, and Orden Dain—to flee their home country of Byern. So, she was the one who had to remain strong throughout this journey, no matter what was thrown in her face.

  From an early age, she had dreamed about finding adventure and traveling the world. She just hadn’t expected adventure to be this tiresome.

  Maelia hauled the packhorse through the open clearing and immediately began to set up camp. Orden scouted the hilly roads far ahead. Ahlvie had already tied up his horse, Belgar, and was collecting firewood. They had been on the run for a few weeks now and had settled into a routine.

  “Cyrene,” Maelia said, grabbing her attention, “Ahlvie should have been back already?”

  “Already? He hasn’t been gone that long,” she said.

  But then her eyes caught the location of the sun, and she frowned.

  “I don’t like for him to be too far out with Orden gone and guards on our tail.”

  “I’ll find him. Don’t worry.”

  “Take that with you.” Maelia pointed at a heavy broadsword hanging from Ceffy’s side.

  Cyrene looked at the sword with disdain. “I’ll only be a minute.”

  “I’d feel better if you had it with you,” Maelia said.

  The sword was an unfortunate necessity. The group had left Albion, the second largest city in their home country of Byern, with no trouble. By the time anyone had noticed that they had left, Cyrene had thought the coast was clear.

  Oh, how wrong I was.

  News had traveled quickly that King Edric Dremylon of Byern believed Cyrene had been kidnapped, and a hefty reward had been issued for her return. So, even if she could tell Edric that she had not been kidnapped but instead escaped to fulfill her mission to get to Eleysia and discover how to use her magical powers, no one would hear her story. Not to mention, everyone, including herself only a couple of months ago, believed magic was nothing more than a myth.

  But magic was more than a myth. After a near-death experience where she had faced a deadly Braj, her powers had manifested, and even if she was in love with the King, getting out of Byern had been a necessity. Edric would never have let her go if he had known the truth…of any of it. So, it was partly her fault that he believed she had been kidnapped, and now, their departure from Byern had turned into a game of duck and cover with guardsmen in pursuit.

  Cyrene must have made a face at Maelia’s suggestion, and she fixed Cyrene with a stern look.

  “The sun is setting, and the Hidden Forest is notoriously dangerous. You’ve heard the sounds at night. Strange inhuman howls and creepy slithering noises.” Maelia shuddered at the thought. “Just take it.”

  Maelia had a way of ignoring Cyrene’s protests. Even though the sword was clunky, Maelia was used to a world where a sword was the best defense. So, Cyrene untied the sword from Ceffy’s side and laced it around her plain blue dress. It dragged down her waist, and she bent sli
ghtly to the right to try to adjust it.

  “There.”

  “Thank you,” Maelia said. “Be safe.”

  Cyrene ground her teeth and set out.

  After the first week of trekking aimlessly through the woods, she had cursed her parents for not giving her a proper education on tracking, positioning, and other such important matters. She had thought that all she needed to know could be found in books. But the only book she had brought with her held text that only she could see and read. It was a riddle wrapped inside a mystery.

  As she followed the most obvious pathway through the trees, her eyes scanned the ever-darkening sky. They needed to build a fire before they lost all light. Her stomach growled louder than those weird noises.

  A rustle of voices sounded in the trees nearby, and Cyrene hastily hid behind a large bush. With a shuddering deep breath, she peered around the corner.

  Six Byern guard were in full armor. Each had a headpiece tucked under his arm. The man currently speaking was sporting the royal colors of her homeland with a plume of green and gold feathers jutting from the top of his helmet, the telltale sign of a Captain of the Royal Guard.

  “You’re sure you saw someone coming this way?” the Captain asked.

  “Certain, Captain,” the guard answered at once.

  “Then, where are they?”

  “Sir, we’ve sent out Rorick and Naelan to sweep the perimeter of the area. They couldn’t have gone far,” another man said.

  Not six guards.

  Eight.

  Eight against four with two of my friends missing, and I’m unable to properly use a weapon. Now would be a great time for me to be able to use my magic.

  “I don’t like these woods. If we don’t hear back with a definite destination by nightfall, we’ll make camp.,” the Captain said. “There’s a small creek not far from here on the other side of the embankment. Meet there. Now, move out.”

  Cyrene’s heart hammered in her chest. Orden had said the guards who were trailing them were gaining ground, but she hadn’t thought that he meant this much ground. She needed to get back and warn Maelia. She didn’t know where Ahlvie and Orden were, but she had to do what she had to do.

  When the Captain heeled his horse away from her, she breathed out heavily.

  As soon as he was out of her line of sight, she bolted back to Maelia. Adrenaline pumped through her system, fueling her body, and lightening her steps.