These Twisted Bonds (These Hollow Vows, #2)(66)

“Pretha and Misha create portals for you all the time. Why can’t they do it?”

In front of us, Kane snorts.

Finn smiles at his friend before turning to me. “The portals to the Underworld cannot be opened by just anyone. Our ancient guardians wanted us to be able to reach them, but only with the approval of those deemed most worthy among us.”

I took for granted that Finn would be able to speak with Mab. Now this all seems like a wish and a prayer. “You’re sure the High Priestess will grant you this?”

“If Mab wants to allow our visit, the High Priestess will be required by her oath to the land to open the portal for us.”

Pretha clears her throat behind us. “This might be a good time to tell her who she’ll be when we get to Staraelia.”

I frown at Pretha over my shoulder. “What do you mean by that?”

Finn rolls his shoulders back. “I haven’t been there in a long time. I don’t want to assume that everyone is trustworthy. Since I’m not bonded to you, the next best excuse to stay close enough to protect you is to claim we have a relationship.”

“Who are these people? I thought they were Unseelie? Why do you need to stay close to me?”

“There could be moles working for Mordeus’s followers,” Kane says. “Or even those who’ve been paid to work for the queen.”

Finn nods. “Most are Unseelie and proud—they will recognize me as their prince regardless of whether I ever get to be king—but some among them will also be able to sense the power you carry, and that could be dangerous if they don’t trust you. So we need a way to make them trust you.” His gaze shifts away from me and tracks across the cottages growing closer on the horizon.

“Will they resent me for having the power of the crown?” I ask.

He blows out a breath. “Not if they think you’re with me.”

I swallow. “You want me to pretend that we’re . . . together? ”

Ahead of us, Kane chuckles. “Can’t get anything by that one,” he snarks.

I toss a ball of shadow at his shoulder, knocking him off-balance for a beat. He looks over his shoulder and winks at me.

Finn squeezes the back of his neck. “I’ve thought this through. I can’t come up with any other way to do it. Since I don’t have the bond to keep you safe, this is the next best thing. We already know Arya’s after you. The last thing we need is my own people coming after you because they think it will help me in some way.”

“Why don’t you just tell them—”

“What would you have me tell them, Princess?” he asks softly.

I realize the problem and flinch as if I’ve been slapped. I can’t explain that I inadvertently gave the crown to the golden prince or that I broke the throne—the whole court—when I took the Potion of Life. They’d hate me, and rightfully so.

“I know why you bonded with Sebastian,” Finn says softly, “and I do not blame you for your decisions, but these people might. They had to abandon their homes and live in the caves beneath the Goblin Mountains during Mordeus’s rule. After all they’ve suffered, we would be wise to be cautious. If we’re together, they’ll sense the power, but they won’t question who it comes from.

Anyone who’s tuned in enough to realize the power’s coming from you will believe it’s because I’ve bonded with you. They’ll assume they’re picking up on that bond.”

“Won’t they ask if we’re bonded?”

He shakes his head. “To question our relationship would be considered rude.”

I sniff. “Fine, then. If I pretended to like the queen those weeks in the golden palace, I can certainly pretend to find you tolerable.”

He chuckles, and the tension between us is broken. “I appreciate that, Princess. Now, let’s spend the next couple of hours working on using that considerable power of yours without leaking so much.”

I scowl at him. “Are you serious?”

He arches a brow. “What’s wrong? Embarrassed for me to see just how little you’ve been training in our weeks apart?”

I shoot out a hand of shadow and put it over his mouth to shut him up.

Chuckling, Finn nips at it. I shiver as I feel the scrape of those teeth on my own skin. After that, I choose other targets for my magic.



Spirits lift as we pass through the gates of a country manor and ride our horses right up to its wide stone steps. Dara and Luna run past us to sniff the flower garden and the stairs.

Finn jumps off his horse and tosses the reins to Kane before stepping over to help me off Two Star. I want to decline, but the last thing I need is a broken ankle before we venture into the mountains.

And anyway, I have a role to play here.

The feel of Finn’s hands on my waist is an unwelcome reminder of what I’ve felt for him since the day we met. A reminder of how it felt to have his body pressed to mine when we kissed. A reminder that I unknowingly spent the last two nights sleeping in his bed.

He holds me too close to his body as my feet settle to the ground. “You okay?”

I nod, wetting my lips as I look up at him, at those gentle silver eyes. He’s so tall, and when I haven’t been close to him in a while, I forget just how broad he is.

“Are you sore?” he asks.