Page 52 of The Monsters We Are
Seth strolled toward the desk, eyeing the many thick, heavy—and in many cases also dusty—books with curiosity. “Doing some light reading, are we?” he quipped.
“I’m trying to find specific information on the tying of life-forces.” Cain had spent days scouring ancients texts. He hadn’t found anything that really answered Wynter’s questions or properly addressed her concerns.
Seth’s brows flew up. “Your creature wants to bind itself to Wynter, I take it?”
“Yes.” It had settled slightly now that it knew she wouldn’t fight the binding, although it wasn’t at all happy at being made to wait.
Letting out a low whistle, Seth took the seat opposite him, loosely clasping the armrests. “That’s pretty huge.”
It was, though Wynter didn’t quite realize that. Leviathans rarely formed such bonds with others. As he’d told her before, the monsters they carried weren’t built to love. “My monster is determined to own her, and it won’t cease pushing until it gets its way.”
“Have you told her?”
“Yes. She’s willing. But she’s also reluctant to go through with it any time soon.”
“You can’t exactly blame her for requesting a little time to get used to the idea and settle more firmly into your relationship. Anyone would find it unnerving to tie their life-force to that of another, let alone to a monster like yours—no offense.”
Oh, there was none taken. Cain was under no illusions about the creature; he knew it was a living nightmare. “That’s not why she hesitates. Her issue is two-fold. One, she knows that if she was topermanentlydie while she and my creature were bound, her death would profoundly affect both me and my monster—she doesn’t want to ever be a weakness for me.” It warmed him even as it exasperated him, because she could never be anything but his greatest strength.
“I can understand that,” said Seth. “But she’s far from easy to kill, which makes it less risky. And she’s returned from the afterlife God knows how many times. Why would that one day stop?”
“It might not, but she can’t be as certain of that as she wishes to be.”
Seth pursed his lips, nodding in understanding. “Then I see why she’s concerned.”
So did Cain, though he’d probably never say as much to her. He didn’t want to encourage her to think that way, he wanted her to give into him. “She would prefer to wait until the danger with the Aeons has passed, but she will only go through with the binding if I can ease another deep concern she has. Wynter worries that, given her life-force is that of an undead soul, being bound to her could be harmful for my creature and me.”
“Ah, I hadn’t thought of that.” Seth rubbed at his jaw. “Do you believe it would be?”
“No. But that’s not enough for her. Because she’s fully aware that I’m not certain of it. Hence why I’m flicking through ancient texts in search of answers.”
Puffing out a breath, Seth lowered his hand. “I can see that you’d prefer she ignore her concerns. But she isn’t merely being difficult here, Cain. She hesitates because she cares for you. She’d never forgive herself if she later discovered that her life-force was negatively affecting you.”
Cain let out a deep sigh. “I know. I simply feel that her worries are senseless. And I intend to prove it.”
“I’m sure you will.” Seth paused. “But if you do, I think it would be best for you both to still wait until after the upcoming battle is over before performing the binding. Yes, I can see that you are not fond of that idea. But think of her, Cain. It’s easy for you to overlook, since you’re incredibly difficult to kill, that you have your own vulnerabilities.
“As much as we might wish differently, you’re not indestructible. More notably, you’ll soon be knee-deep in a war with beings whose power is almost as great as yours. You need to know what your death would do to her before you take the step you want to take.”
Cain rubbed his nape, pensive. He truly hadn’t looked at the situation from that angle. Purely because, as Seth pointed out, it was easy for Cain to overlook his own weaknesses due to there being very few people who could take him on and live to tell the tale.
“It stands to reason that if I died while she and my creature were bound she’d come back just like she always does. The breaking of the bond wouldn’t affect her monster—it would have no tie to me or my creature.” Cain would like to have its acceptance and approval since, in a roundabout way, it was part of Wynter. But she’d made it clear that the bestial entity wanted only to kill, not to find a mate.
“Maybe shewouldn’tcome back, though,” said Seth. “Think about it. If the snapping of the bondissomething that will drain her, it might do so to the point where she’s too weak to come back.”
Fuck, Cain hadn’t thought of that. His stomach rolled at the mere idea of it. His witchhadto live. There was no other acceptable option.
“You could try asking Lilith. Her creature bound itself to her consort. Maybe she’ll know more.” Seth’s brows dipped as he added, “Though I doubt it. He wasn’t a revenant, and your concerns center around the fact that Wynterisone.”
Sighing, Cain sat back in his chair. “I thought about consulting Eve. She’s a far older being than any of us. Far older than even the texts in front of me. There’s a chance she’ll be able to answer my questions.”
“I’m sensing a ‘but’.”
“But. . . I don’t feel that I know her well enough to entrust her with any information that concerns Wynter or my relationship with her.”
Seth’s mouth quirked. “I’d do the brotherly thing and tease you for being so paranoid and distrustful, but I know that in this instance it mostly stems from how protective you are of Wynter. I like that she’s so important to you. I like that you’re equally important to her. She wouldn’t otherwise ask you to hold off on the binding until the danger had passed if she didn’t feel—”
A frantic knock was quickly followed by the reappearance of Maxim.