The Bonding (10 page)

“Kiri's not here,” the healer said abruptly.

Davin's eyebrows snapped together. “She's not? Where is she?”

“One of the elders came and took her to an apartment. She's going to live there now.”

What's going on, baby?
“An apartment? I thought she was going to live with me.”

“Apparently not.”

“Where is this place?”

Soren gave the address and Davin turned to leave. The older man grabbed his arm.

“Make sure she's all right, would you? She didn't look too good when she left.”

“I will.” Davin assured him. Alarmed, he hurried the short distance to the apartment and pounded up the stairs to the third floor. There, he found the number and knocked. The door opened, but it was Kyla, not Kiri, who looked out at him. He could hear from back in the apartment, the sound of piteous sobs. Kiri, who never cried, who had faced her certain death and his with only a single tear, was weeping as though her heart was broken. Davin attempted to push past the elder but she held him back with a shield of magic.

“You may not come in,” she told him harshly. “You have harmed this young woman enough already.”

When are things going to start making sense?
“What are you saying? I have to go to her. Kiri! Let me in!”

“No. You are not going to hurt her again.”

“My lady,” Davin said, squashing down his growing panic, “I never hurt Kiri. I love her. She needs me. Please, let me go to her.”

Magic billowed around them, shielding their conversation from any ears but their own. “Never hurt her? You raped her magic and enslaved her with some kind of bonding spell. I suspect she learned that today when she was exploring her magic. She came back from class deeply shaken, and she hasn't stopped crying since then. We both know why. Now get out of here and leave her alone. You will NOT be allowed in.” She slammed the door in his face.

Can it be true? She might have learned in class that me using her magic without permission is considered rape.
Still, that seemed off. He had done it to save her, of course. And Kiri had always been so level headed and strong. But she also had a natural sensitivity to the idea of violation. If she felt he had violated her, it might explain why she didn't want to see him. Face set, Davin grimly headed back to his own apartment, wondering what the hell he was going to do now.

The next two weeks dragged by for Kiri. She was regaining her physical strength due to long hours spent exercising, trying to keep herself from thinking. She faithfully attended her magic class each day, and was making progress, although her magic did tend to surge often. Her attempts to stop those surges were not as successful as they should have been. Perhaps she didn't care enough to squash them properly. In fact, her whole life had lost its promise, and she was afflicted with a great weariness of the soul.
What really matters, anyway?

While pushing her mind and body to the limit kept her moving through the day, night was another matter. After eating her solitary supper in a dark corner of the restaurant, she would return to the small but attractive apartment the elders had provided for her. She tried to read the novels she picked up occasionally at a second hand shop, but they failed to capture her interest. War stories were so inaccurate, reading them merely annoyed her. Love stories were agonizing. Most nights she ended up crying herself to sleep.

The temptation to go to Davin almost overpowered her. What difference did it make if were married? It was Kiri he loved. But she knew how selfish the thought was. If she loved him, she would want what was best for him, not just for her, and the best thing for him would be to reconcile with that other woman, his wife, not Kiri. Besides, if Davin had really wanted to be with her, wouldn't he have sought her out? After the first night, when Kyla had refused to let him in, he had not even attempted to see her. She could feel him. The magical bond they had forged still connected them. She felt drawn to him, but she would not go.

There was another problem too. Although Kiri was definitely recovering from her weakness, she still felt ill at odd moments. The healers had warned her there might be residual nausea after the poison purging treatment, but two weeks later seemed excessive. One day, after a particularly harrowing magic class in which she had surged several times, and not been successful in controlling it, she had been forced to run into the water closet and was violently ill.

When she came out, pale and sweaty and trembling, she asked Dori to be excused from the rest of the lesson and staggered back to the hospital to get herself checked out.

While she had hoped to find an anonymous stranger to examine her roiling belly, it was Jaya she saw first. Davin's sister leveled her with a dark glare and dragged her into an examining room.

“What do you want?” Jaya hissed through clenched teeth.

“That's harsh, Jaya. I'm not feeling well,” Kiri moaned, clutching her roiling belly.

“If I hadn't sworn an oath, I would just leave you to suffer,” the woman snapped.

“Maybe someone else…”

“No.” Jaya shook one finger in Kiri's face. “I have things to say to you, and you had better plan to sit and listen to them.”

“Fine.” Nausea rolled through Kiri and sweat beaded on her forehead.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” Jaya demanded.

“I don't know,” Kiri whined. “That's why I'm here. Is this still from the treatment?”

Jaya made a face. “No, that wouldn't have lasted beyond the first few days. Did you eat something bad?”

“Not that I'm aware of.”

“Sit down. I'm going to scan you.” Jaya said, pressing Kiri onto a chair. Kiri sat and Jaya summoned magic into her hands and ran them over Kiri's belly. “Oh my gods!” she exclaimed, her eyes wide.

“What?” Kiri demanded.
Even a bad answer is an answer.

“You're pregnant, Kiri.

Kiri's jaw dropped. She stared at the blonde healer in shock. “No! Oh gods, no, how can it be?”

“I don't know, but it is. I assume it's Davin's baby?”

Kiri buried her face in her hands. “Yes,” she whispered, rocking back and forth. “Oh no, it can't be. I'm sorry Jaya. I didn't know. I would never have…I didn't know. I didn't mean to get pregnant. I didn't even think of it.”

“Some lover you turned out to be.” Jaya said, her voice hard. “First you make Davin fall desperately in love with you, and then you drop him. What the hell kind of game are you playing?”

Kiri's temper flared. “You're mad at me for leaving Davin? How dare you? I did what was best for him. He shouldn't be sleeping with me. He should get back with his wife.”

Jaya drew back, startled “What are you talking about? Davin has never been married.”

Kiri pressed her fingertips into her temples, trying to ease the headache caused by her confusion. “But this woman…she told me…she said she was his wife.”

“That bitch!” Jaya exploded. “This time she's gone too far. And you!” She rounded on Kiri. “You believed her? Didn't you ask him?”

“I couldn't,” Kiri cried, the revelation radiating through her like a shockwave.

“The only way I could actually manage to end this was not to see him at all. I have no strength where he is concerned.”

Jaya rolled her eyes and explained. “That woman has been plaguing Davin for years. They had a brief affair almost a decade ago, but she has never let go. She torments him, tries to interfere in his life. No one does anything about it because she's crazy. But he was never married to her or anyone else. Never.”

Cold terror clenched Kiri's heart. “What have I done?”

“What you have done, my dear,” Jaya sneered, “is to break the heart of a very good man who loved you.”

Kiri inhaled sharply through her nose. “I have to go to him. Do you know where he is?”

“Damn right I do. He's in prison, Kiri.”

Shock had Kiri nearly choking. “What?”

“For raping you.”

“He never…he wouldn't,” she sputtered.

“Of course he wouldn't.” Jaya crossed her arms over her chest. “But the council of elders believes he has been manipulating you with magic, and when he tapped
your
magic to bring you here, he did it against your will, which constitutes rape. They're meeting today to decide his sentence. The only person who can save him now is you. You had better run.”

“No,” Kiri said, “Open me a portal.”

* * *

Seconds later, Kiri strode into the main chamber of the council of elders, head held high like a queen, like a warrior, her sword strapped to her hip, her long braid hanging over her shoulder.

She marched down the long aisle between two rows of polished wooden benches, traversing a floor in sparkling, silver stone, until she stood before a low dais, on which four mature individuals sat on throne like chairs with high backs and red velvet cushions. Pale sunlight filtered through high, narrow windows that were little more than arrow slits.

Kiri bobbed her head once in the direction of the elders, a faint imitation of a bow.

“Ah, there you are, my dear. We wondered if you would be coming,” Kyla said kindly, “That bad young man will not be able to hurt you anymore. He's going to prison for a very long time.”

“Yes, I heard. That's why I'm here. I want Davin released immediately, and all charges against him dropped.”

Kyla's mouth fell open at Kiri's firm demand. From the corner of her eye, she saw Dalwyn nod.

Miranda spoke, “Kiri, after much investigation, the council has ruled Davin is guilty of magical crimes against you and he was about to be sentenced to prison. Do you have new information you would like to add?”

“Yes. Davin has committed no crime against me. He saved my life. I have come to no harm at his hand. He is innocent. Let him go.”

“She's still bewitched,” Kyla interjected, “she doesn't know what she is saying.”

“I am not bewitched,” Kiri said. “I am furious. It almost seems as though you are punishing Davin for saving me. Would you rather I was dead?”

Startled at this unexpected turn in the conversation, Kyla fell silent. It was Joran who spoke. “If you are under a magical manipulation, my dear, you might not be aware of it. However, can we explain to you why we feel you are the victim of a crime?”

“I am not a victim,” Kiri insisted, “but please explain.”

“You see, you and Davin are bound together in a most unusual way.”

I would give a great deal for someone to make sense for once.
“We bonded as sorcerer and swordmaster. What's unusual about it?”

“Your bond is not like others,” the ancient man replied, and his voice cracked on every third word. “It is unique. We believe it is triple the strength of a normal one, and it is somehow different in composition as well. We think it is likely it can never be broken.”

“Good,” Kiri shot back. “I don't want it to be. Listen; there is nothing unusual about our bond. We spoke the words and exchanged the kisses just like everyone else does.”

“I'm sure, my dear. However, your bond is not like anyone else's. It is also a fact, testified to by both you and Davin, that he once rendered you unconscious and used your magic against your will.”

This argument again?
“I was dying. He did it to save my life. I hold nothing against him.”

“Really?” Miranda said, “We understood you two recently broke off your relationship. We felt it was likely you discovered that what he had done was a form of assault, and you became angry.”

I'm angry now. Convicted based on assumptions? How is this country better than my own?
“Actually, that is not what happened at all. The reason for me breaking things off with him was…a misunderstanding between us. I intend to rectify it as soon as possible. It has nothing whatsoever to do with either our bond or his use of my magic.”

“Are you certain of this?” Miranda pressed.

Kiri realized that she would have to confess some very personal things to this council in order for them to take her seriously. “Lords and ladies,” she said, “please hear me now. You know I have been raped in the past. I know what that violation feels like. What Davin did was to save me from great harm. Had there been time for him to explain to me what he was about to do, I would have given him permission without hesitation. There simply was not enough time. As it was, I nearly died from my injuries. He saved me using the only avenue available to him. Far from being angry, I am grateful for his quick action.” They looked unconvinced. “Forgive me; I see I will have to be blunt. In the cave, after destroying Gorn, Davin and I did not sit idly as his reeking remains smoked. We spent the whole night making love. If I was willing…no, not willing, eager to let him penetrate my body, why would I forbid him to use my magic?”

“It has been suggested his seduction of you might also have been magically enhanced.” Miranda explained

Elder or no, Kiri rolled her eyes at Miranda's words. “No, that could not have happened.”

“Why not?”

“Because we were inside a crystal cave,” she enunciated slowly. “It would have been impossible for Davin to use his magic against me there. Nor did he seduce me at all. He even offered to stop if I was uncomfortable. I wanted to be with him. I love him.” Kiri broke off as emotion overwhelmed her.

“Why didn't we think of it?” Dalwyn exclaimed. “Of course he could not have used magic to control her inside a crystal cave.”

The council nodded in agreement, even Kyla, though she looked rather sour about it. “But what about the bond?” she asked, “He must have done something to cause the strange bond between them.”

“Perhaps,” Miranda replied thoughtfully. “I think we should ask a few more questions. Won't you sit down, Kiri? Please, we want to understand what has happened.”

“Kiri,” Joran said, descending from the dais and approaching the bench she had chosen, right up front and to the left of the aisle. The seat felt smooth but cold against her, even through her garments, “tell me more about the bonding you and Davin performed before the fight. Did you begin to experience strangely powerful emotions after it settled into place?”

“No. All I felt was a connection to Davin. What are you trying to figure out?”

“Whether he is using that bond to influence your feelings towards him.”

All at once, a thought clicked in Kiri's mind. “That's backwards,” she said. “The bond didn't cause our feelings. Our feelings caused us to bond. We were wildly attracted to each other from the beginning, but I was forbidden to have liaisons, and in Eliada's presence I didn't dare act on our connection. It wasn't until the day the creature found us that we decided to bond each other. Remember, we chose each other even though there was a more likely person for each of us. I could have bonded Eliada, and Davin could have bonded poor Jarrell, and we would have both been just as safe as we were together. We chose each other, I think, because we wanted that connection.”

Miranda inhaled sharply.

“My lady?” Kiri turned toward the elder.

“Are you saying, my dear, that you and Davin were already in love when you decided to bond each other?” the elder demanded, and Kiri could tell from her tone and expression that finally something was about to be explained.

“Yes.”

The elder sagged against the back of her chair. “That's what happened, then. Sorcerers and swordmasters are not meant to bond when they are in love. It makes too tight a connection.”

“Like my grandparents?” Kiri guessed, putting more pieces together. “After my grandfather's death, my grandmother only lived long enough to bring my mother into the world. Then she died too.”

“That's it exactly!” Miranda exclaimed. “You and Davin unwittingly created an unbreakable double bond between you, because you were already in love when the ceremony was performed.”

“It may not be the ideal way, my lady,” Kiri said, “but under the circumstances, I don't see what we could have done differently. Nor do I regret the decision.”

“But my lady,” Kyla wheedled, “This bond is more than double strength. How did it become so strong, unless it was deliberately manipulated?”

“I think it's quite obvious,” Dalwyn replied. “They also broke the second rule of the bond by having sex less than a day after the ceremony. You know bonds such as these involve a period of separation after the ceremony, to prevent just such an event from happening. Davin and Kiri have accidentally formed a triple bond of love, sex, and magic. Unusual though it may seem, this triple bonding was unintentional, the result of decisions made under extreme stress and deadly danger.”