Chapter 28: The Red Bond
The ocean was not water. It was a black mouth trying to swallow us whole.
The Iron Maiden smashed through the waves with a violence that rattled my teeth. I sat on the narrow bunk in the cabin holding onto the metal frame until my knuckles turned white. The boat pitched sideways. Equipment slid across the floor. Maps fluttered like dying birds.
Silas stood at the helm. He looked like a statue carved from salt and grim determination. He fought the wheel with his one good arm battling the storm that protected the Citadel.
I closed my eyes. I tried to reach out with my mind.
"Kaelen," I whispered.
The response was immediate. And it was terrifying.
Before this moment the bond had felt like a golden thread. It was warm. It was safe. It hummed with his heartbeat a
