Bonds

Chapter Six

~Maya’s POV~

Natalia’s voice, muffled through the phone, jolted me out of a daze. “You really think he did it?” Her words felt like sandpaper against my raw nerves.

I let out a sigh, “I don’t know,” the confession scraping my throat, “But think of it, Natalia. If I were to bomb a place, why would I leave evidence that it was me on the bomb?”

“Exactly!” Natalia’s sharp tone crackled through the receiver. “My thoughts exactly. But still, he’s the only one with a motive to stop the wedding. Maybe he realized what he lost.”

I shook my head, the gesture echoing the hollowness inside me, “I looked into his eyes. The Alex that loved me… I didn’t see that man anymore. There was anger, yes, but also a stranger, someone consumed by something I couldn’t understand.”

A beat of silence hung between us, thick with unspoken doubts. “So maybe it was his way of making good on that threat. Maybe this was his way of showing Everton that he means to really go to war with your father.”

“And my father, of course, couldn’t help but blame me,” I muttered, bitterness lacing my voice.

“When are you going to stand up—?” Shebegan, her question hanging in the air.

“No, Natalia, please don’t,” I interrupted, my voice laced with a plea. “I did that once, and it ended with my heart in pieces. That fire…” I choked back a sob, the memory a barbed wire twisting in my gut. “It’s gone.”

“Amaya…” Her voice was laced with concern, reaching across the miles to wrap around me in a virtual hug.

I clutched the phone tighter, “It’s gone,” I repeated.

Silence followed as I stared at myself in the mirror. A stranger stared back, her eyes dull with pain, her lips drawn in a tight line of resignation.

now, filled with understanding. “It’s not about the fire, darling. It’s about the embers. They’re still there, glowing under the

only reply, a single word that hung heavy in the air between us. Natalia, bless her bluntness, knew me too well to let it linger. Instead, she sidestepped, her voice sharp

control after the explosion. Daniel, of course, is already planning a redo of the wedding since I, apparently, need to finish my vows. A smaller one

tongue, her silence crackling with disapproval. I knew she wanted to cuss out my father but was holding

paint the town red? Forget Daniel’s mini-wedding plans, forget

I started, the protest forming on my lips. “It’s past ten. I

he casts, but damn it, Maya, that’s not you. I miss the girl who could stare down a rogue wolf and laugh in his face. I miss the firebrand who started a rebellion in college because a professor misquoted Nietzsche. I miss the you that wouldn’t back down from anything, the you that punched Nathan in the nose and demanded he told me

punch to the gut, jolting me out of my

wiping the tears that threatened to

Shot, it’s called, and rumor has it they have a dance floor that hypnotizes and cocktails that sing opera. I’ve

Nathan and

they won’t be up till tomorrow,”She replied, “I’ve been itching for some girl time anyway, and you need a night to forget the bomb, the broken vows, the

the escape. “Don’t worry about details, I’ll handle everything. I’ll text you the address, you wear something that sets your inner warrior goddess on fire, and meet me by the back gate in ten minutes. We’re painting the town ruby red, Maya Stone, and for once, the only fireworks will be the ones we spark

but laugh, the sound bubbling up from a place I thought had been buried under the rubble of the day. The Natalia Rant, as she affectionately called it, had a way of doing

on a breath of newfound

promised, her voice already halfway out the

dancing. Lots and

mischievous laughter echoing down the

chasing away the shadows of fear and resignation. The girl who punched Nathan in the face and defied her father wasn’t dead,

slipped through the rusty back gate, the cool night air a welcome slap against my burning cheeks. My heart hammered in my chest, a wild

you long enough, Rapunzel,” she teased, her voice a familiar melody in the symphony of

breathed, pulling the collar of my leather jacket

my flimsy excuse. “The alpha throwing another tantrum?”

the lie tasted bitter on my

smile soft and understanding. “I get it,” she said, “It’s been a hell of a day. But tonight,

out a shaky laugh, feeling the tension seep out

a mischievous glint in her eyes.