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.

It’s about the embers. They’re still there, glowing under the ashes. You just need to find the courage

my 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 but warm.

I admitted, picking at a chipped piece of nail polish. “He’s probably still knee-deep in damage control after the explosion. Daniel, of course, is already planning a redo of the wedding since I, apparently,

her silence crackling with disapproval. I knew she wanted to cuss

and debris of today and paint the town red? Forget Daniel’s mini-wedding plans, forget dinner with the

forming on my lips. “It’s past

she cut me off, her voice firm despite the playful glint in her eyes I knew would be dancing in her eyes, “You are a grown woman, not a porcelain doll to be shelved at his will. I know it’s easier to just comply, to shrink into the shadow 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

to the gut, jolting me out

I whispered, wiping the

“Big Shot, it’s called, and rumor has it they have a

about Nathan and Ivy?” I

broken vows, the piece of shit that broke your heart.

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

day. The Natalia Rant, as she affectionately called it, had a way of doing that, of stripping away the self-doubt and

slipping out on a breath of

promised, her voice

sure there’s dancing. Lots

her mischievous laughter echoing down the hallway. “Tonight, my friend,

spark flickered to life in my eyes, chasing away the shadows of fear and resignation. The girl who punched Nathan in

the rusty back gate, the cool night air a welcome slap against my burning cheeks. My heart hammered in my chest, a wild hummingbird trapped in a cage of nerves and excitement. There she was, Natalia, silhouetted against

Rapunzel,” she teased, her voice a

the collar of my leather jacket

pierce through my flimsy excuse. “The alpha throwing another

denied, though the lie tasted bitter

“I get it,” she said, “It’s been a hell of a day. But

bruised spirit. I let out a shaky laugh, feeling the tension

in her eyes. “Now, about that