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.

broke through the fog. “Amaya…” she began, her tone softer now, filled with understanding. “It’s not about the fire, darling. It’s about the embers. They’re still

hung heavy in the air between us. Natalia, bless her bluntness, knew me too well to let it linger. Instead, she sidestepped, her voice

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

could hear the unspoken words simmering on Natalia’s tongue, her silence crackling with disapproval. I knew she wanted to cuss out my father but was

what? Why don’t we ditch the dust and debris of today and paint the town red? Forget Daniel’s mini-wedding plans, forget dinner with the pack higher-ups.

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

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

to the gut, jolting

we going?” I whispered, wiping the tears that threatened to

“There’s this new club that just opened,” she chirped, her excitement infectious. “Big Shot, it’s called, and rumor has it they have a dance floor that hypnotizes and cocktails that sing opera. I’ve been dying to check it out, and

Nathan

night to forget the bomb, the broken vows,

sets your inner warrior goddess on

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

the word slipping out on a breath of newfound defiance.

voice already halfway out the

dancing. Lots

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,

the cool night air a welcome slap against my burning cheeks. My heart hammered in my chest, a wild hummingbird trapped in

voice a familiar melody in the symphony

breathed, pulling the collar of my leather jacket tighter against the

“The alpha throwing

denied, though the lie tasted bitter on my tongue. “Just needed

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

were a balm to my bruised spirit. I let out a shaky laugh, feeling the tension seep out of my shoulders. “Ready when you are, General

mischievous glint in her eyes. “Now,