Shades of Power

Chapter Eight

Silence fell over the room as we waited. After a short time, Spencer shook and rolled his head on his shoulders, then focused on me.

"You're different."

My brows drew together. "This is me."

"No." He grew unfocused again. "You're incomplete. Out of balance. You're... divided." He tilted his head. "Cold."

I stiffened. His words were too close to something David had said to me once. They hurt. "You may leave if you prefer." My nails dug into Liam's scalp and he shifted but didn't pull away. I relaxed my hand.

"Oh, no. You're the most interesting thing to come along in ages. I wouldn't miss this." His mouth dropped open, and if his skin were lighter I'm sure the blush would have burned my eyes. "Now it is my turn to apologize." His eyes dropped to the floor.

"Let's call it even." I kept my tone light, but the tension didn't leave me. He nodded quickly.

Niall sent a wink in my direction. "I don't think you're cold. In fact, maybe we could entertain ourselves while we wait."

"Don't do that."

"What?"

"The flirty thing. Besides, you locked away Wild Cat."

Liam growled and Niall groaned. "Don't remind him. He's convinced he'd bonded with you, but that the block I put on is harming the connection somehow."

An impulse gripped me and I didn't fight it. This wasn't Wild Cat, this was me, and the part of me that had admired Liam from the first moment I'd seen him. I slid to the floor beside Liam and he lifted an arm, hugging me to his side. "I heard you earlier," I confessed. "Explain the bond to me?"

Liam answered, his deep voice rumbling next to me. "It's more common with Animal Talkers and doesn't happen for everyone. My parents were bonded, but no one else in my family ever did, and they are mostly Animal Talkers."

Niall scoffed. "You've been convinced you would bond since you were five. There is no way you bonded with her in one night."

Liam tensed and I patted his knee. "Why do you think you've bonded with me?"

His pale eyes pierced me. "Spencer is right. This isn't you."

That hurt, even more, coming from him. I tried to pull away but his arm didn't budge. I swallowed. "This is me. As I said to Spencer, you may leave if you like."

He shifted and soft lips brushed my forehead. "I'm sorry. I really didn't mean it like that. It's just such a stark contrast from how you were earlier."

That wasn't any better. "No girl likes to be compared to a crazy version of herself and be found lacking."

He growled. "You're not lacking."

"Incomplete." I threw out the word that had bothered me the most.

He picked me up and put me on his lap, so I faced out, and he hugged me from behind. "Not that either. You just don't know all of yourself yet." He sighed. "We're not explaining this very well. Every Spirit Aspirant goes through this. We just have an advantage, because we know we're going through it. It's usually around puberty, when everything is fucked up anyways. By the time we hit the Academy, the worst of the highs and lows have been worked out of our systems."

I squirmed and he tightened his arms until I stilled. "You want to know why I think I've bonded with you? Because even before all of this I watched you. I'd feel your eyes on me. When you were with David? That about killed me. I also wanted to touch you, and I wanted to punch Niall every time he said something stupid and you'd curl your lip at us. I actually did a few times."