Total pages in book: 112
Estimated words: 105936 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 530(@200wpm)___ 424(@250wpm)___ 353(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 105936 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 530(@200wpm)___ 424(@250wpm)___ 353(@300wpm)
For the first time my father looked uncomfortable.
“Now, Jessina,” he began. “When we signed the contract, we were only thinking of your future happiness—”
On hearing those words, “when we signed the contract,” all hope left my body. Once a Binding Contract is signed, there’s almost no way to back out of it. If my father really cared so little about me that he would allow my malevolent stepmother to choose my future husband based on who would give her the best discounts when she went shopping, then there was no way he would listen to my pleas and let me out of the upcoming union.
Which meant I was going to have to find a way to get myself out of it.
“All right, fine,” I said.
“What do you mean by that?” Lyrah demanded.
I shrugged.
“Just what I said. If the contract is already signed, then there’s nothing to be done. It can’t be taken back.” I was furious—more angry than I had ever been in my life—but I knew if I showed it, I was only going to make them suspicious. And I couldn’t afford that—a plan was already forming in my mind.
“So that’s it? You’re happy with our choice?” My father raised his eyebrows.
“Well, he’s not as young as I had hoped my husband would be,” I said. “But you did say he’s rich, right?”
“Yes, extremely. He’s one of the wealthiest males in the Imperium,” Lyrah said slowly. I could tell that she distrusted my sudden change of heart.
“Well, then I guess I can just wait for him to die,” I said, shrugging.
The hologram of my father frowned.
“That’s an extremely disrespectful way to speak of your future lord and husband, daughter,” he said disapprovingly.
Disrespectful was exactly what I had been aiming for. It was more believable than the idea that I would suddenly fall in love with the repulsive male they had chosen or decide to be a dutiful daughter and wed him even though I didn’t like him. They had to think I believed there was something in this Binding for me—some reason I would be willing to go through with it.
“It’s disrespectful but she had a point,” Lyrah said. A greedy light was already shining in her green eyes. “And he has no other relations—just think of having that whole estate to ourselves when he dies!”
It always came back to greed with her—I was convinced that was the main reason she’d married my father. That and she liked the status it gave her to be the wife of the Chieftain of Clan Cruel.
“Last time I looked, I was the one getting Bound to him,” I told her. “I don’t know what you mean about getting the whole estate to ‘ourselves.’”
“Don’t be greedy, Jessina,” she snapped. “Of course you’ll share! If it wasn’t for me, you’d never have gotten the chance at all that money and power in the first place! Don’t forget, I’m the one who arranged this Binding for you.”
“If the two of you are in agreement, then I really have to go,” my father said, frowning. He was forever busy with the work of running the Clan—too busy to care if his children were happy, apparently.
“Yes, darling—we’re all on the same page now,” Lyrah trilled, smiling. “I’ll see you later at home.”
She snapped the holo-projector shut and tucked it back in her purse, giving me a smug smile.
“All right then, shall we go back? And this time, I think you’d better be nicer to Grr. Malofice, don’t you?”
I forced a smile on my face.
“Yes—I’ll try.”
“Just think of all that money, my dear. That would put a smile on anyone’s face.” Linking her arm through mine, she gave me an avaricious smile of her own and towed me back into the dining room.
I spent the rest of the luncheon nodding at everything my husband-to-be said and smiling agreeably even though I felt like my face was going to crack. But the whole time I was planning my escape, plotting to get away and never, ever come back.
I was going to run to my Fated Mate—the one the Goddess had set aside for me—my big brother’s best friend, Turk.
2
TURK
CAPTAIN OF THE ILLYRIAN, SMUGGLING SHIP FOR CLAN SAVAGE
“What do you mean Jessina’s gone?” I stared blankly at the holo of my best friend. Slade is in a different Family from mine—he’s Clan Cruel and I’m Clan Savage—but that’s never affected our friendship. We met at a gathering of the Four Families when we were kids and we’ve been tight ever since.
“Just what I said—she’s gone.” He ran a hand over his golden horns distractedly.
You can generally tell the rank of any Brute affiliated with the Four Families by the color their horns are painted. Slade is Head Enforcer for his Clan which is the reason his horns are gold. I’m the Captain of a smuggling ship for Clan Savage so my horns are painted bronze.